Impact of Electronic Media Advertising

Some examples of electronic media can be television, radio, and Internet. Consumerism can be defined as a fact or practice of an increasing consumption of goods. Since the beginning of society has relied on advertising to publicly promote a product or a specific service. Advertising has impacted consumers in many different ways. People believe that advertisements brainwashes the consumer into purchasing unnecessary items. Other people believe that advertising does not sell any products, but it will convince the people who desire certain product to purchase it.Advertisements affect sports as well, without companies sponsoring these events they would disappear due to lack of funding. Advertising Is everywhere People see celebrities In their new trendy outfits on TV shows or commercials and want to Imitate their fashion statement. Health and weight Is another trend that the electronic media uses to reach the public. A large amount of celebrities Americans seen on television shows or mov ies are in a perfect shape.This role makes an important impact on American culture because it makes Americans think that the celebrities seen in music videos or movies are the body shape everybody should be. People today are also gaining new outlooks towards situations or people. Americans are watching television shows called â€Å"reality shows. † These shows are letting Americans see how celebrities behave in their daily lives. In some ways this shows are causing Americans to think and act differently of what they thought a celebrity live should It be.Americans are Imitating these attitudes that before middle and poor Americans would not know. Electronic media has propagated new trends that Americans would never thought It could It exist such as Internet blobbing, online shopping, and cell phone testing. Internet blobbing Is In the popular American culture. Most Americans use some kind of blob web page to communicate to his friends or any one that wants know about them. Blo bbing can be used as an advertisement. Celebrities use blob pages such as twitter to promote a new movies or just a product they use.Online shopping has become a trend in the past 10 years for the popular culture. Online shopping has given the consumer the convenience to decide if he or she wants the item ship or pick it up at the store. Testing was not even a word back 15 years ago and in the present time is a large trend in pop culture. Testing is being used to communicate with friends and business also used his to trend in a form of advertisement to companies and television shows. Television shows use testing as way to promote their businesses.A famous show call American Idol use testing to decide what contesters should be eliminated or stay on the competition. These three trends have an Impact on American views and values concerning consumerism and work. The Consumerism causes these trends to promote over ten world For example, elegant would not work walkout consumerism. The soc iety is the main reason the chain keeps moving and advertising works well for companies or television show such as American idol. These trends also have an impact when speaking of work.For example, online shopping has caused some problems of unemployment because it reduces the personal customer service that a salesperson can bring to the customers. The impact of electronic media advertising on consumerism make Americans have a reaction to purchase or not products offered in media. Electronic media has developed new trends in the popular American culture and has an impact in Americans' views and values in consumerism and work. The trends have increased consume of products by Americans, and work has unemployment problems cause by the technology.

Langston Hughes Essay

Of the major black writers who first made their appearance during the exciting period of the 1920s commonly referred to as â€Å"the Harlem Renaissance,† Langston Hughes was the most prolific and the most successful. As the Harlem Renaissance gave way to the Depression, Hughes determined to sustain his career as a poet by bringing his poetry to the people. At the suggestion of Mary McLeod Bethune, he launched his career as a public speaker by embarking on an extensive lecture tour of the South. As he wrote in his autobiography: â€Å"Propelled by the backwash of the â€Å"Harlem Renaissance† of the early twenties, I had been drifting along pleasantly on the delightful rewards of my poems which seemed to please the fancy of kindhearted New York ladies with money to help young writers. . . . There was one other dilemma–how to make a living from the kind of writing I wanted to do. . . . I wanted to write seriously and as well as I knew how about the Negro people, and make that kind of writing earn me a livin† (Hughes, 1964:31). Alain Locke, the leading exponent of â€Å"The New Negro,† announced that the black masses had found their voice: â€Å"A true people’s poet has their balladry in his veins; and to me many of these poems seem based on rhythms as seasoned as folksongs and on moods as deep-seated as folk-ballads. Dunbar is supposed to have expressed the peasant heart of the people. But Dunbar was the showman of the Negro masses; here is their spokesman (Killens ed. 1960:41). Though much of the poetry Hughes was to write in the thirties and afterward was to differ markedly in terms of social content from the poetry he was producing in the twenties, a careful examination of his early work will reveal, in germinal form, the basic themes which were to preoccupy him throughout his career. Hughes’s evolution as a poet cannot be seen apart from the circumstances of his life which thrust him into the role of poet. Indeed, it was Hughes’s awareness of what he personally regarded as a rather unique childhood which determined him in his drive to express, through poetry, the feelings of the black masses and their questions of identity. In â€Å"The Weary Blues†, Hughes presented the problem of dual consciousness quite cleverly by placing two parenthetical statements of identity as the opening and closing poems, and titling them â€Å"Proem† and â€Å"Epilogue. † Their opening lines suggest the polarities of consciousness between which the poet located his own persona: â€Å"I Am a Negro† and â€Å"I, Too, Sing America. † Within each of these poems, Hughes suggests the interrelatedness of the two identities: the line â€Å"I am a Negro† is echoed as â€Å"I am the darker brother† in the closing poem. Between the American and the Negro, a third identity is suggested: that of the poet or â€Å"singer. † It is this latter persona which Hughes had assumed for himself in his attempt to resolve the dilemma of divided consciousness. Thus, within the confines of these two poems revolving around identity, Hughes is presenting his poetry as a kind of salvation. If one looks more closely at Hughes’s organization of poems in the book, one finds that his true opening and closing poems are concerned not with identity but with patterns of cyclical time. â€Å"The Weary Blues† (the first poem) is about a black piano man who plays deep into the night until at last he falls into sleep â€Å"like a rock or a man that’s dead. † The last poem, on the other hand, suggests a rebirth, an awakening, after the long night of weary blues: â€Å"We have tomorrow/ Bright before us/Like a flame† (Hughes 1926:109). Hughes viewed the poet’s role as one of responsibility: the poet must strive to maintain his objectivity and artistic distance, while at the same time speaking with passion through the medium he has selected for himself. In a speech given before the American Society of African Culture in 1960, Hughes urged his fellow black writers to cultivate objectivity in dealing with blackness: â€Å"Advice to Negro writers: Step outside yourself, then look back – and you will see how human, yet how beautiful and black you are. How very black – even when you’re integrated† (Killens ed. 1960:44). In another part of the speech, Hughes stressed art over race: â€Å"In the great sense of the word, anytime, any place, good art transcends land, race, or nationality, and color drops away. If you are a good writer, in the end neither blackness nor whiteness makes a difference to readers† (Killens ed. 1960:47). This philosophy of artistic distance was integral to Hughes’s argument in the much earlier essay â€Å"The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain,† which became a rallying call to young black writers of the twenties concerned with reconciling artistic freedom with racial expression: â€Å"It is the duty of the younger Negro artist if he accepts any duties at all from outsiders, to change through the force of his art that old whispering ‘I want to be white’ hidden in the aspirations of his people, to ‘Why should I want to be white? I am a Negro – and beautiful! ’† In this greatly thought-out manifesto, Hughes attempted to integrate the two facets of double consciousness (the American and the Negro) into a single vision-that of the poet. His poetry had reflected this idea from the beginning, when he published â€Å"The Negro Speaks of Rivers† at the age of nineteen. Arna Bontemps, in a retrospective glance at the Harlem Renaissance from the distance of almost fifty years, was referring to â€Å"The Negro Speaks of Rivers† when he commented: â€Å"And almost the first utterance of the revival struck a note that disturbed poetic tradition. † (Addison ed. 1988:83). In Hughes’s poetry, the central element of importance is the affirmation of blackness. Everything that distinguished Hughes’s poetry from the white poets of the twenties revolved around this important affirmation. Musical idioms, jazz rhythms, Hughes’s special brand of â€Å"black-white† irony, and dialect were all dependent on the priority of black selfhood: â€Å"I am a Negro/Black as the night is black/Black like the depths of my Africa† (Hughes 1926:108). Hughes wrote in his autobiography: â€Å"My best poems were all written when I felt the worst. When I was happy, I didn’t write anything† (Hughes 1991:54). When he first began writing poetry, he felt his lyrics were too personal to reveal to others: â€Å"Poems came to me now spontaneously, from somewhere inside. . . . I put the poems down quickly on anything I had a hand when they came into my head, and later I copied them into a notebook. But I began to be afraid to show my poems to anybody, because they had become very serious and very much a part of me. And I was afraid other people might not like them or understand them† (Hughes: 34). These two statements regarding his poetry suggest deep underlying emotional tensions as being the source of his creativity. And yet the personal element in Hughes’s poetry is almost entirely submerged beneath the persona of the â€Å"Negro Poet Laureate. † If, as Hughes suggested, personal unhappiness was the cornerstone of his best work, it then follows that, in order to maintain the singleness of purpose and devotion to his art, he would be required to sacrifice some degree of emotional stability. The persona of the poet was the role Hughes adopted in his very first published poem, as the Negro in â€Å"The Negro Speaks of Rivers. † It was a persona to which he would remain faithful throughout his lengthy career. The link between his personal experiences and his poetry has been always evident. References Addison Gayle, Jr. , ed. (1988). â€Å"Negro Poets, Then and Now,† in Black Expression: Essays by and About Black Americans in the Creative Arts, New York: Weybright & Talley Langston Hughes (1964). I Wonder As I Wander, New York: Hill & Wang Langston Hughes (1926). The Weary Blues, New York: Alfred A. Knopf Publishing, reprinted, 1982 Langston Hughes (1991). The Big Sea: An Autobiography. 1940. New York: Hill & Wang Killens, John O. ,ed. (1960). â€Å"Writers: Black and White†, The American Negro Writer and His Roots: Selected Papers from the First Conference of Negro Writers, March. New York: American Society of African Culture

Dickens's Treatment of Education and Social Mobility Essay

Dickens's Treatment of Education and Social Mobility - Essay Example onal system as it existed for the children of the working class, but also to highlight some of the major problems inherent in the education of young gentlemen and even girls in terms of preparing them for the new economy that was emerging. Recognizing the societal shifts that were occurring, he also attempted to call attention to the crass tendencies of the newly rich or at least comfortable middle class, the overbearing and mostly ridiculous preening of the aristocracy and the desperate and uncontrollable situation of the poor. Limited in his scope for possible solutions, Dickens nevertheless included suggestions for reformation in his emphasis upon morality and nobility of spirit rather than the focus upon material wealth as a measure of means. Throughout his novels, Dickens criticized a society that could produce and hold in esteem any establishment that treated children with the cruelty of Dotheby’s Hall or Dr. Blimber. Yet he also criticized the useless education provided to the aristocracy as is illustrated in Pip’s gentlemanly tutoring. This would seem to suggest a general disdain for education altogether. However, through the gentle Fanny, who begs her father for an education and then educates herself further to help little Paul, to the finally repentant and thoroughly educated Pip, Dickens continues to underscore the need and importance of a true education. Dickens’ portrayal of the educational systems available for the poor, as well as the style of many of the private schools offering limited enrollment but similar systems of learning by rote, was highly critical and aimed at bringing the realities of education in England to the attention of the public. That he was successful in portraying an accurate representation can be seen in the fact that schoolmasters of England were frequently identified as the model of Mr. Squeers in Nicholas Nickleby: â€Å"While the Author cannot but feel the full force of the compliment thus conveyed to him, he ventures

With respect to the 4th ammendment, briefly explain the following Essay

With respect to the 4th ammendment, briefly explain the following concepts, in doing so be sure to present the respective cases - Essay Example In the landmark case of Silverthorne Lumber Co. v. United States [1920], Federal agents that illegally seized tax books of a suspect and made copies as records of tax evasion. The Court held that such illegal seizure circumvented the Fourth Amendment, and that the records made are fruits from the poisonous tree (illegal seizure of tax books), hence may not be considered in court. However, under the independent source doctrine evidence that is obtained based upon information unrelated to an unlawful search is not fruit of the poisonous tree. In the case of Segura v. United States (1984), law enforcers entered the private premises of the suspect and remained in there until the search warrant arrived. The Supreme Court admitted the evidence found after the search warrant arrived but excluded all others as upon entry without the warrant. The Court held that the question on the legality of entry was irrelevant to challenge the admissibility of evidence due to the independent source of the warrant. In the case of United States v. Leon (1984), a police officer that relied on a defective search warrant with no knowledge of the validity of the basis for how it was obtained was said to have acted in good faith, and the evidence obtained from such defective search warrant was allowed in Court.

Major Educational Issues in Further Education Essay

Major Educational Issues in Further Education - Essay Example All these issues are current concern to further education. Further Education has, therefore, become not only a national but also an international movement in view of its widespread global application. From among all above mentioned issues of further education, more important one appears to be specially the context of retention and achievement - its ever dynamic enhancement and persistent maintenance of higher standards. This is not possible without pupil-teachers -- at City & Guilds Certificate on Further Education Teaching Stage 2 - perfecting their teaching-learning skills. Two questions arise while writing about this matter: According to Learning and Skills Council (LSC), overall level of retention and achievement generally varies between 66 to 87 per cent among youth of 16 to 19 years (Government of United Kingdom, LSC) after due training. What is more important here is maintaining a consistent performance on the higher side of teaching and learning through dynamic and skilful efforts towards an excellent retention and achievement levels. How it is to be done S. Wallace has an interesting and revealing perspective in this matter. This author writes quite analytically: For a student teacher, or a teacher at the beginning of his or her career, it is usually (and understandably) the case that the focus of his or her anxieties, and therefore his or her planning, is upon the performance of teaching rather than upon the achievement of learning. I use the word 'performance' here advisedly, because the inexperienced or student teacher tends to envisage a lesson as a time to be filled by his or her own activity. They have to be 'teaching' all the time - which can mistakenly be taken to mean doing all the talking, making themselves the constant focus of the class, having to fill any potential silence with words. This, ironically, may mean the students have less opportunity to learn and that the teacher has no time to focus on whether they are doing so. If we remember, however, that the primary objective is about students' learning and that this, after all, is what all the teaching is for, we can begin to adjust our focus and to recognise that the careful pl anning, implementation and recording of assessment are central to what the lesson is about. It's not just about teaching; it's about learning. The teaching is only a means to that end (Wallace 64). Retention and achievement are clearly related to teaching and learning skills and maintaining quantitative alongwith qualitative levels of excellence through further education, continued and periodic updating of skills, and use of every possible tool for obtaining information, knowledge, experience and continuous self-assessment. How to impart information and knowledge is

Strategic management leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Strategic management leadership - Essay Example Fro public organizations to cope with this trend and demand of the present time, there is the need that it adopt a strategic management so as to effectively utilize its resources in meeting immediate objectives and long term goals. Strategic management is then seen as a rational planning process to enable an organization operates more effectively in its environment. To this end, Armitage (1992), define it as a continuous process that works to fit an organization into its changing environment. Thus, strategic management is broader in concept than strategic planning; it entails both strategic planning, which a long term is planning process, and strategic decision, which decisions are taken without consideration to the length of term frame. The strategic management pattern of every organization may differ from what is obtainable in another. While there are areas of similarities, certain aspects are uniquely structured out to suit the operation of the organization in concern. Thus, this essay would compare and contracts on strategic management techniques adopted by two case studies, i.e. Office of Real Property Service (ORPS) and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The strategic management techniques would be used at looking at the impact it has on strategic leadership and the strategic processes adopted by each organization THE PROCESS OF AN IDEAL STARTEGIC MANAGEMENT As earlier stated, strategic management entails a continuous process that works to make an organization fit into its operating environment by the adequate utilization of its resources. Thus, it involves strategic planning, i.e. long range planning, and decision making that covers the operational activities of the organization without regards for time frame. The implementation of strategic management system is the administrative responsibility of a group of the firm's partners and managers. According to Armitage (1992), the implementation of the strategic management system must be approached in a manner indicating that the small planning group is not trying to take over the firm. It must be made clear from the start that the group will work within the bounds of the organization and that all members of the firm will have input into the process. The support for the strategic management can be increased by the use of consensus decision making rather than formal vote taking. Voting can le ad to division rather than uniting the organization. Consensus decision on the other hand fosters the working together of workers and leads to increased cooperation among members of the organization. The process of strategic management should first focus on formulating the organization's mission and the overall direction of the organization. With the clarification of this, better goals and objectives can be set for the firm to help achieve its mission. On the early stage, the process of strategic management should attempt at identifying those major strategic issues facing the firm. Also, the leaders of the organization should focus on the future strategic issues the organization may face. The next phase of the process involves analyzing the firm's strength and weakness, involving an environmental analysis, and current

How Do You See Ancient Greece In Today's World Essay

How Do You See Ancient Greece In Today's World - Essay Example We must, then, think of Greece as having influenced the West, and also consider that the West has influenced much of the rest of the world: to withhold talk of gods and goddesses for now, it was the Greeks who created today’s world of reason, logic, and understanding, where cause and effect are supreme, in place of a chaotic, mysterious universe, incomprehensible to humankind. We have, however, in early Greece itself, a division fundamental to Western philosophy. Platonists believe the truth is to be searched for in Plato’s well-known â€Å"world of ideas†; the Aristotelians’ belief is that truth must be deduced, induced, or otherwise gleaned from observation of the outside world. In Platos Theory of Creation, as in Timaeus, God creates from his blueprints, called the Forms, for which Matter is the receptacle. This is similar to the Indian conception of God as the masculine force and the Earth as the feminine—which, indeed, gives us one of several links between the Greek conception of the universe and the Oriental. Now here is the poet Heine: â€Å"Plato and Aristotle! These are not merely two systems, but rather two types of human nature, that stand, since time immemorial, in hostile opposition. Across the entire middle ages, to the greatest degree, and up to the present day, this battle was waged†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Heine) Seen in this light, we in the West are all Aristotelians; our marriage to technology proceeds directly from the view that the external world is to supply us with all our truths. Despite all of Aristotle’s classic mistakes, the man and his views live on: we with our machines are the proof. From Aristotle, we turn to a phenomenon called Hippocrates – the first ever physician to have considered medicine as science rather than sorcery. Hippocrates is rightly called the Father of Medicine, believing, as he did, that

Managing Organisations, People and Self Assignment

Managing Organisations, People and Self - Assignment Example According to the case study, John Barker owns the double-glazing business â€Å"Hole in the Wall† and built it completely on the basis of his own skills and capability. He also employed a small group of people and provided his services on a small scale. The business had registered immense growth in the tenure of its operation over the years. In the recent years, the business had to deal with several key issues that harm its operations and reputation considerably. Contextually, this assignment will analyse the prevailing problems in the business that resulted in its performance decline and certain recommendations will be discussed in solving the same. The suggestions would certainly help the business to improve its performance up to a larger extent. 2.0. Problems / Evaluation John Barker started his double glazing business with employing 20 people in the initial stages of the operation of the business. However, with the retirement of his friend/supplier, Barker occupied the factory of his friend and thus expanded his business operations with the inclusion of more staffs. He also took the approach of making extensive advertisements in the local newspaper and the media in order to target the customers of the local market. The company had experienced considerable growth in recent times in the form of building better business reputation amid the customers. However, the growth of the company had been hindered by certain specific problems in the workplace that are yet to be evaluated. It can be viewed in this similar concern that there was increased number of complaints from the end of the customers about the quality of the services or the products of the company, which further damaged its better reputation amid the customers. Moreover, it has also been observe d that the employees of the business have become quite inefficient and their performance had declined considerably. In addition, a few of the employees had also left the company without providing any notice, which further harmed the operational efficiency of the business up to a larger extent. This aspect can resemble with the problems that prevail in the workplace of the business. From the analysis of the case study, it can be stated that there were problems of motivation that might be impacting the approach of the employees and steering them towards an undesirable direction. Moreover, the leadership and business management abilities of Barker can be questioned with regard to the poor performance of the business. The problems have been further identified and discussed in detail hereunder. 2.1. Motivation Motivation is regarded as one of the imperative aspects, which impacts the behaviour of an individual. It encourages people to conduct their work in an efficient and dedicated mann er (Reem, 2011). In the case study provided, the employees of the business and their conduct were deemed to be affecting the welfare of the business up to an extensive extent. Contextually, it has been observed that the performance of the company owned by Barker in recent years had showed certain inefficient results, which are a matter of concern for the same. Analysis suggests that

Evaluating Communication Strategies Essay Example for Free

Evaluating Communication Strategies Essay You are working as a human service worker at a local United Way agency that serves several multicultural clients. In addition to the multicultural aspect, the agency also serves children, women, the elderly, and the homeless. Your manager has asked you to decide the best communication approach for each of these clients. Answer the following questions: What would you need to learn or know about each of your clients in order to communicate effectively with them? What strategies or techniques do you believe would be the best approach to take when communicating with each of these clients? How might you need to adapt your communication approach from one individual to the next? Working in the Human Services field can provide you with many different types of job opportunities each requiring their own specific needs to clients, many different types of clients that is. To communicate in an effective way with clients getting to know about them is a great start. Listen is top priority to understanding and getting to know your clients. Active listening describes the effort on the part of the listener. Active listening involves giving verbal feedback on the content of what was said, along with recognition of the feelings underneath. Qualities of a good listener include: being non-aggressive, being self-confident, having the ability to let things go along with the ability to work things out. Listening opens the door to meaning. When you hear the person, understand the situation and the feelings, then you are in a position to take constructive action or to reply to her or him in a way that makes sense. Helpful listening helps people look at their ideas, plans, hopes, concerns, fears, etc. It helps them gather information, solve their problems themselves and try out other alternatives. * Communication may seem easy, but to many peoples surprise it is something that has to be learned and practiced. Some of us have developed poor listening skills; we may be judgmental or dont allow others to speak. Some of us may use close-ended questions exclusively, and do not allow others to explore and contribute to  the discussion. A few strategies and or techniques that allow us to see a better approach to communicating can be using open-end questions such as Where would you like to begin? What options have you explored? Which concern would you like to talk about first? Can you tell me more about that? Open-ended questions encourage the exploration of thoughts and feelings by leaving individuals free to answer in any way they choose. On the flip side, closed sided questions s force a specific answer. They often present themselves as roadblocks to good communication. Sometimes you need specific information (i.e. what city do you live in?). Be sure the information you request is relevant to the persons situation. Use fact-finding, limited-response questions sparingly. A closed question allows for a limited response. Understanding that each client is different from each other, focusing on each client while actively listen, not judging and knowing that the client is there for help is a way to adapt your communication between clients and or patients.

Two versions of Macbeth act 5 scene 1 Essay Example for Free

Two versions of Macbeth act 5 scene 1 Essay I have studied two versions of Macbeth act 5 scene 1, otherwise known as the sleepwalking scene. They are the Royal Shakespeare Company, and the BBC productions. I have watched several productions but I am going to focus on these two versions in particular. I want to examine the significance of the scene and analyse how it has been produced and directed. This scene is extremely important because it occurs just after Macduff has swore to avenge the killing of his family and just before we see Malcolms army getting ready to fight against Macbeth. The scene is situated in an important part of the play also, because Shakespeare traditionally places the finale of the play in act 5. It is the first time we have seen Lady Macbeth since the banquet and the scene is used to tell us what has been happening to her in the meantime. It is there to allow the viewer to enter the mind of Lady Macbeth and to realise the nightmare she is living in. It is there to show how she is coping with recent events and it will be the last time we ever see her. She is not alone in this scene; a doctor and a gentlewoman are also there. Their roles are to observe Lady Macbeth discreetly and to comment on what she is saying and doing. We find out about her insecurity and that she is afraid of the dark. We also learn that guilt has taken over and that she is extremely unhappy. As one of the major characters in the play, Lady Macbeth has been involved in some of the main events. For example, she was in alliance with her husband in Duncans murder, and even persuaded Macbeth to go through with the murder after he had decided to leave things to chance (Act 1 Scene 7). She organised the whole murder by laying out the daggers and she drugged the possets of the grooms. She also helps Macbeth after the murder by distracting others when she fainted so her involvement was very significant. At that stage she is the dominant partner in the marriage. She has seen a chance to make her husband king and is determined not to let it slip away. She asked evil spirits to unsex me here and for any natural feelings to disappear so she would not hesitate in carrying out the murder. This seems to have worked because when she is persuading her husband her language is very forceful and she conjures up images of horror. Her wish for the evil spirits to fill me from the crown to the toe top-full of direst cruelty has been granted. Manhood is a frequent theme in this early scene. Lady Macbeth sees it simply as a man should have courage to act and to face danger but Macbeth says that he dares to do anything that is suitable to a man; to do more would be unmanly. She knows how to manipulate her husband and this is clearly shown when Macbeth gives in to his wifes demands and decides to go ahead with the murder after the questioning of his manhood. Her ruthless determination has made Macbeth overcome his doubts. These early characteristics have all but disappeared by the sleepwalking scene. She is no longer the ambitious, determined, moral blackmailer. Instead she is a broken woman, emotionally drained and a shadow of her former self. The banquet scene has fully taxed her resources and resulted in her total collapse. She is now guilt-ridden as her soliloquy discloses. She knows about the other murders and this has taken its toll on her mentally and physically too. The significance of sleepwalking is that her guilt is depriving her of any comfort, even sleeping. The gentlewoman and the doctor open the scene. The doctor is questioning the gentlewoman about lady Macbeths condition. She responds by telling the doctor about her sleepwalking but when he asks the gentlewoman what Lady Macbeth has said, she replies that sir, which I will not report after her, explaining that she has no witness to confirm her speech. This suggests that knowing what Lady Macbeth has said could be dangerous for her. While the doctor is trying to persuade her, Lady Macbeth appears whilst holding a candle, this is interesting because it symbolises the good that is still inside her. In both productions she is lit in a way to imply that she is possessed by the supernatural. The mist and darkness reminds us of Banquo and Macbeth before they met the witches on the moor. It also brings back memories of the witches (act 1 scene 1) when they talked about the fog and filthy air. Lady Macbeth is seen to be rubbing her hands frantically and talks about the blood on them. She mentions a spot that she cannot remove; this could be the mark of the devil or maybe it is symbolising the guilt within her. She cannot wash away her murderous deeds. She goes through a roller coaster of emotions as she receives flashbacks from when she and her husband were plotting to kill Duncan. She says one; two: why, then tis time to dot. This is her remembering the ringing of the bell when Duncan was about to be murdered. She continues, Hell is murky! She has said this because she knows what her fate will be and understands the consequences of her actions. She is in complete despair at this stage. She also reveals that she knows about Macduffs family when she says the thane of fife had a wife: where is she now? She is no longer innocent of this knowledge. She constantly rubs her hands and states will these hands neer be clean? and heres the smell of blood still: all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. This is quite ironic because it is her who says to Macbeth after the murder of King Duncan, that a little water will clear us of this deed (act 2 scene 2). The contrast is no more evident than here, this is where Lady Macbeth takes charge of the situation after Macbeth had forgot to plant the daggers on the grooms. She takes the daggers to do it herself and reassures Macbeth. If you compare this to the sleepwalking scene you can see the difference. Not only has she got the guilt of Duncan, Banquo and Macduffs family but also she has now realised that Macbeth does not need her and doesnt confide in her anymore. This once strong woman is now worthless. Near the end of the scene the doctor recognises that she needs a priest more than a physician. Compare the state of their relation at these two points as well. What once was a strong solid relationship is now left in tatters. The two productions differ in certain ways. In the BBC version, the stage is misty and it is set inside a castle. Archways and stonewalls are clearly visible. There are steps leading to Lady Macbeths bedroom and the scene starts with the doctor and gentlewoman talking to each other in the middle of a large room. Jean Lapotaire is playing Lady Macbeth and she tends to over act her part. She moves about a lot more than Judi Dench in the RSC production. She appears almost as a ghost figure. She is illuminated and I think the director does this to make us aware of a supernatural presence. The camera focuses in on her and she is lit from the back which I believe adds to the effect. Both actresses walk by the doctor and gentlewoman, which suggests that Lady Macbeth is completely oblivious to what is going on around her, this quote supports that theory, aye, but their sense is shut. Lady Macbeth is constantly changing the tone of her voice and facial expressions from being joyful to afraid. This helps illustrate the utter despair she is feeling and contributes to the dramatic effect. Her delivery is breathy and exaggerated, I believe that her performance is over dramatised but on the other hand she is trying to convey the state of mind that Lady Macbeth is in. The doctor is quite old and is convincing. He is startled and shocked at what he hears. The gentlewoman is emotional and her tone of voice varies to help express her emotion In the RSC production, the most obvious difference is the lack of props. It is a very dark stage and there is only a table and chair. The director has created the illusion that a candle is lighting up Lady Macbeths face but it is more likely due to the lighting department. This helps to create a sense of evilness. Judi Dench acts very differently to Jean Lapotaire. When she enters her eyes are swollen to give the effect of her crying. The Gentlewomans delivery is monotonous and the Doctor is quite young. The delivery of the words and facial expressions are very important in this production due to the lack of visual effects. Judi Dench does not move very much and opts to sit down at the table instead. The camera remains focused on Lady Macbeths face. The candle/lighting helps the audience to see her facial expressions more clearly. She is very convincing and her tears seem to be genuine. When the death of Banquo is mentioned the camera looks at the Doctor to show his shock. Neither the Doctor nor the Gentlewoman are dressed in clothing from that period. Judi Dench lets out a huge cry, this cry is heavily exaggerated but I think it helps to convey the pent up emotion that she has been feeling. The light of the candle can be seen fading away as Lady Macbeth leaves, this is the last time we will see her. All in all, I preferred the RSC production I thought Judi Denchs performance was excellent. Jean Lapotaire was sometimes slightly comical because of her over exaggeration but this may be more appealing to people who are not familiar with Macbeth. Jean Lapotaires delivery was interesting. She almost sang the line the thane of fife had a wife: where is she now? like a nursery rhyme, this is somewhat ironic considering that it was tragic. I think the RSC caught the real significance and emotion of the scene well. I think an older Doctor could improve it and I believe the Gentlewomans delivery could be more passionate.

Aristotle And Concept Of Happiness Philosophy Essay

Aristotle And Concept Of Happiness Philosophy Essay In this paper, I wish to explore the concept of happiness as well as Aristotles take on it. I think for most of us, we rarely stop and think about what happiness is even though we cannot deny its inevitable existence. It is one of my major points that everyone has a different definition of what happiness is or what happiness means to them, and that definition changes along with time, when ones personal believes or opinions or convictions change as he progresses through life, they change because of a myriad of reasons, no social scientists can pin down exactly what they are but those changes are nevertheless very real and a direct correspondence of the direct interaction between the person and his or her environment. Aristotle proposes that the single idea of good must establish these three claims: Idea of Good Claim 1) We have ends which we choose for themselves. Idea of Good Claim 2) That there is only one such end. Idea of Good Claim 3) That end is happiness. He argues for Idea of Good Claim 1) as follows (Irwin 173): 1.1. If we choose everything because of something else, desire will be empty and futile. 1.2. We have a gut feeling that some desires are not empty and futile. 1.3. Therefore, we do not choose everything because of something else. 1.4. Therefore we choose something for its own sake. 1.5. What we choose for its own sake, therefore, must be the best good. The debatable premise is 2. As this is not conflicting with my own gut feelings, we will allow Aristotle postulate this claim. Postulate 1: We have a gut feeling that some desires are not empty and futile. Granting him this postulate, we allow his conclusion 5. that there are some things we choose for their own sake. This satisfies Idea of Good Claim 1). Aristotles criteria for the Idea of Good are self-sufficiency and completeness. Regarding these criteria he says, not all ends are complete. But the best good is apparently something complete. And so, if only one end is complete, the good we are looking for will be this end; if more ends than one are complete, it will be the most complete of these ends. (Irwin 7) Aristotle has not given good reason why there must be only one end from which all actions are a means, rather than several such ends. At this point I will not contend with Aristotle if he can posit this singularity and avoid contradiction further into his theory. Postulate 2: There is only one Idea of Good. Aristotle explores and finds happiness to be the best fit for these criteria of the Idea of Good. We must pause for a moment to clarify the translation of eudaimonia, translated to happiness in the text. In Greek, eudaimonia translates to living well or doing well, Happiness is the complete end [ones] complete happiness depends on himself, and not on external conditions. (Irwin 333) Regarding happiness as the single Idea of Good Aristotle says, Now happiness, more than anything else, seems complete without qualification. For we always choose it because of itself, never because of something else. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The same conclusion also appears to follow from self-sufficiency. For the complete good seems to be self-sufficientà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ We hold an end to be self sufficient when all by itself it makes a life choiceworthy and lacking nothing; and that is what we think happiness does. (Irwin 8) Aristotle makes a good argument here for why happiness is the Idea of Good because he appea ls to ones intuition. My own intuition does not conflict with Aristotles proposition that eudaimonia is the most complete and self-sufficient end, to which other human objectives are means to. Aristotle has satisfied Idea of Good in Claim 3) if we allow him to postulate the first two claims. Aristotle has solidified his claim that eudaimonia is the Idea of the Good by satisfying the three claims. With this information, we progress to investigate which of the three types of lives reaches eudaimonia the best. Aristotle claims that the life of activity and reason achieves this goal best, and denies two alternatives: the life of gratification and the life of ambition. Aristotle argues that happiness is not a state or possession, but rather an activity that we engage in. Aristotle proposes that someone who is asleep for their entire life could not be eudaimonia. This is consistent with the definition given earlier of eudaimonia. Just as the function of a harpist is to play the harp, and the function of the physician is to care for the body, the function of the human being according to Aristotle is to remain active and employ reason in ones life. Aristotle contemplates the human function saying, we take the human function to be a certain kind of life, and take this life to be activity and actions of the soul that involve reason. (Irwin 9) He denies that the human function is bodily pleasure because those qualities are shared with animals. Aristotle claims our purpose must be a life of active contemplation, saying, The remaining possibility, then, is some sort of life of action of the part of the soul that has reasonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ we take the human function to be a certain kind of life, and take this life to be activity and actions of the soul that involve reason. (Irwin 9) Aristotles argument for activity holds for our own time, people who remain active appear to be happier than those who can no longer be, such as the elderly. However, activity involving reason may be too narrow of a definition. One viable alternative is productivity in whatever respect one is capable of. Aristotle is confining his alternatives of what constitutes a good life to his own talents, rather than allowing people with other dispositions to also live eudaimonia. The life of gratification focuses on sensory pleasures as the means to happiness. Aristotle denies that pleasure is necessarily a good, and pain is necessarily an evil. He separates goods into two types, conditional and unconditional. He argues that pleasure is conditionally good for us because we have the pain corresponding to it. For example, hunger is a pain that is satisfied by eating food. Aristotle argues that bodily pleasures are only good under the condition that the corresponding pain is present. Any further pursuit of bodily pleasures to Aristotle is a pursuit of the excess and such pleasure is no longer a good. Reciprocally, the existence of pain in small amounts can be enjoyable as well as it gives us an occasion to satisfy it. Thus, those who live for bodily pleasure, the life of gratification, are not pursuing the most complete good but rather pursue an excess of bodily sensation. Aristotle admits that we all enjoy and are just in enjoying a degree of sensory gratificat ion, but he renders base those who overindulge. The ambitious life is one focused on attaining honor and acknowledgement from others. Aristotle denies this as a viable means to attain eudaimonia because it focuses on the opinions of others. Eudaimonia is a state which should not be so fickle and easily lost as public opinion, and thus Aristotle discards this option, saying, This, however, appears too superficial to be [eudaimonia]; for it seems to depend more on those who honor than on the one honored, whereas we intuitively believe that the good is something of our own and hard to take from us. Further, it would seem, they pursue honor to convince themselves they are good. (Irwin 4) This is a convincing denial of pursuing a life of ambition. I accept an assumption Aristotle makes that living well is not constituted by the opinions of others, but rather by the virtue of oneself. So far we have accepted Aristotles premise that activity is needed to reach eudaimonia, but we have questioned the necessity for study. We have accepted Aristotles denial of the two alternative lives, as they focus on either overindulgence or public opinion. Due to space constraints we will not discuss the possibility of other lives, though there are plenty worthy of mention. One means that Aristotle proposes to remain active is having loving friendships. Aristotle offers loving friendships with good people as the most complete friendship, saying, complete friendship is the friendship of good people similar in virtue; for they wish goods in the same way to each other insofar as they are good, and they are good in their own rightThese kinds of friendships are likely to be rare, since such people are few. (Irwin 122-123) Complete friendships cannot be based on utility or erotic pleasure, but rather love. Aristotle says, Those who are friends for utility dissolve the friendship as soon as the advantage is removed; for they were never friends of each other, but of what was expedient for them. (Irwin 123) Aristotle proposes that a life of friendship facilitates activity, because we are social creatures by nature. A life involving study and contemplation, for example, serves as a medium to foster a respect and exchange of ideas, which is inherent in a loving friendship. In addition, we can expand Aristotles conclusions to apply to other means of remaining active, such as a life of military service, the life of a physician, or the life of an artist. In addition, friends help regulate our behavior in making virtuous decisions, as virtue is also a vital component of reaching eudaimonia. Aristotle says, no one would choose to live without friends even if he had all other goods. Indeed rich people and holders of powerful positions need friends, how else would one benefit from such prosperity if one had no opportunity for beneficenceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ But in poverty also and in other misfortunes, people think friends are the only refugeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The young need friends to keep them from error. The old need friends to care for them and support the actions that fail because of weakness. (Irwin 119) Aristotle is correct in finding that activity is a vital element in achieving eudaimonia, and that friendship plays an important role in helping us remain active and virtuous. We can apply a broader application of this search for happiness by allowing lives other than that of study and contemplation to be pursued, as long as virtue and loving friendships are present. To arrive at this conclusion we postulated two of Aristotles premises (see Postulate 1 and Postulate 2); allowing these lead us to a worthwhile map of how one may reach eudaimonia, the Idea of Good which follows from the postulates. Overlaying a life of productivity for Aristotles requirement of study, we have achieved a valid argument, assuming the postulates, for a means of human flourishing. One should live ones life with virtue, activity, and productivity.

I’m Ready to Write :: Graduate College Admissions Essays

I’m Ready to Write I had been scribbling in diaries and journals for years. My letters to the editor were known for their eloquent ferocity. A talent for writing was the only plausible explanation for my behavior. I had only recently discovered the essay as a genre. I took to it immediately and had had some modest success in getting my essays published on a wide range of websites, from off-the-wall e-zines to on-line literary journals. Was I ready? Was I ready for a real test-to submit my work to the state arts commission for an individual writers grant? At first I thought the idea was laughable. Who the hell did I think I was? My mom knew. She would hold my face in her hands and stare directly into my eyes and say, "You are a writer! Repeat after me: 'I am a writer!' " If my mom believed that, I would not argue with her. I would collaborate in the fiction for now. I began to search for the pieces I would submit. I looked for the essays with a real punch to them. I would include those that had been published or had received at least an honorable mention. There was that one I wrote about going to Mexico. Then one of my canoe essays. Not something corny like me and Ed on the Allegheny, but the one where I used paddling as a platform to view our Mad Max transportation system. I included another longer piece and then a couple of my short pieces. Reviewing the essays, I became self-conscious about my style. It is too popular to be literary, and too literary to be popular. It combines gravitas with humor. There are well-regarded authors whose style is not so different from my own, but what style are the reviewers looking for? Are they the super pure literary types that will dismiss my essays for having a social or political consciousness? Literature! Not polemics! Jack Warner was right: 'If you want to send a message, go to Western Union! Take your soap box and be gone!' I was making myself crazy. I am a writer. This writer will now print off these selections in the format required by the arts council, will put them into a manila envelope, go to the post office and send them to Columbus.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven Essays -- essays research papers

This novel’s first and almost only main character is Eddie, an eighty-three year old man. He is a man who has lived almost his entire life on Ruby Pier, an amusement park right on the ocean. He is head of maintenance at the pier, which was his father’s job when Eddie was a child. Eddie is the protagonist of the novel and a dynamic one at that, as the story covers the day he was born, died, and everywhere between the two.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Eddie’s wife, Marguerite, is dead before the novel begins. She died when they were in their late forties from a brain tumor. The story flashes back to the days they spent together and shows them together in the afterlife. She is also a very dynamic character.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are very few settings in this novel that can actually be described. The first would be Ruby Pier. Right on the ocean, this amusement park was one with the usual attractions, such as bumper cars and roller coasters. It had survived a fire a long time before the novel is set and the rubble was sold. The original owner of the pier was heartbroken and lost everything in the fire. Although it was eventually rebuilt, the owner and his wife never brought themselves to return.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A second setting in this novel is one that is almost not possible to explain. It is considered the â€Å"journey†, the place that one enters when traveling through different places in heaven. The sky constantly changes colors, from â€Å"bright lime,† to...

W.E.B. Dubois And Booker T. Washington Fought Against Racism, Slavery, And Improvement Of African American Lives From Different Dimensions

Few today can imagine how human beings could be caught in their villages like fish and be sold like livestock to other human beings. Africans were being shipped to America, be sold as slave to work in their farms. They were condemned because of their skin color – race to slavery, where they were owned by the people who bought them- the American white farmers. Education was never guaranteed to them since they were someone’s property without no (sic) rights (as people in the ghetto say); what an extreme level of discrimination. How would you feel when subjected to such experience? Naturally no one can be pleased.Imagine these blacks were thinking beings with a mind, soul and body! The children of slaves still remained slaves. These were the things that inspired W. E. B Dubois, Booker T. Washington among the people who had an opportunity by the virtue of the influence after education to fight against racism, slavery trying to improve the lives of African Americans. Merriam -Webster’s dictionary defines racism as a prejudice based on the belief that the race is the main determinant of human traits and capacities and those racial differences produce inherent superiority of a particular racial group.Sociologists Noel Cazenave and Darlene Alvarez Maddem put racism as a highly organized system of race based group privilege that operates at a very high level of society and is held together by a subtle ideology of color/ race ‘supremacy’ (Cazenave and Maddem, 1999). In the book, ‘The Souls of Black Soul’ where (the Author -) W. E. B Dubois asserts ‘elevating the self was the key to better life as a black man’ in a debate in way in which a black American must act versus how he wants to act indicates how hard it was to be free even for those who had been freed from slavery.That racism was deep in the minds of the discriminated. W. E. B Dubois and Booker T. Washington lived at the height of racism and slavery in Ame rica. Both managed to get some good education which was a tool for combating the evil of the twentieth century racism. Washington was a credible proponent of educational improvement for the freed men who remained after reconstruction. At that time Booker T. Washington was the most influential leader in America. The two engaged on an intense dialogue about segregation and political disfranchisement Washington had taken a conciliatory direction of fight against racism.He believed in a skillful accommodation during that age of segregation which came to win a title ‘the great accommodator’ from Dubois. On the other hand Dubois led a radicalized fight. While this could have been seen as clash the two dimensions of their struggle came to supplement each other. This is the approach that came to be used by Martin Luther King Jr. in the later years An American newsletter the Review noted that had great power to move men’s hearts and bring them into sympathy with his noble and unselfish aims for lifting up the race. This article carefully shows Bookers’ approach to education and labor.He takes great advantage to explain his point. Booker is a man of Influence; this can be seen from his position and occupation in the society. As a great orator, Washington is quoted saying that the condition for African American in the south will only improve they learn to put brain and skills into his labor. In this respect, Washington argues that this should result to more technologically advanced labor. Their differences in approaches could be attributed to earlier experiences. Biology explains that siemens twins will certainly behave differently when subjected to different environments to grow.Thinking about this hypothesis, One seminal debate between Washington and Dubois played on the pages of Crisis which Washington was advocating a philosophy of self help and vocational training for blacks, while Dubois pressed for full educational opportunities for his race. Dubois believed that the way out was through study especially the liberal arts. Though wining the battle against slavery was difficult because of the constitution, the two leaders managed to bring about the movement that came to win the freedom of the slaves. This greatly reveals the power in combined workforce isn’t it?Together we stand, divided we fall. This is a common saying. Dubois and Booker formed this alliance and through it, many positive progresses were realized. For example, many humanitarian citizens gave them support, and this made the government take appropriate measures towards slave treatment, and laws governing slaves. The alliance similar to the one with William Monroe Trotter another black intellectual at the time help to form the group National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909. Was this not a fruit of the pioneering work of Booker and Dubois?Think about this: how many organizations will have emerged in the next five y ears after this? How many policies will have been implemented as a result of the pressure inserted by these organizations? These will be clear with time! NAACP in its early years concentrated in using courts to overturn the Jim Crow status that legalized racial discrimination . The crisis magazine for the NAACP became the mouth piece for the propaganda war against racism. During the inter war years NAACP fought lynching of the blacks through out the United States by working on legislation, education the public and lobbying.It was after several decades of campaign that brought the reversal of the separate but equal doctrine announced by Supreme Court Plessey versus Ferguson. Later the desegregation of schools and other public facilities through out the country, through the Supreme Court was managed by the NAACP. Washington though criticized by the NAACP who demanded a hard-line stance of the issue of civil rights protests enlisted some moral and substantial financial support from a n umber of philanthropists they helped him fund his causes – supporting institutions of higher education at Hampton and Tuskegee.Looking at the current American social-political scene would W. E. B. Dubois and Booker T. Washington smiled if they resurrected today? As the PBS statement on their website wonders whether the Americans have learnt to embrace diversity, whether character has triumphed color. Almost every day we find people bleaching their skin on order to look beautiful. Race is another factor that has greatly affected the intellectual growth and increase in technology. This has brought in a belief that whites can do better than blacks in various spheres of academia.This is an analysis published by a journal called: Labor and Demographic Economic. Booker T. Outlines the thinking of many whites during his time. Intellectuals and politicians writing to shape public opinion, from both North and South, had turned increasingly hostile toward African Americans. Many magazi nes of the time had a message of white supremacy. In his study of small-town newspapers in the South, Thomas D. Clark found that most papers in the 1880s and 1890s clearly reflected the â€Å"Negro-as-beast† thinking of the time.The editors revealed â€Å"a general fear of the Negro,† whom they often depicted as uncivilized, a â€Å"wild, ignorant animal. This was a real huddle for Washington to manage is it? His approach was revolutionary as will be seen. Washington gave an exposition speech in 1895 in Atlanta. This speech challenged the images then current in white intellectual and cultural presentations of African Americans. He insisted that blacks were a people of â€Å"love and fidelity† to whites, a â€Å"faithful, law-abiding, and unresentful† people.In its larger thrust, the Atlanta speech represented Washington’s attempt to counter the presumption on the part of the white South, and much of the rest of the nation that African Americans ha d declined in character and morality in freedom. The overarching message that Washington intended was not acceptance of disfranchisement and segregation but rather a message of progress, of movement forward and upward. he indeed displayed dedication towards this. In Atlanta, Washington began to offer Americans a new point of view in order to challenge the ideology of white supremacy.This was a great achievement to this selfless Samaritan, as the disciples of Jesus would refer him during their time. Many years after the Atlanta speech, Washington often spoke up for civil and political rights. This is contrary to Professor Harlan’s contention that â€Å"his public utterances were limited to what whites approved† and that Washington’s actions on behalf of civil and political rights were exclusively part of his â€Å"secret life† of arranging court challenges and organizing protests but taking no public part.In fact, in 1896 Washington told the Washington Pos t that forcing blacks â€Å"to ride in a ‘Jim Crow’ car that is far inferior to that used by the white people is a matter that cannot stand much longer against the increasing intelligence and prosperity of the colored people. † Washington had several admirers and many of the se came in handy to help fight this ugly spirit called racism.He had several forums to speak the same message in a speech at a Spanish-American War Peace Jubilee in Chicago before people; Washington asserted that the United States had won all its battles but one, â€Å"the effort to conquer ourselves in the blotting out of racial prejudice. †¦ Until we thus conquer ourselves, I make no empty statement when I say that we shall have, especially in the Southern part of our country, a cancer gnawing at the heart of the Republic that shall one day prove as dangerous as an attack from an army without or within. † Dubois also worked very hard to enforce equality.This spans from the first time he came into public. No one could quench the thirst of seeing both white and black Americans live in total peace and in brotherly love. His major area of concern was education. Being a person of influence, majorly as an educationist come sociologist, Dubois always desired to have equal chance given to people of all races. He was a very practical man. This works well especially with a layman. At one point, Dubois organized a forum whereby he combined the learned and the illiterate citizens. This forum had people attending from cross- cultural background; both blacks and whites.This was meant to work for the common good of all Americans. Comparing the work done by the two civil activists, Booker mainly impacted the people in public forums, while Dubois did a great deal of work in academic institutions like schools and colleges. Currently as Souls would outline turmoil’s caused by color bar and racism, Dubois urged in his speeches that African Americans should choose path of revolt and radicalism (1969) . in another instance, while writing the Souls, Dubois asked a question â€Å" How does it feel to be a problem ? † (1969:44)In answering this question he explains what being an African American means in such a country and the unique challenges faced. In many of his lectures in the university, Dubois developed sessions where he taught about Negroism. He strongly believed that all there suffering was because of ignorance and would be alleviated through class. Dubois’ work was really a long term investment isn’t it? It is a sure fact that by impacting the lives of students, they would in turn spread the message to their local forks! In conclusion, Washington and Dubois were civil rights leaders, educational founders, and writers.They shared a positive relationship with Oberlin College and lectured at the college on a number of separate occasions. They also communicated on a number of occasions. Like Dubois, later in his career Washi ngton fell from the fore of civil rights activism because he was not radical enough for new progressive movements. Dube and Washington accomplished much for our society. They recognized the importance of practical education and pushed the boundaries of their respective segregated societies. In retrospect, both these activists have been charged with conservatism.While they challenged racial injustice, they nonetheless accepted most of the other social constraints that characterized their society. Above all, Washington and Dube, were pragmatic men, and perhaps it is their pragmatism that has led some to question their ultimate impact on the transformation of race relations in their respective nations .References: 1. Booker . T . Washington (1997) On Our Own Terms: Race, Class, and Gender in the Lives of African American Women. New York: Routledge. Pp 26-70.2. Dubois W. E. B, (1969). The souls of black forks. New York: Signet classics Pp23-48.

Parmalat Accounting Scandal Essay

Summary After eluding financial analysts and investors for a long time, Parmalat went bankrupt later in December, 2003 and many of their board of directors have been arrested since then. Here is a brief summary of the events: In the late 1980’s, Parmalat’s financial situation was poor due to investment in side businesses. i.e. TV network, Parmatur, football teams (Palmeiras, Parma, etc). Cash siphoning through these companies was estimated to be total of â‚ ¬ 10 Bn. In 1990, Parmalat went public which enabled them to tap into the capital markets. Early 1990’s, the company began to acquire dairy producers around the world in order to try to hide the growing debt. Parmalat entered into a series of bond issuances and securitization of receivables to generate cash. A series of other fraudulent accounting practices occurred during the following years. In December 2003, Parmalat was not able to make a U$ 150MM bond payment and raised the attention of the entire market. When the fraud was brought up, Calisto Tanzi (Parmalat founder) and Fausto Tonna (CFO) was arrested along with another 10 individuals. Grant Thornton and Deloitte & Touchà © were Parmalat’s accounting firms during the last 2 decades. Partners of both firms were charged for fraudulent activity. Case analysis From the analysis we made, there are several items that can be appointed as accounting principle violation: A) Overstatement of Assets Assets Selling: Parmalat sold firms to private entities and individuals to re-buy it later in a fake operation, as the money came from other offshore entities just to create liquidity in the books; thanks to that, they could keep issuing bonds to cover their debts Accountable Receivables recognition: Double billing the Italian supermarkets and other retail customers Fake bank accounts: false document have been created to prove the existence of â‚ ¬ 3,9 Bn cash at Bank of America. Again, with more liquidity, more easily got the loans B) Overstatement of revenues Revenue Recognition: False income sales through its offshore companies C) Understatement of liabilities Debt eliminating: Parmalat reduced approximately Euro 3.3 Bn of debt. Misclassification of liabilities: describing sales of receivables as non-recourse, when the company maintained obligation to ensure payment. Proper accounting practices that should have been used A) Assets The firm recognizes revenue when the transaction meets both of the following conditions: 1. Completion of the earnings process: the seller has done all (or nearly all) that is promised to do for the customer. That is, the seller has delivered all (or nearly all) of the goods and services it has agreed to provide 2. Receipt of assets from the customer: The seller has received cash or some other asset that it can convert to cash, for example, by collecting an account receivable Accountable receivables recognition (billing twice) In this case, Parmalat generated double accounts receivable for the same operation billing both, their distributors and the final customer. The revenue from the final customers was recognized on the books, but the billing for the distributors were considered as transfer and accounted for credit owed. Revenue recognition What happened here is that the seller never done what was written in the books, as the operation never existed and customer never received the goods. B) Liabilities Debt Eliminating Parmalat eliminated paid down debt by a series of capital market transactions, mainly bond issuances and sale of receivables. These financing transactions were made possible by overstating their assets. Misclassification of liabilities Parmalat misclassified the financing transaction of selling their receivables. Although, Parmalat sold its receivables (assets) to financial institutions/investors, they were not a true non-recourse sale and Parmalat maintained obligation to ensure that the receivables were ultimately paid, therefore Parmalat should have classified this financing as a liability.

Standard Forms of Building Contract

Furthermore, procedures for selecting main contractor and sub-contractor was reviewed and comparison was prepared to show differences between two procedures. A flow-chart diagram was attached in the Appendix to show the procedures. 2 Introduction 2. 1 Background of the Projects The project we are going to bid is a private development, which to construct a 24- storey residential apartment. The form of contract that the client decided to use in the captioned project is Hong Kong Standard Form of Building Contract 2005-WithQuantities, which is published by HKIS, HKIA & HKICM. The client preferred a single stage selective tendering approach and we are now going to enter the bid. 2. 2 Objectives (i) Understand the procurement strategy adopted (it) Understand the form of contract adopted (iii) Understand how the Client will appoint our company (iv)Understand how our company will appoint a subcontractor (v) Identify differences in tendering procedures 2. 4 Procurement Strategy Figure 1 Orga nizational structure ofa traditional strategy (RICS, 2013) Based on the above scenario, we assumed the project adopting the traditional rocurement.Traditional procurement is most commonly used approach in the construction industry. It's standard practice in the industry since 19th century. (RICS, 2013) Therefore, roles and responsibilities of contractors and different project consultants are well understood. In traditional procurement, design process is kept separate from the construction process. (RICS, 2013) The design have to be completed first and full documentation including drawings, specifications are needed before tendering process. In view of the client, he can remain his control over the design and ensuring quality.A contract dministrator will also appointed to monitor the projects, usually the architect or the engineer. In view of cost and contracts, all returned tenders are based on same intormation, the tender prices can be easily analyzed, and no need tor the Contracto r to build in a risk premium in the tender sum. If the designed is fully completed, construction costs can be determined with reasonable certainty given that there are no changes in the construction stage. OCT, 2008) However, this procurement method may take longer time because the scheme has to be more or less fully designed before seeking tenderers.Also, fragmented design nd construction process can leads to disputes between the Contractors and the designers, rather than single responsibility in â€Å"design-and-build† method. (RICS, 2013) 2. 5 Contract Choice Since the client has adopted traditional approach, â€Å"Hong Kong Standard Form of Building Contract Private Edition-With Quantities 2005 Edition† (HKSFBC05) has been chosen by the client to use in this tender. This contract is commonly used in private developments in Hong Kong. (KPK, 2010) It is a lump sum contract in which payment will be made at monthly interval.It's suitable for adopt in medium-large size building orks designed by the Employer, or someone on behalf of the Employer. Drawings and bills of quantities have to provide by the Employer to define the quantity and quality of the work for Contract to price for it. OCT, 2008) The HKSFBC05 contains detailed conditions which regulates the rights and obligations of the Employer and Contractor. Moreover, under Article 3&4 of the HKSFBC05, an Architect and a Quantity Surveyor have to be named to administer the contract conditions, their power and duties are also described in the Contract.The Architect will be the contract administrator whereas the quantity surveyor will assist im to prepare valuations for interim payments and variations, calculating liquidated damages (LD) and prepare final account, etc. Generally, the price is bases on lump sums and payment to be made in monthly interval. OCT, 2008) 3 Tendering Procedures 3. 1 Definition Tendering is the process by which bids are invited from interested contractors to carry out spe cific packages of construction work. The process aims to ensure achieving of true competition.Procurement strategy and forms of contract should have decided and confirmed in precedence to execute the tendering process. 3. 2 Main-contract The whole tendering procedures for main contract can be divided at 3 sections as follows:- 3. 2. 1 Establishment of Tender List At the very beginning of the process, the client should have compile a tenderer list, in order to ensure every contractor chosen to tender will be able to meet specified eligibility, if they are appointed. To form the tenderer list, pre-qualification mechanism may adopted.Interested contractors should prove that they meet minimum standards in certain criteria like financial conditions, project experience, protessional competence, etc during pre-qualitlcation. Sometimes, the consultant quantity surveyors will also give advice to prepare a potential tenderer list, depends on the clients need. Generally, 4 to 8 tenders is enou gh, depends on value and nature of the work. Once the tenderers list is compiled, preliminary enquiry should be made to those contractors on list, asking those potential contractors whether they are interested to bid the project before formal invitation.The outcome of the tender would be more satisfactory if the Contractor can decline at the earlier stage, and saving excessive papers for tender documents. 3. 2. 2 Tender Invitation and Submission During the compilation of the tenderers list, the consultant quantity surveyors should prepare the tender documents concurrently. So, as soon as the tender documents ready to be issue out (i. e. bill of quantities, drawings, specifications and client's specific requirements), the tender will be issue to the tenderers with the invitation.The good practice in the industry for the tendering period would be a minimum of 28 days in private sectors. This is a suggested fgure for traditional contract with no design responsibility from the contracto rs. For easier to analyze the capability of each contractor, usually the Employer will ask he tenderers to submit their own qualifications such as preliminary programme for the work, organization chart, etc. Details of those documents should be listed in the form of tender and also in the â€Å"Invitation to Tender† 3. 2. 3 Tender Assessment and Award All tenders should have received on the tender submission date.Sometimes the Employer maybe request the tenderers to submit non-price material such as Job reference, organization chart, financial statement, etc. These materials should be evaluated independently of the examination of the priced documents. OCT, 2012) To xamine the tenders efficiently, an assessment criteria should have established by the Employer. Price-oriented or quality-oriented? The answer should affect the examination process of tenders. For the priced documents (i. e. bill of quantities or schedule of rates), it should be checked to detect any arithmetical e rrors.Professional practice is that the tendered prices should never be altered without Justification. If there are any errors or discrepancies between BQ pages and the tender sum wrote in the form of the tender. There are procedures set out to deal with the above situation. Details of the errors should be given to the tenderers. If the said errors are rather minor in the contract sum, the tenderers may confirm the errors and abide his tender. Or the tenderers can withdraw his tender if he thinks the errors are unaffordable. However, it's depend on the tenderer's commercial decision.Under this procedure, correction of the overall tender price is not permitted. OCT, 2012) It the tenderer decided to stand by his submitted tender and confirmation nas been reached with the Employer, the gross amount of errors should be converted into a discount factor, usually express in percentage of the corrected tender sum. In Hong Kong projects, this factor is usually endorsed together in the letter of intent or letter to acceptance to the Main contractor. Then the factor will be applied to the variation account where related to the BQ or SOR, except those preliminaries, prime cost rates, provisional sums. WSCC, 2010) After checking errors, if there are any changes affecting prices or design, tender queries should be issued to all tenderers and carry out a second tender exercise. All replied tender queries should bind into the contract document as contract correspondences and forming part of contract, especially those with cost mplications. Upon completion of evaluation of returned tenders and tender queries, the consultant quantity surveyor should prepare a tender report and recommend the tenderer which he preferred.Then, the letter of intent or letter of acceptance should be sent out to complete the whole awarding process. 3. 3 Sub-contract The whole tendering procedures for sub contract can be divided at 3 sections as follows:- 3. 3. 1 Selection for a Specific Project When the contract was awarded to the Main Contractor as described above, the Main Contractor takes up total responsibility for the contract work. He cannot complete the hole work using only his own labour and worker. Sub-contractors is therefore needed, especially for E;M services, which require specialist sub-contractors.Each structured main contractor should have his own domestic sub-contractors (DSC) list, the criteria for being qualified into the list depends on different main contractors. Common criteria includes work quality, safety and health record, financial conditions, insurance cover, etc. (CIB, 1997) To appoint sub-contractors for specific project, a preliminary tenderer list should be prepared by drawing up suitable sub-contractors in the company approved list. Confirmations should be seek from potential tenderers if they are interested to tender.Numbers of tenders in the list should between four and six, for â€Å"construct only' sub-contract. (CIB, 1997) Same as appointin g main-contractor, upon complication of tender list, preliminary enquiry should be made with sufficient project details given to the proposed tenderers. Information including conditions of contracts, payment terms, amounts of retention, commencement date and completion date of main contract, etc. Clearly state all necessary information helps to reduce disputes between the main contractor and sub-contractors. CIB, 1997) 3. 3. Tender Invitation and Submission As a formal and good practice, a tender documents for acquiring prices is recommended. By using formal tender documents, offers from different sub- contractors are more easily to be analysed. In contrast, some main contractors may preterred simpler procedures such as asking sub-contractors to submit quotation themselves based on information received. However, in this report, formal tendering procedure are referred. For content of the tender documents, it's basically the same with those described above in the Main contract section .The tenders are to be sent out with the nvitations and date for submission of tenders should have stated in the invitations. The time for tendering should be 6 weeks for â€Å"construct only' tenders. In case of any queries, the tenderers should submit in writing to request for clarifications from the main contractors. (CIB, 1997) Method statements may be requested to submit from the tenderers to better assess their capability for the work and cost incurred by the main contractor for providing temporary working platform and storage space, etc. 3. . 3 Tender Assessment and Awa rd Like the procedure of selecting Main-contractors, only tenders submit by the ubmission date would be evaluated. Non-price material like method statements should be assessed independently, different methods may affect potential costs incurred by the main-contractor. The priced document will be go through checking process first, any arithmetical errors are to be notified to the tenderer and ask whether he wi ll stands by his tender price, procedures are generally same with those above described for main-contract.If it's possible, the tender prices should never be changed if the scope of works remain unchanged. (CIB, 1997) Subcontractors should then be chosen on the basis of the assessment criteria set own before issuing tender documents. The main contractor may arrange tender interview if he think it is necessary to clarify or amplify the submitted documents. Especially those preliminary items, such as provision of site office, storage, lifting equipment, insurance policy, etc. Responsibility for these items should clearly state and agree before awarding contract.Any matters agreed during the interview should be recorded in writing for further reference. If the main contractor has decided to appoint the tenderers as his subcontractors for the projects, the letter of acceptance should be sent as a formal record here. (CIB, 1997) In case the tendering process for sub-contractors start bef ore the award of main- contract and the preferred sub-contractor's tender are to be used for main tender submission, the sub-contractor should be notified so the sub-contractor can arrange his resources more efficiently.Upon the acceptance of the main contract tender, the main contractor should also accept that sub-contract tender price agreed before and notify the sub-contractor formally. Letter of acceptance should be sent to the preferred tenderers as a formal contractual record. (CIB, 1997) Conclusions Tendering procedures for main contract and sub contract has been briefly laborated in above passage. Major differences is illustrated by Figure 2 below.Description Sub-contract Compilation of Tenderer List Consultant QS or Employer Main Contractor Tendering Period 8 weeks minimum 6 weeks minimum Nos. of Tenderers Figure 2 Comparison of Tendering Procedures For the tenderer list, the one used for tendering for main contract are usually recommend by the consultant quantity surveyors or the client have its own preferred list, based on reputation. In contrast, each main contractor have its own sub- contractors list based on their specialized trade.For the tendering period, the codes suggested 8 weeks minimum for main contractors to prepare their tender for the Employer while 6 weeks minimum was suggested for sub-contractors to prepare their tender for main contractors. For numbers of tenderers, it is necessary to have sufficient numbers of tenderers to enable a fair competition. It's suggested 4-8 tenders will be enough for tendering of main contracts, depends on the value and nature of the projects. Fewer numbers of tenderers would be enough for selecting sub-contractors, 4-6 tenderers is suggested in the Codes, depends on different trades.

Chinese History: The Han Dynasty Essay

The Han Dynasty was founded by Liu Bang in 206 BCE. He came of peasant stock and rose to power slowly from being a petty government official to the role of emperor. Liu Bang ruled China for eleven years with felicity and wisdom. He was intelligent and sought to win over the elder statesmen by promising to eliminate all the harsh laws of the Qin government. His experience as the â€Å"neighborhood head† (Hansen 114) had given him the opportunity to be familiar with the legal system of the Qin Dynasty and he made full use of this knowledge to establish a rule of prosperity and leave a long line of rulers who ruled for four hundred years in China. This paper will discuss such themes as have emerged from the research done of the Han Dynasty and will be divided into sections each dealing with one theme at a time. State and Succession: The state of China that Liu Bang wrested from the Qin ruler was in turmoil with several intrigues being hatched by the court officials against the cruelty of the Qin ruler. The rebels wanted to place the first son of the emperor to the throne but Liu Bang was able to defeat the rebels and ascended the throne as the founder of the Han dynasty. He used both stratagem and skill to either defeat his rivals or win them over with promises of sweeping changes in the administration and the legal system. The extent of his empire was divided between his nine brothers and one hundred and fifty loyal followers. The only region that was under direct control of the emperor was the western part of the empire with its capital at Changan and comprised about one-third of the total empire. His rule from 206- 195 BCE was not without troubles. He had to spend a lot of his time trying to suppress rebellions in different parts of his empire and at this time China was invaded several times by the powerful Xiongnu tribe. After being defeated by them Liu Bang concluded a humiliating treaty with the shanyu, leader of the Xiongnu, by which he had to grant equal status to the Xiongnu people and marry the Chinese Princess to the shanyu. As a result of this diplomatic gesture the Xiongnu people promised to leave China alone and not invade them any further. Liu Bang was followed by his fifteen year old son Huidi to the throne, who ruled for seven years from 195- 188 BCE. After his death the reigns of the kingdom was taken over by the widow of Liu Bang, Empress Lu who ruled in the name of Han dynasty for eight years between 188 and 180 BCE. She placed minor princes to the throne and ruled as their guardian and was able to bring peace and stability to the empire. After the death of Empress Lu intrigue again raised its head and senior court officials placed the son of Liu Bang’s concubine who was a puppet in their hands. The descendants of Liu Bang’s relative continued to rule two thirds of China while the Han Dynasty was directly in charge of only a third of the entire empire. Emperor Wu ascended the throne at the age of fifteen in 140 BCE. For the first few years of his reign he was under the control of his grandmother, the dowager Empress Dou and his uncle who was his chancellor. However, from 131 BCE, after the death of the chancellor, Emperor Wu took full charge of his kingdom and established an empire based on the principles of Confucius. He is credited with having extended the Han Empire in the southern districts and continued to maintain diplomatic relations with the Xiongnu people by paying them annuity in keeping with the treaty signed by Liu Bang. Emperor Wu was a follower of Dong Zhongshu, a student of Confucianism and under his influence established Confucian schools in every district. Emperor Wu strengthened the bureaucracy and curtailed the powers of the regional rulers who had been given kingdoms by Liu Bang (Hansen 127). He ruled as a despot with unlimited powers until his death in 87 BCE. He dissolved the position of the Chancellor and promoted his step brother-in-law to the position of regent who put minor princes on the throne and ruled in their name, thus weakening the power and influence of the Han dynasty. The influence of the Han dynasty was later restored by the support of some powerful consort families to which it remained beholden. The consort families wanted to marry their daughters to the emperor in the hope of becoming regents of minor princes and ruling in their names. One of the notable emperors of the later Han dynasty was Emperor Huan, who ruled from 146-168 A. D. Emperor Huan threw the yoke of dominance by the consort family by hatching a plot against them with the help of eunuchs. He managed to break free of the consort family’s stranglehold but set a precedence of encouragement of the eunuchs that did not augur well for the Han dynasty. The last of the Han rulers was a puppet ruler who had to abdicate and thus bring about the end of the Han dynasty in 220 A. D. Administration: Liu Bang had established some good norms of governance that were refined and made more effective by some of the other prominent Han emperors. The administration was carried out at two levels, the central government and the local governments. There were three major divisions of the central government; collection of taxes, maintaining the army and overseeing the work of the government officials. The three divisions of the local governments were later modified to include; registering population, collecting taxes, maintaining waterways, dispensing justice and recommending educated men for government positions. After becoming emperor, Liu Bang distributed his kingdom between his nine brothers and sons and gave them the titles of kings and named a hundred and fifty men from the nobility, marquis and gave them portions of the kingdom as well. These later became the regional kingdoms of China. The land directly under the control of the emperor was divided into one hundred commanderies which were further divided into one hundred and fifty counties. Under Emperor Wu the inheritance of land laws were changed and the land was divided equally between all the sons of the Emperor and did not go only to the eldest son after his death. He also altered the practice of appointing sons of the noble families to high official positions and started the practice of appointing his own nominated officials to government positions. The land revenue had been fixed at one fifteenth by Liu Bang and it was later reduced to one thirtieth by later emperors. However, with the introduction of reforms and establishment of schools and Confucian institutions Emperor Wu realized that the land revenue collected from taxes was not enough to finance his reform projects. So he issues government monopolies on salt and iron. The society under Han dynasty was divided broadly into two categories; the land owners and the slaves. The structure was not rigid and the emperor had the power to strip a land owner or noble of his land and powers and a slave could buy his freedom and become elevated in social stature. There was great disparity of wealth in the Han society. The rulers used to make grants of land to nobles who gradually made them very powerful and corrupt. They stopped paying land revenue and the revenue dropped considerably so that the emperor had to limit the size of the land holding and number of slaves in 7 BCE. The later Han rulers were able to hold on to their position of power and rule with the help of a few powerful consort families. They dare not challenge their power and gave in to most of their demands. In the third and fourth centuries of Han rule eunuchs became very powerful after the Han Emperor Huan enlisted their support to overthrow the yoke of the noble families and they played an important role in court intrigues. Crime and punishment: Liu Bang became familiar with the legal system of the Qin dynasty as a neighborhood head and realized that though the main tenets of law and justice in the Qin dynasty were good, some of the punishments meted out were harsh and barbaric. It was with a promise to change these laws that he was able to come into power in 206 BCE. Eventually, he ended up modifying some of the laws and relaxing punitive corporal punishments like beheading. Since he had to depend a lot on the support of the rich and noble families, members of these families were almost exempt from corporal punishment. Most offenders could get away with paying a huge fine or being confined to rigorous labor like masonry for men and pounding grains foe women were the most common punishments. More severe offenses were awarded amputation of a limb or cutting off of the nose. Shaving off the head and beard and tattooing were considered severe enough punishments for lesser crimes. In keeping with Laozi’s teachings, law was considered to be â€Å"the way† that emperors were supposed to rule their empire. Everyone was considered to be equal in the eyes of law. But in reality it remained a guideline and was not always implemented, the rich people usually got less rigorous punishments could pay their way out of serving punishment sentences. There was no law or power to curb the powers of the ruler. The framework for a good legal system was present and rulers like Emperor Wu made use of the law to curb the rising clout of the nobility. Role of women and eunuchs: Chinese society was male dominated and the position of women was not very enviable. The birth of a girl child was not very welcome. According to Ban Zhao, who was the scholarly and brilliant sister of court historian, Ban Gu, there were three things that had to be performed when a girl was born. The infant needed to be kept under the bed indicating that her position was lowly and weak. She would be given a potsherd to play with reminding her that she needed to work hard all her life and that the announcement of a girl child to the ancestors needed to be accompanied with an offering to remind the child that she was born to serve them. She mentions four virtues that women should practice; â€Å"womanly virtue, womanly words, womanly bearing and womanly work† (Hansen 139). Women were mostly relegated to the chores of cooking, sewing and weaving and hardly ever had the opportunity to voice their opinions. Ban Zhao advocated the education of women. She preached that both men and women must understand their respective duties and work together to make the marriage work well. She agreed that women must do the household chores but not be ignorant and serve as a slave. She must not be manhandled and treated badly and she should not argue as well. It was a poor man’s bad luck to have a daughter while the rich families could afford daughters and used them to their advantage by marrying them to emperors or nobility. Though the general condition of women in China was not encouraging there have been some powerful empresses like dowager Empress Dou who ruled in the name of the Han dynasty and brought peace and stability to the kingdom. The instances of the dowager empresses and that of Ban Zhao are examples of how women could break out of stereotypical roles if they wanted to. The Emperor had harems full of women concubines. Emperor Huan was said to have six thousand women in his harem. As the Han dynasty’s rule extended to the third or the fourth centuries the role of eunuchs became very important in the kingdoms. The eunuchs were usually kept along with womenfolk in the imperial households and played a part in the court intrigues. Like the women dowager empresses they would usually place a minor prince on the throne and rule in their names as their regents. It was during the reign of Emperor Huan that the eunuchs became very powerful because the Emperor hatched a coup to overthrow the influential consort families with the help of the eunuchs. A bitter conflict between the eunuchs and the consort families ensued only to be put down by General Cao Cao when he became regent. Philosophy and Society: Liu Bang was respectful of Confucian thought and philosophy but was not slavish to it. For example he did not allow personal ties to come between him and his ambitions (Hansen115). The Huang –Lao school of thought founded on the teachings of Laozi and Huang commended their teachings in the books, The Way and Integrity Classic and The Classic of Law. These books gave guidance in various aspects of life and living. However, they could not check the power of a ruler who did not abide by its laws and where there was poor governance. These teachings were contrary to what Confucians believed and taught Emperor Wu was greatly under the influence of Dong Zhongshu, who believed that the emperor was the link between heaven and his subjects. When Emperor Wu came to power he established Confucian academies in all the districts in order to centralize its power. As the Huang-Lao philosophy was contradictory to the Confucian philosophy Emperor Wu enforced the closure of these schools and established Confucian schools in every district. Emperor Wu was the first to establish the Confucian canon by had Confucian school of thought and institutions in all the counties. He believed in the Confucian principle that if a ruler ruled his kingdom well heaven would support him and if there were poor governance then the he would incur the wrath of the heavens and his kingdom would be afflicted with floods, droughts and other natural calamities. The tombs of the marquis of Mawangdui and his family bear testament to the Han dynasty’s belief in afterlife. It also demonstrates that people had two kinds of souls – one was the superior spirit soul or hun that was free to travel to the land of the immortals and the other the inferior body soul or po which had to reside in the tomb and if not taken care of in its tomb, it may have to travel to the netherworld. The tomb had to be supplied with replicas of gold and bronze coins, lacquer vessels, ceramics and bamboo suitcases. The food items that can be assumed to have been presented to Lady Dai, the wife of the marquis, are meat dishes and beer. The scenes depicted within the tomb provide an insight into their ideas of afterlife. The top section depicts two gods of destiny who keep records of the individual’s life and the moon and sun with their residents and the Queen Mother of the West. From the above study we see that the various themes that emerged during the course of Chinese history have shaped the philosophical and political destiny of China. The present day Chinese beliefs can trace their roots in this period of history. That history of a nation or people is dynamic and sustainable is borne out by the fact that many of the Chinese institutions and policies were shaped by the values and laws of the Han dynasty.