Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Article Analysis The Nursing Shortage Essay - 1703 Words

Article Analysis: The Nursing Shortage Nursing shortages have occurred in health care throughout history, and especially since World War II. Just as the legion of baby boomers is about to swell the need for quality health care, Americas nursing population is aging and more nurses are moving into primary care settings and into other disciplines. As a result, Americas hospitals and other institutions need more nurses, especially those who deliver specialized care. As a healthcare provider and businessman this topic is of a special interest to me because nursing shortage have caused my business to loose million of dollars in the past five years. This paper examines the nursing shortage in the health care industry, the use of†¦show more content†¦The purpose of this study is two fold: (1) to identify if there are shortage of nurses and recommend a prevention model that would assist nurse executives in attracting and retaining nurses in the acute hospital setting and provides recommendations on how best to increase the nursing supply. (2) to examine the relationship among health care professionals, commitment to the organization, and perceptions of collaboration among nurses and physicians. During a major nursing shortage in the early 1980s, the American Academy of Nursing (AAN) conducted an extensive research project to identify hospitals in New York that was successful in recruiting and retaining nurses. The objective of the project was to evaluate characteristics of hospital structures that supported professional nursing practice (Aiken et al., 2000). The result of this research lead to the following questions that guided this study: (a) did the nurses consider the hospital a good place to practice nursing; (b) did the hospital have the ability to recruit and retain nurses (c) was the hospital located in an area, within a city, considered to be in a competitive marketplace and; (d) will team collaborative effort with other health care team improve patient outcome. This study used a cross-sectional, non- experimental, retrospective design to identify the hiring criteria, vacancies, nurse-patient ratio, job satisfactionShow MoreRelatedPICOT and Literature Review Worksheet1574 Words   |  6 Pagesthat nursing can change and select key words for a literature search. Directions: Use the form below to complete the PICOT assignment in Milestone #1. This includes filling in the table with information about your research question and your PICO(T) elements, as well as answering the Search Technique questions. Step 1: Identify the Problem. What have you noticed in your work or school environment that isnt achieving the desired patient or learning outcomes? What needs to change in nursing, whatRead MoreThe Global Nursing Shortage : Development Of Strategies For Primary Focus On Nursing Staff Attraction And Retention1337 Words   |  6 PagesThe global nursing shortage leads to the development of strategies which primary focus on nursing staff attraction and retention. According to Quill, a nursing shortage continuously increases due to obvious reasons such as burnout, retirement, long shift hours, underpayments, injuries, and overall job dissatisfaction. â€Å"As of 2010, 40% of registered nurses in the USA are older than age 50 and planning for retirement† (Quill, 2012). Quill points out that nursing shortage was considered as a â€Å"globalRead MoreEconomic Tool and Concepts1121 Words   |  5 Pagesthe shortage of nurses. It is perceive by the health care industry the shortage of nursing supply than the demand across the country. The demand for nurses in every health care organization growth in a daily basic as the technology advance. The consumers are always demanding for more personalize and quality of health care services at the time they are seeking for health care delivery creating nurses supply to be less in every health organization. A few probable reasons for nursing shortage withinRead MoreThe Critical Appraisal Skills Programme967 Words   |  4 Pagesthe use of the CASP tool, the article was examined by this author to determine if the results of the study were valid, what the results were, and what application or purpose they support. The qualitative study demonstrates attrition from nursing, contributing factors, and possible solutions to maintain nurses in the profession. Aims The goal of the qualitative research article was the work that nurses do in the profession, and why attrition rates are high in the nursing profession. The authors assertRead MoreA Short Supply Of Registered Nurses1629 Words   |  7 Pagescomplicated further because nursing schools have limited capacity to deal with the demand increase for healthcare as the US concentrates in injecting reforms to the care sector. As a result, there has emerged a public outcry over the deficit. Ideally, such a shortage jeopardizes the safety of patients and the country’s health. Ideally, this paper will dissect the problem of the nursing shortage, causes and the possible solution to the issue. An Overview of the Nursing shortage in the US Alexander RobbinsRead MoreQualitative Research878 Words   |  4 PagesWhat is so stressful about caring for a dying patient? Nursing 314 – Research February 3, 2013 What is so stressful about caring for a dying patient? Death is something that we all have to deal with, be it in our profession or in our daily lives. This article discusses the reasons why caring for dying patients is stressful for nurses and is a high risk for burn out. The article also gives findings related to the study and gives recommendations based on the results. The study shows thatRead MoreE Health Records : The Healthcare And Its Ancillary Industries838 Words   |  4 Pagesthe number of patients. INDUSTRY OVERVIEW The success for any Hospital and residential care facility is directly related to its nursing staff. How patients are looked after by the nurses affects their health, recovery and safety. With the increasing number of Americans in the age category of 60 and above the demand for nurses is only increasing. As per SHRM1 nursing is one of the toughest jobs and nearly 1/3rd of the new jobs will be in this industry with growth rate of 19% up till 2022, moreoverRead MoreArticle Review of Retaining Nurses and Other Hospital Workers: An Intergenerational Perspective of the Work Climate836 Words   |  3 Pagesï » ¿Article Review: Nurse Retention Introduction: Nursing is a field in which personnel must contend with a wide variance of daily challenges, both specific to the job itself and more generally as a result of labor conditions within the field. The latter issue in particular implicates a nation-wide nursing shortage, where matters such poor nurse-to-patient ratios, long working hours and low morale have contributed to a generally high turnover within this field. The result is that any given medicalRead MoreThe Global Issue Of Mental Health And Shortage Of Nursing Staff1692 Words   |  7 Pagesaim of this utilization review is compare and contrast the global issue of mental health and shortage of nursing staff. Mental health is not the primary choice of nursing students when they graduate, and there is a shortage of psychiatric nurses as the older generation is coming closer to retirement. Across the states in Australia, studies have been conducted by Registered Nurses to survey and analyze nursing students and their field of pref erence after graduation. From the studies analyzed in thisRead MoreWhy Are Nurses Leaving? Findings From An Initial Qualitative Study On Nursing Attrition?874 Words   |  4 Pagesstudy on nursing attrition†. The title is clear. The phenomena being studied is evident that while an abundance of data exist regarding the RN who stays at the bedside, few studies have explored the perceptions of the RN who decides to leave clinical nursing. More information should be provided in the title in order to inform the reader about the article’s content Abstract The abstract is shorter than a typical abstract at 67 words. The abstract manages to answer that the nursing shortage remains

Tuesday, December 17, 2019

Symptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder - 1909 Words

When you hear the word bipolar what do you think? Do you think of people that cannot seem to ever be in a stable mood? I know I do. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, bipolar disorder is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out daily activities. There are multiple types of bipolar disorders and all of them deal with mood changes. The four different types of bipolar disorders are, Bipolar I, Bipolar II, which Chris Brown has which will be discussed later, Cyclothymic Disorder (cyclothymia), and other specified and unspecified bipolar disorders. Bipolar I disorder is known as manic episodes that last at least 7 days, or by manic symptoms that are severe†¦show more content†¦Here are some symptoms of people having a depressive episode: they may feel very sad, have very little energy, have decreased activity levels, feel worried and empty, forget things, and many other things. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is a disorder that develops in some people who have experienced a shocking, scary, or dangerous event. When I think about PTSD I think about veterans that have been in combat or have experienced a traumatic experience in the military. During PTSD fear triggers many split-second changes in the body to help defend against danger or to avoid it. People that have PTSD may feel stressed or frightened even when they are not in danger. There are five parts to PTSD: normal stress response, acute stress response, acute stress disorder, uncomplicated PTSD, comorbid PTSD, and complex PTSD. Normal stress response occurs when healthy adults who have been exposed to a single discrete traumatic event in adulthood experience intense bad memories, emotional numbing, feelings of unreality, being cut off from relationships or bodily tension and distress. Acute stress disorder is noted by panic reactions, mental confusion dissociation, severe insomnia, suspiciousness, and being unable to manage in self-care, work, and in relationship activities. Uncomplicated PTSD persistent reexperiencing of traumatic event, avoidance of stimuliShow MoreRelatedBipolar Disorder : Symptoms And Treatment854 Words   |  4 Pagesmedical condition known as bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is when a person suffers from severe shifts in mood and energy. In most cases, bipolar disorder can be treated and people with the illness can live normal and productive lives with the help of medication and or therapy. Aiken, C. (2010). Family Experiences of Bipolar Disorder: The Ups, the Downs and the Bits in Between. Retrieved from Ebsco Host. In this book the author discusses her own dealings with Bipolar Disorder. She goes on to say howRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder1489 Words   |  6 PagesDiego City College Bipolar disorder, also called manic-depressive disorder, is a disease that affects thousands of people all over the United States of America. According to Sarris (2011) approximately 1-2% of adults will be affected by bipolar disorder in their lifetime. While some individuals may go undiagnosed, the prevalence percentage can raise to as much as 4% when including milder subclinical presentations (Sarris, 2011). Bipolar disorder can cause severe dysfunction in theRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder1125 Words   |  5 Pageswith several mental disorders. The major diagnosis would be bipolar disorder. She also suffers from borderline personality disorder, Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and anxiety. The American Psychiatric Association s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder defines bipolar disorder as a recurrent mood disorder that includes periods of mania or mixed episodes of mania and depression (Murphy, 2012, p. 44-50). It was previously kn own as manic depressive disorder. It is most commonRead MoreBipolar Disorder Treatments : Symptoms And Symptoms2309 Words   |  10 Pages Bipolar Disorder Treatments Kelly Miazga Metropolitan State University December 8th 2014 â€Æ' Bipolar disorder treatments Introduction Bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression or bipolar affective disorder is a mood disorder where the patient experiences episodes of extreme highs known as mania and extreme lows known as depression. Periods of mania and depression vary per person. A person who is displaying a manic episode shows typical symptoms of elevated mood, extreme happiness or irritabilityRead MoreBipolar Disorder : Symptoms And Treatment2115 Words   |  9 Pages Bipolar Disorder The Bipolar disorder or you can call it manic depression, it is a often diagnosed and draining frame or state of mind disorder which causes huge shifts in temperament and frame of mind. The word bipolar means that the two main polar extremes in which a person with the disorder experiences. According a part of the National Institutes of Health that watches over neurological and psychological research this disorder affects about 2.1 million adultsRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder963 Words   |  4 Pagesthat goes by we hear someone being labeled as bipolar or another celebrity is getting diagnosed as being bipolar after their spurts of erratic behavior. I had to ask the question, does anyone really know what it means to be bipolar? Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a brain disorder that causes unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and the ability to carry out day-to-day tasks (NIMH). Suffering from bipolar disorder can mean su ffering from drastic changes in moodRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder1274 Words   |  6 Pagesconclusion, Ben Tang was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder indicated by DSM-5 at age 47. He experienced symptoms such as feeling depressed, suicidal thoughts, and worthlessness in depressive episodes. He experienced symptoms such as racing mind, trouble falling asleep, and committing reckless behaviors in hypomanic episodes. It can be challenging to live with bipolar disorder because the symptoms can be hard to deal with. There are several ways to manage bipolar disorder, include medications, support groupRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder1220 Words   |  5 PagesThe history of bipolar disorder is perhaps just as complex as the condition itself. Bipolar is highly recognized as a treatable disorder. The more we learn about bipolar disorder, the more people may be able to receive the help that they need. Centuries passed and little new was discovered about bipolar disorder until French psychiatrist Jean-Pierre Falret published an article in 1851 describing what he called â€Å"la folie circulaire,† which translates to circular insanity. The article details peopleRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder762 Words   |  4 Pages Bipolar Disorder 2 Disorder history, In the 19th century psychiatry, mania had a broad meaning of craziness, hypomania was equated by some concepts of â€Å"partial insanity† or monomania. Bipolar disorder origins in 1854, Jules Baillarger and Jean-Pierre Falret, independently present descriptions of the disorder to Academie de Medicine in Paris. German neuropsychiatrist Emanuel Mendel in 1881 wrote â€Å"that heRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Bipolar Disorder1442 Words   |  6 Pagesmental illness. For example, manic depressive illness, or bipolar disorder, is a cognitive disease which affects â€Å"about 2.6% of the U.S. population† every year (DBSA). Along with the vast number of patients stricken with bipolar, are also a plethora of symptoms, with researchers and patients reporting, â€Å"unusual shifts in mood, energy, activity levels, and (an inability) to carry out day-to-day tasks† (NIMH). Along with the symptoms of bipolar are several factors that contribute to the presence of the

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Cross Cultural Team Management Samples †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Cross Cultural Team Management. Answer: The global teams often face the challenge of successfulmanagement of the cross-cultural teams. The global teams should have fairness, consistency and responsiveness as they have vast operations (Carter et al. 2015). There are different challenges that are being faced by the global teams such as different time zones, cultural differences, language backgrounds and limited face-to face interaction. The earlier assignment failed to identify the solutions for managing the challenges of managing the global teams (Holmqvist and Ericson 2014). It is important to understand the ways of creating strong portfolio teams. This research paper would strive to seek various ways of managing the global teams in a smooth manner. Project Objectives The project would aim to identify the various ways of smooth management of the cross-cultural teams. There are instances when the global managers either lack the time or lack the knowledge of better utilization of the cross border teams. This research aims to provide suitable answers to the problems faced by the global managers. Project Scope In a multinational work place, the working groups are often polarized and they often have issues with interacting with each other. There are often issues with the understanding of the roles and responsibilities in a global team, which often leads to misunderstandings that reduces the operational efficiency. This project strives to provide effective solutions that are based in the practical implementation of the global team management. The project scope measures the implementation of the initiatives in a transparent environment so that there can be project success. The implementation of the solutions in companies belonging to same geographical domain is outside the scope of this research. Literature Review As defined by Thomas and Peterson (2017), thecross cultural team management is concerned with themanagement of the work teams in such a manner that it addresses the differences in the practices, preferences and cultures of the consumers in a global context. The earlier assignment focused on the important issues that are faced by the cross border managers in an international context. The global teams operate in a challenging work environment where there are inadequate interactions with each other. The initiation of the internet and the related technologies has led to an increase of the cross border teams. However, there are certain issues associated with the global team functioning. There is perception of power among the global teams and there is often much indifference that comes up between them (Moran, Abramson and Moran 2014). There are instances when there are an increased number of stereotypes and there are situations when there are cultural stereotypes involved. There are issues with the employee engagement initiatives and there are instances of linguistic barriers between the global teams located in different geographical domains. The managers often complain that there are losses in the coordination and they often lack the vision to manage the cross-border teams. There are instances of technical communication glitch and there are also instances of lack of participation of the team members in increasing the organizational productivity. As commented by Katzenbach and Smith (2015), one of the most unique solutions of solving global teams issues are treating the team as one and preventing the competition among the same team in the same organizations. It is important to eliminate the I parameter and instead focus on the cohesive teams. There should be more emphasis on the team building activities and the teams should not be limited to particular geographical locations only. The teams should comprise of the employees belonging to different geographical locations but working in the same project or for the same division. It is important to increase collaboration so that there is a feeling of togetherness among the cross border employees (Bui et al. 2016). The global team owners should inform their team about all the possible happenings in the organizations. If the employees are well informed about the important decisions of the management, then there are less likely to be clashes in the team. The knowledge transfer and en lightening is important for efficient functioning of the remote team (Reiche, Mendenhall and Stahl 2016). This can be done through the use of different telecommunications network. It is also important to do foster regular communication over the virtual network. Most of the challenges would be sorted out if the team interact more with each other on a regular basis. Cole, Balcetis and Dunning (2013) argued that the perceived proximity is important for mitigating the various discontinuities of the virtual factor of the global teams. The employees often presume that there are issues with the perceived proximity. But, the perceived proximity gives a sense of co-location benefits while the employees do not have to have to work from one particular location. The employees should be made to believe that the employees located in other geographical locations are their peers from whom they can gain sufficient guidance. The managers should strive to make an environment of trust among the global teams so that there is minimal conflict in the team. Research Question/ Hypothesis The following would be the research questions for this particular research- What would be the possible solutions of the cross border management issues? How are the managers likely to solve the issues of global teams? How can the global teams lead to better organizational efficiency? Research Design and Methodology This research would involve the use of the mixed research method in which there would be usage of both Qualitative Research and Quantitative Research. The combination method would help in better collection of data and there would be improved quality of data. Data Collection Method The qualitative research would be performed with the study of the literature, online sources, online publications, company official websites, government records and other relevant online sources. The quantitative research would take place with the help of online surveys and face to face interviews. Target participant The employees from the age group of 25-45 years would be considered from this research. Only the employees of multinational companies would be considered for the purpose of data collection. The managers who are handling the cross border teams would be used for the purpose of this research. Sample Size The sample size for this research is 70 and it would be based on simple random sampling. There would be multinational companies involved in the research and the participants would be chosen randomly from 5 companies. A sample of 14 employees would be selected from each of the five multinational companies and hence the total interviewed candidates would be 70. Research location The research would be performed in both online and offline locations. In the online research, the surveys would be sent over the emails and the employees of the organizations would be shared a survey link on which they can answer the questionnaire. The offline mode of research would be carried out with the help of multinational companies which would belong to different industries. The employees would be asked about their viewpoints on the topic and they would also be asked according to the questionnaires. This would enable the collection of data within limited time frame. Resources for research The resources required for this research would be questionnaires, computer, Google forms, email, telephone and others. It is also important to gather the contacts of the multinational companies from which the data collection would be done. Data Analysis The primary mode of data collection would be Microsoft Excel, in which the data from quantitative research would be analyzed (Anderson Sweeney and Williams 2014). The data analysis would be performed via the usage of pie-charts, charts, tables, bar graphs and scatter diagrams. The qualitative data analysis would be performed with the help of critical observation and analytical techniques. Ethical Standards The ethical considerations used in the research are as under (DeCamp et al. 2017)- No participants were forced for this research and all the correspondents have given their voluntary responses. The research data are handled in a confidential manner and they were not disclosed with a third party. There is no fabrication of data or falsification of the data and only real responses are recorded. Research Limitations The limitations of the research would commence when the research would be actually carried out. There are instances that there would be lack of reliable data for the quantitative research, which would make the survey ineffective (Velte and Stawinoga 2016). There are also chances of lack of availability of the global managers from which the best data can be collected. The project may not stick to the timelines and there would be unnecessary delay of the project. Time Schedule WEEK 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 PROJECT ACTIVITIES Identification research rationale Aim and Objectives of research Research Questions Justification of research question Expected outcomes of research project Research Techniques Sample Size Sample approach Research Location Data Collection Data analysis Limitations of project Conclusion The cross border management of the teams is an important aspect of the global teams of modern times. It is important that the cross-border issues are managed in an urgent manner. This research aimed to provide solutions for the various problems associated with the cross border management. The global teams should be managed carefully so that there is an overall increase in the organizational productivity. It is also important to create a sense of belonging to the employees working in remote locations so that there are greater team cohesion. References Anderson, D., Sweeney, D. and Williams, T., 2014.Modern business statistics with Microsoft Excel. Nelson Education. Bui, H.T., Baruch, Y., Chau, V.S. and He, H.W., 2016. Team learning: The missing construct from a cross-cultural examination of higher education.Asia Pacific Journal of Management,33(1), pp.29-51. Carter, D.R., Seely, P.W., Dagosta, J., DeChurch, L.A. and Zaccaro, S.J., 2015. Leadership for global virtual teams: Facilitating teamwork processes. InLeading Global Teams(pp. 225-252). Springer New York. Cole, S., Balcetis, E. and Dunning, D., 2013. Affective signals of threat increase perceived proximity.Psychological science,24(1), pp.34-40. DeCamp, M., Crump, J.A., Sugarman, J., Todd, T., Walker, X. and Ali, A., 2017. 13 Existing and emerging ethical standards in global health education.Global Health Experiential Education: From Theory to Practice. Holmqvist, J. and Ericson, A., 2014. HOW GLOBAL TEAMS SHARE EXPERIENCESA STUDY OF CULTURAL DIFFERENCES. InDS 77: Proceedings of the DESIGN 2014 13th International Design Conference. Katzenbach, J.R. and Smith, D.K., 2015.The wisdom of teams: Creating the high-performance organization. Harvard Business Review Press. Moran, R.T., Abramson, N.R. and Moran, S.V., 2014.Managing cultural differences. Routledge. Reiche, B.S., Mendenhall, M.E. and Stahl, G.K. eds., 2016.Readings and cases in international human resource management. Taylor Francis. Thomas, D.C. and Peterson, M.F., 2017.Cross-cultural management: Essential concepts. Sage Publications. Velte, P. and Stawinoga, M., 2016. Integrated reporting: the current state of empirical research, limitations and future research implications.Journal of Management Control, pp.1-46.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

The Two Voices Of The Seafarer Essays - Christian Poetry

The Two Voices Of The Seafarer The Two Voices of The Seafarer There is much argument in the literary field as to whether there is more than one speaker in the Old English poem The Seafarer. In this brief essay we will look at some of the previous criticisms of the last two centuries, and through them attempt to prove that the speaker of the poem is the same one throughout. The author of The Seafarer is unknown. Its manuscript is untitled and unique, and is thought to have been inscribed around 975 AD. It survives on four pages of the Exeter Anthology which was given to the Exeter Cathedral in England, by the Archbishop Leofric, who died in 1072 AD. The Seafarer is a poem about an Anglo-Saxon man who, having apparently been banished from his home, has taken to the sea. John Pope, one of the foremost critics of the poem, postulated, and it is now generally accepted, that it is composed of three parts. Part A1, covering lines 1 through 33a, is believed to be the story of an inexperienced young sailor who tells of his hardships at sea. Part A2, lines 33b to 64a or 66a, and part B, 64b or 66b through 124, is told by an eager young sailor who loves the sea. An epilogue is usually believed to be contained in lines 103 through 124 (Pope, 177). Jove Popes greatest critical adversary, Stanley Greenfield, believed that A1 is details a voyage the speaker was forced to undergo, and that the purpose of A2 is to emphasize the speakers choice to undertake a current journey (Greenfield, 107). The poem begins by telling us of how the young seafarer has often suffered times of hardship / and have experienced / bitter anxiety. He is journeying into a world of loneliness and a destiny away from his comitatus, his meadhall, and his lord. At times he despises his life at sea: Oppressed by cold my feet were bound by frost / In icy bonds, while worries simmered hot / About my heart, and hunger from within / Tore the sea-weary spirit... (The Seafarer, Line 8). At others, he celebrates it: ...Even now my heart / Journeys beyond its confines, and my thoughts / Over the sea, across the whale's domain, / Travel afar the regions of the earth, / And then come back to me with greed and longing. / The cuckoo cries, incites the eager breast / On to the whales roads irresistibly, / Over the wide expanses of the sea, (The Seafarer, Line 58). In Anglo-Saxon society a warrior believed in lof: he received glory by his valor in battle; his accomplishments in life. If his deeds were sufficiently notable his name would live on long after he died, granting him immortality. The Seafarer believes that Sickness, old age, the sword, each one of these/ May end the lives of doomed and transient men. / Therefore for every warrior the best / Memorial is the praise of living men (The Seafarer, Line 68). Halfway through the poem we see a drastic turn. Part A has mentioned almost nothing spiritual, only speaking of the hard life of a man who lives at sea. In the beginning of part B, in line 64b, however, he changes his thus far Anglo-Saxon tone to that of a pious Christian: Because the joys of God mean more to me / Than this dead transitory life on land. The conversion of Anglo-Saxon England was relatively quick. It went from a culture which had a comitatus conscience to one that was dominated by an individual, Christian conscience. Even during his musings on God, the speaker still laments The singing gull instead of mead in hall (The Seafarer, 23), the loss of dear friends, (The Seafarer, 15), and the lord he once had. At times it seems like the poet is attempting to reconcile the tensions between the two different cultures. In one of the first know criticisms of the poem, Max Rieger in 1869 postulated that the poem is of one writer and speaks of a dialogue between two individuals; an eager young sailor and an older more cautious one (Rieger, 313). He believed that the

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Vocabulary Quiz #1

Vocabulary Quiz #1 Vocabulary Quiz #1 Vocabulary Quiz #1 By Mark Nichol In each sentence, choose the correct word from the pair of similar terms. (If both words possibly can be correct, choose the more plausible one.) 1. He was __________ about whether the change was a good idea. a) ambivalent b) ambiguous 2. Her score on the test was _______________. a) exceptionable b) exceptional 3. His ________ companion became even more obnoxious as the night wore on. a) arrant b) errant 4. I asked them to ___________ my latest short story. a) criticize b) critique 5. She delivered the ____________ at her father’s memorial service. a) elegy b) eulogy Solutions 1. He was ambivalent about whether the change was a good idea. Ambivalent means contradictory or unsure. Ambiguous, on the other hand, involves something that can be understood in two or more possible ways. 2. Her score on the test was exceptional. Exceptional is the right word in this context. Exceptionable means being likely to cause objection. 3. His arrant companion became even more obnoxious as the night wore on. Arrant means without moderation, while errant means traveling or given to traveling. 4. I asked them to critique my latest short story. Critique means to evaluate both the merits and demerits, while criticize usually means to find faults on something. 5. She delivered the eulogy at her father’s memorial service. Eulogy is a a commendatory oration or writing, while elegy refers to a poem or song. Give a thumbs up to our latest YouTube video: 30 Baseball Idioms Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Writing Quizzes category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 Classes and Types of PhrasesThe Difference Between "will" and "shall"5 Tips to Understand Hyphenated Words

Friday, November 22, 2019

Multilingual Create a Secondary Language Profile on LinkedIn

Multilingual Create a Secondary Language Profile on LinkedIn In July 2013, I wrote an article about how to write a secondary language profile on LinkedIn. I have never received as many comments on LinkedIn as I did on that article. Since the LinkedIn is always changing, and the information in that article is now out of date, I’m offering this useful update for any bilingual or multilingual LinkedIn users out there who want to have a profile in a second language. The general rule on LinkedIn is that you may only have one profile; having multiple profiles is a violation of the Terms of Service that could get you booted off the site. However, there is one exception to that rule: the Secondary Language Profile. As of October 2018, 70% of LinkedIn members are located outside of the US. Because such a large portion of users are multilingual and interested in connecting with people both inside and outside of English-speaking countries, LinkedIn allows users to set up additional LinkedIn profiles that cater to secondary languages. LinkedIn supports the following languages as of October 2018: English, Arabic, Bahasa Indonesia, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Tagalog, Thai, Turkish NOTE: You cannot change the default language of your profile once youve set it up in a particular language. Its recommended that you set up a secondary language profile instead. Creating a Profile in Another Language To create a profile in another language, go to your Profile page and in the upper right corner, select Add profile in another language: Then choose your language from the drop-down menu: Youll also want to update your name and Headline before clicking Create Profile. Editing Your Secondary Language Profile As stated above, LinkedIn does not translate your content for you, so now youll need to edit your secondary language profile. To do so, go to new language profile by selecting it from the upper right corner: Once you are viewing your secondary language profile, you can edit the Summary, Experience, and Education sections as you normally would. When you click the pencil icon to edit one of these sections, youll see that LinkedIn provides a snapshot of your primary profile to help you: Can I Edit My Skills Endorsements or Recommendations? Your Skills and Endorsements cant be edited and will only appear in the language of your primary profile. Recommendations will also only show in the language in which they were written. How Members Will See Your Secondary Language Profile on LinkedIn When a member signs in to LinkedIn and views your profile, they will see it in the language of your primary account; or, if you have multiple profiles in several languages, viewers will see the one most relevant to them. The viewer has the ability to choose from your language profiles by selecting one from the upper right corner of your profile. All of your language profiles will show up in search engines and have their own URL that includes /?locale= and the code for that language. For instance, a profile in French would appear as https://www.linkedin.com/in/yourname/?local=fr_FR. Deleting a Secondary Language Profile If you no longer want your secondary language profile, you can delete it by selecting the language from your drop-down list and clicking the x. If you are looking to attract a multilingual audience, don’t miss creating a secondary language profile on LinkedIn. And if you have other topics you want me to address, please don’t hesitate to ask. I’m here to serve you! You can find information like this and much more in my book, How to Write a KILLER LinkedIn Profile. Get unlimited lifetime PDF updates when you purchase in print or PDF format. Need help crafting KILLER content for your profile? Check out my LinkedIn profile writing services or start with my 20-minute live LinkedIn profile review and well go from there!

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Analyzing Marketing Opportunities Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analyzing Marketing Opportunities - Essay Example GVA online defines market demand as the "total volume purchased in a specific geographic area by a specific customer group in a specified time period under a specified marketing program (GVA Online GVA, 2003/2004)." In the case of Qantas market demand is indicated by the total number of travelers and individuals who patronize the services that they offer, having the resources to pay for the bill charged by the company. When assessing the total demand for the company's product and services, the company takes into account only those people who can afford to pay them, excluding those who won't be able to afford those that they offer or those who don't intend to take a trip by plane. Market demand, market potential, and sales forecast are interrelated. It is due to the fact that market demand is utilized to generate an accurate sales forecast and sales potential. As defined above, market demand is the historical demand for a good or service by customers backed by purchasing power. Sales forecasting is a very essential tool in assessing the health of a business entity. The accuracy of sales forecast can also give decision makers in the company the required information to come up with precise and useful strategies that will boost the revenue and profit of the business in the long run. Companies that implement accurate sales forecasting processes reap benefits such as enhanced cash flow, knowledge on timing and quantity of inventory to be purchased, in-depth knowledge of customers and the products that they prefer, the ability to plan production and required capacity, an insight on the trend and pattern of sales, determination of the value of business above the value of current assets, and the ability to determine the expected return on investment (Conduct a Sales Forecast, 2000). These benefits in turn, will help the company maximize its revenue and efficiency, minimized costs and further boost customer retention. In sales forecasting, the company come up with a sales volume which the company expects to generate in the future. Since the forecast is based on past sales of the company, it is necessary to know the dollar sales volume of the firm for the past several years. If not enough sales data have been recorded, it may be necessary to improvise (Conduct a Sales Forecast, 2000). In the case of Qantas, sales forecasting can be done by gathering data on how the company performed during the past years. Historical data of number of passengers should be gathered according to the time-frame needed. In its other line of businesses like food service, it can utilize the historical data on dollar sales. Sales forecasting can be employed to predict the short-term and long term sales of the company. For a short-term forecast, it is usually enough to know the sales for the past few weeks or months in comparison with the corresponding period of the year before. If sales for the past 4 weeks were 8 percent more than the corresponding 4 weeks of the preceding year, sales for the next few weeks can reasonably be expected to be 8 percent ahead of the corresponding period a year ago (Conduct a Sales Forecast, 2000). Adjustments have to be made, of course, for any known or predicted conditions

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

It's a personal statement for graduate school major in education

It's a for graduate school major in education counslor - Personal Statement Example In light of this, I discovered that counseling was one of the indispensible roles in the learning journey for students. Given that I have bilingual and diverse culture background, I devote my life to assist those with similar challenges. I Lu Chen was born in China more than twenty years ago before moving to the United States at the age of 16. Being the first to join college in my family, I am among the first generation immigrants who are fluent in English and Mandarin, in both speech and writing. My long time objective is to be at the top in the field of counseling. This dream will be accomplished once I pursue a Masters of Arts degree in Education with specifications of Counseling and Student Personnel. I am always enthusiastic about working hard in order to make my dream come true. In this regard, I have to make certain that I utilize every distinct opportunity that comes my way, particularly in services that are attached to the San Jose State University. I have completed my first degree of Bachelor’s of Arts, a specialization in Child and Adolescent development in this University. My past academic life has intensively prepared me for a long time profession as a counselor. First, I have an interest in communicating, caring and solving challenges that affect the children especially those that have special needs. Moreover, my capacity to work with different people has made it possible for me to value and fulfill their diverse demands. I am in a position to assist children set up their schedule in a rational way by ensuring that they are able to have time for physical exercises after having their lessons. Likewise, I assist and participate with them in extracurricular activities such as MPM and Chess. On the other hand, through conferences held for parents, I am able to communicate with parents and express my opinions concerning their children in a respectful approach. My enthusiastic venture into

Sunday, November 17, 2019

Athenian Artistic Performances Were They a Form of Propaganda Essay Example for Free

Athenian Artistic Performances Were They a Form of Propaganda Essay The â€Å"glory that was Greece† reached its height in 5th century BCE in Athens, under the leadership of Pericles. He opened Athenian democracy to the ordinary citizen, was responsible for the construction of magnificent temples and statues on the Acropolis and he, in effect created the Athenian empire. The definition of propaganda is â€Å"the planned use of any form of public or mass-produced communication designed to affect the minds of a given group for a specific purpose, whether military, economic or political† (Linearger, p. 39, 1954). This has connotations of dishonesty and while people assume it is a modern phenomenon, its roots go back much further. The question is however, was propaganda rife in 5th century BCE Athens and if so, was it the driving force whether explicitly or not behind many of the public displays? A funeral oration or epitaphios logos is an official speech delivered at a funeral. The epitaphios is regarded as a virtually unique Athenian concept, although early elements of such speeches exist in the Epic poetry of Homer and in Lyric poetry of Pindar; in addition modern parallels have been drawn between Lincoln’s Gettysburg address and Pericles. When Pericles gave the epitaphios for Athenian soldiers who had been killed in the first year of the Peloponnesian War. He took the opportunity to not only praise the deceased, but Athens itself, in an oration which has been both praised as enshrining the archetypal democratic system and condemned as barefaced propaganda. In Thucydides’ book History of the Peloponnesian War, Pericles’ Funeral Oration is a powerful rhetorical piece. In addition it is important evidence for the study of the Athenian sense of identity and the way they represented themselves and others. It eloquently discusses the ancient democratic model and the picture it portrays serves as a prototype for democratic states today (Abbott, 1970). Thucydides specified a man would be chosen to make an ‘appropriate speech’ i. e. it matched formulaic prescriptions of the epitaphios, which according to Edinger, â€Å"consisted of a number of recognised topics: praise of the dead, praise of the ancestors, praise of the city, consolation of the families of the dead.

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Importance of Community in El Tonto Del Barrio Essay -- Tonto Del Barr

Importance of Community in El Tonto Del Barrio  Ã‚     Ã‚   The title of Jose Armas’ story, "El Tonto Del Barrio" (or "The Barrio Dummy"), may be interpreted two different ways. The first interpretation is literal and applies to the simple-minded Romero, who with the help of his community is able to function in the real world. The second interpretation is ironic; it applies to the Harvard-bound Seferino, who though he means well is so lacking in experience that he turns Romero’s world upside down and nearly gets him committed to an institution. Many readers see the second interpretation as the more interesting, but to see the story in this light is to overlook a very important element. This element is the significant role of the community that is the setting for this story. If we consider the importance of the community, Romero is justly the title character. Romero gives the community character through his positive attitude, and he is a great role model to the children in terms of his work ethic. In return, the neighbor s treat Romero with kindness, loyalty, and respect. In a successful community, everyone must work together and help one another. Sometimes there are people in the community who seem strange to outsiders. They may even seem strange to the community members. The more peculiar residents may be ridiculed and put down, but not in Romero’s community—he is both respected and well-treated, and in return he treats members of the community with consideration. In this way Romero’s situation demands the best of his community, and in demanding their best, he makes the community stronger. Although Romero was not quite normal, he has a mature attitude towards his job, and he always made sure his work was done thoroughly: "R... ... everyone is taught to help anyone who needs it and to respect everyone, no matter how odd he or she seems. These values come through strongly in Armas’ story. Overall, the reader can see that this community does band together to support Romero. Romero is a bit touched, but he manages to teach everyone in the town some important lessons. He exemplifies a work ethic that is probably stronger than any else’s in the community. Despite his affliction, Romero is always cheerful and full of vitality. Even though he is the "village idiot" by conventional definition, he is a blessing to this barrio. Works Cited Armas, Jose. "El Tonto Del Barrio." Harper Anthology of Fiction. Ed. Sylvan Barnet. NY: HarperCollins, 1991. 1137-1142. Works Consulted Armas, Jose. Cuban Consciousness in Literature: 1923-1974. Miami, Florida: Ediciones Universal, 1978.      

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

.Northwest Airlines Essay

1).Northwest Airlines applied mathematical models to determine which customers in its database were currently responsible for most of its profitability and which customers were not currently profitable but had similar characteristics to the most profitable customers. Northwest Airlines utilized _____ to identify these customers. 2) Minute Maid sees research as the fundamental first step in any business decision, and it created proprietary methods for conducting research. At what level of the hierarchy of business decision makers does Minute Maid operate 3) Which of the following questions is considered first when discussing a management dilemma 4) The goal of ethics in research is to _____. 5) _____ occurs when the participants are told only part of the truth or when the truth is fully compromised. 6) The process of stating the basic dilemma and then developing other questions by progressively breaking down the original question into more specific ones is called the _____. 7) The fun damental weakness in the research process is _____. 8) Which type of management question asks what do we want to achieve 9) In the Southeast, the potato chip market share held by the Lays brand is 46. This is an example of _____. 10) An increase in hours of television viewing leads to increases in the sales of snack foods. This is an example of a _____. 11) To be categorized as a customer, an individual must have a history of shopping at the establishment at least twice before the start of the study with expenditures of more than 10. RES/351 Final Exam. This is an example of _____. 12) James is entering data on client gender. Because the values entered reflect male or female, this variable is _____. 13) Which variable in an experiment is the variable expected to be affected by the manipulation 14) Qualitative research seeks to _____ theory while quantitative research _____ it. 15) Which of the following is true of quantitative research 16) The use of a control group in experimentation _____. 17) What is the first step in conducting an experiment 18) Data originating from studies that are conducted by others and created for a purpose different from the purpose of the study for which the data are being reviewed are called _____ data. Res 351 final exam 19) The goal of a formal study is to _____. 20) A _____ scale is a scale that scores an object or property without making a direct comparison to another object or property. 21).What type of data is produced by simple category scales

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Part Four Chapter V

V Shirley Mollison was convinced that her husband and son were over-stating the danger to the council of leaving the Ghost's posts online. She could not see how the messages were worse than gossip, and that, she knew, was not yet punishable by law; nor did she believe that the law would be foolish and unreasonable enough to punish her for what somebody else had written: that would be monstrously unfair. Proud as she was of Miles' law degree, she was sure that he must have this bit wrong. She was checking the message boards even more frequently than Miles and Howard had advised, but not because she was afraid of legal consequences. Certain as she was that Barry Fairbrother's Ghost had not yet finished his self-appointed task of crushing the pro-Fielders, she was eager to be the first to set eyes on his next post. Several times a day she scurried into Patricia's old room, and clicked on the web page. Sometimes a little frisson would run through her while she was hoovering or peeling potatoes and she would race to the study, only to be disappointed again. Shirley felt a special, secret kinship with the Ghost. He had chosen her website as the forum where he would expose the hypocrisy of Howard's opponents, and this, she felt, entitled her to the pride of the naturalist who has constructed a habitat in which a rare species deigns to nest. But there was more to it than that. Shirley relished the Ghost's anger, his savagery and his audacity. She wondered who he might be, visualizing a strong, shadowy man standing behind herself and Howard, on their side, cutting a path for them through the opponents who crumpled as he slayed them with their own ugly truths. Somehow, none of the men in Pagford seemed worthy to be the Ghost; she would have felt disappointed to learn that it was any of the anti-Fielders she knew. ‘That's if it's a man,' said Maureen. ‘Good point,' said Howard. ‘I think it's a man,' said Shirley coolly. When Howard left for the cafe on Sunday morning, Shirley, still in her dressing gown, and holding her cup of tea, padded automatically to the study and brought up the website. Fantasies of a Deputy Headmaster posted by The_Ghost_of_Barry_Fairbrother. She set down her tea with trembling hands, clicked on the post and read it, open-mouthed. Then she ran to the lounge, seized the telephone and called the cafe, but the number was engaged. A mere five minutes later, Parminder Jawanda, who had also developed a habit of looking at the council message boards much more frequently than usual, opened up the site and saw the post. Like Shirley, her immediate reaction was to seize a telephone. The Walls were breakfasting without their son, who was still asleep upstairs. When Tessa picked up, Parminder cut across her friend's greeting. ‘There's a post about Colin on the council website. Don't let him see it, whatever you do.' Tessa's frightened eyes swivelled to her husband, but he was a mere three feet from the receiver and had already heard every word that Parminder had spoken so loudly and clearly. ‘I'll call you back,' said Tessa urgently. ‘Colin,' she said, fumbling to replace the receiver, ‘Colin, wait – ‘ But he had already stalked out of the room, bobbing up and down, his arms stiff by his side, and Tessa had to jog to catch him up. ‘Perhaps it's better not to look,' she urged him, as his big, knobble-knuckled hand moved the mouse across the desk, ‘or I can read it and – ‘ Fantasies of a Deputy Headmaster One of the men hoping to represent the community at Parish Council level is Colin Wall, Deputy Headmaster at Winterdown Comprehensive School. Voters might be interested to know that Wall, a strict disciplinarian, has a very unusual fantasy life. Mr Wall is so frightened that a pupil might accuse him of inappropriate sexual behaviour that he has often needed time off work to calm himself down again. Whether Mr Wall has actually fondled a first year, the Ghost can only guess. The fervour of his feverish fantasies suggests that, even if he hasn't, he would like to. Stuart wrote that, thought Tessa, at once. Colin's face was ghastly in the light pouring out of the monitor. It was how she imagined he would look if he had had a stroke. ‘Colin – ‘ ‘I suppose Fiona Shawcross has told people,' he whispered. The catastrophe he had always feared was upon him. It was the end of everything. He had always imagined taking sleeping tablets. He wondered whether they had enough in the house. Tessa, who had been momentarily thrown by the mention of the headmistress, said, ‘Fiona wouldn't – anyway, she doesn't know – ‘ ‘She knows I've got OCD.' ‘Yes, but she doesn't know what you – what you're afraid of – ‘ ‘She does,' said Colin. ‘I told her, before the last time I needed sick leave.' ‘Why?' Tessa burst out. ‘What on earth did you tell her for?' ‘I wanted to explain why it was so important I had time off,' said Colin, almost humbly. ‘I thought she needed to know how serious it was.' Tessa fought down a powerful desire to shout at him. The tinge of distaste with which Fiona treated him and talked about him was explained; Tessa had never liked her, always thought her hard and unsympathetic. ‘Be that as it may,' she said, ‘I don't think Fiona's got anything to do – ‘ ‘Not directly,' said Colin, pressing a trembling hand to his sweating upper lip. ‘But Mollison's heard gossip from somewhere.' It wasn't Mollison. Stuart wrote that, I know he did. Tessa recognized her son in every line. She was even astonished that Colin could not see it, that he had not connected the message with yesterday's row, with hitting his son. He couldn't even resist a bit of alliteration. He must have done all of them – Simon Price. Parminder. Tessa was horror-struck. But Colin was not thinking about Stuart. He was recalling thoughts that were as vivid as memories, as sensory impressions, violent, vile ideas: a hand seizing and squeezing as he passed through densely packed young bodies; a cry of pain, a child's face contorted. And then asking himself, again and again: had he done it? Had he enjoyed it? He could not remember. He only knew that he kept thinking about it, seeing it happen, feeling it happen. Soft flesh through a thin cotton blouse; seize, squeeze, pain and shock; a violation. How many times? He did not know. He had spent hours wondering how many of the children knew he did it, whether they had spoken to each other, how long it would be until he was exposed. Not knowing how many times he had offended, and unable to trust himself, he burdened himself with so many papers and files that he had no hands free to attack as he moved through the corridors. He shouted at the swarming children to get out of the way, to stand clear, as he passed. None of it helped. There were always stragglers, running past him, up against him, and with his hands burdened he imagined other ways to have improper contact with them: a swiftly repositioned elbow brushing against a breast; a side-step to ensure bodily contact; a leg accidentally entangled, so that the child's groin made contact with his flesh. ‘Colin,' said Tessa. But he had started to cry again, great sobs shaking his big, ungainly body, and when she put her arms around him and pressed her face to his her own tears wet his skin. A few miles away, in Hilltop House, Simon Price was sitting at a brand-new family computer in the sitting room. Watching Andrew cycle away to his weekend job with Howard Mollison, and the reflection that he had been forced to pay full market price for this computer, made him feel irritable and additionally hard done by. Simon had not looked at the Parish Council website once since the night that he had thrown out the stolen PC, but it occurred to him, by an association of ideas, to check whether the message that had cost him his job was still on the site and thus viewable by potential employers. It was not. Simon did not know that he owed this to his wife, because Ruth was scared of admitting that she had telephoned Shirley, even to request the removal of the post. Slightly cheered by its absence, Simon looked for the post about Parminder, but that was gone too. He was about to close the site, when he saw the newest post, which was entitled Fantasies of a Deputy Headmaster. He read it through twice and then, alone in the sitting room, he began to laugh. It was a savage triumphant laugh. He had never taken to that big, bobbing man with his massive forehead. It was good to know that he, Simon, had got off very lightly indeed by comparison. Ruth came into the room, smiling timidly; she was glad to hear Simon laughing, because he had been in a dreadful mood since losing his job. ‘What's funny?' ‘You know Fats' old man? Wall, the deputy headmaster? He's only a bloody paedo.' Ruth's smile slipped. She hurried forward to read the post. ‘I'm going to shower,' said Simon, in high good humour. Ruth waited until he had left the room before trying to call her friend Shirley, and alert her to this new scandal, but the Mollisons' telephone was engaged. Shirley had, at last, reached Howard at the delicatessen. She was still in her dressing gown; he was pacing up and down the little back room, behind the counter. ‘†¦ been trying to get you for ages – ‘ ‘Mo was using the phone. What did it say? Slowly.' Shirley read the message about Colin, enunciating like a newsreader. She had not reached the end, when he cut across her. ‘Did you copy this down or something?' ‘Sorry?' she said. ‘Are you reading it off the screen? Is it still on there? Have you taken it off?' ‘I'm dealing with it now,' lied Shirley, unnerved. ‘I thought you'd like to – ‘ ‘Get it off there now! God above, Shirley, this is getting out of hand – we can't have stuff like that on there!' ‘I just thought you ought to – ‘ ‘Make sure you've got rid of it, and we'll talk about it when I get home!' Howard shouted. Shirley was furious: they never raised their voices to each other.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Free Essays on Insomnia

Abstract Chronic insomnia is the most common sleep complaint among individuals. The present paper will attempt to discuss the non-pharmacological treatment of insomnia. Specifically, a psychological model will be outlined in forming a comprehensive framework in conceptualizing the onset of insomnia. Moreover, a cognitive model will be reviewed and discussed. The efficacy of cognitive interventions in treating insomnia will be explored. Future implications of non-pharmacological interventions for insomnia will ensue. Insomnia is one of the most prevalent psychological disorders, causing individuals chronic distress as well as impediments in social, interpersonal, and occupational functioning. Drawing on validated cognitive models of the anxiety disorders as well as on theoretical and empirical work emphasizing cognitive processes to insomnia, a cognitive model of the maintenance of insomnia is presented. It has been suggested that individuals who suffer from insomnia tend to be overly worried about their sleep and about the daytime consequences of not getting enough sleep. This excessive negatively toned cognitive activity triggers both autonomic arousal and emotional distress (Walsh, 1999). The cognitive model proposed by (Walsh, 1999) assesses that an anxious state triggers selective attention and monitoring of internal and external sleep-related threat cues. When taken together, this anxious state and the attentional processes triggered by it deceives the individual into exaggerating the extent of the perceived shortage in sleep and daytime performance. Therefore, it is proffered that the negatively toned cognitive activity will be fuelled if a sleep-related threat is encountered. Damaging behaviors such as thought control, imagery control, emotional inhibition, difficulty with problem solving and erroneous beliefs about sleep and the benefits of worry are referred to as exacerbating factors. The ... Free Essays on Insomnia Free Essays on Insomnia Abstract Chronic insomnia is the most common sleep complaint among individuals. The present paper will attempt to discuss the non-pharmacological treatment of insomnia. Specifically, a psychological model will be outlined in forming a comprehensive framework in conceptualizing the onset of insomnia. Moreover, a cognitive model will be reviewed and discussed. The efficacy of cognitive interventions in treating insomnia will be explored. Future implications of non-pharmacological interventions for insomnia will ensue. Insomnia is one of the most prevalent psychological disorders, causing individuals chronic distress as well as impediments in social, interpersonal, and occupational functioning. Drawing on validated cognitive models of the anxiety disorders as well as on theoretical and empirical work emphasizing cognitive processes to insomnia, a cognitive model of the maintenance of insomnia is presented. It has been suggested that individuals who suffer from insomnia tend to be overly worried about their sleep and about the daytime consequences of not getting enough sleep. This excessive negatively toned cognitive activity triggers both autonomic arousal and emotional distress (Walsh, 1999). The cognitive model proposed by (Walsh, 1999) assesses that an anxious state triggers selective attention and monitoring of internal and external sleep-related threat cues. When taken together, this anxious state and the attentional processes triggered by it deceives the individual into exaggerating the extent of the perceived shortage in sleep and daytime performance. Therefore, it is proffered that the negatively toned cognitive activity will be fuelled if a sleep-related threat is encountered. Damaging behaviors such as thought control, imagery control, emotional inhibition, difficulty with problem solving and erroneous beliefs about sleep and the benefits of worry are referred to as exacerbating factors. The ... Free Essays on Insomnia Insomnia Insomnia comes in many forms and worries people of all ages, most commonly for just a night or two, but sometimes for weeks, months, and even years. Insomnia has many causes. Insomnia is a symptom, much like fever or stomachache. There three symptoms commonly shown by people who have insomnia: difficulty falling asleep, no problem falling asleep but difficulty staying asleep with many awakenings, and waking up too early. Difficulty sleeping at night may be related with the following daytime symptoms: sleepiness, anxiety, impaired memory, impaired concentration, and irritability. There are three basic types of insomnia. The first type is called transient insomnia lasting for up to several nights and is usually caused by excitement or stress. Adults may sleep poorly before a key meeting at work or after a quarrel with his or her partner. Many people sleep worse than usual for the first night or two away from home, particularly if they have traveled across many time zones. Nighttime strong physical movements, the flu or other brief illnesses may disrupt sleep temporarily. The second one is situational insomnia. That is two or three weeks of poor sleep and is often developed during ongoing stress at work or at home. Situations such as job delay, divorced, serious illness or death are primary in this type of insomnia. Relief from the situation that provoked disturbed sleep or accommodation to it usually returns a person to his or her usual sleeping pattern. Chronic insomnia is the third and most serious type of the sleeping problems. This sleeping problem lasts for three weeks or longer with poor sleep every night, most nights, or quite a lot of nights of a month. This is a complex disorder with many possible causes. In more than half of all cases of persistent insomnia the cause appears to be a physical illness, such as disorders of breathing or muscle activity. These figures were derived from a nationwide study of 8,00...

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Holding Back Your Backstory

Holding Back Your Backstory Holding Back Your Backstory Holding Back Your Backstory By Michael Authors call the hidden part of a characters life their backstory. When I was acting in plays, directors might ask me to decide what my character was doing before the scene began. Since my character is supposed to be a real human being, he has a life outside of what appears on the stage or on the page. Every character is like an iceberg there is more to the character than appears on the surface. If its a minor character, the reader may never learn much about what is under the surface. But even if you dont write about it, it still has to exist. A 25-year-old woman, by definition, has 25 years of life experience. Unless she was raised by wolves, she was raised by people, even if your story never mentions it. Everything she does, she does for a reason, unless she is mentally ill, and even then, as they say, there is reason in her madness. Keep the backstory in the background. A backstory is your tool to help you create your story, not a creation in itself. Your reader may never see it directly. Part of the editing job is to prune away references to the backstory that dont advance your story. Doing that may be painful if you think you have a darling backstory, but, as you know, writers have to kill their darlings. If your backstory is as fascinating as you think, use it to write a prequel. Backstory is for characters, not for writers. Details add life, but dont spend time coming up with old details for the sake of details. Decide what events and experiences could have made your characters into the people they became. But just because your character wants to say something, that doesnt mean your reader needs to hear it. Understatement increases interest. A five-page backstory digression about a father who worked in psychological operations during the war will probably become more interesting as you make it shorter. The shorter you make it, the more you leave to your readers imagination and the more interesting it will be come. Dont front-load your backstory. You may call it a prologue, but most prologues are not necessary. Instead, use the basic editing approach of cutting as much as possible from the beginning without confusing your reader. Youll likely discover that you can begin your story at an exciting point, in media res (Latin for â€Å"in the midst of things†), without having to explain everything first. Your story needs to catch your readers interest immediately. Adding a long introduction before the interesting part is about as effective as adding a long explanation before telling a joke. Nobody will laugh. You can add backstory as needed. Writing is more like sculpting with clay than with marble. If you find you need something, you can slap it on later. For example, once a mystery writer decides who committed the crime, she can go back and develop a backstory that explains why. She can reveal that on the night the plans were stolen by an unknown spy, the sweet kindergarten teacher was in the next room. But she can also hint that the teacher learned to sing The Internationale as a child when her intellectual parents invited other immigrants over to discuss politics. Dont info-dump. Yes, maybe you absolutely have to tell your reader something so they can understand whats happening. But how you share backstory elements is as important as what you share, if not more so. Share them naturally. Dont abuse characters, such as maids and butlers, by having them talk about information they already know. Spread out your revelations over several pages or chapters. The principle Show, dont tell applies here. So does the principle of subtlety. Youre creating an experience, not simply communicating facts. You dont need to flash back for a backstory. Flashbacks can be confusing and overused, along with other sudden changes in time and setting. You want your reader to always be wanting more, and how can they be curious about something if youve already told them all about? Instead of telling your backstory as another little story, intersperse it into your main story. You can say, At the Anhui Palace, she tried the Honeycomb Tofu, but it was much sweeter than her mother made it, instead of, Her mother had immigrated from the Chinese province of Anhui. Sometimes writers think their backstory is story. Its common: as your mind works out your tale, it spins out both story and backstory, and both may end up on your page. Identify when your real story takes place: what is the conflict? When does it come to a head? Look at references to the past, and see if your story still works if you remove some of them if you begin your story later. Does your second chapter work as your first chapter? Then maybe you should remove your first chapter, call it backstory, and interweave its contents, revelations and hints into the rest of your book. Avoid world-builders disease. Because J.R.R. Tolkiens high fantasy novels are more imitated than any others in the genre, his imitators might feel they need to copy his backstories as well. But the creator of The Lord of the Rings, who was a professor of philology and Old English, apparently enjoyed creating backstories more than creating the novels themselves. Otherwise, he could have published even more novels. If you want to publish more novels, you need to spend more time writing novels than creating the backstory for them. Because of Tolkiens popularity, his son was able to get these backstories published, but dont count on doing that yourself. James Michener was known, even teased, for his heavily-researched historical novels that sometimes retold the geological formation of the places where they were set. But in an interview with Voice of America, he said, Now if you look at the best books of the research writers, theyre as good as anything anybody else did. But the bulk of the best books, I think, come from people who just sit at a desk and write. And if I were starting over again, knowing that I had the ability that I did have, I might well go that route. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Fiction Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:12 Greek Words You Should Know10 Techniques for More Precise WritingPredicate Complements

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Occupational health and safety Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Occupational health and safety - Essay Example OSH increases workplace productivity. This is because OSH stipulates that all organizations have the duty of care of ensuring that employees and other parties who may be affected by organizations undertaking are safe at all times. Moral obligations in this case involve the protection of the lives and health of employees. Because of measures that are put in place in respect to moral obligations, employees become less susceptible to injuries and harm and thereby making the realization of a more secure, sustainable and healthier workforce. This in turn leads to abated levels of absenteeism, heightened motivation and ultimately, improved productivity. It is against this backdrop for instance that the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EASHW) established the finding that for every Euro that is invested in OSH, the Return on Investment (ROI) that is realized falls between 3 and 5 Euros, due to reduced costs that stem from reduction in absenteeism. In the US, the issue of absent eeism is underscored by the data that released to the same effect. Specifically, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics established that machine-related accidents and injuries alone claimed 64,170 cases that required long sick-offs, in 2008 alone. Similarly, more than a fourth of these injury cases required more than 30 days being spent away from work (Reese, 2008). The fact that following OSH stipulations entails the installation of workplace risk prevention and the enhancement of proper health and safety management means that cases dealing with serious harm and injuries on employees are assuaged. Cases where these injuries are commonly recurrent are concomitant with high employee turnover, as organizations are compelled to look for another source of manpower or skilled labor. Adhering to OSH in turn alleviates cases of terminal injuries and thereby reducing the chances of high employee turnover that would be incurred as an organization tries to replenish the size of its work force. In a closely related wavelength, adhering to the standards and stipulations set by OSH gives organizational productivity the quality of continuity and stability. With the aforementioned abated cases of injuries and harm on employees, a corporate entity is succored from the task of having to retrain and nurture fledgeling personnel to acquire the necessary skills and experiences that an injured team possessed. This is significant, since training and nurturing organizational workforce entails numerous workshop drives and training programs. Reese (2008) points out that an organization also benefits directly when it adheres to OSH regulations and standards. This benefit takes the form of increased security from the ravages of workplace accidents, malfunction and human error. This is because; OSH is broad enough to include interactions with other subject areas such as safety engineering, chemistry and industrial engineering. This is especially more pronounced in industries that ha ve inherently high proclivity to accidents such as mining, construction and crisis management which have over time developed safety procedures and methods as a way of managing physical danger at the workplace. For instance, since 1992, engineering workshops specializing in welding of components are to adhere to the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) regulations, and thereby curtailing high chances for

Thursday, October 31, 2019

The Society of Composers, Authors, and Music Publishers of Canada Essay

The Society of Composers, Authors, and Music Publishers of Canada - Essay Example With the laws that govern intellectual property being clear on the legality of the limited access to copyrighted songs on the internet, the demand for royalty from the authors causes confusion on the extent of justified free access to such songs. The case between the two entities begs the question of where to draw the line between the freedom for information access and the copyright laws. This research aims to explore the flawlessness of the Canadian copyright laws that stipulate that the free previews comprise fair dealing with the intent of research.   Using both CCH v. Law Society of Upper Canada and Alberta (Education) v. Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency (Access Copyright), explore the validity of the Canadian copyright law regarding the use of reviews for the purposes of research   This investigation hinges upon methods and mechanisms that aim to uncover answers to the research questions. The selected methods of research emanating from the significant research needs. The sources that the research utilizes are also accessible and available for analysis. This study shall take into consideration some legal principles and beliefs as regarding the application of the copyright law and the right of access to information in Canada and the world through. The study will concentrate on the information that exists and the interrelation of different entities on the validity and significance of copyright laws in a society with special interest to Canada and focus on the Society of Composers, Authors, and Music Publishers of Canada v. Bell Canada scenario.   The research will use different methods of investigations namely, documentary sources, interviews and questionnaires.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

How Diversity and Multicutralism Affects My Daily Life Assignment

How Diversity and Multicutralism Affects My Daily Life - Assignment Example The rehabilitation has expectations, attitudes, and values and beliefs that must be implemented under my capacity as a nurse manager. The implementation requires a platform that embraces diversity and multiculturalism. There are issues within the limits of diversity and multiculturalism that I confront every day as a nurse manager. I contend with emotional conflict with my patients and subordinate workers due differential cultural perceptions. I handle mental, drug and substance that may elicit conflict if the individual is not from the same culture or language as me. Letting cultural or gender-norm context cloud, my judgment n my capacity as a nurse and it results in bias. However, at the back of mind I have guiding principles that I should respect. The principle applies to psychiatric cases where practitioners are supposed to accept, understand and expansive cultures when offering services and to relate to the cultures of others. I must have cultural competency at all times for efficient use of rehabilitation awareness and knowledge. The move enhances cross-cultural interventions (Wong-Hernandez & Wong, 2002). Diversity and multiculturalism enhance work performance at the rehabilitation facility. My management style features utmost teamwork in order to share ideas on how to deal with varied rehabilitation needs of the patients The understanding that there are different cultures and languages elicits the need to work with different people in order to work from different perspectives (Stanford Graduate School of Business, 2015). The perspectives inspire innovation where I administer rehabilitation procedures that do not cross or violate cultural, language, race or ethnic principles. It is my job to ensure that the patients feel comfortable irrespective of their origin or skin color and at the same time receiving the same level of service from nurses based on moral or professional obligation. I cultivate my management role by

Sunday, October 27, 2019

Problems of excessive meat consumption

Problems of excessive meat consumption PROBLEM Nowadays, meat consumption is becoming an uncontrollable problem. As a result of high consumption, different kinds of issues occurred. It is possible to sum these issues up in two major groups as health and environment. Red meat consumption linked to increase risk of total, cardiovascular, and cancer mortality. Meat consumption also increases the risk of diabetes. According to new research from Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) when people eat more meat than usual, their risk of getting diabetes will be increased by 50 percent. In fact, same study shows that people who decreased their meat consumption lowered their diabetes risk will increase 14 percent. On the other side environmental problems are also vital. For instance, it ought to be 60 pounds of water to produce one pound of potatoes while 2,500 pounds of water for a pound of beef. Health Issues: Cancer There are a lot of studies about the relationship between diet and Cancer. According to the searches in England and Germany, the meat consumers are 40 percent more likely to have Cancer than the vegetarians. Again Harvard studies show that people who eat meat everyday have almost three times the colon cancer risk, compared to other people. There are many reasons for this result. During the cooking meat, some mutagenic compounds are produced like HCAs and they are very dangerous for our health. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are another reason for Cancer. Especially broiling and grilling meat produce these kind hydrocarbons (Meat Consumption and Cancer Risk). So, these chemicals penetrate our body via meat. Breast Cancer: The fat comes from animal products, such as meat and dairy products increases the rate of breast cancer. For women who can eat meat daily has an 8.5 times higher risk of this cancer than poorer women who can eat make once a month (Hirayama, 1978). Colorectal Cancer: Red meat is a great factor for colon cancer. According to another Harvard research, consuming beef, pork or lamb have approximately three times the risk compared to people that avoid these meats (Meat Consumption and Cancer Risk). Mainly, colorectal cancer is another effect of meat consumption. Prostate Cancer: As with breast cancer, if a man takes dietary fat, especially from animal products, increases his testosterone product and this causes increasing of prostate cancer risk. There are two large studies at Harvard University about this issue. According to one of them, the men who eat red meat everyday have 2.5 times risk compared to the men who eat it once a week (Giovannucci, et al., 1993). Put simply, meat consumption also causes prostate cancer. Other Cancers: In addition to these cancers, there are several researches about kidney, pancreatic and other kinds of cancer. Commonly, similar reasons such as much meat consumption and much intake of fat increase cancer risk. Otherwise, the same sources claim that vegetarian diets protect us against the cancer (Meat Consumption and Cancer Risk). Thus people have to avoid meat consumption. Heart Disease Vegetarian people’s intake of calories and fat is lower than non-vegatarians do. Thus, they have lower risk of heart disease. Regular consumption of red meat especially processed ones, increase mortality risk directly (Mayo Clinic, 2011). Meat consumption clearly causes deaths. Indirect Factors People who consumed high levels of red meat have less-than-healthy body weights. Meat consumption makes them also want to smoke and drink (Sarich, 2013). All these factors are another way to die younger. Environment Issues: Meat consumption has a big impact on the environment. It is considered as the most important reason for the Global Warming. Animal farming is the major source of carbon dioxide. Unfortunately there is no such a thing as sustainable, humane meat production. Changing the source of your meat and preferring farms which seem to be care about ecology do not change the facts. Any farm cannot change the effect of farm animals. The combined emissions of animals are more than all transportation systems. Lindsay Wilson compares the carbon footprints of five different American diets in her article titled ‘The Carbon Footprint of 5 Diets Compared’. As stated in the article, studies allocate diets in five different ways: Meat Lover Diet, Average Person Diet, No Beef Diet, Vegetarian Diet and Vegan diet. It is an important factor that the studies only attach importance to the emissions rates. They do not include storage, transportation emissions. http://shrinkthatfootprint.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Plates.gif According to the article, ‘A vegetarian’s footprint is about two thirds of the average American and almost half that of a meat lover’. We can see that there is a huge difference between the vegetarian and meat lover life style in terms of carbon food print. On the other hand vegan diet leads the ecological nutrition as usual. The health secretary of U.K, Andy Burnham said that ‘Climate change can seem a distant, impersonal threat; in fact the associated costs to health are a very real and present danger’. He emphasizes that everyone should cut back on the amount of meat and meat products they eat. Even going meatless once a week (Meatless Mondays) has a big positive impact on the environment. Another ecological issue is the water consumption. According to the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization’s report titled Livestock’s Long Shadow (2006) by the year 2050, 2/3 of the World population will lack clean water even for their basic needs. There is a hidden water use behind meat production. It takes 60 pounds of water to produce one pound of potatoes. On the other hand, it takes more than 20,000 pounds of water to produce a pound of beef. According to PETA, all but half of the water used in the U.S, used to raise the animals for food. We would save more water if we do not eat a pound of beef than we do by not showering for six months they say! As a result, in any case it is beneficial for us to cut back meat. Every small step is important. Graham Hill, the founder of TreeHugger.com states the importance of small steps in his Ted talk titled ‘Why I’m a weekday vegetarian’. At the end of his speech there is a very unique expression which give hope to us: ‘’If all of us ate half as much meat, it would be like half of us were vegetarians’’. SOLUTIONS At the present time, high numbers of projects have been developing about meat consumption in USA. Such as Meatless Monday, Eating Better, Tax Meat and Earth Friendly Diet Campaign. These projects are supported by society organizations, government and celebrities. Projects which are considerable are listed below: Meatless Monday: It is a project which encourages people not to eat meat on Mondays. The aim of this project is to improve peoples health. The project was founded by Sid Lerner in 2003. It is an association withJohns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The reason that they choose Monday is that people are not exactly living healthy during weekends, so not eating meat on Mondays would help them to get back to their usual eating habits. Monday also represents a fresh start. In order to give a support to this project some celebrities are going meatless on Mondays. Such as; Sir Richard Branson (founder of Virgin Group), Denise Richards (actress), Jessica Simpson (actress, singer), Oprah (TV star), Kate Moss (model). Eat Better (Live Better): This movement believes that living better starts with eating better. In order to eat better, you need to be informed about food according to them. They share recipes varying on different needs as vegetarians, Low Carb, Sodium and Gluten free diets. Tax Meat: This movement Tax Meat is started by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). They are trying to convince the government to put tax on meat because of two reasons. One of them is animal products contain remarkable amounts of cholesterol and it is unhealthy to consume by people. Secondly, studies show that there is a connection between cancer and the consumption of meat. Take Extinction off Your Plate (Earth Friendly Diet Campaign): Take Extinction off Your Plate aims to save the wildlife by helping to decrease the amount of meat consumption across the country. It was launched in 2014 in Tucson, AZ. They started a campaign called Earth Friendly Diet. It basically supports being a vegan and it is trying to attract people into being a vegan. They claim thatâ€Å"By cutting just one-third of the meat from our diets, we can each save as much as 340,667 gallons of water, more than 4,000 square feet of land, and the greenhouse gas equivalent of driving 2,700 fewer miles a year.† EVALUATION Meat Consumption is one of the oldest habits of human life. Therefore cutting or even decreasing meat consumption is a huge mountain to climb. To convince people not to eat meat, it needs to be put forward certain reasons. Since it is about convincing; taxing the meat or in another words forbidding meat in a way, is not a steady solution. Wealthy part of the society won’t be coaction by taxing while the other part will. So this situation can easily cause social problems. For this reason Tax Meat project maybe a little part of the solution but definitely cannot be the best. Take Extinction off Your Plate is a kind of limited movement. The project intends to make people vegan. Given this evidence it may sound that it is an agreeable idea but in real it is not. Forwhy to want people be a vegan is leaving an alarming impression. In simple the cure is worse than the disease. When people heard that offer they may remain at bay. Eat Better Live Better project seems not to be adequate. Although it has some actionary parts, turnout of the project is just advisory, it is not satisfying, not like Meatless Monday. The project of Meatless Monday has a certain message. Those who partaken know what to do, why they are doing it and beyond that it is very easy to do, they don’t eat meat Mondays. Most of the people accept Monday as an opportunity for a fresh start to a new week. Meatless Monday followers are increasing each passing day. It is easier to start a plant-based lifestyle via not eating meat once a week. It will be much easier for willing people to become a weekday vegetarian first, which can be followed by a whole vegetarianism. This simple idea achieves a considerable amount of benefits. Works Cited Giovannucci, E., Rimm, E. B., Colditz, G. A., Stampfer, M. J., Ascherio, A., Chut, C. C., Willett, W. C. (1993). A prospective study of dietary fat and risk of prostate cancer. Journal of The National Cancer Institute, 1571-1579. Hirayama, T. (1978). Epidemiology of breast cancer with special reference to the role of diet. Preventive Medicine, 173-195. Mayo Clinic. (2011, September 16). Meatless meals: The benefits of eating less meat. Retrieved from The Website of Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/meatless-meals/art-20048193 Meat Consumption and Cancer Risk. (n.d.). Retrieved from Physicians Committe for Responsible Medicine: http://www.pcrm.org/health/cancer-resources/diet-cancer/facts/meat-consumption-and-cancer-risk Sarich, C. (2013, July 21). Harvard Says Reducing Red Meat Consumption can Extend Life by 20%. Retrieved from Natural Society: http://naturalsociety.com/reducing-red-meat-consumption-extend-life-20-percent/#ixzz2zdnAhdzY

Friday, October 25, 2019

Economic Pursuits of the Jews in the Middle Ages :: essays research papers fc

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Economic Pursuits of the Jews in the Middle Ages   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Jews in the middle ages progressed economically through various occupations. Their economic status was very volatile for many reasons. No area of Jewish life in Western Europe offers such a perpetual change as the economy does. The Jews most specifically participated in international trade, crafts, slave trade, local trade, and most popularly in money lending.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Jewish people participated in commerce in the countries of western Mediterranean . However, Jewish roles in commerce were rather limited because Syrian merchants in Gaul who supplied the population with luxury articles imported from the East monopolized the whole commerce scene . There would be a consistent war between Muslim and Christian fleets at sea, which left the Jewish merchants at a neutral status. As a result, Jewish merchants who were kidnapped at sea by pirates had a better chance of getting their ransom paid by their co-religionists . Jewish merchants had become very competitive which supposedly put some fear on others. Consequently, in 945, the Venetian government ordered its ship owners not to carry Jewish passengers .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jewish merchants traded in amber, textiles, hides, arms, spices, precious stones, and other luxury articles . Their clientele consisted mainly of royal and ducal courts and the aristocracy, both secular and clerical . There were other groups engaged in international trade, and Jewish merchants were not the dominant role in the commerce scene . In the cities re-conquered from the Muslims in Spain, Jews played a decisive role in the revival of commerce and industry, and especially in the production and merchandising of clothing . As well, England’s Jewry had a role in commerce, too .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  After the year 1100, The Jewish role in international trade began to decline . The Hansa cities began to replace the Jewish traders. Their ships were heavily armed, and were no match for the Jews .   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Some believe that Jews controlled the slave trade . Jews were also accused of kidnapping Christian children and selling them to Muslims in southern Spain. The proportion of Jews among the slave traders was smaller than their proportion in international trade . Jewish participation in trading Christian slaves was limited because a Christian ruler sometimes protected it . The Jewish merchants faced many unfair obstacles because of blunt discrimination. The Christian merchants were not faced with these same obstacles such as not being able to trade other Christian slaves.

Thursday, October 24, 2019

“My Life had stood †a Loaded Gun †” Feminist Analysis Essay

This poem was written by the American poet Emily Dickinson around the year 1863. It is probably one of the most complex of all Dickinson’s poems because it does not have a single coherent and satisfactory interpretation. This is due to the fact that it exemplifies her technique of the ‘omitted centre’, a device by which the author omits information that is crucial to the understanding of the poem. Nevertheless, the aim of the present paper is not to discuss the manifold possible interpretations of the poem. Its aim is rather to try to explain it or analyze it from a feminist point of view, highlighting how it gives an image of a woman different from the one people are used to, as well as how it inverts the gender roles but accepting them at the same time. The speaker starts by presenting herself as â€Å"a Loaded Gun†, that is as a mortal weapon capable of killing and destroying. This can be understood as the poet’s rejection of the traditional ideas and images about femininity, she is portraying herself as strong and potentially active in opposition to the common ideas of weakness and passivity associated with women. Later on, in the third stanza, she will compare herself to a volcano, turning the possibility of destruction – a contingent fact up until that point – into a reality. So now she is not only telling the reader that she can be active, dangerous, and destructive, but she is actually being it: the previous threat is now an event. This image of the volcano is even more important because it is a common one, used also by Emerson – one of her greatest influences – to refer to the poet. The difference is that whereas in Emerson’s essay The Poet it is a rather benignant image – this of the volcano – used to portray the poet as a power of nature; in Dickinson’s poem it is a burning and destructive force. With this change in the meaning or connotation of the metaphor, she may be telling us that creation, carried out by a woman, is at the same time an act of aggression. This idea is closely related to the reading many feminists have made of this poem, seeing it as an example of how power in a woman can be seen as a danger or even a threat. As for the gender roles one may argue that there is a contradiction in this poem. On the one hand she depicts herself as the active force in her relationship with her â€Å"Owner† and â€Å"Master†. She speaks â€Å"for Him†; she fights for him and defends him from Salceda 2 his foes. It is important to notice how in the fourth stanza she guards his head while he sleeps, thus preferring or putting her role as defender before her role as lover, i.e. her masculine role before of her feminine role. It is better to kill for him than to lay with him. In this poem she is the â€Å"knight in armor† while the male is, as to say, the â€Å"damsel in distress†. But on the other hand, the reader is told at the beginning that her â€Å"Life had stood – a Loaded Gun – / In Corners† until her â€Å"Owner passed† and â€Å"identified† her. That is, she had no identity of herself; she did not exist as an individual endowed with consciousness until he found her. It is also important to notice that the vocabulary used in the first stanza depicts her as an object. Therefore all her representations of herself as the leading figure in the poem, the strong one, the powerful one are, in some way, undermined by the fact that, at the beginning, she is just an object endowed with subjectivity by a real and pre-existent subject – the male character – who then becomes an object himself. The idea that her subjectivity is only one borrowed from him can be clearly seen in that, throughout the poem, her only goal is to defend him, to protect him form his foes who are at the same time hers. Nonetheless, this dependence on a male subject is, if not denied, at least overcome in the last stanza where the speaker presents herself as immortal. Thus, if she will live long before he has died, her existence must be independent of his. If the last part of my analysis seems confusing and even contradictory, it is because the poem itself, as it has already been said at the beginning, is confusing and even contradictory. To sum up I would like to say that, from my point of view, the important point about this poem is how Dickinson’s attempt to break up with the traditional ideas of womanhood and gender roles, since it is based upon the traditional opposition between femininity/masculinity, passivity/activity, object/subject, proves itself in some way â€Å"futile†. One may notice that she is not defending femininity, or trying to posit it higher or at the same level than masculinity, but what she is doing is taking a male position. This may explain why she takes her identity from a man. She is opposing the fact that being a woman entails being passive and defenseless, but at the same time she is saying that her aggressive character appeared only after a man identified her. So, she is not pulling down the differences or the hierarchy existing between male and female, but interchanging the roles. Nevertheless, one should not think that Dickinson’s poem is a failure – from a feminist point of view –, but on the contrary it is a success, since she manages to highlight the difficulty, or even impossibility, of writing at the same time Salceda 3 from and against a preestablished language and a system of thought, which are the very bases of the discrimination of women.