Is it Right for the Government to Accept the Fine Now? Essay

The notion of free will is important when deciding whether the government should accept the fine now or later. Free will suggests that human beings are autonomous and are therefore free to decide how to live their lives. This includes decisions, such as John’s, about whether to speed drive or not. However, the governmental officials are human as well and therefore also possess free will. If John is considered a free agent capable of being free than it must also be assumed that government officials, also free agents, are also capable of being free. One caveat that accompanies free will is moral responsibility. Ultimately, this is what this entire case centers on. Is it right for the government to accept the fine before John commits a speed driving offense? This question will explored further as it relates to free will as well as how it relates to personal identity and mind body ideas. The government does not have the right to accept the fine prior to the speed driving offense. Whether or not it is known that John will speed drive tomorrow is not really the issue in this case. The issue is that the government should not accept that a person is going to commit a crime and accept a fine for it before it occurs but rather the government should rely on their sense of free will in order to stop the crime from happening in the first place. The capacity for the government to have free will also means that the government has a moral responsibility to society to ensure that John does not speed drive tomorrow. Further, if John is going to disappear forever after he speed drives anyway, is it really necessary to accept the fine and hope that this punishment deters John in the future? The mind body principle emphasizes that all human beings have a physical body as well as the capacity to think, feel and remember. This idea is connected to the idea of free will because human beings go beyond their biological characteristics to become creatures who want certain things, hate certain things and think about certain things in different ways. Therefore, there is a scientific reason that can explain why John may choose to speed tomorrow just as there is a scientific reason why the government may choose to accept the fine before the crime. Similarly, there are also internal reasons why these choices may be made that have more to do with feelings and thoughts than biological processes. This is the heart of Descartes famous phrase, â€Å"I think, therefore I am. † In other words, the way that human beings choose to operate and conduct themselves are direct results of the ability to think. This brings up a very important point with regards to punishing John for a future event. Perhaps John will use his mind to decide that his moral responsibility entails his decision to not speed after all. If John decides that his capacity for free will obligates him to refrain from speeding, then the government would be wrong in their acceptance of a fine before the crime was committed. Finally, philosophical behaviorists believe that human beings rely on their minds to behave in reaction to their physical environment. If this is the case, then John may still change his mind about speeding, but more likely John will go ahead and speed in response to the physical environment that accepted a fine for a future crime. In other words, John will go ahead and speed because he had already been punished for the crime so nothing was stopping him from doing it. Under personal identity theories, Thomas Reid suggests that just because human beings have the capacity to remember events does not mean that these events happened to them. Further, he suggests that if human beings cannot remember something that happened a week ago, does this mean they have become another person? This has direct relevance to this case because it can be assumed that if the government knows someone is planning to commit a crime they can get the punishment out of the way before the crime is even committed. This brings up a larger issue. Will punishing humans before they commit a crime truly deter them from that future crime or will it produce a drastic change in society based on the notion that if punishment has already been served then the crime is an accepted part of society? While it is certainly logical to conclude that punishing someone before the crime occurs may produce a safer society, it is also logical to conclude that this type of justice system will create a crime laden distrustful society. For example, if the government finds out that John will be speeding in order to find his next victim to murder they may lock him in prison before the crime can occur. This will, conceivably, produce a safer society. However, it will, at the same time, create a society where human beings accept criminal activity provided that punishment is handed down before the crime. Ultimately, the government has no right to punish John for a speeding offense that will occur tomorrow. Personal identity is important here because it provides an outlet for John to make a different decision and obey the posted speed limit after all. In the end, the government could hand down a fine for a future speeding offense, but would this truly deter any future crime? The most logical answer is no because without punishing the mind of the criminal, then the punishment ultimately means very little. The capacity to have free will means that John is unlikely to change his behavior even if he is punished. Further, just because John will disappear after he speeds does not mean he ceases to exist just because this government can no longer see him. John will continue to exist in another place and his mind will ensure him that if he pays his fine for speeding then that offense will be accepted and he will be welcome to speed whenever he wants to. According to the idea of free will, the government would be more successful if they were to teach John why he should not speed and provide him with compelling reasons to refrain from doing so. John’s internal human desire to please those in authority would win out thus being more effective in curbing the potential for speeding behavior. Finally, free will does not mean John is allowed to speed nor does it mean that the government can punish John before he speeds. It does mean that John is free to drive wherever and whenever he wants to but the government is free to punish him if he does not obey the rules of the road.

Orion Shield Project Case Essay

In this paper, The Orion Shield Project is critically analyzed to determine how effective the project manager, Mr. Gary Allison, is in operating as leader. Specifically, the paper focuses on what technical, ethical, legal, contractual, and other managerial issues plague the success of The Orion Shield Project. The paper attempts to analyze these issues by first introducing the reader to background about the project, and then moving into a deeper discussion of every one of the previously mentioned issues. Due to the individuals he works with and the differing situations he is placed, Mr. Allison must make difficult decisions at every corner. After examining the project, it is found that Mr. Allison can improve his responses to these issues by accounting for the complexities of dealing with technology, becoming more solid in his ethical stance, understanding law and contracts and how they relate to the project, and connecting better with his team. Introduction There are many nuances to project management which can negatively affect a manager or project. The Orion Shield Project exemplifies why proper management is integral to any successful project. The project is a venture that NASA is promoting in order to improve the structural capabilities of the Shuttle Launch Booster. The prime contractor that NASA is using for this project is the Space Technologies Institute (STI), who put out a request for proposal (RFP) for a subcontractor to help with this project. SEC won the bid to become the subcontractor on this project, and the Director of Engineering, Mr. Henry Larsen, appointed Mr. Gary Allison as the project manager (The Orion Shield Project, 2003). As The Orion Shield Project advances, many issues arise which forces Mr. Allison to make difficult decisions. In this paper, I will critically analyze the issues Mr. Allison faces while managing The Orion Shield Project. In critically examining the way The Orion Shield Project is handled, I wi ll touch on the technical,  ethical, legal, contractual, and other management issues faced by Mr. Allison and analyze both his positive and negative actions in an effort to gain a better understanding of how project management plays a role in the outcome of this project. Technical Issues The Orion Shield Project gives rise to many technical issues which Mr. Allison has to navigate as he manages the project. The technical issues that specifically alter the integrity of the project are incapable components and a poorly designed test matrix. Incapable components present issues all throughout the project, with the most glaring problems occurring in the beginning and end of the project. The original technical specification that STI listed in their RFP was that all components must be able to operate efficiently between temperature ranges of -65 degrees F to 145 degrees F (The Orion Shield Project, 2003). This was an issue for the SEC project because testing within the company shows that their current component design would not function above 130 degrees F, and that the requirements would not be able to be met without different materials (The Orion Shield Project, 2003). This creates an issue for a bevy of reasons, including throwing off the timeline, the amount of resource s used, and commitments to stakeholders. While performing final tests on the component as the project was coming to a close it was found that the product was again not up to the specifications requested in the RFP. The purpose of The Orion Shield Project was to get the Shuttle Launch Booster to support an age life of at least 9 years, and after testing it was found that the age life would most likely be less than 5 years. This is actually less than what the original component NASA was using lasted, which was 6 years (The Orion Shield Project, 2003). Both of these points in the project are technical issues Mr. Allison is responsible for overcoming as project manager of The Orion Shield Project. In addition to the aforementioned technical issues, Mr. Allison also deals with a test matrix in the technical volume of the proposal which will not produce acceptable results. The test matrix is â€Å"an effective way of recording the coverage of the scope delivered† (Boyde, 2012, p. 701). From  this matrix, you should be able to tell what has been implemented, what has yet to be implemented, and what was determined to be out of scope for the current milestone release (Boyde, 2012, p. 701). Realizing the importance of the test matrix, Mr. Allison echoes his concern to his Chief Project Engineer Ms. Paula Arnold, who warned him around changing the test matrix and scope of the work. This would in turn affect the cost of the project which is not viable due to the nature of the contract that SEC is working under. Instead of addressing this issue up front and trying to find a way to trim some work off downstream to keep the budget manageable, Mr. Allison pushes on for three more weeks until the test matrix and research results are ultimately deemed unacceptable. This puts Mr. Allison and his team in a deeper hole and extends their timeline, while also projecting a sense of disarray when meeting with their stakeholders. In analyzing this project, it seems that the technical issues Mr. Allison was faced with while managing The Orion Shield Project amounted to three major sources, technology interdependence, technology novelty, and external factors. Technology interdependence refers to requirement of different expertise to perfect a final product (Hussein, Pigagaite & Silva, 2014, p. 706). One of the difficult duties that comes with managing is understanding how different elements of a project interact with each other, and how to get the elements to work together in an efficient manner. If Mr. Al lison got better with technology interdependencies, he would have been able to establish a more effective test matrix. Technology novelty is one of the biggest culprits for the technical issues Mr. Allison faced in The Orion Shield Project. Technology novelty refers to the idea that â€Å"no matter how much planning you do beforehand, when you assemble a final product – or even a part of it – testing will always reveal problems† (Hussein, Pihahaite & Silva, 2014, p. 706). In production, you should always assume that something can, and will go wrong. In reading The Orion Shield Project case, its glares out that Mr. Allison does not have a contingency plan built it, and did not allow himself enough time to tinker with the project to get it right. This in turn led to a lot of sleepless, stressful nights and still an insufficient, unacceptable product and project. The final sources of technical issues which are found to be relevant to Mr. Allison’s management case are external factors. Factors such as pressure from Mr. Larsen to force SEC into The Orion Shield Project and pressure from Ms. Sarah Wilson, a representative from STI, to stick to the schedule SEC proposed, led to many of the poor technical decisions Mr. Allison makes. Mr. Larsen’s pressure on The Orion Shield Project leads to Mr. Allison making false promises and trying to cover his traces throughout the entire project. This in turn leads to a strained relationship with Ms. Wilson, who pushes Mr. Allison to take on more of an administrative role, instead of the research focused position he prefers. In the end, Mr. Allison could have mitigated all of the external issues by maintaining a strict ethical code in his actions, which delves into the ethical issues he faces in managing this project. Ethical Issues Out of all the issues presented in The Orion Shield Project, the ethical issues seem to be the most devastating to the success of the project. The specific moments in which ethical issues arise all seem to occur within some type of interaction with Mr. Larsen. The first and most important of which occurs when Mr. Allison raises concerns with Mr. Larsen about the specifications that STI put out for the components. Mr. Larsen’s response to this concern was to lie to STI and express in the proposal that SEC had the capabilities to make a component that would go above and beyond the specifications required. Specifically, Mr. Larsen advocated that Mr. Allison say that SEC had a component design that would operate at up to 155 degrees F in hopes of later cornering STI into accepting the actual specifications that the SEC component could handle. Deceiving a partner about what you can provide them just to earn a contract or project is unethical on many levels. In an article written by Dr. Thomas Mengel (2006), communication between project stakeholders and project management is found to be extremely important. The article goes further to say that â€Å"project managers need to comprehensively determine the impact of any decision to be made† (Mengel, 2006, p. 230). Mr. Allison did not think this situation with Mr. Larsen all the way through, and because of that not only did technical issues arise,  but an ethical one as well. An ethical issue which Mr. Allison also has to deal with is the testing of new materials without his knowledge. After Ms. Wilson met with Mr. Allison and displayed her angst with how the administrative side of the project was going, Mr. Allison focuses more of his time and effort with the administrative tasks. This gives Mr. Larsen time to move in and work with Ms. Arnold on a new material, using more STI money in the process when the contract and Ms. Wilson specifically state that SEC would bear all costs of additional research beyond the original scope of work (The Orion Shield Project, 2003). It is understandable that Mr. Larsen is Mr. Allison’s boss and he does not always need to tell him what he is doing, but with a venture as big as this and with Mr. Allison being the project manager and the one ultimately responsible for results, it seems ethical to discuss these major decisions. One way Mr. Allison could have addressed this issue could have occurred before agreeing to accept this position and project. While Mr. Larsen was originally describing the position to Mr. Allison, Mr. Allison could have requested to include ethic checks in decision making processes and to â€Å"define a joint process and mutually agreeable criteria for ethical decision making† (Mengel, 2006, p . 231). This would help Mr. Allison set parameters around his interactions with Mr. Larsen. He could then use these well-defined parameters as a basis to disagree with an action or even refuse an action Mr. Larsen proposes if unethical. In failing to do so, Mr. Allison allows these unethical procedures to ultimately fall on his shoulders. An ethical issue which falls directly on the shoulders of Mr. Allison occurs when he withholds information from upper management about the short age life of the component near the end of the project. The ethical dilemma is clear here and could have far reaching damages for both SEC and STI. Mr. Allison should have told upper management as soon as testing shows the shorter age life of the component. No matter how difficult it is, maintaining an ethical code is essential to the proper management of not only projects but organizations as well. Legal & Contractual Issues The Orion Shield Project exposes SEC to a variety of legal issues, some coming from managements own unethical actions and many more coming from  contractual complications. The initial legal issue that arises from The Orion Shield Project occurs when SEC responds to the RFP issued by STI. When Mr. Larsen requests for Mr. Allison to make the proposal reflect that SEC’s component can operate at up to 155 degrees F, when in actuality it cannot operate above 130 degrees F, SEC breaches the RFP contract. At first glance you may not think a RFP is legally binding, but according to legal precedent it is. In the 1981 case of R. (Ontario) V. Ron Engineering, it was found that RFP’s are part of a two part contract, and that they are the bidding portion of the contract. What this means is that once a proposal is presented in response to a RFP, both sides are now legally tied to the contract and must abide by the terms stipulated in that proposal (The Legal Implications,† 20 12). In providing false promises in their proposal, Mr. Allison and SEC open themselves up to sanctions and being sued. Mr. Allison and SEC also open themselves up for legal action when they breach the firm-fixed-price (FFP) contract they agreed to with STI. As defined by Charles Russell Jr. and Susan Moser (2009) in Firm-Fixed-Price Contracting: The time and Materials Requirements Dilemma, a FFP is â€Å"a completion contract,† which means that â€Å"profit or fee is earned by the delivery of end items† (p.46). FFP’s also carry fixed prices and leave little room for adjustments as the project moves along. The fixed price and the need to make adjustments as the project went along are what opened SEC up to legal action. Ms. Wilson from STI specifically mentioned that after the first test matrix failed and a new one was developed, all additional research and development would be at the expense of SEC. But, when Mr. Larsen and Ms. Arnold began developing the new material for the component they used STI funding for it. This again was a breach of contract, and by not addressing this is sue Mr. Allison left SEC vulnerable to being dropped from the contract and sued for the wrong use of project funding. One way Mr. Allison could have avoided this situation would be to push for a different type of contract from STI for The Orion Shield Project. In an article written by Frank Kendall (2013) on the uses of FFP contracts, the restricting nature of the contract is described in great detail. Kendall describes how FFP contracts tend to restrict flexibility as contractors  learn more â€Å"about what is feasible and affordable as well as what needs to be done to achieve a design that meets requirements during a product’s design and testing phases† (Kendall, 2013, p. 2). Mr. Allison experiences this dilemma all too much as he runs The Orion Shield Project. A FFP contract was the perfect contract for STI; FFP contracts offer the lowest risk to the buyer due to the fact that it is not subject to any cost adjustments resulting from contractors carrying out the project (Russell Jr. & Moser, 2009, p.47). Instead of agreeing to such a rigid contract when you know your component will need multiple tests to meet specifications, SEC and Mr. Allison should have instead pushed for a more flexible contract like a time-and-materials (T&M) contract. A time and materials contract can be used when the duration, extent of effort, and costs associated with a project are generally unknown up front (Russell Jr. & Moser, 2009, p. 47). This contract would be more beneficial to SEC and Mr. Allison specifically when he changes the test matrix, and has to find new materials and incur more costs to complete the project. In the end, Mr. Allison mishandles many issues which leave himself and SEC vulnerable to legal action, luckily no such action occurs. Other Management Issues Separate from the main issues discussed earlier in this paper, there are also other, more managerial issues. The two other management issues that are present in The Orion Shield Project are staffing concerns and employee motivation. Mr. Allison’s first dilemma while working The Orion Shield Project is finding the staff he wants to help him with the venture. He is not given top priority in picking his staff, which make it difficult to get the key people necessary to ensure a smoothly run project. Many managers do not want to give up their main people, but with the help of Mr. Larsen he finds an â€Å"adequate† staff to fill in (The Orion Shield Project, 2003). This puts Mr. Allison in a dilemma because he does not have the option of working with the people he feels most comfortable with. Being uncomfortable while leading a project can do nothing but have negative effects on results. This also leads to Mr. Allison putting the burden of doing most of the work on his self, instead of leveraging his team better. Since this is a situation most project managers will have to deal with on their first project, Mr.  Allison could have done a better job utilizing his staff to create more positive project results. As The Orion Shield Project progresses, many of the members of the project team lose motivation to work on the project. The lack of team motivation came from the teams dissipating trust in Mr. Allison and the plans they were told would be final. Also, a lack of communication leads to heightened tension between the team. As Dorothy Ann Brenner (2007) points out in a recent article, communication, no matter what the form, helps with team chemistry and â€Å"gives them a clearer idea of their roles and what is expected of them so they understand their goals, as well as the team’s overall goal for a successful project† (p.19). Mr. Allison’s lack of communication with his team leads to certain members feeling out of the loop and disappointed with the direction of the project. In order for the Orion Shield Project to have even had a chance of working effectively, Mr. Allison has to motivate his project team so they will give their best effort and work (Brenner, 2007, p . 16). Conclusion As The Orion Shield Project progressed from the initial proposal to the final testing, issues seemed to arise around every corner. Mr. Allison had to make serious decisions at every level of the project and unfortunately many of those decisions were the wrong ones. Mr. Allison made critical mistakes when faced with technical, ethical, legal, contractual, and other managerial issues. After analyzing The Orion Shield Project case, findings show that Mr. Allison could improve his responses to these issues by accounting for the complexities of dealing with technology, becoming more solid in his ethical stance, understanding law and contracts and how they relate to the project, and connecting better with his team. In conclusion, Mr. Allison did not perform well in his first opportunity to operate as project manager, but, with a few tweaks to his approach, he could excel if he ever wanted that opportunity again. References Boyde, J. (2012). A down-to-earth guide to SDLC project management: getting your system development life cycle project successfully accross the line using PMBOK– in an adaptive way. S.l.: CreateSpace Independent Pub. Platform]. Brenner, D. A. (2007). Achieving a succesful project by motivating the project team. Cost Engineering, 49(5), 16-20. Retrieved from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu Hussein, B. A., Pigagaite, G., & Silva, P. P. (2014). Identifying and dealing with complexities in new product and process development projects. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences , doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.03.078 Kendall, F. (2013). Use of fixed-price incentive firm (fpif) contracts in development and production. Defense AT&L, 42(2), Retrieved from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu Legal Implications of Issuing RFP. (2012, January 1). Rss. Retrieved April 16, 2014, from https://www.winwithoutpitching.com/legal-implications-of-issuing-rfp Mengel, T. (2006). Project management ethics: Responsibility, values, and ethics in project environments. AMA Handbook of Project Management, 227-235. Retrieved from http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=1ba019be-81fb-4f39-8ccd-06cfe83e33b1@sessionmgr114&vid=5&hid=107 R. (Ont.) v. Ron Engineering, (1981) 1 S.C.R. 111. Retrieved from: http://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/2504/index.do Russell Jr., C. A., & Moser, S. J. (2009). Firm-fixed-price contracting: The time and materials requirement dilemma. Contract Management, 49(8), 44-49. Retrieved from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu The Orion Shield Project — HOME. (2003, January 1). The Orion Shield Project

Kidney Transplant

In life a person may do something that he never expected he will do, or that he may ever imagine he will have the courage to do.   However, life as the poem â€Å"You mustn’t Quit! aptly said,     is full of many â€Å"twists and turns,’’ and   a person may   find himself in a place where he   had to make a decision at the risks of his own life   in order to save others ( Anonymous 2001).This may sound heroic but I never thought it that way, all I knew was that it was my dutyWhen I was 2 years old, my father was diagnosed with glomerulonephritis, which is a type of kidney disease.   Due to the fact that we lived in Scranton Pasadena and they did not have dialysis machines to treat my father, we moved to Bronx, New York.   The year was 1968.   My mother, father, brother and I packed up and flew the coop to the Bronx.   There we were informed that my father’s condition was grave and he was not expected to live very long which was quit e tragic considering that he was only in his mid 20’s. As days progressed, the     glomerulonephritis caused his blood pressure to soar so high resulting in the detachment of retina in both eyes, leaving him blind. Just imagine how hard it must have been for my mother who was still young and was forced to face with being in a new city, with a very sick, blind husband and two small children.My father had a brother, who was a priest, and a twin sister.   Both were tested for a kidney transplant for my father, and both were great matches.   For some reason, they both declined to donate to him.   Which, was quite cruel, considering they had been tested and type matched.   I remember him calling them, begging for a kidney, but they both refused.   My uncle the priest claimed it was too risky for him.   My aunt, my father’s twin, said she wanted to have more children, and felt the risk was too high for her. We were angry and at the same time disappointed over their decision.My father was on dialysis 4 to 5 days a week for 6 to 8 hours at a time at the VA (Veterans Administration) Hospital in Bronx.   He was a big man. At 6’4† he was about 240 pounds before his illness but then he was becoming thinner and thinner.   Yet he remained optimistic and happy.   He learned to make his way around the Bronx.   That is no small feat for the seeing person, let alone a blind man.My brother and I, on the other hand, were in school while my mother spent most days taking care of my father.   We were lucky enough to find an apartment right next door to the hospital.   Our relatives from Scranton visited often.   My father got progressively worse.   In 1974, the Moses Taylor Hospital in Scranton opened their own dialysis unit.   My father was thrilled!   We packed up and moved back to Scranton.   It was quite and adjustment, but worth it to be close to family!Thankfully, my father was a veteran.   He was in the Army N ational Guard before his illness.   The VA paid for all his treatments and care.   Being blind, they knew he could not drive himself to the hospital, so they paid a taxi company to take him anywhere he wanted to go even driving him to Old Forge to visit my grandparents. He was always assigned the same cab driver. One Saturday in 1977, the taxi cab my father was in was hit and it crashed into a telephone pole.   Everyone survived, except my frail father who was hurt badly.He broke nearly every bone in his body.   We did not think he would make it through the night.   Thanks to the grace of God, he did live.   However, he never fully recovered.   As a matter of fact, he spent the next three years in the Moses Taylor hospital long term care unit.     Ã‚  The VA hired full time, around the clock nurses to take care of him.   They became like family.   They cared for my father from 1977 to May 20, 1980, when my father’s poor body finally gave in and he died.I t was around that time that my brother Andrew started to lose weight.   He went to the doctor and went through a series of tests.   We worried, but were not out of control with fear.   Then the horrible news came, Andrew also had glomerulonephritis.   My poor mother was heartbroken!   I was petrified and my brother was numb when he learned he had the same disease that took my fathers life.   No immediate action was needed.   Andrew was told to live normally until his condition became worse. Imagine being told that! However, I made it through my junior year of high school without any real trauma.  Then in the beginning of my senior year, Andrew’s condition worsened.   He now needed dialysis.   It was the worst thing that could have happened to our family.   Andrew was on dialysis only 2 days a week for only 2 to 4 hours.   Still a draining experience, Andrew suffered.   When I turned 18, I called my brother’s doctor and asked about donating a k idney to my brother.   I was told it was a long process, but it indeed could be done if we were a match.   I approached Andrew with my idea and he was scared but thrilled.We made a â€Å"secret† appointment for a blood test.   We were a perfect match as far as blood type was concerned.   When we told my mother, she was not sure whether to be happy or scared!   She had one sick kid and one healthy kid and now they were both about to be operated on!   It took about 4 months for the testing to be completed at Geisinger Hospital in Danville PA.   We were a perfect match!   I was thrilled!   Andrew was thrilled!   My mother was petrified!   The operation was to take place on July 17, 1984.   They said the greater risk was for the donor-me!   I was 18!   I was healthy and full of life!   I was a bold and brazen kid!   I was full steam ahead!   The transplant went off without a hitch.I was out of the hospital after a week.   I had 32 staples in my stomach and I felt great!   By the end of the second day, Andrew looked great!   His color had returned!   He was energetic!   His was urinating like a champ!   He was required to stay in the hospital for 3 weeks, until they regulated his anti-rejection medication.   That was 23 years ago.   Andrew is still on anti-rejection medication, but leads a full life.   He is 45 years old.   Andrew is married and has two wonderful little boys.   He has a brand new house in Yatesville and his own mortgage business.It was the greatest thing I could ever imagine doing in my life.   My father was on dialysis for 17 years.   It not only kept him alive, but it also sucked the life out of him.   Andrew was on dialysis for only 7 months.   My mother is still a nervous wreck, but we are all doing fine.   We are quite the family.   Imagine seeing both of your children being wheeled away for an operation at the same time!   I am surprised she survived.   Just for th e record, my aunt and my uncle the priest not only cried when my father died, but they also came to visit me and Andrew in the hospital after the transplant.   I harbor ill feelings toward them.   I suspect I always will.Work CitedAnonymous. 2001. Poem,   â€Å"You Mustn’t Quit! Quoteland. Retrieved). Retrieved October 2, 2007 .

LIT 201 Final Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

LIT 201 Final - Essay Example The paper mainly seek to explore the literary works of both Oedipus Tyrannous and Don Quixote utilizes irony is a vital aspect of literary brilliance Irony as a theme is a vital tool in any literature or piece of work. It literally means using words in a way to give out a meaning that differs from what the same words are actually supposed to mean in any normal grammar set up. It provides a contrast between the form and truth in the meaning of the words used (Bandera, 89). In our set up for the classic works of Oedipus and Don Quixote it means the expression of a character’s self by employing a language that usually depicts the reverse, archetypally for either humorous or unequivocal impact. It is among many literature equipment used to make the plot more interesting and keep the devoted audience involved in the literature or piece of work. It is usually applicable in both social and personal aspects of a literature piece of work (Bandera, 77). In our two main classic works of Oedipus and Don Quixote irony is the predominant theme utilized throughout the plot of the piece of work. The two characters display innumerable ironies in both the personal and the social concepts. In Oedipus’ work there is a presentation of man’s futile attempt to act against God, a supernatural being. In Don Quixote’s case, irony is based on the literal set point of view where the character literally believed in the words from his book and even tries to live it with regard to its main ideas of heroism and gallantry. A close comparison of the literature works of Oedipus Tyrannous and Don Quixote gives the depiction of irony, dramatic and situational, depicted in two literally unique set ups to fully utilize irony as an aspect of literature brilliance. The two characters display dramatic and situational types of irony. Dramatic in the sense that the characters are unaware of the actual situation as implicated yet the audience that is

Evolution and current status of the method Assignment

Evolution and current status of the method - Assignment Example This is mainly because there is no universal method that is appropriate and suitable for all teaching contexts. Rather, different methods will work better, or even worse, in different contexts and equally important, they are all partially valid (Prabhu 161). For instance, the choice of communicative language teaching can be viewed as an ignorant perception that what is suitable for Europe will also be appropriate for Africa simply because it is a documented method. Essentially, that only serves to develop resistance from learners. The approach of method limits the relationship between teachers and theorizers to one in which teachers are not empowered with knowledge, skill and autonomy implying that they may not devise relevant, coherent and systematic methods based on principled practicality (Kumaravadivelu 1994, p. 537). It is further observed by Brown (74) that the concept of method places all responsibility in the classroom environment upon the teacher and effectively barring stud ents from developing their own initiatives and strategies towards learning. Further, the concept also stifles the notion of self-regulation among learners, which means they cannot develop goal-oriented attempts to direct their learning. Rather, what is preferred is pedagogy of practicality that attempts to go beyond the deficiencies that characterize the dichotomies of the theories of theorists versus the theory of teachers by empowering teachers to form their own theories (Kumaravadivelu 2001, p. 541).

Chinese American discussion homework Research Paper

Chinese American discussion homework - Research Paper Example Due to their racial affiliation, they are discriminated by the Whites. The diversity of culture of the Asian Americans is also an issue especially when they mingle with their White counterparts. Education attainment will also be an issue as the gap between the races is difficult to be narrowed. Friedersdorf indicates that for the previous twenty years, the number of Asians scooping the top most academic awards in the California Institute of Technology has escalated and most of them have been named semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarships (1). Nonetheless, the performance of the Chinese is exemplary regardless of the challenges they meet due to their racial affiliation. They performed well at school as they were forced to study both during daytime and nighttime by their parents in order to be at par with their White counterparts. The fact that the Chinese Americans are undermined based on their race, makes them more motivated to study harder and attain their grades based on merit and diligence (Zakaria 1). Friedersdorf, Conor. â€Å"Is the Ivy League Fair to Asian Americans?† The Atlantic, 21st Dec, 2012. Web. 16 May 2014.

Why I want to work for Washington County Regional Correctional Essay

Why I want to work for Washington County Regional Correctional Facility as a office Clerk - Essay Example One of my friends had got into bad company of drug addicts but timely intervention by the correctional facility was able to successfully rehabilitate him. Since then, I wanted to work within the organization. The corrective facility addresses the needs and requirements of various inmates and runs programs like de-addiction, educational programs etc. The organization uses the unique management philosophy of ‘direct supervision’ that encourages inmates to improve behavior and inculcate social skills. The organization addresses the root problems of the offenders. It helps to provide them with effective solutions that serve as fresh incentives for them to lead a better and purposeful life. As an employee of the corrective facility, I would be able to make positive contribution to the society. I have always been inclined towards social work and working in the corrective facility would provide me with the opportunity to serve the needs of people who have been ostracized from mainstream society. (words:

The History of the Blue Hen Chicken Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The History of the Blue Hen Chicken - Essay Example Ben Botkin (1938) stated, every group bound together or by common interests and purposes, whether educated or uneducated, rural or urban, possesses a body of traditions which may be called its folklore. Into these traditions enter many elements, individuals, popular, and even â€Å"literary,† but all are absorbed and assimilated through repetition and variation into a pattern which has value and continuity for the group as a whole. (New York Folklore Society, 2009) Knowledge, information, inspirations and traditions are transferred to people through sharing and informal exchange of ideas and stories. Folklores symbolize the identity and meaning of a certain culture and the past exchange of such information. Delmarva has got rich culture and past giving rise to numerous folklores and legends. Delmarva is a large peninsula located on the East Coast of United States of America. It is occupied by Delaware and portions of Virginia and Maryland. Delaware is divided into three counties; New Castle in north, Sussex in south and Kent in center of Delaware. General Assembly of Delaware officially adopted â€Å"Blue Hen Chicken† as state bird on 14th April 1939.Historical events of Delaware are associated with blue hen chicken during Revolutionary War which gave them an edge over other esthetically beautiful birds, for example, scarlet Cardinal. Before its adoption as state bird, it was unofficially used as a symbol in campaigning for political reasons. Now, the University of Delaware mascot is modeled after this bird and also recognized as YoUDee. The state bird, Blue hen, is a breed of rooster with blue feathers. However, only about half of the chickens have blue feathers, others may have black or white. It is a local and not very recognized breed as it goes back to the pioneers of Delaware. University of Delaware arranges organized breeding for them and has for its mascot the Fighting Blue Hens (Howard, 2007). In some cases, it is

Case 4 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Case 4 - Assignment Example These factors, and other, have contributed to a shortage of quality leaders coming through the ranks. At the current pace, this article points to the reality that many fear there will be a shortage of leadership talent in the coming decades that could be quite dire. Brown advocates implementing procedures now to locate, secure, and properly train future leaders. This begins with the idea that all existing managers become talent scouts. In order to effectively accomplish this task, managers must then be given tools that enable them develop the talent that they do find. This is a type of grooming that is sorely lacking today in corporate America. It involves giving ‘new talent’ opportunities to practice newly developed skills. They should also be given opportunities that allow them to complete special projects or rotations in an effort to get their feet wet and get a taste of what being an effective leader entails. During this entire process, the managers of today should b e providing emotional support and encouragement to new acquired acquired talent, in addition to providing them with constructive feedback designed to facilitate further growth and improvement. Critique Who’s Next in Line? Develop Tomorrow’s Leaders Today It is certainly plausible to consider that a looming talent gap exists at some point in the near future, should current trends not reverse themselves. As this synopsis effectively points out, it seems that too many managers today are not concerned with training quality new leaders to one day take over the reigns of various departments within an organization, or even to rise to through the executive ranks themselves at some point in the future. Rather, the focus seems to be on maintaining their own job security and well-being, as opposed to looking out for the best long term interests of the organization as a whole. With this in mind, then, it is important to be constantly looking for ways to attract, recruit, train, an d maintain quality staff that will take on larger leadership roles in the future. This is similar to college athletics. The teams that dominate year in and year out are not satisfied with the current ‘winning’ season. They constantly have one eye pointed towards the future and are actively recruiting the ‘new’ team of the future. As it should be with any successful business or public entity. The organization that is effective today is likely there because of its structure of leadership. Such personnel, however, will one day depart the agency and leave a leadership gap unless steps are put into place to make sure there are people already trained and ready to take their place. This is critical. A sudden retirement or loss of talent can leave an organization scrambling for answers. To combat this reality, Brown (2011) purports that, â€Å"In today’s environment, leaders need to accelerate the preparation of a pool of qualified successors for any level of their organization† (p. 95). This certainly appears to be a valid assumption, not only because of the growing numbers of current leaders set to retire in the near term, but also due to the increasing globalization existent in the world today. America no longer holds a monopoly on strong leadership. There is a fierce competition being

Health Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Health Finance - Essay Example The cost of healthcare in the United States of America has been something of concern for some time. When the cost of healthcare services in the United States of America was compared to costs in some of the countries it was discovered that the cost of healthcare in the US was alarmingly high. In comparison to the other developed countries the United States of America has the highest prices for healthcare. In 1992 14% of the federal budget was allocated to healthcare. The percentage has gradually increased over the years. By 2012 the percentage had gotten to 22% of the federal budget. This report discusses the possible causes of the high cost of healthcare in the United States of America. The report will also go ahead and give recommendations of possible ways through which the situation can be improved. The most obvious explanation for the high cost of healthcare in the United States of America is the high healthcare prices in the country. A study on the prices of healthcare in the developed countries has proved that the prices of healthcare services in the United States in the US are very high. Factor such as frequency of visit to hospitals and quality of medical services have further proved that the high cost of healthcare in the United States of America. The German population was discovered to frequent the hospital more than the US citizens despite the fact that their healthcare costs their government less annually. The high cost was mostly attributed to the high healthcare services in the country. For instance, it was discovered that hip replacement could cost about $13,660 in Belgium while the same costs about $100,000 in the United States of America. This is a clear indication of high healthcare prices in the country. Another thing that can be said to be a contributor to the high cost of healthcare is the fact that there is very minimal intervention of the government

Specific Helping Skills Essay Example for Free

Specific Helping Skills Essay Abstract As a professional working in the field of Human Services, having specific helping skills are vital to the effectiveness of the services as well as the goals of the client. There are many elements that support both verbal and non-verbal communication. Contrary to the supportive elements that determine success, there are also a wide range of barriers that both the helper and the client may face. It is important for the helper to attend to several duties before meeting with a client such as completing appropriate forms or paperwork in order to gain as much information about the client as possible. The helper must also set up a comfortable environment for the client as the helping process can be intimidating which may hinder success. In addition to the duties of the helper prior to the initial meeting with a client, the helper must keep in mind effective questions that will guide them through the helping process. Specific Helping Skills that can be used with clients Everyone at some point in their life experiences problems. Although problems are a normal part of life, each individual experiences things at different levels. Some people are able to work through things quickly, efficiently, and effective. Other people may experience problems for longer periods of time or even for a life-time. Through these difficulties some may require assistance working through their troubles. When a helper is involved with a client, communication is the key to success. The most specific skill a helper can have with their client is effective communication which entails both verbal and non-verbal communication. Verbal Non-Verbal Communication Verbal Communication is a helpful behavior to posses while communicating with a client as the helper must first determine what the problem is, and what the specific needs are. These questions are not easily answered if there is a lot of miscommunication and confusion on either side of the helping process. The job of the helper through verbal communication is to mirror the thoughts of the client in order to better understand the client’s thought process. This is helpful for both the helper and the client. For the helper, verbal communication helps to indentify either direct or indirect thoughts and feelings the client is trying to express. For the client, verbal communication helps them to better understand what they are truly feeling and thinking or expressing as well as give them a better understanding to the responsibility they have. The helper is to use paraphrasing or reiterating without speaking the thoughts or feelings for the client. At times it may be necessary for the helper to ask open ended questions that provide better understanding to establish services. Open-ended questions such as, â€Å"How exactly did the fight between the two of you start?† are important open-ended questions to ask because it lets the helper gather background information that may have been left out. It is best for the helper not to establish feelings in open-ended questions when speaking with a client such as, â€Å"I bet that made you angry, huh?† so these types of open-ended questions are best avoided. Also, when speaking with clients, the helper should try to avoid closed-ended question that are simply answered with a â€Å"yes† or â€Å"no† answer. For example, it would better to ask an open-ended question about how someone is feeling verse a close-ended question like, â€Å"Are you feeling better today?† As you can see, asking an open-ended question provides for better understanding of the client’s true thought process and needs. Most all of the communication communicated between a sender and a receiver is in response to non-verbal communication. Body language, posture, facial expressions, gestures, paralinguistic’s, eye contact, haptics, proxemics, and even a person’s appearance can all be defined as forms of non-verbal communication. These unspoken forms of communication and behaviors are subtle signals that most people are not even aware that they are sending to a receiver. Facial expressions are the most common form of non-verbal communication because a grimace or a smile can speak for the sender’s thoughts even before they verbally express them. Also, facial expressions are the most easily translated non-verbal communication signals as signs of happiness, sadness, and anger are express through the face the same. Eye contact, like facial expressions, is considered an important form of non-verbal communication. Looking at someone in the eyes can determine a level of interest, a sense of hostility, and even emotions. Speaking with ones hands, or better known as gestures, is another form of non-verbal communication. Waving or pointing in a direction can express a â€Å"hello† or direction without using verbal communication. Body language and posture movements can present a great deal of information about attitudes and feelings. Contrary, if a receiver is not focused on a sender’s posture and movements then body language may be less definitive in conveying a message being sent. Subtle postures such as arm-crossing, or leg-crossing, are just a few signs of body language. Proxemics and haptics are both forms of non-verbal communication that involve personal space and touch. Proxemics are the measures that a person views as their personal space when speaking to a person or a group. Haptics are a form of communication through touch. Infants are able to establish their care taker is communicating affection, and other emotions, through touch. Pitch, tone of voice, and the level at which one speaks is defined as paralinguistic’s. Paralinguistic’s are a good indicator of the meaning behind a message a sender is verbally trying to send. A sender may use a certain set of words to verbally express thoughts or feelings, but paralinguistic’s are a separate form of communication that is non-verbal. Appearance is the most audible form of non-verbal communication. How a person dresses, the colors they wear, or their hairstyle, can make the first impression that is the judgment one will pass based off of an initial appearance. An appearance may speak for the individual long before verbal communication ever takes place. Non-Verbal Barriers There are a number of non-verbal barriers that can present problems when communicating. Developmental disorders and brain dysfunction is just one area that may present problems for the helper. For example, autistic individuals may often times not be able to speak for themselves, and when an interpreter must step in to speak on behalf of the individual, communication may become difficult in the success of reaching the client’s needs. Cultural barriers are another form of a non-verbal barrier. Eye contact, gestures, the need for personal space, touch, and appearance, are just a few cultural differences that create cultural barriers. An individual may feel intimidated or uncomfortable sitting within close proximity of a helper when they feel their personal space is being invaded. Deceptive gestures can create miscommunication as well. This form of non-verbal communication barrier can host a number of problems for an individual who is not skilled in other areas of communication, both verbal and non-verbal, when they convey a message that may not be accurately presented. Deceptive gestures are not always communicated due to deception, but may be forms of nervousness, tension, or a number of other emotional states. Non-verbal barriers should be taken in to account when communicating with individuals as they may hinder the success of a client if they are overlooked or go un-noticed. The most specific skill the helper can posses when serving the needs of a client, or group of people, is to have effective communication. Both verbal communication and non-verbal communication are skills that can be acquired and involve knowledge and experience. The success of the client’s goals depends on effective communication between the sender and the receiver.

The Effect of Temperature on Rate of Reaction Essay Example for Free

The Effect of Temperature on Rate of Reaction Essay In this experiment I shall be investigating how temperature affects the rate of reaction Rates of reaction The Factors that affect the rate of reaction are temperature, surface area, concentration, catalysts, light and pressure Surface area – Surface area is the amount of solid surface that is available for reaction Only affects solids so this will not affect our experiment When the surface area increases the rate of reaction increases as there is more surface area for the particles to work on, thus, there are more collisions per second Example : It is easier to light a fire with small pieces of stick than using large blocks of wood Concentration Concentration is the amount of molecules of a substance in a given volume Concentration affects solids, gases and liquid so this will affect our experiment When the concentration increases the rate of reaction increases as there are more molecules present, therefore there are more collisions between molecules (Collision theory) Example : zinc reacts fairly slowly with dilute hydrochloric acid but when the acid is concentrated, the rate of reaction increases. Catalysts A catalyst is a substance which speeds up the  rate of reaction without itself going undergoing any permanent chemical change – this means only small amounts of catalysts are needed to speed up reactions When a catalyst is involved in an experiment there is less energy needed for the reaction therefore there is more collisions per second We will not be using catalysts in our experiment Example : Decomposing hydrogen peroxide  solution at room temperature is very slow, but using a small amount of manganese oxide greatly increases the reaction rate and oxygen is given off rapidly Light Light is a form of energy and it causes many chemical reactions to take place. Light does not affect our experiment Example : Photosynthesis Temperature Collision theory is used to explain how different factors affect the rate of a chemical reaction. For a reaction to take place the reactant particles must collide with each other with adequate energy (activation energy), this energy is used to break the bonds between the particles. If the particles do not have enough energy they will bounce off each other without reacting. By increasing the temperature the particles gain more energy and move faster causing more collisions per second. 10oC 60oC Previous Experiments These previous experiments give us background information on rates of reaction: Acid and limestone CaCO3(s) + 2HCL(aq) CaCl2(aq) + H2O(l) + CO2(g) Apparatus – Conical flask, hydrochloric acid, marble chips, cotton wool and scales In this experiment we mix a certain mass of large marble chips with a certain volume of hydrochloric acid in a conical flask and use cotton wool to trap the acid spray. As the carbon dioxide is given off from the flask, the mixture loses mass, this is measured and recorded every minute until the reaction is over. The experiment is repeated again using the same mass of marble chips and the same volume of hydrochloric acid and the same temperature but instead using small marble chips. When we look at our results we find that the larger marble chips take more time to react than the smaller marble chips which show that as the surface area increases, the rate of reaction increases. Decomposition of hydrogen peroxide solution H2O2(aq) 2H2O(l) + O2(g) Apparatus – Conical flask, gas syringe, hydrogen peroxide solution and solid manganese oxide In this experiment we firstly measure the time taken for hydrogen peroxide to decompose and produce 50cm3 of oxygen at room temperature and without a catalyst. We use a gas syringe to measure the oxygen given off. Then we repeat the experiment but instead add a small amount of solid manganese oxide to the hydrogen peroxide solution. When we look at our results we find that without the catalyst (manganese oxide) the reaction is very slow, but when we add the catalyst the decomposition is very fast and oxygen is  rapidly given off which shows that catalysts increase the rate of reaction. Sodium thiosulphate and hydrochloric acid Na2S2O3(aq) + 2HCL(aq) 2NaCl(aq) + SO2(g) + S(s) + H2O(l) Apparatus – Sodium thiosulphate, hydrochloric acid, stop clock, a measuring cylinder and white paper with a black cross In this experiment we vary the concentration of the sodium thiosulphate, add it to a given volume of hydrochloric acid and time how long it takes for the mixture to go cloudy and the cross to disappear. When we look at our results we see that as we increase the concentration of sodium thiosulphate the rate of reaction increases. Hypothesis My prediction is, as the temperature of the reaction mixture increases so to will the rate of reaction as at higher temperatures the particles have more energy and will collide more hence increasing the rate of reaction. This is explained by the collision theory. The collision theory also allows me to predict that my time against temperature graph will have negative correlation as the time taken will decrease as the temperature increases. I also predict this graph will be curved as the time taken will not be directly proportional to the temperature. I also predict that as I increase the temperature of the mixture, the time taken for the cross to disappear will decrease. Reaction In my experiment I shall be investigating the effect of temperature on a reaction rate by reacting sodium thiosulphate in dilute hydrochloric acid as shown in the equation below Sodium + hydrochloric Sodium + Sulphur + Sulphur + Water thiosulphate acid chloride dioxide Na2S2O3 (aq) + 2HCL (aq) 2NaCl (aq)+ SO2 (g) + S (s) + H2O (l) Sodium thiosulphate is a clear liquid and hydrochloric acid is a clear liquid, when they react together the solution turns cloudy due to the sulphur. The reaction is exothermic as the energy required to break the bonds is less than the energy needed to make new bonds. Procedure Apparatus †¢ Conical flask †¢ Measuring cylinder †¢ Bunsen burner †¢ Thermometer †¢ Stop clock †¢ White paper with a black cross Method 1. Measure out 10 cm3 of sodium thiosulphate and 40cm3 of water into a flask. Measure out 5 cm3 of hydrochloric acid an a measuring cylinder 2. Heat the thiosulphate solution to the required temperature using a Bunsen burner 3. Add the acid and start the stop clock. Swirl the flask to mix the solutions and put the solution on the white paper with a black cross 4. Look down at the cross and stop the clock and note the time taken when the cross has disappeared. Record the temperature of the mixture in the flask. Variables The variables we will need to keep constant are †¢ The concentration of sodium thiosulphate †¢ The concentration of hydrochloric acid †¢ The volume of hydrochloric acid †¢ The same colour of cross †¢ The same thickness of cross †¢ Look at the cross from the same height The independent variable is the temperature. We will take 7 different recordings between 10o-70o We will do each recording 5 times and get an average to make sure the results are accurate. Results I will record my results in the table and make a time against temperature and a 1/time against temperature graph as shown below

Sri Lanka Tourism Problems and Development

Sri Lanka Tourism Problems and Development 1. Sri Lanka is an island country and god has given to Sri Lanka blessings of nature blue seas, green hills, sandy beaches, abundant wildlife, cascading waterfalls, a riot of flowers and fruits, coconut groves, tea estates, spice gardens. Here ones day can be gloriously lazy by a palm cool lagoon or full of joy, swimming, snorkeling, and fishing or sailing like a brilliant jewel in the sparkling waters of the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka is located in a strategically considered naval spot on the world map. This significant situation creates a path for a major sea route. In addition it creates a strategic naval link between West Asia, Africa and East Asia. Sri Lanka entered the international tourism arena in the 1960s. Since then, government involvement has been the key factor in tourism development in Sri Lanka. The Ceylon Tourist Board (CTB) was established in 1966 in order to provide direction and leadership to this promising sector of the developing economy. The country is famous for h ealthy and cultural heritage. Hospitality, tropical forests, natural and fascinating beaches, archeological sites and the tropical climate are the more attractive features. These factors make Sri Lanka a wonderful tourist destination. Over the years tourism in Sri Lanka has developed significantly. Today tourism has become the sixth Foreign Exchange Earner (FEE) in Sri Lankan economy. 2. Tourism can make a great impact on development of the Sri Lankan economy. Tourism is a fast growing industry which has been identified presently. Employment opportunities and regional development are playing significant role with regard to the tourism industry development. It can be considered as the most important industry in the country as a whole. The governments vision is to make the tourism sector as Sri Lankas most innovative and profitable income generating source. 3. During past three decades Sri Lankas tourism industry had few draw backs. This was mainly due to the security situation which prevailed in the country. Further the tourism industry was also affected due to the Tsunami catastrophe which occurred in 2004. Approximately 2/3rd of the coastal area including tourist infrastructure facilities was destroyed. The immediate post war period gave rise to a dramatic increase of tourist arrival from end May 2009. 4. In order to support the efforts and to develop the tourism sector in Sri Lanka there should be hotels with exclusive facilities which are in par with the international standards to accommodate a large number of visitors. In the year 2010 approximately one million tourists visited Sri Lanka. Unlike in the past, the inflow of tourists is increasing day by day as a result of the end of the 30 year civil war which destroys the whole country. Following graph indicates how tourism increased from 1966 to 2011 in Sri Lanka. The government is expected to receive 2.5 million tourists in 2016. To cater for this increase tourist hotels in Sri Lanka must be developed. Similarly other facilities should also be increased to meet the desired economic goals. AIM 5. The aim of this paper is to analyze the development of Sri Lanka tourism -challenges and opportunities GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE OF SRI LANKA 6. Sir Lanka has a various terrain but it mainly consists of flat lands but south-central portion of the countrys step sided river, canyons interior features and mountain. The compliment regions are the areas where most of Sri Lankas agriculture takes place, aside from coconut farms along the coast. Sri Lankas climate is tropical and the southwestern side of the island is the wet test. . The northeastern side of Sri Lanka is drier and most of its rain falls from December to February. Most of the rain in the southwest falls from April to June and October to November Sri Lankas average yearly temperature is 86 °F to 91 °F. An important geographic note about Sri Lanka is its position in the Indian Ocean, which made it vulnerable to one of the worlds largest natural disasters. On December, 26, 2004, it was struck by large tsunami that hit 12 Asian countries. Around 38,000 people in Sri Lanka were killed during this incident and much of Sri Lankas coast was destroyed. 7. Sri Lanka is situated in strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes. It has a total area of 65,610 km ², with 64,740 km ² of land and 870 km ² of water. Its coastline is 1,340 km long. Sri Lankas climate includes tropical monsoons: the southwest monsoon (June to October) and the northeast monsoon (December to March), its terrain is mostly low, flat to undulating plain, with mountains in the south-central interior. The highest point is Pidurutalagala at 2,524.13 m. Resource include limestone, mineral sands, gems, graphite, phosphates, clay, and hydropower. 8. Adams Bridge, a land connection to the Indian mainland, is now mostly underwater with only a chain of limestone shoals remaining above sea level. According to temple records, this natural causeway was previously complete, but was breached by a violent storm (probably a cyclone) in 1480. SRI LANKAS COMMITMENT TO TOURISM 9. Tourism is a vital area in the policy structure has been identified as capable of efficiently driving the countrys socio economic development. The programmes vision for the tourism sector is to make Sri Lanka foremost freedom destination in the South Asian Region. The programme believes the human resources and natural and cultural endowments values and nation will be essential in transforming Sri Lanka into a centre of excellence and offer tourists the highest values of real experiences in its unique setting. 10 The One Stop Unit Unit for National Investment in Tourism is a Centralized promotion and facilitation center Established Thurs assist potential tourism investors interested in investing in Sri Lanka Tourism Industry. Specialist staff from various government agencies helps investors Identify possible projects, Obtain information possible, Regarding Investments, submit applications, and Provide support in obtaining investment promotion privileges, trade licenses and other approvals Requested for project clearance. OSU Prevents the need for investors Thurs spend time in search of answers and ensures all queries are handled by its specialist staff. 11. Serious civil disturbances starting in July 1983 and the subsequent violence badly affected tourism. Total arrivals were 230,106 in 1986, down 43 percent from 1982. To ease the dilemma of the industry, the government provided various concessions to hotels, such as the rescheduling of loans and the reduction of the turnover tax from 10 percent to 5 percent. The Ceylon Tourist Board also undertook a crash promotion program in an attempt to restore the islands image in world tourist markets. Tourist arrivals in the first six months of 1987, however, showed a decline of 23 percent compared with the same period the previous year. In early 1988, the outlook was for further contraction. 12. In 1988 it remained unclear whether the policies of economic liberalization Sri Lanka has pursued since 1977 would succeed in their principal goals of employment, wealth creation, and economic diversification. Although increased rice production, the growth of textile manufacturing, and an improved infrastructure were successes that could be attributed to the post-1977 policies, these gains came at the cost of a mounting foreign and domestic debt and declining living standards for the poor. POLITICAL ENVIRONMENT TOWARDS TOURISM 13. The One Stop Unit Unit for National Investment in Tourism is a Centralized promotion and facilitation center Established Thurs assist potential tourism investors interested in investing in Sri Lanka Tourism Industry. Specialist staff from various government agencies helps investors Identify possible projects, Obtain information possible, Regarding Investments, submit applications, and Provide support in obtaining investment promotion privileges, trade licenses and other approvals Requested for project clearance. OSU Prevents the need for investors Thurs spend time in search of answers and ensures all queries are handled by its specialist staff. 14. Serious civil disturbances starting in July 1983 and the subsequent violence badly affected tourism. Total arrivals were 230,106 in 1986, down 43 percent from 1982. To ease the dilemma of the industry, the government provided various concessions to hotels, such as the rescheduling of loans and the reduction of the turnover tax from 10 percent to 5 percent. The Ceylon Tourist Board also undertook a crash promotion program in an attempt to restore the islands image in world tourist markets. Tourist arrivals in the first six months of 1987, however, showed a decline of 23 percent compared with the same period the previous year. In early 1988, the outlook was for further contraction. 15. In 1988 it remained unclear whether the policies of economic liberalization Sri Lanka has pursued since 1977 would succeed in their principal goals of employment, wealth creation, and economic diversification. Although increased rice production, the growth of textile manufacturing, and an improved infrastructure were successes that could be attributed to the post-1977 policies, these gains came at the cost of a mounting foreign and domestic debt and declining living standards for the poor. PROMOTION OF TOURISM INVESTMENT 16. The Board of Investment has introduced incentives in the form of tax exemptions, duty-free imports and the relaxation of controls on foreign exchange holdings. The incentives provided by the government have mainly attracted investment in the hotel sector. The present hotel capacity is 13,670 rooms. That figure is projected to increase to 21,000 rooms by 2004, which will accommodate the target of 1 million tourists. Five regional domestic airports to be restructured at a total cost of approx. Rs. 2bn: Rathmalana, Koggala ,Ampara , Trincomalee Jaffna (Rathmalana will be developed as a City Airport) Previous year. This denotes that tourism industry is one of the core sources of foreign exchange earner in economy of Sri Lanka. Due to the development of tourism improved accessibility via new highways and conversion of military to domestic airports may make high-end hotels in the Deep South and the East of Sri Lanka viable alternatives to the Galle area. OPPORTUNITIES FOR TOURISM INDUSTRY 17. Tourism directly affected to economy of a country. The momentum of growth in tourism, as result of the post conflict peaceful environment, the tourist arrivals grew to 654,476 in 2010 surpassing the previous record of 566,202 in 2004. Tourist nights one of an important indicator in measuring the volume of tourist traffic, has recorded 6, 544, 760 in 2010. It shows 60.6 per cent increase compared to 2009. Total receipts in 2010 amounted to US $ 575.9 million as against US $ 349.3 million recorded for the year 2009. It indicates a vast increase of 64.9 per cent than THREATS FOR TOURISM INDUSTRY 18. Development of tourist hotels in Sri Lanka will extremely support the rapid economic development. Developments of tourist hotels, increase room capacities, increase occupancy rates and develop the condition of rooms and upgrade the service provided in the hotels are the key factors to be mainly focused on if to develop tourism. It indeed contributes to the development of tourism and in turn development of economy of the country. Tourist hotel industry should be developed in most of the famous city for tourism with sufficient amount of tourist hotels 19. As political risk introduces additional elements of uncertainty into the rules governing tourism investment projects, the risk of capital loss is raised for longer- term projects. Political risk also negatively influences the timing and pricing of the tourism production process. Negative images, lack of foreign exchange for tourism development, lack of skilled manpower, weak institutional frameworks for tourism planning, political instability caused by communal violence, civil war conflicts are inhibitors to tourism development. However, little is known about how international tourism firms perceive political risks and other general barriers and threats to tourism promotion in Sri Lanka. 20. Common political factors which affect the tourism industry are revolution, civil war, factional conflict, ethnic violence, religious turmoil, widespread riots, terrorism, nationwide strikes, protests, cross- national guerrilla warfare, world public opinion, repatriation restrictions, bureaucratic politics, leadership struggle, high inflation, border conflicts, high external debt service ratio and creeping nationalization. Last thirty years Sri Lanka also faced the civil war and it affected the tourism industry of Sri Lanka. Organizing elections frequently also create threat to the tourism industry because during the election period in some places to control the situation cur hews are implemented. 21. This will create negative image in the mind of tourists. Some of the foreign countries have reject Sri Lankas products in their country due to the violation of human rights during the war time. For example government invested and spent on IIFA programme but it was not a successful event for Sri Lanka because the big stars have boycotted the event. They didnt visit Sri Lanka because of the protests held in their country by asking them not to visit the place. Currently Sri Lanka is having negative relationship with some foreign countries therefore the export and import of Sri Lankan products will be decreased and it affects the tourism industry as well. FUTURE TRENDS, CHALLENGES 22. Source markets in Asia and Middle East to drive demand: Sri Lankas proximity to source markets such as India and its connectivity to the Middle East and China will help in sustaining tourism growth. The rise in per capita income and therefore consumer spending in these source markets will aid the growth in tourism. 23. Infrastructure growth to fuel tourism growth: To ensure rapid growth of tourism in the future, tourism projects will need to be balance with infrastructure development. We expect that with improvements in road infrastructure and development of the new airport in Hambantota, various new destinations will emerge in the country, especially to the north and the east, as these areas have abundant natural beauty to attract tourists but currently suffer from poor connectivity. We expect more airlines to operate in the country as the second airport develops. 24. Greater competition will facilitate growth: We also expect greater competition with the introduction of new hotels in popular destinations such as Colombo, Kandy, Bentota, and Sigiriya, and Galle. We expect the existing hotels to undertake phased renovations to effectively compete with the upcoming hotels. Also, with the increase in income from hotels over the past few years, we expect an increase in the number of hospitality related transactions and mergers and acquisitions. 25. Challenge of attrition to other destinations: Currently, the hotel industry witnesss significant employee attrition to countries in the Middle East and to the Maldives and India. However, with a more stable political environment and improvement in quality of living in Sri Lanka, we expect the attrition to gradually 26. Shortage of skilled labor: As new players enter the market, the projected growth in tourism will be accompanied by shortage of skilled labour. We anticipate the need for relive hospitality education institutions as the contribution of the tourism sector to the overall economy increases. SUMMARY 27. Sri Lanka is located in a strategically considered naval spot on the world map. Sri Lanka entered the international tourism arena in the 1960s. Since then, government involvement has been the key factor in tourism development in Sri Lanka. Over the years tourism in Sri Lanka has developed significantly. Today tourism has become the sixth Foreign Exchange Earner (FEE) in Sri Lankan economy.Tourism can make a great impact on development of the Sri Lankan economy. Employment opportunities and regional development are playing significant role with regard to the tourism industry development. The governments vision is to make the tourism sector as Sri Lankas most innovative and profitable income generating source. 28. During past three decades Sri Lankas tourism industry had few draw backs. In the year 2010 approximately one million tourists visited Sri Lanka. Following graph indicates how tourism increased from 1966 to 2011 in Sri Lanka. To cater for this increase tourist hotels in Sri Lanka must be developed. Sri Lankas climate is tropical and the southwestern part of the island is the wettest. . Around 38,000 people in Sri Lanka were killed during this incident and much of Sri Lankas coast was destroyed. 29. Total arrivals were 230,106 in 1986, down 43 percent from 1982. The Ceylon Tourist Board also undertook a crash promotion program in an attempt to restore the islands image in world tourist markets. This denotes that tourism industry is one of the core sources of foreign exchange earner in economy of Sri Lanka. Tourism directly affected to economy of a country. Development of tourist hotels in Sri Lanka will extremely support the rapid economic development. Developments of tourist hotels, increase room capacities, increase occupancy rates and develop the condition of rooms and upgrade the service provided in the hotels are the key factors to be mainly focused on if to develop tourism. Tourist hotel industry should be developed in most of the famous city for tourism with sufficient amount of tourist hotels 30. Negative images, lack of foreign exchange for tourism development, lack of skilled manpower, weak institutional frameworks for tourism planning, political instability caused by communal violence, civil war conflicts are inhibitors to tourism development. However, little is known about how international tourism firms perceive political risks and other general barriers and threats to tourism promotion in Sri Lanka. 31. Last thirty years Sri Lanka also faced the civil war and it affected the tourism industry of country. Some of the foreign countries have reject Sri Lankas products in their country due to the violation of human rights during the war time. Currently Sri Lanka is having negative relationship with some foreign countries therefore the export and import of Sri Lankan products will be decreased and it affects the tourism industry as well. 32. Sri Lankas proximity to source markets such as India and its connectivity to the Middle East and China will help in sustaining tourism growth. To ensure rapid growth of tourism in the future, tourism projects will need to be balance with infrastructure development. We expect the existing hotels to undertake phased renovations to effectively compete with the upcoming hotels. We also expect the hotel companies, especially the domestic companies located in the country to undertake long and medium term hospitality training programs and regularly undertake competition benchmarking for compensation to retain the talent. RECCOMONDATIONS 33. These are the recommendations which we can produce in related to tourism. Develop a marketing strategy: Emphasizing the creation and sustaining of a positive image of Sri Lanka as a substantive and well-established tourist destination offering facilities experiences that are distinct Sri Lankan products. Establish a domestic tourism strategy: To expand the existing product base and encourage a greater level of holiday movements in addition to pilgrim movements. Develop goods and services: To meet the increasing needs of the tourism industry, and thus optimize the economic benefit of tourism development to Sri Lanka. Modify the organization of tourism activities: In order to bring about related improvements in the private sector, increase coordination between tourism and interrelated sectors, and introduce streamlining to facilitate the development of the tourism sector. Emphasize the environmental, social and cultural aspects: Tourism Development Planning is the only way to solve many issues related to tourism in development. Therefore the tourism planning process should be designed to produce goals and objectives for the destination area related to tourism development. The tourism development plan provides overall guidelines for development and identifies development opportunities. Many development countries are involved in tourism planning. Financial Assistance: Financial assistance for hotel owners and any other profession in tourist sector would help to create more employment opportunities. Domestic Airport: Airport also more than 100 km away from the tourist destination it is needed have domestic airports. Surfing Training: This will create more employment opportunities and generate good income. Among the tourists there are some people they love for surfing and keen to learn. Conduct Language Teaching: Language barrier should be overcome by conducting specially job oriented language training. Employ Combat Divers: Surfing is risky and adventure sport it dont take much time for some to happen therefore as precautionary measure it is needed some combat divers close to the surfing area it would enhance the confidence of people who do surfing. Proper Taxi Service: Taxi service should be reformed introducing good vehicles fixed with meter system and giving training for drivers. Improve Infrastructure Facilities: Infrastructure facilities such as Power, Highways, Railways, Airports, Ports, Water Supply, Telecommunications, Accommodations, and Recreational, Shopping and Banking to be improved. Awareness Programs: Tourists should be informed on specific social, cultural and religious environment programmed. GAD ALWIS SLE Maj STUDENT OFFICER -DSCSC

Incident By Countee Cullen Essay -- Poetry Racism

Literary Appreciation #1- â€Å"Incident† by Countee Cullen   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Incident†, is a poem that was written to make us as readers think, not only about racism but also about how one occasion can allow us to judge a race, or a place. Racism is an issue that plagues not only African-Americans but also other creeds, genders, and races. In this essay I will discuss the poem and the role that racism took within it, by using personal knowledge, the text, and obtained research.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The poem in its self takes on a rhyme scheme that allows you the reader to feel the narrator, so that you can not only imagine that you were there, but you can also almost gather the same feelings as the narrator. In the begin he talks about how he first rode through Baltimore happy, and filled with glee. Unti...

Essay on the Moon in the Works of William Shakespeare :: Biography Biographies Essays

The Motif of the Moon in the Works of Shakespeare  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In the paper, "The Hounds of Love: A Midsummer Nights' Dream, it is suggested that Shakespeare borrowed heavily from Chaucer's "Knight's Tale" to the extent that Shakespeare dramatized the image drawn in Chaucer of Diana, the moon goddess, with the hounds of love about her feet--Lysander and Demetrius behaving like the hounds of love in A Midsummer Night's Dream. While Shakespeare "creates unity of atmosphere [in Midsummer Night's Dream] chiefly by flooding the play with moonlight" (Schanzer 29), he also--by frequency of allusions to similar cyclical motifs (Moon, Diana, Wheel of Fortune)--creates an overall atmosphere, or structure, to many of his other plays. Northrup Frye's thesis--that the comedies have a cyclical pattern of the characters who depart from the city to the forest then return to the city recovered from the madness that occurred in the forest (see class handout)--can be applied to many of the other plays. But one must look beyond the locality of the characters (as Fr ye does) to note the frequent allusions to Diana, the Roman personification of the moon, and the similar allusion to the Wheel of Fortune. What does the Wheel of Fortune have to do with Diana? Shakespeare considered both of them to be much the same. Both have a cyclical nature: the moon waxes and wanes just like Fortune waxes and wanes. The motif of both figures in Shakespeare's plays reveals his belief that the moon is a symbol of the fickleness and changeability of fortune and luck, at once an omen and a blessing, and the result of the changeability of the moon/Wheel is the character's madness, leading to the audience's laughter (as in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Much Ado About Nothing) or catharsis (as in King Lear, Macbeth, or Hamlet). Diana figures mostly in the comedies, the most blatant example in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Shakespeare begins with Theseus vocalizing his desire that the moon should change, a symbol for his impatience for the wedding:   Four happy days bring in Another moon; but O, methinks, how slow This old moon wanes! (1.1.2-4) The old moon is own aging self that shall be renewed by his marriage just as the moon passes through its cycle to eventually become a new full moon. It is under the auspices of the changing moon that overlooks the forest that the madness of all of the characters ensue.

Essay --

Jessica's paper rough draft (Into) Some pain can't always be seen, what if a patient complains of sharp stabbing pains and describes it as being stung by a thousand bees all at once, and at the same time feels like their foot is on fire. Maybe the foot is swollen or discolored. Pain is not always visable. Sounds like classic nerve pain and we would be sypathic and prescribe pain control medications. Would you be less sympathetic and unwilling to give pain medications if you knew this patient had a history of substance abuse? Its time to break the stigma that patients with a history of substance abuse will abuse perscription opioids for pain control or are Dr. shopping. All patients should be treated equaly and have the oppertunity to live a pain free life. Often nurses are on the front lines helping these patients manage pain. This paper will show that non Judgmental attitudes together with problem solving approaches and routine drug screenings a patient with prior abuse can be treated for chronic pain successfully. (Relevance and applicability) Most patients do take their medications as directed, but there has been more attention in the media of the abuse of perscription medications. This is in part of the ageing population and opioids being widely accepted and used more often these days for the chronic non cancer pain paitent (1pg1) Although Studies show that the rate abuse of opioid patients with chronic pain is only 3% to 17% which is fairly low compared to the population. (Art1 pg32) The reason some paitents abuse opioids or turn to the illicit use of street drugs is t... ... vigilance in monitoring and may need to be treated for opioid abuse and or pshycatric help. (Conclusion) As opioids are becoming more acceptable as an on going treatment for chronic pain patients, the risks also rises for abuse of prescription drugs. For these reasons it's not only just limited to those patients with substance abuse issues, but also to patients without prior abuse histories. A cancer patient who has no prior substance abuse history should not be treated any more humanly or shown more compassion then a cancer patient with a prior substance abuse issue. It's important to achieve a therapeutic balance with all patients and specially those who live with chronic pain. With all the readily available studies, tests and assessments no one should have to live a half life with chronic pain Regardless of their history.

Ethics: Utilitarianism Essay

Ask a passerby to describe his personal morality, and you’ll likely get a complicated explanation filled with ifs, ands, and buts. Ask a utilitarian, and he can give a six-word response: greatest good for the greatest number. Of course, utilitarianism is not that simple. Like any philosophical system, it is the subject of endless debate. Still, for the average reader who is unfamiliar with the jargon that characterizes most philosophy, utilitarianism can be a useful tool in deciding before an action whether or not to carry it out or, after an action, whether or not a moral choice was made. Most credit the economist Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) as utilitarianism’s principal author. Bentham described his thinking as the â€Å"greatest happiness principle,† and his idea was elaborated upon in the nineteenth century by John Stuart Mill in his classic work, Utilitarianism (1863). In that book, Mill develops three critical components of utilitarianism: an emphasis on results, individual happiness, and total happiness (by which he means the happiness of everyone affected by an action). Results: Mill expanded Bentham’s definition of utilitarianism to argue that â€Å"actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness; wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness. †[1] This means that utilitarians care only about the results of an action. Other factors that we typically consider when making moral judgments about an action, including a person’s motive or his expectations about the results, do not matter in utilitarianism. A utilitarian would say that a man who shoots another by accident is guilty of murder, whether or not the shooting was an accident. Conversely, the man with â€Å"murder in his heart† who tries to shoot another but misses cannot be held morally accountable for the act. In utilitarianism, only the results matter. Individual happiness: The second component of utilitarianism is Mill’s idea of happiness, by which he means pleasure. As individuals making moral choices, we should seek to act in ways that maximize happiness and minimize pain (which Mill defines as â€Å"the reverse of happiness†). In promoting the maximum happiness, Mill is not advocating a life of food, sex and sleep. He specifically states that not all pleasures are created equal: â€Å"Few human creatures would consent to be changed into any of the lower animals,† he writes, â€Å"for a promise of the fullest allowance of a beast’s pleasures; no intelligent human being would consent to be a fool, no instructed person would be an ignoramus. †[2] For Mill, a hierarchy of pleasures exists, with human pleasures such as love rising to the top of the list. Falling in love or being moved by a song or poem are greater goods to a utilitarian than eating a delicious sandwich, not because love and music and poetry are different in kind than the physical pleasure of eating, but because these are especially profound pleasures. Total happiness: The third defining aspect of utilitarianism is its emphasis on the total happiness, by which Mill means the happiness of all people affected by an action. To decide if an action is moral, a utilitarian will conduct an accounting of the pleasure and pain associated with that act. If the sum total of pleasure outweighs the sum total of pain, the action is considered moral; if not, immoral. Take as an example the case of price-fixing, the government’s setting of minimum prices for goods such as milk to protect farmers from ruin. Is price-fixing moral? Utilitarians would think through this question as follows: When the government (as opposed to the free market) sets the bottom-line price for milk, every consumer suffers moderate pain since the government artificially raises the cost of milk above what the marketplace, operating according to the laws of supply and demand, would otherwise charge. Large consumers who depend on milk (for example, ice cream manufacturers) may suffer severely if the price is kept artificially high. And that increased cost would no doubt be passed on to millions of consumers in the form of increased costs for ice cream. But if the dairy farmers don’t get price protection, they may go bankrupt—in which case a far greater cost would be paid: no one would be able to buy milk or milk products. Price fixing, then, helps farmers stay in business at the expense of ice cream manufacturers and consumers. Is that expense justified? Utilitarians would answer on a case-by-case basis after a careful balancing of benefits to a few with the increased (though small) cost to the many. [3] Individuals as well as governments can be guided by utilitarian thinking. Take the question of organ donation. Is it moral for the family member of a recently (and perhaps tragically) deceased person to grant doctors permission to harvest their loved one’s organs? Utilitarianism’s â€Å"greatest happiness† principle demands any personal sacrifice in which the total amount of pleasure produced outweighs the costs in pain, even if the person making the choice receives none of the benefits. Other philosophers place a priority on individual liberty and object to using one person (even a dead person or dead person’s body parts) for another’s benefit. Utilitarians, by contrast, conclude that such actions are morally necessary. The emotional pain of a family that has lost a loved one is very real. But to utilitarians, the extra pain caused by organ donation is a measure of pain on top of the pain of having already lost a family member. That extra measure of pain must be less than the happiness that results when a life is saved through a transplanted organ. Thus, if the family uses the principle of greatest happiness to guide its decision, then they will agree to the harvesting of organs. A more controversial example of using utilitarianism to make moral decisions involves the ethics of torture. It is sometimes argued that utilitarianism would allow the torture of a prisoner if the torture induced a confession that could save lives, a practice that is strictly outlawed in international law. In a society where this interpretation of utilitarianism was widely accepted, police would be able to inflict any amount of pain on an individual in order to save even one life. This final example highlights one aspect of utilitarianism that is often criticized. Although the greatest happiness principle is easy to understand, its application can lead to some unsettling results. One can imagine a society’s interest in achieving the â€Å"greatest happiness† justifying all kinds of abuses in the name of morality. Utilitarians, in fact, cannot easily explain why torture is morally wrong. Still, in guiding people through more ordinary decisions, utilitarianism has remained popular among both philosophers and non-philosophers. All of us need help sometimes in deciding on the right course of action. Utilitarianism has provided that help for philosophers and common folk alike for two hundred years. ———————– [1] John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism (Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Company, 2001) 7. [2] Mill, 9. [3] Robert W. McGee, â€Å"Some Thoughts on Anti-dumping Laws: Utilitarianism, Human Rights and the Case for Appeal,† European Business Review 96 (1996): 30.

Edgar Allan Poe: Narrative Structure in “Ligeia” Essay

Known for his flowing descriptive and gothic style, Edgar Allan Poe does not appear to develop any obvious narrative structure in his work. His short stories are generally identified with the gloomy, desolate, and horrifically shocking sensations they spark within the reader. Particularly in his short story, â€Å"Ligeia,† Poe seems to have done away with any sort of apparent structure within the story. Rather, he portrays it as a mixture of somewhat chronological events combined with the wandering thoughts from the eccentric mind of the narrator. However, narrative structure lies beyond the simple storyline of plot and can be revealed within many other elements of a story. In â€Å"Ligeia,† the elements of theme and repetition play an important role in developing and maintaining its narrative structure. In particular, Poe seems to stress one interestingly repeated quote, as it appears four times throughout the story. â€Å"Man doth not yield him to the angels, nor unto death utterly, save only through the weakness of his feeble will† (1, 1, 4, 7). From the continual emphasis of this quotation, there arises a principle notion of a tension between the predominant themes of life and death. Furthermore, this notion constitutes the backbone of the story from which all other recognizable themes subsequently branch from. The themes of death, guilt, life, and opium – the factor that questions the validity of all – provide recognizable markers to the overriding theme of the tension between life and death within â€Å"Ligeia.† The pervading theme of death fills Poe’s writing and creates an omnipresent atmosphere of dark apprehension. The movement of the text incessantly alludes to the upcoming death of Ligeia. All the familiar characteristics of her person (her wildly effulgent eyes, her interest in the narrator’s studies†¦) gradually fade away in Poe’s description of her illness. â€Å"And  now those eyes shone less and less frequently upon the pages over which I pored. Ligeia grew ill† (5). The death of Ligeia renders her husband completely helpless and continually longing for her. â€Å"Without Ligeia I was but as a child groping benighted† (5). This fruitless despair and misery thus sets the tone of irresolution for the rest of the story. Furthermore, it also adds to the structure of the narrative by substantiating the life and death tension. By juxtaposing this feeling of continual yearning with the shock and irony of the necromancing of Ligeia, the surprise ending of the story is further emphasized. This motif of sickness and death again reappears as the Lady Rowena falls deathly ill. Typical of his depressing style, Poe creates a more terrible and incurable sickness for the second wife. â€Å"Her illnesses were [†¦] of alarming character, and of more alarming recurrence, defying alike the knowledge and the great exertions of her physicians† (9). Continuing to accentuate the horror and angst of death, Poe describes the corpse of Lady Rowena vividly. [†¦] The lips became doubly shriveled and pinched up in the ghastly expression of death; a repulsive clamminess and coldness overspread rapidly the surface of the body; and all the usual rigorous stiffness immediately supervened. (11) This slow anti-climactic death continues to the keep hopes of the narrator and the reader fluctuating, maintaining the feeling of unresolve. The anxiety exhibited within the irresolution of death therefore supports the structural theme of the tension between life and death. A more subtly conveyed theme, guilt, continues this trend of unease. This self-blame originates from the narrator’s subconscious jealousy of Ligeia’s intellectual superiority. She maintains the leadership in their marriage. The narrator obviously adores her and is extremely aware of her intellectual strength over him. Proclaiming that she maintains unquestionable supremacy of knowledge, the narrator unintentionally develops this jealousy. â€Å"[†¦] The [intellectual] acquisitions of Ligeia were gigantic, were astounding† (4). He seems to conceal a slight resentment of her scholarly dominance. This becomes noticeable as he states that he renders himself a child in  comparison to her authority. â€Å"[†¦] I was sufficiently aware of her infinite supremacy to resign myself, with a child-like confidence, to her guidance [†¦]† (4). With a certain bitterness, he later repeats, â€Å"Have I ever found Ligeia at fault?† (4) It can even be implied that after the narrator reaches the limits of her knowledge, he almost wills her death. Being so caught up with learning worlds of information through her guidance, he is incredibly disappointed when he discovers a boundary to this freely give wisdom. From these implied feelings of jealousy and disappointment, he understandably feels incredible guilt and remorse after her death. This could be one of the reasons he obsesses over her death. Because of these circumstances, the resulting unsettled atmosphere of tension reinforces the tension of Ligeia’s death. Challenging the despondency of death, the immeasurable will of life eventually overcomes death, thus breaking the tensions between the two. Ligeia provides the source for this will. Her fight with death portrays her strength of character most effectively. The narrator continually emphasizes her spirit with repetition of words. â€Å"Words are impotent to convey any just idea of the fierceness of resistance with which she wrestled with the Shadow. [†¦] In the intensity of her wild desire for life -for life —but for life [bold mine] – solace and reason were alike the uttermost folly† (5). As Ligeia repeats her famous quote (â€Å"Man doth not yield him to the angels, nor unto death utterly, save only through the weakness of his feeble will† (7)) twice before dying, her resolute determination not to give herself to death proves undeniable. Her repetition of this quote could be thought to signify that she can only die if she resigns herself to be weak and feeble – that she will return to life because her will to live surpasses death itself. It could also be thought of as Ligeia’s last request to her husband – telling him that if his will is strong enough, he can bring her back to life. Whether or not the narrator understands what she says, he acts accordingly. Never does he forget Ligeia or stop thinking of her. Feeling that he needs to fill the void that Ligeia left, he quickly marries the next available woman, Lady Rowena. While comparing Ligeia to his second wife, however, he becomes further embittered and his will for Ligeia to return to life becomes more fanatical. He admits of Rowena, â€Å"I loathed her with a  hatred belonging more to demon than to man. My memory flew back [†¦] to Ligeia, the beloved the august, the beautiful, the entombed† (9). At times, Ligeia’s desire for life combines with his yearning for her and the prophecy almost becomes real. â€Å"Now, then, did my spirit fully and freely burn with more than all the fires of her own. [†¦] as if [†¦] I could restore her to the pathway she had abandoned [†¦] upon the earth† (9). Immediately after this line is mentioned, Lady Rowena becomes ill with a â€Å"sudden illness.† The narrator, perhaps unconsciously, seems to be med dling with the connection between life and death. During Rowena’s many fluctuations between life and death, it becomes obvious that the narrator’s thoughts are controlling the state of his current wife. As he concentrates on attending her and watching her closely, she falls back into death. As he reminisces about Ligeia, however, the corpse becomes alive again. One may suspect that Rowena has died days ago and the glimmer that is Ligeia returns only when the narrator wills it. Ligeia’s final transformation into the living ends the novel with a bang. After all the narrator’s lament and yearning for Ligeia to live again, his reaction is one more of horror than of happiness as he â€Å"shrieked aloud† (13) after his discovery. Perhaps because of his guilty conscience, the narrator responds with fear of her rather than love and he is finally forced to come face to face with his guilt. Consequently, this will to conquer death confronts the tensions between life and death head on and thus shattering them . The final major theme permeating the plot, opium use, questions the validity of the narrator’s accounts such as reviving the dead. Not so subtle hints to the narrator’s opium use fill the narrative. He admits numerous times to having used the drug and that it affects his mind. After suffering the pain and loss of losing his love, the narrator resorts to opium to blur the sharp reality of this anguish. â€Å"I had become a bounden slave in the trammels of opium, and my labors and my orders had taken a coloring from my dreams† (7). Furthermore, when he describes seeing the ghost of Ligeia and the drops of red fluid in the wine, he questions his state of mind several times. â€Å"But I was wild with the excitement of an immoderate does of opium [†¦] I considered [†¦] [the circumstance to] have been but the suggestion of a vivid imagination, rendered morbidly active by the terror of the lady, by  the opium [italics mine], and by the hour† (10). Before his vision of the living Ligeia, there are at least three specific references to the narrator having used opium the page before. Consequently, his account is definitely questionable. In addition, the accounts the mysterious â€Å"noises† and â€Å"visions† of Rowena can also be questioned as it was common to give opium to those suffering from Tuberculosis (which is what was Rowena was hypothesized to have). The narrator’s opium use could be part of the source of tension so prevalent in this story. Because of his constant dream-like state, it is probable he creates tensions that are not there such as believing he can control the state of Ligeia (causing her death, willing her back to life†¦etc.). Of course, it is also possible that Ligeia never did return to life and he had fallen into another opium dream. The numerous opium references diffused throughout â€Å"Ligeia† intensify the narrative structure by adding the element of doubt to the narra tor’s account. These major elements from â€Å"Ligeia,† death, guilt, life, and opium use, directly reinforce the main structural element holding the narrative together, the life vs. death tension. All four complement each other as well – for without one, the other ones would not be complete. Without the pervading theme of death, the will to overcome death would not be as shocking. Without the acknowledgement of the opium usage, the story might be taken literally and simply pinned down as a surreal fantasy. With the knowledge that the story is told through the misty veil of opium, however, the possibility exists that the there exists no supernatural elements at all and only a narrator in a dreamy state-of-mind. Thus, although â€Å"Ligeia† seemingly lacks structure initially, its structure subsists within the interweaving of these four prevailing themes.