An Analysis of the War Powers Act of 1973

One of the hallmarks of a presidential and democratic society is the division of powers among the three main branches of government. This is called the principle of the separation of powers or the principle of checks and balances. This principle seeks to prevent the over concentration of authority in one person or group of persons that might lead to an error or abuse to the prejudice of the whole state. Austin Ranney (1995) once said that any concentration of powers in a single branch is tyrannical and only true separation of powers will protect the liberties of the people against the aggressions of government. (Austin Ranney, p. 240) The principle of separation of powers has always been criticized as impeding the enactment of bills and promoting efficiency in the running of the affairs of the government. It is because of this reason why some democratic countries have amended their constitutions and shifted to the parliamentary system. War Powers Act of 1973 A concrete example of the Principle of Separation of Power is the war powers which the US Constitution has entrusted to the Executive and the Legislative Branch. Under the United States Constitution, it may appear that the delineation of war power between the Legislative and Executive Branch is clear. The purpose is to make sure that no one branch of government will have the absolute prerogative in making all decisions in matters pertaining to war. Article 1 Section 8 of the United States Constitution clearly expresses that the Congress shall have the following powers: a) To declare War, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water; b) To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years; c) to provide and maintain a navy; d) to make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval Forces; e) to provide for the calling of the militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions; f) to provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the militia, and for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the United States, reserving to the states respectively, the appointment of the officers, and the authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress. On the other hand, under Article II Sec. 2 of the United States Constitution the President shall have the following powers: a) The President shall be Commander in Chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several States; b) The president shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the senators present concur. Based on these two provisions in the United States Constitution, the war powers appear to be clearly divided between the two main branches of government. Under these provisions, the President has the power to lead the armed forces in times of war and to make swift decisions on the field of battle. (â€Å"War and Treat Powers†) On the other hand, the Congress has the power to declare war and to appropriate huge amounts of dollars in support of the war effort. The clear division of powers between the two main branches, however, appear to be more apparent than real. In between these two powers lie a vacuum which the framers of the constitution failed to consider. For any other decisions that the US Constitution failed to anticipate, it appears that the President has complete freedom and absolute discretion to act. This is something which is abhorred by our constitution. Consider the Korean War in which the United States army was intensely involved. The Korean War began as a civil war which was fought from 1950–1953 on the Korean Peninsula. It began when North Korean attacked South Korea on June 25, 1950. (â€Å"Korean War†) Eventually China and the United States became involved in this conflict. Although it was called the Korean War, the United States preferred to call it the police action rather than a war in order to avoid the necessity of formal declaration of war by the Congress of the United States. The same thing happened during the Vietnam War or the Vietnam Conflict. This war lasted for 16 which began from 1959 to 1975. (â€Å"Vietnam War†) This involved the United States, its allies and the South Vietnam against Soviet Union, its allies and the People’s Republic of China and the North Vietnam. In this war, the U. S. deployed large numbers of troops to South Vietnam between 1954 and 1973. Some U. S. allies like the Philippines, Australa and New Zealand also sent their troops to aid the United States and South Vietnam. Similar to the Korean War, the United States was also intensely involved in this war without a formal declaration of war by Congress. These two major events in our history have triggered the enactment of the War Powers Act of 1973. It is worth stressing that based on our history Congress has formally declared war in only five conflicts – the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II – while U. S. presidents have committed armed forces to more than one hundred combat operations around the world. (Charles F. Williams, 2003) The purpose of this law is to provide for a limitation on the powers of the President to deploy United States troops into combat areas without the approval of the legislative branch. Congress aims to prevent the possibility that another Korean and Vietnam Wars may be repeated where the United States deployed its soldiers for battle without the formal declaration of war coming from the Congress. Section 2(a) of the said law is clear on this matter, it states that: â€Å"It is the purpose of this joint resolution to fulfill the intent of the framers of the Constitution of the United States and insure that the collective judgment of both the Congress and the President will apply to the introduction of United States Armed Forces into hostilities, or into situations where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicate by the circumstances, and to the continued use of such forces in hostilities or in such situations. Under the said law, the president is required to consult Congress in every possible instance before introducing United States Armed Forces into hostilities or into situation where imminent involvement in hostilities is clearly indicated by the circumstances, and after every such introduction shall consult regularly with the Congress until United States Armed Forces are no longer engaged in hostilities or have been removed from such situations. The War Powers Act of 1973 also requires the President to submit within 48 hours to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and to the President pro tempore of the Senate a report, in writing, setting forth the circumstances necessitating the introduction of United States Armed Forces, the constitutional and legislative authority under which such introduction took place and the estimated scope and duration of the hostilities or involvement in case United States Armed forces are actually introduced for combat. The said law also requires the President to terminate within sixty calendar days after a report is submitted any use of United States Armed Forces unless the Congress has declared war or has enacted a specific authorization for such use of United States Armed Forces or has extended by law such sixty-day period or is physically unable to meet as a result of an armed attack upon the United States. The sixty-day period shall be extended for not more than an additional thirty days if the President determines and certifies to the Congress in writing that unavoidable military necessity respecting the safety of United States Armed Forces requires the continued use of such armed forces in the course of bringing about a prompt removal of such forces. The Congress by concurrent resolution is authorized at all times to order the withdrawal of US troops. Arguments against War Powers Act of 1973 One of the arguments raised against the enactment of the War Powers Act of 1973 is that it is an act of encroachment on the part of the Legislature of a territory which the US Constitution has delegated to the Executive Branch. It must be stressed that the President took his oath before he assumed his office that he will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and he will to the best of his ability preserve and protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. The present statute significantly limits the powers of the president to act in times of war which have a serious effect on the performance of his obligation. Arguments In Favor of War Powers Act of 1973 On the other hand, some are in favor of the War Powers Act of 1973. They argue that the consultation and reporting requirements and the power of Congress to terminate the deployment of armed forces do not operate to limit the powers of the president. It merely serves to ensure that the constitutional mandate is observed. As envisioned by the United States Constitution, there shall always be two keys to start the engine of war running – the key given to the Congress and the key given to the President. Thus, the War Powers Act of 1973 does make Congress superior to the President, rather, it only highlights the supremacy of the United States Constitution. Conclusion I believe that the War Powers Act of 1973 is constitutional. Our history has shown that we cannot entrust to a single man the power to deploy United States troops to combat. In the past decade, all the past presidents, including our present president, has deployed hundreds of thousands of US soldiers to battle. This not only led to the death of countless soldiers but it has depleted our resources. The United States Constitution is still the highest law of the land and it is clearly manifested in the enactment of the War Powers Act of 1973.

Elements used in Raisin in the Sun Essay

Lorraine Hansberry’s Raisin in the Sun is a monumental play in the theatrical world. Produced in 1959, it became the first play written by an African-American woman to hit the stage and was later nominated for several Tony Awards. The play touched many controversial themes of the time including racial discrimination and poverty. The design of Raisin in the Sun, including scenic, costume, lighting, and sound elements, were crucial to developing the plot and emphasizing these themes. All of the elements are vital to the message and audience interpretation of the production, and overall, the Playmakers Repertory Company executed them well. The scenic design of a play is arguably the most important element of a production. It is what sets the stage and puts both the characters and the script into context. In Raisin in the Sun, the set, including scenery and props, helped define the characters, allowing the audience to get a feel for the setting and time period. Most importantly, the scenery developed the line of the play—the space in which the Younger family had to live—which was strategic to developing plot conflict. The Younger family lived in a small, run down apartment that emphasized their social class. To name a few, the wallpaper was discolored, the living room couch was old and musty, and the only visible bedroom to the audience was merely big enough for the bed. Travis, the son, was forced to sleep on the couch, and it was unclear how much space was upstairs where Beneatha, the daughter, and the Grandmother, Lena, slept. The design of the apartment played to the overall conflict within the family; the desperation to escape poverty only intensified within these cramped quarters. Although, the characters managed to deal with their living situation, it caused tension to build within each member of the family, which was a crucial part of plot development. The lower class feel of the house honed in on Walter Lee’s burning desire to get into business and climb the social ladder. The less-than-luxurious surroundings seemed to amplify his unhappiness when he entered the room, allowing the plot to build along with the tension in the house. In addition to scenery, the props strategically placed around the housed illustrated the family’s cares and values. Throughout the room, the audience could see many picture frames. However, the two that were predominately displayed were a picture of Christ hanging over the front door, and a picture of Lena’s deceased husband that stayed on a table in the living room. These props emphasized importance the Younger’s placed on family and religion, which came up many times throughout the production. The entire family lived under one roof, looking after one another and making ends meet, together as a whole. In addition, the plot centered around a life-insurance check from the death of Lena’s husband. This kept the element of religion present since he was deceased and in the eyes of Lena, watching over the family. Both the design of the apartment and the detail of the props within it gave the audience a greater understanding of the deep-rooted values and conflicts of the family. The costume design of Raisin in the Sun went hand-in-hand with the scenery and props. The realistic clothes of the Younger family further described a family of lower class, although not an untidy one. Each day, the members of the family would dress for work or school as well as they could, which illustrated the pride the family carried. This enormous pride stemmed from an important theme within the play: overcoming racial discrimination. Lena dreamed of escaping the busyness of Chicago, and bought a house in a white neighborhood with the hefty check from her husband’s insurance policy. Her pride kept the family afloat and was their only defense against the discrimination they faced from the area. Furthermore, each character’s costumes fit their personalities. While Lena, Ruth, and Walter Lee were usually dressed in working clothes, reflecting their family duty, Beneatha dressed in more modern clothes, illustrating her character as a free-spirited college student. One day she would wear girly skirts and flowery designs, the next she was going back to her roots wearing African garments and sporting natural hair. The costume designers successfully captured each character’s personality as well as keeping the image of pride apparent through the character’s choice of clothes. In addition to scenic and costume design, every play must have specific lighting. This sets the mood of each scene, giving the audience a better feel of what is happening within the plot. For the most part, the lighting within the apartment was warm and dim, giving the setting a homey and somewhat relaxed feel. However, the dimness of the light also played upon the unhappiness that stirred within the family during certain scenes. These moments of lighting kept with the realistic aspect of the play. However, there were times of unrealistic lighting meant to enhance a scene. When Beneatha was dancing to African music and Walter Lee came in and joined her, the lighting became jungle-like. The reds and oranges along with the images of palm frons surrounded the two, carrying them away from the real world. Although this would never happen in real life, it was apparent the lighting was illustrating what was going on in their minds, showing the desire to escape their current troubles. The second and only other time of surreal lighting was when Walter Lee had his breakdown and then moment of clarity near the end of the show. The entire set went dark except for a spotlight on him. This choice in lighting was appropriate for such a somber scene and drew the audience in even more. The times of abstract or unrealistic lighting did not take away from the realness of the play. Instead, it enhanced the scenes to the benefit of the audience. The last element of design that affected the play is the sound design. Obviously the show had typical sound effects—doors slamming for emphasis, Beneatha playing African music, etc. —that decorated each scene as it unfolded. However, there was a significant aspect to the sound design of this particular production. Throughout the play, the characters would turn on the radio and interviews and other recordings from the 1960s would play over the speaker. Some of these included Lorraine Hansberry speaking about the nominations and winning the Tony and discussion of civil rights movements of the time. Some may think this was distracting, but it anchored the play within the time period. This allowed the audience to get a better feel of what was happening during the era and highlighted the major theme of racial discrimination within the plot. All in all, the production of Raisin in the Sun was a success. Yes, this is highly due in part to the excellent skill of the actors. However, without stagecraft, a play cannot be complete. The elements of design produce a world that actors could never create on script alone. In the Playmakers Repertory Company’s production of Raisin in the Sun, the scenic, costume, lighting, and sound design worked cohesively to enhance and develop all aspects of the characters and plot. The provocative themes of escaping poverty, chasing dreams, and overcoming racial discrimination were illustrated brilliantly by tremendous execution of the elements of design and an impressive performance by the acting company.

The theme of hope in the writings of Hemingway, Conrad

This essay will compare the theme of hope in the writings of Hemingway, Conrad, and Kafka in the novels, The Sun Also Rises, Heart of Darkness and The Trial.   The characters in the novels will be presented as hoping against the odds of love and either fulfilling their desire or running away from them, thus either gaining hope or the lack of hope.   The different avenues of hope will also be examined in that hope may turn into acts of desperation from a different point of view, and the narrator of some of the novels will be given consideration in presenting facts to the reader in their own point of view.Finally, this essay will discuss the nature of hope, and how the characters throughout the novels may either accept a hopeless state and be transformed from it, or accept hope as a gift despite the fact that reality and circumstances may deny them their desires.   The theme of each novel will ultimately coincide with transformations or realizations through hope.In Hemingway†™s The Sun Also Rises the narrator Jake travels through a myriad of landscapes from Paris, to Madrid and even San Sebastian.   It is through these landscapes that the reader may witness the rising hope that Jake has, or the desperation, and even at times, of the peace he has or longs for in such scenery.   The cast of characters suggests a spectrum of different avenues of hope: with Jake, his hope is to be with Brett, despite the consequences and the treatment he receives from her, uttering in the novel’s last line, â€Å"Yes, isn’t it pretty to think so† after Brett states that she and Jake would have had a wonderful time together.In this statement Jake reveals to Brett, and to the audience that although he and Brett do not manage to come together as a couple, that in Jake’s view of events they are joined together through consequences and circumstances.   This is not a fulfillment by the measure of typical novels involving relationships but for H emingway, the stunted acceptance of fate in the character Jake allows for imagination and realism to coexist.   This means that hope cannot come to fruition but that to still think, and in Jake’s mind to know, that to have been with Brett would have been his greatest adventure expresses not his lament that it never happened but that it could have happened and it would have been wonderful.   This un-fulfillment is Jake’s hope realized.With the character Cohn however, hope is a desperate emotion.   His hope is overpowering; it lies with being madly in love, or infatuation with Brett and the unrequited love of Brett drives Cohn into a furious temper for any man who is with her, or desires her.   Cohn repeated follows Brett around, which conjures up images of puppy love, and blind obedience, and when Brett’s fiancà © Mike tells Cohn again and again to lay off, Cohn refuses and tensions rise during the fiesta in Madrid.Cohn ignores rationality and knocks out Jake, Mike, and Brett’s new lover, the bullfighter Romero.   Recognizing his actions, Cohn insists on having Jake forgive him, which Jake does with reluctance and even wants Romero to shake his hand, which Romero refuses.   Here, then is Cohn’s ultimate slight; that hope, at least the kind that is desperate is unforgiving.Brett rebukes her fiancà © Mike for her new lover Romero.   An interesting scene in the book is when Brett receives Romero’s gift of a bull’s ear he had slain, a bull which had earlier slaughtered another man.   This ear signifies that Brett had to cut off a piece of herself in order to live the life she does, traveling and falling in love over and over and changing her mind and following a different lover around until regret or a new love shows up.   This ear resembles Brett’s hope – her hope of love in constant fury.She must not leave too much of herself with one man leastwise she become completely attached an d dependent, thus, the vivisected ear is Brett’s heart, torn off from its owner, and kept in a distant spot.   Brett does not hope with commitment, but with transitory lust for new things, places, and men.   Although Jake tells these words to Cohn about traveling to South America this following quote may be applicable to each character in the novel and the theme of hope, â€Å"You can’t get away from yourself by moving from one place to another.† (Hemingway 11).Hemingway’s characters in the novel suggest constant movement in order to escape something; to escape constancy in setting and environment, it is as though the characters feel that if they move enough their desires and regrets won’t be able to catch up. This is true especially for Brett and is true for Jake as well.   For Cohn, it is his outdated lifestyle which is anachronistic in the lifestyle of the age in which he is living that he is trying to escape but for Brett and perhaps Jake as well, it is regret that they do want to overcome them, â€Å"I thought I had paid for everything. Not like the woman pays and pays and pays.No idea of retribution or punishment. Just exchange of values. You gave something up and got something else. Or you worked for something. You paid some way for everything that was any good.† (Hemingway 148).   In final scene in the car when the two are alone together and Jake says it’s pretty to think so, this is the only acknowledgement of truth the reader receives from Jake concerning his desire for Brett.   Beyond the tomfoolery, bullfighting and fishing, when he is quite within himself, the mantra which pulses through him is regret.   He may hope beyond it, but it is all-consuming as it would have been for Brett if she had not hidden her heart away from such devices as feeling too much as Jake does, as it best exemplified with Jake stating, â€Å"Couldn’t we live together, Brett? Couldn’t we just live t ogether?† [Brett:] â€Å"I don’t think so. I’d just tromper you with everybody.†In Jake’s final line to Brett, hope is dashed and cynicism is revealed.   Jake has no illusions as to how his and Brett’s relationship would have been since Brett has no heart to give, or it is kept at such a distance, even Jake’s love could not call it into being.   This is the lack of hope of them, realism, cynicism, and love dashed.In Kafka’s novel The Trial, the main character Joseph K, or simply K lives through a series of unfortunate events of which the first he is accused of some ambiguous crime on his 30th birthday.   One year later he is killed in the name of the law and K, for his part does not object to the killing.   The absurd as a theme in this event is very overtly portrayed.   The ambiguous nature of the actions of the other characters in the novel prove to be ridiculous and a definite parody of real life trial situations.Th e trial itself is a charade because everyone in the courtroom including K already know the outcome; they are merely going through the actions because it is something of a tradition to do so.   Thus, the characters are focused, not on the truth of the matter, did K commit a crime, but merely on the trial itself and their part in the faà §ade.K’s looming fate is indistinguishable during the trial but when he is killed in the name of the law at the end of the novel he gives no protest.   The absurd as a theme is best translated in this action by Kafka’s character K.   K does not protect his own interest but does blindly what he is told to do because it is the law.   K does not question the intent of the actions, him being killed or at times even during the trial.   During the novel, K is increasingly not in control of his own fate.   This is shown when he kisses his neighbor after his landlady told him indirectly that he was perhaps having an affair with her.    It seems that the absurd grows into its own identity in Kafka’s The Trial through the way in which K is a definite pawn, adhering to other people’s wishes instead of examining his own wants.The absurd takes further shape in Kafka’s novel through the inability of the other defendant’s awaiting news of their fate when K is given a tour of the offices by Law-Court Attendant.   Almost everyone in the book is ignorant about their surroundings, their own actions, their fate.   Kafka deals well with disguising characters or scenes (when K goes into the Law-Court Attendant’s office he glances at law books that are in fact pornography) and leading the reader to believe one thing before he switches and tells the reader the truth behind the scene.Kafka was a master at leading the audience down one path only to change course right when the reader has a glimmer of understanding about the plot or the character’s intentions.   To emphasize this point K’s last words before he dies are â€Å"Like a dog† which describe how he dies.   In essence these words state that K was expecting to die, perhaps wanted it after the previous misleading year of his life during the trial and the ridiculous events in his life while the trial was persisting.   His words describe his death, but also his life.   He lived obediently, and as the clichà © goes, he licked the master’s hand that beat him.In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, the audience is presented with the character Marlow whose hope overwhelms his morality in the search for Mr. Kurtz.   Marlow appears to be a Buddha type image (at least the early Buddha, Siddhartha) in that he is searching for hope through Mr. Kurtz.   Thus, Marlow is a character whose hope is tied up with a sense of adventure and courage mixed with either ignorance or just unawareness.   Marlow seems to have created an acceptance of people and in return expects them to sho w the same regard of acceptance in silence.The company seems to think Marlow’s stories are elusive to a point because, â€Å"†¦to hear about one of Marlow’s inconclusive experiences.†Ã‚   (pg 10).   The company appears to discourage his story telling because of his disregard to the audiences wants.   At the beginning of his journey into Africa, Marlow appears to be the whimsical sailor.   An insightful sailor with thought patterns which reveal his character, â€Å"Watching a coast as it slips by the ship is like thinking about an enigma† (pg 19).   Marlow presents himself to be a truth teller.   Being always ‘appalled’ by a lie.   Marlow becomes obsessed with the idea of Mr. Kurtz.   Only the want of a conversation with him led Marlow on hi journey.Marlow associated himself with Kurtz by becoming an outcaste in the eyes of the managers and the dark of his mindset comes out, â€Å"†¦but it was something to have at leas t a choice of nightmares.† (pg 105).   Then coming to base with reality when   meeting Kurtz’s Intended, Marlow says that, â€Å"His end †¦ was in every way worthy of his life† (pg 130).Following into Mr. Kurtz’s character, it is discovered that he is not fully developed, especially in regards to hope.   He is described as a misfit showing everybody up.   The ivory king so to speak.   An elusive devil with a charmed life.   Referred to as ‘that man’.   A genius of a man not forgotten only because of outrageous speeches and stunts, not for any significant contribution to humanity, nor for his character development or change towards hope.   Kurtz is a hard man to please and only a friend when he was in the whim of being a friends.Perhaps the darkness drove Kurtz crazy and thus the audience is forces to recognize how his lack of hope twisted his character development, â€Å"†¦it had whispered to him things about himself which he did not know, things of which he had no conception till he took counsel with his great solitude-†¦(whisper) echoed loudly within him because he was hollow at the core†Ã‚   (pg 98).   Kurtz then was the abyss through which hope was lost.   He sucked away ideas, morality, self-preservation of an idea and the act of being a taking of hope filled Kurtz because he had no other thoughts of his own.   Solitude does strange things to a man as is witnessed by Kurtz’s character.Kurtz left behind him a ‘last disciple.’   A short but well formed character in the way of his obsession with Mr. Kurtz.   In the concept of hope, and the loss or lack of hope, Kurtz epitomizes this concept through is treatment of his lady.   She was in constant mourning and tears.   However, despite his treatment of her, she adored him.   Her life was with him.Conrad’s treatment of the novel, in his setting of the scene also suggests the lack of hope whic h prevails as a theme in Heart of Darkness.   Conrad creates the setting of the sea in the beginning of the book as a painting with souls included; lost souls.   He sets the mood by the setting by calming words and eloquent simplicity.   After this imagery the reader is taken into the journey of Marlow.The city is the first step in the path of discovering lack of hope in Conrad’s work.   The city is the first step in this and right away the reader is filled with the complexity and confusion of Marlow’s story as the setting of the company’s offices harbors a feeling of conspiracy.   A setting of foreboding, or darkness with two black barbed guardians is presented in the text, which further allude to the lack of hope in the novel.In the first introduction of the idea of Mr. Kurtz, the person taking praises him but eh scene leads the reader to conclude that the man brings a feeling of wickedness, and a lack of morality.   Perhaps Mr. Kurtz is the sea pe rsonified.   In fact the feeling of hope, or lack of hope can very simply be seen in the treatment of the females in the novel.   Just as in the character of Jake in Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises Mr. Kurtz’s character finds a reflection of himself in his female counterpart and how he treats that counterpart.There are only three somewhat minor female characters in Heart of Darkness: Marlow’s aunt, Kurtz’s mistress, and Kurtz’s â€Å"Intended.† Marlow mentions these female characters in order to give the literal aspect of his  tale more substance.  Towards the beginning of Marlow’s story he tells how he, â€Å"Charlie Marlow, set the women to work–to get a job.†He tells this in the context that he desperately wanted to travel in  the trade industry that he did what the unthinkable (in those times).   He asked a woman for financial assistance! The woman, his aunt, also surpassed the traditional role of women in those times by telling Marlow that she would be delighted to help him and to ask her for help whenever he needed it. This incident did not have much to do with the symbolic theme of the story; it simply served to tell the reader how Marlow managed to be able to travel to the Congo (with a little help). On another note, Conrad intended to illustrate Marlow’s opinion of women’s inferior role in society, which embodied traditional 19th century society.The two remaining female characters were acknowledged later in the story.   When Marlow reaches the Inner Station, he jumps ahead and tells a little about The Intended, Kurtz’s fiancà ©e (to say â€Å"I do† when he returned). The Intended woman does not appear until the very end of the story, in which Marlow visits her and lies to her about Kurtz’s dying words.   The last female character, Kurtz’s African mistress, was presented near the end of the novel. Her first appearance took place in t he scene with Marlow talking to the Russian.She appears later when Marlow and Kurtz depart on the steamboat.   After Marlow blows the whistle, she stretches her arms out towards the steamer, and that was the last time she appears. The limited depiction of female characters in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness and the way in which the three female characters are referred to by Marlow reflect Marlow’s view of women as inferior. Marlow’s opinion of women manifests the typical 19th century views of women.Perhaps his choice to lie to the Intended was because of a similar female  influence on his life†¦his Aunt.   In a way Marlow compares the Intended to his Aunt in  which both women are weaker than him.   For a man in the early 19th century, he believes  that they are delicate  and â€Å"something† that needs to be tenderly cared for.   He says, â€Å"It is  queer how out of touch with the truth women are.They live in a world of their o wn, and  there had never been anything like it, and can never be.   It is too beautiful altogether, and  if they were to set it up it would go to pieces before the first sunset.†Ã‚   This he says before  ever meeting Kurtz or hearing of the Intended.   Upon lying to her (the Intended) he says,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"But I couldn't.   I could not tell her.   It would have been too dark  too dark altogether†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Ã‚  Marlow protected her,  he allowed her to remain innocent of Kurtz and his actions and in  so doing enabled her sun to remain high rather than setting and forever engulfing her in  darkness.Through the characters of each of these three novels different aspects of hope and different ways in which hope is revealed, lost, gained, or ignored the truth is that each character in one way had the chance to hope.   Marlow’s hope and Kurtz’s hope was desperation out of the thing they could not own, a woman’s love.   K’s hope and Jake’s hope both began with cynicism, and K’s hope does not change at the end of Kafka’s novel, with the phrase pertaining to ‘like a dog’ while Jake also remains in the state of cynicism knowing that Brett could never love anyone because she was prepared to hope so high.Each novel had a point of revelation for the characters in which they must make a choice to continue to hope, to change, or to ignore hope and falter in the evolution of their own character.   Thus, when a character lost hope, they were doomed just as Marlow and Kurtz lost hope, or lost the illusion of their life and realized they never had hope for themselves, and just as Jake realizes that perhaps he never had hope for himself and Brett after all.WORK CITEDConrad, J.   Heart of Darkness.   Bentley Pub, New York.   2002.Hemingway, E.   The Sun Also Rises.   Scribner, New York, 1996.Kafka, Franz.   The Trial.   Trans.   Willa & Edwin Muir.   Shocken.   New York .   1995.

English Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English Assignment - Essay Example One of the most apparent similarities these films have was the inclusion and introduction of a new dance routine apart from the previous routines of the lead characters. The introduction and its corresponding activities paved way in the establishment of a love affair between them. In the case of Dirty Dancing, the newly incorporated dance routine was the ‘Mambo’, ‘Paso Doble’ for Strictly Ballroom and ‘Hip-hop’ for Save the Last Dance. Another similarity that could easily be observed was that the lead females for the movies have been struggling, as a newbie, to unleash their full potential in dancing. As what we have observed, they had acquired the confidence to move forward and become proactive through the encouragement, motivation and inspiration given to them by their teacher/partner. It could also be noted that among the films, there was a presence of supportive and loving father which initially will be the cause of hindrances in their relat ionship and activities but eventually the differences and constraints was sorted out. Finally all the movies portrayed awesome finale performances by the lead characters (Ardolino; Carter; and Luhrmann). Aside from differences, these three films also depicted differences. Some of the notable variances were the gender of the lead characters and their family conditions. Baby for Dirty Dancing is a girl that came from a rich family not literally involved in dancing, Scott on Strictly Ballroom is a male coming from a middle income family that is into ballroom dancing, and Sara on Save the Last Dance is a female dreaming to be a ballerina and living with her estranged father since her mother died from a car accident. Another difference that these films had were the hindrances that the lead characters encountered in their pursuit of excellence, one is from the father who misunderstood the situation and prevented her daughter to have any form of affair to the instructor, another is from a deceitful friend that never wanted them to win their much coveted competition and lastly was from an ex-girlfriend and a friend with illegal undertakings (Ardolino; Carter; and Luhrmann). Though there are several differences and similarities in the main plot, it can be inferred that dance was used in these movies in such a way that it aided the main characters in their search for love, fame, happiness and self-expression. It was evident that dancing was used to express their feelings and serves as an outlet for what they strongly felt about. Also, dancing encouraged and motivated the main characters to be an achiever and discover along the way their true potentials. For every movie we had watched before, there were these characters that catch our attention, not because they are the main characters but because the characters they portray have either big or small resemblance to our own experiences or experiences of the people we know and love. In these particular movies, the character s that I can relate the most are the lead characters of Strictly Ballroom and Save the Last Dance; Fran, Scott, Sara, and Derek (Ardolino; Carter; and Luhrmann). Fran, being a daughter of a not so well off family and initially an ugly duckling who dreamt of becoming a grand prix dancer, seized the opportunity to achieve her dream the moment it was available. She never let disappointments,

Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 29

Leadership - Essay Example An organization needs to develop its policies and plans in such a way which will encourage its employees in increasing the productivity of the company. The HR professional of the company have to understand the type of human resources available in China. Based on that, the HR professionals should design the organizational rules and policies. Culture of people plays a vital role in developing business process of the company in China. The HR professionals should understand the issues which motivate the Chinese people for working in a foreign company. In China, people tend to work together (Price, 2011). Collectivism is high among the people. For this reason HR should make the rules which are equal for all. This will motivate Chinese people in delivering effective work. The recruitment of Chinese people will be based on merit. Effective training will be provided to them for understanding the business process of the company. The major issues of the HR professionals in China will be building relationship with Chinese people. Chinese people follow their culture very strongly. Being a foreign company the HR professionals have to deal with the Chinese employees in an efficient way so that their cultural values and thoughts do not get hampered. Understanding the mind set of Chinese employees will also be a tough challenge for the company. The mind set and believes of Chinese people is very much different from American people. For this reason the Chinese people might not feel comfortable in working in a foreign company. Communicating with the Chinese employee will be a difficult task for the organization (Price, 2011). The HR professionals need to know Chinese language for communicating with Chinese people. Moreover the communication styles of this people are very much different from the people of other cultures which the HR persons of the company have to understand. The firm has to do many things for expanding its business in China. For making the business

Porters Five of ASDA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Porters Five of ASDA - Essay Example Nevertheless Porter claims that competitive rivalry is one of the most important issues, which should be considered by the businesses. In the face of the threat of new entrants, every company is subjected to the external risks. There is a need for huge financial investments to develop a successful chain store. There are many challenges in retail market and a new entrant demands something more, radically new which will attract the customers. Key retailers depend on their brand names and are highly concerned about their reputation. Very often retailers depend on the market shares and it is appropriate for them to decide whether they use appropriate measures or not. Morever, retailers are concerned about possible methods, such as litigation, for example. It is very important to compensate market share knowledge and very often foreign investors are a certain barrier to new entrants. It is impossible to substitute food and clothes. Therefore, the threat of substitutes is relatively low. It should be mentioned that the main threat should be expected from the main brand names of chain stores, Sainsbury, Tesco and Morrison. These chain stores provide less affordable alternatives and the threat of substitutes is relatively high. Tesco is the main rival to the company and Asda demands lower prices and intensifies price war. Asda demands lower prices and creates a certain trap for the suppliers thus triggering price war. The challenges of price competitors make suppliers decrease prices. Asda reduces prices and it attracts customers by affordable prices. More than 3000 products are very intriguing and appealing in the modern market. It is relevant of this chain stores to implement strategies of online advertising, products promotion, emails and letters. There are many customers which can communicate online with respect to some products.

Play and Work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Play and Work - Essay Example Really, the working process usually brings much pleasure. As for me, I work to realize my abilities, feel myself significant, not to lose time. The given paper will prove that even the richest people can’t do without everyday work. How do we benefit from work? First of all, work teaches people how to be responsible. This explains why children from comfortable families are eager to work. They want to hold the responsibility for their future and do not want to account only on their parents. The sense of responsibility helps us build a happy family. A person who is not responsible for his/her own life will not be able to become responsible for the family, thus his/her family will not be strong and happy. Moreover, the sense of responsibility of the countries’ citizens is the guarantee of state’s thriving and prosperity. The word â€Å"work† is the antonym to the word â€Å"idleness†, and we know what consequences idleness may have. Even if a person has money and may not work for it, he/she still should take effort to make the money work for him/her. This is also a work that will not allow this person to appear without a penny one day. When a person is doing nothing, it leads to wastefulness and wastefulness in its turn leads to poverty. There are many examples that testify that idleness is destructive. Any amount of money can be easily spent during a short period of time. Thus, even the richest people prefer to work rather than doing nothing. Furthermore, many rich ones know pretty well that it is not very easy to become rich, thus they do their best to save their money and the only way to save it is to continue working. The work helps us be healthy and in a good shape. When we do not work, we are degrading and our personality is not developing. We need constant practice in order to keep the knowledge we once gained. That is why old people prefer to work even after retirement. They do not want to lose the skills and knowledge. Ol d people also state that working after retirement help them feel young and healthy. Every work is beneficial. Unfortunately, in our society people prefer to respect only intellectual work. It is valued high and, thus, brings more money. Certainly, intellectual work demands getting an appropriate education, therefore many people do their best and sacrifice much in order to receive a good education. However, I consider manual work to be not less important. In the article "brains as well as brawn" Mike Rose talks about the injustice that presents in our society. The author shares the feelings he had watching a carpenter working: â€Å"I am watching a carpenter install a set of sliding French doors in a tight wall space. He stands back, surveying the frame, imagining the pieces as he will assemble them. What angle is required to create a threshold that will shed water? Where might the sliding panels catch or snag? How must the casings be remade to match the woodwork in the rest of the room? And how can he put it all together fast enough and smart enough to make his labor pay?† (Rose 337). Here we can see that the work of carpenter is really difficult and unique, it demands much efforts. Unfortunately, nobody thinks about it and nobody notices his work. In our modern world everybody wants to become an economist, a manager, a translator, but there are few people who value manual work. We prefer to value the work of accountant or a doctor, but never notice the work of, for example, a waitress and the number of tasks she has to implement:

Our bodies our politics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Our bodies our politics - Essay Example Another article written by Rebecca Chalker examines this issue in its specific aspect, namely in terms of knowledge and understanding of the female sexuality and female genitalia. The author concludes that women around the world do not have enough knowledge about their sexuality and the structural features of their female reproductive system. In turn, in her article, Emily Martin conducts an even deeper analysis of the problem. This allows her to come to the conclusion that modern notions of masculinity and femininity have an impact on scientists ideas about the features of the reproductive functions of men and women. In particular, Martin points out that science considers the process of menstruation as a phenomenon, which marks the death of the female eggs (failed production), while the process of maturation of sperm is being evaluated solely from the positive point of view as a surprising phenomenon that allows men to produce millions of spermatozoons. Finally, the value of the vid eo from Betty Dodson is that it provides an opportunity for all women to obtain important information about the structure of their genitals, namely the internal clitoris. In addition, the value of a given video is also in the fact that Betty draws attention to the fact that â€Å"that women get erections just like men.† This information allows all women to improve their sexual experience and make their sexual pleasure more diverse. As one can see, the main reason for the problems identified in all of these articles is related to gender stereotypes that continue existing in modern culture and science. Femininity is seen as a phenomenon associated with such qualities as weakness, passivity and inertia. For this reason, masculinity presupposes the rejection of any characteristics that suggest its association with femininity. In science, this has led to the fact that the features of female

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of Alternative Dispute Essay

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of Alternative Dispute Resolution - Essay Example The same is known as alternative dispute resolution1. According to the available literature on alterative dispute resolution, there are four categories of ADR, which include arbitration, negotiation, mediation and collaborative law. There are experts who tend to cite conciliation as the fifth category. Other than negotiation, all other ADR categories include the person of a outside, unbiased and external person, which acts as the third party to facilitate the process and ensure that the parties reach a settlement. There are thousands of cases of divorces, commercial disputes, family disputes, professional liability cases, insurance issues, personal injury situations and others, where ADR has proven to be more effective than the traditional court processes and the first choice of parties to resolve their disputes2. Nevertheless, there are some pros and cons of ADR. This paper, therefore, is an attempt to explore the various advantages and disadvantages associated with alternative disp ute resolution. Discussion Advantages of ADR First, ADR offers the advantage of being cheap and quick. On the other hand, formal court processes may take years and cost people a fortune. In fact, in many developing countries with huge populations such as India, Pakistan and others, it takes more than 20-30 years for a person to get a date for his or her case hearing. During the 1990s, a woman who was raped filled a petition in the court for justice. However, when her date for hearing arrived, it has been more than 5 years since her death3. Furthermore, many poor and lower class people forget about their issues and claims in various countries considering the legal fees, bribes and other money which they would have to pay for getting justice. ADR, on the other hand, allows people to get quick and inexpensive justice. Many arbitration boards would take less than a few weeks before they could finalize their decisions45. Second, people prefer to keep their internal matters public; howeve r, when they refer to courts for justice, everything becomes public. The bigger the case, the information about both the parties would leak into the public. However, in case of ADR, the same does not happen. Both parties cannot only ensure confidentiality during the investigations and hearings but if they want then the decision and results may also be kept only to people inside the rooms6. Third, despite the fact that the judges and jury have great deal of knowledge about the happenings in the society, nevertheless, they are not the experts of certain fields. Therefore, whenever technical matters are brought up in front of the jury, huge investments in terms of time and money have to be done in order to educate the jury and even then, there is lesser chance that the jury would give a verdict after fully understanding the technical matters7. Fourth, courts have a limited number of options. They are books of law, processes, specific rules and outcomes, which one can predict. In short, there are certain paths and processes, which the jury cannot avoid while making a decision. However, in ADR, the jury has the power to be more creative and give decisions in light of domestic laws, international laws, foreign laws or even religious laws8. Fifth,

Strategic Management (Marks & Spancer Case) Essay

Strategic Management (Marks & Spancer Case) - Essay Example It is able to source quality products from centralized buying office and later transfers the same to its stores. In each and every store, analogues procedures are being followed and hence, the independence of managers was constrained. In the past, various CEOs concentrated on quality of merchandise, supplier control and layout of stores. During the 11-year tenure of Sir Richard Greenbury as Chairman cum CEO, M&S enjoyed twice the market share as compared to any other retailers in the industry and witnessed the growth successively as they were no major changes to its style of operations or functioning. However, in 1998, M&S strategy met a great disaster as it performance was far below than normal for many successive years. Its lost its major chunk of customer’s base due to its competitors ability to source very competitive merchandises from low-cost nations and there had been cut-throat competition from retailers like Gap, Oasis, Next, Matalam and Asda. Due to poor performance, Sir Richard Greenbury was shown exit doors in 1999. In 2000, Luc Van de Velde appointed himself as Chairman cum CEO, and he earnestly attempted to turnaround the M&S Plc in his short span tenure that prolonged up to 2004. With aim of focusing on UK market, Velde appointed a head for UK retail and segmented the customers of the company employing the store within a store perception. He successfully entered into a joint venture with designer George Davies. In 2003, he introduced the Simply food notion and started to open stand alone food stores in 2003 in UK. Velde era made a turnaround of M&S Plc between 2000 and 2004 but also M&S encountered successive takeover attempts by the Arcadia Group. Another innovation that Luc Van de Velde brought was the introduction loyalty cards which gave the customers reward points that can be used during their future purchases at M&S stores. However, in the year 2004, M&S witnessed a deep decline in their sales, lost major of its market share to its c ompetitors, mainly due to over-emphasis on Per Una. Rose Stuart succeeded Luc Van de Velde in 2004, and he followed a strategy of under promising but excess delivering in terms of targets set. In 2008, Rose was re-designated as Chairman cum CEO when UK was facing utter economic crisis. Since then, the scenery did not improve in 2009 also, Rose and his marketing director were to forego ? 1 million package bonus of M&S shares and in 2010, Rose relinquished his position as chairman and functioned as CEO of the company. Introduce the theory or concept to be used in analysing the assignment This paper tries to explore about competitive strategy on which M&S might accomplish competitive advantage in the market. As per Michael Porter, an organisation could achieve the competitive advantage by adhering to three various generic strategies like focus, overall cost leadership and differentiation. As per Cliff Bowman and Richard D’ Aveni, market-facing generic strategies are having compe titive advantages, which is accomplished by offering customers with what they exactly need or want more efficiently and effectively than its competitors. (Cousins & Coskett 2007:275) In UK, M&S was the number-one retailer, but it failed to comprehend or to recognise the transforming social fashions and tastes in the

Society and Education Essay Example for Free

Society and Education Essay Young peoples decision making is influenced by a number of social factors. Identify three major influences and discuss their impact. Today young people are regarded as the troubled community within the society we Live in, however it is the young people who are to set out our future in years to come. Their decisions is life will determine how this world is run, and society as a whole Should not judge but encourage them to succeed in whatever they should decide to Pursue a career in. It is therefore essential that certain social factors will influence Their decisions. I have identified three of the major factors, which I believe have the highest amount of Influence on youth and what they decide to do in the future, the three factors I have Chosen are; Family, Society and Education. These three summarise the life of a child And can have a major effect on what they choose to do in life, whether higher Education is an option or a life of unemployment and seeking other opportunities Arise. Family Family is defined as a universal social group, which live within the same household. Today families are identified as the main source for the growth of a young child, Without a family the child would merely be able to grow into a well brought up child In society. The family constructs of a mother and a father, perhaps a sibling also. However in some communities the case of a family is split in two, the father is mainly The main culprit for the split and the mother becomes the main influence over the Child. However if the young person is a male, the problem arises that they have no Father to look up to, or a father figure in fact, therefore it is essential that families Work together for their childrens sake. If the male child has no father it can influence The decisions they make in the future due to the guidance issues they have faced in the Past, this can be the same case vice-versa with the mother and daughter situation. The family holds within itself the future of society. the family is the vital environment where every child brought into the world is welcomed (Pope John Paul 2nd (1993)) The quote above taken from Pope John Paul 2nd is a vital quote of which societies can. Base their family life upon, however each society is different, in some areas of Liverpool it can be said that family life is not the most rewarding and most families end in Divorce or a major split, affecting the child. The child is therefore affected by the way the parent or main family member in the household treats them, this can affect the Way the child reacts to certain decisions in life. If the adult treats the child with Disrespect and violence then the childs future will likely involve the same decisions, Instead of a life in higher education and achievement.

Dream Diary Essay Example for Free

Dream Diary Essay One of the dreams that I frequently experience is the one that deals with snakes. At least once a week, I tend to dream of scenarios where I attack snakes and kill them one by one. This kind of dream really bothers me because I am actually diagnosed with ophidiophobia or the fear of snakes and the idea of just being close to these animals horrifies me. Another dream which I usually encounter is the one which centers on school-related problems. I remember last week when I dreamed about the upcoming examinations where it was being illustrated that the tests will involve complex questions and I will achieve failing marks. Due to his dream, I committed myself to a more intense study habit in order to avoid the bad ending that I have dreamed of. Lastly, I also dreamed of random events where I travel from one place to another by riding a plane or train. These dreams are usually blurred but the theme, which is to transfer from one place to another, is consistent. By applying the lessons that I learned from school, it can be said that my dream regarding snakes can be explained using Freudian concepts where it was mentioned that the act of killing snakes symbolizes desires which I wish to accomplish in real life but are prohibited by the norms of society. It means that I unconsciously want to kill snakes in order to win over ophidiophobia, an event that is fulfilled in my dreams. Cartwrights theory, on the other hand, explains the nature of dreaming about school-related problems by saying that dreams are our minds way of offering possible solutions to our numerous concerns. While the dream about random traveling can be explained using Hobsons theory; it was explained that dreams are side-effects of the normal activations during the rapid eye movement (REM) stage of our sleep. It suggests that dreams do not have emotional factors as determinants but are mere by-products of the brains complex activity. Consequently, these lessons made me realize that there is a variety of theories that offer possible explanations to dreams. However, man should only use these dream interpretations as guides and not as sole determinant of his life.

Student Attendance And Achievement

Student Attendance And Achievement The relationship between students attendance and achievement in public schools has become a drawn out issue. Among different studies by scholars, policymakers, specialists, and parents the outcome has been determined there is a positive correlation between school attendance and academics. This group study has evaluated that the number of days students attended school improved their learning. Research has determine, lack of attendance not only affected individual students academically, but also affected the learning environment of the entire school. Reducing the rates of student truancy and chronic absenteeism has been and continues to be a goal of many schools and school systems. Despite the long history of concern over student attendance, the issue has received relatively little attention from educational researchers. If schools can improve the truancy of students, then education will begin to gain academically. It is deem, the more students are between the four walls of the classro om, the better prepared they will become and achievement levels will begin to show improvement. The issue of poor school attendance has been a serious concern for many years. The correlation between attendance and achievement has policy makers and researchers questioning the efficacy of family involvement. According to Sheldon 2007, analyses showed when schools worked to implement the concerns of the school with families, and community partnerships, student attendance improved an average of 5%, whereas in comparison to schools that did not implement such strategy, rates of student attendance declined slightly from one year to the next (Sheldon, 2007). In respect of this declination, the present education climate, policy makers have placed a heavy emphasis on getting more children to stay in school in order to pass or score proficiently on standardized tests. This major push was attributed to the federal (NCLB), No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. The importance of this act has placed heavy sanctions on schools with chronic student failure and poor achievement test results. The si gnificance of this act holds school accountable for high levels of student attendance (Sheldon, 2007). The NCLB placed a rigorous implementation on student achievement and individual schools accountability. Given the major push for academic success, the focus should be redirected more heavily on attendance, mobility, socio economic status and educators in order to improve student achievement (Sheldon, 2007). How Truancy Factors Measure up to Achievement According to Sheppard, 2007, the issue on truancy can best be defined as any unexcused or undocumented absence from school taking into account the attendance rules of the state. Every state has their own set of rules regarding the attendance. These rules are designed to determine the age at which a child is required to start school, the age at which a child may officially finish school and the reasons that might be invoked for any excused absence from school (Sheppard, 2007). The true factors on truancy is the evidence of students performing poorly on tests, in the classroom and not completely prepared for real life situations. One of the obvious reasons for the lack of cleared results in the fight against truancy was the complexed phenomenon, occurring as a result of interplay between various determining characteristics of the family structure and the priority placed on education within the home (Sheppard, 2007). In light of evidence research identified three kinds of factors that contributed to truancy. Currently these factors can be situated at the individual, the family, and the school level of concern. In reasoning on the individual level, it has been established that truants are characterized by lower levels of academic self-esteem (p.267). The family level suggested pupils who are often absent tend to display signs of academic anxiety, sometimes even leading to symptoms of neuroticism. On the school level, truancy was most endemic at the age 15, and in general, the problem was more prevalent among boys than among girls, and proved an impossible accuracy task (Sheppard, 2007). Family Involvement According to Anne Sheppard, 2009, poor school attendance and low achievement tended to occur because of parental variables such as low socio-economic status, conflict, neglect, criminal record and mental illness. However, although research has shown that pupils from poorer socio-economic backgrounds had less positive attitudes towards school and learning and lower levels of academic self-concept than their more advanced peers (Sheppard, 2009). It seems that the poorer economical the family structure, the less likely the family unit will be in support of advancing academically especially outside of the classroom. It has also been viewed that the age of the student plays a role in regards to achievement gap. In other words, the differences were not as great as it might have been expected from the achievement gap between the age group up to 16 years, as it were between their socio-economic statuses (Sheppard, 2009). Sheppard suggested the impact of parental involvement was thought to wo rk through parents educational values and aspirations being presented in a positive parenting style, which influenced how pupils perceived education, schoolwork, and their motivation to achieve. If the parents valued higher educational level, the students value would be of equal importance (Sheppard, 2009). In considering this value, the author suggested that parental involvement affected childrens achievement more than school procedures, especially in the primary years. This lack of involvement was determined to have an effect in the later school years in determining the magnitude of learning. This same involvement was perceived in pupils educational aspirations and staying in education rather than measured achievement (Sheppard, 2009). Research and Data Research on truancy among schools, families, peer groups, and individuals factor has slowly evolved according to the results from this study data from principles of middle-high school students of different states. Information on participants came from those who attended an average comprehensive school and based on their percentage of pupils receiving free or reduced school meals. The average targets for these schools were 91.9% (Sheppard, 2009). This figure indicated that all pupils with an attendance below 92% could be considered poor attenders. These attender names were obtained from the participating schools register (Sheppard, 2009). In retrieving such information, an interview was used to elicit in depth pupil descriptions of their parents behavior over matters of school attendance and their explanations of why it occurred. An interview was chosen instead of a written questionnaire as the pupils were judged unable to put detailed responses in writing. The questionnaire was desig ned to give quantifiable data from qualitative questions which would have been suitable for statistical analysis (Sheppard, 2009). Data were collected and throughout the frequency was rated on a 4 point grading scale. The categories determined (0-3), where 0 represented never, 1 represented once or twice a term, 2 represented once every 2-3 weeks and 3 represented once a week or more often students missed school(Sheppard, 2009). In this statistical correlation, researchers viewed in secondary schools, there were correlations between related poor attendance, antisocial behavior, anxiety, low academic attainment and poor future outcomes regarding employment, adult relationships and crime driving the poor academic down turn (Sheppard, 2007). Within the down turn, it was self -evidence that the students that were in truant jeopardy were more likely to have a track record related with law enforcement. Outside of being in jeopardy with the law, good and poor school attenders within the age bracket of 12-13 years of age, were compared on quantifiable measures of their self- reported requested on numerous occasion to be absent from school with parental permission. Results found this age bracket claimed that they asked their parents to allow their absences from school on an occasional or more often basis using illness as an excuse (Sheppard, 2007). Sheppard reported the study done by M. Morris and S. Rutt in 2004, addressed an uneven association between school attendance and achievement with 14-15 year old pupils. Sheppard conveyed this study showed boys underperformed girls with the same level of attendance problem. The report also revealed better attendance among black Caribbean pupils than their white pupils, but the data did not reflect higher achievement. It did show the relationship reflected attendance and achievement varied according to subject between these two groups with poor attendance being associated with poor achievement in English, but not mathematics (Sheppard, 2007). Implication of Time In considering poor achievement in Math and English, author Richard Schiming, 2009, measured the impact of time and students commitments to various course activities one of the major factors students performance where low in given classes. The results were revealing by far, the most valuable and important time commitment in a course was the time actually spent in the classroom proved major improvement. Time spent was the key importance determinant of a student success and each unit of time in the class itself provided, among all the class related activities, proved the greatest improvement in student performance (Shiming, 2009). The importance of students performance was viewed as time spent in a class in discussion sections that accompanied lectures. Also the importance of time spent studying outside of class preparing for the class session itself shown to be effective. Perhaps most surprisingly was the result that the least significant time commitment in improving student performan ce in a particular class was the time spent studying for the tests or quizzes. The greatest positive impact overall daily basis preparing for and participating in class were the students outperform those students who do not attend or skip class regularly (Shiming, 2009). The role of class attendance specifically in this research demonstrated that the lack of attendance was statistically significant in explaining why a student received failing grades of a D rather than an A, B, or C in any specific class (Shiming, 2009). The statistical tests employed found that regular class attendance was a significant determinant in minimizing a students chance of receiving failing grades. This study strongly suggested that regular class attendance can aid significantly by acting as an insurance policy in avoiding a D or an F grade in any given class. Data were also sorted to determine the relative impact of each absence in the students final letter grade for a particular course (Shiming, 2009). The empirical results showed that absence from class was statistically significant in lowering the letter grade of the typical student. Specifically, each absence from class lowered a students grade by 0.06 in a 4.00 grading system. Thus, a student with 10 absences in a giv en term would lower his/her grade by 0.6, which would be the difference between a C plus and a B for example. Therefore making attendance one of the major factors in student achievement and schools accountability (Rutkowski, Gonzalez, Joncas, Davier 2010). Other Factors In recent years truancy has become a contextual and school related problem around the country. This behavior has sparked various governments and educational agencies to develop a stricter policy to reduce truancy levels, mainly based on the argument that truancy was associated with risk behavior, crime and substance abuse. Researchers shown in various countries, school systems and government agencies increasingly perceived truancy as a major and salient problem for the education system (Claes, Hooghe Reeskens, 2009). Other countries have developed a vigorous policy to reduce truancy and other form of absenteeism in order to improve and build the achievement gap. Mainly this new stricter policy was deeming from the fact that police and welfare officers had to effectively control the presence of minors on the streets during school hours (Claes, Hooghe, Reeskens, 2009). Since students were choosing to skip out on being in class learning, law enforcement agencies had to imposed sanctio ns on parents to take appropriate action in truancy matters or be fine, forced to take parenting courses or be prosecuted. If schools were going to change the level of achievement, then the level of truancy must be dealt with in the same manner as risky behaviors like the use of alcohol and illegal drugs or violence (Claes, Hooghe, Reeskens, 2009). Penalties and the Law Legislation firmly states that childrens attendance at school were the responsibility of the parents. Official guidance encouraged education social work/welfare services and school pastoral staff to use largely punitive, or perceived punitive methods, with parents of poor attenders. The findings suggested that by the secondary school years, poor attenders were likely to have a history of inconsistent parental reaction to school absenteeism and perhaps education in general (Sheppard, 2007). Limited research evidence suggested that prosecuting parents of non-attenders did not result in improved attendance. It was concluded that such prosecuted parents tended to be socially excluded and disadvantaged, with financial penalties serving a mixture of deterrence retribution and a culture of blame. Similarly, education policy makers should demand high-quality evaluations and empirical studies to examine the relationship between parental prosecution and childrens school attendance, if educatio n welfare services are to use such legal procedures with conviction (Sheppard, 2007). The key to absences and tardiness were finding the right consequences. Under some schools new policy, when a student misses a single class, he or she does not receive a lower class grade or a zero for missed work. Instead, within a few hours of the infraction the students parents receive a phone call (and, if available, an e-mail), and within 36 hours a staff member meets with the student to inquire about the absence. There after every unexcused absence resulted in after-school detention. The response of this action students showed that they took these consequences more seriously than they took a change in their grades. In the research one student commented, Last year I could skip and nobody cared. This year, if I skip once Im taken to the woodshed (Reeves, 2008). Since the adoption of this new policy, unexcused absences have dropped by 42 percent, the number of disciplinary referrals has dropped by 64 percent, and suspensions have dropped by 37 percent. These results were strikingly consistent with evidence from other schools. When schools improved their grading policies-for example, by disconnecting grades from behavior-student achievement increased and behavior improved dramatically (Reeves, 2008). Conclusion In regards to truancy, data clearly demonstrated that policies should not be based solely on repressive policies, but measures should be included as an instrument in the fight against school absenteeism. Investigating truancy, it has been proven school does make a difference. Schools that encourage participation environments can offer supporting climates that are seen as open environment for participation produced a lower truancy record and performance level increased. Also, schools that intensified the involvement of parents with what goes on at the school, and increased achievement challenges strengthened their supporting school climate (Claes, Hooghe, Reeskens, 2009). The research findings supported the claim that truancy should be considered a vital educational problem. High truancy prevented schools from reaching their goal of providing children with a sufficient level of skills to play a meaningful role in society. As much of a fight against truancy, it has not being eliminated as a school issue, but was looked at as a matter of law and order, a core element concern of the education system. As lifelong learners, professional must recognize that professional practices continue to evolve as reflections are placed on new information. If and when information arises that helps and identify the root of educational challenges and track progress which can more readily develop an action plan that will have a positive impact on students, then a common goal will emerge to see every student succeed.

Use of Language to Portray 19th Century London Society in Oliver Twist

Use of Language to Portray 19th Century London Society in Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens The world's most popular author and novelist who belonged to the Victorian era requires no introduction. Charles Dickens is the man behind great novels like, 'Oliver Twist,' 'Hard Times,' 'Great Expectations,' and many other fascinating and insightful novels that are considered, and quite rightly so, works of true genius. The man, himself was a worker in a blacking factory during his childhood. His father was unable to pay off the family debts so young Dickens was left without a proper education and so spent his childhood and most of his youth in poverty. This left an indelible wound on Dickens. Needless to say, in each of his novels, we see that Dickens reflects on his own life and highlights the miseries of the Industrial Revolution because of which he was robed of the best years of his life. Dickens was a social critic. This is quite expected because of the life Dickens led and what he had experienced. He manages to portray society exactly how it was during the Industrial Revolution. At the time many authors only portrayed the positive aspects of the Revolution but Dickens highlighted even the negative aspects of the changes that were taking place. Dickens was not particularly moved by the changes caused by the Revolution. He claimed that the world he lived in was one of 'sorrow and trouble.' This is quite true because he lost his childhood helping out in factories, another 'innovation' of the Revolution. He was a life-long supporter of the poor. Each of his novels involves some characters who belong to the lower branches of society so that when people read his novels, they realize what exactly society was li... ... he moves along with the story and has also been quite effective at certain times because of its ability to draw sympathy. It tells us how the characters react to various circumstances and how they are influenced by society. Perhaps this is one of the reasons that the novel continues to remain an enduring classic. The society that has been depicted is of quite different from today. It was difficult adjusting to the workhouses, factories in the city but we finally manage to get tuned with Dickens' novel. It is one of the best books ever written. This is because it has a great reader appeal even two centuries later. It is because the description and the language used have helped the reader all throughout, so we do not feel stranded at any point. Dickens saw to it that his readers got the best of his work and we can't disagree after reading 'Oliver Twist.' Use of Language to Portray 19th Century London Society in Oliver Twist Use of Language to Portray 19th Century London Society in Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens The world's most popular author and novelist who belonged to the Victorian era requires no introduction. Charles Dickens is the man behind great novels like, 'Oliver Twist,' 'Hard Times,' 'Great Expectations,' and many other fascinating and insightful novels that are considered, and quite rightly so, works of true genius. The man, himself was a worker in a blacking factory during his childhood. His father was unable to pay off the family debts so young Dickens was left without a proper education and so spent his childhood and most of his youth in poverty. This left an indelible wound on Dickens. Needless to say, in each of his novels, we see that Dickens reflects on his own life and highlights the miseries of the Industrial Revolution because of which he was robed of the best years of his life. Dickens was a social critic. This is quite expected because of the life Dickens led and what he had experienced. He manages to portray society exactly how it was during the Industrial Revolution. At the time many authors only portrayed the positive aspects of the Revolution but Dickens highlighted even the negative aspects of the changes that were taking place. Dickens was not particularly moved by the changes caused by the Revolution. He claimed that the world he lived in was one of 'sorrow and trouble.' This is quite true because he lost his childhood helping out in factories, another 'innovation' of the Revolution. He was a life-long supporter of the poor. Each of his novels involves some characters who belong to the lower branches of society so that when people read his novels, they realize what exactly society was li... ... he moves along with the story and has also been quite effective at certain times because of its ability to draw sympathy. It tells us how the characters react to various circumstances and how they are influenced by society. Perhaps this is one of the reasons that the novel continues to remain an enduring classic. The society that has been depicted is of quite different from today. It was difficult adjusting to the workhouses, factories in the city but we finally manage to get tuned with Dickens' novel. It is one of the best books ever written. This is because it has a great reader appeal even two centuries later. It is because the description and the language used have helped the reader all throughout, so we do not feel stranded at any point. Dickens saw to it that his readers got the best of his work and we can't disagree after reading 'Oliver Twist.'

The Crusades Essay -- essays research papers

After the death of Charlemagne in 814 and the eventual collapse of his empire, Europe was under attack and on the defensive. Nomadic people from Asia pillaged eastern and central Europe until the 10th century. Beginning about 800, several centuries of Viking raids disrupted life in northern Europe and even threatened Mediterranean cities. But the greatest threat came from the forces of Islam. Eventually these threats became real. Battles broke out and these battles turned to wars spanning from 1095 to 1229; all this over one city, Jerusalem, on country, Israel, one land, the Holy Land. Islamic forces had already conquered North Africa, the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, and most of Spain by the 8th century. They also established bases in Italy, greatly reduced the size and power of the Byzantine Empire, and took over its capital, Constantinople. Islam was spreading even faster than the Islamic army was conquering. The five pillars of Islam appealed to many, as did the Koran and the founder of Islam, Muhammad. Eventually, Islam posed a threat of a rival culture and religion which seemed appealing and unstoppable. By the 11th century the balance of power began to swing toward the West. The church became more centralized and stronger from a reform movement to end the practice of kings installing important clergy, such as bishops, in office. Popes were able to effectively unite European popular support behind them. This greatly contributed to the popular appeal of the first Crusades. Europe's population was growing, its urban life was beginning to revive, and bot h long distance and local trade were gradually increasing. European human and economic resources could now support new enterprises on the scale of the Crusades. A growing population created more wealth therefore meant a greater demand for goods from elsewhere. Thus worldly interests coincided with religious feelings about the Holy Land and so the crusades began. Pope Urban II, in a speech at Clermont in France in November 1095, called for a great Christian expedition to free Jerusalem from the Turks, a new Muslim power that had recently begun actively harassing peaceful Christian pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem. These factors were genuine causes, and at the same time, useful justifications for the pope's call for a Crusade. As a result, Urban's speech appealed to thousands of people of all classes... ...cceed, however, in wrestling from Saladin control of a chain of cities along the Mediterranean coast. By October 1192, when Richard finally left the Holy Land, the Latin Kingdom had been reconstituted. Smaller than the original kingdom and considerably weaker militarily and economically, the second kingdom lasted for another century. In conclusion, the crusades were a very important part of European history that really affects the world. These people fought for what they believed in and, maybe, if they had not fought for what they believed in, we would practice Islam instead of Christianity. Though many people lost their lives and times were tough, balance of power was up for grabs, and it went on for so long, the crusades were fought over the Holy Land to preserve and protect the aspects of each side's religion. These first three crusades show, the best, how important they were to everyone and how they could have affected the world today. In the end I tried to summarize but also try to give points that most people did not know about the crusades that make them significant, important, and needed to understand how these people can fight over something like this land, The Holy Land.

Oprah Winfrey :: essays research papers fc

OPRAH GAIL WINFREY   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Oprah Gail Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954 on a farm in Kosciusko, Mississippi to Vernita Lee and Vernon Winfrey. Her parents originally planned to name her Orpah, but the midwife made a mistake on the birth certificate. Up until the age of 6 Oprah lived with her grandmother. After this Oprah went to live with her mother and two half brothers in Milwaukee. Instead of living on a farm she now lived in the ghetto. While Oprah was living with her mother who gave her no supervision, she became out of control. Her mother Vernita could no longer handle her, so she was sent to Nashville to live with her father Vernon and his wife, Zelma.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Her father who was a barber became a city council member and was a strict disciplinarian. He demanded that Oprah add five new words to her vocabulary before she had her dinner each evening. Under these conditions Oprah became an excellent student. At the age of 16 she won an oratorical that guaranteed her a full scholarship to the University of Tennessee. After graduating in 1976, Oprah was offered a job from the ABC affiliate in Baltimore. In 1984, Winfrey and her producer moved to Chicago to liven up an A.M. Chicago Show. In 1985, the show was renamed the Oprah Winfrey Show. In 1986, She formed a Production company called Harpo Inc. (The name Harpo is her first name spelled backwards.) Oprah was not only a talk show host, she was an actress who played in various movies, which were: The Color Purple, Native Son, The Women Brewster and beloved Oprah’s Angel Network 5 ways to be an Angel   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This network started September 18, 1997. This program was designed to show you how you can improve your life and the world. Some important things that are involved in the Angel Network are: 1. Creating the World’s Largest Piggy Bank to raise money for needy students. a. All money will go into one big scholarship fund that will send needy students to college.

My First Step Into College Essay

As I have started my college career I noticed that the writing is a lot harder than it ever has been before. More in depth, more to do and of course the deadlines and due dates are much shorter. Time and time again I’m reminded that my time management skills have really brought down my writing ability and that I need to apply myself to my writing more to avoid failing a paper or even a class. My experience in first taking English 1100 and having to retake it have pushed me to better manage my time and focus on writing well put together essays that are college level. I learned that the whole structure of this class is a little bit a new experience and some I have done before. Just like everyone, I’m not perfect, I have strengths, and many weaknesses in my writing that I could improve on but I would really like to improve my writing. Last semester was a hectic and not very good start to my college career because I failed to deal with the pressure from the expectations given by my teachers, and my parents. The teacher gives the due dates and the instructions to the students, me included, but the only thing I could seem to follow perfectly is the deadline aspect of the papers. That was an important yet easy expectation to follow because if you did not turn it in on time then you don’t get a grade for it basically, which is something I didn’t want to let happen, although my lack of time management skills did not help the content of that essay live up to the teachers expectations. I have learned from this that it is hard to finish a paper when you get home from work at 10:30 dead tired, and you stay up till one in the morning finishing it when you could have done it on your day off and not have had to worry about it the night before. That was after the two days of pre writing I did for the paper. It was another narrative but more personal. It was about either a place or person that is significant in your life. I chose my girlfriend, I love her to death and I don’t go out much so she was the only thing listed under the prompt that I could write a significant and relevant to the prompt narrative. It was going well I was asking my girlfriend for help as far as proofreading and editing. It was great to have her there because she is a much better writer than I am. That paper was going well until I had to stay up late the night before to finish it. Needless to say I didn’t feel good about how it was going to turn out and I was kind of right. I was given a C minus, mostly for a lot of spelling issues and run on sentences, which could have been fixed if I did not have to rush to finish the paper and if I would have hit the spell check button. I fell a little short of my parent’s expectations who expected C plus’s, B’s, and A’s out of me. It was a little hard telling them my grade and explaining why it was so low and how I should have taken more time on it and how I should not have slacked off. As hard and annoying as it was to hear it they were right, I couldn’t slack off and pass the class. Unfortunately I couldn’t buckle down in time enough to save my grade and I ended up failing the class with a C minus which for my major is not passing. Through out the rest of the semester I did improve my writing later on especially personal essays and comparison reflections the relate to me. I did also learn that by fixing my time management skills and taking more time in the whole writing process improved my last two papers which were a research essay and a reader reflection of a text I received a B and a B plus which was surprising to me but was the reward for my learning to apply myself and handle the pressure of the expectations given to me by my teacher and my parents. Throughout my first semester of college in English 1100 I have learned how important the expectations that my teachers and parents give me are. They are set in place so that I can grow as a better, more organized student, as well as growing as a writer and better understanding what makes a good essay, the experience taught me a lot and now I am ready to apply myself and redeem myself.

Intense Irritation

Intense irritation is a short technique, enduring from minutes to a couple of days, and its principle highlights are spillage of plasma proteins or liquid and development of leukocytes into an extravascular region. These cell and vascular responses are intermediated by compound variables created from cells or plasma and are in charge of the great clinical side effects of irritation, for example, swelling, redness, agony, warmness, and loss of capacity. Despite the fact that a provocative answer can occur in any damaging jolt, the normal for this procedure is the response of the vascularized connective tissue (Hardin 2007).There are three fundamental stages in intense fiery reactions which incorporate more prominent bloodstream to aggravate zone, trailed by vasodilatation and enhanced vascular penetrability with spillage of plasma from the microcirculation, and phagocytic leukocyte movement to the encompassing tissue. Unending Inflammation and Diseases Inflammation exists in patients with contaminations, ecological illnesses (asbestos introduction and smoke inward breath, and so on.), invulnerable infections, and interminable sicknesses like diabetes, gout, rheumatoid joint inflammation, growth, et cetera. These days, it has likewise been proving that an assortment of ailments have indicated a provocative answer, for example, venous and interminable blood vessel sicknesses, myocardial ischemia.Currently, inflammation has become a vital topic for the study of human illness. Anti-inflammatory compounds, which have proven to be useful in one particular disease, could turn out to be useful in another disease. Interestingly, it could open a huge range of possibilities for intervention in utilizing anti-inflammatory compounds (Hardin 2007)2.4.3. Anti-Inflammatory Potential of Medicinal Plants & Active ConstituentsA significant number of the fiery maladies are ending up surely understood in maturing society all through the world. The clinically utilized calming drugs experience the ill effects of the disadvantage of symptoms and the high cost of treatment (if there should arise an occurrence of biologics). Rather than these medications are customary prescriptions and common items, which offer an awesome expectation in the ID of bioactive lead fixings and their improvement into drugs for treating provocative infections. Since antiquated circumstances, customary meds and phytopharmaceuticals are being utilized for the cure of provocative and different protests (Sirtori 2001). The provocative pathway is a complex biochemical pathway which, once exchanged by damage, prompts the creation of fiery middle people whose underlying impact is torment and tissue harm, trailed by mending then recuperation. The majority of studies have additionally demonstrated that NSAIDs can defer muscle renaissance and may diminish tendon, ligament, and ligament mending. In particular, NSAIDs are accepted to wipe out the whole provocative intervened proliferative period of mending identified with WBC activities (days 0– 4). An investigation of the impacts of NSAIDs on intense hamstring wounds was done in people by Reynolds, and these agents reasoned that patients who utilized NSAIDs did not encounter a more prominent decline of agony and delicate tissue swelling when looked at inside the fake treatment gathering. Strangely enough, the creators noticed that the NSAIDs' gathering had more regrettable agony identified with serious wounds contrasted and the fake treatment gathering (HaroldGÃ ³mez-Estrada 2016).The NSAIDs are likewise known to effectively affect kidney work. Lack of hydration or prior incessant renal disappointment or ailment may incline certain populaces to intense renal disappointment through restraint of prostaglandin amalgamation, which can happen when taking NSAIDs. The National Kidney Foundation helps that around 10% of kidney disappointments for each year are straightforwardly associated with considerable abuse of NSAIDs. An expected around 15– 20 million individuals in the US were utilizing particular COX-2 repressing NSAIDs on a long haul premise. These medications turned into the most regularly utilized pharmaceutical operator with more than 70 million NSAID solutions composed every year and 30 billion over-the-counter NSAID tablets sold yearly. It was evaluated that 5– 10% of the grown-up populace utilized NSAIDs, and among the elderly, the utilization of these medications was as high as 15%. The general utilization of these medications was because of the apparent absence of genuine gastrointestinal reactions that had been identified with the nonselective class of NSAIDs (HaroldGÃ ³mez-Estrada 2016).Because of the significant side effect outlines of steroidal and NSAID medications, there is a greater interest in natural compounds, such as dietary supplement and herbal remedies, which have been used for centuries to reduce pain and inflammation. Many of these natural compounds also work by inhibiting the inflammatory pathways in a similar manner as NSAIDs. Plant- extracted nutraceutical preparations have been used for hundreds and even thousands of years to obtain effective pain relief. Herbal medications are becoming increasingly popular because of their relatively few side effects. Nevertheless, there are problems related to these dietary supplements, and their use requires knowledge of their biological action, clinical studies (both affirmative and negative), and potential interfaces with other nutraceutical products and prescription medications. The evaluation of nutraceutical preparations with appropriately designed controlled studies has exploded in recent years. There is now a greater degree of confidence based on skillful study design and improved quality of the investigators that has strengthened positive findings found using natural ingredients to treat diseases. It is very important for healthcare practitioners to learn about these scientific studies to counsel patients who are taking various dietary additions, herbs minerals and vitamins for both disease treatment and prevention (HaroldGÃ ³mez-Estrada 2016).Curcumin is a naturally occurring yellow pigment derivative from turmeric (Curcuma longa), a flowering plant of the ginger family. It has traditionally been used as a coloring and flavoring spice in food products. Curcumin has long been used in both Ayurvedic and Chinese medicines as an anti-inflammatory agent, a treatment for intestinal disorders, and to enhance wound healing. Many clinical trials have demonstrated cur cumin's antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antineoplastic effects. It may be considered a viable natural alternative to nonsteroidal agents for the treatment of inflammation. The usual dosage of standardized turmeric powder is 400–600 mg taken three times a day. Side effects are few, but with extended use, this agent can cause stomach upset, and in great cases, gastric ulcers may occur at very high doses. Green tea has long been known to have cardiovascular and cancer preventative characteristics due to its antioxidant properties. Its use in the treatment of arthritic sickness as an anti-inflammatory agent has been recognized more recently. Green tea research now reveals both anti-inflammatory and chondro protective effects. The usual recommendation is 3 to 4 cups of tea a day. Green tea extract has a typical dosage of 300 -400 mg. Green tea can cause stomach annoyance in some, and because of its caffeine content, a decaffeinated variety is also available; but the polyphenol content is currently vague.Pycnogenol, like white willow bark, is a nutraceutical material that has been used since ancient times. Pycnogenol is extracted from the bark of the maritime pine tree (Pinus maritima) and has been used for more than 2000 years. It has been considered helpful for wound healing, treating scurvy, healing of ulcers, and reducing vascular inflammation. It is one of the most potent antioxidant compounds currently known. Studies have shown that pycnogenol is 50–100 times more potent than vitamin E in neutralizing free radicals and that it helps to recycle and prolong the activity of vitamins C and E (Maroon, Bost and Maroon 2010). The Boswellia species are trees located in India, Ethiopia, Somalia, and the Arabian Peninsula, and they produce a gum resin called olibanum, better known in the western world as frankincense. This resin possesses anti-inflammatory, anti-arthritic, and analgesic properties. Clinically, the substance is used in the treatment of degenerative and inflammatory joint disorders. It reduces the white blood cell count in joint fluid, and it also inhibits leukocyte elastase, which is released in rheumatoid arthritis. In one recent study, a statistically significant improvement in arthritis of the knee was shown after 8 weeks of treatment with 333 mg B. Serrata extract taken three times a day. The treatment improved function, but radiographically there was no change in the affected joints.Capsicum annum is a small spreading shrub which was initially cultivated in the tropical regions of the Americas but is now grown throughout the world, including the US. The small red fruit normally used to accentuate chili owes its stinging pungency to the chemical, capsaicin. This was isolated by chemists more than a century ago and establishes approximately 12% of the chili pepper. This fruit has been used for various medicinal resolves by the native peoples of the American tropics for hundreds of years.Capsaicin can cause a burning feeling when it comes in contact with human flesh, and also in the digestive tract. This herb is rarely used alone but is usually mixed into other natural anti-arthritic preparations. There are topical capsaicin formulations now accessible to treat post-herpetic neuralgia. Other uses have been studied for minor neuropathies and chronic musculoskeletal pain (Maroon, Bost and Maroon 2010). Table 2.4 shows some products with natural compounds against inflammation.