The Significance of Religion in Hamlet Essay -- Hamlet Essays

Summary -The tragedy of Hamlet is one of the most important of Shakespeare’s plays and one that is published and performed as part of the rainbow of world literature. This paper investigates the role of religion for the characters and their actions, and presents a new interpretation using religion to understand the characters’ motives. The paper concludes that although Christianity is the main influence on Hamlet, Shakespeare also used Grecian religious symbols. Hamlet suffered from a psychological shock, then re-evaluated the events around him in light of his religious views. Hamlet reveals how Shakespeare used his ability in rhetoric to create a religious message about the church and re-created the values of right and wrong according to his own view. ******************************************************************************** Undoubtedly, it is difficult to find free space in the land of the battle which thousands of horses’ hooves have crushed; similarly, when researching Hamlet, one finds a plethora of papers in diverse fields including philosophy, religion, feminism, literature, psychology, culture, and history covering a wide range of aspects of the play. This study examines the function of religion for the people and events of Hamlet, offering a different perspective on the characters’ motives. The essay begins with a summary of the play, and then discusses the characters, especially the protagonist, to elicit the influence of religion. The central questions which this paper will address are: Are the characters ‘believers’? Was the main protagonist, Hamlet, a believer? Is faith given a positive or negative value in the play? To what extent does religion help us to illustrate and understand the play’s events? Was ... ...: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd. Available from: http://books.google.com.sa/books?id=irM9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA117&lpg=PA117&dq=%22+that+the+night-wandering+demons,+who+rejoice+in+dunnest+shades,+at+the+crowing+of+the+cock+tremble+and+scatter+in+sore+affright.%22%22&source=bl&ots=6S_hg403jd&sig=lBs136cVBCxXXStXAmQQTt9AxRk&hl=ar&ei=QnfQS7T4I4v3-Aap6YA0&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CBMQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=%22%20that%20the%20night-wandering%20demons%2C%20who%20rejoice%20in%20dunnest%20shades%2C%20at%20the%20crowing%20of%20the%20cock%20tremble%20and%20scatter%20in%20sore%20affright.%22%22&f=false [accessed 20 April - 2015] Voss, P. 2002 'Assurances of Faith: How Catholic was Shakespeare? How Catholic are his Plays?' Crisis 20, No. 7 (July/August), pp. 34-39. It is available from: http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/arts/al0147.html [Accessed 24 April 2015]

How Nutrients Get in, and Wastes Out :: essays research papers

How Nutrients Get in, and Wastes Out. In a human being, nutrients are necessary for survival. But how are these nutrients obtained? This report will go into depth on how the food we eat gets into our cells, and how the waste products that we produce get out of the body. Also, the unicellular organism Paramecium will be compared with a human being, in terms of all of the above factors. Dietary Nutrients The chief nutrients in a diet are classified chemically in four groups: carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins (Which do not require digestion) and fats. Carbohydrates in the diet occour mainly in the form of starches. These are converted by the digestive process to glucose, one of the main nutrients needed for cellular respiration to occour. Starch is a large molecule, a polymer of glucose. Dextrin and maltose are intermediate products in the digestion of starch. Some foods contain carbohydrates in the form of sugars. These are the simple sugars, such as sucrose (cane sugar) or lactose (milk sugar), that must be processed into smaller units. Occasionally, the simplest form of sugar, a monosaccharide such as glucose, is present in food. These monosaccharides do not require digestion. Proteins are polymers composed of one or more amino acids. When they are digested, they produce free amino acids and ammonia. Vitamins are a vital part of our food that are absorbed through the small intestine. There are two different types of vitamins, water-soluble (All the B vitamins, and vitamin C) and fat-soluble (vitamins A, D and K). Neutral fats, or triglycerides, are the principal form of dietary fat. They are simple compounds, and within digestion are broken down into glycerol and fatty acids, their component parts. Ingestion Intake of food in the Paramecium is controlled by the needs of the cell. When food is sensed, the organism guides itself towards the food, and guides it into the oral groove, then enclosing it in a vacuole. Enzymes are then secreted to digest the food, which is then absorbed into the cytoplasm and made available to the various organelles. But, a Paramecium has to be able to move to its food source, while a human cell has his food brought to it through the circulatory system. In man, a much more complicated system exists than that of a unicellular organism, for the size of the animal and the fact that all of the cells within the animal must be able to absorb food and get rid of wastes, just like the Paramecium does. Digestion in the Mouth Upon entering the mouth, the food is mixed by mastication with saliva, which

Preschool Literacy Essay

2 This paper is going to outline the myriad of benefits that high-quality preschool literacy programs will afford families, communities, school districts and the world. Today, numerous researchers are delving into HOW to establish an effective and successful pre-school program. In this paper, I hope to answer several questions: ? What is pre-school literacy? ? What benefits do participants in a preschool program receive? ? HOW do we go about establishing a high-quality pre-school literacy program? I am rather passionate about this area. Being a speech pathologist, literacy skills and communication skills are so interwoven it is difficult to separate them. I have to say that while going to school many years ago, we didn’t learn that much about literacy as it related to speech and language development. It is only recently that researchers and educators have identified the importance of how both developmental areas are linked. I feel that establishing successful and highly effective programs that incorporate family and child directed activities are crucial to the success of our young students. That being said, let’s explore pre-school literacy. What is preschool literacy? Most people hear the word ‘literacy’ and equate that with ‘reading’. This would be an adult analogy. For very young children, we don’t, nor should we, expect them to read! Early literacy skills refer to many different things, none of which is sitting down with Mom at the age of two and reading aloud for her. At the youngest ages, early literacy skills refer to children’s exposure and experience with books. The following list is derived from Schickendanz (1999) and Early Literacy (www. zerotothree. com) . It states that early literacy behaviors include: ? Book handling behaviors – handling and manipulating the book ? Looking and Recognizing- how are they paying attention to the book, pictures, words; demonstrating recognition of pictures, etc. ? Picture and Story Comprehension – Imitation of actions noted in a story, talking about a story ? Story-Reading Behaviors – verbal interactions with the books, imitating a pointing a finger at words and/or pictures. ‘Establishing strong early literacy behaviors is essential to literacy development and should be the focus of early language and literacy programs’ (Early Literacy, 2003) It is suggested that these skills develop naturally and unfold as a result of social interactions with parents and caregivers, rather than direct instruction. I agree with this statement wholeheartedly. Ideally, it is everyday interactions with infants and toddlers that include talking and book reading that help establish the crucial beginning stages of literacy development. I recently heard on a radio program (can’t cite it) that children between the ages of 0-3 years should hear approximately 30,000 words a day to build an effective vocabulary! Amazing. Todd Risley, co-author of Meaningful differences in the 3 everyday Experiences of young American children (Mangione, 2005), states that isn’t an intentional teaching of these behaviors but rather embedded in the social interactions. He believes, as do I, that oral language skills appear to be the basis of phonological processing skills, which is a strong indicator for reading readiness in kindergarten. As children move into the preschool realm, (typically described as ages 3 through 5), prereading skills are developing along a continuum, rather than as a set of discrete and separate skills. In the article Critical Issue: Addressing the literacy Needs of Emergent and Early Readers (www. ncrel. org), the authors made a very interesting point I’d like to share with you. They discussed the various stages of literacy development that are not relevant to this article, however, an important transition occurs when a child’s â€Å"‘reading’ of a story changes from sounding like oral language to sounding like written language. This demonstrates a change in ideas from thinking of reading as spoken words to understanding that reading is recreated from written text that has special wordings† (McGee & Richgels, 1996;Sulzby, 1991). It is the beginning of the child’s print recognition. With respect to specific pre-school literacy behaviors that we should see addressed in a high-quality preschool program, the most important would be: ? Oral Language- engaging in rich conversational exchange with students, developing oral vocabulary, reading aloud daily, having children develop their own stories by looking at pictures (Tomie DiPola books are excellent for this) ? General Knowledge – what prior knowledge are the student’s coming into school with that they share, encouraging questions and new experiences with in the classroom, ? Print Awareness- being exposed to various written materials, some repetition of early literacy behaviors, point/drag techniques while reading ? Alphabet knowledge – the ABC song, recognizing sounds that letters make, letter recognition. ? Phonological awareness- Increased awareness of the sounds of the letters and how to play with them through rhyme, segmenting, blending, ? Pre-writing skills – later stages of development and exposure to writing mediums (pen, pencil, crayon, markers, paint), using journals with self-made pictures, word walls. (Roskos, K; Christie, J, Richgels, D, www. naeyc. org) How do participants in high-quality preschool programs benefit? I think I could go on for days about the benefits of an excellent preschool experience. For the sake of brevity, I won’t! Numerous studies have been conducted to determine whether preschool programs are beneficial and cost effective. The majority of studies suggest the answer to that is an overwhelming YES. 4 The Chicago Child Parent Center (CPC), the High/Scope Perry Preschool Program and the Abecedarian Project are all examples of highly qualified preschool programs. The CPC is recognized by the US Department of Education as an exemplary early childhood program. A comparison of the benefits of these programs was conducted, yielding what I thought were incredible results. These programs have been in effect since the 1960’s, servicing low-income areas in Chicago and Michigan (Lee, J, www.ccsso. org). In a speech given by Dr. W. Steven Barnett of the National Institute for Early Intervention Research in 2006, three separate studies compared the results of participants enrolled in the above-mentioned preschool programs against a control group that wasn’t enrolled in any preschool program. Their longitudinal studies revealed amazing results, which are credited to the attending of the preschool programs. According to them, participants in the program (as compared with non-participants): ? Were less likely to be enrolled in special education ? Had a higher rate of high school completion ? Demonstrated higher test scores ? Were less likely to repeat a grade ? Had increased earning after completing high school ? Engaged in less criminal activities ? Had a lower incidence of smoking, pregnancy and abortion. These benefits did not stop at the poverty line. They also demonstrated that middle class children benefited from the experience as well. He discussed the well-known fact that disadvantaged children benefit more when they are in class with children from different socio-economic backgrounds. An analysis I found very interesting was that ‘For every dollar invested into the preschool programs described in this paper $7 is saved in public expenditures’ (Lee. www. ccsso. org). WOW, think what that could mean to a superintendent’s budget! When trying to determine whether a preschool program could benefit those in the middle class, the US Dept. of Education, NCES, (1997) article entitled Dropout rates in the United States:1995 determined that middle class children have fairly high rates of the problems that preschool reduces for low-income children. While benefits decrease gradually with an income increase, the overall benefits are greater when ALL children are exposed to PreK. In an evaluation of 5 state prek programs conducted by Barnett,W. S, Lamy, C. and Jung, K. (2005), results revealed that in all programs, whether universal or targeted, students demonstrated gains in language, literacy and math. While all students (various SES backgrounds) gained, the low-income students gained more. Soooooo†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ 5 How do we go about establishing high-quality preschool literacy programs? In an ideal world with unlimited funding, it wouldn’t be too difficult. However, we don’t live in an ideal world and much needed financing is often diverted to other important (or not so important! ) causes. Really, what is more important than education? One resolution could be to emulate the success demonstrated by the Chicago and Michigan programs spoken about earlier in this paper. In Rockland County, some school disctricts already offer a district-based preschool program. This year, all districts were alloted slots to participate in a Universal PreK initiative. However, while that is an excellent start to establishing a much needed entity, a lot of work still exists. During my research gathering I read many, many articles that discussed the family-centered literacy approach. Such as at the CPC, involving the parents and providing them with strategies and useful techniques to help their children empowers them and makes them feel useful and successful. Without parental involvement at the preschool level, literacy development suffers. Since the institution of NCLB, many school disstricts are seeking wasys to provide needed support to their students without it becoming a ‘special ed’ component or target program. Instituting a universal prek program benefits all. Looking at the various achievement gaps that Dr. Barnett identified in his paper, while there is significantly more of an achievement gap at the lower SES levels, there are still marked gaps in the middle class level, thus further justifying why ALL students would benefit from the experience. In an effort to establish successful high-quality preschool programs in Texas, the retired CEO of Texas Instruments was aware of the huge impact the Perry Preschool Program had on its communities and he was eager to replicate that success in Texas. Therefore, after establishing a successful pilot program, the participants wanted to be able to spread the success throughout the state and a handbook â€Å"Improving Early Literacy of Preschool Children’ was developed for prekindergarten educators. The authors and editors really were able to target what a high-quality program looks like with suggestions on how to implement them into your existing programs. The following steps are indicated to improve a preschool program: ? Set goals ? Create an improvement plan ? Build a classroom library ? Train the teachers and encourage collaboration? Keep rack of student’s progress ? Inform and involve parents 6 ? Communicate with elementary schools the children will attend ? Measure and document results (Dougherty, 1999) All of these steps are so important to developing a program that is successful. It is hard to determine whether one step is more important than another. Personally, I really feel that if the teachers and the teaching assistants and/or aides are given the proper training, every interaction with a child will take on new meaning. The Margaret Cone Head Start Center in Southeast Dallas has serviced predominantly low-income populations. As part of their language enrichment program (LEAP), each teacher attends six weeks of instruction at the nearby university as well as several workshops a year. Because of these teacher trainings, Cone Center children have produced improved scores on a variety of tests targeting vocabulary, language skills and social skills. I believe that involving the parents as much as possible and having them in the classroom for a half-day a week or twice a month lets them see what is happening and provides modeling they can use at home. Obstacles that I can identify at this point to establishing high-quality preschool programs that ALL children can attend include: ? FUNDING ? Private preschool programs vs. school district based programs ? Consistent participation on the part of the parents ? Difficulty providing quality training programs for the teachers and teaching assistants/aides due to lack of funding, time, resources While I feel there are many excellent examples of qualified and successful preschool programs in Rockland County, we do not meet the needs of all the children of the preschool age. As CPSE chair, I am able to provide special education needs to many children that require it. However, there is great variability between the programs that we recommend students attend. Consistent high-quality preschool programs would be beneficial to ALL students involved, not just the special needs children. In conclusion, it is a well-documented fact that preschool literacy education benefits all children involved. The need lies in our ability to establish high-caliber programs that are consistent, with staff that is well trained and caring. I think if we can distribute the information about the long-term effects researched and prove to the masses (school boards! ) that the bottom line would be cost savings to the community, we might see some change. I look forward to that day! References 1. Schweinhart, L. J. Lasting Benefits of Preschool Programs ERIC Digest. ericdigests. org. Retrieved February 25, 2008, from http://www. ericdigests. org/1994/lasting. htm 2. Dougherty, C. , et al. Improving Early Literacy of Preschool Children – a Handbook for Prekindergarten Educators. Texas Instruments, 1999. 3. Lee, J. The Benefits of Preschool for High School and Beyond. Council of Chief State School Officers. Retrieved February 25, 2008, from http://www. ccsso. org 4. Roskos, K. A. , Christie, J. F. & Richgels, D. J. The Essentials of Early Literacy Instruction. National Association for the Education of Young Children. Retrieved February 23, 2008, from www. naeyc. org/resources/journal 5. Mangione, P. L. (2005). Creating Language and Literacy Experiences for Infants and Toddlers. PITC Graduate Conference. Berkeley, CA. 6. Johnson, D. & Sulzby, E. Critical Issue: Addressing the Literacy Needs of Emergent and Early Readers. North Central Regional Educational Library. Retrieved January 21, 2008, from http://www. ncrel. org/sdrs/areas/issues/content/cntareas/reading/li100. htm 7. Barnett, W. (2006, Jan. 10). Research on the Benefits of Preschool Education: Securing High Returns from Preschool for All Children. New York, NY. 8. Brain Wonders. Early Literacy (2003). Zero To Three. Retrieved January 24, 2008, from www. zerotothree. org/BrainWonders

How tone is created in the story Of Clay are we created Essay

Tone is the attitude the author shows towards the story. And of Clay Are We Made written by Isabel Allende is a story where the author focuses on tone through setting, characterization, conflict, theme, special techniques, and diction. Where the price of human life is nothing, and the leaders are more concerned with other problems. The story takes place in Columbia, South America. For the author talks about the natural disaster taking place, and killing many leading it to create a sad tone. â€Å"In that vast cemetery where the odor of death was already attracting vultures from far away, and where the weeping of orphans and wails of the injured filled the air. †(Page 586) Hence making it obvious that the author is sad. The characters in this story are the Narrator, Rolf Carle, and Azucena. â€Å"The girl could not move, she could barely move, but she did not seem desperate, as if an ancestral resignation allowed her to accept her fate. †(Page 589) Azucena is stuck in the mud for she is pulled downwards by the corpses of her brothers and sisters, creating a sympathetic tone. Isabel clearly creates an admiring tone, when the narrator admires Rolf Carle for staying with Azucena and tries to help her. â€Å"Azucena and Rolf were by my side; I knew everything my love did to wrest the girl from her prison and help her endure her suffering. †(Page592) Therefore, the author creates an admiring and sympathetic tone through characterization. There is a conflict between Rolf and himself, when he understands that he can no longer run away from his past. â€Å"It was impossible for Rolf to flee from himself any longer, and the visceral terror he had lived as a boy suddenly invaded him. †(Page 593) Furthermore the internal conflict that takes place in the story builds up a thoughtful tone. The Theme in this short story is about the objectivity of reporting which creates a sympathetic tone. Emphasizing on the fact that even the reporter that is considered objective has feelings, and might be affected by the events and tragedies he or she sees. â€Å"Camera had a strange effect on him, I came to realize that this fictive distance seemed to protect him from his own emotions†¦your cameras lie forgotten in a closet†(page 588) In this excerpt the narrator is describing Rolf Carle, and states that when he was on air he was a different person. The camera had a strange effect on him, but later on after Azucena’s death he seemed to change and could no longer hide his emotions. The author uses special techniques in this story to build up tone. Isabelle foreshadows Azucena’s death and creates a sad tone. â€Å"A doctor stated that she had fever but added there was little he could do: antibiotics were being reserved for cases of gangrene. † (Page 592) Isabelle’s choice of words referred to as diction; is direct and filled with the narrator’s feelings. The author Isabelle Allende creates a sympathetic, admiring, sad tone through setting, characterization, conflict, theme, foreshadowing and diction. A natural disaster kills thousands of people; an objective reporter faces himself after meeting a young girl.

Racism in South Africa

It is easy for people to shut their eyes to things they do not witness, like bigotry, racism, and the cruelty of South Africa. According to Blob Kiwanis â€Å"It has been nearly a decade and a half after the end of apartheid† and South Africans are finally realizing there Is a problem with racism (Swank, 2008). This realization occurred after white students from the university of the Free State, made a racist video. This video showed the students degrading and humiliating four black workers. The racism portrayed by these students was said to be deep-seated.These students even went so far as to allegedly, urinate in the four lack workers food (Kiwanis, 2008). In 1994 a man was fed up with his black worker, so the black man was fed to the lions (Kiwanis, 2008). This type of cruelty is not as common as it once was, but any act such as this should not be allowed to take place in the free world. Imagine living every day in fear, never knowing what the day is going to be like. What about tomorrow? This behavior is something most people never have to experience in their lifetime, but what about those that get to witness these events first hand?The violence and hatred that has caused a country to live In ear, was said to be a symptom of globalization, by a country that calls Itself a â€Å"Rainbow Nation†, yet was not supposedly about racism at all (Perry, 2008). 3 It became apparent in 2008, when 42 black people were killed. These people were raped, neaten, eroded, Ana Turned alive. I Nils type AT loathing NAS lave a country (Perry, 2008). These types of incidents have diminished over time, but are still evident in the culture. The cultures in South Africa are many and most are still high in the masculine beliefs. Ethnicity is the differences in culture and is diverse in SouthAfrica. The many different tribes and people have similar yet different beliefs. Race refers to the social construction on the difference of skin color, or nationalities (South Afri ca and its Culture, 2011). Polygamy is still carried out and a dowry is still permitted in most of South Africans cultures. Cattle are a sign of wealth and also used as a symbol for sacrifice. The Zulu is one of the strongest surviving black culture in South Africa (South Africa and its Culture, 2011). Xhosa are also a strong presence in the South African culture, and are referred to as the red people.The red people are called this because the red dye they use on their clothing, worn by most adults. The Indelible are related to the Red people, but live in the North-western corner of what now is called Mulligan, in vibrant painted homes (South Africa and its Culture, 2011). Then there are the Dutch settlers along with the British, these people are known as Afrikaners, and are the majority of the South African population (South Africa and its Culture, 2011). Surprisingly there is a large Jewish population that resides in South Africa; no doubt the survivors of Hitler and his brutal re in.Brutality is not the only problem that has affected the people of South Africa. Because of this racism the poverty level has remained a problem. If a company only hires white people to work, how are people of color ever going to rise above poverty? The Jobs available to black people in South Africa are almost non-existent. If there are no Jobs then there is no money to be made. No money means no food, no shelter, and no means to support a family. This is another instance of the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. 4 Are people so blind and callused, as to not care how the actions and the words thrown out will affect others?What about the future of innocent souls to come? Why is one color any better than another? Who gets to decide these types of things? If a person were to close their eyes and solely Judge another based on their personality, or the way they are treated by a person, our world would be a different place to live. Discrimination has kept the people of South Afric a in poverty for way to long, it is time to break the chains of bigotry and learn to live together in a peaceful place. A place where color does not mean you are rejected for a Job, or for housing. A place where everyone is color blind seems ideal, does it not?Education is a factor for the people of South Africa. People are more concerned with finding a Job; instead they are worrying about whether or not they can attend school. And the sad part about that is that in order to get a good Job or even a Job, education would be beneficial. This is one of the excuses for not hiring people with black skin, they are not as educated. This is one way companies get around race (Reuters, 2001). The companies use this as their reason for hiring the white person applying for the Job and not the black person. It is a vicious circle for the people of South Africa.

Analysis of Political Theory Essay

There are two political theories that I combined and will implement if I were to be placed as the highest-ranking official of the country. These are the theories of Immanuel Kant and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. I chose to unite the two theories because both of them, as I was reading through its contents, had the biggest impact on me than all the other theories I researched for. The joined theories would build up my ideal state as a leader of the country so that I may be able to take the people to a better state of life, in my innocent opinion as part of this country’s youth. First, allow me to discuss to you Immanuel Kant’s political philosophy. His approach to politics favored classical republicanism. The doctrine of Rechtsstaat is Kant’s biggest contribution in the philosophy of law and politics. According to this doctrine, the power of the state is limited in order to protect citizens from the arbitrary exercise of power. In a Rechtsstaat, the citizens share legally based civil liberties. It is a constitutional state in which the exercise of governmental power is constrained by law. It is often tied with the Anglo-American rule of law. Now, what is the rule of law? It is a legal maxim that suggests that governmental decisions be made by applying known legal principles. Aristotle one quoted, â€Å"Law should govern†. It implies that every citizen is subject to the law. It stands in contrast to the idea that a ruler is above the law, for example by divine right. Going back to Immanuel Kant’s philosophy, he also supported the separation of powers of the executive, legislative and judicative branches of government. The executive and the judicative are bound by law, while the legislative is bound by constitutional principles. Rechtsstaat also requires transparency  of state acts and the requirement of providing a reason for all state acts. The doctrine also demands for a hierarchy of laws and the requirement of clarity and definiteness. Now, the world has indeed seen the applications and implementations of the Rechtsstaat through Russia’s legal system. The  Russian legal system, born out of transformations in the 19th century under the reforms of Emperor  Alexander II, is based primarily upon the German legal tradition. It was from here that Russia borrowed a doctrine of  Rechtsstaat, which literally translates as  legal state. The concept of â€Å"legal state† is a fundamental (but undefined) principle that appears in the very first dispositive provision of Russia’s  post-Communist constitution: â€Å"The Russian Federation – Russia – constitutes a democratic federative legal state with a republican form of governance. † Similarly, the very first dispositive provision of Ukraine’s Constitution declares: â€Å"Ukraine is a sovereign and independent, democratic, social, legal state. † The effort to give meaning to the expression â€Å"legal state† is anything but theoretical. Valery Zorkin, President of the Constitutional Court of Russia, wrote in 2003: Becoming a legal state has long been our ultimate goal, and we have certainly made serious progress in this direction over the past several years. However, no one can say now that we have reached this destination. Such a legal state simply cannot exist without a lawful and just society. Here, as in no other sphere of our life, the state reflects the level of maturity reached by society. Rechtsstaat has also approached Russia’s constitutional economics. The Russian concept of legal state adopted many elements of  constitutional economics. One of the founders of constitutional economics, James M. Buchanan, the 1986 recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science, argues that, in the framework of constitutional government, any governmental intervention and regulation has been based on three assumptions. First, every failure of the  market economy to function smoothly and perfectly can be corrected by governmental intervention. Second, those holding political office and manning the bureaucracies are altruistic upholders of the  public interest, unconcerned with their own personal economic well-being. And, third, changing the responsibilities of government towards more intervention and control will not profoundly and perversely affect the social and economic order. Some Russian researchers are supporting an idea that, in the 21st century, the concept of the legal state has become not only a legal but also an economic concept – at least for Russia and many other transitional and developing countries. Let us now move on to Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s political theory. His most important work is The Social Contract, which outlines the basis for a legitimate political order within a framework of classical republican. The treatise begins with the dramatic opening lines, â€Å"Man was born free, and he is everywhere in chains. Those who think themselves the masters of others are indeed greater slaves than they. † Rousseau claimed that the state of nature was a primitive condition without law or morality, which human beings left for the benefits and necessity of cooperation. As society developed, division of labor and private property required the human race to adopt institutions of law. In the degenerate phase of society, man is prone to be in frequent competition with his fellow men while also becoming increasingly dependent on them. This double pressure threatens both his survival and his freedom. According to Rousseau, by joining together into civil society through the social contract and abandoning their claims of natural right, individuals can both preserve themselves and remain free. This is because submission to the authority of the  general will  of the people as a whole guarantees individuals against being subordinated to the wills of others and also ensures that they obey themselves because they are, collectively, the authors of the law. Although Rousseau argues that  sovereignty  (or the power to make the laws) should be in the hands of the people, he also makes a sharp distinction between the sovereign and the  government. The government is composed of magistrates, charged with implementing and enforcing the general will. The â€Å"sovereign† is the rule of law, ideally decided on by  direct democracy  in an assembly. Under a monarchy, however, the real sovereign is still the law. Rousseau was opposed to the idea that the people should exercise sovereignty via a  representative assembly. France could not meet Rousseau’s criterion of an ideal state because it was too big. Much subsequent controversy about Rousseau’s work has hinged on disagreements concerning his claims that citizens constrained to obey the general will are thereby rendered free: The notion of the general will is wholly central to Rousseau’s theory of political legitimacy. †¦ It is, however, an unfortunately obscure and controversial notion. Some commentators see it as no more than the dictatorship of the proletariat or the tyranny of the urban poor (such as may perhaps be seen in the French Revolution). Such was not Rousseau’s meaning. This is clear from the  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Discourse on Political Economy†, where Rousseau emphasizes that the general will exists to protect individuals against the mass, not to require them to be sacrificed to it. He is, of course, sharply aware that men have selfish and sectional interests which will lead them to try to oppress others. It is for this reason that loyalty to the good of all alike must be a supreme (although not exclusive) commitment by everyone, not only if a truly general will is to be heeded but also if it is to be formulated successfully in the first place†. French revolutionaries read the works of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. This would suggest that his philosophy was one of the proponents that sparked the French Revolution among the commoners. In brief, Rousseau believed in the natural goodness of man; that humans were corrupted by the greed and competition of civilization. He believed in a social utopia, of humans returning to natural harmony, being made free of vices and sharing a natural equality and a general will. These ideas appealed to many people, including some of the people instrumental in the events leading to the French Revolution, such as the oath at the Tennis Court. In a country where a wealthy minority indulged themselves while hundreds of thousands suffered from severe poverty and inflation, people yearned for a basic equality, natural or government ordained. Many felt that if the general will (or the will of the people) was for change, that the current government was expected to make compromises. The First Estate of the French government was against these changes, the Second Estate was to some extent and later cast its lot in with the Third Estate. Later the idea of a utopian government changed to ‘the will of the people’ (although how successful this was carried out can be debated, in both France and the U. S. ) Maximillien Robespierre, who played an important part in the middle to later events in the Revolution and was one of the architects of the Terror, was deeply influenced in his youth by Rousseau’s writings. My report would end at this, since only this stuff is what is asked of us. But if you would ask me, I wouldn’t agree to all things mentioned by the two philosophers. I, of course, would make a few reforms here and there. For example, the abandonment of our natural rights as said in The Social Contract. In the contemporary world, one would want to forget about their natural right for general will. Sure, the idea of general will sounds very convenient, but if you think about it, it’s not worth giving up your natural rights for.

Performance & reword Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Performance & reword - Essay Example The influences could be positive or negative during this journey, but such influences also affect the future course as well and the spirit with which the team members are working decides the future course of the achievements as well. Ans-2: The contemporary job design theories outline a set of functions, components and tasks depending upon the organization settings, based upon the requirements of the organization and the capabilities of the individual. While the meta-process of finalizing minute details helps the organization in attaining the desired heights, it also helps in the individual by way of improving quality of work experience and greater freedom and flexibility (Dolan and Schuler, 1994). Therefore, positive motivations help in a better experience while negative motivations result in adversely impacting the work culture. Motivation in simplest terms can be defined as a means of providing motives. At times, the lack of any positive motivation by the managers often results in an automatic provisioning of negative motivation. How somebody makes use of his/ her efforts towards a goal is determined by the motivating/ de-motivating factors. It is through their behavior that employees give expression to their commitment to work, level of motivation and their attitudes. The performance appraisal and review process helps the management in motivating the performance levels of deserving candidates while providing an opportunity to the one's lagging behind. Organizational goals and objectives can also be achieved if the workforce is able to work with desired levels of motivation. Buyens and De Vos (2001) contend that, "strategic HRM is the linking of the HR function with strategic goals and objectives of the organization in order to improve business performance and develop organizational cultures that foster innovation and flexibility". It is worth mentioning here that the individual feel motivated when they find that their requisite needs are being fulfilled in the process. The Maslow's hierarchy of needs is an important tool to assess the needs of the people in general. Ans-3: Strategic HR management is supposed to align organizational targets with those of the individual and the teams. Mahy et al (2005) contend that a company designs its HR policies to maximize profits, for which the company makes use of job incentives. Such incentives play key role in influencing the attitude of the worker. Thus the incentives turn into profits for the company. If due attention is paid to the periodic feedbacks from the workers, it goes a long way in shaping the policies of the company and provides it an edge in taking on the competitors. For example, Coca Cola the leading icon in a range of beverage products clearly underlines the importance of synchronizing the career requirements of workers with the company's requirements. It states1, "Our Company, your career, together we grow." Considering its people as its greatest asset, the company comes out with a benefit statement which states2, "The Coca-Cola Company values the health and well-being of our employees and provides a variety of market-competitive benefits programs to address employees' benefits needs." It is indeed worth pointing out that company clearly finds a link between maximizing