The Importance of Business Processes in Delivering Outcomes Essay

The Importance of Business Processes in Delivering Outcomes - Essay Example Depending on which industry an organization belongs, a business will provide needs that are products, services, or both. The usual end goals are: (1) profits for the Stakeholders; (2) customer satisfaction for the people who buy company products or avail of company services; (3) good management of employees; (4) skillful allocation, disposition, and maintenance of assets like cash, receivables, inventories, supplies, furniture, building, equipment, and vehicles; (5) wise sourcing of funds and timely payments of liabilities; (6) compliance with government regulations, specially the proper accounting and payment of taxes, permits, and other fees. (7) And for large corporations listed in the stock exchange, potential investors as well as existing investors also require that value of a company’s stock (otherwise known as Stock Value) has been increasing comparatively better than that of the competitors’ Stock Value. (8) All these have to be realized while the separate entity, be it a single proprietor, partnership, or corporation, is mindful of its social responsibilities for the community and the country wherein it belongs. (9) Finally, every business is expected to grow and to become stable. It also means resiliency to economic downturns. In the case of Quick Fit Furniture Co., the objectives revealed were the sales increase of 10% from the past year and the (2) implied need to improve the human relationship of its workforce between departments. II. Business Processes Have To Be Controlled In order to achieve all those goals, the Board of Directors, Top Executives, and the other Managers must be familiar with strategic ways by which goals can be accomplished. They have to be aware of the business processes from within and the external environment affecting those business processes. Moreover, resources allocated within each of them have to be controlled and directed towards arriving at desired outcome or results. From a general point of view, what business entrepreneurs and executives must do is to marshal the allocated resources within each process so that the output will contribute to the achievement of the ultimate goals. A diagram should clarify this concept. What are the business processes then ? According to Harvard Business School Press (2010, p. 4), â€Å"Technically, a business process is the set of steps a business performs to create value for customers. A process consists of three basic components: Inputs†¦Activities†¦Outputs.† The same book admits that â€Å"every organization contains large amounts of business processes† (p. 6). From the time a business is conceived, the processes of planning, organizing, directing, communicating, controlling, evaluating, and improving resources in all divisions and departments of the organization will continue to be ongoing. There are many activities taken in order to get things done. What will guide the implementation of plans are the objectives leading to the accomplishment of goals. As a matter of fact, every person working within the business has a corresponding set of activities called the duties and resp onsibilities defined and meant to meet specific needs to serve the interest of an entire organization. Let us take some examples. Under the Administrative Department, there are usually the following: recruitment activities, training and development activities, and personnel files record keeping activities, performance evaluation, and so on. Each of the activities have to meet certain standards. A company cannot just hire anybody to fill a position. Thus, during recruitment, testing activities and interviews are usually done. The most qualified personnel are chosen based on the criteria specified by the Department which requested for the hiring of personnel. For the Finance Department, some people with background in Accounting and/or Finance would have to be found. The activities they perform will be

Analysis of Paediatric Gastroenteritis Case Study

Analysis of Paediatric Gastroenteritis - Case Study Example   It shall consider the case of Kane, who is a young boy presenting to the emergency department with his parents. Upon admission, the records establish that Kane is a four-year-old male child who has been suffering for 24 hours (prior to consultation) from diarrhea and vomiting. He is also: pale with peripheral warmth; with RR of 30/min (without wheezing on auscultation); HR of 140/min at rest; temperature of 39.4 degrees Celsius; with the dry tongue; tearfulness; lethargy; and with weight at 15.4 kg. He has mild intermittent asthma managed with salbutamol. Parents express that the child has been vomiting sporadically, is not able to keep fluids down, and refuses to drink. He also has had four episodes of watery offensive stool in the last 12 hours PTC. The physician diagnosed the child with possible gastroenteritis, and the plan of care was to try fluids orally if tolerated and if not, to consider IV cannula. The child was admitted to the children’s ward and scheduled for r eassessment after 12 hours. This study shall now consider two clinical guidelines related to pediatric gastroenteritis. ... Australian sources were excluded in the search. Literature which matched the current case was reviewed and the specific journal was chosen based on relevance, reliability, and validity. Immediate Priorities for Kane’s care: To assess and manage the patient’s level of dehydration To reduce or totally end his diarrhoea and vomiting Plan and intervention for patient’s care Assessment and management of patient’s level of dehydration Based on the NSW Clinical Guidelines, the assessment of patient’s level of dehydration is based on three levels: mild, moderate, and severe. The care of the dehydrated patient subsequently follows based on the level of dehydration. Based on the patient’s symptoms, Kane is moderately dehydrated based on his following symptoms: elevated heart rate, elevated breath rate, pallor, dry mucous membrane, and lethargy (NSW Health, 2010, p. 7). These are all symptoms which signal moderate dehydration. The replacement fluid rate shall, therefore, be nasogastric therapy: one Oral Rehydration Solution (Gastrolyte); or it may be intravenous through (rapid or standard speed). The IV shall be 0.9% NaCl + 2.5% Glucose or 0.9% NaCl + 2.5% Glucose or 0.45% NaCl + 2.5% Glucose (NSW Health, 2010, p. 7). The Canadian Clinical Guidelines presented with slightly different details. Firstly, the child is also moderately dehydrated under these guidelines as assessed from the child’s exhibited symptoms, including dry mucous membrane, elevated heart rate, and lethargy (Gysler, 2011, p. 3).  Ã‚  

The Development of a Moral Character

The Development of a Moral Character A Virtuous Moral Character The development of a moral character is an intellectual topic that has been argued for many years. Many philosophers have argued the point of their existence with the perplexity of this subject. This has allowed the philosophers to approach this topic in various ways. These philosophers are Aristotle (in the Nicomachean Ethics), Confucius (in Analects) and Plato (in Apology, Phaedo). To analyze these philosophers critically, it is important to evaluate their perspective arguments and what they are trying to say. After initializing compare and contrast of these philosophers, we will be in the position of establishing up to what they agree or disagree regarding the development of a moral character. A moral character is defined as an idea in which one is unique and can be distinguished from others. Perhaps it can assemble qualities and traits that are different from various individuals. It implies to how individuals act, or how they express themselves. In another words, it is â€Å"human excellence,† or unique thoughts of a character. When the concept of virtue is spoken, this would emphasize the distinctiveness or specialty, but it all involves the combination of qualities that make an individual the way he or she is. Based on this definition, the insight of a moral character can be viewed differently. Although these philosophers diverge with their arguments, they in some sense have similarities. These similarities will show how the matter of a character is important and crucial to the human nature. Nicomachean Ethnics is a remarkable work written in 350 B.C by Aristotle. His work was focused on the importance of development and behavior among virtuous characters. Aristotle clarified the importance of ethnical behavior, and how actions play a role in which an individual performs. â€Å"Eudaimonia,† is relative to the how a moral character develops. It is an end in itself. Aristotle argued that it was known as a goal of a healthy life. Aristotle is among the philosophers whom gave a great insight of a virtuous character. He states, â€Å"Excellence [of character], then, is a state concerned with choice, lying in a mean relative to us, this being determined by reason and in the way in which the man of practical wisdom would determine it. Now it is a mean between two vices, which depends on excess and that which depend on defect.† A character is a state, whereas, the actions determine the way the person acts. A virtuous character is not a feeling or mere tendency to behave in a certain way. Aristotle makes an argument about different virtues. Virtues relate to the feelings and actions from each individual. For example, the virtue of a relaxed person may be clarified with bad temper. Furthermore, Aristotle argued that people get angry at certain things and redundantly stepping up to what he or she thinks is right. On the other hand, as Aristotle states, the deficient of this character is harsh and unacceptable. Regardless of any situation, it is inappropriate to become angry when it is not worth it. If doing so, the again indicates a deficient non-virtuous moral character. Aristotle also refers to any non-virtuous person by inner doubt and predicaments. Even though the person may be single-minded or thoughtless, he or she must be able to look out for companions to forgive their actions. Aristotle argues that these vicious people are not able to believe in themselves. On the other hand, virtuous individuals, gain pleasure in their actions. â€Å"For in speaking about a man’s character we do not say that he is wise or has understanding but that he is good-tempered or temperate yet we praise the wise man also with respect to his fate of mind; and of states of mind we call those which merit praise virtues.† (Nicomachean Ethics 13). Aristotle’s positions seems to conflict with Plato’s philosophy. Plato will later argued that incontinence occurs when a person’s desires move him to progress or act in the way that he or she wants to perform. However, we will discuss this later on. Confucius is another prominent figure that has been relative to the modern development of a moral character. Confucius spends many years thinking about the concepts of human kindness and the development of a character. His teachings were basically full of ethnics on human behaviors. He spoke more on the kindness of human rather than spiritual concepts. While concentrating on his ethics, Confucius was famous for insisting things with a name. In another words, Confucius argued that things must be clear to one’s mind in order to function properly in an environment. The Analects written by Confucius notes the notions of virtue and the righteous of human kindness and the way to successful humanity. In XV.8 of the Analects, Confucius states, â€Å"The determined scholar and the man of virtue will not seek to live at the expense of humanity. They will even sacrifice their lives to preserve their humanity. â€Å"Confucius argues that the life of an indiviudal is to protect oneâ€⠄¢s virtue. The acts of that individual must be preserved to act to the good. Another saying that substantiate Confucius argument is IV.25 (Eastern), it states, â€Å"Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have neighbors.† However, in the western philosophical view, Aristotle argues that the view of virtuous activity reveals how the person contributes to a great life. Actions are important when one live peacefully with another. For example, patriotism comes into mind when it comes to America. Over the years, soldiers have been remembered for their heroism. Therefore, the soldiers are fighting for what they believe to be their honor, yet they are putting his or her life in danger. Confucius continues to seek for knowledge. He seems to be very petty, clannish, and small-minded. Furthermore, he can be worldly, studious and humane. This can be consistent with Plato’s views. Most societies and culture strives for goodness, and leaders have his or her basic commonalities for personal behavior, which can be seen in VI. 28. This saying compares to Socrates. Confucius, too, wants to spread the wisdom to everyone. He wants everyone to be well, not just himself. Lastly, another prominent figure in the world of philosophy is Plato. Plato’s writings such as Apology demonstrate dramatic accounts of the events leading to his death, as well as illustrating matters of concerns, ethical living, and clarity of thought and expression. â€Å"Apology† means â€Å"legal defense of trial.† Plato offers to discuss about the defense of philosophy as a way of life. A soul is part of a life, whereas, the soul determines the things we do everyday. Phaedo illustrates important arguments for personal immortality. In Phaedo, Plato argued that the soul is â€Å"something†, rather than a sense of â€Å"harmony.† Unlike harmony, the soul exists, which is more active than others. Souls are more virtuous, which harmony does not pertain to. Soul pre-exists which harmony does not. On the other hand, if soul is in a group of harmony, all souls would be too, which is not possible. Therefore, soul is a sort of material, which is much enhanced than harmony. Another argument that Plato makes can be seen in the â€Å"Republic.† He argued that the soul is divided in three parts, and each part is a kind of desire. Respectively, these desires are rational, appetitive, or spirited. To be virtuous one must un derstand what is the beneficial. He or she must have the spirited desires to be educated properly, which will eventually lead to the protection from the soul. Plato illustrates the education of the soul in Books II and III. Importantly, a virtuous individual learns to live by a better environment when he is young, and moves on to create virtuous behaviors. His actions are developed while he is growing and learns why the thing he is doing is good. Once he has learned the good, then he would understand why his actions were virtuous. Looking back at Plato’s arguments, he argues that virtue simply indicates one to act in different ways. These philosophers disagree about having the correct motives. They are different in which the virtuous traits of a character differ from their desires and emotions. Philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle argued that the cognitive and affective states were important. . These philosophers agree that happiness links to virtue. They suggested everyone who is happy is one who is brave, restraint, and understanding. However, it is difficult to understand. Plato and Aristotle both agree that a positive moral character involves more than a Socrates’ understanding of the superior. Both agree that it is important to have harmony between the cognitive and the affective materials from a person. These philosophers have several comparisons. They agree that the good life of a human involves nature. Human beings look to the development of individual powers. Furthermore, they agree that human good involves corrective actions, and a person can guide his actions by the right decision, no matter of any obstacles ahead. After analyzing these philosophers and their arguments, I have concluded that Aristotle has the more compelling description for developing a moral character. Aristotle develops a greater in-depth argument for his points. He substantiates his points with passion and beauty. However, it requires strong concentration and a deeper understanding of what he is trying to say. In my opinion, I find Aristotle to be clearer, and more challenging. I also find that the more modern teachings of Aristotle to be more understanding than those of the Eastern teachings. Perhaps, these involve various concepts when Western teachings are involved. Aristotle contribute greatly to the many topics of philosophy, hence, his arguments are reliable which can be related to our daily lives. In summary, these philosophers provided intellectual arguments against the various ways of developing a virtuous character. Aristotle took his stand to argue that the actions contribute greatly to the way a character is. Prior to that, he clarifies how individuals act the way they speak or behave. Confucius in Analects exemplified the concept of how the environment acts upon the way the person interacts. Lastly, Plato illustrated the soul as a lead to the characters desires and wants. As part of examining our lives within these philosophies, I have come to the conclusion that Aristotle developed a greater and more apprehensive prescription of developing a virtuous moral character.

ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance capacity) assay and other methods for the evaluation of antioxidants :: essays research papers

1. Introduction Most people know about antioxidants and belive in them as preventers against cell damage, which in the most severe case can cause cancer. Almost all nutritions contain a certain amount of antioxidant – both chemical and/or biological. To measure the activity and amount of the antioxidants present in a sample, some distinctive but easy assays have been established. This paper will give a short overview of the ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance cacpacity) assay and compare it with other antioxidant assays. Besides that, the paper introduces some preliminary results on antioxidant activity of the plant Apocynum venetum conducted by the author. Fig. 1 on cover page from [9] Table of Contents 1. Introduction  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  2 2. The ORAC assay – a brief introduction  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  4 3. Biochemical background of antioxidant activity  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  6 4. Comparison of ORAC with other antioxidant activity assays  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  7 5. Results in current research  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  8 6. Discussion and conclusions  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  9 References  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  10 2. The ORAC assay – a brief introduction 2.1 Theoretical background The oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) assay is a method for measuring the total antioxidant activity in a biological sample. Biological samples include body fluids of animals and humans (serum, plasma, urine, saliva), plant extracts, agricultural and food products, and pharmaceutical products.[6] The advantage of the ORAC assay is the wide range of applications as it can be used for both lipophilic and hydrophilic samples and compounds. Besides measuring the total antioxidant capacity, the assay can also qualitatively measure the amount of fast versus slow acting antioxidants in a sample. The principle of the ORAC is based on the following scheme: Fig. 2: Principal order of the ORAC assay[10] The sample contains a certain amount of compounds with an antioxidant activity. In water soluble samples, fluorescein is used as the probe which is protected by the antioxidants.[3] After adding a certain amount of a free radical, the loss in fluorescence over time is measured until the whole fluorescence is eliminated and the scavenging activity of the antioxidant is vanished. By integrating the area under the kinetic curve relative to the blank, the concentration of all antioxidants present in the sample can be calculated. Trolox, a water soluble tocopherol derivative, is used as a standard to calculate the antioxidant activity of the sample in trolox equivalents (μmol TE/g). 2.2 Fluorescein reaction Fluorescein belongs to the group of triphenylmethane dyes with a xanthene structure. Its fluorescence is based on the oxygen withdrawing groups and the intermittend double bounds shifting the wavelength towards the visible light range. Radicals can distubr this structure and erase the fluorescence by destructing one aromatic ring structure as seen in the reaction scheme.

Spreadsheet and Monthly Worksheets

NEW PERSPECTIVES EXCEL 2010 TUTORIAL 6: ASSIGNMENT WINTER CREEK APARTMENTS PROJECT OVERVIEW W inter Creek Apartments manages large apartment complexes in four cities in the Midwest: Kansas City, Des Moines, Omaha, and St. Louis. At the corporate level, Gordon Rockwell uses Excel to summarize monthly maintenance expenses submitted by each complex manager. He asks you to total the maintenance costs of each apartment complex’ for each month, and then format each worksheet. Gordon also needs you to add another worksheet to calculate summary costs for each city and maintenance category.STUDENT START FILE Download Excel_T6_Data_File. xlsx from Moodle. Instructions 1. Open the file Excel_T6_Data_File. xlsx and save the file as T6_LastName_FirstName. xlsx before you move to the next step. Enter your name in cell B4 of the Documentation sheet. 2. Group the three monthly worksheets. For each month, calculate the maintenance category totals in the range B9:F9 and calculate the apartment complex totals in the range G5:G8. In cell G9, enter a grand total that adds up the amounts in range G5:G8. 3.Improve the look of the monthly worksheets by formatting the ranges A4:G4 and A8:G8 to have a bottom border. Format the range B5:G9 to Accounting Number Format, and then Decrease Decimal so no decimal places are shown. Ungroup the worksheets. 4. Make a copy of one of the quarterly worksheets, rename the new worksheet as Summary, and then position the Summary sheet between the Documentation and Jan worksheets. 5. In the Summary worksheet, in the range B5:F8, delete the existing values and insert formulas that add the sales in the corresponding cells of the three monthly worksheets.Use 3-D references in the formulas. (Hint: Reapply the bottom border to cells B8:G8 if needed. ) 6. Set up the Summary and three monthly worksheets for printing. Each worksheet should: a) be centered horizontally, b) fit on one page, c) display the name of the worksheet centered in the header, d) an d contain a custom footer that displays Winter Creek Apartments and the date on separate lines in the right section of the footer. Save your changes, close the workbooks and exit Excel. Submit your completed assignment on Moodle. 1

Sony-Ericsson Case

The reasons for this are of course numerous. One of the reasons was that both companies only had a minor market share, Ericson 10% and Sony 1,5% of the world market, whereas as the leader Nooks had 30,6%. This giving Nooks a huge advantage in existing customers as well as strong brand awareness. Another main reason for the fusion of both the mobile departments of the company was that both had problems in managing their departments. Sony had so many different sectors it was in that mobile was Just one more and was ;t paid enough attention.Ericson had the technology to be a leader, but they were always criticized for only being a group of engineers, developing good products, but not paying as much attention to customers desires as Nooks did. Therefore being significantly less successful than their Finnish rival. Both companies needed to restructure their efforts in the mobile development and that Is why it made sense for them both to start this partnership. Ericson would provide people and their expertise In telecommunications and Sony it ‘s expertise In consumer electronics products as well as $500 million.Both were able to cut costs significantly and still able to become a global player on this prosperous market In the future. 2) What was needed to succeed in this market? The main attributes that were needed to succeed in the market was the knowledge to develop in the direction of the technology that would be used in the future, as well as knowing and offering your customers what they were looking for. In fact one can say that Nooks did everything one needed to do to succeed. They listen to what their clients where looking/expecting from their mobile phones, and built a product portfolio accordingly.Due to this approach they were able to offer a specific product to every customer profile they had. Concerning technology they also did good work being the clear leaders In the 26 markets, which gave them a age head start. The management also did an excellent work, having a better-cost extra effort on not becoming a huge corporation with 100,000 employees, staying rather small gave them the advantage that decision could be taken quickly and that changes and adoptions to the products were able to be done immediately. ) Compare Ionians and Sony Ericson Mobile Communication's situations (activities, competences, finances) SEEM had a clear goal, which was to become the global number one player for multimedia products. This was supposed to be achieved by combining their forces in R&D, marketing, sales, distribution and customer services. The Joint force should give them the resources to overcome their seemingly untouchable competitor Nooks. The soft activities they were planning and adapting were: being responsive to the market, analyzing the behavior of the consumers and of their competitors.Nooks on the other hand wanted to keep their activities in the mobile sector at the same high level they had been over the sass's, strengthening their p osition in the market today and constantly investing in R. Even increasing the percentage of net sales being reinvested to R, which were around 8,9% in the late sass's, the goal being to maintain the strong market position for the 36 generation phones. From a financial point of view, we can only compare the individual financial statements of Ericson, Sony and Nooks from the appendix of the case.In a first look at the data available we can deduct that the financial situation of Nooks is clearly the most advantageous one. To be able to analyses financial statements that are comparable, I will only look at the ones of Nooks and Ericson. The Sony Corporation has so many different activities going on that from this financial statement I can't detect which revenues are from the mobile industry. The only observations I would like to mention about the company is that their revenue has been increasing over the years, but net income has been decreasing.This showing that in the core business w e are talking about Nooks has made the biggest step by increasing net sales in this sector by offer having a 80% growth per year between 1998 and 2000. These numbers are also reflected in the market share Nooks has on the world mobile market. 4) What are the potential risks for this alliance? The risks for this alliance are of course numerous. First of all Sony Ericson has to find a proper way to communicate to the public/customers why they have merged heir mobile departments and explain what profits this results in for them in the tend to which to other brands.This is the main risk, that they have to manage, which has to be dealt with proper attention and experienced marketing experts, so that a clear message is sent out to the public and current/future customers. Another potential risk is the management that consists of managers from both Ericson and Sony. It provides conflict potential when two corporate cultures clash. Managers from both sides are used to doing business their wa y but now they have to adapt to the managing methods of one another.This might make it difficult to find a common strategy, with which they want to market their brand. The responsibilities and decision fields have to be clearly defined to avoid these kinds of occurrences as good as possible. A further threat would be that both sides could quickly get frustrated if results are not as good or worse than expected. This could lead to one accusing the other of bad management, insufficient research and so on, resulting in a bad atmosphere in the company. This would further complicate the merger and might even lead to the decision to go separate ways again.

Poet or artist Essays

Poet or artist Essays Poet or artist Paper Poet or artist Paper Poetry is the rhythm of the soul. The said notion has often been implied or made particularly evident in the variety of voices and themes which emanate from every lyric of ever poem. Like most art, poetry reflects the sentiments, ideology or persuasions of a poet or artist as he or she is experiencing it, and perhaps, trying to communicate to readers and the rest of the world at a particular point in time. Poetry ultimately and essentially reflects or defines, in crude terms, a piece of an individual. To American poets Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, this same reality applies. Although both poets emerged and gained significant recognition at the turn of the twentieth century, and both are highly regarded and acknowledged as prominent figures in literature, Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson inevitably differ from each other, as evident in their writing and poetry. In Whitmans â€Å"A Noiseless Patient Spider,† and Dickinsons â€Å"A Narrow Fellow In the Grass,† this difference is further affirmed and illustrated. Where Whitmans poems are usually stretched and long drawn however, and Dickinsons is conversely short and seemingly rudimentary, â€Å"A Noiseless Patient Spider,† and â€Å"A Narrow Fellow In the Grass† departs from both of the poets usual mold and routine in terms of poem length and indulges in the opposite. Whitmans short poem of two stanzas appears to be summed up in the title; and in the initial part of the poem, this is what readers are made to believe. â€Å"A Noiseless Patient Spider† begins with his observation of the creature, as he writes â€Å" It stood, isolated; / It launchd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself; / Ever unreeling them – ever tirelessly speeding them. † (Whitman). His observation of the â€Å"noiseless patient spider† ends with the arachnid engaged in laborious web spinning. The tone of the second stanza shifts abruptly when it pronounces quite beautifully, â€Å"And you, O my Soul, where you stand / Surrounded, surrounded in measureless oceans of space, / Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them † (Whitman). The verse picks up from the mundanity and apparent literal observation of a spider as it engages in a seeming routine and rudimentary activity which is to be expected of it. It then turns its focus to the writers soul, which exists much like the â€Å"noiseless patient spider† in that it tirelessly tries to weave meanings and experiences into being, a characteristic inherent to humanity, and in the human souls perhaps cliched quest for reason or meaning. Whitman speaks of the souls complex and boundless nature, of the â€Å"gossamer thread† which it appears to constitute, in reference and analogy to the poems title. Most of the poets writing, disguised, perhaps in crude terms, as â€Å"animal poetry† inevitably turn out as odes to humanity, much like â€Å"A Noiseless Patient Spider† illustrates. On a similar but nonetheless contrasting note, Emily Dickinsons â€Å"A Narrow Fellow In The Grass,† which recounts the poets observation of a snake in a lyrical six stanza poem, could also be conveniently pigeonholed upon initial regard to the crudeness and categorization of â€Å"animal poetry,† much like â€Å"A Noiseless Patient Spider. † Of course, Dickinson is able to deliver more than that; although she makes no explicit mention of the word â€Å"snake† in her poem, her descriptions regarding the less than favorable animal is evident in the extent of her poem, and her dislike or wariness of it is also expressed. She writes, about the snake, harping on danger and caution, â€Å"The grass divides as with a comb, / A spotted shaft is seen; / And then it closes at your feet / And opens further on. † (Dickinson). The tone which exists in the aforementioned lines is the same sentiment which dominates the entire poem, of a seeming villain afoot and lurking in every lines. She culminates the poem, perhaps with a playful or serious warning, â€Å"But never met this fellow, / Attended or alone, / Without a tighter breathing, / And zero at the bone. † Apart from the different choice of animal metaphor, words, rhythm, and structure which Whitman and Dickinson incorporate in their writing; in the incensed at times cryptic manner by which Whitman indulges his thoughts and musings, and in the seemingly simple and less flamboyant way in which Dickinson writes her poetry, both poets not only in their approach in writing poetry, but by the sentiment or ideology which their respective poems evoke as well. While Whitmans â€Å"A Noiseless Patient Spider† is not exactly optimistic, but nonetheless evokes a sense of beauty (albeit in sadness), familiarity, and maybe even hope because it muses on the instance of humanity, of the experiences of the soul, which every human being undoubtedly possesses, it affords its readers a different kind of elation, and a type of elevation in ones spirit; Dickinsons on the other hand, appears to evoke the opposite. â€Å"A Narrow Fellow In The Grass† appears devoid of this effective elation and spiritual elevation in the seeming cynical and skeptical way that it is told. It perhaps reflects the poets dim or pragmatic view of reality and existence as it unfolds to her. Ultimately both poets may not share the same worldview or ideology, and approach to poetry with regads to humanity and existence, but their distinct voices provide readers alternative points of view on the subject, affording individuals poetry in its beauty and variety. Dickinson, Emily. â€Å"A Narrow Fellow In The Grass. † 7 February 2008 www. online- literature. com/dickinson/824/. Whitman, Walt. â€Å"A Noiseless Patient Spider. † 7 February 2008.

Arguments about God Essays

Arguments about God Essays Arguments about God Essay Arguments about God Essay Essay Topic: Arguments In this RS coursework, I intend to write about the Christian arguments concerning god. In the first part I will describe some of the main arguments Christians put forward about their belief in God.In the second part I will explain some of the difficulties in trying to describe God, for example what gender should we use while describing him.The third part will contain a debate as to whether god exists, and if he does then whether or not we should be able to prove it. I will accomplish these tasks using different points of view, mine included.Part one: the main arguments Christians put forward about their belief in God.a) First beliefs picked up from the beliefs of parentsFirst beliefs are often taught to children from their parents, young children often assume everything their parents say is right, even if it contradicts reality, for example Father Christmas. Those who grew up in a Christian family are likely to have Christian beliefs, just as those brought up in a Hindu family are likely to have Hindu beliefs. This is because Children have no experience of the world and actuality itself; therefore they have no capability to question their parents. The beliefs of God, are often enforced through bedtime reading of the bible, or in the case of hell, told as a true horror story; purposely to scare children into believing. These beliefs, children simply accept until they get older, when they begin to question their parents and challenge them. Thus a childs belief as to whether or not God exists is influenced from the start of its life from its family and social experience.Questions about the existence of God in late childhood and when you are an adultThere are many questions human beings ask at some point in their life: the mysteries of the universe, mainly revolving around one thing, God. These questions have no specific answers and can be dwelled on for years before actually making sense, but there have been many arguments and beliefs peopl e of the past have thought and written about. Only a few of these questions are:Question 1 -How has anything come to exist rather than nothing?If in the beginning there was nothing, what was the reason for the universe to be created? For what reason did it go to all the bother of creating it/itself.The answers to this perplexing question are the arguments of St Thomas Aquinas; he was a 13th century philosopher who argued many of his beliefs. One of which was that God was the first uncaused cause. In other words; he believed in the non-believers argument of the big bang, (a huge explosion) but he sustained that something had to be behind the big bang; a will for the universe to exist; God. And thats why something came out of nothing, instead of remaining nothing.Question 2 -How has the cosmos come to be so well designed and some features purposeful?This question means how come the universe and everything in it is so well designed for its living environment? For example, evolution.Wil liam Paley imposed his idea. His example was a watch, if someone found a watch he wouldnt simply assume it had evolved, it had to have a maker the clock maker; but in the universes case, God.Similarly, the watches are often flawed; they will break eventually due to age. This is due to the flaws of the design and therefore its makers, in other words the thing that is made reflects its good and bad attributes to its maker. We can see in wildlife and ourselves how each is designed to fit its purpose magnificently. Hence their maker must also be magnificent. The answer to these questions is perfectly clear; the cosmos has come to be so well designed because of God. Simple creatures that cannot think for themselves are so perfectly adapted to their environment, they appear to be almost designed to be that way. They have no knowledge, they are constantly being guided by a higher entity, which has the spirit and thoughts they dont. If you look around outside, you would be able to see how well things seem to fit together, almost as though the world has been synchronized to the highest and most complex way.Being impossible for us humans to control creatures and scenery to this extent, we must look to a higher existence, God.However, a slight controversy to this would be, many creatures in todays world are under risk because theyre not well designed for the environment they live in. Among the animal kingdom, the cruel rule is survival of the fittest where some animals are blatantly less well designed than others are. This indicates that the universe is as a result of random chance, not clever design. And then it spirals back to the question of whether we have a malevolent or incompetent God. Then again, this point of view is flawed because if the animal kingdom were all balanced equally, none of the species would survive. This is because carnivores need to be able to catch their food, so they would have to be better than their prey wouldnt they? Besides the world cant be completely unbalanced in a bad way because then the food chain would spiral out of control.Question 3 -How did organic life come to be in the universe?How did everything natural still alive or extinct end up becoming a part of the universe.Everything in this world has a purpose. Without all the organic life on this world there would be no world, just a lifeless, insignificant piece of rock in the middle of a huge universe. Christians believe in the seven day theory where God created every organic life form within 7 days, (genesis) however these beliefs may not always be taken literally as there is significant evidence that the world must have taken millions of years to create. The world would appear to have started off full of bacteria and minerals and rocks, that is all.Then after an immense amount of time humans, plants and animals eventually were created. All this is absolutely extraordinary, because life requires a parent, or a life giver. Monkeys give birth to monkeys, zebra s give birth to zebras but who was there before there were any of these species? Who and how where they made? This is where the belief of the existence of God is important. Belief in God provides a clear explanation for a seemingly unclear event, for example, like how was the earth created? God was the original cause according to the bible, St Thomas Aquinas and many Christians today.Question 4 -How has intelligent thought emerged, enabling us to ask these questions?This uncertainty demonstrates that we are able to think freely, whereas other creatures cant and where did this originate from?The answer from Christians lies in the bible. It states in the second creation story that God gave us free will, because he didnt want little slaves following him round everywhere, doing exactly as he pleased, and not having a life for themselves. However, he didnt want us to disobey him either. He created us in his image, and he had a thinking mind, so he allowed us one too. Only to have us betr ay him. Consequently he banished us from the Garden of Eden.We ask these questions because we are a certain people, we dont like mysteries, they have to be solved. Some people spend their whole lives trying to figure out the worlds secrets and then it even passes on to their offspring. We are obsessed with logic. But logic has not solved all these questions for thousands of years!So what use is logic, we still dont actually know whether God exists, whether its the God from Christianity or Hinduism etc. But people believe it and so to them it is real. God is a simple way out of a difficult question like so many other things in todays life. For example aliens ghosts and the supernatural etc. In fact, belief in God can provide a simple explanation of things, events etcQuestion 6 -How is it we recognised awe and the numinous in a sunset, beauty and music, etc?How come we can acknowledge the supernatural in a sunset etc?The solution is that in fact not many of us often do realize the bea utiful and supernatural things in life, such as a sunset. However Christians often do as they appreciate everything in the world and to be Gods will and work. The world and solar system is all pretty amazing, many of us just never have enough time to simply think about all the marvellous things, that we take for granted everyday of our lives. For example the force that allows planets to orbit around the sun and never bump into each other, rotating the moon and the sun depending on night or day. The world is rather beautiful even in the simplest things. We sometimes recognize it and when we do, it gives us an understanding that there is something out there, making all this happen. This thing has so much power that it stuns us with awe at the thought of it, theres not a lot more powerful than humans so when something stronger strikes us its rather breathtaking to think about.Question 7 -How do we come to recognise the need for rules and morality?Why do we have rules and principles? Ho w did we comprehend it? We are a logical people who like order and clear explanations of events.The answer is there must be someone watching over us, an ethical lawgiver. Christians believe this is God and in the bible it explains the 10 commandments, which allow us to enter the kingdom of heaven when we die, but only if we follow them. There also always needs to be rules in society, or bad events will follow. Christians believe this is God testing us and these bad events are punishments. So as not to anger God again we inaugurate rules so it never happens again. This argument is called the moral argument.Question 8 -How is it we recognise the value of love e.g. from parents, friends etcWe often interrogate our understanding of love and how we can recognize it.The first love ever, to Christians was when God created humans he loved us dearly and still does. When Adam and Eve betrayed him and he banished them from the garden, he made clothes for them, to hide their nudity, which they where ashamed of. God was angry, but the clothes were symbols of his love for us. Nowadays, we recognize love as a feeling of affection towards someone. Whether theyre a friend, relation, lover or even an animal. Behind love there is an entity telling us that love is good and we feel warm inside when were around people we love. Christians believe this is a reward, and love is good.Personal experience of believers in GodSome people claim to have had a personal experience of God; sometimes such experiences can turn atheists into Christians or Christians into deeper Christians. A few examples of what a personal experience could be:* The feeling of wonder and peace, Christians get when they enter a holy building or somewhere significant to God.* Another experience is conversion this is where someone normally (not necessarily a Christian) gives her/his life to God and preaches about the Christian faith, whereas before he was just an ordinary guy.* An additional experience could be miracl es. Miracles are where something contradicts normality, with the only explanation of it being God. Like when someone is almost sure to die and then miraculously recover. Another type of miracle could be when Christians pray, and their prayers are answered. Miracles are powerful to believers in God as the cause and effect can be related in a short time period.* One more experience could be of actually seeing the God, and sensing his presence. This could happen in a near death experience, or from a flat liner brought back by the hospital staff. It could also happen through dreams or trances, these are called mystical experiencesThese experiences are often extremely hard to explain, almost as if the human language isnt enough to describe the extremity of the emotions involved. It also seems to be unique to each viewer so no one else understands. Often the onlooker describes the experience as a window to another, better world.Everyday experiences evoke ideas of GodWe experience God ever yday of our lives, whether or not we have enough time to even embrace the thought of how beautiful everything around us is. We can see Gods work in everything organic, we can smell it, touch it, hear it, and taste it. You can sense the supernatural when day changes into night and the moon and Sun swap. The sun doesnt set and rise of its own accord; the earth doesnt spin of its own accord. They are constantly upheld by God to never stop spinning and never bash into each other. There is always a day after a night and always a night after a day. Always birds singing harmoniously in the morning, do we not groan and wish some one would shoot them, shouldnt we take their song to be a compliment; exquisite life lives below our windowsill? And what about all the risks we take everyday, adults drive cars, children take buses, we cross roads, drink alcohol and there are so many other risks we take every single day. If you thought about it, doesnt it make you feel as if youre being watched ove r? Christians are thankful for those singing birds, thankful that their last cigarette didnt kill them, thankful to God for keeping their families safe for at least that one last day. Dont we take all this for granted?We thank God for our daily bread, For what we are about to receive may the Lord make us truly thankful.Crises in life, which provoke deep questions about GodIts all very well we appreciate the birds and the trees, but what about when a crises happens? Many Christians are forced to question their faith, question whether their whole lives worshipping God have been worthwhile or just completely time-consuming and pointless. A few examples of this are:* Illness* Death of family members or of loved ones* Divorce* Suffering* Depression* Rape* Struck by lightning* Car accidentsIf God looks after his believers how come he lets these bad things happen to us?Reinforced by millions of other similar believers of GodAs well as many other things that influence Christianity, Christia nity is the number 1 religion in the entire world, so there are absolutely millions of believers of God, Christians can connect with and be further influenced, to continue their religion and stand up for it until the bitter end. Christians regard their Christian friends as their family, their church as their second home. They share such friendly love for their family and true Christians go to church for fun, meetings and a little miracle that happens when they enter the church; a rush of love for God, and the friendship (fellowship) of man (people).Part two: Difficulties in trying to describe GodTraditional theological words associate unique features to GodIn Genesis it states that God created us in his own image, yet we cannot do half the things he can. For example there are many theological words associated with God, these are omniscient, which means he knows everything, what has happened to us, what will happen to us, who is important to us, what were thinking etc. However, it al so states in the bible that we have free will. If God knows whats going to happen to us, isnt that controlling us?Another word would be omnipotent, this means he can do everything but if he could do anything then he should be able to create a rock that he couldnt lift? This is logically contradictory, like so many other things that contradict each other in the bible.Another word would be omnipresent, this means he is present everywhere including every evil situation, but if this is so how can we trap a bit of God in a box?Another word for God and his apparent super-human attributes is Omni benevolent. But this is also flawed because if he was benevolent he would be incompetent; if he is competent he would be malevolent. This is because of all the suffering in the world, if hes so benevolent, why doesnt he stop it? Isnt he supposed to be omnipotent? If he is omnipotent then he must not want to stop it, which means hes not omni benevolent. What about the holocaust what are Gods reason s for not stopping it? However, it also states in the bible humans have free will, perhaps in the example of the holocaust, it was Hitlers will that the holocaust happened. So God didnt mess with Hitlers decision, until Hitler died that is. But this must have been very difficult for thousands of Jews to accept.Like humans but beyond human lifeGod is said to be like humans, but he is so much beyond human life that we simply cannot describe him in our human language. All we can say is he is completely beyond and utterly superior to the world, after all he did create it according to the bible. In fact, humans have so many different points of view of how God is, they all become entangled and confused. Brian Davies, a Philosopher of Religion in Philosophy of Religion, 2000 wrote:The word God has been understood in different ways. So you should not assume thatdiscussions as to what God is are always proceeding on a set of shared assumptionsGod is traditionally pictured as a man could he n ot be also seen as a woman? God also sometimes pictured as a ray of sunshine, or a personHuman words not enoughIn the bible, because of the language barrier of describing God, the writers can only use metaphors, symbols and analogies. A word symbol example famously used in the bible would be The Lord is my shepherd Psalm 23.1. Such stories made sense when most story telling was by word of mouth, with few people able to read. Also most people, until recent times, had little education or ability to read and write. So symbols are bigger than signs because they go beyond basic facts. However, symbols should not be interpreted factually or literally. That is why the bible is sometimes so misinterpreted, it is full of symbols, and often the reader takes those symbols literally or takes non-symbols as symbols.Since we only have the simple human languages, we cannot talk about an entity beyond humanity, so instead we use analogies for example God loves you where Gods love analogous with hum an love.Ontology: a description that leads to an argument for existence (part a)Anslem was the Arch Bishop of Canterbury in 1033 and he came up with the prospect of ontology. He based his argument on the prayer Proslogion, which uses this definition; The Ontological definition the language of perfect and full existence God is that than which nothing greater can be conceived Proslogion 1078.Anslem believed that with God there must always be existence, just as with a 3-sided triangle there must always be 3 angles. To be a triangle this is necessary, to be God this is necessary. God cannot not exist because he is the greatest possible conceivable entity. In other words, God is not the greatest conceivable entity that exists but is the greatest conceivable entity.The different between existing in reality and existing in imagination is that existing in reality is stronger. If the strongest entity ever existed in the imagination then an entity just like it would have to live in reality, therefore being better than the entity in the imagination, so the entity in the imagination couldnt be God, as God would have to be existing to be the greatest conceivable entity.God cant be made or destroyed because he is the perfection of everything, including existence. So Gods existence is unlimited, Gods non-existence is impossible. From this the concept of immortal also follows.Part 3: A debate as to whether God exists and if he did, whether or not we should be able to prove it.From arguments in part 1 summarise their strengths and weaknessesThe arguments about whether God really exists:1. The moral argument, we have so many laws in todays life there simply must be some kind of law giver at the start. If a random moral law just existed on its own, (which is actually impossible) there would be no moral foundation for people to believe in it. It may exist, but if there is no reason for it to then why should anyone follow it? Laws exist because someone wrote them, however the la ws are equal for everyone so the lawgiver must be absolutely good. Who is absolutely good? No one apart from God himself.2. The teleological argument, this is the argument of St Thomas Aquinas; He believed God was the first uncaused cause. The strengths of this argument are that as well as his own beliefs he accepts the scientific ones as well, e.g. the big bang. His argument also dates back from Plato and Aristotles unmoved mover, perhaps even before. This means the argument has a pretty solid origin. At first his first uncaused cause argument looks reasonably sturdy but do they actually prove God? We could argue against the first uncaused cause theory by questioning the fact that God is the first uncaused cause, why couldnt it simply be the universe or the big bang? In other words cant the universe of created itself instead of creating an entirely new entity? This surely makes more sense. And besides all this, what makes the first necessary cause God? It could quite easily be some thing else, in no way whatsoever must it be God or anything to do with Christianity or the bible.3. The cosmological argument, why there is something rather than nothing, why theres a universe, why did it go to all the bother. The best explanation is that we have an omnipotent God who created it. God created it and thats that. However, there are many objections to this argument. The first doubt is how this possibility matches the Principle of Sufficient Reason. This states that everything ever existing has a reason. However this is not clear, because if everything exists for a reason, and God is self-caused then we have a logical contradiction. However, this rule may not apply to God but only things existing in the universe, maybe it only applies to important things like the universe. I think its fair to say the universe does need an explanation, and the answer to that explanation is God.From language in part 2 is it possible for humans to give a conclusive answerDue to the limitati ons of the written word and language cannot give a conclusive answer nor deal fully with the possibility of God. Arguments in English probably can never be fully solved anyway because if one person actually figured out the answer to all the riddles and firmly knew it was true, either theyd never convince everyone else, or it would be too complex to actually put into words. Many of the spiritual, or religious experiences can be felt or experienced, but are really hard to think through and put down in words.So language is limited in its ability to give and explain a conclusive answer. Many new words were created (e.g. ontology, omnipotent) to try to describe feelings or spiritual things.Verification/FalsificationTrue Christians cannot easily be persuaded to change their viewpoints on their belief.John Hick the road, is a parable, and like all parables has narrow limitations. It only makes one point, which is in Christian life, they will always believe in God, and whatever happens the y will end up in either heaven or hell. The atheist protests however that this doesnt prove God exists. The road explains this point in a context of two people walking down a road, one a Christian one an atheist, the road resembled their life and they walked their journey in a separate frame of mind from each other, the atheist not understanding what will happen to him at the end of the road, the Christian knowing he will probably go to heaven, but perhaps hell.This parable explains to us that at some point during our life, we make a choice. Whether to be a Christian and follow the path God has laid out for them, or to be an atheist or a member of any other religion, unknowing what will happen. To be a Christian is to believe the bible, it would be almost impossible to convince him/her otherwise, but Christians simply believing in something, doesnt make the atheist believe it too.Basil Mitchells The Stranger is an allegory about a man and a stranger. The man meets the stranger once in intimacy and from then onwards completely trusts him and believes him to be right. No matter what people said against this stranger, the man kept believing. Though questions arouse about the strangers purpose, the man never questioned his friend. This story is like a Christians faith. From the first time they understand about God and love him, they never question their faith, no matter what anyone says. They believe it and no one can change that, the only way possible is if they think Gods betrayed them, but this rarely happens and often Christians return to their faith after theyve calmed down. This parable deeply shows the amount of passion Christians show for their religion. When theyre faced with a question they dont answer it, when something good happens they thank the lord, when something bad happens they believe God knows best.John Wisdoms The Garden is a very simple story with a great meaning behind it. The story basically consists of two people who walk into an untended garden, the first person sees the weeds the negative effects but the second person puts his belief forward and sees all the positive things about the garden, for example there could be a line of daffodils or something that would seem to suggest to him a hidden gardener had come and tended the garden. The moral of this story is that Christians believe everything happens for a reason, they look at life in a positive way because they know God is always watching over them, when something bad happens they take it as a warning.For example if a Christian was seated on a wooden chair, which had slowly been eaten away by termites for months, and finally the chair broke, while this Christian was sitting on it. The Christian would take it as a punishment from God for not clearing those termites, he would be positive about his fall and think of it as a sign from God that he should do something, whereas an atheist would simply curse and take falling off his chair as simple bad luck and possibly clear the termites. This is why you often see a lot of old ladies going back to Christianity, Christians way of life gives them hope if theyve lost their partners or something else terrible has happened to them.

A Woman To Her Lover Essay Example for Free

A Woman To Her Lover Essay ? Write a critical analysis of Christina Walsh’s poem ‘A Woman to Her Lover’. Compare and contrast the poem with others you have studied in the unit. Christina Walsh, a female poet, wrote the poem ‘A woman to her lover’ as a free verse. A free verse is a poem with an irregular stanza length, no rhyme scheme and no syllabus count. Writing it as a free verse reflects her point which is women is can change their attitude towards men. She broke all the rules of poetry, this shows that women do not have to be weak towards men, it does not have to be the same as tradition, the man does not have to control the women, they can have equal love. Stanza one in Christina Walsh’s poem suggests slavery. She uses the word ‘bond slave’, which means a slave that does something without saying anything. Christina Walsh uses an image of a war, ‘as conqueror to the vanquished’. As she is the defeated, then she is forced, which shows that they are enemies. She does not want to be possessed by any one, she refuses it, and ‘O Lover I refuse you!’ she also uses an exclamation mark that shows she is serious. Christina Walsh uses alliteration of the letter ‘b’ throughout the whole poem. This is called a labial plosive. ‘To bend†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢, ‘bond slave†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ and ‘to bear’ are used in stanza one, this shows that she is angry and being very assertive. ‘To bear your children, wearing out my life’ uses caesura to balance the two ideas. She is saying that if she gives him children, it is equivalent to wearing out her life. She tells him ‘O lover’ right after the caesura that makes the phrase very strong. It is emphasized. Stanza two in Christina Walsh’s poem suggests a very different idea. It shows that she does not want to be treated as an angel that never does any mistakes or to be worshiped as a goddess, no one is perfect and neither is she. ‘Go! – I am no doll to dress and sit for feeble worship’, this shows that she thinks it is pathetic to treats someone like they are perfect and that they are just there to pleaseyou.Throughout the stanza, Christina Walsh uses alliteration in the letter ‘w’, ‘wed†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢, ‘word and wish’, ‘wingless†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ and ‘worship†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ This gives a soft sound that reflects how the man sees the women. She then uses the word ‘Go!’ to show that what she is saying is straightforward, which again shows that she is against being loved for her beauty and perfecti on. She then calls him a ‘fool’ and tells him again, ‘I  refuse you’. This shows that she is convinced with her point and the repetition shows that she I against both points she has mentioned. ‘Sonnet CXXX’ by William Shakespeare can be linked with the second stanza of Christina Walsh’s poem. They both agree about the same idea. They both suggest that women should not be loved for her beauty. At the beginning of the sonnet, the reader starts to feel that Shakespeare hates the women. He says ‘My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun’, this shows that she is not good looking; she is not beautiful. However, he concludes that even though she is not beautiful he loves her more than any beautiful girl has ever beenloved.The poem is a sonnet. This means it contains fourteen lines made up of three quatrains and a rhyming couplet at the end. Only in Shakespeare’s sonnets, the rhyming couplets conclude his point. It is also written in iambic pentameter. Shakespeare is against the idea of tradition and courtly love; he is against the idea that the man describes the women as if she is the most beautiful women on earth. He says that his love to his mistress is ‘rare’ even though he does not describe her as beautiful. Describing her as beautiful would be ‘false compare’. The third stanza in ‘A Woman to Her Lover’ Christina Walsh is trying to show us that she will not be a sex object that satisfies her husband’s desires, and neither will any women of her time. She says ‘not for you the hand of any wakened woman of our time’. She uses the word ‘wakened’ to show that this concept is not for any woman, it is for any aware and educated woman that knows her rights. Christina Walsh repeats the word ‘Or’ in both stanza two and stanza three. This shows that she has a list of ideas that she will make her refuse a man. She also uses the word ‘creature’. This shows that if she accepts the face that a man wants to marry her tofu fill his desires then that is not any better than animals.   She says ‘women of our time’ to show that this way of a relationship is old-fashioned and no one will accept, as now it is not the same as the olddays.The poem ‘To his coy mistress’ shows a teenager that is trying to convince his girlfriend to have sex with him. The boy gives her a list of reasons why she should have sex with him now.   A Woman To Her Lover. (2016, Aug 28).

Multinational Corporation Expansion Research Paper

Multinational Corporation Expansion - Research Paper Example After examining the international market most favorable for expansion, Abercrombie and Fitch should consider entering the Brazilian market as this chosen market maintains national economic policy and market conditions that will provide A&F with considerable opportunities for revenue growth. The first dimension of international finance favorable for Abercrombie & Fitch in Brazil is the movement of financial institutions across international borders, including securities firms, banks and various investment companies. Brazil currently maintains an annual GDP growth rate of five percent annually, influenced by growth in financial institutions both domestic and related to foreign direct investment. Brazil maintains membership with a variety of economic institutions including Mercosur, G20, the World Trade Organization and the Cairns Group, giving the market more exposure in Europe as a viable market for financial investment and institutional development. High volumes of financial lenders and a strong stock market provide economic sustainability that provides for commercial business development and support from governmental leadership. The only legitimate risk in this dimension is that the majority of investment institutions stem from foreign markets and are not being developed by domestic financial institutions that would not be reliant on significant exchange rate differences that impact pricing for exported products. Secondly, Brazil has positive movement of capital across its borders triggered by rising interest in foreign direct investment into Brazil. The International Monetary Fund identified billions of dollars of investment moving into Brazil, including derivatives and new corporate capital development projects. The growth in capital movements into Brazil provide for a more enhanced distribution and supply infrastructure that will benefit Abercrombie and Fitch in relation to marketing expenses and retail center distribution. The risk in this dimension of int ernational finance is that these improvements are private constructions not controlled by governmental regulators whereby a corporate pull-out of investment could limit the scope of infrastructure growth during a period where Brazil is working through a long-lasting economic recovery affecting domestic investment potential and opportunities. The third dimension of international finance relevant to Abercrombie is the regulatory system currently in place that guides economic policy. In the 1990s, Brazil was plagued with considerable inflation (approximately 15 percent annually) that caused a supplementary increase in utility costs, fuel and oil costs, and up to 25 percent interest on corporate and personal credit cards (Selva, 2010). The government has been more adept in recent years at changing index prices and employee wages as well as a variety of consumer price freezes to stimulate spending (Selva, 2010). Continuing governmental influence in economic policy and monetary stimulatio n tactics have reduced risks of ongoing inflation on the consumer price index that will provide A&F with a more stable consumer market where real wages are in-line with expectations for a consumer price index equalized with real GDP. The risk to this dimension of international finance is that not all efforts to curb inflation in certain supply sectors has been achieved, thus adding potential burden to supply budgets in a price-inflated value and supply chain. Brazil is currently the eighth largest economy

How can time management increase efficiency Essay

How can time management increase efficiency - Essay Example Periodic events and periodic motion have been used as standard for units of time. The motion of sun across the sky, the phases of the moon, and the swing of a pendulum are all examples of such events. The unit of time interval is defined as a certain number of hyperfine transitions in Cesium atoms. Time is a prime motivation in astronomy. Time has economic value as people value time in terms of money. Time has social significance and time influences decisions in everyday life. Time has personal value as people are aware of the limited time that each one has at disposal in a human lifetime. A question that often arises in the mind is how does time flow? Is time understood only by those who have time? Is there no passage of time for beings that do not have mind? Can time be defined relative to the instrument that measures time? We perceive time as flowing in smooth and perpetual continuous motion. The passage of time appears to us humans as a flow. Can this flow change? Everything moves all the time. It was initially measured by the movements of the sun and the moon. The passage of time is measured by hours, days, weeks, months and years. According to physics, time is measured based on the revolutions and rotations of the planets or the heavenly bodies (Heller, 2006). The current time measurement can be dated back to the Sumerian civilization of approximately 2000 B.C. This is known as the Sumerian Sexagesimal System based on the number 60. There are sixty seconds in a minute and sixty minutes in an hour. Number twelve also has importance in the definition of time as there are twelve hours of the day and twelve hours of night. There are twelve months in a year. The passage of time is supposed to change us in significant ways. Human have been measuring time since the beginning of civilizations all over the world. In ancient days time was measured with the help of sundials placed above the doorways which could identify the mid-day

Management Affairs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management Affairs - Essay Example Their wedding is a huge event, anything related to this event also becomes famous. Their wedding cake is no exception. As soon as the couple ‘accepts’ the offer, an agreement is made between two parties to the contract. The legally binding contract is made as soon as the acceptance of the offer is made. The offer will be accepted by Choc Delux as soon as Kim is done negotiating with the company about the cake. Everything that the company communicates to the other party (Kim and Kanye) will become part of their contract agreement. They will be bound by the English law to abide by the agreement as diligently and prudently possible. There is a slight exception about enforceability of the contract; promises made in social/casual agreements are generally not enforceable under the UK Contract Law. However, this case is not social or casual. This is a business and given the magnanimity of the event also binds the two parties in certain obligations. For instance, in general circ umstances cancelling an order such as wedding cake would not be much news. This case is different as it will be a breach of agreement since it will be a huge loss to the Choc Delux Company if they lose the spot of providing cake for the big wedding. In case Kim breaches her agreement with the company she will be liable to pay the damages (the claim) from Choc Delux. The contract also states that Choc Delux is the sole provider of the wedding cake which means that if Kim and Kanye buy other cakes for their wedding then they will be in breach of the contract and will have to pay the claim in damages to the company. In case the breach happens from the couple’s side the company will see fit as to what kind of amount it seeks in damages. If the couple agrees to pay the exact amount (or any other form of compensation that the company sees fit) then the matter will be resolved. If the couple challenges the claim then they will have to settle it among themselves through

Reflection Paper 1 page about Eveline and the other page about the Essay

Reflection Paper 1 page about Eveline and the other page about the lottery - Essay Example r home.† Everybody can relate to hoping for something better, for change that might improve their life, and are often faced with difficult choices. In weighing up the possible advantages of going far away, gaining status as a married woman, looking at the bad things in her present situation, Eveline seemed to be trying to convince herself to make the changes. â€Å"She had consented to go away, to leave her home. Was that wise?† The doubts are always bubbling beneath the surface of the narrative, this is a universal dilemma when life is not ideal and something better seems to be available. The chance to travel, to have a loving husband might make a young woman happy and excited, or so I thought. Eveline’s dilemma reflects how many of us would feel and there is also a question as to whether she loved Frank. The ideal of a love that could overcome every obstacle is missing; Eveline might well be running from one controlling man to Everybody hopes their choices will lead to change for the better in their life, but sometimes fear of the unknown, and taking stock of what you already have helps to make the decision for you. This is what I think Eveline did, but I am left with the question – did she make the right choice for the right reasons? Maybe the answer is in these words: â€Å"Her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition.† Told from the objective point of view, this story was shocking and horrific, as the tension built, and what at first appeared a positive, pleasant village custom, became something very sinister. I thought the stones were for some childish game, to be played after the lottery finished. I saw nothing significant in â€Å"..eventually made a great pile of stones in one corner of the square and guarded it against the raids of the other boys.† I believed that somebody was going to win a pot of money and life would go on, with everybody pleased at the winner’s good fortune. But this story had a darker meaning about

Classical greek influence Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Classical greek influence - Research Paper Example Zeus was the king of Greek gods and god of weather and rains in ancient Greece. Zeus like other gods prevented humankind from making progress and learning the basics of life. These gods punished people for not obeying their orders. Gods were against the use of fire by human beings as it was the symbol of power for the god and goddess (Roebuck, 1984). Doric, Ionic and Corinthian were the architectural orders used by people, which were commonly seen in their temples. Doric was the basic order that was used previously by Spartans (Durant, 1997). Initially wooden structures were used and these were replaced with stones later on. Religion and god images are very clear on construction of golden age. Corinthian order was not frequently used for being very fancy. Ionic architecture was the final order. Dimensions of these orders were eight to nine feet high instead of four feet. Sculpture shapes are also found on the Ionic structure. Stones were also used to carve hair shape and other religious shapes in the Ionic architecture (Durant,

Management Affairs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Management Affairs - Essay Example Their wedding is a huge event, anything related to this event also becomes famous. Their wedding cake is no exception. As soon as the couple ‘accepts’ the offer, an agreement is made between two parties to the contract. The legally binding contract is made as soon as the acceptance of the offer is made. The offer will be accepted by Choc Delux as soon as Kim is done negotiating with the company about the cake. Everything that the company communicates to the other party (Kim and Kanye) will become part of their contract agreement. They will be bound by the English law to abide by the agreement as diligently and prudently possible. There is a slight exception about enforceability of the contract; promises made in social/casual agreements are generally not enforceable under the UK Contract Law. However, this case is not social or casual. This is a business and given the magnanimity of the event also binds the two parties in certain obligations. For instance, in general circ umstances cancelling an order such as wedding cake would not be much news. This case is different as it will be a breach of agreement since it will be a huge loss to the Choc Delux Company if they lose the spot of providing cake for the big wedding. In case Kim breaches her agreement with the company she will be liable to pay the damages (the claim) from Choc Delux. The contract also states that Choc Delux is the sole provider of the wedding cake which means that if Kim and Kanye buy other cakes for their wedding then they will be in breach of the contract and will have to pay the claim in damages to the company. In case the breach happens from the couple’s side the company will see fit as to what kind of amount it seeks in damages. If the couple agrees to pay the exact amount (or any other form of compensation that the company sees fit) then the matter will be resolved. If the couple challenges the claim then they will have to settle it among themselves through

Classical greek influence Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Classical greek influence - Research Paper Example Zeus was the king of Greek gods and god of weather and rains in ancient Greece. Zeus like other gods prevented humankind from making progress and learning the basics of life. These gods punished people for not obeying their orders. Gods were against the use of fire by human beings as it was the symbol of power for the god and goddess (Roebuck, 1984). Doric, Ionic and Corinthian were the architectural orders used by people, which were commonly seen in their temples. Doric was the basic order that was used previously by Spartans (Durant, 1997). Initially wooden structures were used and these were replaced with stones later on. Religion and god images are very clear on construction of golden age. Corinthian order was not frequently used for being very fancy. Ionic architecture was the final order. Dimensions of these orders were eight to nine feet high instead of four feet. Sculpture shapes are also found on the Ionic structure. Stones were also used to carve hair shape and other religious shapes in the Ionic architecture (Durant,

Why drugs should remain illegal in America Essay Example for Free

Why drugs should remain illegal in America Essay Why drugs should remain illegal in America Introduction            Over the years, there has been a raging debate on whether drugs should be legalized in the United States or not. There are those who believe that drugs should be made legal and accessible to all Americans and those who argue that they should not be legalized. Proponents of drug realization argue that the current drug laws are harmful to the society and violate the personal freedoms. Moreover, they argue that enforcing drug laws is a wastage of public resources that could be used in more meaningful public projects. Despite these seemingly convincing arguments, I believe that drugs should remain illegal in the United States (David Edward,2013 ).            To begin with, research has established that there is link between drugs and increased crime rates. Many of the crimes that happen in America are related to drug abuse. This means that drug legalization in America will result in increased crime rates in the country. Secondly, drugs should remain illegal in the United States because they have very negative effects on the health of the users. As people continue to abuse drugs, their bodies become over dependent on them resulting in health complications. Other than health, drugs also have a negative effect on the economy and the general quality of life of Americans. Currently, the American health care industry is already overburdened and would be brought to its knees if drugs were legalized (David Edward,2013 ). Although proponents of drug legalization argue that public money spent on enforcing drug would be saved through legalization, this money would be spent on treating drug related matters. The money from drugs w ould not compensate for things like for fetal defects, loss of jobs, industrial accidents, road accidents and high rates of domestic violence. Reference David Simon, Edward Burns. (2013). The Corner: A Year in the Life of an Inner-City Neighborhood.Crown Publishing Group Source document

Ego Theory vs Bundle Theory

Ego Theory vs Bundle Theory Derek Parfit discusses two separate theories of personal identity, the Ego theory and the Bundle theory. The common question between these two theories is What is a person? In this paper, I will introduce the Ego Theory and the Bundle Theory, then I will go over Parfits teletransportation example. I will explain what Parfit and the Ego Theorist disagree about when it comes to teletransportation. Then I will argue in order to defend the Ego Theory and explain why I feel it is more persuasive. To begin with, I will discuss the foundation of the Ego Theory. This theory defines a person as a single unified subject of experiences.  In other words, this theory believes there is something in this world that is you and that thing is basic. Mental events exist (such as memories, sensations, emotions, desires, experiences, etc.) but are not basic. The basis of what makes up a person is something other than those mental events. This theory states that a persons continual life is described through the purpose of a specific subject of experiences, a person is an ego (unit basic quality) that a bunch of experiences happen to. On the other hand, the Bundle Theory is very different, it believes that we are not a particular subject of experiences, but a bundle. The foundation of this theory is that mental events exist but they are basic. A Bundle theorist believes there is no unit that is a person that exists in the world.  A person is just a bundle or collection of mental events. These bundle of ideas are attached to a person. We organize our notions about what is in the world by categorizing different things ad giving them a label. People decided to call the idea of what makes up a person a person. We give notions their meaning using language. This is human beings basic way of organizing and defining things in the world depending on their relation, but it is our creation. Parfit agrees with the Bundle Theory and goes on to argue that  we have defined what a person is incorrectly. Parfit goes on to discuss a scenario that involves teletransportation. He discusses a device called the teletransporter, which can read the design of a persons material while destroying it, then transfer the information to Mars at the speed of light. The receiver reads this information creating an exact copy of your material there. Parfit argues that you will die during this process, however you will have a replica of yourself who will pick up where you left off with your life. The replica will be someone who will be exactly similar to you, but it will not actually be you. It will have all your attributes such as your look, personality, memories, etc. This occurrence raises questions regarding whether the replica would be the same person as you, and hence what truly makes a person what they are. Both the Ego and Bundle theories agree that you will die during this process of teletransportation and that the replica created will not be you. They disagree why the replica will not be the same person. The Ego theory believes the replica created on Mars is not you because it is just a copy of you. No one who will exist in the future would have my ego, no one in the future will be this particular subject of experiences. In other words, no one in the future will ever be me. A replica by definition is not the same as you, its a reproduction of you. Destroying the person teletransported does not somehow make the replica of that person the same. What makes a person is their ego. A person that believes in the Ego theory would be crazy for getting in a teletransporter because it would destroy them. On the other hand, the reason the Bundle theory believes the replica created on Mars is not the same as you is because it argues there is no self, there is no such thing as a person being teletransported. There are only ideas and when your collection of ideas is teleported, your collection of ideas will disappear and a new set of ideas will appear. The replica created will have the experience of knowing what the person teletransported is like, what memories they have experienced, what emotions they process, etc. but it is not the same as actually experiencing those things. The person teletransported has memories because that person created them in a specific way. Making a replica of those memories will still not be the same as actually having those memories personally. So a person that believes in the Bundle theory would have no problem getting in the teletransporter as opposed to the Ego theory. Parfit then goes on to assert, Ordinary survival is about as bad as being destroyed and having a Replica.  What Parfit is trying to say is that teletransportation is just as bad as ordinary survival. If we believe in the Ego Theory we are worried about nonsense, because the way we perceive what defines a person is incorrect. He believes we  do not understand what we are and that our continued existence should not really matter to us. Once we understand that we are just a bundle of ideas, it should not matter whether that bundle of ideas lives or dies. In my opinion the Ego theorys line of reasoning is much more persuasive. I believe there is something special that makes each and every person different, which we call the soul. Our  consciousness is the indicator there exists a soul. We are rational beings that have a conscience which tells us right from wrong.  Also, there is something that is the foundation of a person that existed before we were born and that carries on after we die. We can decide whether we want to behave or act in a certain way, hence we have free will. All those things were in existence before we were born, they are installed in our genetic makeup.  Ãƒâ€šÃ‚  I believe that in order for something to exist, something else must have caused it. Our genetic make up did not just appear out of nowhere, we were created by an external force. I believe that the soul is the basis for that existence.  The soul is beyond the range of the senses of the ego, but is a part of the ego.

Nominating an Outstanding Person to The Hall of Fame Essay example --

I nominate Regina Geis for recognition in the State Hall of Fame. Born on December 29, 1995, daughter of Robert and Robin Geis, sister of Daniel and Benjamin Geis. Regina is an inspiring person who brings out joy and happiness. She inspires people to give their best and live for the right reasons. She is an overachiever and has always done well in school. In fact, Regina is a straight A student. It is encouraging how much time and effort she puts in her school time. Spending some of her time at work and home, but spending most of her time at school or church. Regina strives for excellence, but other than her inspiring life, she shall first be recognized for more than what she does but for who she is, like her personality; beautiful, awesome and amazing, outgoing and funny, exhilarating and adventurous, goofy and silly, caring and kind, sweet, a perfect character, there is never a dull moment when hanging out with her. Though she has her serious moments, when it comes to having fun, she knows how to embrace herself. When music plays, she dances and sings, and does not care what she looks like or who is around. Sometimes showing your complete self is hard, but Regina is 100% herself. The times she hangs out with her girls or sometimes, even her brother, well, lets just say it is all laughs and giggles from there. Speaking of her brother, siblings fight daily and they have their differences, but Regina shows the roll of a wonderful big sister. Yes, some days her brother drives her crazy, but she would do absolutely anything for him, as well as her friends and family. There are times when she places herself before others, but she deserves that because she places others before herself the majority of the time. Regina likes to joke... ...hat she will be recognized in many Hall of Fames, rather than only the state, because she will be someone more and make it somewhere; anywhere. Geis will continue to impact people and their lives in ways she would not understand. Regina Geis is an inspiring girl who deserves the recognition in the State Hall of Fame. Works Cited http://admissions.illinois.edu/academics/honors_colleges.html http://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesmarshallcrotty/2013/03/13/motivation-matters-40-of-high-school-students-chronically-disengaged-from-school/ http://www.nbcnews.com/id/7019023/ns/us_news/t/study-most-us-teens-serious-about-religion http://www.newrepublic.com/article/116332/david-brookss-editorial-gets-poverty-and-education-wrong http://www.publicagenda.org/press-releases/survey-sports-arts-clubs-volunteering-out-school-activities-play-crucial-positive-role-kids

Impact of transformational leadership on organizational learning Essay

Organizational Learning (OL) Literature reveals that OL improves the development by introducing new expertise, output or commercialism. Nonaka & Takuchi (1995) argued that learning is vital for product innovation which means that it is not limited to only acquisition and retention of knowledge but it is used to get the required outcomes. Knowledge oriented view of the organizations argue that knowledge and learning capacity influence the organizational performance and also direct the firm to achieve sustainable and continuous competitive advantage (Zhang, 2008). In last thirty years extensive research have been conducted on the OL and it has contributed a lot in the organizational development and change management, but still there is a little agreement on what is meant by the term OL and its nature. (Crossan, Lane & White, R.E, 1999; Huber, 1999 and Kim, 1993). The reason for this problem is that the OL has been studied by many disciplines and perspectives (Lopez, et al, 2006). According to (Argyris, 1995),† Learning occurs whenever errors are detected and corrected or when a match between intentions and consequences is produced for the first time.† (p.20). According to Huber (1991), when knowledge is acquired, information is spread, correctly analyzed, and recalled, organization learning eventually takes place. He further assumed that learning occurs in the organization if any of its unit acquires information useful to the organization. This is also supported by DeNisi & Griffin (2008) that â€Å"OL is the process by which the organization â€Å"learns† from past mistakes and adapts to its environment.† From these definitions, it is concluded that OL is a process whereby organization gets knowledge and removes the problem and adapts ... ...pply knowledge, then OL will be damaged, so organizations should have such compensation systems that motivate the employee to get, share, and apply knowledge in the organization (Wong, 2005). The findings of the study conducted by Dechawatanapaisal (2005) demonstrated that the pay for performance and recognition are the contributing factors in the organizational learning. Especially recognition that is easy to implement and does not require large investment, can increase the employee morale that support their learning. Khandekar & Sharma (2006) pointed out that improved reward system plays an important role in strengthening the learning capabilities of the organization which leads us to propose that the selective compensation and reward system that create a powerful motive for the employees to get, apply and share knowledge has a positive impact on OL.

Major differences between the two theories Essay

The obviously notable difference between Bandura’s social cognitive theory and Beck’s cognitive theory is the bias that each has towards behavior. For instance, Bandura’s model is more behavioral, whereas Beck’s model is inclined towards psychotherapy or seems to provide psychological solutions to problems. The social cognitive theory (by Bandura) is presented in an agentic perspective. It explains why people exhibit differences in self-organization, being proactive, participation in self-reflection, and in self-regulation (Bandura, 1986). In essence, the theory does not just show that human beings have different capabilities, it also shows that other factors such as the environment play a major role in shaping behaviorism (Bandura, 1986). The theory further describes human beings as producers as well as products of what they make (the proverb manners maketh man should be true). Bandura’s theory also gives the socio cognitive aspects of human beings, for example, why they act in particular manners and what elicits such behavior. Additionally, the theory also gives reasons why the human nature is vast in terms of capabilities and how humanity is fashioned by direct and observational experience that is integrated in a variety of forms. In contradistinction, Beck’s theory gives a picture of the phenomena underlying dysfunctional beliefs (Beck, 1976). This theory does not just describe personality, but provides solutions to psychological problems. This is achieved by the model’s blow-by-blow analysis of the casual agents of depression and how depression can be remedied (Beck, 1976). Beck’s theory seems to give mediation approach in solving psychological problems by encouraging patients to be participants of the problem solving process rather than passive and helpless respondents. Another difference between the two theories is the triad used in each of the theories, which forms the basis of the entire illustrations and discussions. Bandura’s model is a triad with behavior, environmental factors and personal determinants as the main elements. On the other hand, Beck’s cognitive model consists of behavior, antecedent events and consequences (Beck, 1976; Beck, 1998). The triads may seem to portray a similarity between the two models but in real sense they exhibit differences since the explanation of how the elements in the triads affect each other or act on their own is slightly different. For instance, in Bandura’s theory, the description of how the factors in the triad affect each other revolves around cause and effect. One of the factors, such as the environment is implied to be a cause (or a factor that determines) of behavior. Thus, there is emphasis on reciprocal determinism. On the other hand, Beck’s triadic illustration of the factors that shape personality and character is influenced by the person (self), the world and the future. In this context, it is evident that personality is affected not just by behavior but also by other events that occur in life. In fact, Beck (1976) describes the person (self) as the main source of ideas to solve depression problems with reference to the world and anticipation of a better future. Conclusion Bandura’s Cognitive Theory and Beck’s Cognitive Theory seem to have more similarities in that they describe personality and the factors shape it. Many elements described in each theory’s triad show convergence in meaning. Major differences between the two models lie in the description of the models. While Bandura’s model is inclined towards behaviorism, Beck’s model provides an explanation of psychological dysfunctions and possible remedies. References Bandura A. (2006). Psychological modeling: Conflicting theories. Chicago: Aldine Transaction. Bandura, A. (1997). Self-Efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: W. H. Freeman Company Bandura, A. (1986).Social foundations of thoughts and action: A social cognitive theory. New Jersey: Prentice Hall Professional Technical. Bandura, A. (1976) Social learning theory. New York: Prentice Hall Bandura, A. (1971). Psychological modeling: Conflicting theories. Chicago: Aldine- Atherton. Beck, A. (1979). Cognitive therapy of depression. New York: Guilford Press Beck, A. (1976). Cognitive therapy & emotional disorders. NY: International Universities Press. Beck, A. (1998). The Integrative Power of Cognitive Therapy. New York: Guilford Press.

Morality and Power Essay

Thucydides’ written history of the Mytilenian Debate and the Melian Dialogue reflects the reality of a period where morality is dependent on the exercise of power and those who possess it. The main theme running through the course of these two debates is that those with the power to act as they wish inherently have the power to dictate morality. The arguments that decide the fate of the Mytilene are made not strictly on the basis of morality but on how their power allows them to exercise the moral course they choose. The Melian dialogue reveals how those in power can dictate morality in terms of self-interest. Both cases also demonstrate how morality is also a function of self-interest. The question of the relationship between power and morality also hinges on the definition of these two vague terms. Morality, in the broader sense of moral order, has been defined as â€Å"a set of rules which define what is right and wrong. † (Outka and Reeder, p. 5) Who decides what is right and wrong often depends, as with Thucydides’ history, on who has the power in a given situation. Power can broadly be defined, as the capacity to achieve what one wants. (Dickerson and Flanagan, p. 24) In the case of these two debates, the Athenians were the party who possessed the power. They had the coercive ability to decide the fates of both the Melians and the Mytilenians. This power was derived strictly from the military might their empire was able to build up. In both cases, power allowed them to dictate morality to the inferior parties. Thucydides’ history of the Mytilenian debate details the discussion of a council deciding on how to punish the citizens of Mytilene for a failed revolt. The two options on the table are to either slaughter all the inhabitants, as had been previously agreed upon, or to leave them without severe punishment. Cleon, the Athenian responsible of initially deciding to slaughter Mytilene, argued that it was necessary to take his brutal course of action for the safety of the empire. He stated succinctly that â€Å"leadership depends on superior strength and not on goodwill. † (Thucydides, p. 213) He believed that killing the Mytilenians was a question of safety for the empire; If you are going to give the same punishment to those who are forced to revolt by your enemies and those who do so of their own accord, can you not see that they will all revolt upon the slightest pretext, when success means freedom and failure brings no very dreadful consequences. (Thucydides, p. 216) In this statement, Cleon argues that Athens has a moral duty to put down this revolt in the harshest way. He makes it a moral argument because it is in the self-interest of Athens, and any state, to protect its citizens. It is their moral duty. The Mytilenians, in their own self-interest, would argue that it is immoral to slaughter a whole population. They are both right. Subsequently, the council decides not to slaughter the inhabitants of Mytilene. They are convinced to â€Å"look for a method by which, employing moderation in our punishments, we can in future secure for ourselves the full use of those cities which bring us important contributions. † (Thucydides, p. 221) They do this not the sake of the Mytilenians, but for one of pure self-interest. Morality, in this situation, is dictated by the party in power. The Melian Dialogue concerns the history of the island of Melos. Melis, a colony of Sparta, had refused to join the Athenian empire and side against Sparta; they instead chose neutrality. Athens had brought a force to the island to take Melos by force. Before the siege, the two sides met to discuss the surrender of the Melians. (Thucydides, p. 401) Athens does not argue the morality of what they intend to do, they say strongly that † the standard of justice depends on the equality of power to compel and that in fact the strong do what they have the power to do and the weak accept what they have to accept. † (Thucydides, p. 402) In this situation, power does not dictate morality; it completely voids it. The Melians ask repeatedly if the Athenians â€Å"would not agree to ? being friends instead of enemies. † The Athenians reply by saying that â€Å"if we were on friendly terms with you, our subjects would regard that as a sign of weakness. † (Thucydides, p. 402) The Melians question the Athenian’s morality by saying that this is not â€Å"fair play† since they have not posed any direct threat to the Empire. Athens responds by saying â€Å"that by conquering you we shall increase not only the size but the security of our empire? this is no fair fight? it is rather a question of saving your lives and not resisting those who are far too strong for you. † (Thucydides, p. 403) In the end, the Melians do not surrender and the Athenian army slaughters them. In Thucydides’ history, those in power decide morality. In both of the aforementioned cases, both sides have had morality on their side. The Mytilenians and Melians believed the moral precept of saving their own lives. The Athenians believed in the morality of preserving their empire. Neither side was right or wrong, neither side acted immorally. They both acted in their own self-interest. What decided the moral outcome was that Athenians had the power to impose their moral right on their powerless, but equally moral opponents. Works Cited Dickerson, Mark and Flanagan, Thomas â€Å"Government and Politics† Scarbourough, Ontario: ITP Nelson, 1998 Outka, Gene and Reeeder, John â€Å"Religion and Morality† New York: Anchor Books ,1973 Thucydides â€Å"History of the Peloponnesian War† Toronto: Penguin Books, 1972Ã'Ž