Comparison of Freud’s and Plato’s Aspects of Human Character Essay

Aspects of human character have been discussed in a number of fields; inputs from the philosophical and political perspectives can be identified by how human character is in place with respect to the society whereas concepts from the psychological field can be observed to focus more on the individual and its relationship with his environment.   Such is demonstrated by Plato in his The Republic which can be seen to potentially contrast with Sigmund Freud in his discourse in Civilization and its Discontents.   Plato had apparently came up with literature describing a functional society according to certain controls needed in order to establish a civilization according to certain ideologies such as justice, authority, and the ideal state, among others.   Freud, on one hand, tackled a world that is already in existence and presented an analysis on life and reality. From this, when it comes to their respective discussions on the human character, Plato’s The Republic presented how human character should be while Freud discussed what human character is through instinctual drives.   Plato’s prescription for the Guardians, the social class tasked to rule the society, mentioned that their education should emphasize their â€Å"love for wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits†.   This characterization can be therefore compared with Freud’s discussion on Eros and Death; the comparison can thereby give way in identifying whether their references for the twin aspects of human character were the same or not. Plato’s â€Å"Love of Wisdom† and â€Å"High Spirits† Plato proposed the formation of a social class called the Guardians who would rule the society.   Given the great responsibility that is going to be vested in them, these Guardians are proposed to learn certain aspects that would make them an effective ruler and manager of the state.   In this case, it was brought up in the discussion in The Republic that â€Å"[†¦] it’s our job, as it seems, to choose, if we’re able, which are the natures, and what kind they are, fit for guarding the city† (Book II, 374e).   Hence, the discussion resulted to a description of the Guardians, as follows (Book II, 376c): â€Å"Then the man who’s going to be a fine and good guardian of the city for us will in his nature be philosophic, spirited, swift, and strong.† The context in which they discussed the trait of â€Å"love of wisdom† (Book II, 376b) apparently referred to the philosophical leanings of the Guardian.   In addition, possessing the love of wisdom is also associated with having the â€Å"love of learning† (Book 2, 376b).   It can be gathered that â€Å"love† in this context is based on having the nature to pursuit a deep interest for knowledge thereby demonstrating how an individual can have the characteristic of an ideal ruler. In addition to the discussion on â€Å"love of wisdom†, possessing a high spirit or â€Å"spirited† is also seen as a significant characterization of a Guardian.   The characters initially discussed this aspect in the context of citing animal behavior, hence, demonstrating that the high spirits may initially come from the individual’s courageous nature.   What makes the human distinctive from the animals, as seen in the discussion, is how this ideal person also injects a sense of gentleness in this instinctive characteristic (Book II, 375c): â€Å"Yet, they must be gentle to their own and cruel to enemies. If not, they’ll not wait for others to destroy them, but they’ll do it themselves beforehand.† In this case, what they are looking for in a Guardian is someone who is â€Å"gentle and great-spirited† (Book II, 375c); the challenge, however, as noted in the dialogues, is how these two traits oppose each other. The concept of â€Å"love of wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits† in Plato’s work, in the context of Guardians’ characters, clearly show that they are discussing human characteristics that are admirable.   The twin aspects of human character, in this case, show how these two characteristics complement each other in which case, the ideal person for the function is some who is spirit and by nature, philosophical. Freud’s Eros and Death The context in which Freud discussed Eros and Death in Civilization and its Discontents is how these two instinctive forces, albeit opposing, work together in life.   As Freud discussed (66): That is to say, as well as Eros there was an instinct of death. The phenomena of life could be explained from the concurrent or mutually opposing action of these two instincts â€Å"[†¦] A more fruitful idea was that a portion of the instinct is diverted towards the external world and comes to light as an instinct of aggressiveness and destructiveness. In this way the instinct itself could be pressed into the service of Eros, in that the organism was destroying some other thing, whether animate or inanimate, instead of destroying its own self. Conversely, any restriction of this aggressiveness directed outwards would be bound to increase the self-destruction, which is in any case proceeding.† Although Freud noted that Death, which is also associated with destruction, and even Evil, may â€Å"name his adversary not what is holy and good, but Nature’s power to create, to multiply life–that is, Eros† (68), he noted that Eros and Death can be â€Å"alloyed† with each other, thereby resulting to an integration which hides either purpose.   An example Freud cited is how this is evident in sadism in which destruction can also bring satisfaction, the very idea in itself brings a certain degree of enjoyment. Conclusion: Comparison Based on the above discussions, the contexts in which Plato and Freud discussed â€Å"love for wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits†, and Eros and Death can be regarded to be total opposites.   For Plato, how these human aspects function is for the purpose of greater good; the ideal nature of the individual in the form of the Guardians is meant to benefit the society which the Guardians are tasked to serve.   In this case, the intent to define these traits, which is the union of philosophy and spiritedness, is meant to put together an exceptional leader.   In Freud’s discussion, on one hand, presented a justification as to how two opposing ideas, Eros and Death, actually work, and how these are in fact a reality of human nature. Plato and Freud discussed human nature in different contexts: for Plato, the opposing twin aspects of human nature (â€Å"love of wisdom† and â€Å"high spirits†) can be reconciled and further enhanced through education, thereby resulting to an ideal functional leader for the ideal city.   Freud, on one hand, discussed how the opposing Eros and Death do exist in human nature and how this is exemplified by the presence of satisfaction in destruction; the integration of Eros and Death may not result to an ideal person, but this demonstrates the humanness of the individual. Apparently, the similarity ends there; the similarity can be seen in the seed of the argument which is how opposing ideas do work together as a part of human nature.   Both demonstrated how internal contradictions further contribute to human characteristics that lead to how people eventually function.   In this case, the premise of their discussion is the same yet the intent of the discussion is different.   For Plato, the marriage of â€Å"love of wisdom† and â€Å"high spiritedness† gives way to an ideal class in an ideal society whereas Freud’s â€Å"alloyed† Eros and Death benefits the destruction more because it is in the face of Eros that Death can hide. Upon a close reading of the texts, there is also a similarity of the premise in terms of these two works; Plato’s The Republic contains a series of discussions leading to the definition of an ideal state whereas Freud’s Civilization and Its Discontents showed how the individual can be in conflict with the society.   In addition, both agreed how the implementation of laws can establish control in a society basically manned by individuals with baser instincts; however, Plato pointed out how education can manage these instincts and how people can be formed into functional citizens while Freud mostly highlighted how individuals will be always governed by the pleasure principle.

Underneath Pristine Clothes: Abraham Lincoln

A little farm is a place of impoverished state. It is a place where there is no much life; having none of the intricacies and grandeur of the city. But for a man with strong hopes and gallant dreams as Abraham Lincoln, it is a place where ambitions are born and where dreams start to be reality.Lincoln grew up from an undistinguished family, or so he illustrates, but he rose into the highest of seats and was elected as the president of the United States of America for two terms. He was a most esteemed president of all times—a man of honour, justice, and equality who pledged to use impartial agreements rather than force. But underneath those pristine clothes and perfectly amiable character, who really is Abraham Lincoln?Born to a simple family in a farm at the Hardin County, Kentucky, in February 12, 1809, young Lincoln grew up to days of hard work. There is no school at their area and there’s nowhere to learn about life, religion, and the world. What there are are only c hores to finish and jobs to seek and get over with.Yet, with his determined aspiration and passion for learning, he got through studying and acquired a license to practice law by the year 1836. He was a persistent and hardworking man, so to say; spending years of practice at the Illinois legislature that even his law partner said of him, â€Å"His ambition was a little engine that knew no rest.†In the year1842, his days of solitude were broken for he met Mary Todd, a woman whom he had decided to tie the knot with. They lived a happy life from then on and were gifted with four boys. It is sad to note though that only one of them lived to grow into maturity.After years as a lawyer he tried to compete in politics and run against Stephen Douglas for Senate in 1858. After their heated and diplomatic debate about the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Douglas won the election. But people who saw, heard, and witnessed their argument grew to love and favor Lincoln. Their debate had given him a nat ional reputation which in turn won him a Republican nomination for president after two succeeding years.When he won the presidency, Lincoln focused to bring about equality and goodwill among his people. He was a gentle voice that hushes the mass during the cold turmoil of the Civil War.The Emancipation Proclamation which he issued in 1863 greatly affected the war, ending at last the state’s fights, scores of deaths, and concluding a blood lusting combat. The results of the war he took carefully into consideration, making certain that the vast damage a war could bring would not be forgotten by the people and that the deaths of those who were involved in the confrontations would not be put to waste.Throughout his term, he stood as an example to every one; a man of simplicity and generosity who is willing to lay back his defenses if it would mean peace and unity for the nation. His regal personality was more than valued by the public, proven by his re-election in 1864.However, h e was cut short of his service a year after, when he was crudely assassinated—shot in the head by an actor named John Wilkes Booth— ending abruptly his patriotic goals and ambitions.It had been a sorrowful moment for all of America; having lost a man as placid and liberal as Abraham Lincoln. But his efforts were not wasted for he left his people the idea that would unite them: â€Å"With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds†¦.†

Fair Value Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

Fair Value Accounting - Essay Example Since then, the pros and cons of fair value accounting have been debated. On one hand, fair values provide a better view of current market conditions and therefore provide him with more relevant information. However, on the other hand it increases volatility in earnings and may not necessarily ensure reliability and relevance. This is because if an active market does not exist, it would be determined by calculations which are subject to management bias. While some people argue that fair value accounting provides us with truer financial statements, others question its validity. Hence, those institutions that use more and more of fair value option should also disclose adequate information regarding the assumptions, changes in acquisitions or sales, predictions and all those factors that affected the values that show in the financial statements as fair values. This would enable the users of financial statements to make knowledgeable and wise decisions. Fair value accounting is a way of accounting in which an asset or liability is valued at its current exchange price at a measurement date, in absence of an actual transaction for that asset or liability. In financial statements, all financial instruments may be valued at fair value. Before 200... The statement defines fair value of an asset as the price at which it can be traded or sold in an orderly transaction between 'market participants', other than in insolvency. Similarly, fair value of a liability is the amount at which it can be acquired or settled in an existing transaction between 'market participants', other than in insolvency. (KPMG, 2007) Market participants refer to buyers and sellers in the most principal or beneficial markets for those assets or liabilities. They meet four criteria: they are unrelated with the reporting body; they possess the knowledge required to have a realistic insight into the transactions; they are financially and legally able to carryout transactions for the entity; they are prepared to transact without any pressure. (KPMG, 2007) Principal market is the market with maximum volume and level of activity where assets and liabilities are sold or traded by a reporting entity. An entity that does not have a principal market determines its most beneficial market by including the transaction costs. (KPMG, 2007) Explanation Fair value of an asset may be equal to its quoted market price. However, this may not always be true. Fair value takes into account advantages and disadvantages that each party may gain from the transaction whereas market value may not always consider that. Also there might not be a quoted price for all assets or liabilities. In such circumstances, fair value has to be generated using the best information available to the preparers. Consequently, difficulties arise in creating those estimates. (KPMG, 2007) In accounting, fair value is used for those assets or liabilities whose carrying value is rooted in mark-to-market value. Carrying value is the amount

Critical Thinking & Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Critical Thinking & Ethics - Essay Example Abortion is accepted in some countries and societies and in others it is against the law. However, in some cases abortion is allowed. Such cases where abortion may be allowed include cases where the pregnancy has to be terminated for the sake of the mother’s health. Today, the debate of whether abortion is ethical or unethical is very intense. Some people believe that a woman has the right to choose whether she is going to have an abortion or not since it is her who carries the pregnancy (Carter, p.43). However, most people feel that abortion is totally unacceptable, and it is never an option for any pregnant woman. They completely oppose abortion arguing that it has become a solution for careless sexual behavior especially among the young people. Such people opt for abortion because they are afraid of facing the outcomes of reckless sexual behaviors including pregnancy. In their view, abortion is totally unethical and immoral since it involves killing a living child and not some biological ‘thing’. Women who decide to have an abortion are at risk of developing breast and cervical cancers or even death as a result of the abortion process. These women are also more likely to have more abortions in future (Tribe, p.23) Abortion is not illegal in most developed nations. However, people still view abortion as an immoral act which is totally unacceptable. The fact that abortion is not illegal in such countries has in some cases led to abortions because of the sex of the baby. Some of the countries that have legalized abortion do not view it as being unethical. Such countries use abortion as a way of regulating population size, regulating certain groups of people in a population or as a way of improving the population. Such countries have continued to be criticized from many parts of the world for being unethical because of allowing abortion. Critics argue that these countries should promote the use of contraceptive instead of ending the lives

Process of the supreme court Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Process of the supreme court - Essay Example This also gives room for the consideration of various shades of opinions based on individual interpretation of the law. Since verdicts must also adhere to the 200 year old United States constitution, this enhances the dispensation of justice to all citizens. The amendments to the constitution for example, in what is referred to as the second bill of rights have assured all citizens of equal rights, making the document very useful in the operations and decisions of the Supreme Court. All the same there are weaknesses in the Supreme Court process. The workload is immense, considering that each Justice is responsible for verification whether appeals, which come from all over the United States qualify for consideration. Though each Justice is assigned a small staff, they are responsible for each appeal or case. The process is long and complicated and the ramification of this is that it will implicate denying justice to those affected due to the long procedures involved in declaring the verdict. Decisions reached by the Justices are also binding and open to scrutiny and, some people may feel that some decisions made were incorrect since they were made by only a few

Linguistics - structure and meaning in literary discourse Essay - 1

Linguistics - structure and meaning in literary discourse - Essay Example Throughout the novel, the novelist has been careful in adroitly interlinking the different subplots. The novel mainly deals with two parallel plots: the love relation between Charles Darnay and Lucy Manette and the historical events connected with French Revolution. However, there are several other underlying subplots distributed throughout the three Books of the novel. They include the story of the great sacrifice by the good-for-nothing lawyer Sydney Carton, the comparison between the two cities of London and Paris, the atrocities of the aristocrats etc along with the stories within story such as the imprisonment of Dr. Manette, the story of Madame Defarge. The overall setting of the novel is based on these interconnected subplots which contribute to the each other as well as to the meaning of the novel in general. The novelist has been effective in presenting the major themes of the novel through the literary device of setting. It means that the setting of the novel which incorpor ates the interrelated subplots functions as a literary device to the novelist in his ultimate conveyance of the major themes. Therefore, the subplots in A Tale of Two Cities work in relation to each other to reveal the major themes of the novel. In other words, different subplots and the structure of the novel has significant role in the transference of the themes and meaning. As George Newlin establishes, â€Å"The success  of  A  Tale  of  Two  Cities †¦ can be attributed to Dickens’s artful setting  of  a  touching human story against the background  of  the world-shaking events  of  the French Revolution, and to its powerful, universal themes.† (Newlin, 1) There is pertinent relation between the setting and the meaning in A Tale of Two Cities and the novelist proficiently selects the subplots which contribute eventually to his literary goal. Therefore, subplots in the novel cannot be comprehended in isolation. Rather, they are deeply contrived so as to

Strategy Development Format of JB Hi-Fi Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Strategy Development Format of JB Hi-Fi - Essay Example The company has to enhance its appeal to the target audience comprising consumers in the age group of 18-23 years and hence it has to emanate a youthful image that will ensure maximum footfall from these young, energetic individuals. The IMC strategies of JB Hi-Fi are centered on the fundamental objective that it has to draw the attention of its target audience through a lively atmosphere as well as consumer-friendly and helpful personnel that are dedicated to provide unparalleled customer delight. Moreover, the company must bank on its virtual consumer interface through an efficient website and electronic catalogues to enhance its brand awareness among customers. Other genres of media such as television, magazines, newspapers and periodicals will also be of great use in communicating the brand proposition of JB Hi-Fi and will help the company maximize its market penetration as well as brand image. JB Hi Fi is one of the largest Australian retailers of home entertainment products. Th e company offers some of the world’s most popular brands of speakers, Hi-Fi, DVDs, VCRs, car sound, cameras, home theatres, portable audios and computers. JB Hi Fi is also renowned for offering the largest range of recorded music, video games, DVD movies and DVD music. Products are available in both online store as well as traditional brick-and-mortar stores. It is revealed from the primary research that a major portion of JB customers are male. It is found that almost 67% of the customers are male.

Various Assignments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Various Assignments - Essay Example Evidence suggests that while it may be true that democracies do tend to inject greater public funds into the provision of services to the public, these contributions do not always result in funds directly benefiting the poor. The injection of larger sums into public services by democracies also does not correspond with desired social results in terms of â€Å"longer, healthier, or more productive lives† (Ross, 2006, p. 860). As Ross (2006) points out: If democracy produces better outcomes for low-income families, then countries that transit from autocratic to democratic rule should see improvements in their infant and child mortality rates. In general, they do not (p. 860). It would therefore appear that for the purposes of reducing poverty and improving the lives and the wellbeing of the poor, democracy is not a viable option. Democracy is not a viable option because the evidence suggests that democracy has not been successful in reducing poverty and improving the lives of the poor any better than non-democracies. Mandelbaum (2007) also argues that democracy is not always a viable option for all nations. In particular Mandelbaum (2007) specifically points out that countries with socialist economies are incompatible with democracies. This is because a primary element of democratic states is that it imposes restrictions on government authority. In this regard, the greater the level of socialism, the more difficult it will be in â€Å"establishing a functioning democracy† (Mandelbaum, 2007, p. 95). Countries with free and open market economies will be compatible with democracy (Mandelbaum, 2007). On the other hand, countries with â€Å"economic organization† and/or socialist economies are incompatible with democratic political systems that recognize and enforce individual freedoms and open and free government elections (Mandelbaum, 2007). Even so, it is conceivable that not

Flowers for Algernon - Qualities That Surpass Intelligence Essay Example for Free

Flowers for Algernon Qualities That Surpass Intelligence Essay Flowers for Algernon, is a classic novel written by Daniel Keyes a young mentally challenged man named Charlie Gordon. This book chronicles, from a first person point of view, Charlie’s mental and physical struggles and achievements after undergoing a breakthrough procedure that is hoped to render him intelligent. Throughout the book, much of the focus is on Charlie’s academic progress while his emotional and personal development is not much of a concern. This becomes a problem because Charlie realizes that it is important to demonstrate qualities other than intelligence to lead a life that is oth happy and successful. Qualities shown to be more important than intelligence in Flowers for Algernon are: patience, kindness and respect. Throughout Flowers for Algernon, patience is often shown to be a more important quality in character than intelligence. Starting from the beginning when Charlie was still mentally challenged, people never seemed to be patient with him. If they had taken the time to get to know and understand him they would have seen that he had a good heart and genuine personality. This also applies to our everyday life. We must be patient and try to understand others before we begin to judge them. Charlie also demonstrated the negative consequences of a lack of patience when his intelligence began to surpass that of those around him, â€Å"I was afraid it would come to this, but I have no patience with her now. I’m jealous of every moment away from the work- impatient with anyone†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Keyes 295). You can clearly see that due to his lack of patience with anyone around him, he is in a state of upset and distress. That is how patience is shown to be more important than ntelligence in this novel. Kindness is another quality shown to surpass intelligence in order of importance in Flowers for Algernon. Simply being kind to others can get you far in life and change others views and opinions of you in a positive way. This is shown when Alice tells Charlie what made him such a great person before he had the operation, â€Å"There was something in you before. I don’t know†¦ a warmth, an openness, a kindness that made everyone like you and like to have you around. † (Keyes 122). Being kind makes both yourself and others feels good. While everyone may not be able to solve an algebraic equation or understand Shakespeare, we can all interpret, accept and appreciate kindness in all its forms. This is why kindness is shown to be a more valuable quality than intelligence in Flowers for Algernon. A third quality shown to be more important than intelligence in Flowers for Algernon is respect. Everyone wants to be valued and respected and when you behave in this way towards others, it is often reciprocated. Everyone should learn to respect each other for who they are and not try to change them. Each person is an individual with their own thoughts and feelings and we can not change them. In the novel, a bakery employee stresses the importance of respect when the other workers make fun of Charlie, â€Å"He can’t help what he is†¦ but for God’s sake, have some respect! He’s a human being! † (Keyes 199). Charlie also often feels that he is not being respected as a human being and that he is just being treated as an experiment. This has a negative impact on him and also demonstrates the importance of respect. Those are the ways that respect is shown to be a ore valuable quality than intelligence in this novel. If one looks between the lines in the novel Flowers for Algernon, they will interpret many messages and take away valuable lessons from it. One of which is that there are qualities that are much more valuable and important than intelligence. The qualities that are shown to be more important than intelligence in Flowers for Algernon are patience, kindness and respect. By possessing and utilizing these qualities a person can lead both a happy and successful life and better the lives of those around them.

Altruism Is Ultimately Selfish Essay Example for Free

Altruism Is Ultimately Selfish Essay Discuss the proposal that pure selfless altruism does not exist. Bartel (1976) defines prosocial behaviour as ‘behaviour that intentionally helps or benefits another person’. Batson (1987) defines altruism as ‘helping another person for no reward, and even at some cost to oneself.’ This definition of altruism seemingly depicts the behaviour as selfless, however there is a wealth of research which suggests that this is not the case. Dawkins (1976) also provides evidence that altruism is ultimately selfish. He separated individuals into three categories in regards to prosocial behaviour displayed. These were grudgers, cheats and suckers. Grudgers were deemed to be the most evolutionary stable category, as they could control and ‘punish’ cheats (who seek out and accept the help of others without returning the help) and could coexist with suckers (who indiscriminately provide others with help). This therefore provides support for the sociobiological view of prosocial behaviour, that it is ultimately selfish as its aim is to promote gene survival. However, this theory can only work if we know one’s altruistic or egoistic behaviour, and so Many studies have shown that we will only help others if we believe they would also help us. Clutton-Brock and Palmer (1995) found altruism to be conditional, which suggests that it therefore cannot be selfless. However, this can only work if we know one’s altruistic or egoistic behaviour, and so cannot benefit evolution if we do not (Mifune et al. 2010) This view is supported by the Social Norm approach. The Social Norm approach argues that altruism is based on reciprocity and equity. Equity theory states that we consider interactions to be fair if the outcomes are equally proportionate to the inputs (Wagstaff, 2001). A limitation of this theory is that Buunk et al (2012) found it difficult to apply to intimate relationships. A further limitation is that positive inputs could yield negative results, which is not fair or just (Wagstaff, 2001). An amendment to this theory by Wagstaff and Perfect (1993, 2001) ensured that good inputs can only be returned with rewards, and negative inputs can only be returned with punishments. There is evidence to suggest that people do operate by this model (Wagstaff, 2001) which implies that decisions of whether to display prosocial behaviour are weighted in fairness, meaning that altruistic acts may only be displayed if the individual perceives it to be fair to others. Cialdini and Kendrick (1976) devised the Negative state relief model to offer a possible explanation of altruism. This suggests that we help others to relieve negative feelings. This has been supported by Piliavin (1981) who argued in his Arousal: Cost reward model that negative feelings, such as guilt, instigate negative arousal and therefore people may provide others with help to alleviate this negative emotion. Both of these models suggest that we are helping others to help ourselves, which supports the claim that true, s elfless altruism does not exist. However, other research has found that helping behaviour increases in correlation with positive mood states (Isen, 1999). Even so, Carlson (1988) argues that this could be due to an individuals drive to prolong their good mood state by helping others. One limitation of this view is that it assumes that helping is a rewarding behaviour. Another norm in respect to prosocial behaviour is social responsibility, which can be defined as helping those in need. Altruistic or prosocial acts tend to be more frequent towards ingroup (such as friends and family) than outgroup members (Cohen, 1978; Mifune et al, 2010.) Burnstein (2005) found that identical twins are more likely to help (94%) than fraternal twins (46%) which supports this hypothesis. There is also evidence to suggest that kidney donors are three times more likely to donate to relatives than nonrelatives (Borgida et al, 1992; Axelrod et al 2010). These findings suggest that altruistic acts are not purely selfless; seeing our friends and families in pain increases our own personal negative affect, and so we are more motivated to help them than we would be strangers. However evidence suggests that social responsibility can be diffused. This reduces helping behaviour within groups. Latane and Darley (1970) coined the terms pluralistic ignorance (not helping because it appears that no one else is concerned) and diffusion of responsibility (the tendency to believe that someone else must be dealing with the situation). This lack of helping behaviour in group situations shows that prosocial behaviour cannot be explained by social responsibility alone and so do individuals who help despite the above effects show more selflessly altruistic tendencies? Further evidence against selfless altruism comes from the evidence that individual attributes appear to effect prosocial and altruistic behaviour being displayed. Ruggiero et al (1981) found that taller, heavier and physically stronger people are more likely to put themselves in harm’s way to help others in an emergency. This would suggest that an individual has first considered the cost to themselves of helping, meaning their act would not be selflessly altruistic. One contrast to this theory is that this body type closely resembles Sheldon’s (1942) mesomorph body type; who was claimed to be more likely to have tendencies towards violent crime. Pantin and carver (1982) found that participants were more likely to help a choking confederate after three weeks first aid training than without it. Also, Eisenberg-Berg (1979) found that prosocial behaviour increases if a person believes their fate to be within their own control, and if the person has mature moral judgement. This again implies that an individual tends to consider their own competency and implications of helping others prior to doing so, again raising doubts over the existence of selfless altruism. However Batson et al (1987; 2003) claim that true, selfless altruism does exist; and that it is motivated by empathy. Batson claims that if helping is motivated by relieving personal distress, an individual could simply flee the scene., yet true empathic concern for another cannot be alleviated by escaping. In his study, Batson assigned participants to high and low empathy conditions, and easy or difficult to escape conditions; to leave after two trials or ten trials respectively. He also gave participants the option of changing places with the victim after two trials. When escape was easy, individuals with low empathic concern escaped the situation. However those with high empathic concern stayed and changed places with the victim. Batson claimed this to be true altruism. Traits such as aggression and dominance are associated with reduced empathy , and individuals with these traits have been shown to show less prosocial behaviour than those without them (Eisenberg et al, 2010). However empathy can be perceived as creating a negative affect such as guilt if help was not offered, and this negative state would be beneficial for an individual to relieve; therefore helping another individual with whom you have empathy for can relieve negative emotion in oneself, and can even instigate positive affect and/ or mood. This supports Pilliavin’s (1981) Arousal: Cost reward model and Cialdini and Kendrick’s (1976) Negative state relief model and therefore provides evidence that selfless altruism does not exist. In contrast, Batson (1989) found that people were not more likely to help others when informed that doing so would gi ve them access to a mood enhancing procedure. The finding that reciprocal altruism can be learned (Rachlin, 2003) raises an interesting question of whether it can be unlearned. Warnekin and Tomasello (2008) found 36 20 month old toddlers who consistently helped by picking up an object. Some were rewarded after showing this behaviour. They found that the children who were rewarded decreased this behaviour unless they were rewarded for it again; whereas the toddlers who were given no reward were more likely to continue helping. In support of this, Knafo, Schwartz and Levine (2009) found that in countries were individuals are raised to be helpful, there was a reduced tendency to help out group members. As helping in group members is more likely to relieve negative affect than helping outgroup members, this could be viewed as a reduced tendency to display altruistic behaviour. These studies raise the question as to whether it is possible that true altruism does exist, and whether theories such as social learning theory may play a role on its nurturance or demise within a culture or group. Sabini (1995) stated that if true altruism exists, it excludes any rational reasons for helping others, be it extrinsic or intrinsic rewards. In fact according to the sociobiological principle, it would be evolutionarily weak to be selflessly altruistic, as we may become like Dawkin’s ‘suckers’ helping cheats to prosper. This provides further evidence that selfless altruism does not exist; as we would not be able to grow and prosper as a society. In conclusion, the majority of evidence suggests that true altruism does not exist.

A Study On The Social Security Social Policy Essay

A Study On The Social Security Social Policy Essay Social security defined as the protection which society provides for its members through a series of public measures against the economic and social distress that otherwise would be caused by the stoppage or substantial reduction of earnings resulting from sickness, maternity, employment injury, invalidity and death (ILO 1984:3), is perennial and ubiquitous as human society. It plays a significant role in the lives of many people especially those with minimal incomes. As noted by Hill (2006) it is collective action to protect individuals against income deficiencies Social security system therefore, is made up of one or more social security programmes, a method of financing, and a mode of administration, that can be configured to achieve particular social security objectives (Dixon 1999:10). This does not, however, necessarily imply uniformity of social security systems globally. This paper therefore seeks to examine the discrete social security systems that exist in different countries and as such bring to bear the sources of their difference. It would be argued that the distinction among countries is as a result of the diverse histories of social security provision as well as the different welfare regimes that take place in the various countries. The paper will further explore the diversity in relation to selective or universal social security systems in terms of social insurance, social assistance and social allowance/contingent benefits and draw on examples from UK, USA, Sweden, and Germany to substantiate the discussion. Social security is intrinsically aimed at poverty prevention or alleviation, compensation as well as redistribution of income. This function can be delivered through non systemic social security such as the family, voluntary organizations (charity, friendly societies, credit unions and trade unions) as well as market. The state however, plays a very significant role of social security provision in many countries. Notwithstanding the permeating nature of social security, there is diversity in the systems of operation globally and this is as a result of the ideological underpinnings of different countries. In other words, the social security provisioning in countries depend on the political ideologies and welfare regimes that exist and this to a large extent shape the system of social security. Dixon (1999:1) captures this as he writes the right of social security is realized in varying degrees in different countries, as determined by their traditions, history, level of socioeconomic development and the prevailing political and social philosophies, which come together and determine who should be the social security winners or losers. Thus, eligibility for social security benefits is one form of distinction that exists in different countries. This has to do with the conditions or prescriptions to be satisfied in order to receive a particular social security benefit. Either by way of selective me ans-test or universal citizenship benefits as well as contributory or non contributory tax financed benefits. Selective social security is where only particular individuals or groups are covered by a social security programme and this is usually based on means-test subject to household income and resources. The major function of selective social security is poverty alleviation and this is achieved through social assistance programmes. Social assistance is a selective means-tested social security system in which resources are targeted at those most in need. In the words of Dixon (1999:5), it is a selective-categorical approach to social security. This system unlike social insurance does not rely on personal contribution but is funded through public revenues (taxes and budgets). Eligibility is based on citizenship as well as residency and beneficiaries need to satisfy certain conditions like low income to qualify for allowances, grants and other supports to supplement their incomes. This could be provided in cash as in the Transitional Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) in USA, tax credits i n UK or in kind food stamps programme available to low income individuals and families in the USA (Walker2005:6). Universal social security on the other hand is a social security programme that gives coverage to the entire population whether citizens or residents and is a non contributory system. This social allowance program provides benefits to all legal residents (Bradshaw Deacon 1983) or citizens and financing is generally through public revenues. The essential function of this system is the prevention of poverty. Dixon (1999:8) describes this as a universal-categorical approach to social security, whereby usually flat-rate and uniform cash pensions and benefits are provided to residents (usually subject to minimum residency period requirement) or citizens in designated categories of presumed need, commonly without reference to their current or past employment experience. He further goes on to say social allowance recognizes common responsibility of all people for the welfare of others (Dixon 1999:64). Countries with such universal social security programs in terms of social allowance include UK, Sweden, New Zealand, Denmark etc. In the UK and Sweden, child allowances are major universal social security systems. In addition, Sweden has a basic universal non contributory citizens pension. Other universal social security systems include New Zealand old age allowance and Denmarks universal pension for old age or disability (OECD 1996). Moreover, citizenship based benefits is another form of universal social security in which a universal basic income is provided to citizens. Participation tested universal systems also provide universal benefits based on modified social insurance. Furthermore, social insurance is yet a strategy of social security and this is earnings related as well as contributory. In the terms of Dixon (1999:4) social insurance is an employment-related, contributory approach to social security. This is a selective social security system in which entitlements are based on prior contributions and either financed from current contribution revenue or past contribution income accrued. In addition, contribution is mandatory and may be based on flat rates or earnings related and its primary social security goal is to prevent poverty. The social insurance strategy is basically a major social security system globally for most pension schemes and as noted by Dixon (1999), about 148 countries have adopted it at least for one of their social security programmes. In addition to the differences in social security strategies outlined above, another source of difference in social security systems is attributable to the different types of welfare regimes. Welfare regimes according to Walker (2005:13) refer to the different ways in which countries or jurisdictions organize economic production and transfers within the context of a capitalist market economy. Based on the type of regime, social security provision could be shifted to the family, market or state. For instance in a liberal regime, emphasis is on the markets and hence the individual relies on family and private insurance for social security. In other words, collective welfare is provided through the market with residual targeted state support for those who are unable to contribute (Walker 2005). Countries within this category include USA and to some extent UK. A socially democratic regime emphasize on universalistic modified social insurance with dominant role of the state. Social security is seen as a universal right for citizens and as such universal basic benefits. As noted by Walker (2005:16), receipt of a public service or benefit becomes both a right and a badge of citizenship, a statement of equal worth and solidarity. The social security is funded through public revenues (taxation). For example Sweden and Denmark within this regime have universal child allowance and basic universal pensions respectively. On the other hand, in the conservative regimes, social security is provided through collective transfers or social insurance with little or no social assistance. The role of the state is that of promoting the welfare of its citizens through regulation and, where appropriate, facilitation (Walker 2005:16). Pooling of risk is a key component of this social security system. Emphasis is on the family and support is provided to the male breadwinner while the female homemaker is dependent on her employed husband (Walker 2005). In addition compensatory rights for workers as well as earnings related social insurance and family allowance are other forms of support. This regime is found in Germany, France and Japan. In the light of the foregoing discussion, the paper did bring to bear that social security is very crucial for poverty alleviation and prevention. This therefore explains its dominance globally but in different forms. The paper has discussed the difference in social security systems in relation to coverage (selective/universal) and the different strategies used as well as the different social security regimes which also shape the social security systems of various countries. Despite the diversity in systems of social security, it is possible to identify major strategies through which these social securities are constructed globally. This paper therefore looked at three major strategies, social assistance, social insurance and social allowance/contingent benefits in relation to UK, USA, Sweden and Germany as well as the different social security regimes. In conclusion, it can be emphasized that though social security systems differ in varied countries, they all aim at poverty alleviat ion or prevention, social compensation, redistribution of income, fostering social cohesion as well improving on the standard of living of people. References Bradshaw, J. Deacon, A. (1983) Reserved for the Poor Blackwell Ditch, J (1999) Poverty and Social Security in the European Union, in J. Ditch (ed.) Introduction to social security: Policies, benefits and poverty, London: Routledge, pp 227-38 Dixon, J. (1999) Social Security in Global Perspective Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers London Eardley, T. et al., (1992) Social Assistance in OECD Countries: Country Reports DSS Research Report No 47, Off Pubs. 42 f8919/46 Hill, M. (2006) Social Policy in the Modern World: A comparative text Blackwell. International Labour Organization (1984) Introduction to Social Security Geneva: ILO Kingson, E. Schulz, J. (1997) Social Security in the 21st Century New York: Oxford University Press Millar, J. (ed.) Understanding Social Security, 2009, Bristol: The Policy Press. Titmuss, M. R. (1956) The Social Division of Welfare University Press Walker, R. (2005) Social Security and Welfare: Concepts and Comparisons Open University Press

Essay --

A good day being crawled up on the couch watching television socializing and stacking. Snacks are great! So just chips, cookies, ice cream especially those Caramel choose. Food is not the easiest thing to understand. Food is much more complicated than just eating it, because many foods can lead to a deadly epidemic called obesity. Obesity, a disease of the 21st-century, is causing millions to die each year because of health issues such as, heart disease and diabetes. "Obesity is defined as having excess body fat"(CDC) obesity is quickly spreading and is very dangerous. Obesity is very different than being overweight. Overweight is just another term for being "fat" were as, obesity means that your body is made up of 30% or more fat. (CDC) "Globesity," The term was first used by World Health Organization meaning obesity is affecting a great portion of the population. W. H.O. Termed the word globesity because obesity has turned into a global epidemic and is very popular. (WHO) The older you get the harder it is to lose weight. As you get older is harder to lose weight because your metabolism slows down.(Allman) When it comes to your Weight, a good way to find out if you are overweight or even obese is your BMI or body mass index. If you BNI is between 25 and 29 you were considered overweight. If your BMI is 30+ then you're considered overweight. (Overweight) Many parents often claim that their kid is not overweight and just has a little baby fat. In fact, babyfat often turned into obesity by second-grade. (Robbins) 27% of America is obese and only 35% of America Holds a normal weight. That leaves an additional 35% of Americans that are overweight. Over 40 million, or one out of three children and teens are overweight or obese. Over ... ... understand is that obesity is a problem of its own. Obesity is classified as a disease! If someone is obese they have a disease and they sooner than later will die! However, like all diseases, obesity can be cured. Type 2 diabetes is one of obesity’s biggest causes, it often times makes people very irritable and is a result of low insulin. Obesity causes heart disease such as heart attack and stroke. this is from lack of cardio-vascular exercise. Obesity also cause bone and joint issues, and the main three are, charcot joint, diabetic hand syndrome and osteoporosis. Walking running and standing are all part of bone and joint issues. Obesity also causes sleep apnea and asthma. Sleep apnea causes you to have trouble breathing when you are sleeping and also causes you to have trouble sleeping. Asthma is the shortage of the breath due to the bronchi of the lungs. (CDC)

My Philosophy of Teaching Essay -- Philosophy of Education Teachers Es

My Philosophy of Teaching When we are children we aspire many goals and careers. Once we complete, our K-12 education, reality must set in. What are best attributes to a career? What would sastify us most? What is the single most defying career choice that is best for us? During the past year, I have gone from one major to the next and back again. It is definitely a stressful time in one’s life. The choices we make now will have a lasting effect on us. Education was my beginning major and yes, through every obstacle it is the major I have chosen. Teachers possess a difficult job because they inspire and create our future nation. I want to be a part of that I want to help a child achieve their short and long-term goals. When asked why I want to be a teacher I could name many things, but in essence the reason I want to be a teacher is because I love children. I love their innocence, the mischievous thoughts they have, and most of all their love and longing to learn. For me, as a teacher, it would be an honor to have some type of impact on a child’s life. Students characterize this career. There are many different levels and personalities that every person attributes to a classroom. These differences are what make our world work. If everyone were the same, monotony would exist. Each student has their own learning pattern, personality, and academic level therefore as a teacher, you must conform to each student for their best abilities are exhibited. In my classroom, I plan to know each of my students and what type of teacher I must be to meet all their educational needs. In this case, students will be more likely to exert their energy to work on what they need most. A teacher who can arouse a feeling for ... ...raduation I plan to attend the masters program at Radford University in Virginia. When I have completed this program I want to become a Reading Specialist. I have many plans and ideas on how to get children motivated to read. At some point, I may decide I want a doctorate in education, I would then continue to teach and also continue my education. West Virginia offers many benefits in its teacher union, so I’m sure I would like to join some type of union wherever I may be teaching. There are many counter jobs that go along with being a teacher. I have learned to respect all the teachers I have ever experienced, and I hope all my students will gain respect for me. I know I can be anything I want to be, but I also know my career is meant to be an educator. I want to be an effective teacher that brings forth the ambition to learn in each of my student’s lives.

Proble Solution Essay

Problem/Solution Essay Procrastination The biggest problem that has always given me trouble is procrastination. Though I’m not the only student that suffers from this problem, it is one of the most common occurrences among teenagers. How procrastination is detected is shown by people doing their work at the last second and rushing to get it done. Ways I procrastinate it by getting side tracked by something usually more entertaining; for instance TV, radio, or even video games.When I start to do my work I always get bored with a silent room, so I happen to turn on the TV and listen to it. Instead of listening to the TV I turn around and start to watch it. Before I realize what I am doing I turn to the clock and thirty minutes have already passed. Another problem that I have is being too lazy to make the effort to get the work done, or just even start it. I am lazy because I work and go to school so when I get home from work I don’t want to even do anything beside just si t there and watch TV or something.Being forgetful is a big problem I also have, when I go to school and a teacher gives me home work I don’t write it down or anything, then by the time I get home I don’t remember to do it. This is bad because not doing my home work gets me in trouble with school and my parents. As I have gotten older I procrastinate less but it is still bad, but not as bad as when I was younger. When I was younger I would almost never turn in my work either because I forgot to do it or I wanted to go hang out with friends instead of taking the time to sit down and do it.When I procrastinate work does not get done. I also forget when important date’s things are due. Forgetting important date’s is bad because when a big project is due and you don’t have any work done it makes my grades suffer a lot. For example last year I forgot a 100 point project was due. My grade was a 78% and when I didn’t turn that project in it really h urt my grade. It dropped me down to a 60%. Thanks to that happening I almost didn’t pass that class. Thankfully I did well on the finals and it put my grade to a higher D. hat is when I realized I had a big problem, through out my senior year I have been trying to fix this terrible. I have been doing really well on making sure all my work is getting done and saying no to friends that want to hang out. I just simply tell them that I have home work to do and it’s important because it is my last year in school and I want to pass with good grades. Ways I can approach this issue is start paying close attention to when dates are due and when assignments need to get done. This will better me in school and also life.Some other ways I can get pass this issue is just focus on the main goal no matter how boring it might be, and how much more something else might be more exciting. In life one mistake on a assignment might cost me my job so I have to really pay attention to detail and just kick the lazy habit and put my best foot forward and try my hardest to make sure I succeed in life and in school. Another way I can also approach this problem is by making a schedule and write down when the assignments are due and when and where I need to turn them in at, doing this will help me a great deal in college and also in the work force.Making sure I use time management will be very effective with me handling my work. If a teenage like me has this issue the best way to confront it is to sit down and think of ways they can get past it. I know that with me sitting down and thinking of ways of beating this problem it has helped me a lot in the long run. I have been getting better grades and all my work has been getting turned in. I know that if I can do it then so can anybody else that has this same problem.

The Art Of Beautiful Women

Proposal:I will attempt to display the comparison of the cultures that produce the Barbie doll and the cultures that produce the Venus de Willendorf. While talking about the two cultures, I will describe some interesting but common themes the Paleolithic cultures and the modern culture encounter: what our modern culture has embraced and those things that it has deserted of which the Paleolithic culture in high regards. Meanwhile through my discussions I will show how much of our world views have changed from an era of the Venus de Willendorf to the modern world view of what the ideal woman should look like and how the view of beauty should not be as two-dimensional as the modern culture makes it out to be.Outline:Introductiona.) â€Å"Only the eye beholder can see the art of beautiful women†, this observation can be proven by looking at different cultures throughout the history of our times. The art of beautiful women is much more that what she looks like, it is also what a wo man’s body can withstand as well as what her body can produce. Women’s bodies are only the expression of the women we allow to live inside them. Let that woman be free. Let her shine. And know that the house in which she lives will always be as beautiful as she believes it to be. Previous cultures show’s us what our modern culture tends to ignore. Body:b.) Common ideas between the Paleothic cultures’s view on beauty verses our modern society’s view.I.) A common idea on the views of beauty between the Paleothic culture and our modern society’s view is that both cultures tend to admire a woman’s beauty: each in their own way. c.) A bit of differences between the views of beauty of the Paleothic culture and the modern world.II.) The main difference between the culture of our past and today’s  society is that of size and shape of a woman. In the Paleothic culture, the ideal shape of a women is believed to have been rather a large size woman, she would be considered volumpsous. Although today‘s society dictates that women of this era should be thin, big breasted and well preserved. Conclusion:The main objective that was intended for discussion of this paper was to discuss the different women idols that are famous in today’s era as compared to the Paleothic era. The significance of women has changed with the passage of time along with the roles and responsibilities that were fulfilled by them previously. There is a major difference between the idealizations of art of beautiful of women in the Paleothic culture and the art of beautiful women that is referred to in today’s society.Some of the roles that women share from both era’s were that women were depicted as some sort of sex symbol, and important enough for being child bearing. The role that the Barbie play in today’s society will be researched in order to explore the societal, political implication of idols to identify th e similarities and differences between the earliest known civilization and the culture of today ‘s era.

A Treasure of a Lifetime essay

A Treasure of a Lifetime There are many great gifts that I have received in my life blessed and beyond words. The foremost greatest gift that stands out to me the most is my son. I don’t just look at this gift as just a gift; I look at it as a blessing and a true gift from God. Each and every day I wake up I am thankful for my son. I try my best to enjoy and cherish every moment that we have together every day. Not everyone that wants children can have them so not only do I cherish every moment with my son I take advantage of this great opportunity of bringing a child as great as mine into this world.My child is the greatest gift that I have received because he is smart in so many ways, he brings nothing but joy and happiness into my life, and he is my biggest inspiration for why I strive for the best in life. One reason why I think my child is such a great gift to me is because, sometimes in life people don’t get to enjoy the special moments with their children. I can only speak for myself and the wonderful moments that I have enjoyed with my son. Ever since he was a baby, I have enjoyed just watching him grow up to be a smart kid. My son knows how to sing his alphabets as well as saying them and he knows how to count his numbers.He knows all his shapes and colors he even knows how to spell and recognize the letter of his name. I’m not trying to brag but it’s just a thrill and an amazing feeling to just sit and watch your child grow and learn new things each day. It makes me a proud parent of a wonderful child with such great potential. Another reason why I say he’s smart is because he can go to the bathroom on his own I don’t have to tell him to go he just get up and go to the bathroom. He sometimes gets himself dressed, even though he might not match, but it makes me a proud to know that my son is trying.I award my child for everything he does right, I don’t criticize him about the things he does wrong. I try to help him as well as showing him all of his mistakes, my son knows I love and care about him and I’m here to help him every step of the way. Another reason why my child is the greatest gift that I have received is because he brings so much joy and happiness into my life. Just knowing our struggle from the time he was born until now, I tried to raise him all by myself, yes it was hard but it just made me stronger and happier to be his mother.I take advantage of being a part of my son’s life because I love him so much and I know another day is not promised to me and him or anyone else. So I enjoy our time together each day. I know my child loves me unconditionally and I know he knows I love him the same way. My son looks up to me as a positive role model in his life and as a provider, teacher, and friend. I’m here for all of those reasons, but when it comes down to discipline I want him to know there are rules and regulations that he has to follow. It’s j ust a selfless act of love, because my life is not my own and it’s not just about me.In addition, to my son bringing so much joy into my life he is also a big inspiration in my life as well. He is what keeps this smile on my face from day to day. My son is the reason why I strive for the best in life. My child is the reason why I wake up and go to school and work, there are plenty of day that I wake up and don’t want to go to work or go to school. I just think about my son and I ask God to give me the strength to make it through the day, because I know this is something that I want and I don’t want to give up on.I want my son to feel proud of me to know where we came from and to see how far we’ve made it through. I truly don’t believe I would have made it this far without him. But I still say all things happen for a reason. God knew exactly what he was doing. I am more than glad to have this child a part of my life he has helped me to motivate myse lf to achieve many goals and accomplish many things in life. This is still a learning experience for me when I first had my son I wasn’t concerned about being a mother.I was mostly concerned about would I make a good mother because God knows it was hard to raise a child and still go to school and try to work, it’s not something that is easy but as these years have gone by I’ve learned to be a good mother to my child and except the challenges of motherhood. Today, I am a proud mother of a three year old little boy that bring so much joy and happiness in to my life I couldn’t ask for anything else greater than this gift God granted me with. Sometimes in life things are thrown at you from every open door and it just makes you want to give up.These things that are thrown at you are called obstacles, these obstacles are thrown at you to make your way hard and to make you think you’re worthless but it’s up to you to continue to fight your way thro ugh these obstacles. Sometimes you need a little push and a little motivation. This is the reason why I consider my son a reason to why I kept going because I knew there was some work for me to do. God saw nothing but great opportunities in my life and I’m making it each day to have faith in myself and to believe that I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.I highly would like to recommend this to all the young girls that had children at a young age and wanted to finish school and didn’t and had obstacles thrown their way that knocked them down and they couldn’t find their way back up. I’m here to tell you there is no such thing as â€Å"I can’t† because â€Å"I did†, I kept going. I got pregnant when I was fifteen years old I had my son when I was sixteen I didn’t stop I graduated from high school and I made it to college. But I’m not giving up on my goals and my future that I can see before me, I am going to continue to stroll down that road called success.

Inside Islam notes Essay

Islam means Peace and Submission (The peace that comes from submission, the attention to God that comes from peace.) Allah Akbar means â€Å"God is great.† Sunni = 85% of Muslim population; Shia = 10%; Sufi less than 5% Islam is not only a religion of the Middle East: largest population of Muslims is in India. Largest Islamic country is Indonesia. Of same faith tradition as both Christians and Jews Muslims & Jews are both monotheistic, differ only on mainly messianic theology Places of worship differ yet can coexist; Spain fostered all three Abrahamic faiths during pre-Ferdinand and Isabella era (pre-1492) Part 2 of 9: Pre Muslim Mecca, Quraish tribe, Muhammad’s early years & first vision, Qur’an, 1st pillar shahadah, and start of 2nd pillar prayer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtFkhC7DIIo Muslims descended from Hagar and Ishmael, who fled to the desert Abraham, according to Muslim legend, built Ka’ba  Quraysh tribe controlled Mecca as trading city. Later put icons and statues of various tribal Gods inside Ka’ba so Mecca would become even more important as a pilgrimage site. Muhammad was born several generations later in 570 AD into a wealthy family. His dad died, his grandfather sent him to live with trading caravans. As a young man he became a talented caravanier, married Khadijah Muhammad illiterate, so others recorded his recitations Qur’an means â€Å"recitation,† a mix of poetry, stories, admonitions, advice and warnings. Part 3 of 9: 2nd pillar (prayer) continued, Muhammad gains followers, conflict with Meccans, Hijra, to Ummayad dynasty; beginning of 3rd pillar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5h4bcCSsc9A&NR=1 Muhammad gave sermons against polytheism to pilgrims arriving at the Ka’ba in Mecca; was persecuted by Quraish Muhammad had no strong political ally, few followers initially. Journeyed to Yathrib (later named Medina, â€Å"City of the Prophet†) to arbitrate dispute between city states. Became year 0 in Islamic calendar, 622 CE. Set up first Islamic community (Ummah) Meccans were enraged, attacked Medina to destroy Muslims. Battle of Badr, outnumbered by Meccans, yet Medinans won Muslims triumphed 630 AD Muslims returned to Mecca Cleansed Abraham’s sacred temple (Ka’ba) of idols of pilgrims, kept the Ka’ba (lit. â€Å"cube†) as the central expression of monotheism Offered Meccans freedom for peace, many converted Arab tribes came to pay tribute to Muhammad and convert Umayyads 1st dynasty 750   Within a century of Muhammad’s death Muslims controlled more land than the Roman Empire—Turkey to parts of China. Jews and Christians were exempt from conversion to Islam 3rd pillar: Charity is heavily emphasized in the Qur’an, even more than the subordinate status of women Part 4 of 9: 3rd pillar, charity, continued; 4th pillar, Ramadan, Abbasid dynasty; Crusades; Mongols: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKsm3O23Itg&NR=1 3rd Pillar: Charity: From everything you own you give 2.5% All money collected must be given to those in need  One must follow the fast during the month of Ramadan as the 4th pillar Fast lasts from sunrise till sunset  Exceptions are made for the sick, weak, children, and the mothers who are expecting It’s a time to intensify your efforts to build your relationship with God The festival of the great Eid (Lit. festival) of the breaking of the fast Shia split from the Sunni after the death of Hussein (680 AD) There was a discrepancy of how leaders should be put in place Shia believed that leaders should be direct descendants of Muhammad Sunni believed leadersshould be elected democratically 8th century golden age in Iraq, Abbasid dynasty arose in Bagdad Abbasids valued learning, Greek philosophy and natural science. Algebra invented, decimals, exponents. Medicine developed, orthopedics, mental illness treatment, surgery. Crusades: Jerusalem is 3rd most sacred city for Muslims 1099: Christians slaughter 30k Muslims 1258 Genghis Khan’s grandson & his Mongols plundered Bagdad Part 5 of 9: Mongol era: 5th Pillar, Hajj; in Spain, interfaith cooperation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXWJDY8AsFo&feature=related The Mongol Khan becomes a Muslim, Lesser pilgrimage can be taken to Mecca at any time of the year (min 0:30) Hajj, the greater pilgrimage, occurs only once a year a. Ihram1 = 2 white cloths in which you will be buried are worn during Hajj, significance is equality, Ihram2 is also = peaceful demeanor to accept all as brothers & sisters. b. Ablution (ritual washing) leads to first stage: circumambulation 7 times God is the axis of one’s life c. 2nd step is to march between 2 hills representing Hagar’s search for water for Ismael; represents one’s struggle in life d. Next day they travel to the plain of Arafat. Pilgrims walk in quiet prayer confessing sins at Mount of Arafat. e. Next, to Mina to throw stones at 3 pillars representing Satan, sins are forgiven f. Last event prayer service at Ka’ba Muslim scholars preserved writings from hordes 711 CE: Muslims arrive at Gibraltar a. Called Moors, dwelled in Andalusia, cities of Cordoba & Seville b. Horticulture, math, navigation developed c. Muslim, Jewish & Christian scholars worked together became a source for the Renaissance Part 6 of 9: Spain, Ottoman Empire; place of women; Colonialism: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6olUPtXRC6U&NR=1 Reconquista, Christian re-conquest of Spain expelling Moors and forcing conversion or expulsion of Jews 1492 the Moors were kicked out of Spain  1453 Greek Constantinople fell to Muslim troops; name changed to Istanbul = â€Å"Islam in Abundance† Sultan was the ruler of Islamic Ottoman society. Sultan means ruler Sultan’s Harem (Haram – forbidden, taboo)– group of concubines, in Western eyes they are dens of iniquity, but in Islamic practice they were centers of protection for women and sources for caucusing about political power Islamic polygamy: all wives need to be treated equally Women’s rights clearly defined in Qur’an Qur’an tried to do away with negativism toward women. Gave women basic rights, To own property, receive inheritance, vote (1300 years before western societies permitted it), choose spouse The hijab – the cloth that Islamic women wear on their heads Symbol of humility before God became a symbol of oppression in eyes of West Burka refers to a total body covering In the 1800s the Europeans start taking advantage of the Islamic world, esp with Industrial Revolution Ottomans weakened, starting with Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt. Part 7 of 9: Suez Canal; France colonizes Algeria; WWI; colonialism; Wahabism, Jihad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH2lGUr7eJ4&NR=1 Colonial sense of superiority disparaged Muslims France took over northern Africa and the northern part of the Middle East, discouraging Arabic language and Islamic faith. England expanded into Egypt after creating the Suez Canal, also taking the Sinai Peninsula, Palestine, and Iraq. Ottomans sided with Germany in WWI, so England & France took Muslim lands when Germany lost (min 2:40) Muslim Brotherhood arose in Egypt in 1928 Some Muslim states encouraged western style central authoritarian dictatorships; Muslim Brotherhood resisted these. Following WW2 Muslims throughout European colonies rose up, demanding release from the European counties. Mohammad ibn Abdul Wahab – became a leader in the Islamic world, preaching an ascetic, puritanical form of Islam Created Wahabism, founded Saudi State, merging desert warrior spirit with puritanical reform. Very fundamental and radical form of Islam Was supported by Saud family, who would become rulers of Saudi Arabia Oil gave Saudis great wealth allowing them to expand Wahabist beliefs. Giving the money to organizations has caused an even more radical group of beliefs to arise Jihad = â€Å"struggle.† The greater jihad is the struggle of one’s will against one’s passions and weaknesses, an inner struggle. The lesser jihad is a defensive war, using just war criteria. Some groups called for a radical Jihad –war against western nations The end justifying the means leads to terrorism. Osama Bin-Laden in particular Part 8 of 9: Malcolm X; Israel; Iran hostage crisis, Iraq: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKHuc0ehFPc Malcolm X: â€Å"We (blacks) did not land on Plymouth Rock; the rock was landed on us† Walhid Farad formed the Nation of Islam Elijah Poole joined him; changed name to Elijah Muhammad & took charge in 1934 Malcolm Little heard about Nation of Islam in Prison, changed name to Malcolm X Malcolm X: â€Å"What was your name before you lost it?† Malcolm X came back from hajj inspired to join Nation of Islam to traditional Islam; Gunned down By 1975, Elijah’s son brought about Malcolm X’s dream: changed name to World Community of Islam Louis Farrakhan continued in old ways of separation Israel made a state in 1948. In 6 Day War in 1967 tensions increased with Muslims 1978 Iran’s Shah fell to Shiite Ayatollah Khomeini; US cast as â€Å"Great Satan† Students took US embassy workers in Tehran as hostages for 444 days Sadat in Egypt assassinated; he had signed a peace treaty with Israel. Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990; coalition lead by US stopped him, imposed no-fly Zone Part 9 of 9: Suicide bombing; Islamic hell & heaven; wrap up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egTCPablawQ&NR=1 9/11 made people aware not only of radical fringe of Islam, but also of the peaceful Muslim neighbors. Even in heaven one cannot see God Pleas for peace Few stable & fair Muslim governments have replaced colonial governments Part 1 of 9: Intro and basic facts: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAjsu1ATrts Part 2 of 9: Pre Muslim Mecca, Quraish tribe, Muhammad’s early years & first vision, Qur’an, 1st pillar shahadah, and start of 2nd pillar prayer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtFkhC7DIIo Part 3 of 9: 2nd pillar (prayer) continued, Muhammad gains followers, conflict with Meccans, Hijra, to Ummayad dynasty; beginning of 3rd pillar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5h4bcCSsc9A&NR=1 Part 4 of 9: 3rdpillar, charity, continued; 4th pillar, Ramadan, Abbasid dynasty; Crusades; Mongols: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKsm3O23Itg&NR=1 Part 5 of 9: Mongol era: 5thPillar, Hajj; in Spain, interfaith cooperation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXWJDY8AsFo&feature=related Part 6 of 9: Spain, Ottoman Empire; place of women; Colonialism: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6olUPtXRC6U&NR=1 Part 7 of 9: Suez Canal; France colonizes Algeria; WWI; colonialism; Wahabism, Jihad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH2lGUr7eJ4&NR=1 Part 8 of 9: Malcolm X; Israel; Iran hostage crisis, Iraq: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKHuc0ehFPc Part 9 of 9: Suicide bombing; Islamic hell & heaven; wrap up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egTCPablawQ&NR=1

How Accurate is Naviance Compared to ?

Naviance is a software tool offered through high schools that helps students navigate the college selection and admissions process. The software includes a ton of tools for guidance counselors to use in preparing college applications for their students, and includes a variety of college search and admissions prep tools for students. This blog post will provide a breakdown of the strengths of Naviance as well as the areas where we recommend leveraging additional resources (including some offered by ). One feature that is unique to Naviance is the data it provides on the GPA and SAT scores of students from your high school who applied to a particular college, as well as the outcome of their application (acceptance, rejection, or waitlist). This data is typically reproduced in the format of a scattergram. Our point of view on using Naviance to estimate your chances of admission is that you can kind of get a general sense of where you stand academically, but it is nowhere near sufficient if you want to actually estimate your chances of admission. Here’s our rationale: The college admissions process is holistic, so test scores and coursework/GPA are just two of the numerous factors considered in the admissions process. At most colleges they represent just 25-30% of how the admissions decision is made according to ’s data. This is because at selective colleges (with

Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 103

Case Study Example Manufacturing must be closely intertwined with the current enlightened philosophy of marketing where products are expected to meet customer wants, needs, preferences and marketed in a socially responsible manner that is pleasing and beneficial. Manufacturers, such as Mattel Corporation, who manufacture products for children have the responsibility of ensuring that the products are safe in both intended and non-intended uses so as to protect children from harm since, ordinarily, children lack the literacy to comprehend the complete functioning of a product. Moreover, the manufacturers must ensure that the society’s apprehensions on children’s privacy and rights are upheld as this will somewhat guarantee business perpetuity. What’s more, the manufacturers have the responsibility of ensuring that the components used in manufacturing the product are meet the health and safety standards and accurate information indicated on the products label. For instance, the age th at is supposed to use the product and the chemical components should be clearly indicated. Environmental matters must also be taken into consideration by ensuring that any substandard products are safely confiscated so that the public does not gain access

Aesthetics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Aesthetics - Essay Example The interchangeability and kaleidoscopic dimensions of art is a forecast of profound divergences, aspects, and opinions in every realm of existence. Art is ubiquitous †¦ it is seen everywhere and is created by everyone. Karl Marx stated in so many words that the history of the world is the history of class struggle and while this may be true to a point, the history of the world may very well be the history and development of art and the body of philosophy called aesthetics. â€Å"In short, the history of human experience is a history of the development of arts (Cohoon 2000).† Often time’s art is representative of political ideas and statements and because of these ideas and statements, art can narrowly, and at times broadly, be construed to have definition. A definition of aesthetics is a branch of philosophy concerned with the perception and quintessence of what regards artistic merit versus lack of artistic merit. Aesthetics also concerns inquiries into whether a rtistic qualities underlie objectively qualified definitions of a particular mode or character of what constitutes aesthetics. With respect to this topic, Philosophers ask many questions about whether a work of art is beautiful or ugly (i.e., ugly meaning that which cannot be considered having artistic value), and ultimately weight in a multitude of various interpretations of what a work of art represents.

PERI OPERATIVE PROCEDURE CHANGE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

PERI OPERATIVE PROCEDURE CHANGE - Essay Example Besides, before an operation preoperative care should also be conducted to a patient because it usually allows many patients to have better results after surgery. The preoperative care includes psychological and physical preparation. Physical care preparations include studying and analyzing patient history like anesthesia history. Thus, laboratory tests like electrolytes, CBC, activated partial thromboplastin time and prothrombin are done (Keele, 2011). Psychological preparations like answering patient question before an operation usually decrease their anxiety. The perioperative procedure that will be analyzed in this essay is the routine shaving of surgical sites. Shaving of surgical sites is usually performed by surgeon assistant (Evans, 1998). The hospital administrator or chief surgeon determines the basis for practice after reviewing the patient history and approving the best procedure to be executed (Evans, 1998). The procedure is usually carried out by using depilatory creams , which dissolve the hair, and it is usually a slower process as the skin has to be in contact with cream for 15-30 minutes. Hair can also be removed by using clippers, with sharp edges to cut hair close to the patient skin leaving short stubble of about 0.04 inches long. Shaving is the most common method because it uses a sharp blade held within the head of the razor which is swapped over the patient skin to remove hair. Shaving, which is commonly used by many surgeons, has been implicated to cause higher risks of infections. Shaving result into microscopic cuts and abrasion, thus act as a block of the skin’s barrier defense against microorganism colonies (Hakim and Papalois, 2007). On the flip side, depilatory creams have a catastrophic disadvantage in that there could be an allergic reaction to the cream thus forcing nurses to conduct a patch test 24 hours prior to operation time thus leads to increased cost. The rationale for making the decision usually lies to the operat ion team and factors like allergy and health record due to SSIs infections determines the best method to be employed (Hakim and Papalois, 2007). Besides, shaving of surgical sites before any operation is usually carried out in a specific manner to reduce the spread of SSI and avoid health catastrophe that a patient may suffer due to poor administration of safety procedure during shavings (Fisher et al, 2007). Preparation of surgery of years has included the removal of body hair form the intended surgical wound site. Hair is mainly removed as its presence can impede with the exposure of the incision and subsequent wound. Besides, hair is also alleged to be associated with lack of cleanliness thus hair removal has shown too led to reduction of surgical site infections. A surgical site infection (SSIs) contributes tremendously to surgical morbidity and mortality every year. SSIs accounts for15% of all nosocomial infections experienced by patients after surgery. There are three types of SSIs defined by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and they include incisional or organ infection, which is further subdivided as superficial (it mainly involves only the skin and subcutaneous tissue) and versus deep which infects the underlying soft tissue beneath the skin. Most of the SSI cases, the pathogen source, is the native flora of the patient’s skin, mucous membranes or hallow viscera. When a patient skin is incised, the underlying skin tissue is uncovered to the

The Plan for a Workplace Negotiation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The Plan for a Workplace Negotiation - Essay Example The most important issue For the diary products company, it is necessary to negotiate about the hour roster which including implications for shifts and for overtime. There are some inevitable reasons and situations result in company have to change worker's rosters or hours. For example, different season may have different demand, such as demand of ice-cream is higher in summer. Then company may require more workers work overtime in this period to increase the output of products. However, the number of workers work overtime can affect the profit of organisation because of the large expense of overtime pay. In fact, managers should reduce expenses as much as possible to reach the maximum profit of company. Besides that financial disadvantage to workers having to change rosters or hours to be kept to a minimum but some workers will earn less on the new rosters because there will be less regular overtime. Financial disadvantage will affect worker's dissatisfaction on company and will dir ectly affect their work efficiency and quality of work. (Peddle, 2008) Therefore, how to balance workers work overtime and worker's financial advantage is a critical problem that should be considered by manager. The least important issue The least important issue is the duration of the agreement. It could be less important compare to other issues. For example, it might have some contingency problems occur when the agreement have fulfilled during the course such as union may want to get some more benefit for labours. It can directly lead the labour cost change and determine the agreement duration. Then it will have the new agreement replaced the original. It realised that the agreement duration is the least important issue among others. Therefore, it can not settled the duration of the agreement can be existed for 2 years. Overall strategy might be adopt The strategy will be adopt here is the cooperative strategy which is the integrative bargaining. Integrative bargaining is to to fi nd common or complementary interests and to solve problems confronting both parties.It is aim to maximize joint benefits and reconcile interests and solve problems.(Walton & McKersie (1965) The reason to use this strategy is to establish long-term relationship between company and employees. It is an important element to achieve company goal. As it mentioned before, company leave out employee's financial disadvantage of account can result in dissatisfaction of employees, it leads a high staff turnover and negative impacts for company. The dairy company should assume several ways to achieve win-win agreement. Negotiator can directly take aim at primal problems through avoid some less important problems during negotiating. ( Bazerman, Magliozzi & Neale, 1985) Then managers need to used the integrative bargaining strategic in proper phases of negotiation process. Rojot summarised three main phases of negotiation which are beginning phase, middle phase and end phase.(1990) The integrativ e bargaining strategy will be adopted in the beginning phase. The first reason to adopt the strategy in this phase is the aim of company to use the integrative bargaining strategy to build long-term relationship with employees. In the beginning phase, the first meeting will be held. However, negotiating parties are stand on opposite position because each of the party wants to gain their ends and they may not trust each other. Therefore, to build trust in the first phase is a necessary precondition to build

Entrepreneurship Assignment Question 1 (2000 words) Breaking up the Essay

Entrepreneurship Assignment Question 1 (2000 words) Breaking up the market into segments by the Entrepreneur can be the - Essay Example Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Introduction 4 Literature Review 5 Critical Analysis 7 Conclusion 10 Reference List 11 Introduction The early definitions of entrepreneurship given by economist are seen to emphasize on risk, ownership, supply of financial capital and co-ordination of various factors. However, entrepreneurship is seen as the efforts made by an individual that goes against every odds towards converting a vision into successful business enterprise. Entrepreneurship is the search for some discontinuous opportunities that are involved towards creation of an organization or sub organization in the expectation of creating value for the participants. Entrepreneur is a person or a group of individuals who identifies opportunities, collects necessary resources and makes effort towards the performance of the organization (Gungaphul and Boolaky, 2009). In order to make a business venture successful the entrepreneurs need to choose a proper target market (Crane, 2007). Targe t market is defined as the specific group of customers towards whom the marketing effort created by the firm is directed. It is selected as a part from the whole market. Defining the target market correctly is a critical element in creating a successful marketing strategy. It may be a disaster if marketing plans are made to cater to wrong target customers. Employees and manager are seen to focus on providing value to the well-defined segment of target customers (Gitman and McDaniel, 2008). Entrepreneurs with exciting ideas and innovative product and services often forget about focusing towards right customers. This study focuses on critical analysis of the importance of choosing right target market for success of entrepreneurs. Literature Review Defining target market Business firms and entrepreneurs tempted to describe the target in the broadest and best possible way in which they look for including a large set of customers who can be huge potentials in using the services and produ cts. By doing this they get a huge comfort by the sense that they have a huge market to exploit. But in reality this is seen to provide very little genuine information based on which business decisions will be made. This insists the need for identifying a particular market segment that would provide a more exact description of distinct and meaningful components of the overall market which in turn helps in identification of target market of the business based on certain specific characteristics (Abrams, 2003). However, while defining the target market certain criteria needs to be met, like it needs to be definable which signifies that specific characteristics should be identified based on the requirement and needs of the customers that are in common. It has to be meaningful, which signifies that the characteristic should be as such that it is related to the decision of purchase made by the clients. The target market needs to be sizable which signifies that the target market needs to be large enough so that it can help the profitably sustain in the market (Barringer and Ireland, 2008). The target market should be reachable which signifies that the size and definition should be as such

Course, Cause and Treatment of Bi-Polar disorder Research Paper

Course, Cause and Treatment of Bi-Polar disorder - Research Paper Example Course, Cause and Treatment of Bi-Polar disorder The symptoms that characterize the manic episode include elevated mood, hyperactivity that involves high levels of energy, lack of self control, flight of thoughts and grandiosity. During this stage the individual may have an inflated self-esteem and the individual becomes over-involved in activities; particularly, over-indulgence in sexual activity and promiscuity that can be seriously detrimental for the individual’s personal health and well-being. The individual may also get involved in other kinds of reckless behavior such as binge eating, drug abuse, impaired hindsight or judgment and may even shop excessively. Due to lack of self-control, the individual exhibits an irritable mood and is prone to lash out at other people; in other words, they lose their temper quite often that causes them to behave in a manner that has heavy and often debilitating consequences. They experience inability to concentrate on their work, as a result are easily distracted and may even have little or no need for sleep at all. On the other hand, the depressive phase has symptoms that are exactly the opposite of the manic phase and the symptoms are similar to that experienced by the sufferers of Major depressive disorder. The symptoms experienced during the depressive stage are low mood, anhedonia; which is complete lack of interest in activities that were previously found pleasurable, difficulty concentrating, faces problems in remembering things and indecisiveness. The individual faces gross psychomotor retardation; as his movements slows down, he or she may feel tired all the time and loses his or her self-esteem. The phase is characterized by crying spells, persistent sadness, negative thoughts; which are usually about death and suicidal ideation. (Moore & Jefferson, 2004) The individual’s social life is hampered as well and begins avoiding social situation. The individual experiences increased and often displaced amount of guilt along with feelings of worthlessness and dejection. The individual may either lose weight due to lack of appetite; however, in some cases the individual may indulge in binge eating and may gain excessive amount of weight that may result in obesity if the depression is not treated in time. The individual has sleep disturbances and like the eating disorder, he or she may either experience insomnia or hypersomnia that is the individual either sleeps too little or excessively. Either way, individuals are likely to commit suicide during the depressive and during the manic phase, they can do serious damage to their health by abusing drugs and alcohol or indulging in unsafe sexual activity. (Moore & Jefferson, 2004) The individual may experience these symptoms simultaneously or even these can overlap each other resulting in a state that is often called the â€Å"mixed state†. Throughout the course of the disorder, the individual may also have a phase, which is normal and may experience normal level of mood. However, before making the diagnosis that an individual suffers from bi-polar disorder, clinicians must rule the following disorders.

Gentrification and how it is affected by Racism Essay

Gentrification and how it is affected by Racism - Essay Example The scenario now known as gentrification is a growing trend today and a headache for the policymakers. This entry of the rich into the urban centers is even changing the culture of these centers. Gentrification is bringing a lot of pain and even fuelling conflicts in many cities. Dimensions in which gentrification takes place are into demographics characterized by increased income and even differentiation along racial lines (Grant). A racism class cannot be complete without learning about gentrification. For years, this has been a very sensitive issue. For years, racism against the blacks and the Asian immigrants has been taking place. According to Jones (p3) gentrification is a class welfare with an aspect of racism in it. Therefore, in learning racism, there is need to learn about gentrification. This topic helps me as an art student understand what racism is all about and what forms racism takes in the society. San Francisco has long struggled to meet housing needs. Policies in San Francisco in the past have always limited the owners of the rental units from raising rents. The result in San Francisco was a low to high fault evictions. These evictions were mostly due to legitimate reason such as improving safety of the old buildings built in the World War I. In the wake of gentrification over the year, property owners are now abusing policies in order to undermine these rent control laws in order to convert the rental properties into higher valued properties. As a result, the low-income and middle-income citizens are being pushed out of the areas they have grown in and moving to other neighbour hoods in the city. (Stover, p5) Another form of gentrification has been in the form of technology. Luxury buses provided for the technology professionals of Valley companies such as Google and Apple are blocking regular buses, and this does not sit well with the locals. (Stover, p8) Another form of gentrification brought about by

The Year of the Flood Essay Example for Free

The Year of the Flood Essay â€Å"The Year of the Flood† is an epic, sprawling novel that moves back and forth between past, present and future effortlessly. Though it is told from Ren and Toby’s point of view, the novel is really about the story of three women (Ren, Toby, and Amanda) and their will to survive in a cruel and harsh world. It is a story of hope, despite all odds and a story of the power of love. Fatefulness about the survival of the species is not new. Religious thinking has end-time built in, and most of our sentient life on the planet humankind has been predominantly religious. That has changed in Westernized countries, but only relatively recently, and alongside advances in scientific knowledge. Our new pessimism no longer depends on a deity to wipe out this wicked world. Since the Manhattan Project, we have learned to do these ourselves. That end is also the end of â€Å"The Year of the Flood. † Here Atwood has brilliantly re-told her own tale, through other mouths and focusing on different details, showing us how the kids Jimmy and Glenn become the Snowman and Crake, (from â€Å"Oryx and Crake†) and how an end or the End can happen in the name of new beginning. The Waterless Flood has long been predicted by God’s Gardeners, a back-to-nature cult founded by Adam One. Its members live simply and organically, sing terrible hymns, have no dress sense and peddle a bolted-together theology, difficult to think about if you think at all. With values diametrically opposed to those of the ruling CorpSEcorps, the Gardeners aren’t â€Å"the answer,† but at least they’ve asked enough questions to avoid a life of endless shopping and face-lifts. The Gardeners sometimes do evangelical work in the mean streets, known as the pleeblands, or picket at fast-food joints like SecretBurgers because it’s wrong to eat anything with a face. At SecretBurgers they have rescued a young woman named Toby from the murderous clutches of her sex-crazed boss, Blanco the Bloat, and it’s Toby who is one of the central characters in the post-plague part of the story. As a Gardener, Toby rises to the position of Eve Six, in charge of the bees, herbs and potions, but Blanco never stops pursuing her, and to save herself, and the group, she receives a new identity in the health spa AnooYoo. Recovering from plastic surgery, she avoids the deathly wipeout germ of plague. Less cosmetically, but just as effectively, Ren, a pole dancer at a local sex joint called Scales and Tails, is in an isolation room after a bloody attack by a punter, so she too misses the bio-bug. The women’s past and present stories alternate and intertwine, bringing to life the world they must survive in- a world where pigs have human tissues and sheep are bred with human hair in different colors, silver and purple being the hot hits for whole-head implants, providing you don’t mind smelling of lamb chops when it rains. The sensitive CorpSEcorps elite boy Glenn, who becomes Crake, starts out as a teenage sympathizer for the Gardeners but is too seduced by his own brain power to trust nature. Like his friend Jimmy, Glenn doesn’t know to love, and the awkward devotion he feels for the girl he calls Oryx isn’t returned. Atwood is really good at showing, without judging, what happens when human beings cannot love. In the worst of them, like Blanco, brutality and sadism take over. In the better of them, Crake designs out love and romance because he wants to design out the pain and confusion of emotion. In this strangely lonely book, where neither love or romance changes the narrative, friendship of a real and lasting and risk-taking kind stands against the emotional emptiness of the money/sex/power/consumer world of CorpSEcorps, and as the proper antidote to the plague—mongering of Crake and Jimmy, for whom humankind holds so little promise. As ever with Atwood, it is friendship between women that is noted and celebrated—friendship not without its jealousies but friendship that survives rivalry and disappointment, and has a generosity that at the end of the novel allows for hope. Atwood believes in human kind, and she likes women. It is Toby and Ren who take the novel forward from the last page, not the genetically engineered new humans. Atwood is funny and clever, such a good writer and real thinker that there’s hardly any point saying that not everything in this novel works. Why should it? A high level of creativity has to let in some chaos; just as nobody would want the world as engineered by Crake; nobody needs a factory-finished novel. The flaws in â€Å"The Year of the Flood† are part of the pleasure, as they are with human beings, that species so threatened by its own impending suicide and help up here for us to look at, mourn over, laugh at and hope for. Atwood knows how to show us ourselves, but the mirror she holds up to life does more than reflect- it’s like one of those mirrors made with mercury that gives us both a deepening and distorting effect, allowing both the depths of human nature and its potential mutations. We don’t know how we will evolve, or if we will evolve at all. â€Å"The Year of the Flood† isn’t a prophecy, but is eerily possible.