The Third Gender

Kaleen Rodriguez ENC 1102 Exploratory Essay The Third Gender What is the role of the third gender in South Asia? How does Asian society identify the third gender? I walked into my best friend Joel’s room this morning extremely excited to have lunch with him after a long four months without seeing him and on my journey to his room I picked up a paper that was lying by his door. I picked it up and the title was â€Å"Hijra† as I continued to read this paper, it had me very intrigued, fast. It so happens that earlier that week I was talking to my mom about Pride Fest which is a LGBT festival here in South Florida.So, my question arose, how do others across the world view what we recognize as the LGBT community (Gay,Lesbian,Bi-sexual, and Transgender)? , and finding this paper only made my thought more concise, what is â€Å"The Third Gender†? In the west we have LGBT and we also have drag queens who are men who act as women for a short period of time under certain c ircumstances and it is acceptable. The definition of gender as a performative (Butler) is defined as how you act in your society. Doing research for this topic was significantly easy; finding various points of views was the harder part.Looking through scholarly essays I was able to find â€Å"With Respect to Sex: Negotiating Hijra Identity in South India† by Reddy, Gayatri and â€Å"The Hijras of India. †Ã‚   by Nanda, Serena. Two of which were my primary resources for what I am about to explain. In South Asia there is LGBT, but what they consider cross dressers, and transvestites are called Hijra’s which generally is considered a third gender role in India. Hijra’s are males who dress and act as females. There are rites of passage for becoming a Hijra.This rite of passage includes the act of removing the genitals and burying them in the ground which basically show they’re devotement to the Hijra life style, but less than 10% actually commit to eli minating their genitals (Gueste0d1c4). Hijra’s adopt female aspects and behavior. Some Hijra’s are sex workers and some are performers and that is how they earn a living, which causes them to live outside of the city in their own communities. The ones that live in the community and are sex workers live in worse conditions then those who are performers (Reddy, Gayatri ).By performer’s I mean Hijra’s do performances at weddings and festivals. All of their performances are focused and essentially done for Bahuchara Mata (Mother Goddesses), who is worshipped all over India. Mother Goddess is said to have given the Hijra’s a special place in Indian society, so because of this, all Hijra’s devote themselves to her. Overall besides the relationship with the Mother Goddess, the relationship that is most important in the Hijra community is the one with the Guru which is a master/teacher and also a Chela which is a disciple (Gueste0d1c4).Therefore, wh en a person wants join the Hijra community they are taken to a city called Bombay and become acquainted with one of the major Gurus, in total there are seven. (Reddy, Gayatri) Being on the outside looking in. What gives the Hijra’s power also eliminates their power in society because they emasculate themselves to prove they’re actually Hijra’s, but in that sense they could never be accepted in society because they could never be a man to produce children, which essentially is the role of a man.At times most Hijra’s are maltreated because of this. Hijra’s have rules under their own domain. The most prominent cultural aspect of the Hijra is the asexual description, although many Hijra’s are said to be homosexual (Nanda, Serena). They identify themselves as neither a man nor woman, being perfectly imperfect. As a Hijra, there are many times you might encounter a discourteous crowd and the way they show their response towards this is to lift the ir skirts or dresses and show their maimed genitals (Nanda, Serena).Taking a few moments in my day to question what the Hijra’s really feel do they feel that they are in the wrong body as many trans gender’s claim or do they just wish to be of the opposite sex? I wanted to see Hijra’s what they looked like, their gestures and all. I decided to YouTube a video on them and I was able to find it and many different answers to my question above. It came to my attention that more than half of the Hijra’s documented have been attracted to men from a very young age, or so they say.The first Hijra in this YouTube video began her story by saying that she always admired the woman lifestyle, wearing the gem in the middle of their eyebrows the clothing attire also known as a saree and as she grew up her walk became more feminine and the way she spoke only followed, basically insisting that she was born in the wrong body. Although, the other small percent in this video mostly agreed that as they grew up and were raised as a male, they just wanted to be like a woman but they are clear on the fact that they were or are men (Ambujablue's Channel).Becoming more engaged in the Hijra lifestyle I googled as a form of research and I simply typed in â€Å"Hijra Culture† the first thing that arose was a link to a slide show done in 2007. Here I found the history of Hijra’s regarding the Karma Sutra (an ancient Indian text), which is said to have mentioned a third gender (Gueste0d1c4). This to Hijra’s must mean the world, mostly because it somewhat proves that they’re not just getting the transgender idea from the western culture, but that it has existed in the Indian culture long before.Being a Hijra was said to be a disturbing view to the South Asian society, but after India gained their independence the anti-Hijra law was removed. In many different places where I tried to find a statistic of how many Hijras there are, I could not find an accurate number but there is said to be somewhere between 50,000 to 500,000 Hijras in South Asia (Gueste0d1c4). There are two significant theory’s about Hijra’s, one is that every Hijra’s starts as a sex worker, then performer. The second theory is that they are always separate, either a sex worker or a performer never both.Rules only exist within their society, and once outside of the Hijra community these rules don’t exist; they are simply seen as a transgender person. The Hijra’s are very prone to being infected with HIV/AIDS because of being sex workers. Truth be told, that is how they make a living even though their living is not anywhere near a good standing. It is very difficult for a Hijra to be invited to perform in a wedding or a child’s birth, so being sex workers is their best option. Hijra’s are not only maltreated emotionally but also physically.Those who are completely against the Hijra culture abuse them, b rutally. They beat them in their own homes, along the streets, in markets, even in police stations (Gueste0d1c4). Knowing this reminds me that this is something most transgender societies have in common, they are abused mostly verbally on the Western side but the physical abuse is still taking action. As I continued my research I attempted to find various points of view on the Hijra, little did I realize there are really only three; for, against, or nonchalant.I thought to myself well, most people in the Western society have altered their point of view to for or nonchalant on the transgender topic and are disclosing being against it. Meanwhile, maybe not as rapid but slowly, those on the other side of the world are adapting to this view or â€Å"Third Gender† as well. What I did as another form of research was conduct a survey in order to get a general outlook on what others believe or think about the Hijra. I surveyed a total of twenty people. Ten of which were my family and friends and ten who were complete strangers.The response I generally received was â€Å"whatever makes them happy† basically proving that the outlook is shifting drastically in comparison to a few years prior. I only received three responses out of twenty that were completely against the Hijra, and I also realized that those three people were all around the same age range which was 57-62. I believe that says something only because it is common that the older generations in our society are more likely to be against this â€Å"new† LGBT â€Å"trend† as they say. Only enforcing that as the generations increase it is becoming more accepted.All of this research has shown me that there is more to being a Hijra then what many of us know or think we know. It is something one must truly want and it is a decision you have to stick with no matter how challenging times may get. Works Cited: Ambujablue's Channel, . â€Å"Documentary . † Youtube . N. p. , 2008. Web. 1 9 Mar 2012. . Chisel, Jasmonae. â€Å"The Hijras of India†. Xavier University. Voice Lab no. 9. WorldPress. com Gueste0d1c4, India. N. p. , 2009. Web. 19 Mar 2012. . Meena Balaji and Ruth Lor Malloy. â€Å"Hijras: who we are† Think Asia, 1997. 32 pgs. Print. Nanda, Serena. â€Å"The Hijras of India. †Ã‚  Journal of Homosexuality  (1986): 35-54. Web. Reddy, Gayatri. â€Å"With Respect to Sex: Negotiating Hijra Identity in South India†. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago, 2005. 78-98. Print. Reddy, Gayatri. ‘Men’ Who Would Be Kings: Celibacy, Emasculation, and the Re-Production of Hijras in Contemporary Indian Politics. Social Research; Spring2003, Vol. 70 Issue 1. Print.

Analyze the Ways in Which British Imperial Policies

Analyze the ways in which British imperial policies between 1763 and 1776 intensified colonial resistance to British rule and their commitment to republican values. As generations grew up in America, nationalism within the colonies grew towards their new country. These settlers slowly lost their patriotic tie to Great Britain and it’s ruler, King George III. So when the French and Indian War ended in America, and the indebted England needed some compensation from American settlers in the form of taxes, the colonists questioned the authority of England and their ability to rule them. British imperial policies such as the Sugar Act of 1764 and the Townshend Tea Tax caused uproar within the colonies against British rule without colonial representation. This caused unrest and gave rise to republicanistic ideas of an America with political leaders who were chosen instead of born into power. The more taxes Britain sent to America, the more protest was started against their policies. They argued that without colonial representation in Parliament, the government could enforce the taxes legally without taking away their natural rights. Parliament responded with the idea of a virtual representation in Parliament that spoke for all of the king’s subjects. This gave rise to the phrase ‘No taxation without representation,’ which became a rallying point for unhappy colonists against British oppression. Many Americans refused to follow the orders given in policies such as the Quartering Act which required colonists to feed and shelter British soldiers who were stationed in America; and protested the Navigation Laws which deferred colonial trade to Great Britain to gain profit by supporting nonimportation and petitions. As a result, the Sugar Act was reduced and the Stamp Act completely removed within the colonies due to the colonists active disagreement to the use of authority to tax the colonists unlawfully, or so they thought. In England, the British citizens were being taxed just as much, if not more, than the colonists to help pay for the past wars expenses. When Parliament passed a new policy on tea which was harder to resist, the colonists were infuriated. Protests in the streets against the British soldiers for this Townshend Tea Tax led to the first bloodshed early in the Revolution. The â€Å"Boston Massacre† was the killing of eleven citizens on the streets of Boston when a group of sixty colonists led by Crispus Attucks were protesting the new act. The news of this slaughter was spread throughout the colonies by the Committees of Correspondence set up by a rich politician named Samuel Adams. These committees made it possible for information on everything resistance-related to reach all of the colonies in due time. In this way was news of the Boston Massacre spread across the United States which created outrage across the country. As tea was shipped to America under the new tea tax, rebellion stirred in Boston. Colonists disguised themselves and pillaged the trade ships, ruining millions of dollars worth of tea. In response to this, Parliament passed the ‘Intolerable Acts’ which outraged the colonists even further by closing the Boston ports, placing Massachusetts under royal authority, and allowing the Catholic French to settle along the Ohio River Valley under the new policies. Thus continued Parliament to colonist battle as the First Continental Congress met to discuss their rights as subjects under the king and announce the changes they wanted made in the Declaration of Rights which argued that the natural rights of man were being taken away from them under the royal ruling. This was ignored by the British which increased the discontent of overseas authority to the colonial people who called for a change in power. British imperial policies such as the Sugar Act of 1764 and the Townshend Tea Tax caused uproar within the colonies against British rule without colonial representation. This caused unrest and gave rise to republicanistic ideas of an America with political leaders who were chosen instead of born into power. The colonists cried out against their denial of rights as citizens and unjust ruling. These policies increased protest and political disapproval throughout the colonies in a rebellious atmosphere of resistance

Final exam economics Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Final exam economics - Assignment Example --True 37. The â€Å"Swedish model† of providing maximum income security was a major factor in causing Sweden’s GDP per capita to increase relative to that of other European countries and the U.S. after the 1960s and 1970s. --True 48. Today, the U.S., with 5 percent of world population, produces 22 percent of world GDP; while Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, with 7 percent or world population, produce 6 percent of world GDP. --True 66. Among the factors leading to the decline of the planned socialist economies are lack of technological progress, diminishing returns to capital, inefficiency, problems with incentives, and the complexity of planning. --True 70. Economists believe that differences in initial conditions, policy measures, and environmental factors are important determinants of differences in economic performance among transition economies. --True 99. Although private-sector employment as a percentage of total employment varied widely among transition economies in the early stages of transition, in later stages there has been very little variation in relative private-sector employment.

The Current Economic Performance of Brazil Essay

The Current Economic Performance of Brazil - Essay Example The United Kingdom is one of the most important members of the European Union due to its political as well as economic significance. In order to initiate a Greenfield project in the UK, following factors may be taken into consideration: UK is going through one of the toughest economic periods in its history due to the credit crisis which emerged from the US. However, its performance in the recent past has been credible due to its consistent growth rates achieved over the period of time. From 2003 to 2007, it achieved an average growth rate of 2.7% whereas inflation has remained under 2% during the period. (Economist.com, 2008). The exchange rate parity between the US dollar and UK pound has remained under control too as the average exchange rate during 2007 remained at 0.5GBP per US Dollar. The upcoming forecasts regarding the performance of the UK’s economy are not favourable as many analysts have projected a negative growth in GDP for the year 2009. UK’s population is over 65 million with an average age of 39 years. Out of this population, 65% of the population belongs to the working class in which almost 52% of the population lives in the age group of up to 40 years. (The Times 100, 2008) What is also important to note that a larger chunk of the UK’s population is ageing, therefore, it has been anticipated that there may be a shortage of young employable population. It is also critical to note that the UK has adopted a very lenient immigration policy which allowed it to enjoy one of the largest immigration population in the region. This also, however, provides it with a readily available pool of employable population at relatively lower cost.

Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 97

Assignment - Essay Example The website offered self-evaluation platform where I filled my thoughts on different issues. At the end of the trial, I realized I was strong in my vision but inferior in courage. My assessment outcomes were as follows. Vision 4.3, Ethics 3.9, Reality 3.5, Courage 3.2. The grading is on a scale of, five as the most developed and one the least developed leadership trait. According to the outcome, I am focused, understanding and intellectually creative towards meeting my goals. I am confident about new experiences and welcome change. The worst paper part is that I fear responsibility and consequences for my choices. The result of the assessments has made revolutionary changes in the way I perceive things. I for once never thought I was such a visionary person. I believe in the common good of all but never thought it was such strong. The realization that I am a person bestowed with a visionary mind has made me feel so good about myself. I fell I can become a leader and guide people, according to my vision. I feel superior when I see my high points being visionary since all great personalities I have read about in history were people of great ideas. However, my downside is weightier than my strength. How am I going to become a leader if I fear responsibility? Leadership is all about responsibility. If I have to lead, I will take the responsibility of others and shoulder them as they were my own, yet I am not strong enough. Lack of courage chills me and makes me feel belittled. I am having difficulties between advocating my vision and fighting my courage. I have a strong urge to achieve, but I fea r failure. When I look at my closest strength Ethics, I relate it to the vision and see a great leader. Leadership based on ethics is more beautiful than fairy tales. Ethics is the guiding principles of leadership (Bondas, 2006). Without ethics, one is subject to become a dictator or insensitive of others feelings. My personal values have saved me uncountable

Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 6

Economics - Essay Example b. The Fed fund rate averages at 7.10% during the 1970s, 9.97% during the 1980s, 5.15% during the 1990s, and 3.25% during the 2000-2007. The huge differences in the means of Fed fund rates can be explained by the differences in economic and monetary policies adhered by the different chairmen of the Federal Reserve. c. The Fed fund rate reached its maximum during January 1981 at 19.08% which is during the administration of Paul Volcker. Compared to the other Federal Reserve chairman, Volcker has been reputed as an inflation hawk who is more concerned on fighting inflation compared to a dove whose main concern is unemployment. This perception requires him to set the Fed fund rate at higher levels to fight stagflation. d. Fed fund rate is lowest during December 2003 at 0.98% due to the strong performance of the US economy. In fact this period saw the strongest economic development in the economy in nearly two decades. It can be recalled that during this period, the inflation targeting monetary policy has been adopted by the US. f. The Federal fund rate and ten-year Treasury bill rates tend to move apart as shown in the graph above. It should be noted that increases in Fed fund rates is simultaneous with declines in ten-year Treasury bill rates. g. The Federal Reserve solely influences the level of Fed fund rate. It should be noted that this is set during Federal Open Market Committee meetings depending on the agenda and economic situation of the United States. h. The ten-year Treasury bill rate is set by different variables in the economy like the real interest rates and inflation. The Fed can indirectly influence T-bill rates by affecting the monetary variables mentioned

Where would Globalization be without Outsourcing Essay

Where would Globalization be without Outsourcing - Essay Example Globalization driven by trade has reached at an unprecedented pace (Wild and Han, 2009). It has laid down the path of creating new opportunities that contribute in accelerating economic growth and reduce the level of poverty. The liberalization of some of the developing countries has not translated into qualitative gains. The gains from trade in less developed countries are still not sufficient. The costs of globalization driven by trade may be unsustainable and therefore the inequalities will tend to rise further which is indeed a matter of concern. As a result the countries are becoming prone to external shocks. In order to benefit from globalization a sustainable environment is needed to be created in the context of differentiated trade policy and development landscape. The international trading system has witnessed several changes under the globally recognized challenges. The trading system has recognized the structural as well as the economic challenges that are faced by the dev eloping countries.... The process of globalization called for many multinational corporations and the control of the nation states over the economy kept on diminishing. These corporations integrate the national economies with global linkages. They have expanded drastically and the top 500 companies control a major percentage of global GNP (Lim, 2005). With the advent of new technologies at rapid rates, the whole global economy under the process of globalization is now linked. The neoliberal agenda of globalization offers minimalist for the nation states. It seems that the nation states are left with no other choice but to surrender to the demands of globalization. Some experts disagree on the diminishing role of the states. They opined that the states still play a dominant role in shaping the economy. They put forwarded the view that states implement the policies of opening up the economies to the international markets which indicates the states have the potential to manage the responses to globalization. So it can be concluded the role of the states are limited in shaping economies. Some look at the nation states as pivotal institutions and argue that globalization has only altered the situation under which the states can exercise their power (Held and McGrew, 2007). Recent developments in supra-national institutions The rules of the supranational institutions are considered superior than the national law. The demand for supranational governance tends to rise with the rise in density of international governance. In order to increase the credibility of commitment one of the logical ways is to develop supranational bodies that involves itself in resolving conflicts as well as monitor the regulations. There have been some recent notable

707 discussion 2 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

707 discussion 2 - Assignment Example In addition, tethered PHR also offers patients’ access to medical information and can therefore promote self-care for better quality of health (Health IT, 2013). PHR influence health information exchange though provision of data bank on a patient’s information, from a patient’s records. It therefore promotes communication between a patient and healthcare personnel, with the patient as the source of information. An electronic health record, however, is a maintained database by healthcare facility that uses electronic systems and offers access of the information to authorized care personnel or care facilities. The system therefore facilitates exchange of among healthcare facilities, departments, or healthcare personnel. Consequently, PHR has the advantage of facilitated communication for diagnosis and timely care delivery (Health IT, 2013) while electronic health records has the advantages of minimizing chances of medical mistakes and ensuring appropriate care through updating care personnel (Medicare, n.d.). The main disadvantage of PHR is its limited scope of information transfer and possible unreliability of information source , a patient who may lack medical expertise, while the main disadvantage of electronic health records is possible breach of confidentiality and privacy due to information access by multiple personnel and at multiple access points. Health IT. (2013). Are there different types of personal health records (PHRs)? Health IT. Retrieved from:

Argument-driven essay Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Argument-driven essay - Research Paper Example Sadly, both ideologies set back the feminist cause by a number of years due to the way the satire has become not only a part of pop culture, but a part of the ideology of our society. That is why I am writing this paper with the full intention of exposing the damage done by the skit to the post-feminist ideologies and the various ways that feminism is portrayed in the political arena. My main argument is that the show has done irreparable damage to the image of women as future political leaders of the world in ways that one could never have imagined to be possible. It was Durham and Keller who mentioned the relation of media to popular culture in their book Media and Cultural Studies: Keywords. They explained that: â€Å"Forms of media culture like television film, popular music, magazines, and advertising provide role and gender models, fashion hints, lifestyle images, and icons of personality. The narratives of media culture offer patterns of proper and improper behavior, moral me ssages, and ideological conditioning, sugar coating social and political ideas with pleasurable and seductive forms of popular entertainment† (Durham & Keller, xv). ... They managed to make fun of one woman, while clearly exalting the other in what turned out to be a simultaneous process for the two actors. Tina Fey characterized Sara Palin like a red-neck hillbilly who got to where she was in life solely because luck was on her side. The woman, from the portrayal of Fey, is shown to be blessed to have been in the right place at the right time, which is why it did not matter that she was weak when it came to political matters. It was expected of her since she came from the Alaskan backwoods. It was a stroke of luck and opportunity that afforded her the chance to get ahead politically without really having to pay her dues towards the support of the post feminism political agenda. On the other hand, Amy Pohler portrayed Hillary Clinton as a clear supporter of the post-feminist agenda meant to strengthen the political station of women in our society. The strength and weaknesses of both women were highly played up during the skit which is why the public came to view Sara Palin as a joke who just got lucky in the world of politics while Hillary worked very hard to get the respect and acceptance that she deserved in the political arena. The ideology that the skit promoted the perception that â€Å"... all cultural texts have distinct biases, interests, and embedded values, reproducing the point of view of their producers and often, the values of the dominant social groups. â€Å" (Durham & Kelner, xiv). Clearly, the skit anted to promote the post-feminist cause in the skit. But they were not sure as to which message they wanted to clearly share which is why they tried to the fair thing and simply put both post-feminist ideologies out there for society to decide upon. These

Leadership and Management in Nursing Essay Example for Free

Leadership and Management in Nursing Essay Nursing is a very demanding and dedicated profession and the current shortage is a serious problem at all levels of nursing and is the dearth of leaders among nurses. Leadership and management are essential skills for all qualified healthcare professionals and have a pivotal role in ensuring a delivery of high standards of care. Developing future nurse leaders is one of the greatest challenges faced by the nursing profession, (Mahoney, 2001). The author is currently working as a midwife in one of the big hospitals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The average deliveries per month are 500-600. There are 22 midwives in this unit and there are eight vacant posts for midwives . Due to the shortage of midwives, these professional staffs are subjected to personal and work related stress. Preston et, al. (1981) defined stress as an adaptive response, mediated by individual characteristics or psychological processes. The negative effects of stress could be evident in staff absenteeism, hostility, and aggression. This will impair the provision of quality care and the effective functioning of the organization. (Healy amp; McKay, 1999). The adverse effect of workload and stress in the author’s placement has lead to an alarming high staff turnover. Apparently, the increased workload has affected the staff performances and the quality of nursing care. When the staff feel that they are not cared for, then they find it difficult to care for patients ( Atwater amp; Bass 1994, Lancaster 1999). In this assignment, the author will explore the various leadership styles and their theories and also distinguish the functions between leadership and management. The author will also critically explore the manager’s leadership practice in labor and delivery suite, thus creating a culture of reducing stress. The link of leadership style from the aspect of work, environment, communication, empowerment, delegation, implications, conclusion and recommendations will be discussed further. Leaders are not someone who holds top position but also able to give assistance to others, (Mahoney, 2001). Whereas in my placement, the head nurse, who is the leader, never gives a helping hand during the deliveries. She anticipates the midwives to conduct and manage the deliveries, even though there’s shortage of staff. The nurse manager has to prepare the correct number of staff on each shift with the credentials to do the job and must be aware of the policies regarding overtime, floating from one unit to another. She must form a competent team and manage them to carry out the plan for reaching the goal of excellent patient care. Effective leaders are not merely someone who is skillful but they must acquire good attitudes, (Cook, 2001). The nurse manager must understand the factors surrounding the current situation in the unit and have the knowledge of various approaches to leadership that will help to understand and determine the best leadership approach to create a positive work environment to reduce stress. Leadership is defined as the ability to influence, inspire and motivate a group of people towards the achievement of its goal, (Yuki, 2002). Management is a process of getting things done effectively through planning and organization of services which is one of the basic function of management whereas the leader is an intermediary between work group and the top management, (Marquis and Huston, 2006). The manager uses a formal and rational method whilst the leader uses passions and stirs emotions. Without enabling and empowering nursing leadership, efforts to improve the quality and safety of healthcare will be limited and short-lived, as said by Kelly (2008). For a leader to achieve the goal, she must have the three essential things which are power, authority and influence to act in a way that will stimulate a positive respond from the staff (Tomey, 2009). Leaders will emerge when nurses feel valued and inspired to strive for excellence. They aim to improve patient care via a cohesive work force by focusing on interpersonal relationships between leaders and subordinates, (Malby 1997). A nursing leader should have a distinctive set of personal qualities, integrity, courage, initiative, ability to handle stress, think critically, able to resolve problems without conflicts, skillful communication and must be empathetic. They are not those who control others but they act as visionaries who help staff to plan, lead, control and organize their activities, (Jooste,2004). There are many types of leadership. Autocratic type of leaders are those who make all decisions and expect others to follow without questioning and never seek advice from others, (Sullivan amp; Decker 2005). This situation had made some of the midwives to leave for greener pastures. The current health system has advanced in technology and improved in care giving services (Cook, 2001). The author feels that this leadership style is no longer tenable and fits into the contemporary nursing practice and a consumer responsive culture. Democratic leaders encourage the participant of staff and use a consensus for decision making, (Sullivan amp; Decker 2005) whereas bureaucratic leadership occurs when a leader rigidly adheres to rules, regulations and policies of the organization, (Jenkins and Henderson, 1984). Instead of providing sufficient support and consideration, my nurse manager demonstrates these leadership qualities because she uses rules and policies thus expecting strict compliance from the midwives. . By following the organizational hierarchy’s influence, she puts herself in a high position but never use her power constructively (Masquis amp; Huston, 2006). Due to top management instructions, she adheres to the current policies, making no changes in them but gives verbal instruction and changing policies to her likes and dislikes. This swifts away trust and open communications between the manager and the midwives. Due to unvented stress and high expectations from the nurse manager, the midwives burnout level have been exacerbated . Burnout is a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and lack of personal accomplishment, as said by Maslach amp;Jackson (1981). Reports have proved that in this kind of environment, patient’s safety is at risk (Institute of Medicine, 2004). Participative leadership allows staff to participate in decision making and actively seek out the participation of those involved. This type of leadership allows staff to feel more committed to the goals they were involved (Faugier amp; Woolnough, 2002). The author feels that the head nurse should have these qualities so that the unit will run smoothly, and the staff will be appreciated and acknowledged so that good nursing care can be rendered. Transformational leadership is especially well suited for today’s fast changing healthcare environment where adaptation is extremely important (Welford,2002). It starts with the development of a vision that will excite and convert potential followers, (Outhwaite, 2003). To achieve organizational success, this style advocates for strong leadership qualities and these leaders use motivation in their approach than use rewards and punishment as said by Kouzes amp; Posner (2002). In the author’s point of view, this leadership is proposed as empowering leadership style which well suits in my unit and to be recognized by the nurse manager. According to Bowles amp; Bowels (2002), transformational leaders create a leadership culture for all team members nurturing empowerment, increase their autonomy and open communication for inclusive decision making. The nurse manager takes responsibilities for discussing care related matters with the midwives which makes them to be motivated and work more effectively to contribute to the development and provision of the unit, (Murphy. 2005). The ability of the leader to articulate a shared vision is an important aspect of transformational leadership (Faugier amp; Woolnough, 2002). Another leadership style is transactional leadership which focuses on providing day to day care between leaders and their employee. It aims to maintain equilibrium and harmony by using incentives to enhance staff loyalty and performance (Bass and Riggio, 2006). Laissez faire leadership is another style that leaves the staff alone to work with no directions or facilitations and is a highly risky form of leadership, (Sullivan amp; Decker 2005). Since the author’s placement is labor and delivery, it’s not advisable to have this kind of leader in this unit as it will increase the mortality rate. The high level of burnout and increased workload due to shortage of midwives and less rest days has resulted them to leave. This disequilibrium may trigger the risk of physical and mental health of these midwives. The manager has depleted the nurses basic psychological needs which are rest and sleep and at the same time reducing their self- esteem, as said in Maslow’s theory of human motivation. The leader should explore barriers and identify conflicts when they arise and collaborate with the team and be able to understand the employee’s perspective (Outhwaite,2003). A more effective form of leadership maybe situational leadership where the leader switches the style depending upon the situation at hand and upon the competence of the staff, (Faugier amp; Woolnough, 2002). The nurse manager must be good clinician and have judgment skills to handle any problem that cannot be handled by the staff. By doing so, the staff will listen to her as she guides them. Communication also plays a vital role as this can prevent conflict and smoothes the progress of team building in the unit Calpin-Davies, (2000). A good communicator gives the staff detailed instructions to perform tasks that are necessary to reach the goal. The nurse manager uses a communication book to provide important information to all the staff in the unit, as supported by Sullivan amp; Decker (2005). By reading and acknowledging with a signature, she assures the message has been reached effectively. As a leader, the nurse manager has to be a good listener. It provides the opportunity to receive valuable feedback that is used to avert some problems and resolve others and also giving greater understanding of the issues being discussed. When there are incidences in the unit, the nurse manager gives a listening ear to the staff and tries to solve the problems. She puts aside preconceived ideas or prejudices when listening to staff. Being a leader, the nurse manager delegates some of the tasks to the staff to focus on more complex aspects of running the unit. She delegates the right task to the right person, for example sending and collecting of narcotics by the midwife as these drugs used are cautioned in Saudi Arabia. A good leader fosters a congenial work environment by coaching, praising and training the staff to perform an excellent job and also by conducting continuous nursing education. Supervision goes in the observation of staff and to evaluate in the yearly performance appraisal. The author would recommend that the nurse manager in this unit has to change her leadership style to She should resources for proper quality care Conclusion Today, healthcare environment requires leaders to be skillful and knowledgeable and have strong inspirational leadership qualities across the health care organization. In this millennium, nursing must make a dedicated effort to nurture its young nurses to grow into effective and motivating leaders.

Objectives of sustainable development

Objectives of sustainable development Introduction The UK construction industry has undergone an unprecedented change in construction technology. Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) have been invented and are increasingly being used. With regard to residential apartment blocks, up to the 1980s greater emphasis was being placed on economy of construction rather than sustainability and lifestyles. Since 1980s, factors such as (i) the speed of construction (ii) sustainability (ii) flexible use of space. The need for rapid construction has led to more use of off-site prefabrication to reduce time spent on site and increase cost-effectiveness. The advancement of construction technology has also benefited from Government policies particularly relating to sustainable development. Perhaps one of the most significant initiatives of the UK Government to encourage sustainable construction was the setting op of the â€Å"Construction Task Force† by the Deputy Prime Minister Mr John Prescott. The task force, which comprised Sir Michael Lathum and Sir John Egan, produced a report ‘Rethinking construction (Egan, 1998). This report became influential in making Government policy. Sir John Egan argued that the use of standardization, prefabrication and innovation would improve the sustainability of the construction industry in the UK. Egan also compared construction to a manufacturing process where improvements are always sustained. The report recommended the use of prefabrication and standardization in building work as a method of achieving value of money, better value for clients and other users. Such an approach is now favoured by most people in the building industry, especially in house building. The use of modern methods of construction allows homes to be built more quickly and efficiently. Modern methods also improve site safety and supplement skilled workmanship where there may be shortages. Nevertheless, modern methods of construction have some disadvantages compared to traditional methods in that construction costs are relatively higher and also some section the public may object to futuristic building designs that go against what they are used to. Developers using MMC may need to be accredited to certain regulating authorities (such as NHBC in the UK) to ensure high quality and durability of their materials. Prefabrication Review-History of MMC Prefabrication was used in UK during periods of high dement, as after the world wars and the slum clearances in 1960s. The technical success of many of these systems was shadowed by social failing of high-rise living. In the 20th century about a million prefabricated houses were build. Most technical problems which were experienced were related to materials and poor workmanship. Prefabricated systems have been used in many public building in UK and other European Countries. The UK parliamentary office of Science and Technology studies showed (MORI poll, 2001) negative attitudes pre-fabrication were result of a big published disaster problem in the 60s. In mid of 1990s interest of UK was significant based system (e.g. roof trusses, steel frames etc) but the complete system of housing development was little, using relatively unskilled labour has been the predominant of UK house building. Off-site Review Government reports suggest that modern methods of construction (MMC) could be part of the solution to improve the quality of housing (Baker 2003). The industry has been slow to develop innovative building technologies, according to Ball and Barrow (1999). Many studies of modern methods of construction have taken the approach of promoting off-site applications without considering all the issues (Roy et al. 2003). The off-site processes help reduce the project construction time. Bakers review 2003 In 2003 the UK Government appointed Sir Martin Baker to review and report on the economic and social impacts of home building. The review examined affordability of homes in the UK. The Government is encouraging modern methods of construction (MMC) and increased supply of homes. One of Bakers highlights (2003) is that it challenges the home building industry to change construction to satisfy housing needs. Planning new levels of housing stock been based on demographic trends (Baker 2004). Benefits of MMC involve the manufacture of homes in factories, which is the faster construction. Evidence-Audits report The Commission for Architecture and Build Environment (CABE) has been investigate for the scope for building more quickly using modern methods of construction (MMC). The objective criteria of the audits, they are open to criticism them also some in house building industry criticized which schemes are determined ‘good or ‘average. In 2005 the modern methods of cost might be higher, it was report and it was possible to: Reduce the construction of houses on-site To build home up to four times with the same amount of on-site labour The performance should be also good as for home build in traditional way. During the twentieth century The new building in the UK (1996) were smaller 13% than the existing stock compared to the European countries houses that were largest that order ones. The size of a new home it was roughly 15.m2, the smallest in the Western Europe and the other European countries tend to be 20 m2 and 30 m2. In the 1981-2001 a particular in new buildings is roughly 20% smaller than the typical pre-1919 home. A combination of social in 1950s, economical and political factors renewed to construct housing system (Boverker,2004). Modern Methods of construction-Embodied carbon The most serious threat to human society that has created itself is climate change. In the 1750s the global atmospheric concentrations of greenhouses gases, carbon dioxide (CO2). The building construction is a substantial contributor of global CO2. Global emissions attributable to energy use in buildings with quarter of total CO2. An important goal for the Government climate police is the reducing of energy and carbon emissions attributed to buildings. In housing construction standard embodied energy is equivalent to a few years of energy; there are some exceptions to low energy buildings. Embodied carbon is important for low energy buildings, because less energy is used in occupation, and additional energy required for the insulation level, energy consumed in the construction materials, transport and installation. However the embodied carbon of low energy house is to contribute a better proportion of lifecycle carbon emissions during the building lifetime than a convention house. Many of the benefits of Modern methods of construction for housing are contentious and unproven. The manufacture suggest of the Government of MMC are: Environment- houses can be more energy efficient, less transport of materials and produce less waste. Social- fewer accidents and less impact during construction. Economic- MMC can be build more quickly. Overview of MMC-Types Modern methods of construction its a term to saw a number of construction methods. In the UK, the methods that being introduced in the building industry significant from so-called construction methods such as brick and block. The MMC was debated in the industry and was no universally agreed definition. The housing corporation that is used for its own purposes in 2003 is a published construction classification system (table 1). Housing corporation construction 1. Off-site manufactured -Volumetric 2. Off-site manufactured -Panelized 3. Off-site manufactured-Hybrid 4. Off-site manufactured -Sub-assemblies and components 5. Non Off-site manufactured construction Other terms of describing the MMC, is the factory building assembled, industrialized construction, innovative systems constructed on-site and pre-fabrication construction. The sectors of the modern methods of construction have five categories used by the housing corporation: off-site manufactured volumetric, three dimensions units produced in the factory, fully fitted out before being transported in the site. The majority of off-site manufactured volumetric construction in the UK to date has been used in housing. Modules may be delivered to site in variety of forms; volumetric off-site brings all the critical activities to the structure to a factory based environment which ensures better quality control. Light steel frame off-site techniques are more used to the traditional construction methods and are used in all sectors of constructions industry. Light steel offers better quality control and reduction in waste. Off-site manufactured-panellised construction is flat panel units build in factory, fully fitted out before being transported to site, panellised systems such as walls, roofs, floors and it consists two types of panels, open panels when assembled forms a skeleton structure and are usually timber or frame and closed panels may include internal lining materials. Off-site manufactured-hybrid is the combination of panellised and volumetric systems, is used to create the skeleton of the structure and volumetric units are used for the bathrooms and the kitchens. The environmental impact of MMC products sector were assessed including timber frame, timber frame with straw bale. A hybrid construction is a panellised system and is good design for economy. There are many manufactured of panellished systems and volumetric. Precast concrete is a construction material where concrete is cast mold which is the cured in a controlled environment, transported to the construction site and lifted into pl ace. Barriers of MMC Some MMC homes builders are less expensive that the traditional methods of construction, increased cost about 7-10%. The reasons of different cost (higher) are difficult to discern because most of projects traditional masonry buildings cost widely. The cost apper high because in the MMC, there are different used of benefits such as better quality of construction, fewer accidents and reflect in project account MMC is the faster construction buildup to 50% and thus reducing labour costs. Capacity is a barrier of increasing the number of houses using MMC. In the two categories difficulties fall: factory capacity to manufacture parts and shortage of skills. Historical overview of sustainable development A great number of civilizations in human history it had been recognized the need of harmony between the society, the environment and the economy. More to the point, sustainable development is a very old idea that focuses, on improving the quality of life without exceeding the environmental supplies of natural resources. Unfortunately despite the predictions, the concept of sustainability gained momentum in 1980s when the problem became extremely obvious (Kenny, M., Meadowcroft, J., (1999). In 1973 was the first time that United Nations discussed about environmental solutions in Stockholm (Langton, C., A., Ding, G., K., C., (2001). Subsequently, the ideas discussed again in the World Conservation Strategy and new strategies were adopted by the governments of fifty countries but with very small practical impact. In 1983 the United Nations created the Worlds Commission in Environment and Development (WCED) and in 1987 they published a report in sustainable development with the name â€Å"Our common future† also known as the Brundtland Report (Langton, C., A., Ding, G., K., C., (2001). According to Langton, C., A., Ding, G., K., C., (2001) this report had critically signaled the rush of thinking for a second time the ways of governing and living as also the need of international coordination and cooperation. In 1992 in Rio Conference was the first time that the worlds leaders discussed about the future of the planet and agreed to set out principles to achieve sustainable development. The major agreement of this meeting was a 900 page program of actions with steps towards sustainable development at international levels. In 1997 the Kyoto climate summit set targets for the industrial countries in order to bring their gas emissions 5% below 1990 levels by 2012. Pioneering ways must be found to ensure that individual behavior and institutional structures will change targets, towards a sustainable future and will understand the consequences of inaction. Sustainable concept To begin with, it can be critically mentioned that the sustainable development should take into consideration the potential impacts on three main sectors, the environmental, the social and the economic; as it has been advised from Munasinghe (1993). Essentially, he advocated that, the natural habitats, the people, and the economy are interrelated and should be managed as a one. Therefore, the environmental approach it can be claimed that is so to protect the biological features, the social concept is to stabilize the cultural system and the economic approach are to maximize the income and preserve the stock of resources (Munasinghe, 1993).Ultimately, it would be imperative to append that some more important concepts in sustainable development are the futurity the equity and the irreversibility. Table 3 provides further details as per those important concepts. Further Important Concepts: Futurity: concern is given not only for the short term horizon, but also for the long term that affect the future generations. Equity: Emphasis is given to the least advantaged in society in order to provide their needs and a fair treatment. Irreversibility: Some types of environmental degradation are not possible to be restored by human ingenuity. Source: Based on Strange, T., Bayley, A., (2008) Objectives of sustainable development Taking into consideration all of the above, hence explicit information that academic definitions are providing; the reviewed literature suggests that numerous previous empirical studies have been conducted based on main advantages supported as a result of the sustainable developments up to date. Economy: Sustainable development is so to promote an economy that improves environmental quality and meet peoples needs. Energy: Reduction of energy use to suitable levels and encouragement of the consumers to spend less energy. Land use: The main concern is to minimize the loss of rural land and to maintain the viability of town centers Forestry: The main issue is the management of forests in a way that sustains their ecological qualities and their productive potentials. Climate change: The key objective is the limitation of gas emissions that contribute to climate change and global warming. Air quality: Key issues: reduction of pollutant emissions in order to improve local air quality and chemical pollution control especially in urban areas. Mineral extraction: The main objective is the minimization of the environmental harm from mineral extraction by the efficient use of materials. Waste materials: Sustainable Waste management can decrease the amount of waste production. The hierarchy of waste management options start with the reduction of waste materials, it then goes to the re-use and finally to disposal. Raw materials The raw materials inputs change depending upon the systems of MMC being factored. Common raw materials including metal, board materials, timber, concrete, class wool insulation. Off-cuts of these materials typically end up as waste within the factory environment. Timber is a raw and recycled material, timber panel products are usually kept separate from the clean timber as they are currently different to recycle. Steel is readily recycled material, due to its value established recycling routes. Also glass wool insulation is potentially recyclable Raw materials are often packaged and it is this packaging that ends up as waste. Packaging wastes have various waste management routes depending on the individual manufacturer. Modern methods of construction are about better product and processes. They aim improve business efficiency, quality environmental performance, sustainability and the predictability. MMC are more broadly based that a particular focus on product MMC should make it possible to build more with the same amount of on-site labor.MMC other than open panel techniques continue to be slightly more expensive than more established techniques but the cost ranges for different techniques overlap substantially, in any particular set of conditions in MMC could be as cost-effective as brick and block or more cost effective. Sustainable development definition One of the most popular definitions for sustainable development was given in Brundtland report (1995): â€Å"Sustainable is the development that meets the needs of the present without comprising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs† (Kirby, J, OKeefe, P., Timberlake L., 1995). This definition indicates that an activity can be considered sustainable if it doesnt exhaust the natural resources and doesnt have serious impacts to the environment that the future generations will inherit. For instance, if the ozone layer is destroyed, if the green-house gases build up, if the natural resources are exhausted and if water and air are polluted, it is reasonably obvious that this generation dont give the ability to the next one to support their selves. Sustainable development can be considered as: A theoretical framework: a method that will make the world more balanced and holistic. A process: techniques to apply the principles of integration to all decision. A target: methods of fixing the problems Sustainable construction Sustainable construction focuses on the issues of procurement, assembly and Procurement: The processes of procurement introduce the objectives that the contractors must have during the construction. These objectives may include environmental commissioning. It consist matters like site planning, tendering, selection of materials, recycling and waste minimization (Smith, P., F., (2007). standards and reporting requirements. Assembly: The assembly activities are managed by the contractors in order to contribute to the ecological performance. It consist issues as the excavation methods, the reduction of noise, the disposal of wastes and storm-water containment. Commissioning: It gives information of how the design will operate in the future. It should relate performance specifications and maintenance methods. In order the environmental performance of the construction to be improved, the site operatives and the supervisors should have a proper training (Smith, P., F., (2007).

Greece :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Greece Geography So you want to know about Greece? Here are some highlights! Also check out the links to other sites about Greece. On this Page: †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Key Facts †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Geographic Landmarks †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Points of Interest †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Major Industries †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Historical Highlights †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Population and Culture †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Books about Greece †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Links to other sites about Greece Other related pages: †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  World Geography Index †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ancient Greece Key Facts  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page Greece is one of the oldest civilizations, dating back over 5000 years. Population: 10 million people Geographic size: 51,000 square miles Capital: Athens Major cities and population: Athens, Patra, Piraeus, Larisa and Salonica Geographic Landmarks  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page Much of Greece is mountainous and rocky terrain, with the occasional plain. The Pindus Mountains start in northern Greece and stretch south to the Gulf of Patra. In the southern part of Greece are the Peloponnesus Mountains. About 20% of Greece is made up of islands. Crete is a large island located in the Mediterranean Sea. It is a popular tourist area for its beautiful mountains, coastline, and many ancient ruins.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Most of the people in Greece live along the coast, or along rivers and harbors.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Points of Interest  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page The people of Greece were one of the earliest civilizations. Greece still has many ancient ruins, some over 4000 years old. Greece also has many medieval churchs. This makes Greece a very popular tourist area.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Greece is also well known for its sculptures, paintings, pottery, poetry and playwriting.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Major Industries  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page The land within Greece is not very productive for farming. The Greeks have struggled to build a strong economy. The standard of living in Greece is lower than other European countries. Manufacturing is becoming one of the key industries. Tourism is also very important, particularly along the Aegean Sea coast. Some farming includes wheat, fruits, vegetables, olives and grapes. Some areas support goat and sheep ranching. Fishing also continues to be an important industry.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Historical Highlights  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page Ancient Greece is considered the birthplace of European civilization, dating back over 5000 years. Many of the ancient ruins date back over 4000 years, with some caves showing signs of life over 10,000 years ago. The ancient greek people may have come from northern Africa. Ancient Greece produced many philosophers and scholars, such as Socrates and Plato. These Greeks contributed significantly to our current culture. They created the first democratic government, discovered many scientific principles, and created mathematics. The Greeks also contributed to the artistic community with Homer, who wrote the Iliad and The Odyssey, and other artisans creating sculptures, paintings, pottery, poetry and playwriting. Greece :: essays research papers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Greece Geography So you want to know about Greece? Here are some highlights! Also check out the links to other sites about Greece. On this Page: †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Key Facts †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Geographic Landmarks †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Points of Interest †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Major Industries †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Historical Highlights †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Population and Culture †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Books about Greece †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Links to other sites about Greece Other related pages: †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  World Geography Index †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ancient Greece Key Facts  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page Greece is one of the oldest civilizations, dating back over 5000 years. Population: 10 million people Geographic size: 51,000 square miles Capital: Athens Major cities and population: Athens, Patra, Piraeus, Larisa and Salonica Geographic Landmarks  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page Much of Greece is mountainous and rocky terrain, with the occasional plain. The Pindus Mountains start in northern Greece and stretch south to the Gulf of Patra. In the southern part of Greece are the Peloponnesus Mountains. About 20% of Greece is made up of islands. Crete is a large island located in the Mediterranean Sea. It is a popular tourist area for its beautiful mountains, coastline, and many ancient ruins.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Most of the people in Greece live along the coast, or along rivers and harbors.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Points of Interest  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page The people of Greece were one of the earliest civilizations. Greece still has many ancient ruins, some over 4000 years old. Greece also has many medieval churchs. This makes Greece a very popular tourist area.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Greece is also well known for its sculptures, paintings, pottery, poetry and playwriting.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Major Industries  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page The land within Greece is not very productive for farming. The Greeks have struggled to build a strong economy. The standard of living in Greece is lower than other European countries. Manufacturing is becoming one of the key industries. Tourism is also very important, particularly along the Aegean Sea coast. Some farming includes wheat, fruits, vegetables, olives and grapes. Some areas support goat and sheep ranching. Fishing also continues to be an important industry.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Historical Highlights  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Top of Page Ancient Greece is considered the birthplace of European civilization, dating back over 5000 years. Many of the ancient ruins date back over 4000 years, with some caves showing signs of life over 10,000 years ago. The ancient greek people may have come from northern Africa. Ancient Greece produced many philosophers and scholars, such as Socrates and Plato. These Greeks contributed significantly to our current culture. They created the first democratic government, discovered many scientific principles, and created mathematics. The Greeks also contributed to the artistic community with Homer, who wrote the Iliad and The Odyssey, and other artisans creating sculptures, paintings, pottery, poetry and playwriting.

Its a Neighborhood Bar :: Essays Papers

It's a Neighborhood Bar For a group project assigned in our Advanced Composition class at the University of Arizona, four of us decided to research the Morenci Mine Strike of 1983. When we left Tucson early one morning, we had no idea what to expect. The story was so muddled and had been so misconstrued with the passage of time and the fermentation of emotion, that we started to feel like Scooby Doo and his gang of amateur detectives. We even jokingly started calling my Nissan Altima the "Mystery Machine." I had read about a bar called The Refrigerated Cave in a book by Barbara Kingsolver called Holding the Line, and was interested in learning more about it, so armed with nothing but Morenci-Clifton-Safford phonebook we drove down the main highway in search of it. Our visit to "The Cave" turned out to be one of our most informative stops that day. We saw the sign on the side of the road through the window of the car, but finding the entrance was another story all together. After we pulled into the dirt parking lot, the other three members of my group and I stepped on to a rickety looking wooden bridge and looked over the side. The rushing water below looked to be maybe four inches deep, but the creek bed was completely invisible under the unnatural looking rust colored torrent. On the other side of the bridge, there was a staircase leading to a door, and a path leading around the corner of the building. After deciding that the staircase door looked more like a residence than a bar, we chose to follow the path around the building. Around the corner there the path begins a steep decent to another door with a large square sign over it reading "The Refrigerated Cave." When we walked through the door, I had to blink several times to adjust to the darkness. The bar was all but empty when we entered. It was only about 2:00 in the afternoon, so it was not surprising that there was only one man sitting at the end of bar talking to a female bartender. They were situated in front of a large T.V., maybe sixty inches or more, with horrible reception. The movie Grease was playing and Olivia Newton John and John Travolta were singing about summer days and nights while we surveyed our surroundings.

Made Up Folk Tail :: essays research papers

Ezikeal Yoder was born in a basic Amish community some where in Pennsylvania with Amish parents that absolutely hated the Amish life style. In this town of quiltville Ezikeals parents Jacob and Olga treated him with very un-strict Amish rules they each had a little bit of different views for there son. Jacob wanted him to be live outside of the Amish community. Olga always wanted him to have a better education than work ethic. Both Jacob and Olga did agreed on wanting there son Ezikeal to make his own choices as he grew up. It was no secret to anyone in quiltville that the Yoder family disliked there lifestyle. They really couldn't leave this way of life though because Jacob and Olga knew they wouldn't make it very long in the age of all the new technology. Ezikeal's parents always used to tell little Ezikeal that "we don't want you spend your whole life exactly like an Amish, we want you to decide by your self as long as you follow the very basic ways of the Amish." As yo u can already tell ezikeal would never have a normal life with out much rejection. As Ezikeal grew older he was sent to public schools unlike the rest of the Amish children for the sake of ezikial's parents wanted to expose him to the outside world. The only reason the Yoder couple had the money to send there young son Ezikeal to public schools is because his mother is ranked the 6 th best quilt-maker in the world which makes them also the richest in quilttown. As guessed by Ezikeal's parents he went though school and was constantly made fun of with his full blown Amish beard at the age of five, he was constantly ripped on for always wearing black with a goofy hat. Going though elementary school and junior high Ezickial tried so hard to be normal like his parents wanted him to. Some where in Elementary school Ezikial deciding one day that he no longer wanted to devote his life to the bible and Amish farming life just like his parents. Ezikeal is now the age of 20 something and is a senior in High school still dressing and obeying the basic Amish ways. By this time Ezikeal has decided to completely leave the Amish community. The year is now 1993 and technology is completely changing America while the Amish, there still very bored. Made Up Folk Tail :: essays research papers Ezikeal Yoder was born in a basic Amish community some where in Pennsylvania with Amish parents that absolutely hated the Amish life style. In this town of quiltville Ezikeals parents Jacob and Olga treated him with very un-strict Amish rules they each had a little bit of different views for there son. Jacob wanted him to be live outside of the Amish community. Olga always wanted him to have a better education than work ethic. Both Jacob and Olga did agreed on wanting there son Ezikeal to make his own choices as he grew up. It was no secret to anyone in quiltville that the Yoder family disliked there lifestyle. They really couldn't leave this way of life though because Jacob and Olga knew they wouldn't make it very long in the age of all the new technology. Ezikeal's parents always used to tell little Ezikeal that "we don't want you spend your whole life exactly like an Amish, we want you to decide by your self as long as you follow the very basic ways of the Amish." As yo u can already tell ezikeal would never have a normal life with out much rejection. As Ezikeal grew older he was sent to public schools unlike the rest of the Amish children for the sake of ezikial's parents wanted to expose him to the outside world. The only reason the Yoder couple had the money to send there young son Ezikeal to public schools is because his mother is ranked the 6 th best quilt-maker in the world which makes them also the richest in quilttown. As guessed by Ezikeal's parents he went though school and was constantly made fun of with his full blown Amish beard at the age of five, he was constantly ripped on for always wearing black with a goofy hat. Going though elementary school and junior high Ezickial tried so hard to be normal like his parents wanted him to. Some where in Elementary school Ezikial deciding one day that he no longer wanted to devote his life to the bible and Amish farming life just like his parents. Ezikeal is now the age of 20 something and is a senior in High school still dressing and obeying the basic Amish ways. By this time Ezikeal has decided to completely leave the Amish community. The year is now 1993 and technology is completely changing America while the Amish, there still very bored.

Critical Analysis on Bonded Labour System Analysis Act, 1976

Critical Analysis on Bonded Labour System (abolition) Act, 1976 SALIENT FEATURES OF THE BONDED LABOUR SYSTEM (ABOLITION) ACT, 1976 †¢ This Act provides for the abolition of the system of bonded labour. It freed unilaterally all the bonded labourers from bondage with simultaneous liquidation of their debts. †¢ The Act does away with every obligation of a bonded labourer to repay any bonded debt; it also dispenses with the future liability of repaying a bonded debt.The law provides that (a) no suit or other proceedings shall be instituted in any Civil Court for the recovery of any bonded debt (b) every attachment made before the commencement of the Act for the recovery of any bonded debt shall stand vacated and (c) such movable property shall be restored to the bonded labourer. †¢ The district and sub-divisional magistrates have been entrusted with certain duties/responsibilities towards implementation of statutory provisions.Under Section-13 of the Act, Vigilance Commit tees are required to be constituted at the district and sub-divisional level for implementation of the provisions of the law. They are composite bodies with representatives from different cross sections of the society and have a life of 2 years. †¢ Registers containing the names and addresses of all freed bonded labourers, their vacation, occupation and income, details of the benefits received are required to be maintained under the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Rules. The Act provides for imprisonment up to 3 years and fine up to Rs. 2000/- to whoever compels any person to render any bonded labour and whoever advances any bonded debt. An offence detailed surveys in their States. The same information was submitted to the Supreme Court by the State Governments in the form of affidavits in 1997. ?One ILO project namely â€Å"Prevention of Family Indebtedness with Micro Finance Scheme and Related Services† is being implemented in three States, namely Andhra Pradesh, Tami l Nadu and Karnataka.The objective of the project is to induce existing micro finance institutions to develop, test and offer savings and loan products, particularly tailor-made for vulnerable families at the risk of getting into debt traps. The prime focus of the project is on preventing marginal families from falling into debt bondage and also to ensure sustainable rehabilitation of freed bonded labourers. Based on its experience, a model could be considered for replication or application in other parts of the Country. Liability to repay bonded debt to stand extinguished.On the commencement of this Act, every obligation of a bonded labourer to repay any bonded debt, or such part of any bonded debt as remains unsatisfied immediately before such commencement, shall be deemed to have been extinguished. After the commencement of this Act, no suit or other proceeding shall lie in any civil court or before any other authority for the recovery of any bonded debt or any part thereof. Ever y decree or order for the recovery of bonded debt, passed before the commencement of this Act and not fully satisfied before such commencement, shall be deemed, on such commencement, to have been fully satisfied.Every attachment made before the commencement of this Act, for the recovery of any bonded debt, shall, on such commencement, stand vacated; and, where, in pursuance of such attachment, any movable property of the bonded labourer was seized and removed from his custody and kept in the custody of any court or other authority pending sale thereof, such movable property shall be restored, as soon as may be practicable after such commencement, to the possession of the bonded labourer. Property of bonded labourer to be freed from mortgage, etc.All property vested in a bonded labourer which was, immediately before the commencement of this Act under any mortgage, charge, lien or other encumbrances in connection with any bonded debt shall, in so far as it is relatable to the bonded d ebt, stand freed and discharged from such mortgage, charge, lien or other encumbrances, and where any such property was, immediately before the commencement of this Act, in the possession of the mortgagee or the holder of the charge, lien or encumbrance, such property shall (except where it was subject to any other charge), on such commencement, be restored to the possession of the bonded labourer.If any delay is made in restoring any property, referred to in sub-section (1), to the possession of the bonded labourer, such labourer shall be entitled, on and from the date of such commencement, to recover from the mortgagee or holder of the lien, charge or encumbrance, such mesne profits as may be determined by the civil court of the lowest pecuniary jurisdiction within the local limits of whose jurisdiction such property is situated. Authorities who may be specified for implementing the provisions of this Act. The State Government may confer such powers and impose such duties on a Dis trict Magistrate as may be necessary to ensure that the provisions of this Act are properly carried out and the District Magistrate may specify the officer, subordinate to him, who shall exercise all or any of the powers, and perform all or any of the duties, so conferred or imposed and the local limits within which such powers or duties shall be carried out by the officer so specified.Vigilance Committees. Every State Government shall, by notification in the Official Gazette, constitute such number of Vigilance Committees in each district and each Sub-Division as it may think fit.Each Vigilance Committee, constituted for a district, shall consist of the following members, namely: — (a) the District Magistrate, or a person nominated by him, who shall be the Chairman; (b) three persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes and residing in the district, to be nominated by the District Magistrate; (c) two social workers, resident in the district, to be nominated by the District Magistrate; (d) not more than three persons to represent the official or non-official agencies in the district connected with rural development, to be nominated by the State Government; (e) one person to represent the financial and credit institutions in the district, to be nominated by the District Magistrate. Act to have overriding effect. The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any enactment other than this Act, or in any instrument having effect by virtue of any enactment other than this Act. Agreement, custom, etc. , to be void. – On the commencement of this Act, any custom or tradition or any contract, agreement or other instrument (whether entered into or executed before or after the commencement of this Act), by virtue of which any person, or any member of the family or dependant of such person, is required to do any work or render any service as a bonded labourer, shall be void and inop erative. CONSTRAINTS Bonded Labour System is a dynamic problem; it can occur and reoccur at any point of time in any industry or occupation. †¢ Once the bonded labourers are identified and released, in case they are not immediately rehabilitated, they become even worse off as compared to the situation when they were bonded and were at least able to survive by getting two square meals. †¢ Contrary to the traditional perception that bonded labour is confined to the agricultural sector alone, it can also occur and reoccur in any form of economic activity such as, agriculture, brick-kiln, stone quarries, carpet weaving, pisciculture, etc. , CONSTITUTIONAL AND LEGAL PROVISIONS The Constitution of India guarantees to all its citizens- justice, social, economic and political, freedom of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship, equity of status and opportunity and fraternity, dignity of individual and unity of the Nation. †¢ Under Article 23 of the ConstitutionTraffic in human beings and beggar and other similar forms of forced labour are prohibited and any contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law. †¢ Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Ordinance was promulgated. Which was later on replaced by the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976. CENTRALLY SPONSORED PLAN SCHEME FOR REHABILITATION OF BONDED LABOURIn order to assist the State Governments in their task of rehabilitation of released bonded labourers, the Ministry of Labour launched a Centrally Sponsored Scheme since May, 1978 for rehabilitation of bonded labourers. Under this Scheme rehabilitation assistance of Rs. 20,000/- per freed bonded labour is provided, which is shared by the Central and State Governments on 50:50 basis; in the case of the Seven North Eastern States, 100% central assistance if they express their inability to provide their share. The Scheme also provide for financing of the following activities. †¢ Rs. 2. 00 lakh pe r sensitive district can be provided to concerned state government to conduct survey for identification of bonded labour once in three years. †¢ Central assistance of Rs. 10. 00 lakhs every year can be sanctioned to every tate government to undertake awareness generation activities relating to bonded labour system. †¢ Rs. 5. 00 lakh per year can be sanctioned to every state government to study impact of existing land-debt related issues affecting bonded labourers and the impact of poverty alleviation programmes and financial assistance provided by various Government sources so far. Besides above the States Governments have also been advised to integrate/ dovetail the Centrally Sponsored Scheme for rehabilitation of bonded labour with other ongoing poverty alleviation schemes such as Swaran Jayanti Gram Swa Rojgar Yojana (SJGSRY), Special Component Plan for Supreme Court, Tribal Sub-Plan etc.Accordingly, the rehabilitation package provided by the concerned Stated Government s for the freed bonded labourers includes the following major components: (i) Allotment of house-site and agricultural land; (ii) Land development; (iii) Provision of low cost dwelling units; (iv) Animal husbandry, dairy, poultry, piggery etc. ; (v) Training for acquiring new skills; developing existing skills; (vi) Wage employment, enforcement of minimum wages etc. ; (vii) Collection and processing of minor forest products; (viii) Supply of essential commodities under targeted public distribution system; (ix) Education for children; and (x) Protection of civil rights.INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION AND FORCED/ BONDED LABOUR †¢ There are two ILO Conventions, Convention No. 29 concerning Forced or Compulsory labour (1930) and Convention No. 105 concerning Abolition of Forced Labour (1957). Government of India has ratified both the Conventions. †¢ Before the 89th Session of the International Labour Conference (June 2001) the Director General of ILO submitted a global repor t on ‘Stopping Forced Labour’. This report contained references regarding incidences of bonded labour in India on the basis of survey conducted by the Gandhi Peace Foundation and National Labour Institute and also the estimates of some other NGOs.The Gandhi Peace Foundation and the National Labour Institute conducted a survey in 1978-79, which had estimated the number of bonded labour as 2. 6 million. This survey was based on a random sample drawn from a total of 4,50,199 villages in the ten selected States. Finally, 1000 villages from out of the 4,50,000 villages were selected. Every 450th villages in the census list of villages of each State starting with a random number was selected for the survey. The findings of the survey in respect of the above 1000 villages were multiplied by 450 to find out the total number of bonded labourers in ten States. Since the methodology adopted by the Gandhi Peace Foundation was not scientific the Government have not accepted their es timates.The need for having authentic data on number of bonded labourers in India was emphasized. It was urged that comprehensive and authoritative survey might be conducted in this regard. †¢ From the Government side, it was stated that the Government has strong will and intent to abolish and totally banish the bonded labour system from every nook and corner of the country. It was indicated that the Government of India’s estimates of bonded labour, as also reported in the following pages, were based on the information submitted by the concerned State Governments after conducting detailed surveys in their States. The same information was submitted to the Supreme Court by the State Governments in the form of affidavits in 1997. One ILO project namely â€Å"Prevention of Family Indebtedness with Micro Finance Scheme and Related Services† is being implemented in three States, namely Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The objective of the project is to induce e xisting micro finance institutions to develop, test and offer savings and loan products, particularly tailor-made for vulnerable families at the risk of getting into debt traps. The prime focus of the project is on preventing marginal families from falling into debt bondage and also to ensure sustainable rehabilitation of freed bonded labourers. Based on its experience, a model could be considered for replication orapplication in other parts of the Country.

Global warming and people going green Essay

The natural environment is the home of all living and non living organisms. Natural resources are available to human beings without clear cut boundaries in the natural air, water and climate. Natural environment has a source of energy, radiation and electric charge and all these are not as an influence of human activity but by the existing nature of our planet. It is the vast creation that makes man enjoy and take pleasure and therefore needs to engage in preserving and enhancing the natural environment. Great challenges have faced our natural and original environment and consequently destruction, pollution, and loss of life has been seen to occur through the influence of human activity. Pollution in the air, water, and in the environment in general has been evident through the combustion of fuels and other non recyclable material. Water, land and air have not been conserved and this poses a great danger on the existing ecosystem. Man’s interferance has threatened the existence of species and has led to some of them being endangered or extinct. This is a direct impact that shows that man has had disrespect of biodiversity and ecosystems in which human beings and other living organisms depend on. Human’s activities have been linked to be an environments big challenge. The release of carbon dioxide from green houses has been on focus as this is a human and natural environments interaction with gases has caused climate change. These strong concerns are associated to greenhouse gases that cause climate change. Global warming has been associated to the rise in the temperature on the earth’s air and oceans. Large heat capacity on oceans have caused the sea level to rise and cause extreme weather changes. As a result of such environmental concerns various governments have signed the Kyoto protocol so that they can plan on reducing green house emission. http://www. globalissues. org/EnvIssues/GlobalWarming. asp It is important at this juncture for man to understand that he has a direct influence to the changes that occur on the earth surface and should take caution about them. Climate may change but not exclusively by atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide from green houses. The attribution of global warming can be linked to the industrial era where man has been vigorous in their activity and have had no knowledge on the impact they have to the natural environment. The absorption of atmospheric gases contributes to warming the lower atmosphere and surface of the planet. During the absorption and emission process of infrared radiation warming occurs. (Weart 2003). Water vapour, carbon dioxide gas, methane and ozone are the major green house gases responsible for the warming effects. This is attributed by increased human activity in the industrial revolution such as agriculture, green houses, motor industries among others, deforestation. One among the greatest human activities that have markedly increased gas emission is the burning of fossils. Use of fossil fuel is hence seen to be contributing factor with such fossil fuel reserves increasing their emissions through the increased and extensive use of coal and tar sands. Evaporated water forms gas in to the atmosphere and as a result more water evaporates and hence there is more effect than due to carbon emissions alone. From the clouds, emitted infrared radiation exerts a warming effect and when they reflect sunlight they emit infrared radiations that have a cooling effect. (Weart 2003). Temperatures were relatively stable before 1850 but gradual increase in sea temperature than on land is a natural phenomenon. Land has an effective heat capacity as compared to the oceans which loose heat more readily. Forest clearing and Asian rice irrigation are human influences that William Ruddiman argued that global climate was influenced by these activities. http://www. skepticism. net/global_warming Global warming results to global retreat and sea level rise. The increase in global temperatures can lead also to arctic shrinkage and marked pattern changes in the rainfall. As a result flood or draughts are a common effect of the global warming. These are extreme weather events. Death of animals and vastly the destruction is very enormous. Floods and drought seasons cause low agricultural yield as survival of plants is so compromised and the life of animals is at stake with increase in diseases. With such calamities, adverse health effects, displacement and extreme economic losses destabilize the normal life of the people on planet earth. http://www. skepticism. net/global_warming Human activity have great repercussions on their life with the possible reduction of ozone layer and occurrence of hurricanes and other oceanic interferences that make favourable, the spread of malaria and dengue fever. With political and social debates going on, poor regions such as Africa risk the effects of global warming. The developed world and especially the western part have accepted the idea that human influence is the major influence to climate change. Various nations now weigh the benefit that would result when industrial emissions are limited against the cost they would incur when they adopt new changes. For the sake of regaining back the natural environment, alternative energy sources should be embraced and given chance for observation. Vigorous campaigns that teach on the effect of global activities and emphasize on adaption of stricter measures that would reduce gas emission should receive support worldwide. India and china have a lot of carbon dioxide emissions and the U. S. as well. However, worthwhile ideas and dedications have been recorded in the U. S which is willing to bear the cost and reduce its carbon emission. http://www. globalissues. org/EnvIssues/GlobalWarming. asp Many changes are bound to be realised with the daily effects related to global warming. There is so much uncertainty about other warming signs that may be associated to human activity and resulting to temperature increase. Vector borne diseases are bound to increase due to the migration of the insects from the north regions and especially due to the effect of the warmth increase. As it was recorded in 2004 and 2005, disastrous hurricanes were attributed to the warmer waters on the ocean and no one can anticipate if they will frequent or be stronger as they hit the regions. (Leroux 2005) As a result of global warming serious draughts will have people suffer and especially Africa and in Europe. In general, the effects of global warming can drain the economy at a country as they try to rebuild damaged infrastructure, cure diseases and try to manage such environmental conflicts. Though global warming has been attributed to other activities that do not relate to man, the major intervention by man would be to deal with those that are in their control. Solar variations, volcanic eruptions, orbital forcing, glacier retreats and disease vectors may be associated be causative agents to increased temperature. But a critical look at it lives the question, Should man be ignorant of his activities on the earth? http://www. canadafreepress. com/2007/global-warming020507. html Man should be at the fore front, looking for solutions rather than justifying their non- contribution to the global warming. Small and large scale preventive measures can be put in place to help prevent further harm and create a better place for our children to live in. Without green house emissions temperature would be bearable and more hospitable. Use of fossil fuels used to run cars, heat homes and businesses should be under check so that co2 concentration is reduced. In this breath, use of gas, petrol and diesel as used in petroleum products should be reduced. In the same way that man has been able to affect the planet, they should be able to effect change through change of practise. They should make use of fuel-efficient cars, reduce travel errands, and use alternative means of transport like walking or simply working from the house. At home, one should aim at using energy saving appliances and lighting materials. A great deal of deforestation, industrial activities, mining and agricultural increase has led to gas emission. As a strategy, trees should be planted and deforestation stopped. Deciduous trees should be planted as they contribute to removing 50 pounds of carbon from the air annually. Industrialization should be minimized and compost pits made for waste disposal such as leaves. Ignorance about global warming should be a forgone phenomenon and man should wake up to the call of rebuilding the already damaged environment. Air, water systems and the environment have degraded and the issue at hand is to progress and reverse the erosion that has already taken place. It is of paramount concern, that man should not take chances to involve themselves in activities that compromise the global call to preventing global warming. The risks involved in global warming are far stretching and the effects can be felt for a lifetime. As per the United Nations millennium development goals, solving the environmental problem will be regarded as eradicating poverty. Mankind should aim to reduce fossil fuel imports and preserve the ecosystem through increased awareness campaigns that address the climate change issue. Citizens and companies should embrace anti pollution and global warming prevention measures. (Pringle 2001) Policies at local and national level should be put in operation so that individual activities are governed and implemented at state level. Why would man not be willing to make a better place for him and generations to come? The major step to understand that preventing carbon emission is one of the cheapest interventions that man can use to stop the menace. Invention in new technology of cars and major power plants should have a second thought on the implication it has the future. All in all man should through habitual practice, save energy and have another alternative to use of fossil fuels. In 1990 to 19995, El Nino was a pressure release that was linked to global warming. Heavy rains pounded and several thousand displaced by floods. Death of human and of livestock marked the season. Beside such weather events hurricanes have claimed life, caused destruction and economic loss. http://www. globalissues. org/EnvIssues/GlobalWarming. asp Why would man be willing to risk more? It is the duty of all man to carry aggressive campaigns and appreciate the fact that they caused it to happen and they can make it change for better. With dedication and motivation, such catastrophes can be long forgotten as they work on towards one goal of preventing global warming and restoring the degraded environment. Its effects are disastrous but our control is the way forward. Works Cited Ball T. Global Warming, humans, Carbon Dioxide. The Cold, Hard Facts. Retrieved from; http://www. canadafreepress. com/2007/global-warming020507. htm on Friday, April 11, 2008

Hamlet Theme of Appearance vs. Reality Essay

Shakespeare examines the theme of appearance and reality in his book-Hamlet. The dilemma of what is â€Å"real† is established at the very beginning of the play. Hamlet doesn’t know what to believe and devises a plan to find out. The old king Hamlet appears to be bitten by a snake, but in reality he was poisoned, the ghost appears as an apparition, but it’s actually real, and the play-with-in-a-play strongly depicts the theme of appearance vs. reality. The dead King appears to have been bitten by a snake. In reality, he has been poisoned. Everyone believes that the king died from snakebite, but once Hamlet knows the truth he is unsettled by the revelation. When Hamlet’s dead father directs his son to, â€Å"Avenge him of his foul and most unnatural murder† (1. 5. 25), Hamlet’s response shows determination to act and a curiosity to know all the facts surrounding the murder: (1. 5. 29-31) â€Å"Haste me to know’t, that I, with wings as swift, as meditation or the thoughts of love may sweep to my revenge. † Hamlet’s choice of image is significant here. A person who wants to take revenge rarely has â€Å"thoughts of love† but only concentrates upon thoughts of revenge, but Hamlet’s thirst for revenge is immediate and deep. Shakespeare also develops the theme of appearance vs. reality when Hamlet resents his mother’s insinuation that he is putting on a show of being grief-stricken. Strangely, he is the only one in the family who is truly mourning his father’s death. He replies that all outwardly signs of his grief, such as his black cloak of mourning, his tears, and his sighs, are mere appearances, not even close to the depth of the real grief in his heart (1. 2. 70-80). This theme of appearance vs. reality will play an important part in the entire play. Another example of appearance vs. reality is the Ghost that appears as an apparition from the depths of hell, when actually he is the medium of reality, revealing the facts to Hamlet. The ghost tells Hamlet that his father was murdered, â€Å"Revenge his foul and most unnatural murder† (1. 5. 25). Since Hamlet doubts the sincerity of the Ghost’s revelation, he decides to put on the appearance of being mad to see if this is true, â€Å"I’ll wipe away all trivial records ? and they commandment all alone shall live† (1. 5. 99-102). Hamlet’s decision to simulate madness as a means of enacting his revenge is important. The news that Hamlet received about his father and his mother could drive anyone insane. As a result, the line between appearance and reality becomes notably distorted as the play progresses. Guildernstern says in Act 3 lines7-9, â€Å"But with a crafty madness keeps aloof when we would bring him on to some confession of this true state. † At times it also seems that Hamlet’s appearance of madness has become a reality, (3. 1. 201-203) â€Å"You should not have believed me, for virtue cannot so inoculate our old stock but we shall relish of it. I loved you not. † Hamlet loved Ophelia so this is definitely not true, but during the course of the play, his madness seems so genuine that one wonders if he is acting. The most obvious symbol of ? appearance vs. reality’ is the play-within-a-play. The actors appear onstage and act out the events that actually happened in reality. Hamlet has carefully orchestrated this play so that he can gauge the degree of reality by Claudius’ reaction, â€Å"For murder, though it have no tongue will speak with most miraculous organ? Before mine uncle I’ll observe his looks? If ? a do blench, I’ll know my course† (2. 2. 605-610). Besides furthering the plot of Hamlet, the play-within-a-play also again develops the theme of appearance vs. reality. The fictional drama being presented before the King is a parallel to the past reality of the King, and will serve to shape the future reality of the King and several other characters. Hamlet, as director of this great deception on stage, cautions the players not to exaggerate their expressions and emotions, stating that only uncivilized â€Å"groundlings† (3. 2. 10-11) are impressed by excessive over-acting. In Act II, Scene 2, Hamlet had asked the players to give a passionate presentation of the killing of Priam by Pyrrhus. Now he specifically instructs the players to â€Å"beget a temperance† in the â€Å"whirlwind of passion† in order to give it â€Å"smoothness† (3. 2. 1-9). He tells them that the aim of the play is to hold â€Å"the mirror up to nature,†(3. 2. 23-25) saying that the representation of action should be a realistic reflection of life, with moderation as the keynote (3. 2. 1-45). Hamlet’s advice to the players is important, because it reveals his state of mind before the staging of the play indicating that Hamlet’s own mind has finally reached a reasoned balance. In summary, the theme of appearance vs.reality is so well developed that everything in the play must be questioned, for nothing appears certain. Hamlet doesn’t know who is telling the truth because of the appearance of some things. Hamlet lives in a reality that appears to be true, but appearances can be deceiving. Hamlet learned that reality is completely different from appearance. The old king Hamlet appears to be bitten by a snake, but in reality he was poisoned, the ghost appears as an apparition, but it’s actually real, and the play-with-in-a-play strongly depicts the theme of appearance vs. reality.