History of Japan Essay

1. What are the key features of the Tokugawa settlements that were worked out under Ieyasu and Iemitsu? What is the rationale behind this system? In what ways might it be considered `centralized feudalism`? The Tokugawa settlements that were worked out under the rule of Ieyasu and Iemitsu were mainly forms of centralized feudalism.   The Tokugawa period, particularly the Ieyasu Shogunate, was based on a strict class hierarchy.   This was based on the old structure created by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (Bryant 2005).   It was comprised of the warrior-caste of samurai who were at the top of the hierarchy and they were followed by the farmers, the artisans, and the traders. The key feature of the Ieyasu Shogunate was the implementation of the feudal military dictatorship by Tokugawa Ieyasu.   This system of â€Å"centralized feudalism† was the key tool which helped the ruling body in restoring political and social order after a long period of warfare and chaos.   The system was such that there were feudal lords who controlled their own domains but they subject however to the whims of the Shogun who was characterized as the defacto ruler for Japan.   The ascension to Shogun was hereditary and thus led to the control by the Tokugawa Shoguns from the 1600s to 1868 (Sadler 1937). Tokugawa Ieyasu was able to gain control of the entire country through this method.   Though once a Daimyo himself, he soon became a Shogun and began exercising power over the 250 other daimyos all over Japan.   This was the centralized system that the Tokugawas were able to establish and relevant to this system was the â€Å"Alternate Attendance System† or the sankin kà ´tai (Sadler 1937). This system simply meant that every daimyo had to live every alternate year in the capital city of Edo under the penalty of permanently living in the city and leaving his life and heir behind in case such a task was not fulfilled.   Needless to say, this had immense implications for the history of Japan.   It meant that there were huge transfers of wealth since the daimyos had to finance their trips.   It also led to the fostering of a sense of loyalty to Edo as every daimyo after 1700 felt drawn to Edo as a native of the city (Sansom 1961). The situation was not so different during the time of Tokugawa Iemitsu who was the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu (Bryant 2005).   Iemitsu’s rise to power was predicated by the abdication of Hidetade in his favaor.   Hidetada installed all of his advisors and veteran daimyo in the service of Iemitsu but soon after, Iemitsu appointed most of his childhood friends and was soon able to carry on the installation of a strong and centralized form of administration similar to that by his grandfather Tokugawa Ieyasu.   While there were those who opposed such an act, Tokugawa Iemitsu simply removed all opposition and remained in power (Sansom 1961). The reason that these periods were considered as â€Å"centralized feudalism† was the fact that though there were different domains that were ruled by the daimyos, all power still emanated from the Shogun (Bryant 2005).   The Shogun ruled under the authority of the emperor and in fact ruled over most, if not all, of the activities of the realm.   This was eventually overthrown and replaced during the Meiji Renewal. 2. How would you characterize Meiji Japan`s economic development? In what ways was it distinctive? What role did the state play? Meiji Japan’s economic development was characterized by the Meiji Renewal which was a series of events that led up to major changes in Japan’s political and social structure (Beasley 1995).   The arrival of the Black Ships of Commodore Matthew Perry ushered in a direct response from the Shogunate and thus the Meiji restoration began.   It was during this same period that Japan established itself as an Imperial Power. The foundation of the Meiji Renewal was the formation of the Satsuma-ChÃ… shÃ… « Alliance between SaigÃ…  Takamori, who was the leader of the Satsuma domain and Kido Takayoshi, who was the leader of the ChÃ… shÃ… « domain (Jansen 2000).   Initially brought together to challenge the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate and installing the emperor into power, the Satsuma-ChÃ… shÃ… « Alliance succeeded in altering the political structure of Japan.   The two leaders, SaigÃ…  Takamori and Kido Takayoshi, were supported by Emperor KÃ… mei (Beasley 1995). The distinct characteristic of this period was the fact that it ushered in the industrialization of Japan (Jansen 2000).   It also led to the emergence of Japan as an island nation that possessed military power by the year 1905.   The slogan for Japan during this time was fukoku kyohei, which translates into â€Å"Enrich the country, strengthen the military.† The manner in which this Renewal was accomplished was by creating a group in which all the power was consolidated against the remnants of the Edo period government, the shogunate, daimyo, and the samurai class.   Thus the Meiji Oligarchy was formed.   During this period, the Tokugawa lands were seized and placed under the direct control of the government.   Some of the Daimyos who protested such an act eventually relented and returned their domains to the Emperor which lead to the creation of a central government in Japan for the first time in its history and also allowed the new centralized government to exercise direct power throughout the entire realm (Beasley 1995). The pivotal point came in 1871 when all the Daimyos were brought before the emperor and it was decreed that all domains were now to be returned to the Emperor (Jansen 2002).   These â€Å"returned† domains were converted into prefectures that were under the control of a government appointed governor. The next step came in the abolition of the four divisions in Japanese society that had previously existed.   This led to the abolition of the Samurai class, which at that time numbered nearly 1.9 million, and led to the development of the Japanese military which was now open to peasants (Beasley 1995).   Nationwide conscription was now established in order to fill in the ranks left by the former Samurais and every male was mandated to serve in the new armed forces of Japan for four (4) years upon turning 21. The state therefore played a very critical role in all of this as it was under the state that the abolition of traditional political structures was engineered and the abolition of the social classes was commenced.   The establishment of a strong Japanese Imperial Army also played a great role as it provided the state with the power that it needed in order to institute the reforms that is sought to implement (Jansen 2000).

The Political 1960’s and Postmodern Italian Design: Ettore Sottsass

The Political 1960’s and Postmodern Italian Design: Ettore SottsassIntroductionItalian design evolved between 1950s and 1960s.at the terminal of the sixtiess, the designs that were in the market burned out and were replaced by null formalisation of design which majored on commercial solutions.in this text, account on the designed objects is paramount, the fiction of the designed parts harmonizing to the methodological analysis of the designs. There is a singular design presentation in this book by Penny Sparke. The ant design flow and motion came in to put in 1965 to around 1979.this motion was all about dramatic colourss and the appropriate usage of scaling techniques where a little object is scaled to acquire a bigger representation of the same. This map of grading of objects was meant to acquire a different perceptual experience of objects by the interior decorator and besides anybody willing to familiarise with the design work. ( Roldan & A ; Leone, 2013 )Italian anti desi gn motionItalian interior decorators were at those times perfectionists in the designs they came up with. Normally for a merchandise to be developed from abrasion, the interior decorators has to come up with a theoretical account from a two dimensional diagram of the parts with the needed dimensional truth. Therefore the interior decorator deserves acknowledgment when the merchandise is already manufactured. ( Sparke, 1986 ) . But in the Italy the taking makers were celebrated alternatively and paid a batch of money. The interior decorators were non recognized and that’s why the anti-design came up in the state. The interior decorators were treated in a manner to propose that they lacked societal relevancy. Ettore Sottsass became the spokesman of this Anti design motion every bit shortly as it officially stated in 1966.the ant design motion advocated for the design of theoretical accounts that are alone alternatively of recommending for manners that are normally known in orde r to encompass mass production. Mass production and standard design were most common and hence nil new was being witnessed in the design industry. Ettore Sottsass is therefore a cardinal individual in the history of the Italian design as he challenged the production systems to withdraw from greed and trade with the acceptable echt design alternatively of taking to hike gross revenues with a hapless design.in the long tally complains would ever come from the clients and consumers of merchandises manufactured from such foolhardy design. The anti-design Rebels felt that each constituent of a design should be impermanent so that incase of any fault replacing can be done but with the anti-design advocators, a constituent should non hold to be replaced every now and so, a lasting solution to patronize wear and rupture should be at that place. A portion of a design should hold a lifetime that is suited in relation to the map that the constituent will function. The construct of the anti-design motion aimed to halt the buying of constituents and objects which can be made in Italy. The choosing of stuffs was to be done so that the lastin gness of the object is enhanced. ( Peri Bader, 2015 ) . A good illustration is the modern pallet which was one time black, gray and white. Before this anti design, the colourss were chosen harmonizing to the assortment available, the stuffs that are available and the cosmetic ability of the elements. The ant design Rebels lacked good constructs on design doctrine and would largely plan without an aim. The future user’s outlook of a design is one factors to see in all the designs and therefore the Italian anti-designers made everyone to recognize that information on safety demands, the legislative demands and the criterions was of import. ( Sparke, 2008 ) .Postmodern Italian Part designingDesign work ever starts from conceptualisation of a new thought of a portion that one seeks to plan. The Italian design as portrayed in this book introduces portion planing in 1967 where parts of a series of prototype designs were employed to schemes Italian counter designs movement.an illust ration was the 14th Milan Triennale in 1968. ( Medjdoub & A ; Chenini, 2015 ) . To day of the month, the Italian design focuses on truth and preciseness in portion designing. For a portion to be able to copulate with another portion, there has to be a good dimensional truth on the drawing of that portion. The Italian design of parts starts with a 2D drawing where the dimensions of the portion are put in that drawing. Italy exports parts of assorted assembly that can be used in fabricating different merchandises. For illustration a machinery can acquire its constituents imported from Italy because in modern fabrication processes some assemblies have small entree to save parts from the state in which they serve the clients. ( Golan, 2012 ) . Italian designs of fabric merchandises have been a phenomenon since the late 1970s.textile industry is Italy’s pride particularly sing that they own the design and besides the fabrication houses. For a better design to be achieved several parametric quantities have to be considered merely as it is seen in the Italian design. Quality is ever indispensable in a design. The consideration is high quality on the concluding merchandise such that it will make better in the market. Just like its presents in the Italian design of apparels and other fabric merchandises, Italian put supports on the fabric design so that they increase the lifetime of the concluding fabric manufactured. This is fundamentally what makes Italian designs better from the old yearss. For an applied scientist or an designer to be good in his/her undertaking, more clip should be taken on the design to guarantee that no mistakes are made because in the long tally, the concluding merchandise is affected. ( Person & A ; Snelders, 2010 ) . Design ever start with the acknowledgment of the societal demands that are available. After this the designer can interpret these demands into thoughts that are acceptable and eventually proving the thoughts against the physical Torahs of the nature to see whether scientific discipline accepts it. ( Mastrangelo & A ; Marangi, 2015 ) .Decision.The Italian design history is a major part to the design patterns that are even embraced in modern architectural plants. The most historical portion of it being the ant design motion which led to the betterment of designs runing from furniture designs to textile designing of merchandises. A interior decorator can ever hold his/her design executable bargain foremost of all building the paradigm of the same and proving done. ( Novi & A ; Piccardo, 2015 ) . The Italian design to day of the month is focused on the singularity of what comes out of the designed object. A design does non hold to be complicated in order to be to ugh in the market but a simple and alone design can ensue in the industry of an assembly that can truly work out societal issues in the society. For illustration the furniture designs by Italians in the seventiess are still at that place to day of the month and this is because the design suite the demands of the people in the society. Designing is all about modifying, rearranging and the most of import bettering the public presentation of the merchandise is at all the interior decorator is non introducing a new merchandise. ( Drury, 2009 ) .MentionsDrury, S. ( 2009 ) . European Design Since 1985 determining the new century by Rcraig Miller, Penny Sparke, Catherine Mcdermott.Art Book,16( 4 ) , 66-68. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8357.2009.01064_1.x Sparke, P. ( 2008 ) . Mobility history from a design historiographer ‘s position: The T2M conference, 2007.Journal Of Transport History,29( 1 ) , 131-135. Person, O. , & A ; Snelders, D. ( 2010 ) . Brand Styles in Commercial Design.Design Issues,26( 1 ) , 82-94. Novi, F. , & A ; Piccardo, C. ( 2015 ) . Technology as a key for design imaginativeness, an Italian experience with novice architecture pupils.Architectural Engineering & A ; Design Management,11( 3 ) , 185-197. doi:10.1080/17452007.2014.895698 Mastrangelo, G. , Marangi, G. , Bontadi, D. , Fadda, E. , Cegolon, L. , Bortolotto, M. , & A ; †¦ Marchiori, L. ( 2015 ) . A worksite intercession to cut down the cardiovascular hazard: proposal of a survey design easy to incorporate within Italian organisation of occupational wellness surveillance.BMC Public Health,15( 1 ) , 484-497. doi:10.1186/s12889-015-1375-4 Sparke, P. ( 1986 ) .An debut to plan and civilization in the 20th century. London: Allen & A ; Unwin. Golan, R. ( 2012 ) . Flashbacks and Eclipses in Italian Art in the sixtiess.Grey Room, ( 49 ) , 102-127. Medjdoub, B. , & A ; Chenini, M. B. ( 2015 ) . A constraint-based parametric theoretical account to back up edifice services design geographic expedition.Architectural Engineering & A ; Design Management,11( 2 ) , 123-136. doi:10.1080/17452007.2013.834812 Peri Bader, A. ( 2015 ) . A theoretical account for mundane experience of the built environment: the corporal perceptual experience of architecture.Journal Of Architecture,20( 2 ) , 244-267. doi:10.1080/13602365.2015.1026835 Roldan, M. L. , Gonnet, S. , & A ; Leone, H. ( 2013 ) . Knowledge representation of the package architecture design procedure based on state of affairs concretion.Adept Systems,30( 1 ) , 34-53. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0394.2012.00620.x Kawaguchi, H. , & A ; Matsuoka, S. ( 2015 ) . Conceptual Design of 3-D FDTD Dedicated Computer With Dataflow Architecture for High Performance Microwave Simulation.IEEE Transactions On Magnetisms,51( 3 ) , 1-4. doi:10.1109/TMAG.2014.2355251

Response to Coments on DQ1 Hunt and DQ2 Smith Essay

Response to Coments on DQ1 Hunt and DQ2 Smith - Essay Example The majority of accountants have a very high sense of moral and ethical standards. â€Å"Ethics in accounting is of the utmost importance to the accounting professional and those who rely on their services (Enotes, 2011). The academic community should stress more the importance of ethics in business. All courses should teach applications of business ethics in relation to the material being taught. DQ2 In your response you mentioned that investors use financial information to make decisions whether to buy or sell stocks. Common stocks are a very common type of investment, but there are other financial instruments that are traded on the open marketplace. In the money market corporate bonds are often sold by corporations in order to raise money. There are other instruments such as mutual funds which reduce the overall risk associated with the investment. It is true that both investors and creditors need financial information, but I believe that this information is more important for le nders than for investors. Lenders deal with billions of dollars in debt. In the recent global financial crisis we saw how volatile the financial system can be. The banks in the United States received the largest governmental bailout in the United States history. On October 2008 the US Senate passed a $700 billion bank bailout package (Amadeo, 2011). References Amadeo, K. (2011).

Roles, Ethical Considerations, and Effectiveness of the Acute Care Term Paper

Roles, Ethical Considerations, and Effectiveness of the Acute Care Nurse Practitioner - Term Paper Example When faced by a problem such as a HIV positive patient wanting the status to remain confidential, the caregiver should consider the effects of such a decision. The caregiver must be sure that withholding such information will not affect other people in the community such as family (Hendrick, 2011). b) Utilitarianism  is an ethical principle that emphasizes on assessing the rightfulness or wrongness of an action by considering the outcome. According to this code, the utility of any action depends on its ability to generate more good or positive outcomes than the negative consequences (Hendrick, 2011). A good example where utilitarianism applies is on the issue of abortion. In some cases complication occur during labour such that the mother’s life is in danger and only the mother or the baby has a chance of surviving. The caregiver should consider the possibility of saving either the mother or the child. If carrying out an abortion can save the mother’s life, then the a ction is justified since the positive consequences are more. Though abortion entails killing, failure to abort the foetus in a case like this will result in death of both mother and baby. Another example that utilitarianism is applied on cases whereby lying can help prevents mishaps. If telling a lie to a patient will help him or her abide to a procedure or medication that is helpful to them, utilitarian considers the action morally right even though it is against the caregiver’s moral obligation of truthfulness (Hendrick, 2011). c) Justice is a principle that entails relevance of fairness and equality when treating patients irrespective of their diversity. The principle insists on even allotment of health care resources. Justice in health care provision implies ignoring aspects such as gender, race, social status just to mention but a few in deciding the ease of access of health services (Boxwell, 2010) However, the factors remain trivial in deciding the form of treatment fo r the patients. For example, a white person and a black person seeking medical attention should be treated equally without favour (Hendrick, 2011) d) Fidelity is an ethical principle that stresses on the need for heath caregivers to remain faithful, loyal, and abiding to their promises. This enables the health professionals uphold the reputation and credibility of the profession. For example, when a medical practitioner gives an appointment to a patient, this principle requires that the practitioner keep the promise (Hendrick, 2011). e) Veracity is a principle that obliges medical practitioners to tell the truth to maintain their own credibility as well as that of the profession. Medical practitioners are required to tell the entire truth to the patients without any omissions, cloaking, or deception. The truthfulness should also be practiced in operations such as documentation as well as billing. For example, a medical practitioner should not lie to patients regarding their health c ondition for whatever reasons (Hendrick, 2011). f) Autonomy is the freedom or liberty to decide on one’s actions, intentions, or choices based on ones understanding without considering external factors. This principle argues that patients have total sovereignty to choose the course of treatment to be used on them as long as they are adults. However, the patients should first be provided with information that they can understand. The patients are also free to choose

Analysis Music Project Chopin Nocturne Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Analysis Music Project Chopin Nocturne - Essay Example â€Å"Music is what feelings sound like,† this quotation from an unknown author says it all. Just as Gustav Mahler once said, â€Å"If a composer could say what he had to say in words he would not bother trying to say it in music.† One of the most distinguished composers of the 19th century is Frà ©dà ©ric Chopin. Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist, and is considered by many as the epitome of the Romantic style in classical music. Regarded as a child prodigy pianist, I look up to him, as my model and inspiration, since I too, play the piano. Chopin’s works are masterpieces and mainstays of the Romanticism in the 19th century. One of the major innovations in forms of music that he was responsible for is the nocturne. The nocturne is basically a work of art dealing with evening or night, usually a dreamy pensive piano composition. Having written 21 of these, Chopin’s nocturnes are written in a somewhat melancholy style, with an expressive dreamy melody, over broken-chord accompaniment. The major of Chopin’s nocturnes adopt a simple A-B-A form, wherein the A part is usually in a dreamy style, and the B style is a part of a more dramatic content. Considering the melody, harmony, and originality of piano style, Chopin’s nocturnes leave other composers behind, although his style is very much similar with Bellini’s cavatina.

African American contribute for NBA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

African American contribute for NBA - Essay Example The game that was once played dominantly by whites has seen roles reversing, with 75% of the NBA players being African American. The game is nowadays associated with the Black Americans culture, especially those in the lower classes insides cities of Americai. In regards to basketball and African Americans, one team is outstanding in both the contexts: Los Angeles Lakers. Lakers are basketball team playing in the professional category in the National Basketball Association.The Lakers are among the most successful NBA teams of all times, having bagged 16 championships in the league. The recent win was in 2010. Currently, the Lakers are the second most richest NBA teams with close to 645 million US dollars. Nevertheless, the team did not begin from a smooth start. According to NBA and sports records, the current Lakers’ team was a purchase from the then poor performing Detroit Gems. After the purchase, the team adopted the name Lakers, an inspiration from Minnesota’s nick name â€Å"The Land of ten thousand Lakes†. The team relocated to Minneapolis in 1947. The Lakers won the NBL championship with great help from George Mikan.This success ensured that the team jumped to the next level, Basketball association of America (BAA). In their first season of 1948-49, the Lakers won the BBA championship.This was great success as the team had transformed from having the worst record in NBL to become the best almost instantly after being sold to Morris Chalfen and Ben Bergerii. The team’s future was bright. The year 1947 saw the birth of NBA from a merger of BBA and NBL. The Lakers proved they were the true champions by winning five NBA championships in six years. This was a record at the time. The achievements of the Los Angeles team were made possible by a rich component of talent at the team between 1949 to 1955. Hall of fame players for the Lakers included an all white list of George Mikan, Jim Polland, Clyde Lovellete, and Slater martin. Very few blacks were playing in the league at that time. Bob Williams was the first African American player for the Lakers, after signing a contract with the team in 1954. In 1960, the team further relocated to Los Angeles with a strong team comprising of two black star players: Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain, and two white players: Jerry West and Gail Goodrich. Despite this excellent combination, the Lakers lost six finals to Boston Celtics in only eight years. The 1960-1970 decade was bad for the Lakers. Lakers losing streak prolonged until 1972 when Bill Sharman took over as the team’s head coach. Lakers still holds the NBA title for the longest winning streak with 33 consecutive wins during the 1971-72 seasonsiii. In the years after the success, another African American player came to dominate the team. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was the team’s backbone for approximately seven seasons. Abdul-Jabbar remains the all-time leading NBA scorer with an amazing 38,387 points. He w on six consecutive titles for the Most Valuable Player of the NBA season. At the time of retirement, Abdul-Jabbar was still holding almost all the records; points scored, time played, defensive rebounds, games played, blocked shots, and even personal fouls. Despite these achievements, Lakers did not win an NBA championship until the arrival of Earvin Johnson, or â€Å"Magic† Johnson in 1979. Then a rookie player, Johnson was playing for Abdul-Jabbar after the latter was injured. Johnson put up an MVP performance in the game against Philadelphia. Magic Johnson was an African American professional player, and together with Abdul-Jabbar, assisted the team to reach for eight NBA championship finals winning five in the 1980s decade. Magic Johnson won the coveted NBA’

The role of temporary works in civil Engineering Construction Assignment

The role of temporary works in civil Engineering Construction - Assignment Example For example when setting up a scaffold it is advisable that your scaffold is supported by the ground but if that is not possible one can make it to hang above the ground or water using the hanging scaffold (Webster 1997). A good scaffold should also be able to have a safety mechanism in order to avoid injuries in case the scaffold fails thus in constructing a bridge one can chose to attach himself to the bridge to be safe incase the scaffold is failing. Formwork In his contribution Blackledge (1977) refers to formwork as the process that involves the addition of base material and also the addition of concrete that is in retaining wall so that they can be used as slabs during the construction of a bridge. Formwork is very essential since it helps to make the concrete last for long due to the fact that it makes it strong (Blackledge 1977). The strength property of formwork guarantees the much needed support that is needed in construction of the bridge. Formworks is used by making that needed shape using steel or aluminum so that the concrete is then poured into it so that a desired shape is produced. This is then allowed to harden. When it’s all dry the fabrications are removed and the formwork remains in place in that desired shape. Formwork is used to guarantees the strong support for the bridge during construction which always has to remain strong to avoid collapse (Blackledge 1977). Falsework In his book Webster (1997) talks of falsework as a term that is used to refer to the activity of supporting arches and spans in the process of constructing a bridge by using temporary support structures. This is a very essential practice in construction of bridges since it helps support the bridges from below in order to ensure that the bridges do not collapse as the construction is still continuing and can also be used to create a strong work base for the workers during the process of constructing a bridge. This always has to remain intact to the construction unt il that time when the bridge can self support itself without collapsing which in the long run helps to keep the bridge in position (Webster 1997). Temporary Support of Excavation During construction of a bridge it might involve excavating various sections of the work site so as to achieve a certain level of ease during the construction of bridge (Hummell 2011). For example during construction when the building is to start like two stories below the ground then excavation will have to be done in order to achieve this. Also good to notice is that sometime exaction is done for example when gravel is need for construction so that it is dug from a place. After excavation it’s a good practice to always support the excavations in order to avoid collapse of the walls during construction according to Hummell (2011). There are two types of excavation that can be used in supporting an excavation walls; this can either be flexible support or rigid excavation support. When one uses Flexib le support then it would take sheet pilling, soldier pile and lagging walls. On the other hand rigid support entails slurry walls, secant piles or even tangent pile (Hummell 2011). Construction Dewatering In his deep insight on dewatering Hummell (2011) talks of this process as a way that is used to achieve a certain degree of ease at the work site by ensuring that the water that may cause difficulty during the

Forensic Science Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Forensic Science - Essay Example Experiments are then performed to measure the accuracy of these hypotheses and they are repeated several times in order to determine whether or not the phenomena behaves according to the predictions laid out by the hypotheses i.e. whether the tests are predictable (Wudka 1998). Some domains of inquiry tend to come under certain theories which permit the structuring of specific hypotheses. Almost all fields of inquiry share the common ideal that the manner of gathering data and acquiring new knowledge must be unbiased and objective. This leads to accurate observation, data gathering and interpretation of results. Scientific method also requires that the data is documented, shared and accessed in order for other researchers and scientists to conduct their own experiments independently and reproduce the results. This enables the statistical measurement of data and verify their reliability. Forensic science is a scientific method of collecting and scrutinizing evidence. It is a science that is applied to legal issues. It involves the testing of different parameters and associated references to the background information about the subject in question in order to arrive at a conclusion (Ellen 2005 p.3). Forensic scientists are specialized professionals who involve themselves in accident or crime scene investigation. They use their skills by observing, recognizing, identifying and individualizing the physical evidence available at the scene, then go about attempting to reconstruct the sequence of events that took place so that the police, lawyers and the courts can fully unravel in detail the crime or accident. Observation and Description in Forensics As in other fields of scientific study, forensic scientists rely greatly on scientific method. The initial first step is the observation and collection of information and data most of which is physical. Forensic scientists generally search for data at the scene or in the laboratory. This data includes physical evidence that is to be recognized as being crucial to the investigation, protected from the elements to avoid contamination and collected. Crimes are solved using pathological examinations of crime scene data such as fingerprints, footprints, palm prints, blood stains, soil, bodily fluids, plant and animal matter and hair samples. Apart from this handwriting and typed samples, including ink and paper are also studied as are impressions and questionable documents. Insects present at the scene, maybe collected and in a lab examined by a forensic entomologist. Where weapons are involved, bullet remnants, direction and range of the shot and other ballistics are studied to determine the origins of the shooting. In addition, voice identification techniques are also used to ascertain the criminal's identity. Impression evidence is also vital and can come in two-dimensional or three-dimensional forms such as shoeprints (Genge 2002 p.58). All evidence is carefully cordoned off from possible contamination, collected and placed in plastic bags or boxes, labeled with time, date and location and signed by the crime scene personnel. These and other items of physical evidence are investigated to determine that a crime has occurred and also to ascertain the criminal's Modus Operandi and establish a connection between the suspect and the victim. The other goal is to place the persons, both

What Is Mohandas Mahatma Gandhi's Relevance on Economy, Ideology and Dissertation

What Is Mohandas Mahatma Gandhi's Relevance on Economy, Ideology and Religion in Modern Day India - Dissertation Example For instance, he took part in political protests in South Africa against the ill-treatment of Indians in that region by the prevailing government. Gandhi believed that the weak should not be oppressed by those in power and was against any political system that was oppressive1 Although Gandhi was actively persuading Indians to resist British ideologies, he was against any form of violence. He encouraged Indians to protest peacefully against British political and economic systems as well as the British approach to religion and morality. Gandhi’s ideologies led to his imprisonment on several occasions. However, many leaders made reference to his ideologies that promoted cohesion, peace and love among individuals and religions. He was assassinated for his belief by a fellow Hindu who was against his beliefs about the Muslims.2 Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi made a significant contribution to India’s economy through his ideologies and campaign for an independent economy. Many In dians supported his religious, political and economic beliefs. Gandhi was against discrimination and violation of human rights. He campaigned for unity and resistance against westernisation. His efforts yield fruits and India’s economy achieved significant levels of growth and independence. This paper examines Gandhi’s ideologies, religious beliefs and economic contribution to determine his relevance to modern India. The Relevance of Gandhi’s Economic Ideas, Ideologies and Religious Beliefs to Modern India Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi played an important role in freeing India from British colonialism. Gandhi had a political vision of a free country that had control over all its sectors including social, economic, and political sectors in India. Gandhi’s vision had a moral and economic perspective of what India would be as a free country.4 Gandhi’s personal philosophies and beliefs were adopted in many political systems across the world. For instance, human rights activists in the United States based their movements on Gandhi’s philosophies. The relevance of Gandhi’s philosophies and beliefs to modern societies has been ignored until recently. Political analysts and historians are examining the state of nations to determine if Gand hi’s ideologies are still applicable to modern societies. Gandhi was determined to lay down a foundation that would unite Indians towards achieving their economic freedom. His ideology was to prepare Indians for a self-sustaining economy.5 Gandhi was against adopting a Western economic model and according to him; such a model would not help Indian establish an egalitarian and independent economy. Gandhi argued that with the high population growth rate and poverty levels in India, a consumer economy as suggested by western countries was inappropriate. His idea of an independent economy in India was based on conservation and systematic exploitation of natural resources. Consumerism would harm India’s given its demographics and Gandhi advocated for limited consumption of the scarce resources in the country. One of Gandhi’s concerns about India’s economy was the state of the agricultural sector. He believed that agriculture would help India achieve significan t economic growth. However, his idea of a sustainable agricultural sector involved exploiting the readily available human resources as opposed to importing technology from the west.6 Gandhi’s speeches on India’s economic welfare indicated his passion for the nationals to recognise and exploit India’

Social Historical Bacground Essay Example for Free

Social Historical Bacground Essay A Dolls House was first published in Copenhagen, Denmark in December 1879. The first edition of the play flew of the shelves with 8000 copies sold within the first month. The play was then staged at Copenhagens Royal Theatre on the 21st of December of the same year. This allowed people who had read the manuscript (men), as well as those people who could not read (women), the chance to see Ibsens visual representation of his play. Women were less likely to read as they were less likely to attend school. Therefore, when men and women attended theatres a difference of opinion arose. Women were for the independence of Nora whilst men found it scandalous. However, both genders found elements of the play scandalous such as the lack of a happy ending, a sign of naturalistic drama of which Ibsen was a master. Most other playwrights of the time were still writing plays which adhered to the conventions laid out by Ancient Greek tragedy: the play must be in verse and about people of high social status. A Dolls House featured simple prose and was about people of different statutory. The Royal Theatre was frequented by both people of high status and low status. This only scandalised audiences even more as the higher status audiences were disgusted whilst lower status audience members applauded Ibsen. A Dolls House was the centre of conversations in Copenhagen and soon news of the scandalous play travelled across Denmark and beyond. By the following year the play had reached audiences in Europe whilst by 1990 the play had appeared in most continents of the world. The shocking nature of the play meant that not all conversations related to A Dolls House were good. This can be seen in the array of critical commentary the play has received. Such commentary was fuelled by Ibsen when in 1898 he denounced that he wrote the play with the womens rights movement in mind: To me it has seemed a problem of mankind in general. Others believed this too, such as Zelda Fichandler working for the Washington Post who wrote: Womens rightsis too limited a subject to be the stuff of art. With the freedom of women now dismissed as Ibsens goal, critics began to draw up their own conclusions as to what the play was about. Michael Meyer wrote: Its theme is the need of every individual to find out the kind of person he or she really is and to strive to become that person. This comment is regarded in todays world as quite valid. Modern audiences can accept that Ibsens focus was not just on women, but that the play could be applied to both sexes. Meanwhile, audiences of the past could not accept this which lead to some alteration of the text and its production. The play was altered by directors and producers for two main reasons: either the producers were disturbed by its content or they were trying to stage the play in a new way. The ending of the play was changed in Germany when the actress cast as Nora said that she could never leave her children. Ibsen saw the changes as a barbaric outrage on the play but could not do anything due to the lack of copyright. The changing of the end brought about public outcry and the ending was reverted to its original. Another person to change the script because of children was Eleonora Duse but she changed the script as she found it difficult to bring child actors on tour from Italy. The play was also staged in several different ways. Meyerholds set of the play was changed from comfortable to cramped. He included rickety furniture with a long red drape hanging over the window to express his idea that everything was collapsing going to the devil. This view is, in my opinion, very true. It is not only Nora who is collapsing under the strain of her lies; the relationships and trust is collapsing too. The play was again staged differently by director Peter Ashmore who placed rooms mentioned in the stage directions and areas beside the living room and master bedroom in his production. Not everything associated with the play was altered; some characters were representations of real life people. Nora is actually based upon a friend of Ibsen called Laura Kieler. Lauras husband, like Torvald, became ill forcing the couple abroad. Nora arranged a loan with the help of a friend so that her husband did not know anything. Once her husband got better she wrote about her ordeal and tried to sell the story in the form of a novel to pay for the debt. She asked Ibsen for his assistance with this but he wrote back to Laura and advised her to take up the matter with her husband. Ibsen believed that Laura was hiding something from the husband and believed that the husband should take responsibility for her troubles. Laura had not told her husband anything about the loan as she was too scared. When she received the letter from Ibsen saying he would not publish the novel she forged a check to pay back the loan. However, the forgery was discovered and Laura was forced to tell her husband everything. Lauras husband was enraged and filed for separation. As a result, Nora suffered a mental breakdown and had to go to a mental hospital. When she was released from the institution she begged her husband to take her back. I believe that there are obvious parallels here between Nora and Laura

Business Process Reengineering and Organisational Change

Business Process Reengineering and Organisational Change Introduction This chapter reviews the Business Process Reengineering (BPR) and its vision of radical business process change, focusing upon the use of Organisational culture change for multidisciplinary team-working. It highlights BPRs superficial treatment of the human dimension of its programme for radical organizational change and raises the question of how HRM specialists are to respond to its trivialisation of the complexities and dilemmas associated with the reengineering of work processes. Business Process Reengineering Following the publication of the fundamental concepts of BPR by Hammer (1990) and Davenport and Short (1990), many organisations have reported vivid benefits gained from the fruitful implementation of BPR. Corporations like Porsche AG (Zinser, Baumgà ¤rtner, Walliser, 1998), CIGNA (Caron, Jarvenpaa, Stoddard, 1994), and Wal-Mart (Altinkemer, Chaturvedi, Kondareddy, 1998) are all acknowledged as having productively implemented BPR. However, in spite of the noteworthy advancement of the BPR concept, not all organisations embarking on BPR projects achieve their intended result. In 1993, Hall et al. claimed that 50-70 per cent of business process reengineering (BPR) initiatives fail to deliver the expected results (Hall, Rosenthal, Wade, 1993). Having BPR constantly at the top of the list of management issues in annual surveys of critical information systems reveals executives failure to either implement properly or attain the benefits of BPR (Stefanescu, Stefanescu, Constantinescu, Constantinescu, 2007). This combination of outcomes makes the concern of BPR implementation very significant. BPR has abundant capability for accumulative productivity through reduced process time and budget, enhanced quality, and superior customer satisfaction, but it frequently involves a fundamental organisational change. As a consequence, the implementation process is multifaceted, and needs to be examined against numerous succes s/failure factors to ensure successful implementation, as well as to prevent implementation drawbacks. Practitioners and Researchers have classified BPR in various ways with dissimilar prominence. Hammer and Champy (1993) described BPR as the primary rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to accomplish spectacular enhancements in significant, modern measures of performance, such as expenses, service, speed and quality (Adeyemi Aremu, 2008). Lowenthal (1994) defined BPR as the fundamental rethinking and redesign of operating process and organizational structure, focuses on the organizations core competencies, to achieve dramatic improvements in organizational performance (Aurand, Schoenbachler, Gordon, 1996). Alter (1990) described BPR as a systematic process that uses information technology to radically overhaul business process and thereby attain major business goals (Grover, 1995). Sethi and King (1998) defined BPR as a redesign and reorganization of business activities that results from questioning the status quo. It search for fulfilling explicit objectives and ca n lead to revolutionary enhancement. It is often interrelated with major cultural and technological changes (Sohail, Daud, Rajadurai, 2006). Nevertheless the idea of BPR began to evolve where many theoretical propositions underlying BPR surfaced (Khong Richardson, 2003). Figure 1 shows some of the developments that BPR has undergone. Although the theoretical propositions differ, similarities are present. Figure 1: Comparison of Perspective and theoretical proposition underlying BPR (Khong Richardson, 2003) Impact of BPR on the organisation The previous segment highlighted the fact that for the BPRs success organizational culture plays a crucial role. In this segment of debate a description is provided on the basis of various thinkers thought that what are the main units or elements of organization, where the organizational culture element stands among them and the inter twinning of these various elements showing that how influencing one can guide rest in the desired direction. As discussed ahead, an organization is an integration of various sub-units or sub sets. For successful implementation of process such as BPR, one needs to consider all these elements simultaneously or to identify the core of these elements so that by influencing that the entire organization can be aligned for the process change purpose. In 1988, Leavitt and Bahrami Diamond model (see Figure 2) accentuates the association between technology, business structure, and people issues and related control mechanisms (Peters Waterman, 2004). They identified these four elements as the core and need to be considered for any change initiative in the organization. Figure 2: The Leavitt and Bahrami Diamond (1988) Again, Weisbord (1978) tries to develop a diagnostic tool for identifying six-box organisational areas, using the categories if structure, purposes, relationships, rewards, helpful mechanisms, and leadership (see Figure 3), where an organization has to perform well in order to succeed (Weisbord, 1978). Figure 3: Weisbords six-boxes Organisational Model (Weisbord, 1978) Further elaborating and developing on this thought McKinleys 7s provide a comprehensive set of factors to assess an organizations readiness for change. These factors recognize seven fundamental components (see Figure 4) none of which should be overlooked before the change process starts (Peters Waterman, 2004). The various frameworks and models have several common aspects. Since, McKinleys 7s encapsulates the important constituents of an organisation and because it has Shared Values (or Culture) at its heart, McKinseys 7s model will be used as a framework to assess the impact of BPR on the organisation. Because of the comprehensive nature and the area of vastness and dimension, McKinleys model holds a bigger degree of acceptance in the literature of Change management in organizations. A further elaboration on the elements identified by McKinleys will make this fact more elucidate to the reader and establish its importance for this research work. Figure 2: McKinseys seven S (Peters Waterman, 2004) Systems Systems are codified knowledge, structured in an analytical arrangement (Zack, 1999). They are management control system, performance measurement and reward systems, planning, budgeting and resource allocation systems and management information systems (Kaplan, 2005). They are the guidelines that direct workforce and administration in their daily tasks. All the BPR explanations, either explicitly or implicitly, imply to these features of systems as the subsequent examples of BPR implementation demonstrate. Rohm, in his examination of BPR at the Principal Financial Group Inc., gives an illustration from its field support transaction. He found that earlier, it has 16 step process involving input from nine people located in several areas and on distinct floors of the home office. The modern structure empowered this process to be diminished to six steps, involving the work of only three people. Consequently, customers were supplied with a single contact individual who could implement and control the whole process (Rohm, 1992). Often, new processes are aided by new technology. Thus, both the new technology and the new multi-function positions demand employees learn new techniques. Structures In 2005, Kaplan describes structures as The way in which tasks and people are specialized and divided, and authority is distributed; how activities and reporting relationships are grouped; the mechanisms by which activities in the organisation are coordinated (Kaplan, 2005). Henley goes on to classify six distinct kind of organisation: Simple structure, machine bureaucracy, professional bureaucracy, divisionalised form, adhocracy cult organisation. Having redefined the crucial processes within an organisation, the next step within BPR is to reorganise the organisation along process lines. Process organisations present a new form of organisation that aims to break away from many of the above traditional types, particularly the bureaucracies and divisional forms. Hammer Champy recommend a move to a widely horizontal structure established around the processes (Hammer Champy, 1993), whereas Davenport recommends a multi-facet matrix structure, with process accountability as a key element (Davenport, 1993). To achieve this, Jon Minerich states: the new organisation must adjust a balance between functional expertise and process involvement and goes on to say it is essential to remove functional barriers (Minerich, 2008). Still, whilst a process orientation is a new organisational structure it will incorporate attributes of the adhocracy: Workforces do not need to be supervised; they are grownups who are willing to take accountabilit y for their work products. Staff Buchanan Huczynski (1997) defines Staff as the quality and quantity of people employed but also adds the management concerns of motivation, reward systems, empowerment, the structure of jobs and team work (Buchanan Huczynski, 2004). The quality concerns will be noted in the Skills section that follows. BPR is often linked to new rewards systems. Davenport (1993) mentions gain-sharing, lateral promotion and a move from role title to process title, and variety through work role rotation. Life time employment, he considers encourage employees to redesign the processes to eliminate their own job (Sabki, Nawi, Mohamed, Azzli, 2005). BPR has certainly made some significant impact on the number of staff. At least in its early phase, re-engineering generally means heavy downsizing and extensive job reorganisation. The role of supervisors gets transformed and the number of intermediate managers usually decreased. At the same time, staffs at all horizontal have new, more receptive roles and specialist roles change fundamentally (Vollmann Brazas, 2004). BPR has indeed become related with down-sizing and right-sizing, and in such situations it is problematic to square with Davenports assertion above, that staffs should ha ve the confidence to redesign themselves out of the process. Skills Skills are defined as The distinctive competencies of the organisation needed to perform difficult tasks to a high standard along the dimensions such as people, management practises, systems technologies (Kaplan, 2005). The word empowerment is invariably associated with BPR. Bambarger (1993) and Anon (1993) illustrate employee involvement in the decision making through brainstorming potential solutions and by developing necessary skills to allow teams to make quick decisions. Hammer Champy (1993) elucidated on changing nature of job from simple tasks to multi-dimensional work, managers role from supervisors to coaches and executives evolves from scorekeepers to leader. Strategy Kaplan (2005) defines Strategy as: The positioning and actions taken by an enterprise, in response to or anticipation if changes in the external environment, intended to achieve competitive advantages. He concluded that strategic decisions are complex in nature, involve a high degree of uncertainty, and involve major changes. Johansson et al definition of the BPR drivers are of a strategic nature: Customers; Competition; Cost; Technology; Shareholders; Politics; Economics, Legislation, and Regulation [i.e. Environment] (headings in pp 37-49). One can see these relate to the Strategy definition given above. Johansson et al first task is to Discover the companys strategy and of what drives competitive advantage in a particular industry; the industrys value chain and the basis for competition, and how a particular company seeks to gain competitive edge (p87). Hammer Champy talk about the three Cs: Customers, Competition and Change (p17). Davenport (1993) advocates a Process Vision that is driven by Business Strategy (p127). BPR decisions, like Strategy decisions, are complex and involves a high degree of uncertainty ([BPR] is a complex undertaking and carries significant risk (Carey, 1993), and as noted under Systems and Structures, BPR involves major change. Style Style is the norms, dominant values and beliefs adopted by managers in their use of leadership (Kaplan, 2005). Hammer Champys New World of Work suggest managers to change from supervisors to coaches and executives to change from scorekeepers to leaders (Hammer Champy, 1993). Davenport (1993) also highlights that communication and commitment building must occur at all levels because changes incurred by process innovation are not only broad, but deep, extending from the vision of managers to the attitudes and behaviours of the lowest-level workers (Marjanovic, 2000). Considerable behavioural factor makes process innovation based change qualitatively distinctive from other forms of large scale restructuring. Process innovation involves immense change, not only in process flows and the culture surrounding them, but also in organisational power and controls (Davenport, 1993). Shared Values Shared values are the core or fundamental set of values that are widely shared in the organisation and serve as guidelines principles of what is important; vision, mission, and values statements that provide a broad sense of purpose for all employees (Kaplan, 2005). Successful reengineered business operations and individual belief systems need to be aligned with the specified beliefs of the organisation. Real value in an organisation is to be gained by looking at shared values that elevate above growth and profit objectives by connecting the ambitions of the organisation to innate human needs and principles (Ridder Wesselink, 2006). Reengineering entails as great a shift in the culture of an organisation as in its structural configuration. Reengineering demands that employees deeply believe they work for their customers, not for their bosses (Hammer Champy, 1993). The new process teams combined with shared values must believe in rewards, self-development and self-management centred on skills used. Critical Success and Failure factors of Business Process Reengineering There are a number of factors responsible for making a BPR process successful; simultaneously there are numbers of factors coexistent which can make BPR unaccepted in organization ultimately resulting in a complete negation of this process. Here is a discussion provided to elaborate on some of these factors so that it can be identified that which factor holds the bigger responsibility for a BPR to succeed or to fail. Success factors of BPR Among the chief success factors are aspiring objectives, a process approach and integration of electronic data processing (EDP), and the deployment of a creative team in problem solving (Peppard Fitzgerald, 1997). Ascari et al. (1995) emphasize four other elements in an organization with regard to successful BPR: Culture, Processes, Structure and Technology (Chang Powell, 1998). Ascaris analysis discovered that the enterprises that implemented BPR consented that its effect on the change of their culture was associated to the organisations reconsidering of its elementary business process. The concentration was also on recognising and enhancing core processes. Conversely, the extent and maturity of the business process architectures and the nature of changes within processes diverge within organisation. Furthermore, there must be substantial changes in structure, exclusively with stress on cross-functional work teams. The extent of the business process architectures is related to the study done by Maull et al. which showed the significant importance of this subject. He defined business process architectures as the definition of an integrated set of business processes (Maull, Weaver, Childe, Smar, Bennett, 1995). In 1999, Al-Mashari and Zairi underlined several facets of the critical success factors for BPR, including management proficiency and support, system composition, project management planning, change management and human resistance to change (Al-Mashari Zairi, 1999). According to Smith and Fingar (2002), BPR aims to achieve business performance and competitive advantage by applying innovative ways of doing business. Among few things, they stated to manage radical change efficiently comprises: communication is crucial to show support to the process change project and effective leadership to coordinate deployment of the resources to accomplish the strategic objectives (Smith Fingar, 2002). Further, to recognise the critical success factor of BPR in an organisation, it is essential to comprehend the organisation itself, since the factors may diverge viewing the type of organisation, including private or public. In the public sector, Hutton (1996) stressed several factors that need to be considered in order to implement BPR. These comprise swift dramatic changes in policy direction, rigid hierarchies, culture, multiple stakeholders, overlap of initiatives, wide scope of activities, and staff resistance that are crucial parts of public sector organisations (Hutton, 1996). However, he suggested that human issues should be considered for BPR to be performed in the public sector. This is supported by Smith and Finger (2002) who emphasized that communication at all levels becomes one of the critical elements here. According to the research done by (Berrington Oblich, 1995), it could be encapsulated that in order to implement reengineering, an organisation must understand it s composition first and ensure the vision was achieved. One of the significant points here is that commitment needs to be sustained and improved through communication. The employee concern rather than the technology concern is seen as vital to be dealt with and disciplined so as to make the change effort a success. The concern of culture becomes an imperative factor for BPR, which was further highlighted by Peppard and Fitzgerald (1997) who inspected the allocation of culturally based management procedures, namely BPR, making explicit reference to the German Organisation and cultural context. Their analysis determined that managers and employees as well should contribute their pledge for change. The conflict-free state will reflect on the sustainability of BPR in the long term. Other factors such as empowerment, culture, organisational circumstances and self-autonomy seemed to be significant for BPR to be effectively implemented. Hall et al. (1993) emphasized the depth factor which is related with shared values or culture in following BPR. This study identified six depth levers roles and responsibilities, measurements and incentives, organisational structure, IT, shared values and skills, which require change to enable successful reengineering. In an addition of methodology from the Hall et al . (1993) composition, Maull et al. (1995) concluded what the concerns are which fortify a BPR programme, by study commenced into a range of companies, located solely within the USA. Unstructured interviews took place with selected leading practitioners who had undertaken successful BPR projects and who were asked to share their experiences. The study was conducted with an individual or, more commonly with a team, which had overall responsibility for the BPR project within the organisation. There were five key issues in this study: scope of change, performance measures, information technology, human factors, and business process architecture. It is fascinating to observe and learn that human factors could become one of the sepping stones for the change to occur. The outcomes in Hall et al. (1993), Ascari et al. (1995), Maull et al. (1995), Hutton (1996), Peppard and Fitzgerald (1997), Al-Mashari Zairi (1999) and Smith and Finger (2002) underlined that Organisational culture and human resistance to BPR could lead to unproductive BPR projects. If the change has not been controlled and supervised carefully, employees would resist it, even it is a top-down approach, i.e. driven from the top. Failure factors of BPR Apart from the success factors, several authors also emphasized various failure factors in deploying BPR. Aggarwal (1998) stressed fiascos of BPR deployment, which were related to managers arrogance, resistance, crisis, expenditure, idea, etc. Hammer and Champy (1993) stressed some failure factors such as failure to have a process viewpoint, a rigid process that is not adaptable enough to be receptive to the requests and requirements, not linking workforce (i.e. bottom-up) in decision making, assigning someone that does not understand BPR, technology constraints, fabricating a project but concentrating on downsizing and cost diminution, processing an ineffectual team, and trouble with communication. Therefore, this research emphasized that reengineering is believed to commence with a new vision, mission and customers. Moreover, the scarcity of human resources, and insufficient IT competence and proficiency posed the main inconvenience in carrying out these programmes (Stoddard, Jarve npaa, Littlejohn, 1996). Other factors are the insufficient support from organisation members, absence of strategic vision, rigid organisational arrangement, and shortage of champion for BPR efforts (Ranganathan Dhaliwal, 2001). It is exciting to observe that, among erstwhile failure factors are poor top management support and human resources (Al-Mashari Zairi, 1999), people resistance to adopt (Stoddard et al., 1996; Peppard and Fitzgerald, 1997; Ranganathan and Dhaliwal, 2001), IT related problems (Al-Mashari and Zairi, 1999; Ranganathan and Dhaliwal, 2001; Smith, 2003), and ineffective BPR teams, lack of project management, and problems in communication (Al-Mashari Zairi, 1999). The point for reiterating with these critical factors is that without another kind of fundamental change, namely, a change in organizational culture, there is little hope of enduring improvement in organizational performance. Although the tools and techniques may be present and the change strategy implemented with vigour, many efforts to improve organizational performance fail because the fundamental culture of the organization-values, ways of thinking, managerial styles, paradigms, approaches to problem solving-remains the same (Quinn Cameron, 2006). Evaluating the above discourse it can be summarised to some extent that although there are numerous factors which make impact on BPR majority of them can be summed under the organizational culture umbrella and those who cant be listed under this head can be guided and impacted by the organizational culture dimension. So here onward the essence is to explore further this crucial dimension of BPR which not only impacts the success of BPR most but can guide it to the way of success. Conclusion Using McKinseys organisational model it was shown that a implementation of any change like BPR will impact on six of the organisational dimensions, and that it is driven by the seventh element i.e. Strategy. One can deduce then, that a full BPR programme will embrace significant organisational change. BPR is the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes that result in dramatic improvements especially in meeting customer needs and other external strategic demands. Crucial to prosperous reengineering is not only the formulation of more effective and efficient BPR processes but orientation of organizational culture to support BPR. Since, shared values is placed at the heart of an organisation by McKinsey, one can also infer that a full BPR programme will incorporate substantial organisational culture change. To fully understand this repercussion, the subsequent chapter will investigate the literature on organisational and culture change. Organisational Culture Managing Organisational Change Introduction Previous chapter emphasised that reengineering is not sufficient to attain necessary change in an organisation. It had to be integrated with an overall approach to changing an organizations culture. All prosperous organisations have established something special that surpasses corporate strategy, market presence, or technological advantages. They have found the potential that exists in developing and supervising a unique corporate culture. The failure of reengineering occurred in most cases because the culture of the organization remained the same. Almost every highflying firm has established a unique culture that is visibly recognizable by its key stakeholders. This culture is sometimes shaped by the original founder of the organisation, for e.g. Disney or Microsoft (Schein, The Role of the Founder in Creating Organizational Culture, 1995). Sometimes it is established intentionally by management teams who decide to enhance their organisations performance in systematic ways, for e.g. , G.E or McDonalds (Karp, 2006). But, not all companies automatically acquire a robust and highly operative culture; henceforth further discussion would be on methodology for how to lead a culture change effort in an organization. The potential for professional subculture exists within any organisation employing professionals. Professionals entering an organisation bring with them a large range of cultural knowledge gained both from the wider society and from their professional training schools and previous work experiences. When they join an organisation and meet like professionals, then their previous cultural repertoire gets validated. Even a sole professional within an organisation will find support for his or her existing beliefs and interpretations through interaction with peers outside the organisation, reading professionals journals, and so forth. This sharing of experiences and belief leads to the development and maintenance of professional subcultures which compliments, conflict and counterbalance the primary organisational culture (Bloor Dawson, 1994). To comprehend how culture change can improve implementation of BPR and organisational capability, it is important that we make clear what is and isnt Organisational culture. A description of organizational culture and subculture will be first delivered followed by the clarification of methods for comprehending culture change in the context of organizations. Finally, employee response to cultural change will be described followed by process of initiating culture change is described which can be used in organizational development interventions. Organisational Culture Subculture There is no clear consensus of an organizational culture definition (Zammuto, Gifford, Goodman, 2000). However, many researchers tried to describe organisational culture as below: According to Quinn Cameron (2006), an organizations culture is revealed by what is valued, the dominant managerial and leadership styles, the language and symbols, the procedures and routines, and the definitions of success that make an organization unique. Culture has been an important concept in organisational study for a long period, but there remains significant range in how researchers observe and analyse culture (Martin, 2002). The anthropologist Kluckhohn (1949) defined culture as the set of habitual and traditional ways of thinking, feeling, and reacting that are characteristic of the ways a particular society meets its problems at a particular time (Price Chahal, 2006). Several academicians who have analysed culture and have frequently come up with considerably narrow definitions, or some have used these definitions and merged them into recent, more espousing definitions. For example, Schein define culture as: a pattern of shared basic assumptions that the group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that has worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way you perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems (Schein E. , 2004). Scheins definition highlights that culture is something not to do with individuals alone but with groups of people collectively, who through their skills together in the work surroundings, will construct an image of what the organisation is all about and how it carry out its purpose. This image is constructed by knowing how to perform for survival and advancement. Contrary, (Smircich, 1983), support analogous hidden features of beliefs and values, while (Thompson Luthans, 1990) emphasise the behavioural interpretation of organisational culture that is learning through both direct and indirect means. For example, employees observe how they are cared by management and how they infer management treating other people. Accor ding to above theory, two components of behaviour exists: the patterns which are internal opinions of how one should act and the norms which are external observable manifestations of the internal opinions. Ogbonna (1993) asserted that culture may have lost much of its meaning as academics and practitioners use culture to refer to any facet of organisations that does not offer itself to obvious explanation. Also, there is a strong tendency among researchers and practitioners towards viewing organizational cultures as unitary belief systems (Ogbonna Harris, 1998). According to this, homogeneity, harmony and unity are features of organization cultures, and cultural change is understood as an organization-wide transformation process, where the old unity is replaced by a new one (Martin, 2002). This is a common view, although cultural organization studies have provided plenty of reflection on the issue of how organizations are subject to different types of cultural divisions (Lindstead Grafton-Small, 1992). It has also been made clear that the organizational belief systems are not necessarily clearly articulated or internally consistent, but that they may at the same time include inconsis tent and ambiguous elements (Meyerson Martin, 1987). The claim goes that the unitary interpretation can only deliver information regarding beliefs that are usually held within the complete organization. This creates problems such as the inability to reveal subcultures and a multiplicity of views, the inability to handle inconsistencies and the inability to take into account ambiguity in organizational beliefs. But, many theorists such as Morgan (1986) and Sackmann (1992) call for a view of culture that is pluralist with the existence of subcultures (Harris Ogbonna, Employee responses to culture change efforts, 2005). There are many kinds or levels of culture that influence organizational and individual behaviour. At the widest level, a global culture, such as a world religions culture or the culture of the Eastern hemisphere would be the highest level (Quinn Cameron, 2006). At a less general level are national cultures or subgroup cultures such as gender-based cultures, ethnic gr oup cultures, occupational cultures, or socioeconomic group culture. Each of these cultures is generally reflected by unique language, symbols, and ethnocentric feelings. Still less broad is the culture of a single organization (Quinn Cameron, 2006). Subcultures are groups whose common characteristic is a set of shared norms and beliefs. In contrast to subgroups, subcultures need not form around existing subdivisions, such as departmental or functional groups (although they often do), nor do they need to be consciously or intentionally formed (Boisnier Chatman, 2003). The range and variety of subcultures is as diverse as the range and variety of existing organizational cultures. Siehl and Martin (1984) gave three categories of subcultures: orthogonal subcultures, enhancing subcultures and counter cultures. Orthogonal subcultures are those groups of organisational members who accept the dominant values but also hold the

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Essay -- Television TV Show Essays

Buffy the Vampire Slayer While the first seasons of Buffy are structured around an external threat seeking to corrupt the order of the world, later the source of the threat becomes increasingly internal, and the characters must embrace a side of themselves which is evil, irrational, or dangerous. When Giles kills an arguably innocent Ben, he does not suffer the moral ambiguity that Willow encounters when she kills a guilty Warren. Willow has to deal with an evil internal to her in a way Giles does not, and this apparent discrepancy is the result of a general evolution of the series, rather than a double standard. The murder of Ben is comparable to the murder of Warren, even though Ben is mostly innocent and Warren is mostly guilty. They are both human, and their deaths are necessary to stop further evil. Even though Ben cohabits the same body with the hell god Glory, he, as an independent being, is innocent of Glory's actions, as the Scoobies uniformly agree: "What about Ben? He can be killed, right? I mean, I know he's an innocent, but, you know, not, like 'Dawn' innocent. We could kill... a regular guy... (no we couldn't) God." Even the script directions ("no we couldn't") suggest that the way Xander delivers these lines should emphasize the moral impossibility of killing Ben as a way of stopping Glory. Being Glory is to Ben what being the Key is to Dawn: it could make him "other" but it cannot make him either good or bad on Glory's behalf. It is true that Ben is guilty of other things -- he summons the demon who kills (or merely finishes off) Glory's brain sucked victims; and, in "Listenin g to Fear," there is even a real chance that Joyce might get killed because of him (an event which Buffy prevents from happening). .. ...umans into vampires): "at some point someone has to draw the line, and that is always going to be me. You get down on me for cutting myself off, but in the end the slayer is always cut off" ("Selfless"). At the same time, she is the most ambiguous one, the one who is ready to cut all ties with family and friends and kill people she loves, if necessary (e.g., Angel). The requirement that she know exactly which side she must stay on (regardless of where those she loves are) gives her the responsibility to keep the other "other" at all costs -- even at the cost of becoming an "other" herself. This would be the moral equivalent of dying to save lives in "The Gift" -- in this case, crossing over to the dark side in order to prevent others from doing it. Paradoxically, she protects the line which separates good from evil by crossing it, by becoming more and more "other."

Jewish Population of Victorian England Essay examples -- Victorian Era

The Jewish Population of Victorian England HISTORY The Jews had their roots in Eastern Europe but were also scattered in western European countries such as England. The Jewish population has been historically scapegoated since the time of the medieval Church. Stereotypes have been formed of the people practicing this religion for hundreds of years in England and elsewhere on the Continent. The timeline shows the progression of the population in England and the strides they have made over a century. YEAR # OF JEWS IN ENGLAND 1815 25000 1851 35000 1880 60000 (Naman 47) "In 1800, the overwhelming majority of London's Jews, rich and poor, were still living in the East End of London, in and around the city" (Black 63). Not until decades later would Jews move out of the East End and move outwards from London and form their own communities. East End was the complete opposite of West End London. Black describes " a great part of the East End in gloomily picturesque panorama. The angular meanness of the buildings is veiled [with] the dusk" (Black 63). Similar to a ghetto and being the poorer side of town, it perpetuated the stereotype that the Jewish population consisted of shady people. map THE STEREOTYPES "The images that originated with the attitude of the medieval Church towards Jews may be termed the archetypal images: The moneylender, the murderer, the devil converged to form the image of the pariah--an outcast from society, a being separate from other beings" (Naman 31). With the Church backing the discrimination of the Jewish population, the stereotypes continued and increased the unfavorable views Anglicans held for this separate religion. As a result of this, Jews have been the social p... ...ese physical attributes may not have been very accurate but are the "stamp of a Jewish man" so that the reader may always remember and acknowledge such a character as being Jewish. The physical characteristics Dickens utilizes also includes "a rusty large-brimmed low crowned hat", "staff" and someone who employs a "graceful Eastern action of homage" (Dickens 273). Such stereotypical attributes are prevalent of Jewish characters in Victorian novels. SOME PROMINENT JEWISH MEN OF THE VICTORIAN ERA Benjamin Disraeli Nathan Rothschild, 1st Baron Rothschild Sir David Salomons Works Cited Black, Gerry. Jewish London: An Illustrated History. Derby: The Breedon Books Publishing Company Limited, 2003. Dickens, Charles. Our Mutual Friend. New York: Penguin Group, 1997. Naman, Anne Aresty. The Jew in the Victorian Novel . AMS Press, Inc.: New York, 1980.

Critique of the Novel Our Town Essay -- Thornton Wilder

Thornton Wilder was born on April 17, 1897, and died on December 7, 1975. He was born in Madison, Wisconsin to Amos Wilder, an American diplomat, and Isabella Wilder. Thornton Wilder started writing plays in The Thacher School in Ojai, California, and graduated from Berkeley High School in 1915. He served in the Coast Guard in World War II. After the war he attended Oberlin College, then Yale University where he earned his B.A. in 1920. His writing was honed at Yale where he was a part of the Alpha Delta Phi Fraternity which is a literary society. In 1926, he earned his M.A. in French from Princeton University. Wilder won Pulitzer Prizes for The Bridge of San Luis Rey in 1928, Our Town in 1938, and The Skin of Our Teeth in 1942. He also won the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade in 1957, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963, and the National Book Award in 1967 for his novel The Eighth Day. Form, Structure, and Plot The novel is organized into three acts, each one representing a different period of time. There are only two flashbacks in the book. The first takes place in act two, after George and Mr. Webb have a conversation. They both leave the stage and the Stage Manager introduces the flashback of when Emily and George had their first date at Mr. Morgan’s drugstore. The second flashback is not so much a flashback as it is time travel. It occurs in act three after Emily Webb joins the rest of the dead. She, as well as the Stage Manager, goes back in time to revisit her twelfth birthday. The first act is of George Gibbs and Emily Webb as teens, the second act is of their marriage, and the third act is of Emily Webb’s funeral. In the play a total of twelve years is covered. Throughout the play, the tone becomes more and m... ...out that Emily is dead. Additional Comments I was not thrilled with this book, but I did not hate it. The book’s strengths are that it has good, applicable themes that are easy to understand. Another strength that the book has is that it is not written in formal diction, so it is easy to read and understand. One of its weaknesses is that it is sometimes hard to follow the plot because of the lack of narration. The reader can get confused because of sudden scene or time changes. The book does leave one lingering question: What happens to George Gibbs? Although this is not my favorite book, it will have lasting effects on me. The transience of human life is a universal theme that can be observed by anyone. Bibliography Thornton (Niven) Wilder (1897-1975). . Our Town. Wikipedia. .

End the Wolf Hunt – Save the Wolves

Molly Kinney Composition 1 Mary Burmaster November 11 2012 Saving the Grey Wolves Wolves and humans have been coexisting for hundreds of years. Before Europeans conquered our vast country, wolves held a very esteemed place in Native American culture, as they were vital to forest ecosystems, and were often believed to be spiritual beings in many tribes (kidsplanet 1). As much as they were honored in tribal cultures, others feared them.Children’s fables often described them as â€Å"the big bad wolf† in stories such as Little Red Riding hood and The Three Little Pigs (kidsplanet 1). Settlers saw wolves in this way because they were a sort of competition, dwindling stock and wild game numbers (kidsplanet 1). Even into the 20th century, the belief that wolves were still a threat to human safety continued despite documentation to the contrary, and by the 1970s, the lower forty eight states had wolf populations less than three percent of their historical range, about 500 to 1 ,000 wolves (kidsplanet 1).In a book written by Bruce Hampton called The Great American Wolf, he states, â€Å"In the span of three hundred years nationwide, but only seventy years in the West, hunters in the United States had managed to kill off the wild prey of gray wolves; settlers, farmers, and ranchers had occupied most of the wolves' former habitat; wolfers had poisoned them; bounty hunters had dynamited their dens and pursued them with dogs, traps, and more poison; and finally, the government had stepped in and, primarily at the livestock industry's behest, quite literally finished them off.    Fortunately, around this time in the 70’s, American’s were starting to become much more aware of their impact on the environment and the wildlife. The Endangered Species Act was created in 1973, and the Grey Wolf was put on the list in 1974. After almost 35 years of restoration efforts and conservation work, the Grey Wolf has finally been taken off the endangered speci es list in Minnesota, with about 1,700 hundred wolves in the state (kidsplanet 1). Less than a year later, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MN DNR) passed a law allowing a certain number of wolves to be hunted starting November 3, 2012 (kidsplanet 1).In the month and half the season has been open, about 150 Grey wolves have been killed (dnr. state. mn). Grey wolves are a vital part of our ecosystems and perhaps eventually grey wolves will once again thrive well enough that hunting them will not result in more conflict, but it is too soon to start the hunt again. Hunters should not be allowed to hunt grey wolves in Minnesota, because they have not had enough time to replenish their population and wolves are not a threat to human safety at all.Normally when an animal is taken off the endangered species list, it is given a five-year grace period to try and regain its spot back in the ecosystem before declaring a hunting season is even a thought in the minds of DNR decisio n makers (Horon 1). Since it took close to 40 years for the Grey wolf to be taken off the list, it seems logical to give the animal an even longer period to recover, to ensure that the animal does not get put on the list ever again.Though one hunt most likely will not kill off all the wolves, if hunting continues every year, there could be serious damage once again to the wolf population, as said in an article from a Wisconsin news website, madison. com. â€Å"One hunt won't put wolves†¦ back on the list but research hints at possible longer-term harm to the wolf population and even an increase in wolves killing livestock, researchers say† (Seely 1). However, the Minnesota DNR ruled that less than one year was a sufficient amount of time for the wolves to repopulate, and opened a wolf-hunting season on November 3rd, 2012.Before settlers came to North America, more than 250,000 wolves roamed the uncharted territory that is now the United States (Cosmos magazine). With eve ry year of citizen growth in the New World, Wolf population decreased. As the U. S. grew and became more populated, settlers practically made careers out of wolf hunting. In the 19th century, the pelts were in such high demand that almost everyone sought to kill as many wolves as possible (kidsplanet 1). People moving west bought hundreds of acres of land to raise their stock on, and killed every wolf that came near.Research from1974 showed that there were only about 500 Grey wolves living in the entire United States (kidsplanet 1). In efforts to re-grow the wolf population, conservationists took wolves into protection. Being protected by the Endangered Species Act has helped the Grey Wolf a lot. In the  Great Lakes, wolves have grown in population and expanded their range from Minnesota to Northern Michigan and Wisconsin (Meador 1). Although there have been huge gains in favor of the wolves, population recovery is far from over.Only 5,000 to 6,000 wolves occupy a mere five percen t of the animals’ historical range throughout Minnesota and the rest of the United States (Meador 1). Replenishing wolf populations through out the states would protect the future of wolves and allow them to play their important role in the forest environment in greater fulfillment of their former range. Yet another reason why wolves should not be hunted is because they pose no actual threat to humans or livestock. Wolves are able to kill animals much larger than humans and should be treated with respect.Contrary to the belief that wolves are vicious and aggressive towards humans, there have only been two reported deaths by wolf attack since 1900, one of which is heavily disputed (OregonWild 1). Moreover, wolves are opportunists, and sometimes eat livestock. However, they have a relatively small impact on the livestock industry as a whole (OregonWild 1). Unstable meat prices, disease, fuel and land prices, weather, dogs, and even human thieves pose larger threats to the marke t. (OregonWild 1). It is simply not true when people in favor of the wolf hunt say that wolves are detrimental to the industry.The United States livestock industry has been in a slow decline, preceding wolf recovery by many decades; However, a study done in an area of Oregon with a high wolf population showed that from 2009 to 2011, while the wolf population grew from 500 to 1400, revenue in the livestock industry jumped almost fifty percent to almost $27 million in a county with barely 7,000 citizens (OregonWild). Although wolves were not the cause of the huge increase, it is clear that their impact in the industry is small (OregonWild).Like shark attacks, when wolves wreak havoc, it can make for upsetting photos and grim stories, and so the risk of wolves to livestock is many times magnified (OregonWild 1). Research done in areas of high wolf populations has actually shown that having wolves around may actually decrease livestock loss by keeping smaller predators like coyotes in c heck (OregonWild 1). Of course, there are many people who believe that a Wolf hunt is completely acceptable under current circumstances. Many supporters believe that if professionals are not actively watching wolf population, it will increase much too rapidly (Robb 1).In an article from petersenhunting. com, Bob Robb, a hunting column writer, says, â€Å"This is especially true in areas where there are lots of animals for them to eat – like the Yellowstone ecosystem. Because wolf numbers exceeded targeted reintroduction population goals in the Yellowstone ecosystem more rapidly than expected, the animal was removed from the Endangered Species List and a sport hunting season on wolves was instituted in 2009† (Robb 1). Research does show that wolf packs not observed by researchers do reproduce more (petersenhunting 1).Minnesotans should not be allowed to hunt wolves because they have only been off the endangered species list for a year so their populations are not at the greatest numbers, and statistics from states where wolf hunting is illegal show that they may actually help the livestock industry and are not a threat at all. Very recently, researchers at Yellowstone National Park were saddened when the Alpha Female, called 832F by scientists and â€Å"Rockstar† by visitors, was found dead outside park boundaries on December sixth.Seven other wolves were found dead with her, all killed by hunters (EarthIslandJournal 1). After environmentalist’s work getting the Grey Wolf on the list finally paid off, they had hopes for the wolves to once again thrive someday in their natural habitat. This will never happen if we start diminishing wolf populations, right when they are at the height of restoration progress. Works Cited â€Å"DNR- What Happened behind Closed Doors? †Ã‚  Howling for Wolves Minnesota. N. p. , 13July 2012. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. ;http://www. owlingforwolves. org/news/dnr-what- happened-behind-closed-doors;. â€Å"COSM OS Magazine. †Ã‚  Grey Wolf Withdrawn from Endangered List. N. p. , 05 May 2010. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. . Greder, Andy. â€Å"Minnesota Wolf Hunt: About 150 Wolves Killed Statewide’’. â€Å"TwinCities. com. N. p. , 18 Nov. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. Horon, Sonia. â€Å"The Grey:? A Bad Fairy Tale About Wolves. †Ã‚  Globalanimal. com. Global Animal Website, 27 Jan. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 012. Meador, Ron. â€Å"Save the Grey Wolf. †Ã‚  Causes. Minnpost, n. d. Web. 19 Sept. 2012. ;http://www. causes. com/causes/75833-save-the-grey-wolf;. Motsinger, John. â€Å"Wolf Weekly Wrap-up | Defenders of Wildlife Blog. †Ã‚  Wolf Weekly Wrap-up | Defenders of Wildlife Blog. N. p. , 7 Dec. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. â€Å"Oregon Wild. †Ã‚  Wolves-Misunderstood. N. p. , n. d. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. ;http://www. oregonwild. org/fish_wildlife/bringing_wolves_back/wolves- misunderstood; Robb, Bob. â€Å"Petersen's Hunting. †Ã‚  Petersens Hunting. N. p. 2 Nov. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. Seely, Matt. â€Å"Questions abound before Wisconsin’s Wolf Hunt†Ã‚  Madison. com. 14 Oct. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2012 William, Matt. â€Å"Yellowstone Popular Alpha Female Wolf Shot Dead by Hunters Outside Park. 10 Dec. 2012. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. â€Å"Wolf Management. †Ã‚  : Minnesota DNR. Minnesota DNR, Web. 13 Nov. 2012. ;http://www. dnr. state. mn. us/mammals/wolves/mgmt. html;.

Inventing the University

Many beginner or introductory writers are strangers to academic discourse; they do not have the understanding of the principles and logic needed to devise scholarly compositions. Thus, throughout various universities, students are assembling and mimicking the discourses taught by knowledgeable educators, ultimately trying to successfully write for a variety of diverse audiences (Bartholomae 61).Students intuitively understand that they need to reproduce a similar composition in order to gain acceptance in the academic community and to succeed in their coursework. Unfortunately, he or she does not have the knowledge necessary to complete the assignments. David Bartholomae defines â€Å"Inventing the University† as writing processes that college students must undertake each time they create a new composition. He has described the essential reason for making the comprehension of academic discourse the primary component of any first-year writing class.In his essay, Bartholomae off ers insights that could aid college composition teachers in understanding the difficulty beginner students without prior exposure to academic discourse may encounter when trying to write university level writing coursework. Essentially, students must learn to abandon their old discourse communities, use authoritative roles in their papers and use a special vocabulary to become great scholars.David Bartholomae is a leading Professor at the University of Pittsburgh; he is a revolutionary scholar and expert of composition studies. Bartholomae has challenged his profession to observe more intensely, and think more self-critically about what happens when people write and read. His vision of literacy is comprehensive and rational; he has transformed the way teachers think about students which has caused many universities and colleges to modify practices that have needed improvement for a long time.His primary research interests are in composition, literacy, pedagogy; his work engages lear ning in language and in American literature and studies. His thoughts and visions are based on Aristotelian philosophy. Students have entered many discourse communities throughout their lives that have shaped their writing styles and language patterns. Basic writers’ problems when entering college is they â€Å"face a clash, not of dialects but of discourse forms† (Bizzel 295).There are many students from different countries and social classes that come to universities with different abilities to deal with academic discourse. In order for students to effectively reproduce compositions, they need to abandon their previous discourse communities with the help and knowledge of professors. According to Bartholomae’s paradigm, educators are empowered with the responsibility of introducing students to a set of codes and conventions that will allow beginning writers to enter into a new and allegedly empowering, discourse community (67).An important task of an educator i s to â€Å"pry loose† the scholar from their previous discourse community to which he or she had been a part of prior to entering the university (Bartholomae 83). Bartholomae describes these communities as structured by the â€Å"naive† codes of â€Å"everyday' life,† and he asserts that we must replace them with â€Å"the peculiar ways of knowing, selecting, evaluating, reporting, concluding, and arguing that define the discourse of our community† (79, 60).Contrastingly, Harris argues that the role as teachers should not be â€Å"to initiate our students into the values and practices of some new community, but to offer them a chance to reflect critically on those discourses – of home, school, work, the media and the like – to which they already belong† (19). As a fourth year university student, I have taken many literature classes, and by observing many struggling students, I believe that Bartholomae’s arguments are accurate. Students need to conform to the universities’ discourse community to properly compose writing assignments and be proven successful in the course.Many students are penalized for not appropriating a privileged discourse. First year writers have difficulty adopting an authoritative voice in their writing assignments. Writing with authority isn't a matter of correct grammar; it is a prose that displays enough skill and professionalism that it convinces the reader that the author has a purpose to his or her writing. It is important for authors to be comfortable with the audience and to ensure that readers’ expectations are met.Bartholomae explains â€Å"To speak with authority [students] have to speak not only in another’s voice but through another’s code; and they not only have to do this, they have to speak in the voice and through the codes of those of us with power and wisdom†¦ † (78). Writers only gain authority when their arguments can be rel ated to those of other critics (Gaipa 419). A student’s argument can be cogent and engaging, but it will lack authority â€Å"until its author clarifies [his or her] contribution to a larger critical community† (419).Despite having four years experience in academic writing, establishing authority and creating a purpose for various audiences continues to be an exceptionally complex task to achieve. Many hours are spent revising and modifying compositions to generate an academic essay that reaches the professor’s expectations. Most native-speakers of the English language come to a University or College with a vocabulary of approximately twenty thousand words. Generally, students will be taught more than one thousand new words every year from academic writing.Undergraduate’s discover that creating academic composition requires the use of â€Å"professional language† and a â€Å"specialized† vocabulary (Graff and Birkenstein 116,119) However, st udents should not use complex wording in there essays unless the terminology is clear and completely understood. Essays require â€Å"correct and complete understanding of the meaning of their vocabulary in order for the reader to process their intellectual substance† (Stotsky 318) Writers need to learn that â€Å"what they say (the code) is more important than what they meant(the intention)†(Bartholomae 77).I think students underestimate the importance of language used within a composition. Many words are overused by scholars or too difficult for readers to comprehend. To conclude, in order to gain familiarity with scholarly discourse, imitation is essential for the beginner and basic writers. Students continuously struggle with establishing an authoritative voice and satisfying syntactical standards to the teachers’ expectations, therefore continuous practice is necessary.It is to the students benefit to abandon their prior discourse community and engage in th e university’s academia. Ultimately, to become successful authors, students must follow a teacher’s examples and examine their preferable writing styles and techniques. Bibliography Bartholomae, David. â€Å"Inventing the University†. Writing on the Margins: Essays on Composition and Teaching. New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005. Print. Bizzel, Patricia. â€Å"What Happens When Basic Writers Come to College? † College Composition and Communication 37, 1986. 294-301. Web. Nov 30. 2009.Gaipa, Mark. †Breaking into the Conversation: How Students Can Acquire Authority for Their Writing† Pedagogy 4, 2004. 419-437. Web. 23 Nov. 2009. Graff, G and Birkenstein, C. They Say I say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing. New York, NY: W. W,Norton & Company, 2006. Print. Harris, Joseph. â€Å"The Idea of Community in the Study of Writing† College Composition and Communications 40, 1989. 11-22. Web. 25 Nov. 2009. Stotsky, Sandra. â€Å"T he Vocabulary of Essay Writing: Can It Be Taught? † College Composition and Communication 32, 1981. 317-326. Web. 27 Nov. 2009.