Tuesday, December 24, 2019

Comparing and Contrasting Ancient Greek Drinking Vessels...

There are a handful of differences and similarities from an Ancient Greek drinking vessel and a Starbucks cup some people may not take into consideration. While comparing and contrasting a Starbucks coffee cup and Ancient Greek drinking vessels I will take careful notation into the differences and similarities of their form, function and decoration of the artifacts. I will go into careful detail of what the ancient Greeks used to create their drinking vessels. Also, I will elaborate the functions that the Ancient Greeks first had in mind and what uses they had during the different time periods. Another important aspect of the ancient Greek drinking vessels and Starbucks cup are the decorations and logos. This plays an important role in†¦show more content†¦This is usually referred as a red-figure style vase. This type of style vase painting started in Athens, Greece. The red-figure technique is essentially an inversion of the black-figure technique, for now the figures are l eft the color of the clay and the background is painted black. Details within the contours of the figures are painted with a brush and are consequently more fluid than when incised in the black-figure technique. These paintings upon the vessels usually depict some sort of scene from mythological life. Most of these Greek vessels served as more than drinking vessels but as prizes, ways to illustrate stories and items used to place in tombs. Today, people may use Starbucks cups, as a â€Å"to-go† cup, conveniently for our societys busy lives. The Starbucks cup is shaped like an open cylindrical container with a flat bottom and without handles. Starbucks provides lids for the paper and plastic cups with a hole in it for either sipping or to insert a straw for drinking. However, because they are made from paper and plastic they are easier to dispose of after use. The Starbucks cup is made up of mostly paper and it also contains a petro-chemical based polyethylene plastic, whic h makes it impossible to recycle. Starbucks has an optional sleeve for the cups to protect your hands from burning from the hot temperatures of the beverages. The sleeves are made out

Monday, December 16, 2019

Isp †Internet Service Provider Free Essays

Internet service provider * ISP (Internet service provider) * Regional ISPs provide Internet access to a specific geographical area * National ISPs provide Internet access in cities and towns nationwide * Online service provider (OSP) * Has many members-only features * Popular OSPs include AOL (America Online) and MSN (Microsoft Network) * Wireless Internet service provider (WISP) * Provides wireless Internet access to computers and mobile devices * May require a wireless modem An Internet service provider (ISP) is a company that provides access to the Internet. Access ISPs directly connect customers to the Internet using copper wires, wireless or fiber-optic connections. [1] Hosting ISPs lease server space for smaller businesses and host other people servers (colocation). We will write a custom essay sample on Isp – Internet Service Provider or any similar topic only for you Order Now Transit ISPs provide large amounts of bandwidth for connecting hosting ISPs to access ISPs. [2] Internet connectivity options from end-user to Tier 3/2 ISPs * | History The Internet started off as a closed network between government research laboratories and relevant parts of universities. As it became more popular, universities and colleges started giving more of their members access to it. As a result of its popularity, commercial Internet service providers sprang up to offer access to the Internet to anyone willing to pay for the service, mainly to those who missed their university accounts. In 1990, Brookline, Massachusetts-based The World became the first commercial ISP. [3] Access provider ISPs employ a range of technologies to enable consumers to connect to their network. For users and small businesses, traditional options include: dial-up, DSL (typically Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line, ADSL), broadband wireless, cable modem, fiber to the premises (FTTH), and Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) (typically basic rate interface). For customers with more demanding requirements, such as medium-to-large businesses, or other ISPs, DSL (often Single-Pair High-speed Digital Subscriber Line or ADSL), Ethernet, Metropolythian Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, Frame Relay, ISDN (B. R. I. or P. R. I. ), ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) and upload satellite Internet access. Sync-optical cabling (SONET) are more likely to be used. [citation needed] Typical home user connectivity * Broadband wireless access * Cable Internet * Dial-up * ISDN * Modem * DSL * FTTH * Wi-Fi Business-type connection: * DSL * Metro Ethernet technology * Leased line * SHDSL Locality When using a dial-up or ISDN connection method, the ISP cannot determine the caller’s physical location to more detail than using the number transmitted using an appropriate form of Caller ID; it is entirely possible to e. g. connect to an ISP located in Mexico from the USA. Other means of connection such as cable or DSL require a fixed registered connection node, usually associated at the ISP with a physical address. Mailbox provider A company or organization that provides email mailbox hosting services for end users and/or organizations. Many Mailbox Providers are also Access Providers. Hosting ISPs Hosting ISPs routinely provide email, FTP, and web-hosting services. Other services include virtual machines, clouds, or entire physical servers where customers can run their own custom software. Transit ISPs Just as their customers pay them for Internet access, ISPs themselves pay upstream ISPs for Internet access. An upstream ISP usually has a larger network than the contracting ISP and/or is able to provide the contracting ISP with access to parts of the Internet the contracting ISP by itself has no access to. In the simplest case, a single connection is established to an upstream ISP and is used to transmit data to or from areas of the Internet beyond the home network; this mode of interconnection is often cascaded multiple times until reaching a Tier 1 carrier. In reality, the situation is often more complex. ISPs with more than one point of presence (PoP) may have separate connections to an upstream ISP at multiple PoPs, or they may be customers of multiple upstream ISPs and may have connections to each one of them at one or more point of presence. Peering Main article: Peering ISPs may engage in peering, where multiple ISPs interconnect at peering points or Internet exchange points (IXs), allowing routing of data between each network, without charging one another for the data transmitted—data that would otherwise have passed through a third upstream ISP, incurring charges from the upstream ISP. ISPs requiring no upstream and having only customers (end customers and/or peer ISPs) are called Tier 1 ISPs. Network hardware, software and specifications, as well as the expertise of network management personnel are important in ensuring that data follows the most efficient route, and upstream connections work reliably. A tradeoff between cost and efficiency is possible. Derivatives The following are not a different type of the above ISPs, rather they are derivatives of the 3 core ISP types. A VISP is reselling either access or hosting services. Free ISPs are similar, but they just have a different revenue model. Virtual ISP Main article: Virtual ISP A Virtual ISP (VISP) is an operation which purchases services from another ISP (sometimes called a â€Å"wholesale ISP† in this context)[4] which allow the VISP’s customers to access the Internet using services and infrastructure owned and operated by the wholesale ISP. Free ISP Free ISPs are Internet Service Providers (ISPs) which provide service free of charge. Many free ISPs display advertisements while the user is connected; like commercial television, in a sense they are selling the users’ attention to the advertiser. Other free ISPs, often called freenets, are run on a nonprofit basis, usually with volunteer staff. Related services * Broadband Internet access * Fixed wireless access * Cable * Triple play * Internet hosting service * Web hosting service * E-mail hosting service * DNS hosting service * Dynamic DNS How to cite Isp – Internet Service Provider, Papers

Sunday, December 8, 2019

Retail Management Organic and Online Groceries

Question: Discuss about thrRetail Managementfor Organic and Online Groceries. Answer: Overview of Hong Kong Hong Kong reflects increased autonomy in the Peoples Republic of China. The region is significantly populated by people originating from China while people also originating from Indonesia and Filipino are also observed to constitute the Chinese society. Moreover, the existence of a free market economy in Hong Kong potentially attracts international business institutions pertaining to different sectors to set up their business presence in the region. During 2015, the GDP of Hong Kong estimated to around $414.6 billion(CIA, 2016). Comparison of Retailing in Australia and Hong Kong Retailing in Australia Shopping Centre in Australia Large numbers of shopping centres are available around different regions of Australia. Melbourne operates as the prime destination hosting around 20 different shopping centres located along different areas. An estimate carried during 2015 reflects that around 85 percent of the shopping population above 14 years amounting to around 16.5 million visited the shopping centres on an average monthly basis. The following illustration reflects the number of Australian shoppers that had visited the shopping centres on average monthly basis. (Roy Morgan , 2015) The following illustration also reflects the different factors like searching for label brands, discounts, large product assortments to make choices and the fashion mindedness that attracts large numbers of customers to the different shopping centres. (Roy Morgan , 2015) Supermarkets in Australia The supermarkets in Australia act as grocery retailers that focus on cutting down the prices of its merchandises to help the customers enjoy the benefits of low-priced shopping. Customers procure fresh and quality products at reduced prices from the supermarkets. The supermarkets focusing on selling cheaper products are observed to suffer from lack of differentiation owing to cutting down its product assortments and varieties(Peled, 2015). In recent times, the government authorities in Australia have decided to encourage the retailers in selling liquors and wines along the store aisles(Brook, 2015). Convenience Stores in Australia The convenience stores in Australia located throughout the Australian towns are observed to be increasingly attached to the different gas stations. Further, the prices of the merchandises sold at the Australian convenience stores are also evaluated to be quite expensive compared to the products sold at the Australian supermarkets. The prices of the products sold at different convenience stores also tend to differ from store to store and from one region to another. The convenience stores based in Australia tend to sell different types of products ranging from candies, drinks, ice creams, newspapers, detergents, toilet papers, toothpastes and other types of products needed for daily needs of the consumers(Suganuma, 2016). E-Retailing in Australia Online retailing activity in Australia tends to value around $22.1 billion and is observed to generate a growth of around 7 percent on a year-to-year basis. Online retailers based in Australia are observed to sell different types of products ranging from grocery to fashion and also jewellery, toiletries and other types of cosmetic items. Further, books and magazines, liquor products, appliances and footwear are also observed to be retailed in an online fashion to consumers(Smart Company , 2015). Retailing in Hong Kong Shopping Centre in Hong Kong The shopping mall culture is largely prevalent in Hong Kong where the existence of large numbers of shopping malls and arcades tend to attract potential numbers of customers and tourists. The shopping centres based in Hong Kong reflect the retail heritage of the region. The shopping malls located in Hong Kong Island helps customers to meet their day-to-day needs, label and branded products and also premium fashion brands. The shopping centres based in Kowloon attract night customers and potential tourists. Shopping centres located in Outlying Islands attracts customers interested in buying international brands, jewellery, fashion and other skin-care and audio-visual products(Hong Kong Tourism Board, 2016). Supermarkets in Hong Kong The supermarkets based in Hong Kong are observed to sell different types of grocery merchandises and other fresh fruits and vegetables. The supermarkets also cater for the consumer demand regarding ready-to-eat products and also other types of organic products. Similarly, Hong Kong supermarkets also focus on selling live and wet products like fresh fish, meat and other types of sea foods to consumers(Batt, 2012). The supermarkets based in Hong Kong have not earned the license for selling of liquors. Only licensed retailers regulated by Food and Environmental Hygiene Department are allowed to sell liquors(Winn, 2015). Convenience Stores in Hong Kong The convenience stores in Hong Kong are observed to be available in different accessible regions along the diverse cities. Customers tend to purchase their day-to-day food and other types of products and ingredients in a freshly picked fashion(Hong Kong Trade Development Council., 2016). The convenience stores based in Hong Kong offer needed convenience to customers on being available 24 hours each day. Apart from selling freshly picked and ready-to-eat food products, the convenience stores of Hong Kong also sell other products like toys, newspapers and magazines, alcoholic products and toiletries(Hong Kong Travel Guide, n.d.). E-Retailing in Hong Kong The online retailing activity is observed to gain needed impetus in Hong Kong. Customers tend to use different types of devices like computers, Smartphones and tablets for marketing along the online sphere. A Nielsen report reflects that around 85 percent of the consumers use computers for conducting electronic shopping followed by 41 and 27 percent consumers using Smartphones and tablets for conducting online purchases. The same is reflected in the following illustration. (The Nielsen Company, 2016) The report also reflects that 52 percent of the consumers have purchased clothing and fashion merchandises online followed by 41 and 39 percent of consumers using the e-commerce medium for making online reservations for airlines and hotel and booking of restaurant coupons in a respective fashion. The same is reflected in the below illustration. (The Nielsen Company, 2016) Conclusions The above analysis essentially reflects some potential differences relating to the manner retailing activities are conducted in two different global regions like Australia and Hong Kong. Task B Evolutionary Analysis Evolution of Retail Formats The emergence of intense competition with also the increased demand by customers for lowering the prices of the merchandises sold by the retail outlets have increasingly contributed to the development of new retail formats. The growth of intense competition has triggered the growth of mergers and acquisitions of retail institutions and also downsizing of retail units to form newer and smaller retail formats. The incorporation of the above strategies potentially helps the retail institutions in effectively penetrating a larger consumer market(Mincon, 2012). Retailers operating during the competitive periods increasingly focus on the incorporation of cost containment approach such that the same helps in the generation of needed value while designing retail stores and formats. The standardisation of the retail formats along with the store layouts and size and also the focus on the development of smaller store formats has contributed to the development of department and discount store fo rmats(Mincon, 2012). The evolution of retail store formats like discount and department stores can also be effectively analysed based on the concept of Wheel of Retailing. The concept of Wheel of Retailing reflects that new retail institutions focus on entering the marketplace based on the incorporation of innovative cost reduction measures. Subsequently however the retail institutions focus on incorporating newer products and expanding their market base thereby becoming expensive (Pride, 2008). Discount Stores At present the discount formats of retail stores and other standalone discount retailers are limited in number. However, owing to the continual demand of the consumers for cheap and cost-effective merchandises the demand for discount formats reflects needed growth in the coming period. The above fact reflects that discount stores happen to belong to the growth stage of the retail life cycle(Berkhout, 2015). The Wheel of Retailing concept reflects that the discount stores emerged owing to the expensive nature of services generated by the department stores. The discount stores emerged as a novel concept generating greater services and quality merchandises at higher prices. They also enhanced their presence through expanding across different regions (Pride, 2008). Department Stores The department stores owe its origin to the department store developed by Harding, Howell and Company during 1796. The store was divided along four main departments. Selfridges earn prominence as a Department Store during the 20th Century that reflected to be an effective shopping destination for customers. The current department stores generate large number of options regarding different product categories to retail customers and counters threat from growth of online retailing and shopping malls(BBC Culture , 2015). The retail life cycle analysis of the department stores based along the European countries like the different types of food and non-food retailers reflects that the department stores are in the maturity stage of the retail life cycle(SUN, 2002). Based on the concept of Wheel of Retailing, the case of Sears reflect that the department store initiated its business as a low-cost and high-volume retailer that competed with other smaller retail institutions and general traders(Pride, 2008). Product Based Analysis Discount Stores Discount stores essentially operate like Specialty Stores and thereby focus on the generation of products relating to specific assortments like toys, furniture and home furnishings. Similarly, the discount stores also focus on the selling of jewellery, sports merchandises and apparels and appliances at reduced prices(Berkhout, 2015). Department Stores The department stores focus on retailing different types of merchandises ranging from clothing and apparels, fashion, general merchandise categories, books, footwear and also electronic appliances. Other product categories also include cosmetic and self care products and grocery and food items(Winn, 2015). Marketing Strategy Discount Stores Discount stores like Aldi and Lidl are observed to incorporate different types of strategies like special deals and unbeatable prices for appealing to larger number of customers(Berkhout, 2015). Department Stores The Department Stores focus on the generation of effective promotions and rebates for marketing the different merchandise categories to the customers(BBC Culture , 2015). Future of Retailing The future of retailing reflects on the development of applications like Instant Purchasing that can be used by retailers for encouraging customers to procure merchandises just clicking on them while seeing a movie. Subscription enabled purchasing models also reflect future retail developments wherein customers can generate effective subscriptions and thereby procure different types of merchandises within a specified period without the need for generating additional amounts(Rienartz, 2016). Speciality of Discount and Department Stores Discount Stores The discount stores reflect differences in that the stores essentially focus on the sales of speciality product categories like fashion items, furniture, jewellery and appliances at reduced costs(Pride, 2008). Department Stores The department stores earn its specialty in that the stores focus on selling diverse merchandises based along different departments. The generation of specific retail departments contributes in generating focused offers and price discounts and also planning for product merchandises in a differentiated fashion. It thus contributes in addressing the variegated needs of the customers(Winn, 2015). Emerging Store Concepts Five different types of emerging retail formats are identified. Van retailing is emerging as an effective concept where the retail institutions focus on the use of vans for retailing products to a larger consumer market in a region. Venue retailing services can also be developed for retailing specific products like jewellery, cosmetics and other types of household items. It requires the retail firms to plan different types of events. Distant retailing is observed to be a specific type of retail service that is undertaken by retailers like Walmart through the use of different types of gadgets like mobile phones, pagers and telephones. Forecourt Retailing is also identified as a new retailing concept through which retailers tend to sell its products through development of outlets near offices, parking stations and petrol outlets. Finally, like Trade Fairs, Retail Fairs and also Retail Parks can also be constituted through which different retail firms can exhibit different categories an d brands of retail products for being chosen by the customers. The same helps in generating increased exposure to the different retail firms in competing with their competitor firms in an effective fashion(Berg, 2013). References Batt, M., 2012. Buying groceries in Hong Kong. Supermarkets, wet markets, organic and online groceries. [Online] Available at: https://thehkhub.com/grocery-shopping/ [Accessed 1 December 2016]. BBC Culture , 2015. A history of the department store. [Online] Available at: https://www.bbc.com/culture/bespoke/story/20150326-a-history-of-the-department-store/index.html [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Berg, B., 2013. Retail Branding and Store Loyalty: Analysis in the Context of Reciprocity, Store Accessibility, and Retail Formats. United Kingdom : Springer Science and Business Media. Berkhout, C., 2015. Retail Marketing Strategy: Delivering Shopper Delight. United States : Kogan Page Publishers. Brook, B., 2015. Government considering plans to allow supermarkets sell alcohol in the aisles. [Online] Available at: https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/food/drink/government-considering-plans-to-allow-supermarkets-sell-alcohol-in-the-aisles/news-story/4ab25f6608726e9d6002aba14cad3357 [Accessed 1 December 2016]. CIA, 2016. Hong Kong. [Online] Available at: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/hk.html [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Hong Kong Tourism Board, 2016. Malls and Department Stores. [Online] Available at: https://www.discoverhongkong.com/in/shop/where-to-shop/malls-and-department-stores/index.jsp [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Hong Kong Trade Development Council., 2016. Convenience Store Success. [Online] Available at: https://hkmb.hktdc.com/en/1X0A4FM5/inside-china/Convenience-Store-Success [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Hong Kong Travel Guide, n.d. Hong Kong Convenience Stores. [Online] Available at: https://www.hongkongtripguide.com/hong-kong-convenience-stores.html [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Mincon, 2012. Cost Containment and Value-Driven of retailer. [Online] Available at: https://www.posright.com/new/Cost_Containment_Value_Driven_retailer [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Mincon, 2012. How retail institutions are evolving? [Online] Available at: How retail institutions are evolving? [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Peled, D., 2015. Down, down but not different: Australias supermarkets in a race to the bottom. [Online] Available at: https://theconversation.com/down-down-but-not-different-australias-supermarkets-in-a-race-to-the-bottom-48151 [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Pride, W., 2008. Marketing. United States : Cengage Learning. Rienartz, W., 2016. In the Future of Retail, Were Never Not Shopping. [Online] Available at: https://hbr.org/2016/03/in-the-future-of-retail-were-never-not-shopping [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Roy Morgan , 2015. Australias Top 20 favourite Shopping Centres. [Online] Available at: https://roymorgan.com.au/findings/6598-top-20-shopping-centres-in-australia-2015-201512092342 [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Smart Company , 2015. Australias top 20 online retailers: 2015. [Online] Available at: www.smartcompany.com.au/marketing/online-sales/46163-australia-s-top-20-online-retailers-for-2015/ [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Suganuma, C., 2016. Convenience Stores in Australia. [Online] Available at: https://en.k-wn.com/area2/convenience-stores/ [Accessed 1 December 2016]. SUN, L.-n., 2002. Retail Life Cycle of the Department Store Industry. Hong Kong: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The Nielsen Company, 2016. things you must know about hong kong online shoppers. [Online] Available at: https://www.nielsen.com/hk/en/insights/news/2016/things-you-must-know-about-hong-kong-online-shoppers.html [Accessed 1 December 2016]. Winn, H., 2015. Should retail outlets be required to get an off-licence to sell liquor? [Online] Available at: https://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1678161/should-retail-outlets-be-required-get-licence-sell-liquor [Accessed 1 December 2016].

Saturday, November 30, 2019

Theories Of Patriarchy Essay Example For Students

Theories Of Patriarchy Essay This is an A grade essayAssess the claim that gender inequalities in the domestic and occupational divisions of labour are best understood with reference to the concept of patriarchy. You should illustrate your answer with reference to a range of feminist perspectives. IntroductionWestern female thought through the centuries has identified the relationship between patriarchy and gender as crucial to the womens subordinate position. For two hundred years, patriarchy precluded women from having a legal or political identity and the legislation and attitudes supporting this provided the model for slavery. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries suffrage campaigners succeeded in securing some legal and political rights for women in the UK. By the middle of the 20th century, the emphasis had shifted from suffrage to social and economic equality in the public and private sphere and the womens movement that sprung up during the 1960s began to argue that women were oppressed by patriarchal structures. Equal status for women of all races, classes, sexualities and abilities in the 21st century these feminist claims for equality are generally accepted as reasonable principles in western society; yet the contradiction between this principle of equality and the demonstrable inequalities between the sexes that still exist exposes the continuing dominance of male privilege and values throughout society (patriarchy). This essay seeks to move beyond the irrepressible evidence for gender inequality and the division of labour. Rather, it poses the question of gender inequality as it manifests itself as an effect of patriarchy drawing from a theoretical body of work which has been developed so recently that it would have been impossible to write this essay thirty years ago. We will write a custom essay on Theories Of Patriarchy specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now Feminist Theory and PatriarchyAlthough patriarchy is arguably the oldest example of a forced or exploitative division of social activities? and clearly existed before it was ever examined by sociologists, the features of patriarchy had been accepted as natural (biological) in substance. It was not until feminists in the 1960s began to explore the features and institutions of patriarchy, that the power of the concept to explain womens subordinate position in society was proven (Seidman, 1994) . The feminist engagement with theories of patriarchy criticised pre-existing theoretical positions and their ideological use, tracing theoretical progenitors of popular views about gender, gender roles etc (Cooper, 1995; Raymond, 1980). Developing theories to explain how gender inequalities have their roots in ideologies of gender difference and a hierarchical gender order, feminist theoretical concepts of patriarchy are able to explain and challenge gender inequality and the gendered division of labour in the private and social spheres (Seidman, 1994). They have done this by challenging concepts of gender, the family and the unequal division of labour underpinned by a theory of patriarchy that has come to reveal how it operates to subordinate women and privilege men, often at womens expense. Patriarchy, Structure and Gender InequalityWalby (1990) reveals how patriarchy operates to achieve and maintain the gender inequalities essential for the subordination of women. Crucially for this essay, she shows how it can operate differently in the private and public domain but toward the same end. She identifies patriarchy as having diverse forms of and relationships between its structures in the public and private spheres, and yet still operates in a related fashion. Walbys explanation sees the household and household production as being a key site of womens subordination but acknowledges that the domestic area is not the only one that women participate in. She shows how the concept of patriarchy is useful in explaining the relationship between womens subordination in the private and public arenas by showing that they work equally to achieve this subordination as well as supporting, reflecting and maintaining patriarchy itself. Firstly, Walby points out that the structures of pa triarchy differ in their form. The household has a different structure to other institutional forms, e.g., the workplace. This is an important point because if feminist theories of patriarchy are to stand they must show that patriarchy operates to the same end in both the private and public sphere, even if it uses different strategies, otherwise it could not be the main reason for the continuing inequality of women in both the private and public sphere. Walby shows that within the private structure and the public structures, patriarchy does use different strategies to maintain gender inequality and these strategies both achieve the subordination of women. The household strategy is considered to be exclusionary and the public structures strategy as segregationist. The exclusionary strategy in the private arena is based on household production. Application of this strategy in the domestic sphere depends on individual patriarchs controlling women in the private world of the home. The male patriarch in the household is both the oppressor and recipient of womens subordination. This strategy is direct ? women are oppressed on a personal and individual basis by the individual patriarchs who share their lives. The segregationist strategy used in the public patriarchy actively excludes women from the public arena using various structures to subordinate them. Application depends on controlling access to public arenas (Golombok and Fivush, 1995). This strategy does not benefit the institution directly, but it does ensure that individual patriarchs are privileged at the expense of women, and it maintains gender differences. The way in which individual patriarchs and public institutions use there power further reveals how related the structures of patriarchy are. Public institutions do not have the power to oppress individual women or exclude them directly from public structures; this work is carried out in the home. Power in institutions is used collectively rather than individually, and the segregationist strategy pursued in the public arena maintains the exclusionary strategy used in private that in turn supports the segregationist strategy used in public. Yet, the institution can only pursu e its segregationist strategy because the individual patriarch subordinates the individual women daily. Walbys description of patriarchal structure looks powerful where there are fewer variables ? e.g., when women and men seem to share the ?privilege of being exploited equally as a labour force working equal hours for equal pay in equal conditions (Haug, 1998). Haug (1998) cites research from East Germany which allows her to calculate that women do 4 hours and 41 minutes of domestic labour against mens 2 hours 38 minutes. Men split their extra two hours between leisure time and paid employment. She asks if it is a realistic possibility that patriarchy could be so completely and comprehensively asserted in as little as two hours a day. .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e , .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .postImageUrl , .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e , .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e:hover , .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e:visited , .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e:active { border:0!important; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e:active , .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .ubcd6632db6b79a481a85a0542442bc1e:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Tony Robbins Case EssayHaug does not answer this question (perhaps it is rhetorical) but I think that Walbys (1990) theory of patriarchy is so powerful because it can reveal the answer to questions like this. Walbys theory stands because she shows that the power of patriarchy is asserted in both the private and public sphere simultaneously supporting, reflecting and maintaining itself, regardless of the economic and social framework that prevails. In Haugs case, patriarchy is not being asserted in two hours per day, rather it is an expression of patriarchy, i.e., a symbol of male privilege, which could only be expressed if the general strategies of patriarchal structure we re intact and functioning. This description of the relationship between patriarchy and structure demonstrates how inequalities in the workplace and in inequality in the home are two sides of the same coin and individual males are involved in the direct and indirect subordination of women simultaneously. The concepts that allowed Walby (1990) to define patriarchy as she has are discussed below, with reference to the work of second and third wave feminist thinkers. Gender and Gender Inequalities in the Domestic and Occupational Divisions of LabourFeminist concepts of gender and gender inequality allow us to refer more or less directly to a theoretical framework for understanding how they have come to form a basis that helps structure the whole of society according to the concept of patriarchy (Seidman, 1994). The gender differences, which lead to gender inequality in the division of labour, and presented as natural by patriarchy and unequal gender order has been normalised and legitim ated by science, medicine and popular culture (Raymond, 1980). Feminists hold that this normalisation conceals the social and political formation of an unequal male order, arguing that gender difference is socially produced in order to sustain male dominance (Seidman, 1994). Frable (1997) points out that there is no basis for a biological account of gender difference since gender identity can only refer to the psychological sense of being male or female. Gender is now understood as a social category (Frable, 1997) and so liberal feminism was correct to deny that nature requires rigidly separate and unequal social roles based on gender (Ruehl, 1983). The patriarchal concepts of gender criticised by feminists are used to ascribe the roles that result in gender inequality in the division of labour (Sarup, 1993). This view is supported by Garnsey (1991) when she describes the division of labour as the differentiation of work tasks organised in structured patterns of activity. These activities are imposed and remunerated in a specific and unequal manner. When the evidence allows us to place the words ?according to gender into the last two sentences, and they new sentences mean something, then the concepts of patriarchy argued by feminists begin to take on an explanatory power. Occupational Labour and the EconomyLiberal feminist provided concepts of gender that account for pay differentials and might even account for why women can receive less money than men for doing the same job (Golombok and Fivush, 1995). They can be used to explain why the political and social change which has allowed substantially greater numbers of women to enter the labour force has also concentrated them in the poorest employment (Golombok and Fivush, 1995). This is especially so if Garnseys (1991) description of the differentiated and imposed tasks of the division of labour is used to structure the argument. However, they do not explain the reasons behind womens oppression and in order to do this Marxist feminists to began to argue that gender inequality has been shaped by capitalist development, highlighting explanations which connect gender inequality with economic needs (e.g., Mitchell J, 1966 used Marxist theory in Women: The Longest Revolution). However, w hile most feminists see the close links between the organisation of production and the division of labour many thought that there was a limited future for feminism under theories which reduced the specifics of womens lives to the extent that the subjective and interpersonal flavour was not captured (e.g., Firestone S, 1970; The Dialectic of Sex: the Case for Feminist Revolution). The socialist or Marxist feminist proposition positions class as the most basic form of human conflict but this position was challenged by radical feminists according to whom, equality does not mean being like men (Sarup, 1993). Radical feminists successfully argued for the substitution of gender conflict as the source of all other conflict and fighting for equality in the occupational field became subordinate to challenging the social and cultural order (Sarup, 1993). Asserting that a female identity and subjectivity could only be defined without reference to the patriarchal framework, many radical feminists looked for ways to identify and develop a female culture and way of being which was free from the influences of patriarchy. For example, Irigaray (1985) proposed that this be done through the promotion of entre-femmes, a kind of social form specific to women. A cultural terrain distinct from womens usual site the family. Household LabourFeminist writers have taken the family as a central feature of their explanation of patriarchy but they do not always agree about its role in shaping women to serve patriarchal ends in domesticity and work (Sarup, 1993). Liberal feminism recognized the gendered, social roles of wife and mother but advocated choice for women with respect to marriage, family, career etc., proposing to achieve this through a process of education and reform (Seidman, 1994). In radical feminism, the family is viewed as a major institution whose role is to foster gender inequality through the socialisation of children and subordinate women by forcing them to conform to feminine stereotypes (e.g, Greer G, 1970, The Female Eunuch). Postmodern feminism based on Foucaults work explicitly criticises the emphasis on the family as ?the unit in charge (Sarup, 1993). .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b , .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .postImageUrl , .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b , .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b:hover , .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b:visited , .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b:active { border:0!important; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b:active , .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u2f6eef3b8ad8258406a7ea472278001b:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Jackie Robinson EssayIn order to carry out its functions, the family relies on differential relationships (Broderick, 1993). Coole et al (1990) point out that the functional needs served by the nuclear element of the nuclear family are neither exclusive nor universal which indicates that differentiation it is not essential to the performance of the vital functions of the family. This means that the social roles of wife and mother as conceived by liberal feminism are a gendered and manufactured choice. The differential relationships that identify the roles of wife and mother are part of the nuclear family model promoted by patriarchal ideologies for more than one hundred an d fifty years (Coole et al, 1990; p43). This suggests that the one or some of the roles ascribed to the family by other feminists may be more accurate. Despite the differences, feminisms main assertion, that gender identities and roles are socially formed, makes the theoretical proposition that a social and political explanation (patriarchy) can be given for male dominance and patterns of gender inequality possible (Seidman, 1994). ConclusionThe strength of feminist perspectives on patriarchy is that most of them have been developed from the standpoint of womens lives (Seidman, 1994) and yet this is also a criticism ? what womens lives does the standpoint reflect? If feminist perspectives of patriarchy are to be useful they must not only make sense structurally, they must also make sense of all womens lives. Lesbian, Black, ?Third World and post-colonial critics have demonstrated some of the limitations of western feminist agendas that prefer patriarchal accounts of equality to racialised and cultural accounts (Burman, 1998). For example, the promotion of reproductive choices by western feminists in the 1970s focussed on contraceptive and abortion rights. However, many women at that time were being discriminated against because of their colour, sexuality or physical abilities and were fighting to keep their children, born and unborn (Burman, 1998). Whilst these criticisms of western feminist raise questions about how and why the priorities of the issues and campaigns these women cho (o)se to think and act on were agreed, they do not suggest an alternative account of inequality in which the public and private oppression of women is explained (Seidman, 1994). Critics are however right to point out that the feminist account of patriarchy developed by western liberal feminists needs to be expanded to ensure that the experiences of more women can be included but they must also acknowledge that the priorities and concerns of liberal feminists have resulted in some of the most far reaching and important education and legal reforms of this century taking place in the last the last twenty years. These reforms particularly reflect the western feminist concern with differential relationships. In the area of social policy and the law, reformers have begun to focus on protecting the individual rights of vulnerable household members ? women, children, and the elderly (MacLean Kurczewzki 1994) at the expense of patriarchal privilege. Crucially, whilst the law has become aware of the potential for the exploitation of family members and in acting underlines the importance of public attitudes and legislation in maintaining gender inequalities and differential relationships; the reform approach cannot be seen as an open acknowledgement that socialisation patterns and family arrangements are male dominated (MacLean Kurczewzki 1994). Following the vote of the General Synod in 1992, the ordination of women in the Church of England has challenged hundreds of years of patriarchal authority and tradition in the church. The implicit relationship between individual men and institutions can be viewed explicitly in the complex provision made to protect those who are individually opposed using the churchs own structures. Regardless of the refusal of key patriarchal institutions to acknowledge the extent to which man have been and are systematically and deliberately privileged by their structures and actions, these dominant forms of power can help produce social change, even if they are only attempting to keep in touch with contemporary society (Cooper, 1995). The process of power is therefore open to change and feminist theorists have shown using their account of patriarchy that the ?by products of power (e.g., inequality) can be mediated by the institution which represents it and moderated to be less damaging to individuals (Cooper, 1989). BibliographyBurman E (ed.) (1998). Deconstructing Feminist Psychology. Sage: London. Broderick CB (1993), Understanding Family Process. Sage: USA. Coole A, Harman H and Hewitt H (1990) Changing Patterns of Family Life, in Eekelaar J and MacLean M (eds.) (1994), A Reader On Family Law, Oxford University Press: England, pp 31:62 (idem. The Family Way, Institute of Public Policy Research, 1990, chap. 2)Cooper D (1995). Power in Struggle: Feminism, Sexuality and the State. Open University Press: Buckingham. Frable DES (1997). Gender, Racial, Ethnic, Sexual, and Class Identities. Annual Review of Psychology (48): 139 -162. Garnsey, E (1981). The Rediscovery of the Divisions of Labour. Theory and Society (10): 337. Graham E, Hinds H, Hobby E and Wilcox H (Eds) (1996). Her Own Life: Autobiographical writings by seventeenth century women (3rd Edition). Routledge: London. Golombok S and Fivush R (1995). Gender Development. Cambridge University Press: USA. Haug F (1998). Questions Concerning Methods in Feminist Research in Burman E (ed.) (1998). Deconstructing Feminist Psychology (q.v.): 115 ? 139. MacLean M and Kurczewski J (eds.) (1994). Families, Politics, and the Law, Clarendon Press: Oxford. Raymond JG (1980). The Transsexual Empire. The Womens Press: London. Ruehl S (1983). Sexual Theory and Practice: Another Double Standard. In Cartledge S and Ryan R (1985). Sex and love: New thoughts on Old Contradictions (4th Edition). The Womens Press Limited: London. 210-223. Sarup M (1993). Post-Structuralism and Postmodernism. Harvester Wheatsheaf: Hemel Hempstead. Seidman S (1994). Contested Knowledge: Social Theory in the Postmodern Era (3rd edition). Blackwell: USA. 236-254. Skeggs B (1997). Formations of Class and Gender. Sage: London.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Sweeney Tod Essays - Sweeney Todd, Fiction, Musical Theatre

Sweeney Tod Essays - Sweeney Todd, Fiction, Musical Theatre Sweeney Tod Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Sweeney Todd is based on the 19th century melodrama about a London criminal. Todd is sort of portrayed as a noble figure driven to crime when Judge Turpin takes his wife and child from him. He is unjustly imprisoned and vows revenge not only to the judge, but also to all the people of London. The theater production began with an awesome staging of eeriness to further the mood of the title itself. My attention was captured as soon as the play began. The thick mist gives way to an entire underworld of Londoners. They come out with their gutter costumes and worn-looking faces. In cut-off laconic phrases they sing verses of the Sweeney Todd ballad. The ballad is important to the play. Every time I heard it, it just reminded me of the evil that was on stage. I think this was the purpose of the songto keep the audiences attention focused on the insanity surrounding Sweeneys killing spree. The band of beggars and street people advance toward the audience in rags and in anger. They are very important in showing Sweeneys personality early in the show. To complete the actors purpose, Sweeney Todd himself rises from the pits below. His face has evil and revenge written all over it. Sweeney Todd was very convincing with his role. He has one of the most inspired roles, yet it is filled with dark humor. In on scene where he is proceeding to slit throat after throat, a customer comes in with his family. Sweeney just looks on in irritation and frustration. It is hilarious. Sweeney allows the audience to experience several emotionsfrom horror and disbelief to sympathy and compassion. Although Sweeney is committing murderous acts, he is acting out of the love of his family. His daughter has been stolen from him and his wifes life has been ruined (although he thinks she is dead). Sweeney makes his rage more frightening with the baritone voice, especially in My Friends. This song is a twisted ode to his razors. His pleasure of being reunited with his razors is sort of a weird experience. It is almost as if he is in love with them. Sweeney was very accurate in taking the audience on a thrill ride all the way to the end where he gained the last bit of sympathy in discover ing that he had in deed killed his own wife. Mrs. Lovett was quite the character. She is absolutely wonderful as the cheerful yet lonely bar mistress. She displays her desire to feel wanted and loved bit by bit. However, her plans come to an end when Sweeney discovers her dishonesty about his wife. Susan Boyle plays Mrs. Lovett with a combination of optimism, crafty self-interest, and wit. With the flexibility of the actor-character role, you almost forget about the hideous conduct in which she is involved. Mrs. Lovetts idea is to turn Todds victims into meat pies. It is laughable, but also spine tingling. She has all the qualities of performing a successful Mrs. Lovett. She has the operatic quality and superb comic timing. Boyle pulls off a terrific performance in transforming such an inhumane act into pure comedy. At the end of the first act, as she and Todd sing A Little Priest, Boyle uses her wit to hint at the usefulness of Sweeneys victims. In Act II when Mrs. Lovett sings By the Sea (a song that indicates her longing to be with Sweeney Todd, while he rants on about Judge Turpin) she is very expressive in both manner and voice. You find yourself caring about what happens to Mrs. Lovett in spite of her immoral deeds. Susan Boyle (Mrs. Lovett) has a wonderful voice; and having to sing while doing five or ten other things at once is quite difficult. Nevertheless, she pulls them off remarkably. Her voice is a noticeable one and you can follow it through any confusion. With all honesty I think the play would have been missing comedy, harmony, and wholeness without her. She was definitely the more memorable character. Judge Turpin was more like the shadow of darkness over the play. He was instantly written off as a man of

Friday, November 22, 2019

A Guide to Understanding Homeschool Laws

A Guide to Understanding Homeschool Laws Homeschooling has been legal in all 50 U.S. states since 1993. According to the Homeschool Legal Defense Association, home education was illegal in most states as recently as the early 1980’s. By 1989, only three states, Michigan, North Dakota, and Iowa, still considered homeschooling a crime. Interestingly, of those three states, two of them, Michigan and Iowa, are today listed among the states with the least restrictive homeschooling laws. Although homeschooling is now legal across the United States, each state is responsible for drafting its own homeschool laws, which means that what must be done to legally homeschool varies depending on where a family lives. Some states are highly regulated, while others place few restrictions on homeschooling families. Homeschool Legal Defense Association maintains an up-to-date database on the homeschooling laws in all fifty states. Terms to Know When Considering Homeschool Laws To those who are new to homeschooling, the terminology used in homeschool  laws may be unfamiliar. Some of the basic terms you need to know include: Compulsory attendance: This refers to the ages children are required to be in some type of school setting. In most states that define a compulsory attendance age for homeschoolers, the minimum is usually between the ages of 5 and 7. The maximum is generally between the ages of 16 and 18. Declaration (or Notice) of Intent: Many states require that homeschooling families submit an annual notice of intent to homeschool to either the state or county school superintendent. The content of this notice can vary by state, but usually includes the names and ages of the homeschooled children, the home address, and the parent’s signature. Hours of instruction: Most states specify the number of hours and/or days per year during which children should be receiving instruction. Some, like Ohio, state 900 hours of instruction per year. Others, such as Georgia, specify four and one-half hours per day for 180 days each school year. Portfolio:  Some states offer a portfolio option in place of standardized testing or professional evaluation. A portfolio is a collection of documents outlining your student’s progress each school year. It may include records such as attendance, grades, courses completed, work samples, photos of projects, and test scores. Scope and sequence: A scope and sequence is a list of topics and concepts that a student will learn throughout the school year. These concepts are usually broken down by subject and grade level. Standardized test:  Many states require that homeschool students take nationally standardized tests at regular intervals. The tests that meet each state’s requirements may vary. Umbrella schools/cover schools: Some states give the option for homeschooled students to enroll in an umbrella or cover school. This may be an actual private school or simply an organization established to help homeschooling families comply with the laws  in their state. Students are taught at home by their parents, but the cover school maintains records for their enrolled students. The records required by cover schools vary based on the laws of the state in which they are located. These documents are submitted by parents and may include attendance, test scores, and grades. Some umbrella schools help parents choose curriculum and offer transcripts, diplomas, and graduation ceremonies. States with the Most Restrictive Homeschool Laws States that are generally considered to be highly regulated for homeschooling families include: MassachusettsNew YorkPennsylvaniaRhode IslandVermont Often regarded as one of the most regulated states,  New York’s homeschooling laws require that parents turn in an annual instruction plan for each student. This plan must include information such as the name, age, and grade level of the student; the curriculum or textbooks you intend to use; and the name of the teaching parent. The state requires annual standardized testing in which students should be at or above the 33rd percentile or show a full grade level improvement from the previous year.  New York also lists specific subjects that parents must teach their children at various grade levels. Pennsylvania, another highly-regulated state,  offers three options for homeschooling. Under the homeschool statute, all parents must submit a notarized affidavit to homeschool. This form includes information about immunizations and medical records, along with criminal background checks. Homeschooling parent Malena H., who lives in Pennsylvania, says that although the state is â€Å"†¦considered one of the states with the highest regulations†¦it really isnt that bad. It sounds overwhelming when you hear about all the requirements, but once you have done it once it is pretty easy.† She says, â€Å"In third, fifth and eighth grades the student has to take a standardized test. There is a variety to choose from, and they can even do some of them at home or online. You must keep a portfolio for each child that has a few samples for each subject taught and the results of the standardized test if the child is in one of the testing years. At the end of the year, you find an evaluator to review the portfolio and sign off on it. You then send the evaluator’s report to the school district.† States with Moderately Restrictive Homeschool Laws While most states require that the teaching parent have at least a high school diploma or GED, some, such as North Dakota,  require that the teaching parent have a teaching degree or be monitored for at least two years by a certified teacher. That fact puts North Dakota  on the list of those  considered to be moderately restrictive with regards to their homeschool laws. Those states include: ColoradoFloridaHawaiiLouisianaMaineMarylandMinnesotaNew HampshireNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOregonSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeVirginiaWashingtonWest Virginia North Carolina is often considered a difficult state in which to homeschool. It requires maintaining attendance and immunization records for each child. North Carolina also requires that children complete nationally standardized tests each year. Other moderately regulated states that require yearly standardized testing include  Maine, Florida, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia. (Some of these states do offer alternative homeschooling options that may not require annual testing.) Many states offer more than one option to legally homeschool. Tennessee, for example, currently has five options, including three umbrella schools options and one for distance learning (online classes). Heather S., a homeschooling parent from Ohio, says that Ohio homeschoolers must  submit an annual letter of intent and a  summary of their intended curriculum, and  agree to complete 900 hours  of education each year. Then, at  the end of each year, families â€Å"†¦.can do state-approved testing or have a portfolio reviewed and submit the results... Children must test above the 25th percentile on standardized tests or show progression in their portfolio. Virginia homeschooling mom, Joesette, considers her state homeschooling laws reasonably easy to follow. She says parents must â€Å"†¦file a Notice of Intent each year by August 15, then supply something to show progress at the end of the year (by August 1). This can be a standardized test, scoring at least in the 4th stanine, a  [student] portfolio†¦.or an evaluation letter by an approved evaluator.† Alternately, Virginia parents can file a  Religious Exemption. States with Minimally Restrictive Homeschool Laws Sixteen U.S.  states are considered minimally restrictive. These include:   AlabamaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaDelawareGeorgiaKansasKentuckyMississippiMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew MexicoUtahWisconsinWyoming Georgia requires an annual Declaration of Intent to be filed by September 1, annually, or within 30 days of the date you initially begin homeschooling. Children must take a nationally standardized test every three years starting in 3rd grade. Parents are required to write an annual progress report for each student. Both the test  scores and progress reports  are to be kept on file but are not required to be submitted to anyone. Although Nevada is on the minimally restrictive list, Magdalena A., who homeschools her children in the state says that it is, â€Å"†¦homeschooling paradise. The law states only  one regulation: when a child turns seven...a notice of intent to homeschool should be filed. That is it, for the rest of that childs life. No portfolios. No check-ups. No testing.† California homeschooling mom, Amelia H. outlines her state’s homeschooling options. â€Å"(1) Home study option through the  school district. Material is provided and weekly or monthly check-ins are required. Some districts provide classes for home study kids and/or allow kids to take some classes on campus. (2) Charter schools. Each one is set up differently but they all cater to homeschoolers and provide funding for secular curriculum and extracurricular activities through vendor programs†¦Some require that kids meet state standards; others simply ask for signs of ‘value-added growth. Most require state testing but a handful will allow parents to generate a portfolio as a year-end assessment. (3) File as an independent school. [Parents must]  state the curriculum goals at the start of the school year†¦Getting a high school diploma through this route is tricky and many parents choose to pay someone to help with the paperwork. States with the Least Restrictive Homeschool Laws Finally,  eleven states are considered very homeschool-friendly with few restrictions on homeschooling families. These states are: AlaskaConnecticutIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaMichiganMissouriNew JerseyOklahomaTexas Texas is notoriously homeschool-friendly with a strong homeschool voice at the legislative level. Iowa homeschooling parent, Nichole D. says that her home state is just as easy. â€Å"[In Iowa], we have no regulations. No state testing, no lesson plans submitted, no attendance records, nothing. We dont even have to inform the district that were homeschooling.† Parent Bethany W.  says, â€Å"Missouri is very homeschool-friendly. No notifying districts or anyone unless your child has previously been public schooled, no testing or evaluations ever. Parents keep a log of hours (1,000 hours, 180 days), a written report of progress, and a few samples of [their students’] work.† With a few exceptions, the difficulty or ease of complying with each state’s homeschooling laws is subjective. Even in states that are considered highly regulated, homeschooling parents often state that compliance isn’t as difficult as it may appear on paper. Whether you consider your state’s homeschooling laws restrictive or lenient, it is essential to make sure you understand what is required of you to remain compliant. This article should be considered a guideline only. For specific, detailed laws for your state, please check your statewide homeschool support group’s website or Homeschool Legal Defense Association.

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Evaluation of the leadership and management style of Jeff Bezos Coursework

Evaluation of the leadership and management style of Jeff Bezos - Coursework Example From a logical perspective, it can be stated that appropriate development of business processes in the present marketing scenario requires the implementation of change management and change leadership under different situations. For instance, a leader will have to bring in continuous levels of transformation within its leadership style for maintaining the motivational levels of the followers. In a similar manner, the management administering the overall functionality of the workforce will also have to implement varied types of employee motivational techniques through which they can attain their desired goals within a specific timeframe (Kuzic & et. al., 2002). Considering these aspects, the discussion will mainly focus towards evaluating the leadership style and the managerial skills implemented by Jeff Bezos that supported in developing the overall performance of Amazon in the present competitive retail-marketing scenario. The discussion will also encompass the implementation of suitable leadership theories and change management concepts in order to make the understanding levels associated with the same in an effective manner. Through this discussion, a possible attempt will also be made towards evaluating the characteristics possess by Jeff Bezos that until date have paved successful path for this ecommerce business organisation. Jeff Bezos, a technology enthusiast, presently holds the position of CEO of the world’s second biggest e-commerce retailer named Amazon. As known, the brand has been previously involved in conducting online retail business of books and magazines. However, due to the increasing level of business market competition and higher inflow of new market entrants, Jeff Bezos made deliberate efforts in shifting the focus of his e-commerce business process from just being concentrated on retailing books top other retail goods such as

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

President Trump Against The World Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

President Trump Against The World - Essay Example President Trump claims that his decision to pull-out of the Paris Treaty will benefit Americans, but as is his usual tactic, the president only mentions one area where the benefit will take place, jobs-an important benefit of course. Economists are divided whether this will benefit American job, and if it does will, the jobs be short or long-term. The American industry sector that is mentioned most often in conjunction with the Paris Treaty is coal. While on the campaign trail, Mr. Trump consistently insisted that he would withdraw from the Paris Treaty so that coal mines would reopen and coal miners could go back to work. If one agrees that it was the Paris Treaty that caused the decline of the coal industry in the United States, then they would count the withdrawal from it as a win. However, the coal industry has been declining for years; the Paris Treaty has only been in place for one year. The winners on the jobs front will be those places where investments in research and develo pment in renewable energy is occurring. President Trump’s withdrawal from the treaty may seem like a victory for coal but it is not. The United States’ jobs market loses in the withdrawal, although many individual states have economies that are highly invested in renewable energy, and they will continue to work toward solutions and adaptation to global climate change. Those states’ economies will be winners while President Trump and his economic allies will cling to the fossil fuels, until those resources have been depleted.

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Google and Search Essay Example for Free

Google and Search Essay Mission Statement â€Å"Google’s mission is to organize the world‘s information and make it universally accessible and useful.† While other companies were busy cramming the most ads possible on their homepages or squeezing every last hour of productivity out of employees, Google created an enjoyable experience for every party involved in the company including users, employees, and investors. Google’s success has come as a direct result of keeping people happy. History of Google Google was founded by two Stanford University computer science graduate students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin. When the two met in 1995, they argued about every topic they discussed except for the best approach to solving one of computing’s biggest challenges: retrieving relevant information from a massive set of data. By January of 1996 the two had begun collaborating on their first search engine. It was named BackRub for its unique ability to analyze â€Å"back links† pointing to a given website, and quickly earned a growing reputation among those who had seen it. By 1998, the two had bought a terabyte of disks to create their first data center and renamed their search engine â€Å"Google†; which was a play on the word â€Å"googol†, referring to the number 1 followed by one hundred zeros, a reference to their goal of organizing the immense amount of information available on the web. Initially, Page and Brin had unsuccessfully tried to find companies to license their technology, but ended up raising an initial investment of almost $1 million when they decided to build a business on their own. And, by the end of that year, Google was answering 10,000 search queries per day and began to receive public recognition. They appeared on USA Today and were named one of the Top 100 Web Sites and Search Engines by PC Magazine. By early 1999 Google was answering over 500,000 searches per day, and their meteoric rise began. By the end of 1999, Google had raised another $25 million from venture capitalists, moved to their current headquarters in Mountain View, California, grew to answering over 3 million searches per day, and received a slew of recognition, including being named on Time magazine’s Top Ten Best Cybertech list of 1999. They also went global with the introduction of versions in ten other languages for users to search in their native tongue, and still they were just getting started. Google continued to grow, developing strategic partnerships, developing new features, developing new services, and fulfilling over 34,000 search requests per second. Ultimately, Google became the technology powerhouse that we know today. They achieved the status of having over 72% of the search engine requests in the United States. They also added a multitude of other services, including video, email, mapping, images, an operating system, an internet browser, internet protocol phone service, and many, many others. Executive Summary Google is a global technology leader focused on improving the ways people find and use information. We maintain the world’s largest online index of websites and other content and, via our automated search technology, make this information freely available, nearly instantly, to anyone with the Internet connection. Google primarily generates revenue by delivering relevant, cost-effective online advertising. Businesses use our AdWords program to promote their products and services with targeted advertising. In addition, the thousands of third-party websites that comprise our Google network use our Google AdSense program to deliver relevant AdWords ads that generate revenue and enhance the user experience. Situation Google, currently headquartered in Mountain View California, is now a strong leader in the technology sector, specifically in the â€Å"Internet Information Provider† industry. With a market capitalization of $199.88 billion, Google is almost five times larger than its nearest competitor, Baidu Inc. They produce $10.29 billion in operating cash flow each year and have $33.38 billion in cash reserves. Clearly, they are a financially strong company with extensive resources. Their business, as originally founded, remains focused on search technology with the Google search engine available on more than 150 Google domains, presented in many different languages. They have also created a tool to enable users to translate search results between languages. Other search tools included the ability to search for stock quotes, sports scores, news headlines, local addresses, images, videos, patents, maps, and much more. And, for information that is not already available online, Google is working to digitize it with projects like Google Books and the Google News Archive. Google’s dominance in the search engine field allows the company to generate the majority of its revenue through advertising. Hundreds of thousands of advertisers use Google AdWords to target potential customers as they search for terms relevant to the products and services they offer. Advertisers do this by bidding to have ads appear with search results on a â€Å"pay-per-click† basis. They can even target a specific geographic area. Another product offered by Google in the advertising genre is GoogleAdSense, which allows blog and website owners to generate additional revenue by allowing Google to place relevant ads on their sites. In order to help advertisers, Google provides tools such as Google Analytics, Website Optimizer, Insights for Search, and Ad Planner which are tools to help advertisers measure results and be more efficient. Google also offers a variety of apps that are intended to make it simpler for people to share information and get things done together. Apps like Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs, among others, allow users to have access to free programs and tools that are not accessed through individual computers, but are stored on internet servers. This is called â€Å"cloud computing† and it makes information portable, so that it is accessible anywhere and through any device that the user has internet access. Perhaps the most recent front of development, Google also has entered the mobile market. Through a variety of tools and partnerships, Google tries to make their products available on mobile devices so that users can access Google Maps, Youtube, and other services through any mobile phone. Taking this concept to the next level, Google has created and released the Android operating system. This is a free operating system that any developer can use and any hardware manufacturer can install on any device. This OS puts a comprehensive line up of Google products at the smart phone user’s fingertips, instantly. SWOT Analysis of Google: Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats (SWOT) Analysis Strengths: * Already number one search engine has established name, in which its users trust * Dependable, reliable, and fast * Needs very little end user marketing * Has a simple interface and it gives comprehensive results without confusing users * Many products and services (desktop, Mobile, web), allowing users to meet many of their technology needs through Google * Interface with 88 different languages Weaknesses: * Dependent on search based advertising for nearly all revenue * Weak in social networking presence * Search queries only answered with 50-60% accuracy * Rising cost for data center Opportunities: * Allow vendors to pay for advertising on localized search results * Develop social networking site or integrate products with existing sites * Develop feature to enable chat between Google users, especially those using Google products to collaborate on documents * Find entry into huge gaming market Threats: * Privacy issues regarding content ownership * Competition from Yahoo, MSN, Bing, Baidu, etc. * Imposed Censorship Porter’s Five Forces Model Rivalry Among Competing Firms: Low. There are certainly other search engines, but Google is clearly the dominant player in the field. Also, while other companies offer competing options for many of Google’s products, nobody offers nearly as complete a mix of products and services. This allows Google to keep consumers engaged across a wide range of products and inspires brand loyalty. For example, someone likes the Google search engine, so they decide to try Google Docs. After coming to see Google Docs in a positive light, they decide to use Google Group to collaborate on documents. Seeing the benefit of Google Groups, they decide to use Google Calendar for their scheduling, etc. Over time, Google comes to be associated with good quality and helpful tools, so when a new product offering comes out, consumers instantly assume it is a good product and want to use it. Also, in Google’s primary revenue stream, pay-per-click search based advertising, Google has no real competition, and as long as Google dominates the search engine field they have little chance of losing advertisers to a competitor. Potential Entry of New Competitors: Low. There are few technology companies that have the knowledge and resources to mount a serious challenge of Google’s dominance. Google has developed proprietary technology that is hugely successful. It would be extremely difficult for a competitor to enter the field and duplicate Google’s technology, so unless Google loses its position on the cutting edge and is surpassed by the next technological improvement, they are a difficult target for new competitors. Potential Development of Substitute Products: Low. Some of Google’s products face possible substitutes in the market. For example, consumers could use a GPS instead of Google Maps, but Google’s primary business is based around their powerhouse search engine which is difficult to substitute. It would be nearly impossible to effectively search the vast amount of information available through the internet and retrieve relevant information without the help of a search engine. As for Google’s primary revenue source, search based advertising; it is difficult to imagine a substitute product that would allow advertisers to pinpoint their marketing to potential customers who are actively demonstrating an interest in a related topic. Targeted advertising that the advertiser pays for only when it shows a measureable result will always be attractive to businesses as long as the pricing structure remains reasonable, and with Google’s auction style approach, it is virtually ensured that the price will not exceed what the market will bear. Bargaining Power of Suppliers: Low. Since Google’s products and services are primarily technology and information based, it has very limited exposure to suppliers. Google is not buying raw materials to produce or manufacture tangible goods. Unless a massive societal shift occurs that limits Google’s access to information, Google will not be at the mercy of suppliers for their primary resource. The only aspect of Google’s business in which suppliers might exercise bargaining power would be servers. However, several manufacturers produce hard disks for storage of information and Google’s size and massive use of storage servers gives them the bargaining power. Bargaining Power of Consumers: Low. Most of Google’s products and services are offered at no cost. Google’s paying customers, namely advertisers, have no equivalent service to divert their spending to. Other search engines simply don’t have the volume of use or the supporting tracking and planning tools that Google has. Problem definition Summary statement of the problem: The primary problem that Google faces can be summed up in one word, â€Å"SIZE†. The size of Google makes it extremely difficult to maintain its past innovation and growth performance. Due to the success that Google has enjoyed in its relatively short history, it will be increasingly difficult to identify and capitalize on opportunities that are sufficient to continue to grow and develop at such an astronomical pace. At the same time, Google’s position as a dominant industry player puts it in a position to be an attractive target for competitors to emulate and challenge for market share. Summary statement of the recommended solution: In order to best address this challenge, Google must do several things simultaneously. Google must recognize and remember that its success stems from being on the cutting edge. Google cannot afford to sit on the sidelines when new technologies come to market. They must always look for opportunities to capitalize early. Similarly, Google should not only continue to seek attractive acquisition targets, but also invest in RD in order to keep the technology pipeline active. Structurally, Google must avoid a centralized control structure that views new growth opportunities from the perspective of their current size and performance, because truly great growth opportunities are not always easily recognizable in the early stages. What better example of that than Google itself?

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Burial Practices of the Ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman Cultures :: European Europe History

Burial Practices of the Ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman Cultures Ancient Egyptian and Greco-Roman practices of preparing the dead for the next cradle of humanity are very intriguing. These two cultures differ in a multitude of ways yet similarities can be noted in the domain of funerary services. In the realm of Egyptian afterlife, The Book of the Dead can provide one with vital information concerning ritual entombment practices and myths of the afterlife. The additional handouts I received from Timothy Stoker also proved to be useful in trying uncover vital information regarding the transition into another life. Regarding the burial practices of Greece and Rome, parts of Homer's Odyssey are useful in the analysis of proper interment methods. One particular method used by the Egyptians was an intricate process known as mummification. It was undoubtedly a very involved process spanning seventy days in some cases. First, all the internal organs were removed with one exception, the heart. If the body was not already West of the Nile it was transported across it, but not before the drying process was initiated. Natron (a special salt) was extracted from the banks of the Nile and was placed under the corpse, on the sides, on top, and bags of the substance were placed inside the body cavity to facilitate the process of dehydration. After thirty-five days the ancient embalmers would anoint the body with oil and wrap it in fine linen. If the deceased was wealthy enough a priest donning a mask of Anubis would preside over the ceremonies to ensure proper passage into the next realm. One of the practices overseen by the priest was the placing of a special funerary amulet over the heart. This was done in behest to secure a successful union with Osiris and their kas. The amulet made sure the heart did not speak out against the individual at the scale of the goddess of justice and divine order, Maat. The priest also made use of a "peculiar ritual instrument, a sort of chisel, with which he literally opened the mouth of the deceased." This was done to ensure that the deceased was able to speak during their journeys in Duat. Another practice used by the Egyptians to aid the departed soul involved mass human sacrifice. Many times if a prominent person passed away the family and servants would willfully ingest poison to continue their servitude in the next world.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Art or Propaganda? Essay

1. Introduction. W.E.B. Dubois and Alain Locke were important contributors to the epoch called â€Å"Harlem Renaissance†. With their writings atrists wanted to do something against racism, they wanted to show that the African – Americans don’t have to feel inferior. Writing in the April, 1915, issue of Crisis, DuBois said: â€Å"In art and literature we should try to loose the tremendous emotional wealth of the Negro and the dramatic strength of his problems through writing †¦ and other forms of art. We should resurrect forgotten ancient Negro art and history, and we should set the black man before the world as both a creative artist and a strong subject for artistic treatment.† DuBois stated what were to be recurrent themes of the decade of the twenties: the Negro as a producer and a subject of art, and the Negro’s artistic output as indices of his contribution to American life. (Linnemann R.J. p 79) In essense, both Locke and DuBois agreed about what constituted good art. It was the function of art on which they did not agree. DuBois doubted if one could really have a disembodied art or beauty; but Locke was not seeking for the Negro writer a disembodied beauty. (Linnemann, R.J. p 92) DuBois strongly disagreed with Locke’s view that â€Å"Beauty rather than Propaganda should be the object of Negro literature and art. †¦If Mr. Locke’s thesis is insisted upon too much is going to turn the Negro Renaissance into decadence.† (Marable, M.. p 130) First I will give some basical facts about the Harlem Renaissance. In the main part I will show the opinions of A. Locke, who preferred arts, and W.E.B. DuBois, who was for propaganda. In point three I will write about DuBois’s life. After that I will show what he wanted in general. The last part of point three I will show why he was for propaganda. Therefore I analysed several of his works, especially his paper â€Å"Criteria of Negro art†. In point four I will introduce Alain Locke with a short biography and then I will show what he wanted for the African – Americans. The second part of point four will show why he preferred art. My focus will be on his anthology â€Å"The New Negro† and his article â€Å"Art or Propaganda?†. Basically there were thoughts which DuBois and Locke shared. One example is the idea of education which will play a role in point five. In point six I will give a short summary. 2. The Harlem Renaissance In the early 1900s, particularly in the 1920s, African-American literature, art, music, dance, and social commentary began to flourish in Harlem, a section of New York City. This African-American cultural movement became known as â€Å"The New Negro Movement† and later as the Harlem Renaissance. More than a literary movement, the Harlem Renaissance exalted the unique culture of African-Americans and redefined African-American expression. African-Americans were encouraged to celebrate their heritage. (Johnson, W.) One of the factors contributing to the rise of the Harlem Renaissance was the great migration of African-Americans to northern cities (such as New York City, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.) between 1919 and 1926. In his influential book The New Negro (1925), Locke described the northward migration of blacks as â€Å"something like a spiritual emancipation.† Black urban migration, combined with trends in American society as a whole toward experimentation during the 1920s, and the rise of radical black intellectuals — including Locke, Marcus Garvey, founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), and W. E. B. DuBois, editor of The Crisis magazine – all contributed to the particular styles and unprecedented success of black artists during the Harlem Renaissance period. (http://encarta.msn.com) More than a literary movement and more than a social revolt against racism, the Harlem Renaissance exalted the unique culture of African-Americans and  redefined African-American expression. African-Americans were encouraged to celebrate their heritage and to become â€Å"The New Negro,† a term coined in 1925 by sociologist and critic Alain LeRoy Locke. 3. About W.E.B. DuBois – what did he want? Pioneer in the struggle for Afro-American liberation and for African liberation, prolific black scholar, W.E.B. DuBois (1868 – 1963) was one of the giants of the twentieth century. (Foner, flap text) DuBois’ mature vision was a reconcilation of the â€Å"sense of double consciousness† – the â€Å"two warring ideals† of being both black and American. He came to accept struggle and conflict as essential elements of life, but he continued to believe in the inevitable progress of the human race – that out of individual struggles against a divided self and political struggles of the oppressors, a broader and fuller human life would emerge that would benefit all of mankind (Kerry W.). Dr. Dubois was awarded the first Spingarn Medal in 1920. This was awarded â€Å"to that Negro who achieved the highest in any human endeavor.† He was an activist for global affairs, editor of the NAACP Crisis publication, and set up the meeting for the first Pan-African Congress. He was an individual of principle and conviction. The seeds he planted still nourish us today. (http://www.websn.com/Pride/Pride/w.htm) To reach racial equality he founded the Niagara Movement – a group of African-American leaders committed to an active struggle for racial equality. The Niagara Movement was founded in 1905, by a group of African-Americans, led by W. E. B. Du Bois, John Hope, and William Monroe Trotter, who called for full civil liberties, an end to racial discrimination, and recognition of human brotherhood. (http://en.wikipedia.org) W.E.B. DuBois saw that racism and prejudices are a problem. Therefore he wrote: â€Å"Once upon a time in my younger years and in the dawn of this century  I wrote: ‘The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line.’ It was a pert and singing phrase which I then liked and which since I have often rehearsed to my soul and asked:–how far is this prophecy or speculation? Today in the last years of the century’s first quarter, let us examine the matter again, especially in the memory of that great event of these great years, the World War. Fruit of the bitter rivalries of economic imperialism, the roots of the catastrophe were in Africa, deeply entwined at bottom with the problems of the color line. And of the legacy left, the problems the world inherits hold the same fatal seed; world dissension and catastrophe still lurk in the unsolved problems of race relations. What then is the world view that the consideration of this question offers?.(DuBois, W.E.B. â€Å"The Negro Mind Reaches Out†) DuBois wanted to encourage African – American people. In his essay â€Å"On Being Ashamed Of Oneself† from 1933 he described the feeling of inferiority. At the same time he encouraged the people to feel confident â€Å"†¦we must oppose all segregation and all racial patriotism; we must salute the American flag and sing ‘Our country’ Tis of Thee’ with devotion and fervor, and we must fight for our rights with long and carefully planned campaigns; uniting for this purpose with all sympathetic people, colored and white. †¦ But there are certain practical difficulties connected with this program which are becoming more and more clear today. First of all comes the fact that we are still ashamed of ourselves and are thus stopped from valid objection when white folks are ashamed to call us human.† (Weinberg, M. p 12) DuBois wanted to fight against the problems which African – Americans have. Their bad situation was explained in his paper â€Å"The Study Of The Negro Problems†: â€Å"†¦let us inquire somewhat more carefully under the form under which the Negro problems present themselves today after 275 years of evolution. Their existence is plainly manifested by the fact that a definitely segregated mass of eight millions of Americans do not wholly share the national life of the people, are not an integral part of the social body. The points at which they fail to be incorporated into this group life constitute the particular  Negro problems, which can be divided into two distinct and correlated parts, depending on two facts: First – Negroes do not share the full national life because as a mass they have not reached a sufficiently high grade of culture. Secondly – They do not share the full national life because there has always existed in America a conviction – varying in intensity, but always widespread – that people of Negro blood should not be admitted into the group life of the nation no matter what their condition might be. Considering the problems arising from the backward development of Negroes, we may say that the mass of this race does not reach the social standards of the nation with respect to a) Economic condition, b) Mental training, c) Social efficiency. † (Foner, p 108) Du Bois was a pioneer advocate of the black beauty concept and of black power although he refrained from attaching a color tag. In his â€Å"Immediate Program of the American Negro† (April, 1915) he asserted: â€Å"The Negro must have power; the power of men, the right to do, to know, to feel and express that knowledge, action and spiritual gift. He must not simply be free from the political tyranny of white folk, he must have the right to vote and rule over the citizens, white and black, to the extent of his proven foresight and ability.† (Moon, H.L.) One way of looking at it is that the Harlem Renaissance attacked the superstructure of White supremacy while legal and political activists in the 1930s and 1940s began to attack the daily practice of racism through the courts and demonstrations. For example, the Harlem Renaissance is generally credited with heightening awareness of the cultural contributions that African and African American peoples have made to American culture, specifically in music, dance, poetry, and speech, as well as in agriculture, medicine, and inventions. Here the idea was that (1) racism in America would be undermined not only through protest against racist practices, but also by changing the prevailing images and associations that European Americans, especially educated European Americans, had about Black people. And then (2)  by disseminating positive images of African Americans as contributors to American Culture, many of these Harlem Renaissance intellectuals hoped to raise the self-esteem of Black people themselves. A people with a higher self-esteem would be more resistant to segregation and discrimination, and more willing to challenge the system than those who were demoralized. (Powell, R.) 3.1. How did he want to reach his aims? After scholar Alain Locke compiled the New Negro – heralding a younger generation of black voices and establishing Harlem as a cultural center – Du Bois vented his ire about the state of the arts in Harlem. At the NAACP’s annual convention in June 1926, Du Bois delivered a lecture entitled â€Å"Criteria of Negro Art† in which he insisted that all relevant art should be propaganda. The lecture was later published in a special Crisis series, â€Å"The Negro in Art.† (http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/) In his paper â€Å"Criteria of Negro art† W.E.B. DuBois wrote: â€Å"Thus all art is propaganda and ever must be, despite the wailing of the purists. I stand in utter shamelessness and say that whatever art I have for writing has been folk to love and enjoy. I do not care a damn for any art that is not used for propaganda. But I do care when propaganda is confined to one side while the other is stripped and silent.† (Weinberg, M. p 258) DuBois didn’t totally reject art but in his opinion art is supposed to have a message. He points out that there is no need to feel inferior and because of that Black people should fight for their rights. â€Å"Colored people have said: ‘This work must be inferior because it comes from colored people.’ White people have said: ‘It is inferior because it is done by colored people.’ But today there is coming to both the realization that the work of the black man is not always inferior.’ † ( W.E.B. DuBois â€Å"Criteria of Negro art† in: Weinbeg, M. p 255) I already mentioned that Harlem Renaissance intellectuals wanted to raise people’s self – esteem. In his paper â€Å"Criteria of Negro Art† DuBois also emphasizes that the art coming from African – Americans is good. â€Å"And then you know what will be said? It is already being said. Just as soon as true art emerges; just as soon as the black artist appears, someone touches the race on the shoulder and says, 2he did that because he was an American, not because he was a Negro; he was born here; he was trained here; he is not a Negro – what is a Negro anyhow? He is just human; it is the kind of thing you ought to expect. I do not doubt that the ultimate art coming from black folk is going to be just as beautiful, and beautiful largely in the same ways, as the art that comes from white folk, or yellow, or red; but the point today is that until the art of black folk compels recognition, they will not be rated as human. And when through art they compel recognition, then let the world discover if it will, that their atr is as new as it is old and as old as new.† (Weinberg, M. p 260) Du Bois’ extreme attitude regarding the relationship between art and politics was not entirely shared by Alain Locke, but adequately expressed the prevailing mood among the intelligentsia in Harlem in the early and middle part of the twenties. Post-war American might still be determined to deny the Negro social, political and economic equality, but art was another matter. It was the chink in the racist’s armour. (Williams, A. p 5) DuBois believed that art could bridge cultural gaps between black and white Americans if black artists were given the opportunity to explore their talents, because, he reasoned, art can inculcate a sense of cultural heritage and identity to an oppressed group. For DuBois, African culture and African American heritage were rich enough to help blacks in the United States regain their political and cultural consciousness. DuBois started a forum of discussion in the Crisis magazine, entitled, â€Å"How Should the Negro Be Portrayed?† in which he asked artists to write in and discuss what kinds of images of Black people ought to be disseminated by artists in America. While there was a wide divergence on how much control should be imposed on what images artists should create, most believed that out of the greater access to the publishing and art world would come an abandonment of the racist imagery that predominated in popular American culture and justified, by dehumanizing Black people, the racist social and political practices that also abounded in America in the 1920s and 1930s. Du Bois even coined the phrase, â€Å"all art is propaganda† to reflect his view that the purpose of an art movement among African Americans was to combat the negative propaganda against the Negro coming from racist America with a positive propaganda for the Negro. (Powell, R.) 4. About Alain Locke. For Alain Locke, propaganda was the slanted rhetoric that cautioned the Negro writers of the Harlem Renaissance to avoid. Being a Negro, he knew the harmful effects the contented slave stereotype of a Thomas Nelson Page, the buffoonery of an early Roark Bradford, and the savage beast in the works of Thomas Dixon had on his race. He new that the works of these authors, aside from presenting such insulting and distorted images, neither had verisimilitude nor were they great literature. (Linnemann, R.J. p 91) African American philosopher – educator Alain LeRoy Locke (1886 – 1954) played an influential role in identifying, nurturing, and publishing the works of young black artists during the New Negro Movement. His philosophy served as a strong motivating force in keeping the energy and passion of the Movement at the forefront. He spent his life seeking to understand the nature of cultural conflicts and suggesting measures that must be taken to reduce conflict and allow harmony to prevail. A fundamental question that lingered in his mind was: How can a multiethnic society, such as that in the United States organize itself so that its diverse groups can live together without intense violent conflicts? (Washington, J. p vii) He served for many years as a chairman of the philosophy department at Howard University, but his main contribution to American culture lies in his efforts to make the public aware of the Negro’s aesthetic achievements – from the art and artefacts of Africa to the poetry and novels of the American writer. (The Negro Almanac, p 990) Alain Locke played an influential role in identifying, nurturing, and publishing the works of young black artists during the New Negro Movement. His philosophy served as a strong motivating force in keeping the energy and passion of the Movement at the forefront. Ernest Mason explains that: â€Å"†¦much of the creative work of the period was guided by the ideal of the New Negro which signified a range of ethical ideals that often emphasized and intensified a higher sense of group and social cohesiveness. †¦The writers†¦literally expected liberation†¦from their work and were perhaps the first group of Afro-American writers to believe that art could radically transform the artist and attitudes of other human beings.† (Dictionary of Literary Biography p 313) As a pioneer collector, Locke was one of the first Americans to write about the significance of African art, demonstrating its importance far beyond an influence on the cubists and other members of the European artistic avant-garde. He wanted all African Americans, in particular contemporary African American artists, to seek inspiration and take pride in their rich artistic heritage. To this end he lectured, organized numerous exhibitions, and wrote the introductions for several landmark catalogs of African art. (http://www.africawithin.com) In his anthology â€Å"The New Negro† (written in 1925) Alain Locke wanted to show that Afro – Americans are able to produce art and literature as well as white people. He discussed the value of black art in terms of its contribution to community. In his defining essay of 1925, â€Å"Enter the New Negro,† for instance, Locke urges young artists to embrace the fullness of their  heritage, old customs married to new possibilities. Once again, Locke emphasizes the purpose for artists in doing so: the responsibility of these artists to be leaders for their people. In Locke’s words: â€Å"With his renewed self-respect and self-dependence, the life of the Negro community is bound to enter a new dynamic phase, the buoyancy from within compensating for whatever pressure there may be of conditions without. The migrant masses, shifting from countryside to city, hurdle several generations of experience at a leap, but more important, the same thing happens spiritually in the life-attitudes and self-expression of the Young Negro, in his poetry, his art, his education and his new outlook, . . . From this comes the promise and warrant of a new leadership.†(Locke, A.: Enter The New Negro† in: Bracey, J. p 222) The â€Å"New Negro† emerged from within the black community, in contrast to the white stereotyped literary image of the comic and pathetic plantation black. Alain Locke is acknowledged as the leading black philosopher who asked blacks to recognize their African heritage as â€Å"New Negroes†. 4.1. A. Locke -how did he want to reach his aims? Writing in 1928, Alain Locke, the influential philosopher of the Harlem Renaissance, observed that the fundamental question for any anti-racist social agenda was â€Å"Art or Propaganda. Which?† (Locke, A.) Artists and writers of the movement regarded the Harlem Renaissance not simply as a spontaneous flourishing of African-American creativity but as a critical historical moment to be seized in order to alter the course of American racism. Its social mission, as Locke and many others saw it, was to overturn the prevailing perception of Blacks as inferior to whites. Its effects would be two-fold: fostering pride amongst the Black population and addressing whites from a position of strength. Yet if the anti-racist social agenda of the Harlem Renaissance were to succeed in changing people’s minds about race, Locke believed, it could not proceed rhetorically. Art could offer a new social vision; propaganda would only exacerbate the polarization of Black and white positions. (Thompson, A.) His strategy was to create a new and an own esthetic in order to strenghten the standing and the self-confidence of African-Americans. (http://userpage.fu berlin.de) For A. Locke art ist he best means to prove that Black culture and art is as good as the culture and the art of white people. â€Å"†¦ Art in the best sense is rooted in self – expression and whether naive or sophisticated is self – contained. In our spiritual growth genius and talent must more and more choose the role of group expression, or even at times the role of free individualistic expression – in a word must choose art and put aside propaganda.† (Locke, A. â€Å"Art or Propaganda?† p 312) The problem with propaganda, he argued, is that it cannot reframe the terms of the debate. To try to discredit racism is already to accord racist arguments a presumptive legitimacy. â€Å"†¦ My chief objection to propaganda, apart from its besetting sin of monotony and disproportion, is that it perpetuates the position of group inferiority even in crying out against it. For it speaks under the shadow of a dominant majority whom it harangues, cajoles, threatens, or supplicates. It is too extroverted for balance or poise or inner dignity and self-respect. †¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Locke, A. Ibid. p 312. ) Propaganda, in Locke’s view, is inevitably either defensive or strident, if not both. By contrast, art â€Å"is rooted in self-expression and whether naive or sophisticated is self-contained.† (Locke,A. Ibid. p 312) Creating its own terms for understanding and appreciation, art allows us to sidestep the received, conventional terms of meaning, and to take up possibilities presented to us within the â€Å"self-contained† realm of the individual work. While art could not â€Å"completely accomplish† the transformation needed to realign Black and white relations in American society, Locke believed that it could â€Å"lead the way.† (Locke, Ibid. p 312) For the most part, therefore, the art and literature of the Harlem Renaissance were expressive rather than creative, creative rather than argumentative. And it was specifically because they avoided propaganda, avoided engaging racist ideology directly, that Locke believed that art and literature could teach the truth about blackness in the white world. For Locke, the educational value of the movement consisted above all in its capacity to represent blackness without reference to the terms set by a racist society. Disregarding conventional perceptions and assumptions, art could offer an objective look at black experience, physiognomy, and heritage. (Thompson, A. p 18) Key to Locke’s notion of art as education is its avoidance of argumentation. For him, the problem posed by propaganda is not that it serves a particular agenda – obviously, he meant for art to serve a distinct social, political, and intellectual agenda. The problem with propaganda, as he saw it, is that it is reactive, and thus reliant upon the very assumptions it is intended to displace. Unlike the more familiar opposition between propaganda and common sense or between propaganda and open inquiry, Locke’s art/propaganda dichotomy suggests that the most important obstacle to social understanding may be a form of literal-mindedness: accepting our starting points as a given and seeking change through incremental adjustments. In effect, then, Locke rejects the kind of approach to promoting interracial understanding taken by liberal education. In the traditional liberal arts model, the path to a freer understanding is through careful analysis, reasoned argumentation, and dialogue. But from Locke’s perspective, that approach reintroduces at every turn the very assumptions that preclude a transformed understanding. Particularly in the case of Black/white relations, what is called for is a reorientation in our thinking rather than the correction of each and every error in existing understandings. As a pragmatist, Locke saw change not in terms of incremental improvement but in terms of shifts: adopting new positions and entering into new relations. Whereas propaganda, in Locke’s formulation, refers to an emendatory or editing impulse, art refers to the development of new perspectives. The importance of art lies in its refusal to read social convention literally.  As a metaphor for anti-racist education, it means, in part, problematizing the supposedly neutral standards that privilege whiteness, and, in part, reconceiving both whiteness and Blackness. In invoking art as the opposite of propaganda, though, Locke grants too much to art. By holding on to Enlightenment assumptions about truth, Locke proposes a misleading role for art as somehow apolitical in contrast to propaganda as inherently ideological. The romantic strain in Locke’s conception of art is revealed in his belief that â€Å"the art of the people,† specifically peoples of African ancestry, is â€Å"†¦a tap root of vigorous, flourishing living.† (Locke, A. â€Å"Art or Propaganda† p 313) Such art, he believed, is the source of a beauty that reveals truth, for unlike academic art, it has not been subjected to â€Å"generations of the inbreeding of style and idiom,† (Locke, A. â€Å"The Legacy of the Ancestral Arts,† p 258) nor lost the capacity to see objectively. â€Å"The Negro physiognomy must be freshly and objectively conceived on its own patterns if it is ever to be seriously and importantly interpreted. Art must discover and reveal the beauty which prejudice and caricature have overlaid. And all vital art discovers beauty and opens our eyes to that which previously we could not see. â€Å"(Locke,A. Ibd. p 264) Art, Locke believed, offered a way to break with old stereotypes and invent new forms, while remaining true to â€Å"some sort of characteristic idiom,† (Locke,A. Ibd. p 267) is a distinctive heritage and expressive style. Pragmatist that he was, he saw art as a way to come to experience both with a fresh eye and with the funded experience of a rich ancestral legacy. (Thompson, A. in: â€Å"Anti-Racist Pedagogy: Art or Propaganda?†) 5. What is it that DuBois and Locke have in common? A. Locke and W.E.B. DuBois had different opinions about the question whether art or propaganda is the right way to integrate the African – Americans into the American society. I have written about W.E.B. DuBois ,who is for propaganda, and about A. Locke, who is for art, so far. What we should keep in mind is: basically they wanted the same. The thing they have in common is  that they generally had the same ideas: they wanted to do domething for the African – Amerians, they wanted a â€Å"racial uplift†. (http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~wilker/harlem/Bildungselite.htm) One example is the idea of education and the idea of a Black elite, which they both shared. It is obvious that DuBois and Locke felt that the Black elite (or Talented Tenth) were to articulate the Black ideals for which the masses were to strive. A task that required members of the Talented Tenth to be well educated. For DuBois, no less than Locke, insisted that an education that allowed Blacks to achieve cultural freedom and autonomy would be an education that exposed the selected Black youth to the higher cultural values – the arts, music, drama, poetry, and history, aimed at the development of labouring skills. Alain Locke, no less than W.E.B DuBois, focused on Blacks cultural contributions to America. Hence, the importance of educating the Black elite, who would serve as Socratic midwives in such creative efforts. (Washington, p 22 ff.) Significant social transformations occurred, according to Locke, through the effort of what he called the black elite – the talented, well educated, cultured class of Blacks that distinguished itself from the Black masses through the former’s contributions to the development of art and culture. The black elite took initiative in the realm of human affairs. It was concerned with helping to shape, among other things, public policy. Booker T. Washington, Alain Locke, W.E.B. DuBois, Mary Bethune, Zora Hurston, Roland Hayes, Paul Robeson, Countee Cullen, Ida B. Wells, Langston Huges, Marian Anderson, James Weldon Johnson – these were among the Black elite during Locke’s time. It was their artistic and political activities to the civil rights movements of the 1960s that advanced the social – political status of Black Americans, and induced the country to make a more serious commitment to the principle of equality. Indeed, members of the Black elite inspired Africans on the continent of Africa in the 1950s and early 1960s as they sought to rid themselves of European colonial rule. In a word, the American Black elite, especially through the effort of W.E.B. DuBoi’s Pan –  African movement, was instrumental in helping to dissolve the closed societies on the continent of Africa, societies nurtured and sustained by colonialism. (Washington, p 34) In his speech, â€Å"The Training of Negroes for Social Power,† Dr. DuBois set forth clearly and fully his views at the time of the type of education he felt was essential for his people. â€Å"†¦The Negro problem, it has often been said, is largely a problem of ignorance – not simply of illiteracy, but a deeper ignorance of the world and its ways, of the thought and experience of men; an ignorance of self and the possibilities of human souls. This can be gotten rid of only by training; and primarily such training must take the form of that sort of social leadership which we call education. †¦ The very first step towards settlement of the Negro problem is the spread of intelligence.† (Foner, p 132 ff) 6.Summary W.E.B. DuBois emphasized that art must have a function. It is not the beauty which is important. In his magazine â€Å"The Crisis† he wrote: â€Å"We want Negro writers to produce beautiful things but we stress the things rather than the beauty. It is Life and Truth that are important and Beauty comes to make their importance visible and tolerable.† Locke suggested that fellow artists of the Harlem Renaissance always strive for art and avoid propaganda. Unfortunately, however, he felt that there have been very few â€Å"purely artistic publications†, as most of their expressions were included in the â€Å"avowed organs of social movements and organized social programs.† He felt that there must be discussion of social problems, but propaganda is too one-sided to serve that function, and there must be some means of bringing all views to the table. However, he never claimed that art can serve this function, and merely hypothesized such a forum of ideas. (Cabrera, J.) DuBois doubted if one could really have a disembodied art or beauty ; but Locke was not seeking for the Negro writer a disembodied beauty. He expected â€Å"tangible† results from the Negro knowing himself through his folk cultural experiences, particulary given the Negro’s special circumstances as an American citizen within the wider American cultural tradition. (Linnemann, R.J. p 92) I think it is important to mention that W.E.B. DuBois was for propaganda but he didn’t totally reject art as long as art has a message. DuBois had a strong sense of race pride and saw great value in drawing upon the racial heritage. He was an early advocate of the use of black folk music for classical American music tradition. Though he felt that art and propaganda could not be separated, he took the middle – class position that characterization of black life should project a proper image of the Negro. (Linnemann, R.J. p 78) The question â€Å"Who was right?† is difficult to answer. A. Locke saw the beauty of art but in my opinion every kind of art has a message and is therefore more or less propaganda. One cannot separate the terms. Artist are just able to influence the kind of propaganda when they create provocative works but it is not possible to produce art just for arts sake. Sources: Bracey, John H. ed.: African American Mosaic, Volume Two – From 1865 To The Present. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2004. Locke, Alain: â€Å"Art or Propaganda?† in Voices from the Harlem Renaissance, ed. Nathan Irvin Huggins. New York: Oxford University Press, 1976. DuBois, W.E.B.: â€Å"The Negro Mind Reaches Out (excerpts)† The New Negro, An Interpretation. New York: Albert and Charles Boni, 1925, p. 385. Foner, Philip Sheldon : W.E.B. Du Bois speaks – speeches and addresses 1890-1919. New York: Pathfinder Press, 1970. Linnemann, Russell J., ed. Alain Locke: Reflections on a modern Renaissance man. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1982. Locke,A. â€Å"The Legacy of the Ancestral Arts,† in The New Negro: An Interpretation, ed. Alain Locke New York: Arno Press and the New York Times, 1968 (1925). Marable, Manning: W.E.B.DuBois, Black Radical Democrat. Boston: Twayne Publishers, 1986. Ploski, Harry A. ed. The Negro Almanac : a reference work on the Afro-American. Detroit: Gale Research, 1983. Washington, Johnny: Alain Locke and philosophy : a quest for cultural pluralism. New York: Greenwood Press, 1986. Weinberg, Meyer ed.: W.E.B. DuBois: A Reader. New York: Harper & Row, 1970. Electronic Sources Cabrera, Jennifer. Art or Propaganda? 10 December 1999.< http://www.en. utexas. edu/ classes/bremen/e314l/student_pages/student.sites/jennifer/final/home.html> Moon, Henry Lee: History of the Crisis. November 1970. The Crisis Magazine Online 10.03.05 Powell, Richard: , 08.03.05 Thompson, Audrey: For: Anti racist education (p 1 – 38) 25.02.2005. University of Utah. < http://bama.ua.edu/~cdi/thompson.pdf, S.18 > Thompson, Audrey : Anti-Racist Pedagogy : Art or Propaganda? 27.02.2005. University of Utah William H. Johnson Feb.16, 2000 25.02.05.