Atlantic Slave Trade Essay Example for Free

Atlantic Slave Trade Essay A slave can be defined as a person who is the property of and wholly subject to another, a bond servant or a person entirely under the domination of some influence or person. Slavery was well recognized in many early civilizations. Ancient Egypt, Ancient China, the Akkad Ian Empire, Assyria, Ancient India, Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, the Islamic Caliphate, the Hebrews in Palestine, and the pre-Columbian civilizations of the Americas all had either a form of debt-slavery, punishment for crime, enslavement of prisoners of war, child abandonment or birth of slave children to slaves. However, as the sixteenth century approached, so did the change in the way slavery would be looked at, for years to come. The Atlantic slave trade became the name of the three part economic cycle that involved four continents for four centuries and millions of people. The Atlantic slave trade or the middle passage, triangular trade and slavery affected the economy of Europe, Africa and the Americas in both negative and positive aspects. Starting in the 1430’s Portuguese were the first to sail down the coast of Africa to search for gold and jewels. The Portuguese had to extend their power across the co+ast because Sub-Saharan Africa’s trade routes were controlled by the Islamic Empire. By 1445, The Portuguese conquered three African countries and created trading posts. This allowed them access to Europe across the Sahara. Initially, the Portuguese traded copperware, cloth, tools, wine and horses for pepper, ivory and most importantly gold. The first slave purchase is said to have taken place in 1441 when the Portuguese caught two African males while they were along the coast. The Africans in the nearby village paid them in gold for their return. Eventually, they developed the idea that they could get more gold by transporting slaves along Africa’s coast. The Muslims were enticed by the idea of slavery as they used them as porters and for profit. Portugal had a monopoly on the export of slaves in Africa for more than two hundred years. This encounter is the beginning of one of the most tragic events in history, the Atlantic triangular trade (Thomas 1997). A triangular trade evolves when a region has export commodities that aren’t required in the region which its major imports come and provides a method for trade imbalances. The triangular trade is named for the rough shape it makes on a map. It worked like a triangle between all the colonies that were involved. For centuries the world was took part in its most successful trading system. There where nearly fifteen million Africans were shipped to both North and South America for more than three-hundred. Slaves, cash crops and manufactured goods were the most traded between the Americas, Europe and Africa. The Europeans controlled the first stage of the trade by carrying supplies for sale and trade such as, cloth, spirit, tobacco, beads, shells, metal goods and guns. This was their method of which were used to help expand empires and capture more slaves. These goods were exchanged for purchased and kidnapped African slaves (www. nmm. ac. uk/freedom/viewTheme. cfm/theme/triangular). African kings and merchants would capture the slaves or organize campaigns ran by the Europeans. The motives of the Europeans were based on one thing; they lacked a major source, a work force. It was stated that the Indigenes people were unreliable and Europeans were unsuited to the climate. However, Africans had experience in agriculture, keeping cattle, content with the climate. Africa soon became reliant on the slavery of their people and the profits that came along with it. The next stage involved the slaves being transported by voyage to the Americas and Caribbean, the middle passage (PBS. â€Å"The African Slave Trade and the Middle Passage. † http://www. pbs. org/wgbh/aia/part1/1narr4. html). The middle passage was a perilous, horrendous journey slaves made across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas. The final stage of the Atlantic slave trade was the return to Europe from the Americas with the produce from the slave-labor plantations. Most regions of North and South America were used to provide these raw materials to Europe for manufacturing. This wasn’t the first or only slave trade, but it was the cruelest. What began as a quest for gold ended as a quest for slaves, leaving a major stamp on African and American history (Thomas 1997). Before undergoing the middle passage, slaves faced human misery and suffering. Kidnapped slaves were forced to walk shackled in slave caravans to European coastal forts. Due to the lack of food and energy, half of the slaves became sick and were killed or left to die. Some had the strength to make it so they were left in underground dungeons. For years, Africans were stranded in these dungeons across the coast of Africa.. There, they wait on the embarked horrid encounter of the entire slave trade, the middle passage. None of the previous passengers returned to their homeland so none of the Africans knew what they were about to endure. The voyages were generally organized by companies and investors because they were a huge financial burden(â€Å"The African Slave Trade and the Middle Passage). Two theories show the packing of slaves in the European ships; loose and tight packing. Loose packing carried less slaves with the hopes of more room and more slaves making it to the Americas alive and in fair condition. This was exchanged for tight packing. Captains believed despite more casualties, this would yield a greater profit. On occasion, veterinarians inspected the slaves before the voyage to determine which slaves could make it across the Atlantic Ocean. The enslaved Africans were chained together by hand and foot, not even being able to lie on one’s side. They ate, slept, urinated, defecated, gave birth and died all in that one spot. There was overcrowding, inadequate ventilation and little to no sanitation. Twenty percent of every hundred died along the way from either suffocation, starvation, amoebic dysentery, scurvy or a disease such as small pox. The slaves that died were thrown overboard as well as the slaves that showed illness. Some threw their self-overboard risking their life rather than deal with these horrific measures. Approximately fifteen million captured Africans were sent to the Americas. The middle passage was the longest, most dangerous part of the Atlantic slave trade (â€Å"The Middle Passage Experience†). From the seventeenth century on, slaves became the focus of trade between Europe and Africa. Europe had already colonized North and South America as well as the Caribbean islands from the fifteenth century onward. This created an insatiable demand for African laborers, who were deemed â€Å"more fit† to work in the tropical conditions of the New World. The numbers of slaves imported across the Atlantic Ocean steadily increased, from approximately 5,000 slaves a year in the sixteenth century to over 100,000 slaves a year by the end of the eighteenth century (www. mariner. org/captivepassage). Upon their arrival to the Americas, the slaves were washed, greased and placed inside dungeons. The grease added a more appealing look making the slaves appear healthier so the profit would be much higher. European slave traders made sure all of their potential properties were in well condition before bidding. They were branded with a hot iron to keep their identity as a slave. There were two main types of slave auctions; highest bidder or grab and go auctions. Highest bidder was a bidding process which the buyer with the highest bid would get the slave. Grab and go auctions was the process in which the buyer would give the trader an agreed amount of money in exchange for a ticket. This process was where the slaves were released from their dungeon and the buyers would rush and grab the slave they wanted, Each slave would be sold to an owner who owned a great deal of land and worked on either a plantation or mine and there, the living conditions were still only barely better (Curtin 1969) A prominent African, author and a major influence on the enactment of the Slave Trade Act of 1807, Olaudah Equiano was well aware and very familiar with the Atlantic slave trade. At the age of eleven, Equiano and his sister were kidnapped from his village in Nigeria. He survived the middle passage, and taken to the West Indies. He tells how he was bought by Captain Pascal, a British naval Officer as a â€Å"present† for a cousin. He tells how was enslaved in North America for ten years, working as a seaman. In 1766, he bought his freedom and wrote an autobiography, â€Å"The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano,† Equiano gave a firsthand look of the conditions enslaved Africans were forced to live. This document was one of the first documents that explained, thoroughly, the terrible human cruelty of the Atlantic slave trade (Wright et al. 001). Although many lives were taken or at risk, The Atlantic slave trade fulfilled its major goal, profit and change the three continents. Europe, America and Africa’s economy were all affected by the slave trade. Europe’s economy was suffering before the slave trade. The Atlantic slave trade was during the time of recovery for Europe and completely recovered their economy. Because of the success of the trade, they needed more people to manufacture raw materials and export them to Africa. The great supply of jobs created many exports and the income to buy imports. By the end of the slave trade, Europe’s economy was in well standings as one of the wealthiest continents in the world. The America’s economies rose too. They were honored with a free workforce that provided many resources from sugar to cotton. The free labor allotted for them to received one hundred percent of the profit. They were importing more slaves and exporting the goods made by them to gaining wealth. America’s economy became agriculturally stable and soon industrialized. Europe and the Americas economies were affected in a positive way. However, Africa’s economy received a negative effect. Many, for years lived in fear due to slavery. African villages became small and poor. All of the kingdoms that were strong at one time, collapsed and were conquered. They received raw material goods from the slave trade but with nothing shown. The African kings prospered only because they were heavily involved in the slave trade. As the kings’ wealth grew, their economy was at a standstill and eventually failed. The Atlantic slave trade, human cruelty and evil at its finest, had a substantial effect on Europe, the Americas and Africa (www. understandingslavery. com).

English As An International Language English Language Essay

English As An International Language English Language Essay Introduction: Teacher of English as a second language is ultimately faced with a dichotomy between knowledge and performance, especially if they teach courses with a major component of written expression. A class of English language learners can perform sufficiently in routine grammatical exercises, but then fail signally to translate this demonstrated knowledge into reality when faced with the task of writing original prose. The purpose of this paper is to present a numerical analysis of grammatical errors in students writing as a means of identifying those aspects of English grammar that do not translate well from routine testing of grammatical knowledge to original work. The results provide some insight into shortfall in the capabilities of students and, more importantly, identify ways to redress them. Interest in the teaching of English as an international language has been growing throughout the Arab countries, and most Arab governments began to launch the teaching of English as compulsory subject in schools. At present, in most Arab countries, all students who finish the public secondary school education must have had at least eight years of teaching in English as a school subject. So, because of the widespread use of English as a second language, the subject of language teaching in general and teaching English as a foreign or second language in particular, has become the focus of attention of most Arab researchers (Al-Khatib, 2000). As far as English at tertiary level in the Arab world is concerned, (Zughoul, 2003; Sultana, (2001) point out that teaching through the medium of English is obvious in the field of higher education with the exception of Syria which maintained a strong teaching tradition through the medium of Arabic. Zughoul, in confirming this issue has said, no law s have been enacted or language plans drawn to be implemented regarding the use of Arabic in Arab universities in any Arab country (ibid, (2003). As far as Arab students are concerned, recently, Rababah has rightly stated that attitudinal studies conducted on Arab students, consistently showed that Arab students are instrumentally motivated to learn English and that they are well aware of the utility of knowing English. The main stimulus for learning English is instrumental, i.e. to achieve a goal, e.g. a career (ibid, 2003).To shed more about the present status of English in the Arab world, Zughoul rightly states: despite the hegemonic and imperialistic nature of English, it is still badly needed in the Arab world for the purposes of communicating with the world, education, acquisition of technology and development at large. Teaching still needs more efforts to be exerted to raise the quality and standard of English of the Arab learners at all levels, (ibid 2003). General Background Language is a means of communication with individuals. It is a system of sound which is structured and used to communicate peoples feeling, intentions, purpose, etc to the others. It is a special characteristic of human or it can also be regarded as one of human criteria because only human beings speak a language. However, the ability to speak a language should be developed in a social group. Sapir (1921:p 8) says language is purely human and non instinctive method of communicating ideas, emotional, and desires by means of system of voluntarily produced symbols. One of the Languages is English. It is one of the languages used in communication almost all over the world. It used mainly in Britain and its commonwealth all over the world and it has become one of the main languages of international communication. It has a very important role in technological and scientific advances. 2.1 Grammar The word grammar has several meanings and there is no universally accepted definition. Different experts define the term grammar differently. There is no fixed definition of grammar. Leech (1982: 3) defined grammar as something in reference to the mechanism according to which language works when it is used to communicate with other people. Harmer (2001: 12) defines grammar as the description of the ways in which words can change their forms and can be combined into sentences in that language. Gerot Wignell (1994: 2) state that grammar is a theory of a language, of how language is put together and how it works. Having known the definition of grammar, it is not hard for us to understand why grammar is useful and important. Without knowing the grammar of a language, one can not be said to have learned the language. Besides, it seems impossible to learn a language without learning the grammar because it tells him how to use the language. People learn how to construct a good message base d on the rules they have known and try to convey the message to the others. These rules are termed as grammar. The mechanism of grammar cannot be seen concretely, because it is rather abstractly represented in the human mind, but we know it is there because it works. One way of describing this mechanism is by means of a set of rules which allow us to put words together in certain ways which do not allow others. The meaning of a message conveyed by language has to be converted into words put together according to grammatical rules and these words are then conveyed by sounds. Preposition and particles Sawn states that Arabic has a wealth of fixed prepositions and particles, used with both verbs and adjectives. Many of these do not coincide with their direct English translation. There are no phrasal verbs in arabic and this whole area is one of the great difficult for Arabic speakers. Defence mechanisms may involve selecting alternative but regular verbs to avoid using phrasal verbs altogether, or the misuse or omission of the preposition or particle. As prepositions in Arabic are always followed by or linked to a noun or pronoun, preposition- stranding patterns in English will usually be avoided in favour of the Arabic patterns, which are often similar to more formal English. Literature Review: A Review of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) Research Over the past years, studies of second languages learning have occupied a significant position in the field of linguistic. The term second language acquisition refer to the subconscious or conscious by which a language other than the other tongue is learnt in natural or a taught setting. It includes the development of phonology, lexis, grammar and pragmatic knowledge (Ellis, 2008). Ellis (2008) defined Second Language Acquisition (SLA) as the study which people have showed great interests although it does not have a long history. Interlanguage Theory (IL) The Definition of Interlanguage According to Selinker (1972), interlanguage refers to the separateness of a second language learners system, system that has a structurally intermediate status between the native and target languages. (p. 201). Nemser (1971:9) stresses the successive approximation to the target language in his term approximative system. Corder (1972:151) makes use of the term idiosyncratic dialect to denote the idea that learners language is unique to a particular individual. While each of these descriptions focuses on a particular idea, they share the idea that second language learners form their own language system. Richards (1974: 124) states that the sources of errors in studying a language might be derived from the interference of the learners mother tongue and the general characteristics of the rule learning. The general characteristics of the rule learning cause the errors which are called the intralanguage errors and the interference of the learners mother tongue causes the errors which are called the interlanguage errors. He (1974) makes a distinction between three sources of competence errors: (1) Interference errors happen as an effect of the use of element from one language whereas speaking another. (2) Intralingual errors reveal the general characteristics of rule learning such as faulty generalization, incomplete application of rules and failure to learn conditions under which rules apply. (3) Developmental errors occur when the learner try to build up hypothesis about the target language on the basis of limited experience. Richards (1971) also classifies intralingual errors into four types: Overgeneralization It occurs when the learner produces an unexpected structure on the basis of other structures in the target language. In other words, it involves the creation of one unusual structure in place of two target language structures. Ignorance of the rule restrictions It includes the application of rules to context where they do not apply. It is in general linked to analogy. It contains a failure to fully develop a structure. As a result, learners of L2 English have been observed to use word order of declaration in questions. This type of intralingual error keeps up a correspondence to what is often referred to as an error of transitional competence (Richards, 1971:174) False concepts hypothesized The final type of intralanguage error, that is sometimes named semantic error, may be derived from faulty comprehension in the target language. The Stages of IL Development It can be said that there are many way to describe the progression of linguistic development and learners are variable in their acquisition. According to Brown (2000/1994:p211), IL development can be classified into four stages. The first stage is random errors, in which the learner cannot recognize that there are some systematic orders to a particular class of items. The second stage is emergent, in which learner becomes consistent in linguistic production. The third stage is a systematic stage in which the learner has a capacity to prove more consistency. When their errors are pointed out, they will correct their errors right away. Certainly, they are more close to the target language. The last stage is stabilization stage which is characterised by the learners ability to self-correct. Approaches to IL Study Contrastive Analysis (CA) According to Johnson Johnson (1998:110), Contrastive analysis is a comparing two linguistic systems, the learner L1 and the target L2 with a view to determining structural similarities and differences. Because of it, making errors in learning language is regularly happen. As said by Brown (1994:193), second language learning basically involved the overcoming of the differences between the two linguistic systems- the native and the target languages. Lado (1957:2) pointed out that the forms meanings and distribution of native language and culture can be transferred to the target language. He also states that those elements that are similar to this native language will be simple for him and those elements that are different will be difficult.(p:2) Error Analysis (EA) Significance of Error Analysis Error analysis in SLA was established in 1960s by Stephen Pit Corder and colleagues. Error analysis was an alternative to contrastive analysis, an approach influenced by behaviourism through which applied linguistic sough to use the formal distinctions between the learners L1 and L2 to predicted errors. According to James (1998:1), error analysis is the process of determining the incidences, nature, causes and consequences of unsuccessful language. It can be said that making errors in language process can be extremely common. As Ubol (1988: 8) said, Errors analysis is a systematic description and explanation of errors made by learners or user in their oral or written production on the TL. That is mean that error analysis is concerned with the explanation of occurrence error and production error of their oral or written expression differs from that of native speaker or Target Language (TL) Corder (1981) noted that Errors can be significant in three different ways. Firstly, teacher can have information about how much the learner had learnt. Secondly, the research can have evidence of how language was learnt. Thirdly, errors served as devices by which the learner discovered the rules of the Target Language (TL) Procedures of Error To analysis the data, I use error analysis method. Corder was quoted by Ellis(2008:46) recommends the following steps to conduct an error analysis investigate: Collection of a sample of learner language by which deciding what patterns of learner language to use for analysis and how to collect thesis patterns. Identification of errors by which underlying the errors the learner made. Description of errors in which errors can be classified as group that found and declaring the classes of the errors. Explanation of errors by which the errors can be established the source of the errors and calculating how often errors appear. Evaluation of errors in which tabelizing errors and drawing conclusion can be involved. Referring to the steps of error analysis method above, the date will be analysis as following: Identification of errors: In this step, I studied the acquired data and tried to find out grammatical errors in particular errors in use of preposition. I tried to analysis the data as objective as possible. Description of errors: Once the errors have been identified. I classified the errors into the category of errors in use of preposition. Evaluation of errors: In this step would be drawing a conclusion based on the analysis. I have to make a valid conclusion in the form of a brief description of the errors. Error Types Brown(1994) pointed out that there are two type (Another division that is widely agreed on is that interlingual errors and intralingual errors believed by linguists. An error that results from language transfer, which is caused by the learners native language, is called interlingual errors. Intralingual errors refer to those produced in using the target language in own terms. They result from faulty or partial of the target language, rather than from language transfer. Errors in the use of prepositions Prepositions are always followed by nouns (or pronouns). They are connective words that show the relationship between the nouns following them and one of the basic sentence elements: subject, verb, object, or complement. They usually indicate relationships, such as position, place, direction, time, manner, agent, possession, and condition, between their objects and other parts of the sentence (Wishon and Burks, 1980: 288). A preposition may be composed of one, two, or three parts. For instance: a. one part: of, on, in, at, for, from b. two parts: because of, according to, etc c. three parts: in front of, on top of, as far as, etc In using a preposition, one should be aware because there is no certain rule for this. One has to determine which preposition should be used based on its context. Previous studies Students on EFL Arab Learners writing Errors Bacha (2002:161) states that L2 writers are known to face problems in developing their writing skills at the university level. These problems are even more accentuated with L1 Arabic non-native speakers of English in required English composition. She has added that Arab learners or a foreign language or second language do have serious problems in writing and may not be motivated to develop their writing skills. Kharma and Hajjaj (1997) described preposition as an everlasting problem for EFL Arab learner. Kharmas statement based on his own empirical and theoretical studies conducted in several Arab countries (e.g. Arab Gulf and Jordan) and because he observed that almost all research on syntactic errors in the Arab world, preposition were found to be the most troublesome grammatical words and constantly continue a significant preposition of error occupied the first of second position among other syntactic and semantic errors. Methodology Participants The participants of this study are the IELTS class of Arab students in English language centre at Manchester Metropolitan University in the academic year of 2010. The class consists of 19 students. I choose nine of their written work randomly. I selected them to be subject of this study because they have already learnt the English grammar and they use English in the classroom teaching learning process as well. Data collection In collection the data, the materials used for analysis were 9 written works on one topic from IELTS course students at Manchester Metropolitan University. The students were asked to write topic about; in my dairy, I will: The topic was chosen for students to practise the simple past tense. The work was done as activity in class, but the students were allowed to use dictionaries. The work created by the students was thoughtful, creative and well structured. I tried to analysis the students errors and to find out the grammatical errors done by students in particular preposition errors. Discussion of errors The subjects of this study made 28 errors ( see appendix 2). There are three subcategories of errors (substitution, addition and omission) will be presented by the side of their source whether it is intralingual or interlingual. The number of errors is small as mentioned above. In the discussion of errors in this study, only few examples for sake of illustration to the three categories will be given and discussed. Errors of substitution Analysis of the data disclosee examples of the substitution of prepositions which seemed to be caused by both, the students mother tongue interference and influence of the target language itself. The majority of the errors were of substitutes, made in the use of prepositions in the composition whether the source was interlingual or intralingual. Interlingual Errors Intralingual Errors Total In instead at: The following are illustrative examples: I felt comfortable to learn English in MMU. I did registration in police. At instead in: Finally, at the first week, I felt homesick. This error are attributed to overgeneralization that arises from the ambiguity in the learners mind, particularly when they face the task of using one preposition to express different connections and meanings. In this case, the learners will overgenerlise one item over the other as in (1) they overgenerlised the preposition at instead of in. To instead for: The following is illustrative example: I took photos to him. To instead in: The following are illustrative examples: I arrived to Manchester. It was my first time to the UK. To instead on: The following are illustrative examples: My teachers asked us to go with group to campus. We took our student cards and to enrolled to our course. For instead to: The following are illustrative examples: I started for study hard. I came here for learn English. About instead for: The following are illustrative examples: My first impression about the university was good. I search about a flat or home. During instead over: The following is illustrative example: During the three weeks. Errors of addition The addition of preposition indicated those redundant propositions are used where they are not needed. The analysis of the date showed that (5) prepositions were added they were not necessary. Analysis of data showed examples of the addition of prepositions which seemed to be caused by both, students s mother tongue interference and the influence of the target language itself. Here some illustrative examples: Addition of of I started stady of Eingliesh. The error in the above example attributed to the TL interference. in the same way, Modern Sanders Arabic does not need a preposition in such context. Therefore, the learner of this sentence overgeneralised the use of the preposition of in position where it is not nedded. Addition of for I spent about three hour for studying. Addition of to I pray everyday to arrive my passport. I met to Staphany at that time. We went to shopping. Errors of omission Analysis of the data revealed that there are prepositions were omitted from places where they were needed. Also, analysis of data revealed examples of omission of preposition which seemed to be caused by both, the student mother tongue and the influence of the target language itself. Here are some examples: Omission of (of) The following are illustrative examples: It was my first time to ride^ a train. I went to Manchester Metropolitan University, because^ registration. Omission of (for) When I came back to my flat with my family^ about one hour. ^the first three weeks, I visited my friend in Manchester. I visited hotel in London ^3 days. Omission of (on) The following are illustrative examples: I got her my passport^ Wednesday. ^the first day in the school language. Omission of (in) The following are illustrative examples: ^ the second week, When I arrived ^Manchester,.. (1) Based on the finding of the analysis, it shows that the students made a total of 235 errors which consists of 153 or 65 % errors in using verb forms, 3 or 1.3 % errors in agreement between subject and verb, 10 or 4.3 % errors in the use of article, 30 or 12.8 % errors in the use of preposition, 12 or 5.1 % errors in pluralization, 23 or 9.8 % errors in the use of pronoun, and 4 or 1.7 % errors in the use of conjunction. (2) According to the findings, it can be concluded that the students have not mastered the use of verb groups. We can see it from the number of the errors made. Although they had been taught about it before, they were still confused which one to use when making a grammatical sentence. It could be because in bahasa Indonesia we do not have the verb conjugations. We do not have time signaling in expressing ideas. They are unfamiliar to this form and because English is still foreign for them. And those are the possible causes of their errors. The students were still confused in making the agreement between subject and verb. It could be because in bahasa Indonesia there is no agreement between subject and verb. The students were still confused in differentiating whether to use the definite or indefinite articles. It could be because in Indonesian language grammar there is no definite article used. The students still confused in deciding preposition which preposition should be used, whether to use in, on, or at. The students overgeneralized the pluralizing of nouns. They just added the -s/ -es without considering that there are some irregular forms of nouns pluralization. The students still confused in deciding which pronoun should be used to substitute nouns, whether it is personal, relative, possessive, or demonstrative pronouns. The students applied rules in forming past time verb to conjunctions. From the explanations above, I can conclude that the students still confused in dealing with English grammar systems. Pedagogical implication:

Languages Essays Italian Economic Miracle

Languages Essays Italian Economic Miracle The Italian Economic Miracle Exposed: The Use of Comic Effects and Irony in Calvinos Marcovaldo. The Economic Miracle that is said to have swept across post-war Italy in the 1950s has been attributed by many scholars to the decision to open up the economy. This, in turn, gave Italy the chance to undergo a growth spurt that would help it keep pace with the rest of the world. According to Foot, the decision, made in the 1950s, to open up the country to trade and to let it integrate into the world market allowed it to catch up rapidly with the leading economies (2001:110). The growth spurt in the economy had wide-reaching effects. It changed the lives of the Italian people, many of whom found themselves transplanted from familiar rural areas to modern urban environments essentially a brand new way of life. As Foot asserts, Italys economic miracle transformed the countrys cultural landscape (2001:19). This is the world that was the setting for Italo Calvinos collection of stories, Marcovaldo, ovvero,Le stagioni in città   (Marcovaldo, or The Seasons in the City). The protagonist of these stories, Marcovaldo, appears to be a good-hearted, hard-working man. He ekes out a living as a day laborer, providing for his wife and children, but it is clearly a marginal existence. The struggle of his daily life is eased by his imagination, which leads him to become entangled in a number of amusing adventures. Marcovaldo has been described by one scholar as a man with the heros nostalgia for nature and open spaces,   whose sensitivity to the changing seasons in a cityscape polluted by all kinds of objects and living things, make sense only within the context of an urban setting (Jeannet 1977:26). These stories, or fables, as they are sometimes called, can be read on a surface level as a delightful collection of misadventures by a well-meaning but misguided individual. However, when considered in the light of this stark urban setting, they stand out as comical and ironic, a vehicle used by Calvino to expose the negative sides of this so-called economic miracle. It has been suggested that alongside the depiction of urban corruption and pollution, Calvino also, through the lovable but haplessly inept protagonist, undermines the Romantic notion of a return to nature' (Gabriele 1994:21–22). Thus, it seems that Calvino has transplanted Marcovaldo this high-spirited, though misguided, representative of rural life into the hostile new terrain of urban life. In so doing, he wrote a book that can be read as a volume of entertaining tales, and at the same time an ironic critique of the results of the economic boom. Calvinos use of comedy and irony is present throughout the book, and starts at the beginning. In the initial story, Calvinos description of Marcovaldo is wry and amusing, and it sets up the contrast between Marcovaldos simplistic nature against the backdrop of the strange new city: Aveva questo Marcovaldo un occhio poco adatto alla vita di città  : cartelli, semafori, vetrine, insegne luminose, manifesti, per studiati che fossero a colpire lattenzione, mai fermavano il suo sguardo che pareva scorrere sulle sabbie del deserto (7). Apparently, Marcovaldo is oblivious to the eye-catching distractions of the modern city; to him, they are non-existent. Instead, he is alert to the signs, however few and however bleak, of the natural world. In fact, he spends his time searching them out. The paucity of these signs does not deter him or detract from his enthusiasm. This suggests that he longs for his former, simpler life, and that he misses the rural background that he knows best. The search for signs of the natural world is rewarded when Marcovaldo discovers, to his delight, the first mushroom: Si chinà ² a legarsi le scarpe e guardà ² meglio: erano funghi, veri funghi, che stavano spuntando proprio nel curoe della città   (7). The discovery of the mushroom fills him with hope. Suddenly the drab grayness of the city melts away, and the drudgery and struggle of his daily life becomes less oppressive: A Marcovaldo parve che il mondo grigio e misero che lo circondava diventasse tutta un tratto generoso di ricchezze nascoste, e che dalla vita ci si potesse ancora aspettare qualcosa, oltre la paga oraria del salario contrattuale, la contingenza, gli assegni familiari e il carpane (7). The exaggerated happiness at the discovery of a mushroom serves to highlight the stark contrast of the urban world with his rustic background. The double reversal that follows the discovery of the mushrooms is another example of the comical irony that Calvino employs to expose the negative aspects of the economic boom. We note that Marcovaldo carefully guards the location of his discovery until Sunday, when, wife and children in tow, he heads for the mushroom site to pick them only to learn that there are bigger, better mushrooms, and that he is not the only one who is gathering them. This is the first disappointment, followed by an evening in the hospital, because it turns out the mushrooms are poisoned! Although Marcovaldo here may simply appear to be a bumbling fool, it seems plausible that Calvino is demonstrating the potential for disaster that is a result of uprooting people from the country and setting them down into a new and unfamiliar environment. Gabriele asserts that Marcovaldo knows nothing about the natural world, as is evidenced by his mishaps with the mushrooms and the pigeons. Marcovaldo has not been transplanted from a rural environment into an urban one; rather, he chases a rather indefinite dream of paradise (Gabriele 1994:21–22). Calvino might also be suggesting here that the time Marcovaldo has lived in an urban environment may have obliterated the common country logic he once had. Alternatively, perhaps this incident is used to demonstrate that Marcovaldo is, after all, a simpleton who simply does not know a good mushroom from a poisonous variety. Another possibility is that Calvino is trying to say that Marcovaldo, now an urban dweller, has taken on the greed associated with the rise of the city, and that this greed overpowers his natural instincts. The move from country to city, then, is portrayed as having deleterious effects on new urban dwellers. As Olken suggests, Calvino implies here that all growing things undergo corruption in the noxious atmosphere of the city (1984:121). Starting with the first story and continuing throughout the book, Marcovaldo embarks on a variety of ill-fated adventures, and each of them ends with a reversals or double reversal. Thus, it appears that Calvino reinforces the message albeit in a comical way that the financial prosperity that has been called the economic miracle is not a miracle for everyone indeed, it has a dark side. The final story has a twist that goes beyond this, suggesting that although Marcovaldos integration into urban life has been less than successful, that the lives of his children show a level of promise. Calvino describes a typical urban Christmas with clear irony: Tutti erano presi dallatmosfera alacre e cordiale che si espandeva per la città   festosa e produttiva; nulla à ¨ pià º bello che sentire scorrere intorno il flusso dei beni materiali e insieme del bene che ognuno vuole agli altri: e questo, questo soprattutto come ci ricorda il suono, firulà ­ firulà ­, delle zampogne, à ¨ cià ² che conta (118). Rampant materialism is juxtaposed with the feeling of good will it supposedly inspires, and the ugliness of the city clearly debases the sentiments of good cheer. In this story, Marcovaldos children must complete a school project that requires them to bring gifts to a poor child When Marcovaldo comes upon them in the midst of their preparations, he asks what they are doing and they respond Dobbiamo cercare un bambino povero e fargli dei regali (119). It occurs to him to remind them that they are poor children themselves, but apparently the spirit of materialism overcomes him and he responds Bambini poveri non ne esistono pià º (119). When the children do eventually find a poor child upon whom to lavish their gifts, it turns out to be none other than the child of   the president of the Union for the Implementation of Christmas Consumption (il presidente dellUnione Incremento Vendite Natalizie). This very spoiled child, dissatisfied with the hundreds of toys he has already amassed, is delighted by the gifts of Marcovaldos children, and he embarks on a wave of destruction that culminates in the burning down of the family home. Calvino turns the horror and humiliation that Marcovaldo feels when he learns of this incident into a clever and telling reversal. When Marcovaldo shows up for work the next day, he is certain there will be repercussions from the exploits of his children. After all, it was their actions that led to the mischief of Gianfranco and the ensuing destruction. In addition, although Marcovaldo is correct in his assumption that there will be fallout to contend with, he is wrong about the nature of that fallout. Therefore, when approached by high company officials the next day, he is not surprised, and girds himself for the worst-case scenario. However, when he arrives, he is told by the officials that there has been a change in the gift-giving program. Apparently, Gianfrancos destructive deeds have been seen in a far different light by his father: in the act of destroying everything in his wake, Gianfranco finally appeared, for once, to be happy. This has inspired the president to change the course of the gift-giving campaign. The officials inform Marcovaldo of this, exhorting him to hurry, because   LUnione Incremento Vendite Natalizie ha lanciato una campagna per il lancio del Regalo Distruttivo (123). Thus the actions of his children, for which he expected a certain and swift punishment, have actually turned around into a new commercial venture based on destruction. Calvinos portrayal of Marcovaldo as a bumbling peasant in the city can be seen as a vehicle through which he presents the negative aspects of the Italian economic miracle. He does this by setting this transplanted character into the foreign and often hostile urban environment. This volume is versatile: the adventures of Marcovaldo can be read as a series of delightful childrens tales or as a treatise exposing the dark side of the miracle. Cannon points out that Calvino had high aspirations for a literature autonomous but not divorced from political concerns (1989:33). The duality of Marcovaldo suggests that was his intention with this book. The image projected b the fiction of Calvino, suggests Cannon, seems to have become that of an increasingly indecipherable world (1989:38). She discusses the crisis of reason that is a recurrent theme in Calvinos fiction (1989:39). Oaken suggests that Marcovaldo represents the modern immigrant who tries desperately to adapt and conform. He will never really succeed, as his children may do; he is too divided between the two worlds, ill-prepared and therefore victimized (Olken 1984:122). The victimization of Marcovaldo, however amusing and ironic, is a tool Calvino uses to bring to light the negative repercussions that the sudden growth of prosperity brought with it. The final chapter does offer a glimmer of hope, in that the adaptability of Marcovaldos children, and of children in general, will better equip them to integrate into the new world. They have already done so, in fact, and with much more facility success, even than their parents. Whether Calvino believes this is positive or negative, he does not indicate here, perhaps because that has become a moot point. Change, for better or for worse, is inevitable. References Bloom, Harold, ed. 2001. Modern Critical Views: Italo Calvino. Broomall, PA: Chelsea   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   House Publishers. Calvino, Italo. 1963. Marcovaldo, ovvero,Le stagioni in città  . Giulio Einaudi editore s.p.a.,    Torino. Cannon, JoAnn. 1989. Postmodern Italian Fiction: The Crisis of Reason in Calvino, Eco,    Sciascia, Malerba. London: Associated University Presses, Inc. Foot, John. 2001. Milan Since the Miracle: City, Culture and Identity. Oxford: Berg. Gabriele, Tommasina. 1994. Italo Calvino: Eros and Language. London: Associated University Presses, Inc. Jeannet, Angela. 1977. Italo Calvinos Invisible City. Pp. 25–36 in Bloom, Harold, ed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   2001. Modern Critical Views: Italo Calvino. Broomall, PA: Chelsea House   Ã‚   Publishers. Olken, I.T. 1984. With Pleated Eye and Garnet Wing: Symmetries of Italo Calvino. Ann   Ã‚   Arbor, Michigan: Universit of Michigan Press. Signorini, Luigi Federico. 2001. Italys economy: An introduction. Daedalus, Spring. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3671/is_200104/ai_n8929681

Encomium of Jimmy Carter :: essays research papers

There is an old Latin saying that reads, â€Å"Dimidum facti qui coepit habet sapere aude† (He who has begun has half done. Have the courage to be wise.). For proof of this, you need look no further than to our thirty-ninth president James Earl Carter Jr., more fondly known as Jimmy Carter. During his presidency, Pres. Carter showed himself prudent and often made the wise decision over the popular vote. Jimmy Carter aspired to make government competent and compassionate and his achievements were notable.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Pres. Carter was probably instilled with the gift of prudence because of his upbringing. Born on October 1, 1924, right in the middle of the depression, Pres. Carter had to help his family with the peanut farming. However, he knew that peanut farming was the not the right career choice for him. Talk of politics and devotion to the Baptist faith were also mainstays of his upbringing. Starting out slowly, Pres. Carter entered politics in 1962 and eight years later ran for the Governor of Georgia and was elected. President Carter began his two-year campaign for President in December 1974. Campaigning hard against President Gerald R. Ford, he debated him three times. Jimmy Carter won the election by 297 electoral votes to 241 for Ford.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Now, we could point out a number of prudent decisions Jimmy Carter made for our country. He dealt with the energy shortage, he prompted Government efficiency through civil service reform, he sought to improve the environment, and created the Department of Education. The biggest challenge Pres. Carter faced during his time in office, and the one where his virtue of prudence shined, was with Iran. On November 4, 1979, Iranian militants stormed the United States Embassy in Tehran and took approximately fifty-two Americans captive. The terrorist act triggered the most profound crisis of the Carter presidency and began a personal ordeal for Jimmy Carter and the American people that lasted 444 days. President Carter committed himself to the safe return of the hostages while protecting America’s interests and prestige. He pursued a policy of restraint that put a higher value on the lives of the hostages over protecting his own political future. Ultimately, his cho ice to bring them home, ended in his defeat.

Solange De Santis - Job design :: essays research papers

Introduction: Solange De Santis joined a General Motors van assembly plant in 1991. During her eighteen months at GM she suffered from boredom, strain, psychological distress, job dissatisfaction, a feeling of distrust and a lack of job security. All of these factors had a detrimental effect on her health, safety and productivity. What job re-design opportunities are available to foster a healthier and more productive workplace? In order to answer this question we adopt job and work design theory that will analyze her role and provide tangible solutions. The following three  ¡Ã‚ ®Job Design Approaches ¡Ã‚ ¯ will be explored: 1) Job rotation 2) Job enrichment 3) Teamworking. The article outlined below elaborates on three small psychological changes to make working conditions for De Santis much better, improving her job safety and productivity. We hope that ¡Ã‚ ±Little changes make a big difference in the long term. ¡Ã‚ ±(Julian Barling, Topic 9, slide 3) Job Rotation: De Santis is an autoworker on the van assembly line at the General Motors plant. She performs the same simple task, and repeats the same procedures everyday. There are no opportunities for her to learn new skills or face any new challenges. It is easy to imagine how boring and frustrated anyone in her position would become. In addition to the challenge of her routine she also works on high stress and overload because of the non-stop, always catching up nature of the assembly line. According to research, boredom can cause daydreams and strain which together can threaten her safety. These negative experiences impact her job satisfaction and motivation. What we should do is reduce boredom, strain and dissatisfaction. Through job rotation it is possible to re-design her job and make it much more interesting and fun which should reduce her current levels of boredom and stress. How is this possible? Job rotation can reduce De Santis ¡Ã‚ ¯s boredom, relieve her from repetitive movements, and increase motivation by diversifying her experience; job rotation provides the kind of flexibility and experience that will allow her to feel much more control of her work and develop important skills that can help to off-set feelings of uncertainty; job rotation also helps to improve morale, increases ownership and should enable her to reach her potential; it is also shown to lower fatigue and helps to produce greater satisfaction that reduces absenteeism/turnover problems. Therefore, job rotation can make her job healthier and more productive How to implement job rotation?

Canon in D Major

Canon in D Major I’m listening to Canon in D major by Johann Pachelbel; played by the London Symphony Orchestra who are from London, England. They’re all professional adult musicians; they're very good, in tune and together. The piece is unique and very famous. It’s Johann Pachelbel’s most famous piece, most often played at weddings. The piece is in 4/4 time and in D major. It has a slow tempo, smooth rhythm, and long, full bowing. They’re bowing sounds like it’s always together in each section; like they’re all going in the same direction.Dynamics stay about the same throughout the piece; in piano/mezzo piano. It starts in piano. Sometimes it’s in mezzoforte but it doesn’t sound like it gets louder than that, except for the nice, loud, and strong ending. As far as the intonation of the piece, it gets softer as the notes are longer/slower (whole and half notes) and then slowly crescendos as the notes are shorter/faster (q uarter and eighth/sixteenth notes). The melody is always louder than the other parts.The articulation and the intonation are very consistent and similar with the melody being louder than the other parts and the crescendos into faster parts and then the decrescendos into slower, even smoother parts. I like this piece a lot, it’s very pretty and I want to learn how to play it. I really like how sometimes it’s all in unison and sometimes every section has a different part. I also really like how it’s smooth and slow at some parts and then faster but still smooth at other parts. I really love how all of the parts harmonize together perfectly. http://www. youtube. com/watch? v=s3RRQypEf4I=related

Human Resources & Organizational Effectiveness Essay

Small scaled businesses are very important for developing countries and as well as developed countries. In a country like the China a small business can become success and it will play an important role in the economy of the country. Small businesses are growing in importance in the China; hundreds of small businesses are opened every month in the country, by people who have found themselves squeezed out of a corporation due to downsizing or who voluntarily leave the corporate world so that they can seek a slower pace and healthier balance between world and family life. Small businesses are mostly opened by women and minorities in the China. As the smallest businesses become increasingly complicated due to globalization, government regulations and customer demands for better quality at lower prices, managerial dexterity is very complex and it is very hard to become a success. (Szarka, 1990) Managers in small businesses tend to emphasize roles different from those managers in large companies. Managers in small companies often see their most important role as a spokesperson, because they need to promote the small, growing company to the outside world. The entrepreneur role in the small business is very important, because the managers must be very creative and help their company to develop new ideas so that they can be competitive with other companies. Small business managers tend to rate lower on the leader role and on information processing roles compared with counterparts in large companies. As the world of small organizations become increasingly complex, managers should carefully incorporate the 3 categories for roles. They must simultaneously mange by information; manage through people, and mange through action to keep their organizations healthy. (Szarka, 1990) Managing a Small Growing Business Once a business is set up and running, how does the owner manage it? Often the traits of self-confidence, creativity and internal locus of control lead to financial and personal grief as the company grows. A hands-on to the entrepreneur who gave birth to the small business or company, loves perfecting every ting detail of the company. But after the start-up, continued growth requires a shift in the management style. Those who fail to adjust to a growing business can be the cause of the problems rather than the solution for the company. A small business goes through distinct stages of growth; with each of the stage the company requires different management styles and skills. Intrapreneurship in a Small Business Intrapreneurship can be defined as a process which recognizes the need for innovation within the company, plus it helps with managing the company. The following rules help to develop the necessary environment which is required in the company, they are as follows: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The employees should be encourages 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The management should use informal meeting whenever possible 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The company should learn to tolerate failure and learn from it 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The employees should be rewarded for their innovative ideas 5.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Teams should be formed Human Resource Practices The human resource practices in a small and medium business differ from large organizations. Planning In the early stage of existence, formal planning tends to be nonexistence except for the business plan. The business plan can be defined as a document which specifies the business detail of the company by the entrepreneur. The primary goal is to remain alive within the industry. As the company grows, formal kind of planning is not usually instituted until the company does not reach its success stage in the growth stages of the company. For example, records selling company in the China has defined a goal by carving out a niche in the volatile record industry by focusing only on roots music, which is an electric mix of soulful and down home sounds with country edge. This company is only one of the few surviving profitable companies in the country.   (Cameron & Miller, 2008) Organizing In the 2 stages of company’s growth, the company’s organization structure is very informal, where all the employees are reporting to the owner of the company. By the third stage the functional managers are hired to take over the duties from the owner. A functional organization will be created and there will be changes in all the departments of the company. In this stage the managers will be able to learn how to delegate responsibilities to others. But these days most small companies in the China are limiting creating ways so that they can stay small but still grow. For example, Woodspirits, it a company that produces and distributes 300,000 soaps to its customers annually. It just employs 3 that work for the company. The company doesn’t want to lose its edge and flexibility; therefore the companies are willing to stay small. Leading Leading is considered to be the driving force in the development of the company, and it is one of the ways to manage a company. The vision along with the leader’s personality actually shapes the small company. With the help of leadership, it is able to point out cultural values, efficiency and ethics of the company. Leadership is also considered important because a great deal of small businesses usually have a hard time of employing qualified workers. There is always a labor shortage for a small company, and these shortages usually damage the company a great deal. Controlling It is also important that there is a financial control in the company. In the company’s starting days control was exercised by simple accounting records and through personal supervision. The control techniques usually become more sophisticated during the resource maturity of the company. For example, the Sock Shop was originally a hit in the US, but it failed due to a lack of control within the company. (Fullmer, 1983) Compensation Compensation of employees in a SME is mostly based on the jobs and its evaluations.   With job analysis information as a part of the department’s HR information system, compensation analysts have the minimum information needed to evaluate the work activities of their employees. Job evaluations are steps and procedures that help to identify the relative worth of jobs or work activities. There are different kinds of approaches to the evaluation of a job; these approaches consider the responsibility of the employee, skills that are needed for the job, efforts done by the employee and the working conditions related to the job. Without job evaluation the HR department would not be able to create a rational approach to pay. The most common methods for job evaluation that helps with a compensation plan are job ranking, job grading system where as in large organizations it is done through factor compensation and the point system.   But the best way the HR can compensate the employ ees is through job grading, why, because, it is the simplest way to classify a job and the companies don’t have to spend a great deal of money on it. (Werther & Davis, 1996)