Why Did Henry Break from Rome in 1534?

Why did Henry break from Rome in 1534? There are many reasons to why Henry broke with Rome. In this essay I am going to show you the main reasons why Henry broke with Rome and which one I think is most important. I think the most important reason why Henry broke with Rome was because he wanted power. The reason he wanted power was because it would solve all his problems. In a textbook it said, Henry also wanted to control the church. Since medieval times there have been struggles over whether priests should listen to the King or the Pope.Henry wanted to control the church in his own country. Henry knew that if he could control the church, he would be able to use the church’s money as he was bankrupt. Also, if he had power he would be able to divorce Catherine of Aragon, and marry the love of his life, Anne Boleyn. Then Anne Boleyn would be able to give Henry an heir. Once Henry had control of the Church, he persecuted those who opposed him. He even cut off the he head of his c lose friend, Thomas More, because More wouldn’t accept Henry as head of the Church.This evidence, from a textbook, show that Henry was greedy for power and would kill anyone who got in his way. As you can see, power gave Henry everything he needed and that’s why I think Henry broke with Rome. Another reason to why Henry broke from Rome because of his desire for a son. He wanted this so that the Tudor dynasty could continue. Henry knew Catherine of Aragon had now chance of giving him a son. She has had lots of miscarriages and still births.If he broke from Rome he could divorce Catherine and marry Anne Boleyn who had more chance of giving him a son. Catherine’s last pregnancy had been in 1518. Henry didn’t stop sleeping with her until 1524 when he was sure Catherine wouldn’t give him a son. As you can see, this shows Henry would do anything for a son and that’s why Henry broke with Rome. The next reason to why Henry broke with Rome was becaus e he wanted to marry the love of his life, Anne Boleyn. Henry loved Anne so much he even wrote love letters to her, despise how much he hates writing.One of the love letters said; Since I parted with you I have been advised that the opinion in which I left you is now altogether changed, and that you will not come to court†¦ the which report being true I cannot enough marvel at, seeing that I am well assured I have never since that time committed fault. This love letter sows that Henry is trying to show off to Anne Boleyn. But to make Anne Boleyn his wife he needed a divorce which meant he had to break from Rome. This shows that Henry broke with Rome to marry Anne Boleyn who he thinks is the love of his life.Another reason to why Henry broke with Rome was because he had problems with the church. Henry was jealous because the Pope had control over the churches in England. Also, the Pope wouldn’t give Henry a divorce from Catherine because it was against the Christian laws. This was one of the main reasons that Henry broke from Rome. Henry wanted to choose the archbishops and priests of the churches. There was already a rivalry between the pope and Henry but when the pope said no to the divorce, it made it even worse. As you can see, the rivalry between the Pope and the King was enough for Henry to break from Rome.The next reason is that Henry was bankrupt. He used all his money on very expensive wars in Europe and had no money left. If he broke with Rome, he could use all the money the church had. So from 1536-39 Henry closed down all the church’s so he could use their money. As you can see, Henry only broke from Rome so he could use the church’s money. The last reason that Henry broke from Rome was because of his conscience. In the bible it clearly states that if you marry your brother’s wife, in Henry’s case Catherine of Aragon, they shall be without children.Thinking this was why Catherine didn’t give him a son H enry wanted to marry Anne, so the curse would be broken. But to divorce, Henry needed the Pope’s permission which he didn’t have. That’s why he broke from Rome. As you can see there are many reasons to why Henry broke with Rome. I think the main reason was because he wanted power. Power would solve all his problems from financial things to an heir. That’s why I think that the main reason of why Henry broke from Rome was because he wanted power.

Islam’s View on Suicide Essay

Islam views human life as a gift and something sacred that should be protected for the sake of Allah Ta’ala. No Muslim should take his or her life for granted. In the Qur’an, Allah speaks to His followers and educates them on their purpose of life: â€Å"And I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone)†. (Adh-Dhariyat: 56). This indicates that humans should continue living to worship their Lord. Through other verses, Muslims are protected from death through various forms of worship. â€Å"He has forbidden you only the carrion (flesh of dead animals), and blood, and flesh of swine, and that which is slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allah (or has been slaughtered for idols, on which Allah’s Name has not been mentioned whilst slaughtering). But if one is forced by necessity without wilful disobedience nor transgressing due limits, then there is no sin on him. Truly, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. â€Å"(Surah Al-Baqarah: 173). These forbidden foods can only cause harm upon a person in the long-run and therefore a Muslim is forbidden to consume them. Consumption of prohibited substances will only entice death. Similarly, alcohol, cigarettes and drugs are explicitly shunned in Islam. During the one month fast of Ramadhan, Muslims appreciate hunger during the day. At the end of the month, they appreciate the life that they are given the opportunity to live with the bounty that Allah bestows upon them. Muslims believe that death is ordained by Allah and no person will die until his or her time is duely prescribed: â€Å"And no person can ever die except by Allah’s leave and at an appointed term† (Imraan: 145). Suicide in Islam Suicide is prohibited in Islam. As killing is prohibited in Islam, killing one’s self amounts to murder. Strict warnings appear in the Qur’an as relayed below: â€Å"Do not take life, which Allah made sacred, other than in the course of justice,† (al-Israa’: 33); and If anyone kills a person – unless it be for murder or spreading mischief in the land – it would be as if he killed the whole of humanity (al-Ma’idah :32) Suicide, generally, is seen as a result of cowardice. Someone who wishes for an easy way to escape from stress and related difficulty in his or her life, sometimes entertain suicide. This type of mentality is frowned upon in Islam as Muslims believe that Allah would never burden a believer more than he or she can bear. It is through a Muslim’s intellect and perseverance, coupled with a lot of faith, that he or she should continue to overcome worldly obstacles by submitting to the Creator. More importantly though, many factors can lead to suicide. Among them are depression, substance abuse, personal losses and problems, personal health and disability. (a) Depression Depression is a medical condition that needs to be treated. A person who has an isolated and detached lifestyle including mental ability, sleeping patterns, the inability to socialise, eating disorders and a dangerous aptitude of stress is most likely to fall under the category of depression. If this person still has the ability to decide for him or herself, treatment should be sought immediately. Alternatively, friends and family who suspect this person is entertaining thoughts of suicide, must seek help from medical practitioners. Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings upon him) reminded his followers that â€Å"Allah had not created any disease (except for cancer) without a cure for it,† (Bukhari). It is therefore vital for a person suffering from depression to seek medical attention. (b) Substance abuse Substance abusers can be often lead to suicide through overdoses. Anything that harms a human’s health is considered as haraam (prohibited). Substances that are intoxicating, such as cigarettes and alcohol have no benefit to mankind. On the contrary, they are harmful to the user and those who surround him or her. Even if this person does not overdose in the short run, steadfast addiction to either can cause cancer in the long run, a disease that does not have a cure. The same ruling applies to the use of drugs. â€Å"Every intoxicant is Khamr, and every Khamr is haram,† (Muslim) (c) Personal losses and problems The loss of a loved one can spark suicidal tendencies. Practicing Muslims however accept death as part of life. The saying â€Å"inna lillahi wa innalillahi rajiun† implies that Muslims accept that from Allah they originate from and to Allah they will return. Muslims accept the passing of a loved one calmly with prayers for his or her happiness in the after life. Personal problems are amass in today’s society. Many people are especially burdened by mounting financial debt. This is usually due to poor planning of resources. Though difficult to overcome, emerging from a financial difficulty is possible. Muslims are prohibited to leave debt when passing, so it is only wise to eliminate debt rather than end one’s life. The first step would be to remove the element of riba (interest) from financial holdings – whether they are assets or liabilities. Pay off all interest first. In assets such as savings accounts, remove all interest income by donating them to charity. When interest is removed, it will be easier to pay-off loans and an opportunity to start saving money will also unfold. Allah condemns usury, and blesses charities. Allah dislikes every disbeliever, guilty. O you who believe, you shall observe Allah and refrain from all kinds of usury, if you are believers. If you do not, then expect a war from Allah and His messenger. But if you repent, you may keep your capitals, without inflicting injustice, or incurring injustice. If the debtor is unable to pay, wait for a better time. If you give up the loan as a charity, it would be better for you, if you only knew. (Baqarah: 276-280) Engaging in a professional financial planning service will induce healthy spending tendencies. (d) Personal health and disability Again, Muslims are not to be disheartened by continuous pain and suffering endured in life. In fact, these experiences expatiate sins. The more suffering a Muslim is subjected to during his life-span, the easier his condition will be during the hereafter. Suicide is not an option. â€Å"Be sure We shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods, lives, and the fruits of your toil. But give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere. Those who say, when afflicted with calamity, ‘To Allah we belong, and to Him is our return. ‘ They are those on whom descend blessings from their Lord, and mercy. They are the ones who receive guidance. † (Baqarah:155-157) Patience is prescribed for Muslims undergoing undue stress. There are blessings in overcoming hardship and the first step to doing this is to patiently accept the course of obstacles with determination and strength. There are cases where a patient who is enduring continuous pain, and is most probably bed-ridden, requires his or her life to be terminated. This is called euthanasia, or mercy-killing. In some cases, a family member or close friend â€Å"feels† that the patient will be better off deceased, and requests for his or her life to end. Muslims are disallowed from practicing euthanasia. â€Å"And do not kill yourselves. Surely, Allah is Most Merciful to you†. (An-Nisa: 29). Assisting a person to terminate his or her life is unlawful in Islam as this translates into assisting suicide. There are blessings in suffering and a person’s life is still as valuable as it would be should he or she be perfectly healthy. A person must continue living until his or her time is due. â€Å"And take not life, which Allah has made sacred, except by way of justice and law,† (Al-An`am: 151). In a case where a person is proclaimed as brain-dead and does not feel any pain, a doctor may recommend terminating the use of the life-support machine. This machine is keeping the patient â€Å"alive† when he or she is actually is not. If there is medical justification that there is nothing in the power of the practitioners to be able to cure the patient in question, it is permissible for families of the patient to discontinue the use of the life-support machinery and allow nature to take its course. Suicide in the news: Suicide Bombing Suicide bombing is synonymous with Muslim followers in the mainstream media. Suicide bombers reap more attention than those who illegally invade countries, causing the lives of innocent civilians – some in their own homes. Suicide bombing entails a person killing him or herself through an explosion of a bomb. This explosion also encroaches of lives around the suicide bomber. Countries like Palestine and Iraq have been warped with suicide bombing. Islam, no doubt, is a religion of peace, and never condones any form of violence. Having said that, Islam disallows oppression in any way. It is not permissible for a Muslim to be an oppressor nor is it allowed for him to be oppressed and remain to be oppressed without seeking options of overcoming such violation of basic rights. A Muslim thus, is required to seek mediation and negotiation with the oppressing party, to release him, his family, his community and country from the shackles of violence. Since Muslims are bound only by Allah’s law, it is prohibited for a country to have the nation’s freedom curbed by an illegal invasion, all in the name of justice. Should there no means of disentangling a country’s operation from being ruled by a foreign party, Muslims sometimes do have to resort to violence in order to regain their rightful land. War is allowed in Islam when a Muslim party requires to defend their land, property and family. Defending a country for the sake of Islam, is mandatory upon every Muslim, man or woman. For example, in the case of Iraq, inhumane sanctions are being imposed on innocent civilians of the country. There are no medical facilities to allow recovery from alien bombs and fire. Children are being killed every day. Women are sexually assaulted. Iraqis are being beaten, wrongly imprisoned and killed by the minute. The country is constantly under attack by missiles and bombs that are released from the air. How are Muslims in this care required to fight? Suicide bombing here is reflected as a need to curb attacks upon innocent people. The Islamic Fiqh Academy affiliated to the OIC, in its fourteenth session, held in Duha (Qatar) 5–13 Dhul-Qi`dah1423 A. H., 11–16 January 2003 C. E. states: The Islamic Fiqh Academy stresses that martyr operations are a form of jihad, and carrying out those operations is a legitimate right that has nothing to do with terrorism or suicide. Those operations become obligatory when they become the only way to stop the aggression of the enemy, defeat it, and grievously damage its power. According to a fatwa issued by Sheikh Faysal Mawlawi, deputy head of the European Council of Fatwa and Research (ECFR), not only are these suicide bombers unassociated with suicide, they are neither terrorists. In fact, these suicide bombers are known as martyrs: those who risk their lives in defense of their country, property, family, and foremost, religion. It is not befitting for a suicide bomber in this context to be condemned. Allah Ta’ala narrates: â€Å"And spend of your substance in the cause of Allah, and make not your own hands contribute to (your) destruction; but do good; for Allah loveth those who do good,† (Baqarah: 195). In the case of Palestine, civilians suffer from displacement of their own kind to aggressive occupation. Such occupation has been in operation for years on end. All Israeli civilians who are occupation of Palestine, are seen as oppressors. In this case, Sheikh Faysal Mawlawi stresses that the demise of non-aggressive Israelis through suicide bombing also constitutes martyrdom and not terrorism. He continues to state that though Muslims should target military personnel over the lay-civilian, every Israeli who is living in hostility on Palestinian land should also be removed as they themselves continue to violate Muslims right to Holy land and to the Holy Masjid of Al-Aqsa. According to Sheikh Faysal, Muslims should retaliate the way they are too, being attacked, and in this case, attacked with great injustice. â€Å"If ye punish, then punish with the like of that wherewith ye were afflicted. â€Å"(An-Nahl: 126). Muslims living in the West Just because the Islamic Fiqh Academy defines suicide bombing as an act or martyrdom and does not associate it with terrorism or suicide, Muslims in countries that do not live under the realm of war, are not entitled to exploit the ruling. Muslims are not allowed to cause harm to other people, regardless of their faith, who are not oppressing Muslim brothers or sisters. On the contrary, Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, head of the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR), and the president of the International Association of Muslim Scholars (IAMS) advises that all Muslims are to act in full kindness and convey the beautiful message of Islam to the best of their ability. Muslims in the West are not allowed to cause destruction in their country of residence, even though Muslim brothers and sisters fall victim to hands of violence. Muslims living under peaceful conditions should take full advantage to speak up on unfair dealings through interfaith dialogues, charity runs, neighbourhood gatherings and through other social events. Muslims should not resort to violence when there is none surrounding them. â€Å"O you who believe! Stand out firmly as Allah’s witnesses to fair dealing, and let not the hatred of others to you make you swerve to wrong and depart from justice. Be just: that is next to piety and fear Allah. And Allah is well acquainted with all that you do. † (al-Ma’idah: 8) This whole world is made by God. Anything that exists in this world is also made by God. We all are made by God and for God. God has made this earth on which we are living, and the sky. He sends rain to the earth. He has created different kinds of fruits for us to eat like grapes, dates, mango, banana, orange, apple, papaya, pineapple, custard apple and many more. He also created different kinds of vegetables for us to eat like onion, spinach, tomatoes, lemon, carrot, cabbage, cauliflower, ginger, garlic etc. Then He also created different kinds of meat that we eat like chicken, beef, mutton, fish etc. There are also other many different kinds of food we eat, unlimited and uncountable on this earth. Can we live without water? It is created by our Lord. We need water to drink, we need water to grow vegetables, fruits, rice, wheat and other plants. We need water to cook food, we need water to clean ourselves, we need water to clean our houses, wash clothes, wash dishes and then there are much more uses of water. We on this earth can’t live without water. It’s a fact and we known this fact. This water is created by our God so that we can survive on this earth. That is, we cannot survive if there will be no water on this world. This means that we are really and solely dependent on our Lord for His mercy on us, we cannot live or survive without our Lord and His mercy. Can we live without air and oxygen? It is also given to us by our Creator, our Lord. God has sent to us on this world for some purpose in life. He has created all these things and shown His mercy on us for some reason. There is some valid genuine reason for which we sent to this world. We’re not created purpose less. How can we know our purpose in this life then? We can only know this by His books, He has sent to us and learning from His prophets. After sending us to this world God hasn’t left us alone in darkness. From His book we know that when He expelled Adam from paradise, He told Him, â€Å"Go down to earth, and some of you will be enemy of others, and you will live there for small period of time, then you’ll have to come back to me one day. I’ll keep sending you my commandments, whoever will obey me, I’ll take him to paradise, and whoever will deny me and reject my commandments, I’ll reject him and take him to hell. † (Al-Quran, The Cow) From these lines now we know that our purpose of existence is only and only for God. We’re not only created by God but for God. He said in His book, â€Å"I’ve created mankind to worship me and to recognize me. † (Al-Quran) God has created all these things for us on which we’re dependent like food, water, earth only and only to submit to our Lord. We should show our respect to God, be dutiful to Him and become His obedient. Muslims should not be overbearing upon non-Muslims and force them to understand Islam. Lecturing and preaching to followers of other faith must always be done with tact. A more effective method of da’wa would be to lead by action through constructive community projects and general amiable behaviour. Muslims who resort to suicide bombing in countries that do not harbour war, are not considered as martyrs. In fact, they have committed suicide and in turn, have also killed innocent civilians. â€Å"Let therebe no compulsion [or coercion] in the religion [Islam]. The right direction is distinctly clear from error. † (Baqarah: 256) Killing other people just as a form of expression, or rather to merely make a point, is not a trait of a Muslim. â€Å"Allah forbiddeth you not those who warred not against you on account of religion and drove you not out from your homes, that ye should show them kindness and deal justly with them. Lo ! Allah loveth the just dealers. † (Al-Mumtahanah: 8) Different hadith from Prophet Mohammad (salalaho alaihay wasalam) also stresses the same view that suicide is not permitted and extremely prohibited in Islam. References 1. Http://www. inter-islam. org/prohibitions/suicide. html 2. www. therevivial. co. uk 3. www. readingislam. com 4. www. islam. about. com 5. www. submission. org 6. www. islamonline. net.

Pest Analysis Essay

The radical and ongoing changes occurring in society create an uncertain environment and have an impact on the function of the whole organization. A number of checklists have been developed as ways of cataloging the vast number of possible issues that might affect an industry. A PEST analysis is one of them that is merely a framework that categorizes environmental influences as political, economic, social and technological forces. The analysis examines the impact of each of these factors (and their interplay with each other) on the business. The results can then be used to take advantage of opportunities and to make contingency plans for threats when preparing business and strategic plans. PEST also ensures that company’s performance is aligned positively with the powerful forces of change that are affecting business environment. PEST is useful when a company decides to enter its business operations into new markets and new countries. i) Political As the government tightens the regulations on fast food advertising, MDD awaits further instructions from Malaysia’s Information Ministry. If its leading product, instant noodles, is to be classified as a â€Å"fast food†, the brand may be faced with an advertising ban and forced to explore alternative promotional channels once the mass media options are closed to it. However, this move towards greater health consciousness and nutritional awareness has been a gradual trend. As one of Malaysia’s largest food producers, we constantly manage and improve our material emission and waste standards. Independent verifications have been performed to ascertain that our emission levels are in compliance with the Malaysian Environmental Quality Act (Clean Air as well as Sewage ; Industrial Effluents) regulations. ii) Economic The global economy in the year 2009 began stabilising in the second half after governments worldwide intervened with stimulus plans. Some economies picked up earlier, particularly those within the Asian region; proving themselves to be more resilient to the downturn than initially feared. Likewise in Malaysia, the economy showed signs of recovery toward the end of FY2009, with Gross Domestic Product (â€Å"GDP†) rising by 4. 6% in the fourth quarter compared to the same quarter of the previous year. FY2009 was another record year for the MDD Group – a feat considering the challenging economic conditions. According to the 2009 Bank Negara Malaysia Annual Report, the food, beverages and tobacco industry helped sustain the domestic consumer demand, especially food products. The industry ended the year on a positive note as output picked up by year-end. iii) Social Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) MDD are constantly striving to reach out to the community, and this goes beyond tailoring company’s products to consumer taste or ensuring offerings reach the farthest corners of the globe. MDD too engage in community building and the fostering of moral values. MDD also committed to protecting the environment for the benefit of the younger generations. MDD manage the usage of recyclable materials, energy, water, emissions, effluent and waste to the approval of independent bodies and conform to the Malaysian Environmental Quality Regulations. MDD reached out to the underprivileged communities that they felt deserved their immediate attention, especially those who require dialysis care and children in need. MDD are committed to being a socially responsible company that endeavours to give back to the communities that the company operates in. MDD constantly strive to be able to improve the lives of the less fortunate, while ncouraging all employees to take a ‘hands on’ approach to company social responsibility initiatives. Caring, committed employees are the hallmark of a holistically successful organization and as a Malaysian entity, MDD are proud to be able to provide for the underprivileged in the society. Yayasan Mamee On Jan 1 2010, MDD have set up the Yayasan Mamee, and have pledged an initial RM2 million to need the foundation. Yayasan Mamee is the main benefactor to Yayasan Toh Puan Zurina, which is a foundation that cares for the needs of underprivileged dialysis patients. In 2009, MDD set up Yayasan with an initial contribution of RM800,000 which went towards the construction and upkeep of the centre, 10 dialysis machines as well as maintenance of trained medical staff. So far, MDD have extended free dialysis treatment and medicines to 5 End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patients, and hope to extend to reach more patients in need in 2010. Caring for Children In 2009, the staff and management of MDD organized a series of visits to orphanages during festive periods, including Hari Raya, Chinese New Year and Deepavali. Gifts of hampers or ‘ang pows’ are handed out to children, and staff are encouraged to spend time with the children to bring them a little festive joy. There are also plans in the pipeline to set up a Scholarship Fund to look into the educational needs of deserving students from primary and secondary schools all over Malaysia. . Reduce, Recycle, Reuse In 2009, MDD led the way into the ‘green’ future by recycling emission gases from company production plants into viable sources of energy that were converted back into power for plants. This reduction of waste also translates into a more efficient way of conserving energy, and will form the basis for company commitment to environmental conservation and responsible manufacturing. iv) Technology The Group remains committed to R&D endeavour to develop new wellness products that are nutritious to appeal to the target consumers. Its R&D department is manned by 13 full-time staff and plays a crucial role in product improvement and new product development to achieve the company’s export objectives. MDD factories have received prestigious industry certifications such as ISO 9002, ISO 9001 and HACCP, while the company’s flagship brands such as Mister Potato Crisps and Nutrigen Liteyo have been honoured with local accolades. In 2004, its subsidiary, Pacific Food Products Sdn Bhd was awarded a Brand Promotion Grant of RM2 million by MATRADE to promote the Mamee brand in the export market. Being a fast growing organization with far-flung operational centre, multiple product lines and distribution channels, MDD have upgraded its IT implementation systems, in order to shorten decision making time and ensure better and more accurate decisions. MDD put its trust in SAP and credit the SAP ERP solution to a great extent with helping to quadruple revenues from 2002 till now. According to Pang, MDD achieved greater transparency of its internal processes in its day-to-day operations. This was crucial as the company became increasingly geographically diverse and its organizational size grew. This system improved the organization of MDD’s database, particularly in the areas of cost analysis, customer service and reporting transparency. MDD also plan to further implement an ERP and MRP solution to even better link up with suppliers and distributors.

Mining Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Mining - Essay Example The article then develops the basis for the study as a determination of the effectiveness of text mining techniques for detecting Web-based Internet abuse at the work place as well as accuracy and efficiency of some techniques compared to others. This makes the reader have a comprehensive understanding of the article and how it will be organized making it a good and excellent article in terms of idea development. The article then reviews literature on internet abuse, approach and text mining techniques, empirical findings and results and the last part presented is the managerial implications and future research directions as envisaged by the authors. The article is organized in a manner to give the reader a clear understanding from the needs for the research, findings, and conclusions made as well as further research recommendations. The authors give a clear exposition of the literature on internet abuse to bring the reader up to speed on the research undertaken on internet abuse in the work place. There are three major categories of literature reviewed by the authors including measures to prevent internet abuse behavior, measurements of evaluating the behavior and factors that augment the behavior as well as the monitoring and blocking of employees internet usage. The main approach taken by the study is the detection of web-based abuse through text mining approach excluding non-web based abuse and e-mail abuse as a means to complement the existing techniques. The authors give a clear exposition to the reader of the methods of classification, data collection methods and preparation as well as the design taken to ensure the results reached are quality and supported by evidence. After the results are analyzed using standard regression, standard deviations, Chi-test, and F-test, the conclusions and recommendations are presented at the end of the article. The analysis is in-depth to allow the reader to comprehend the steps taken to reach the

Homework Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Homework - Essay Example Also, each individual tile’s form would be hard to appreciate since it needs to be seen at a close range, which can only happen if the observer has to climb up the roof and inspect each tile separately. Lastly, because of the changes observed with regards to the architectural designs of houses and buildings, clay roof tiles are already rare and could easily be forgotten by most of the general public, unless these people live in old houses that still have them for roofs. A formalist perspective in finding aesthetic value for clay tiles can be used in order to explain how some principles of aesthetic reasoning can be applied to make people see these objects into works of art. Each clay tile or its grouping or arrangement can be described aesthetically using the second principle, which states that â€Å"Objects are aesthetically valuable if they express the values of the cultures they arise in, or the artists who make them.† (Moore 464). While roof tiles have the same func tion in various places around the world, the make and color of these tiles are different from one another, since it can be expected that topography, weather, and climate would contribute to these variations. But aside from these, there are also differences with respect to the different architectural styles of each place, due to the availability of other housing materials to complement the design of roofs. Such differences can contribute to the cultural aspects of seeing clay tiles as objects with aesthetic value since the identity of various cultures can be represented based on how different kinds of roof tiles are made and crafted by artisans or craftsmen in each location. Aside from the principle dealing with cultural identity, another principle that can also be used to describe and bring artistic and aesthetic attributes to clay tiles would be the seventh principle of aesthetic reasoning, which states that â€Å"Objects are aesthetically valuable if they possess a special aesthe tic (formal) property†. (465). Using the properties of unity and organization, clay roof tiles can be seen in another light by evoking onlookers a sense of unity and organization with regards to the arrangement of the tiles on the roof, as well as being properly-arranged, with no misplaced tile in sight. This can be much more appreciated in places where old buildings are still part of everyday living, such as the old houses in villas located in old towns such as Tuscany, Italy or in large Shinto or Buddhist temples in Japan. In analyzing clay roof tiles using formal properties and cultural perspectives, it is possible to make ordinary roofing materials into pieces of art which can evoke senses of beauty and history, among other things. Thus, this paper uses the argument that clay roof tiles are able to depict the customs, traditions, and artistic sense of the culture from where it comes from by way of the tile’s shape and arrangement on the roofs of buildings. The cultu ral aspect of the use of

The Anthropology of Latin America and the Caribbean Reflection papers Essay

The Anthropology of Latin America and the Caribbean Reflection papers - Essay Example In the book, The Anthropology of Latin America and the Caribbean, the author has shown the rise of ethnicity and ethnic movement in the Caribbean region (Harry 120). This in itself is not new since other regions have also recorded such movements. For instance, USA reported racial movement during the fight to eliminate racial discrimination against black people. It was a movement based on race and not ethnic. The case of the Caribbean and Latin America is based on both race and ethnicity. Much of it is caused by the struggle for political power among the political classes. Many believe that winning a political election as well as a political office has to be backed with the ethnical unity. Because of this, the author has outlined the rise of ethnicity and ethnic movements, which aimed at soliciting power from those, perceived not to be coming from the same ethnic. Similarly, the author has talked about nationalism and gender, which has to do with identity (132). Caribbean and Latin America gained independence from colonialists, but still struggling to gain its identity. The regions are struggling with different problems as well as influence from interested states. Because of this, the regions have to look for their identity through clinching on nationalism (135). The philosophy of nationalism gives a country its identity and freedom from outside influence. The issue of gender comes in because of the feminist struggle to get recognition in the day-to-day running of the government. Most of the Latin America and Caribbean countries have not included female individuals in the development. This brings the struggle for women recognition. As much as the countries want to get their identity and independence, women should not be forgotten as they also play an important role. The situation in Latin America and Caribbean is not different from the rest of the developing countries. Most of these countries overlook upon women and do

The Labeling Theory and The Cultural Deviance Theory Assignment

The Labeling Theory and The Cultural Deviance Theory - Assignment Example In response to question 4, labeling theory is chosen as the most appropriate theory to account for the case. Labeling and the Cultural Deviancy theories Introduction It could be argued that criminal activities are common in every society across the world. Furthermore, has been argued that criminal activities have existed as along as man and societies have contented and grappled with addressing them. However, what has been of great concern is the evolution and surge of criminal activities. In the attempts of addressing crimes, criminologists have sought to understand the causes and proposed an array of theories, including the labeling theory and the legitimate crime causation theory. This paper answers some pertinent questions in regard to the two theories. Response to question 1 The proponents of the labeling theory are concerned that the labels that are placed on the offenders through the justice systems. Such labels function to worsen the behaviors of the inmates because the labels function to aggravate the behaviors that need to be stopped. In the long run, this constrains recovery form criminal behaviors. The proponents are concerned that the criminal justice system has not only failed to stop criminal behaviors, but it is also functioning to reinforce the very criminal behaviors (Gabbidon & Greene, 2013). An alternative theory that could be utilized to avoid stereotyping within the criminal justice system is the cultural deviancy theory. The cultural deviance theory posits that the cause of the criminal behaviors in the urban areas can be hardly attributed to poverty, but to a distinct lower-class culture, which is mainly concerned about the societal norms. The social deviancy theory is based on the conflict perspective, thus perceives cultural deviancy as a condition that is normal that crime is simply a concept of conflicts within classes (Bereska, 2011). The theory posits that the lower class category contains its values, goals and ideals that significa ntly differ from those of other classes. As the individuals within the lower classes conform to these practices on the course of day life routine, they also interact with people from other classes. Their behaviors overlap and conflict and the lower-class group suffer the implication of being considered socially deviant. This theory also follows the account that as people conform to the values within the class, they may even impart the values to the subsequent generation. This theory acknowledges the basis of nature versus nurture, wherein the behaviors of persons are nurtured by the intervening social environment. Thus, cultural deviance theory is that which approaches crimes from the sociological perspectives. Cultural deviance theory does not present criminals as immoral and sinful people, and describes crimes based in the examination of race, social circle, levels of education and income, culture, among other social aspects and this makes it particularly suited to limit stereotyp ing within the criminal justice systems. Then the only weakness this approach is that it tends to justify crimes as unintentional. Response to Part 2 In my view, labeling is a legitimate crime causation theory on various accounts. According to the

Sustainable urban develpment Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 17500 words

Sustainable urban develpment - Thesis Example The invisible impacts are more deep rooted, though they are difficult to see and assess. These invisible impacts include changes in the quality of life, changing social structures and genetic changes. There are also several possible impacts of urban development, namely, increase in employment opportunities, cost-effective and efficient supply of basic amenities like water, electricity, gas etc., availability of medical and educational facilities, and promotion of safe and environmental friendly public transport system. The implementation sites are therefore required to be sustainable or assessed so as to evaluate the associated costs and benefits to the region and to the life of the people. For this, various environmental impact assessment is carried out. There are several methods for carrying out the environmental impact assessment like the checklist method, the matrix method, the network method, the overlay method and the battelle method. While all the methods have their applicability, Battelle method is found to be more holistic as it takes into account a large number of parameters related to the physical environment and human habitats and also assigns weights based on relative importance of the factors at the given site. The current study uses the Battelle method to evaluate a large implementation site at Hayeel. This implementation site, which is a mixed-use project, covers an area of 3,000,000 meter squares. The results of the Environmental Impact analysis show a negative EIU (Environmental Impact Unit) of -503.9 which means the development will affect the sustainability of the site. The research concludes with making several recommendations that can help in mitigating the detrimental impacts of the implementation site. (I suggest you add some more specific recommendations based on your actual

The Financial System and the Economy Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

The Financial System and the Economy - Coursework Example Various organizations that had invested in the organizations located in United States even suffered a huge loss as these organizations were on the verge of bankruptcy (The Economist, 2013). This depicts that organizations located in one region are highly dependent on organizations in other regions and thus there is a need to protect organizations in one nation to protect organizations in other nations. In order to avert and avoid future similar financial crises the regulators in the United States need to keep a close watch on the organizations in the United States and stop them from indulging in unhealthy practices due to which they may face losses and experience bankruptcy. This in turn will not only protect organizations in US, this will even protect organizations and economies throughout the world. 2. The five determinants that investors take into account while making any investment related decisions includes the expected return which is the return on investment that investors assume or predict they will receive through an investment. The return is the determinant which is the amount of money that a particular security has earned and evens the alterations in the price of the security in comparison to the value at which the security was initially traded. The third determinant is the capital yield which is the amount of money an investor is able to earn within a specific period of time and its comparison with the value of the investment that was experienced at the beginning of the specific period (Croushore, 2007). The fourth determinant is the capital yield which is a term used to refer to the elevation in the dollar based value of a particular investment over a specific period of time. The last factors is the capital gains yield which is the capital gains that a particular inv estment has offered in comparison with the value of the investment at the start of the period in which the capital gains is measured. The most important

Detecting Breast Cancer in Women Under the Age of 50 Dissertation

Detecting Breast Cancer in Women Under the Age of 50 - Dissertation Example ....35 7.5 Data Analysis ............37 7.6 Reliability and Validity......41 7.7 Ethical Issues42 8.0 Discussion Point...48 8.1 Discussion .........49 8.2 Recommendation for further research ............49 9.0 References ..........52 10.0 Bibliography ..........61 11.0 Appendices ........63 Appendix 1 Letter to the Department Manager...64 Appendix 2 Letter to the Ethics Committee66 Appendix 3 Questionnaire for the interview of medical workers..68 Appendix 4 Abbreviations...69 1.0 RATIONALE The two most popular methods used for screening breast cancer today, are Contrast Enhance Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Digital Mammography. Each method has it's own distinct advantages over the other and also lags behind in certain areas when compared with the other. This study will compare and contrast these two methods by using the tests on a sample population in the specific age group of women below 50 years of age and recording them in an organised fashion. At the completion of the research, I propose to conclusively find which method is better at detecting breast cancer in women under the age of 50 years and to support this conclusion with results gathered through the research conducted. 2.0 OBJECTIVE 2.0 OBJECTIVE The objective of this research project is to develop a better understanding of the appropriate use of MRI and Digital Mammography in detecting breast cancer in women under the age of 50. The report also discusses the strengths and weaknesses of each method. The major issues faced were: 1) Identifying the timing of breast cancer screening for women under age 50. 2) Regular screening involved higher costs without a clear... One out of eight women in the developing world is estimated to develop breast cancer at some stage of their lives (Nkondjock, & Ghadirian, 2005).Mortality caused by breast cancer is especially high among women between the ages of forty and forty-nine. Early, accurate detection leading to effective and less drastic treatment methods can significantly reduce the trauma associated with breast cancer, resulting in better prognosis and management of the disease (Taft & Taylor, 2001). Mammography, one of the earliest methods of breast cancer screening (responsible for a 34% decrease in mortality rate among women) was subsequently found to have not detected 25% of malignant Breast cancers in early stages, thus creating a need for a better screening procedure (Taft & Taylor, 2001). Among the numerous diagnostic tools developed using new technology, FFDM and MRI offered prospects of better efficacy in the detection of breast cancer, especially critical for women aged below fifty since they tend to have denser breasts, which impair the capability of the diagnostic tools, particularly in the case of noncalcified breast cancers. The risk of malignancy is at the same time higher in dense breasts, making early detection even more important. Magnetic Resonance images are created by recording the signals generated after radio frequency excitation of hydrogen nuclei (or other elements) in tissue exposed to a strong static magnetic field. The characteristics of these signals vary according to the type of tissue under observation.

Plato - Philosophy Essay Example for Free

Plato Philosophy Essay The Republic is one of Plato’s longer works (more than 450 pages in length). It is written in dialogue form (as are most of Plato’s books), it addresses major issues in almost all of the branches of philosophy. The central theme in the book seems to be the nature of justice, a topic in political philosophy, but Plato also has his characters explore issues in ? philosophical cosmology, ? philosophical theology, ? philosophical anthropology, ? ethics, ? aesthetics, and ? epistemology. The parts of the Republic that are contained in our text (pp. 107-123) focus on Plato’s idea (ideal?) of the Philosopher Ruler. According to Plato, ? the best possible political system (state) ? will be ruled (governed) ? by PHILOSOPHERS! (Is he kidding? ) Our reading selection contains the following themes/sections: ? ? Introduction on the unifying of philosophy politics (107) Why true philosophers would make the best rulers (108-12) †¢ What is true philosophy? (108-11) †¢ Love of wisdom (108) †¢ Knowledge of true reality (108-9) †¢ The distinctions between knowledge, ignorance and opinion (109-11) †¢ How is a true philosopher different from a lover of opinion? (111-12) †¢ Who is best suited to rule the state – lovers of opinion or true philosophers? (112) ? ? Political leadership and knowledge of the Good (112-13) The ascent of the mind to knowledge of the Good (113-123) †¢ The analogy between the Good and the sun (113-15) †¢ The image of the divided line (115-18) †¢ The allegory of the cave (118-123) The selection in the text begins at a point in the Republic after Socrates, Glaucon, other characters have been discussing the nature of justice and the marks of a just political system for some time. So we are coming into the middle of the conversation where Glaucon is pressing Socrates to state whether it is possible for a really just political system to come into existence. Before answering Glaucon’s question, Socrates wonders whether it is worthwhile to What does he say construct a theoretical model of a good political system even if such a system could about this? Do you agree? Why not actually exist. or why not? Back to Glaucon’s original question: Can a really just (or at least approximately just) political system exist? What would make it possible? (It is the separation of philosophy political power. ) And this leads to . . . . unless political power philosophy are brought together those who now pursue either the one or the other exclusively are prevented from doing so -neither our political problems nor our human troubles in general can be ended . . . . † (Text, pp. 108-111) True Philosophy True Philosophers What are the characteristics of a person who is naturally suited to practice philosophy? According to Socrates (Plato), a true philosopher ? loves the whole of wisdom and is satisfied with nothing less; ? recognizes the difference between particular things and the essences (or forms) of which particular things are likenesses (e.g. , beautiful things vs. Beauty itself); and ? knows the differences between knowledge, ignorance, and opinion. Plato argues that someone who really loves something must love that thing as a whole and not just some aspects of it. On that basis, he concludes that a true philosopher (lover of wisdom) must desire wisdom as a whole and not be content with having just some wisdom. Do you agree with this? Do wine-lovers really love all wines? A true philosopher recognizes the difference between particular things and the essences (or forms) of which particular things are likenesses (e. g. , beautiful things vs.Beauty itself). One of Plato’s major metaphysical theories is known as the â€Å"Theory of Forms. † According to that theory, ultimate reality is a realm of forms (essences) not accessible to the senses but only to the mind (intellect). He calls that level of reality the â€Å"intelligible realm† (because it is accessible only to the intellect). The perceptible world (i. e. , the world we perceive through our senses) is a reflection or copy of that higher intelligible world. (The Greek word for â€Å"form† or â€Å"essence† is eidos. ) Do you think it is possible for one thing to be really more beautiful than another thing? Well, how is that possible if Absolute Beauty does not exist? How can â€Å"A† be more beautiful than â€Å"B†? Doesn’t â€Å"A† have to be closer to Absolute Beauty than â€Å"B† is? But how can â€Å"A† be closer to (or â€Å"B† be further away from) Absolute Beauty if Absolute Beauty does not exist? A true philosopher knows the differences between ? Knowledge, ? ignorance, ? opinion. Plato’s view of knowledge, ignorance, and opinion (Text, pp. 109-111) State of Mind Knowledge Opinion Ignorance Object What is (Being, Reality) What is is not (Becoming) What is not (Nothingness, Unreality) Access Intellect Perception ? (Do you agree with this setup/theory?) Is Plato right about knowledge, ignorance, and opinion? Here’s a different view†¦. What about knowledge? The three basic questions in epistemology ? ? What is knowledge? How does it differ from opinion? How do we acquire knowledge? What are its sources? Rationalism vs. Empiricism. (What about Intuitionism and Revelationism? ) ? What are the extent and limits of knowledge? What can be known, and what cannot be known? A (fairly) standard definition of knowledge (and opinion) ? Knowledge is justified (i. e. , verified) true belief. †¢ To know is to believe. †¢ The belief must, in fact, be true. †¢ The belief must be justified (i.e. , verified, proved) by some standard and generally recognized means. ? Opinion is belief that may be true or may be false but that has not been or cannot be justified (i. e. , verified, proved) by any standard and generally recognized means. Of course, some opinions that are rationally defensible in the weak sense are â€Å"justified† in a limited way. And what about ignorance? Isn’t ignorance basically an absence of knowledge? Of course, opinion is also an absence of knowledge. So perhaps ignorance is a certain or special kind of opinion that is in some sense groundless (in a way based on nothing, as Plato says). ? There seem to be various types of ignorance, including unintelligent ignorance, as when someone asserts dogmatically that a false proposition is true or that a true proposition is false. There is also intelligent ignorance, as when someone does not know X and acknowledges forthrightly that he does not know it, etc. More thought is needed on this matter†¦. ? However, Plato’s view of ignorance as having non-being (nothingness) as its object does not seem correct (or at least not completely correct). ? ? ? Lovers of wisdom (philosophers) they recognize the existence of absolute, transcendental essences such as Beauty Justice in themselves, and they seek knowledge of such absolutes. ? Lovers of opinion -they recognize only particular perceptible things do not believe in the existence of absolute essences such as Beauty itself. So what is the nature of the Absolute Good? (Text, p. 112-113) In approaching the problem of defining the nature of the Absolute Good, Socrates (Plato) sets forth three very famous illustrations of his overall perspective on knowledge reality. These are I The Good the Sun The Good is to the mind as the sun is to the eye, i.e. , just as the sun’s light enables the eye to see in the perceptible realm, so the Good illuminates the mind and enables it to â€Å"see† in the intelligible realm. (See text, pp. 113-115) 2 The divided line (Text, pp. 115-118) States of Consciousness Philosophical Wisdom E Objects of Consciousness The Good Other Forms Knowledge D Intelligible Realm Scientific Knowledge Informed Opinion Delusion C B Mathematical Scientific Objects Opinion Perceptible Objects Images Perceptible Realm A (Text, pp. 118-123) Can you link the images on the following slide to Plato’s depiction of the cave world on pp. 118-121 in the text? Now that the prisoner has â€Å"seen the light,† ? What might happen to him if he were to go back down into the cave-world? (pp. 119-121) ? How does he feel when he looks back down into the cave-world? (pp. 119) ? How does the allegory of the cave illustrate Plato’s overall view of knowledge and reality? (p. 121) More questions: ? What’s the philosophical difference between coming into the darkness from the light coming into the light from the darkness? (p. 121) ? What, according to Plato, does the allegory of the cave tell us about what the process of education should be? (pp. 121-122) there are the big questions: Why should we want philosophers to rule? How are we going to get them to rule? Since we are asking them to come back down into the cave-world, won’t we be doing them harm by making their lives worse rather than better? (Text, pp. 122-123) What do you think of the following statements by Plato (Socrates)? â€Å"The best rulers of the state are those who know the Good, who don’t look to politics for their happiness, who live a higher life than the political life. † â€Å"Political power should be held by those who do not want it. † The End (for now).

East Asian Art Essay Example for Free

East Asian Art Essay One mark of how developed a culture is its art forms. The arts are a large aspect or subdivision of a culture. So much of a culture’s beliefs and traditions are reflected of expressed in various art forms. Art is made by an artist, an artist’s way of seeing and interpreting things are dictated by the culture of the society of which he is a part of; this is the relationship of the arts and culture. They have a link that cannot be severed. Ancient art forms that are reflective of a societal culture can include architecture, calligraphy, culinary arts, dance, drawing/ painting, fashion, music, language, literature, sculpture, crafts, and theatre; all these are represent the rich culture of a society. Some new and modern art forms that have been brought upon by technology include film and photography. As for East Asia, in geographical context, it is the region of Asia covering 12, 000, 000 square kilometers, which is 28% of the whole Asian continent. Countries in the East Asian territory currently include Mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. East Asia being the home of some of the first great and influential cultures and civilizations, their ancient works of art would be a good area of study to understand how their culture developed. During the ancient times, the major societies that served as the cultural roots of the region are China, Japan and Korea. Understanding how their culture began through the events that transpired in the first 500 years of the Common Era that contributed to the development of their art can give us an insight on what their culture was and how the present culture of the region came to be.

The Idea Of The Movement Magic Realism Film Studies Essay

The Idea Of The Movement Magic Realism Film Studies Essay Magic Realism is a literary movement. It is associated with a style of writing or a technique that incorporates magical or supernatural (fantasy) events into a realistic event without questioning the unlikelihood of these events taking place together. Magic Realism is best described as literature and art combined. This combination of fantasy and fact is there to question the nature of reality. Magic realism made lived experiences appear extraordinary. By creating this feeling, the magical realist writers have all contributed to a re-envisioning of the Latin American culture as a vibrant and complex one. Magic Realism is a movement that has been misunderstood for many years by many people. It still remains a vague term today though. A large part of the problem of this movement being misunderstood is related to applying the term, Magic Realism, to different art forms and in different periods. Magic realism is applied to two main movements, art and literature, and has recently been applied to works in cinema. The term Magic Realism was applied to paintings from the early 1920s through to the end of the 1950s. Magic Realism is realism that incorporates mysterious or fantastic elements but it still portrays everyday life. The time period of the 1960s was when Magic Realism was applied to literature. At first Magic Realism was only used in reference to works of Latin American writers, such as Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Miguel Angel Asturias, Isabel Allende and Jorge Luis Borges. The usage of Magic Realism has recently been expanded to include works of different origins and works of earlier periods. These include those of Ernst Juenger, Mikhail Bulgakov and Salman Rushie. Most of this literature features considerable amounts of fantasy therefore it is a different type of Magic Realism to the one that had been established in art in the 1920s. Recently some writers of this movement have expanded Magic Realism to apply to Motion Pictures. Examples of these works are films like American Beauty, Big Fish, Chocolat, The Red Violin, and Whale Rider. It is a lot easier in cinema to develop the difficult and complicated combination of realism and fantasy that together makes up the foundation of effective Magic Realism. Magic realism is starting to develop an interest today that it had never commanded during the movements first half of the 20th century. Different sets of standards are used today to define Magic Realism in literature; this is causing confusion about what criteria is applied to contemporary work. The counter movement to Magic Realism came to be known as the Return to Order or the Call of Order. The default approach of Magic Realism is to focus on the coexistence of the real and fantasy on equal terms. The power of Magic Realism has often been assumed to lie to the viewer in the way that the differences between these incompatible elements are erased/not shown. One should always remember that Magic Realism cannot be seen as Science Fiction. Magic Realism is everyday life and it is all around us, all the time. Magic realism has changed the way that people think. Magic Realism brings a spark of life to the imagination instead of people seeing the boring and ordinary, and this then in turn brings excitement to the minds of the reader or the viewer. Magic realism has touched on almost every facet of life, from art to television. There is not one thing that is missing Magic Realism within it. If a viewer can look at an art work and see that there is more than just a picture of an inanimate object in the art work then they have finally grasped the concept of, and are able to appreciate Magic Realism. Some sub topics of Magic Realism are those of literature, fashion, advertising and cinema. Magic Realism is NOT Science Fiction, but, Fantasy and science fiction are alike in the sense that both require the creation of a completely new world. When it comes to advertising, fantasy is great for entertainment but fantasy is not however always so great when it comes to trying to sell a product or service. When it comes to selling a product, there needs to be an element that hooks us to reality. It helps for advertising when a detail is added that can easily be imagined by the listener, viewer or reader. Magic Realism works in advertising for exciting the imagination of the viewer, listener or reader, but there should be an attachment or hook to reality to keep things realistic. Magic Realism is all about fantasy meeting reality. When it comes to racial and gender ideologies, one does not have to worry about any of these ideologies within Magic Realism. Magic realism is about fantasy, there is not discrimination or rights or wrongs. There are no gender or racial ideologies used in any form or sub topic of magic realism. Women and men are equal in these works and all races are equal. Magic realism has no race and no gender; it is about fantasy meeting reality. Magic Realism creates the perfect fantasy world that we would all love to live in. Magic Realism is the key to the decline of racial and gender ideologies. Through the combination of fantasy events with realism it allows for the study of alternate perceptions of the world, offering different views of history and identity, and also giving voice to cultural minorities. People view the world differently; they see a fantasy that has been made up. Magic realism allows people to express what they really feel and what they imagine a world to be like.

Agamemnon, Symbolism Of Darkne Essay -- essays research papers

Throughout the ages of literature, darkness has often been used as symbolic in representation for evil, concealment, and blindness. In the opening of Agamemnon, the darkness that consumed the scene was used for effect in order to convey indirectly, themes of evil, concealment, and blindness.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The theme of evil was clearly supported by the actions of the character. The play was one of murder and revenge, both of which are traditionally sinful in nature. Agamemnon is murdered in the play by his wife Clytaemestra, who does so in hopes of avenging the death of her daughter, among other reasons. Clytaemestraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s daughter was killed in an act of sacrifice by Agamemnon, ironically, in hopes of ending a cycle of revenge already out of hand within the families of Agamemnon and his enemy Aegisthus. Although justice can skeptically be looked at as a noble cause, in that traditionally justice represents the protection of all that is good, it seems evident that evil still plays a part in motivating one to kill. Hence the symbolic darkness of night present in the opening scene of the play, foreshadowing the death of Agamemnon, and Clytaemestraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s conversion to the dark-side of hatred and revenge.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Another commonly used significance of darkness is that of concealment. When a soldier wishes to hide his actions from an enemy, it is typically said that he will do so à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“under the cover of darkness.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? Just as a soldier used darkness t...

Education, Academic Intelligence, and Personal Experience Essay

Education, Academic Intelligence, and Personal Experience Education not only revolves around academic intellect, but also around experiences one comes across in life. It is clearly evident that all living creatures, with human beings being the highest form, have evolved throughout history up until now, solely by learning or being educated in order to survive. For example, from the moment a baby comes into the world, the infant tries to acquaint him or herself to the environment maybe by touching or by struggling to see the world ahead. Even in today’s society, social status is not depended solely upon one’s economic wealth, but also by the capacity of one’s intellect. The same rules apply when thinking in terms of learning in the classroom. Because the idea of being â€Å"educated† means so many things, it is hard to distinguish who is the more intelligent individual when comparing to another bright human being. As the short story titled, â€Å"The Lesson,† by Toni Cade Bambara suggests, educ ation comes in many forms; the two main forms everyone is familiar with, academic intelligence and knowledge gained from personal experiences or interactions with the rest of the world. But, the story favors knowledge being gained from personal experiences where one interacts with the world around him. Some might think that the more money people have, the more intelligent they are. Many ignorant individuals believe that social status engenders one’s educational background. Yes, for some it is true, but not for all. Education can lead to success. Many people, especially students receive higher education in hopes of succeeding in the business world. But what is success? Is it the kind of success where one feels good... ...Quite similarly, Miss Moore’s students realized that the world does not live much like â€Å"a democracy.† They commented that â€Å"equal chance to pursue happiness means an equal crack at the dough.† Some people ridiculously spend so much money on toys that can feed a family of six or seven. Miss Moore realizes that her students have learned an important lesson in their life without the use of school textbooks or classroom atmosphere. In conclusion, education is so powerful that it does not only revolve around academic intellect, but also around experiences one has come across in life. As the students in â€Å"The Lesson† have learned an important lesson outside of the classroom about money and their value on human life, it clearly shows that experiences can light the bulb inside the brain more so than a teacher trying to teach its students in a classroom. Education, Academic Intelligence, and Personal Experience Essay Education, Academic Intelligence, and Personal Experience Education not only revolves around academic intellect, but also around experiences one comes across in life. It is clearly evident that all living creatures, with human beings being the highest form, have evolved throughout history up until now, solely by learning or being educated in order to survive. For example, from the moment a baby comes into the world, the infant tries to acquaint him or herself to the environment maybe by touching or by struggling to see the world ahead. Even in today’s society, social status is not depended solely upon one’s economic wealth, but also by the capacity of one’s intellect. The same rules apply when thinking in terms of learning in the classroom. Because the idea of being â€Å"educated† means so many things, it is hard to distinguish who is the more intelligent individual when comparing to another bright human being. As the short story titled, â€Å"The Lesson,† by Toni Cade Bambara suggests, educ ation comes in many forms; the two main forms everyone is familiar with, academic intelligence and knowledge gained from personal experiences or interactions with the rest of the world. But, the story favors knowledge being gained from personal experiences where one interacts with the world around him. Some might think that the more money people have, the more intelligent they are. Many ignorant individuals believe that social status engenders one’s educational background. Yes, for some it is true, but not for all. Education can lead to success. Many people, especially students receive higher education in hopes of succeeding in the business world. But what is success? Is it the kind of success where one feels good... ...Quite similarly, Miss Moore’s students realized that the world does not live much like â€Å"a democracy.† They commented that â€Å"equal chance to pursue happiness means an equal crack at the dough.† Some people ridiculously spend so much money on toys that can feed a family of six or seven. Miss Moore realizes that her students have learned an important lesson in their life without the use of school textbooks or classroom atmosphere. In conclusion, education is so powerful that it does not only revolve around academic intellect, but also around experiences one has come across in life. As the students in â€Å"The Lesson† have learned an important lesson outside of the classroom about money and their value on human life, it clearly shows that experiences can light the bulb inside the brain more so than a teacher trying to teach its students in a classroom.

Stephen Edwin King :: essays research papers

Stephen Edwin King The second son of Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King was born on 1974 in Portland, Maine. His name was Stephen Edwin King. After his parents serpertion as a toddler, Stephen and his older brother, David, were raised by his mother. Stephen, David, and their mother lived in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which was where Stephen's father's side of the family lived. They then moved to Stratford, Connecticut, that was where Stephen King spent most of his childhood paying frequent visits to his mother's side of the family that resided in Malden, Massachusetts and Pownal, Maine. Around his 11th anniversary Stephen's mom moved to Durham, Maine, along with Stephen and his brother, to take care of her parents, whom were to old to take care of themselves. Stephen's school days were spent in the Durham Grammar School. He then attended Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. He went to college at the University of Maine at Orono, at which, during his spophomore year, he worte a weekly column for THE MAINE CAMPUS. During his years at college he was opposed to the war in Vietnam, declaring it unconstitutional. After his graduation in 1970 Stephen had aquired a Bachelor of Science in English and immediately was qualified to teach at the high school level. As a student Stephen worked at the Folger Library, which was on the University of Maine at Orono's campus. While working he met a fellow employee named Tabitha Spruce, who he married in Janurary 1971. Stephen King's first publication was a short story he wrote and sent to a men's magazine. This is where his first profit from writing came from, throughout the few years after his graduation he worte stories and sold them to men's magazines. All of these short stories would be later gathered into a collection known as the "Night Shift collection." In the fall of '71 King was hired as a teacher at Hampden Academy, a public high school in Hampden, Maine. He still found time to write short stories and work on his novel on the weekends and evenings. King's first big break came on the spring of 1973 upon the acceptence of Doubleday & Co. to publish Stephen King's novel Carrie. After learning from his new editor, Bill Thompson, that a major paperback sale would make him financially secure enough to quit teaching, Stephen moved his now growing family to southern Maine because of his grandmother's ever growing sickness. During the writing of Salem's Lot

Catawba: Variable Cost and Differential Cost Approach

Is the company correct in its decision of not manufacturing standard model compressors on Sundays? Why? Show your calculations. Decision making should be based on change of RELEVANT items ONLY. The company’s calculation is WRONG, as it takes into concern of irrelevant fixed cost. By double-counting depreciation, other Mfg. overheads, SG&A in Sunday’s cost; it distorts the P&L sheet. To correctly show cost structure for decision making, there are two different approaches, yet each should reach same conclusion. Approach 1: Differential Cost ApproachAs suggested in case, by producing 4 unites on Sunday, total depreciation, total Mfg. overhead and SG&A will not change. Thus, we should only look into accounts that will change out of producing activities on Sunday. Table below shows the result of Contribution Margin computation. As illustrated in the table, producing on Sunday will bring $ 2,600 contribution margin per unit and thus company should manufacture. Approach 2: Com prehensive Income Approach. Based on P&L sheet we can calculate total fixed cost for one week manufacturing Depreciation=$ 497? 4= $11,928 Mfg. Overhead=$177? 24=$4,248 Sales=$1,519? 20+$1,769? 4=$ 37,456 G&A=$ 607? 20+$ 707? 4= $14,968 Then we construct weekly income statement of two scenarios As suggested in table, by producing in Sunday, company can realize $ 10,400 profit every week, same as by using Differential Cost Approach. Total Increasing Profit=Contribution Margin? unit=$ 2,600? 4=$ 10,400 Suppose Marge McPhee decides to manufacture 10 light weight compressors each week during weekdays for 8 weeks only and sell them at a price of $8,000.Compared to only producing standard compressors, do you support this decision? Why? Show your calculations to support your argument. We use differential cost approach to make decision. Since factory is producing at full-capacity and company cannot force the 3rd shift, nor recruit more labor, the direct labor hour is the constrain factor. L ight compressor requires 62. 5 DLH and standard compressor requires 100 DLH, in other words, produce 1 light compressor can produce 62. 5/100=0. 25 standard compressor and 10 light compressors => 6. 25 standard compressors. Based on information, we can construct the comparison table between two scenarios. As illustrated by table, producing 10 light compressors instead of 6. 25 standard compressors for ONLT 8 weeks will generate $ 182,000 more contribution margin. However, to realize this amount of margin Catawba need to invest $ 218,000 on additional jigs, sensors and soft wares. Thus, company should NOT produce light compressor.

BTEC Business Essay

Shell is a multinational oil and gas company with around 87.000 employees in more than 70 countries. It is one of the world’s most valuable companies. Shell was started by Marcus Samuel back in 1833, he was a shopkeeper in London. In 1907 they merged with The Royal Dutch Petroleum Company. 1.1.1&1.1.2 Having a lot of offices/petrol stations all around the world makes them a global business and it’s a private business because it’s not owned by the government. Their goal is to make more money than they spend, so Shell is a profit business. Shell is in all three sectors because they dig oil (Primary Sector, they produce the oil (Secondary Sector, and lastly they sell it as well at their petrol stations. Their products are mostly oil and gas but they also have services for example, you can fill your tires with air, you can use their hoover or make use of their carwash. 1.1.3 Shell is a PLC so the liability for debts is on the company. To be considered a PLC you’re business is probably formed and owned by shareholders. Other shareholders can buy their stock quite easily. They have a lot of shareholders. As a shareholder of Shell you aren’t responsible for the debts, may the company go bankrupt. Unicef Unicef which stands for United Nations International Children’s Emergency is a massive organisation that tries to help children all over the world, not only to have an education but to protect child’s right in overall. 1.2.1&1.2.2 Unicef has offices all over the world, it’s a global organisation. Almost every country has an office from Unicef. The Government helps for two third of the organisation’s funds and the other part is from the millions of people that supports Unicef which makes it for the bigger part a public organisation. It’s a non-profit organisation, because they don’t want to make a lot of money for themselves but to raise money to help the children  who for example can’t go to school because they don’t have the money for it or even because they don’t have schools at that place. Unicef is subjected in the tertiary sector because they serve services to help the children. 1.2.3 It’s a Charity Partnership, as a charity you have to register and must produce annual accounts that are available to be viewed. P2 Stakeholders of Shell 2.1&2.2 A stakeholder is anyone that has an interest or is affected by a corporation. 1.Customers: The customers are the one who buy or uses the products and services of Shell. – They want shell to have the best oil, gas and services so that what they pay for those things are worth their money. -Shell wants the customer to keep coming back to them, because without the customers Shell wouldn’t earn any money. 2.Employees: The employees are the one who works for Shell. – They want to have the security of being employed, getting paid and also the opportunity for promotions. – Shell wants the Employees to do their best because they are kind of representing Shell. For example, if they are rude to customers then the customers may not come back to Shell because of that. 3.The shareholders: The shareholders are the one who owns a part of Shell. – The shareholders want to see their share of profit to increase. – Shell wants them to increase the money. 4.Trade Unions: Trade Unions represent the interest of groups of employees. – With the trade unions employees want to accomplish their interest like get higher wages. – Shell wants to find out the interest of groups of the employees so they can improve it and keep their employees happy. 5.Local And National Communities: Local and National Communities are the ones who represent Shell. – Shell has pipelines in Nigeria which can be very dangerous and cause local pollution, therefore community leaders represent important interest groups. – Shell wants them to represent Shell positively. 6.Suppliers: Suppliers are people who provides Shell’s products. (For example the things they sell at they’re petrol stations, not the oil/gas as they produce that themselves.) – They want to feel valued by Shell and they want steady orders and to be paid at their worth. – Shell wants the suppliers to deliver the right orders and that the products are in best condition. 2.3&2.4 Stakeholders of Unicef 1.Staff members: Staff members ensures that everything is going smoothly, both in offices and on field. – They want to see the results while being in field, for example, to see the kids go to the school they have built. – Unicef wants the staff members to do their best and see the best results. 2.Goodwill Ambassadors and Advocates: Goodwill Ambassadors and Advocates are celebrities that funds Unicef. – They want to use their fame positively and help as many kids as they can with their money. – Unicef gets more known because of those celebrities. With their help people acknowledge their campaign. Plus, they are good volunteers with enough money. 3.Young Leaders: Young Leaders are young adults or teens that are helping out with the campaign as well. – Young leaders wants to help out children or teens that are maybe just a few years older than them, sometimes because they feel bad for those children. They have it better so they want to help out. – Having young leaders in the team is a positive outcome because this motivates others from the same age to do something to help children out, too. 4.Teachers: Volunteers that want to teach children in for example Africa. -Teachers wants to volunteer so they feel good about themselves helping the children to get better education or just an education at all. They want to be send off in a secure place, though. And not in, for example, a war zone. – Unicef needs Teachers because otherwise building schools are no help at all if there’s no one to teach those children something. 5.Suppliers: Those are the ones who supplies the school books etc. – They want to feel valued by Unicef and wants clear orders from them. – Unicef wants the suppliers to deliver the orders to be in good quality and to be delivered on time. 6.People who gives their contribution to the collectors:  They give money to the collectors to help out. – For example, they want to think they helped out building that school in Africa. – Unicef need those people to help out to get more money so they can help out more. P3 Organisational Chart of Shell 5.1 Shell is organized by function, geographical areas, product groups and type of customers. Shell’s functions are divided in three groupings: Upstream, Downstream and Projects & Technology. Upstream manages the manufacturing and search crude oil and natural gas. Downstream also manages the manufacturing and are responsible for the marketing department. Projects & Technology does the research and projects for new products. Shell is, as mentioned before, a global company, having offices all over the world. The Upstream only is already divided in Upstream Americas (for Americas), Upstream International (for Europe, Asia/Middle East/Russia, Oceania and Africa. This is because it can function better and they can focus within that country/continent. They can focus on the culture and interest within that country/continent. They are also organized by products as you can see above. They are divided by gas, fuels and lubricants and chemical products. This way each group can specialize in their own product and make it better. Shell has a lot of customers, like the one who drives daily to and from their work or a big airplane company or the F1 team. They use different products or amount of products, so Shell organized it this way that the airplane company gets a different price than a normal man who drives daily to and from their work. 5.2 My Royal Dutch Shell would look at the amount of profit they made the year before. How much oil and gas they posses and there is on earth. We’ll look at how much we sell our products and how much our variable costs are and if we can make our variable costs less and our prices higher. Would we lose customers if we do that or not? We will do an internal researches for how much oil there still is on earth. With this information we can go further with our strategic plan. If the oil is decreasing for example, we will look  for alternative solution. Shell will look for what’s going on in each country. For example, everyone is really busy with being environmentally conscious, so we’ll think of a way other than greenpeace to show that we are not too bad for the environment. We will look at how the economy is growing or deflating. If it’s growing we can make the price higher, and if it’s deflating we don’t necessarily need to put the prices lower as Shell’s product is something that everyone constantly need. (Oil) Looking at what the concurrent position, at how they are doing is also something to consider. Organisational Chart of Unicef 5.3 Unicef is divided by directors. They have the executive Director who is in charge of the whole organisation. And other directors that are in charge of for example the Human Resources or the supplies. So Unicef is organized by function. Unicef has different regional directors. For example, there’s the Dutch Unicef Director, or the UK Unicef Director. . Working a lot on field (different countries) it’s easier to have regional offices. This makes Unicef function better as Unicef represent itself in 190 countries, each country with different values. So each country director/manager can focus on how to reach the people Unicef is also organized by geographical areas. Unicef focuses on different type of ‘products’ which are actually the different services. Although all is about children, the subjects are different. They have child survival and development, Basic education and gender equality, Children and HIV/AIDS and Child protection. They divided those subjects so they can specialise more and give the help that the child needs better. They also sell small things, kind of reminds me of souvenirs, the profit they make from these goes to the campaign funds. 5.4 Unicef will look at how they’ve succeeded at their projects so far, how many donations they get each year, how many members/volunteer they’ve got and what their next step needs to be depends on what is going on with the people around the countries they help or even which country they’ll need to help next. Once they have all those information, they’ll look at how they can  get more projects. To get more projects done, they’ll do more research so that they can give people more and more information and can attract more people to help them out. Unicef should show on the media what they’ve achieve so far and that the money people donate are really helping out. This way we’ll get more donation, so more profit to finish projects. P4 Fulfilling The Purpose of Shell 6.1 Shell’s purpose is to make as much profit as they can. Being organized by function they can put people who are specialised by those functions and make their product even better. The geographical structure helps to get to know what they need to do to get the attention of each country. Because each country has different laws, values and culture they can do their research way better if each group specialised in one specific country. Shell can make their advertisement focused on each country. Focusing on the different customers they can make special offers for different customers. Making these offers they can make sure that the customer will come back to them and can cause word to word advertisement. Splitting up different products types helps customers to know where to find what when they come to buy products from shell. Having different products means they need to make sure everything is from the same quality, the best quality. So by dividing their products and putting people who specialised on those product they know they have the best quality. Which will make customer come back to them. To be structured good, Shell uses the chain of command. It helps shell to make sure that they get the tasks that you need to do and that it doesn’t go to a different department. Fulfilling The Purpose of Unicef 6.2 Unicef’s purpose is to help as much children in need as they can. Being geographical organized helps them to fulfil their purpose because this way they can focus on what each country needs. For example, one country needs more school instead of help with HIV/AIDS. Focusing on different product type helps as well. This way, people knows exactly for what they are donating. Same as Shell, Unicef uses the chain of command so that people get the right tasks. Using Goodwill Ambassador helps them achieve their purposes, too. For example, having Selena Gomez as an ambassador is great help for them in the media. She’s really big in the entertainment industries and is a role model for a lot of teens and young adults all over the world. She indirectly advertises Unicef when she tweets or talks about how she’s an ambassador. Having different directors for each function helps as well as they can specialise on what they are doing in that sector. They can give the people ‘underneath’ them better instructions.

The Return: Midnight Chapter 34

â€Å"You've been fed and taken care of as best as we can manage,†Meredith said, looking at allthe taut, frightened young faces turned toward her in the basement. â€Å"And now there's just one thing I want to ask of you in return.†She made an effort and steadied her voice. â€Å"I want to know if anybody knows of a mobile phone that connects to the Internet, or a computer that is Stillworking. Please, please – if you even think you know where one might be, tel me.† The tension was like a thick rubber cord, dragging Meredith toward each of the pale, strained faces, dragging them to her. It was just as well that Meredith was essential y well – balanced. About twelve hands went up immediately, and their lone five-year-old whispered, â€Å"My mommy has one. And my daddy.† There was a pause before Meredith could say, â€Å"Does anybody know this kid?†and an older girl spoke up before she could. â€Å"She just means they had them before the Burning Man.† â€Å"Is the Burning Man cal ed Shinichi?†Meredith asked. â€Å"‘Course. Sometimes he would make the red parts of his hair burn up way over his head.† Meredith filed that little fact away under Things I do not want to see, honest, cross my heart, ever. Then she shook herself free from the image. â€Å"You guys and girls, please, please think. I only need one, one mobile phone with Internet access that Stillhas power right now. One laptop or computer that is Stillworking now, maybe because of a generator Stillmaking electricity. Just one family with a home generator Stillworking. Anybody?† The hands were down now. A boy she thought she recognized as being one of the Loring siblings, maybe age ten or eleven, said, â€Å"The Burning Man told us that mobile phones and computers were bad. That was why my brother got in a fistfight with my dad. He threw al the mobiles at home in the toilet.† â€Å"Okay. Okay, thanks. But anybody who's seen a working mobile or computer? Or a home generator – â€Å" â€Å"Why, yes, my dear, I've got one.†The voice came from the top of the stairs. Mrs. Flowers was standing there, dressed in a fresh sweat suit. Strangely, she had her voluminous purse in her hand. â€Å"You had – have a generator?†Meredith asked, her heart sinking. What a waste! And if disaster came al because she, Meredith, hadn't finished reading over her own research! The minutes were ticking away, and if everyone in Fel ‘s Church died, it would be her fault. Her fault. She didn't think she could live with that. Meredith had tried, al her life, to reach the state of calm, concentration, and balance that was the other side of the coin from the fighting skil s her various disciplines had taught her. And she had become good at it, a good observer, a good daughter, even a good student for al that she was in Elena's fast-paced, high-flying clique. The four of them: Elena, Meredith, Caroline, and Bonnie had fit together like four pieces of a puzzle, and Meredith Stillsometimes missed the old days and their daring, dominating pseudo-sophisticated capers that never real y hurt anyone – except the sil y boys who had mil ed around them like ants at a picnic. But now, looking at herself, she was puzzled. Who was she? A Hispanic girl named for her mother's Welsh best friend in col ege. A hunter-slayer of vampires who had kitten canines, a vampire twin, and whose group of friends included Stefan, a vampire; Elena, an ex-vampire – and possibly another vampire, although she was extremely hesitant to cal Damon a â€Å"friend.† What did that alladd up to? A girl trying to do her best to keep her balance and concentration, in a world that had gone insane. A girl Stillreeling from what she'd learned about her own family, and now tottering from the need to confirm a dreadful suspicion. Stop thinking. Stop! You have to tel Mrs. Flowers that her boardinghouse has been destroyed. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers – about the boardinghouse – I have to talk to you†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Why don't you use my BlackBerry first?†Mrs. Flowers came down the basement stairs careful y, watching her feet, and then the children parted before her like waves on the Red Sea. â€Å"Your†¦?†Meredith stared, choked up. Mrs. Flowers had opened her enormous purse and was now proffering a rather thick al -black object to her. â€Å"It Stillhas power,†the old lady explained as Meredith took the thing in two shaking hands, as if receiving a holy object. â€Å"I just turned it on and it was working. And now I'm on the Internet!† – proudly. Meredith's world had been swal owed up by the smal , grayish, antiquated screen. She was so amazed and excited at seeing this that she almost forgot why she needed it. But her body knew. Her fingers clutched; her thumbs danced over the mini-keyboard. She went to her favorite search page and entered the word â€Å"Orime.†She got pages of hits – most in Japanese. Then feeling a trembling in her knees, she typed in â€Å"Inari.† 6,530,298 results. She went to the very first hit and saw a web page with a definition. Key words seemed to rush out at her like vultures. Inari is the Japanese Shinto deity of rice†¦and†¦foxes. At the entrance to an Inari shrine are†¦statues of two kitsune†¦one male and one female†¦each with a key or jewel carried in mouth or paw†¦These fox-spirits are the servants and messengers of Inari. They carry out Inari's orders†¦. There was also a picture of a pair of kitsune statues, in their fox forms. Each had a front paw resting on a star bal . Three years ago, Meredith had fractured her leg when she was on a skiing trip with her cousins in the Blue Ridge Mountains. She had run straight into a smal tree. No martial arts skil s could save her at the last minute; she knew she was skiing off the groomed areas, where she could run into anything: powder, crud, or iced-over ruts. And, of course, trees. Lots of trees. She was an advanced skier, but she had been going too fast, looking in the wrong direction, and the next thing she knew, she was skiing into the tree instead of around it. Now she had the same sensation of waking up after a head-on into wood. The shock, the dizziness and nausea that were, initial y, worse than the pain. Meredith could take pain. But the pounding in her head, the sickening awareness that she had made a big mistake and that she was going to have to pay for it were unbearable. Plus there was a curious horror about the knowledge that her own legs wouldn't hold her up. Even the same useless questions ran through her subconscious, like: How could I be so stupid? Is this possibly a dream? and, Please, God, can I hit the Undo button? Meredith suddenly realized that she was being supported on either side by Mrs. Flowers and their sixteen-year-old, Ava Wakefield. The mobile was on the cement floor of the basement. She must have actual y started to black out. Several of the younger kids were screaming Matt's name. â€Å"No – I – I can stand up alone†¦Ã¢â‚¬ Al she wanted in the world was to go into the darkness and get away from this horror. She wanted to let her legs go slack and her mind go blank, to flee†¦ But she couldn't run away. She had taken the stave; she had taken the Duty from her grandfather. Anything supernatural that was out to harm Fel ‘s Church on her watch was her problem. And the problem was that her watch never ended. Matt came clattering down the stairs, carrying their seven-year-old, Hailey, who continual y shook with petit mal seizures. â€Å"Meredith!†She could hear the incredulity in his voice. â€Å"What is it? What did you find, for God's sake?† â€Å"Come†¦look.†Meredith was remembering detail after detail that should have set off warning bel s in her mind. Matt was somehow already beside her, even as she remembered Bonnie's very first description of Isobel Saitou. â€Å"The quiet type. Hard to get to know. Shy. And†¦nice.† And that first visit to the Saitou house. The horror that quiet, shy, nice Isobel Saitou had become: the Goddess of Piercing, blood and pus oozing from every hole. And when they had tried to carry dinner to her old, old grandmother, Meredith had noticed absently that Isobel's room was right under the dol -like old lady's. After seeing Isobel pierced and clearly unbalanced, Meredith had assumed that any evil influence must be trying to travel up, and had worried in the back of her mind about the poor, old, dol -sized grandmother. But the evil could just as easily have traveled down. Maybe Jim Bryce hadn't given Isobel the malach madness after al . Maybe she had given it to him, and he had given it to Caroline and to his sister. And that children's game! The cruel, cruel song that Obaasan – that Inari-Obaasan had crooned. â€Å"Fox and turtle had a race†¦Ã¢â‚¬  And her words: â€Å"There's a kitsune involved in this somewhere.† She'd been laughing at them, amusing herself! Come to that, it was from Inari-Obaasan that Meredith had first heard the word â€Å"kitsune.† And one more additional cruelty, that Meredith had only been able to excuse before by assuming Obaasan had very poor sight. That night, Meredith had had her back to the door and so had Bonnie – they had both been concentrating on â€Å"poor decrepit old Grandma.†But Obaasan had been facing the door, and she was the only one who could have seen – must have seen – Isobel sneaking up behind Bonnie. And then, just as the cruel game song told Bonnie to look behind her†¦ Isobel had been crouching there, ready to lick Bonnie's forehead with a forked pink tongue†¦ â€Å"Why?†Meredith could hear her own voice saying. â€Å"Why was I so stupid? How could I not have seen from the beginning?† Matt had retrieved the BlackBerry and read the web page. Then he just stood, fixed, his blue eyes wide. â€Å"You were right,†he said, after a long moment. â€Å"I want so much to be wrong†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"Meredith – Shinichi and Misao are Inari's servants†¦If that old lady is Inari we've been running around like crazy after the wrong people, the hired muscle†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"The damn note cards,†Meredith choked out. â€Å"The ones done by Obaasan. They're useless, flawed. Al those bul ets she blessed should have been no good – but maybe she did bless them – as a game. Isobel even came to me and changed al the characters the old lady had done for the jars to hold Shinichi and Misao. She said that Obaasan was almost blind. She left a tear on my car seat. I couldn't understand why she should be crying.† â€Å"I Stillcan't. She's the granddaughter – probably the third generation of a monster!†Matt exploded. â€Å"Why should she cry? And why do the Post-it Notes work?† â€Å"Because they're done by Isobel's mother,†Mrs. Flowers said quietly. â€Å"Dear Matt, I truly doubt that the old woman is related to the Saitous at all. As a deity – or even a powerful magic-user named after a deity – and undoubtedly a kitsune herself, she surely just moved in with them and used them. Isobel's mother and Isobel had no choice but to carry on the charade for fear of what she'd do to them if they didn't.† â€Å"But Mrs. Flowers, when Tyrone and I pul ed that leg bone out of the thicket, didn't you say that the Saitou women made such excel ent amulets? And didn't you say that we could get the Saitou women to help translate the words on the clay jars when Alaric sent the pictures of them from that Japanese Island?† As for my belief in the Saitou women, Well, I'l have to quibble a little here,†Mrs. Flowers said. â€Å"I couldn't know that this Obaasan was evil, and there are Stilltwo of them who are gentle and good, and who have helped us tremendously – and at great risk to themselves.† Meredith could taste the bitterness of bile in her mouth. â€Å"Isobel could have saved us. She could have said ‘My fake grandmother is real y a demon.'† â€Å"Oh, my dear Meredith, the young are so unforgiving. This Inari was probably instal ed in her house when she was a child. Al she knows at first is that the old woman is a tyrant, with a god's name. Then perhaps some demonstration of power – what happened to Orime's husband, I wonder, to make him go back to Japan – if indeed he went there? He may well be dead. And then Isobel is growing up: shy, quiet, introverted – frightened. This is not Japan; there are no other priestesses here to confide in. And you saw the consequences when Isobel reached out to someone outside of the family – to her boyfriend, Jim Bryce.† â€Å"And to us – Well, to you and Bonnie,†Matt said to Meredith. â€Å"She sicced Caroline on you.† Scarcely knowing what they were doing, they were talking faster and faster. â€Å"We have to go there right now,†said Meredith. â€Å"Shinichi and Misao may be the ones bringing on the Last Midnight, but it's Inari who gives the orders. And who knows? She may dole out the punishments as well. We don't know how big her star bal is.† â€Å"Or where,†said the old woman. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers,†Matt said hastily, â€Å"you'd better stay here with the kids. Ava, here, is reliable, and where's Jacob Lagherty?† â€Å"Here,†said a boy who looked older than fifteen. He was as tal as Matt was, but gangly. â€Å"Okay. Ava, Jake, you're in charge under Mrs. Flowers. We'l leave Saber with you too.†The dog was a big hit among the kids, on his best behavior, even when the younger ones chewed his tail. â€Å"You two just listen to Mrs. Flowers, and – â€Å" â€Å"Matt, dear, I won't be here. But the animals wil surely help to protect them.† Matt stared at her. Meredith knew what he was thinking. Was Mrs. Flowers, so reliable up until now, going somewhere to hide alone? Was she abandoning them? â€Å"And I'l need one of you to drive me to the Saitou house – quickly! – but the other can stay and protect the children as well.† Meredith was both relieved and worried, and clearly Matt was too. â€Å"Mrs. Flowers, this is going to be a battle. You could get hurt or be taken hostage so easily – â€Å" â€Å"Dear Matt, this is my battle. My family has lived in Fel ‘s Church for generations, al the way back to the pioneering times. I believe this is the battle for which I was born. Certainly the last of my old age.† Meredith stared. In the dim light of the basement, Mrs. Flowers seemed suddenly different somehow. Her voice was changing. Even her smal body seemed to be changing, steadying, standing tal . â€Å"But how wil you fight?†Matt asked, sounding dazed. â€Å"With this. That nice young man, Sage, left it for me with a note apologizing for using Misao's star bal . I used to be quite good with these when I was young.†From her capacious purse, Mrs. Flowers pul ed out something pale and long and thin as it unwound and Mrs. Flowers whirled it and snapped it with a loud crack at the empty half of the basement. It hit a Ping-Pong bal , curled around it, and brought it back to Mrs. Flowers's open hand. A bul whip. Made of some silvery material. Undoubtedly magical. Even Matt looked scared of it. â€Å"Why don't Ava and Jake teach the children to play Ping-Pong while we're gone – and we real y must go, my dears. There's not a minute to waste. A terrible tragedy is coming, Ma ma says.† Meredith had been watching – feeling as dazed as Matt looked. But now she said, â€Å"I have a weapon too.†She picked up the stave and said, â€Å"I'm fighting, Matt. Ava, the children are yours to care for.† â€Å"And mine,†Jacob said, and immediately proved his usefulness by adding, â€Å"Isn't that an axe hanging back there near the furnace?† Matt ran and snatched it up. Meredith could see from his expression what he was thinking: Yes! One heavy axe, a tiny bit rusty, but Stillplenty sharp enough. Now if the kitsune sent plants or wood against them, he was armed. Mrs. Flowers was already going up the basement stairs. Meredith and Matt exchanged one quick glance and then they were running to catch up with her. â€Å"You drive your mom's SUV. I'l sit in back. I'm Stilla little bit†¦Well, dizzy, I guess.†Meredith didn't like to admit to a personal weakness, but better that than crashing the vehicle. Matt nodded and was good enough not to comment on why she felt so dizzy. She Stillcouldn't believe her own stupidity. Mrs. Flowers said only one thing. â€Å"Matt, dear, break traffic laws.†