Once more to the lake Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Once more to the lake - Essay Example "Once  More to the Lake" is an essay first published in Harper's magazine in 1941 by author  E. B. White. In "Once More to the Lake," White revisits his ideal boyhood vacation spot. He finds great joy in his visit, which causes him to struggle to remember that he is now a man. The present research has identified that in the story â€Å"Once more to the lake† the author vividly remembers his childhood days because he has started taking his son to the very same spot and everything in his memory about the spot is refreshed. The author talks about the various insects that are found in the lake and how his son had never seen such slimy insects, he says that he had only seen them from a distance but it was now his chance to see them closely and also see how they react to human presence. The author is also reminded of a near-death experience in the closing stages of the story and he also emphasizes on the fact that we all should be as close to nature as possible because nature ti me and again reminds us of the fact that all human beings are mortal. The researcher of this paper has rightly presented that being close to nature also gives us several great memories to cherish just like the author has several sweet memories to cherish about his childhood days, he gets to relive all those memories with his little boy this is what makes this story special in more ways than one.

Employee Grievances Essay Example for Free

Employee Grievances Essay In industrial context the word grievance is used in industrial context to designate claims by workers of a Trade Union concerning their individual or collective rights under an applicable collective agreement, individual contract of employment, law, regulations, work rules, custom or usage. Such claims involve questions relating to the interpretation or application of the rules. The term â€Å"Grievance† is used in countries to designate this type of claim, while in some other countries reference is made to disputes over â€Å"right† or â€Å"legal† disputes. The grounds for a grievance may be any measure or situation which concerns the relations between the employers and worker or which affects the conditions of employment of one or several workers in the undertaking when that measure or situation appears contrary to provisions of an applicable collective agreement or of an individual contract of employment, to work rules, to laws or regulations or to the custom or usage of the occupational branch of economy activity or country†. Causes for Grievance Grievances generally arise from the day to day working relations in an undertaking, usually a worker or trade union protest against or act or omission of management that is considered to violate worker rights. Grievances typically arise on such matters like discipline and dismissal, the payment of wages other fringe benefits, working time, over time and time off entitlement, promotions, demotions and transfer, rights deriving from seniority, rights of supervisors and the Union officers, job classification problems, the relationship of works rules to the collective agreement and fulfillment of obligations relating to safety and health as laid down in the agreement. Such grievances, if not dealt with a procedure that secures the respect of parties, can result in embitterment of the working relationship and a climate of industrial strife. Procedure for Settlement: It has been widely recognized that there should be an appropriate procedure through which the grievances of workers may be submitted and settled. This recognition is based both on consideration of fairness and justice, which requires that workers’ claims regarding their rights should receive fair and impartial determination, and on the desire to remove from the area of power conflict a type of dispute that can properly be settled through authoritative determination of the respective rights and obligations of parties. Essence of Model Grievance Procedure: The three cardinal principles of grievance settlement, under the procedure, are; 1. Settlement at the lowest level, 2. Settlement as expeditiously as possible; and 3. Settlement to the satisfaction of the aggrieved Like justice, grievance must not only be settled but also seem to be settled in the eyes of the aggrieved. The Model Grievance Procedure has a three tier system for the settlement at the levels of the 1. immediate supervisor; 2. departmental or factory head; 3. and a bipartite grievance committee representing the management and the union, with a provision for the arbitration appeal to the organization head, and a specified time limit for the resolution process. Views of the National Commission on Labour NCL has recommended that a formal grievance procedure should be introduced in units employing 100 or more workers and they are: 1. There should be a statutory backing for the formulation of an effective grievance procedure which should be simple, flexible, less cumbersome and more or less n the lines of Model Grievance Procedure, 2. It should be time bound and have a limited number of steps namely, approach to the immediate supervisory staff; appeal to the departmental head/manager; and appeal to the bipartite grievance committee representing management and the recognized Union. 3. A grievance procedure should be such that it gives a sense of satisfaction to the individual worker, ensures reasonable exercise of authority to the manager and a sense of participation to Unions, 4. The constitution of the grievance committee should have a provision that in case a unanimous decision is not possible, the unsettled grievance may be referred to arbitration. At the earlier stages the worker should be free to be represented by a co worker and later by an officer of the union, if one exists, 5. It should be introduced in all units employing 100 or more workers. INDISCIPLINE/MISCONDUCT Discipline is the employee self control which prompts him to willingly co- operates with the organizational standards, rules, objectives, etc. Misconduct is the transgression of some established and definite rules where no discrimination is left to the employee. It is violation of rules. Any breach of these rules and discipline may amount to misconduct. It is an act or conduct which is prejudicial to the interest of the employer or is likely to impair the reputation of the employer or create unrest and can be performed even outside the premises of the establishment and beyond duty hours. It is for the management to determine in its Standing Orders as to what shall constitutes acts of misconduct and to define the quantum of punishment for them. Causes of misconduct: †¢ †¢ Unfair labour practices and victimization on the part of employers, like wage diffentials, declaration of payment or non payment of bonus, wrongful works assignments, defective grievance procedure etc., †¢ †¢ Bad service conditions, defective communications by superiors and ineffective leadership lead to indiscipline, †¢ †¢ Poverty, frustration, indebtedness, generally overshadow the minds of the workers, these agitate their minds and often result in indiscipline, †¢ †¢ Generally speaking absenteeism, insubordination, dishonesty and disloyalty, violation of plant rules, gambling, incompetence, damage to machine and property, strikes, etc., all lead to industrial indiscipline. Remedial Measure for Acts of Indiscipline: †¢ †¢ Labour is most important factor of production. Therefore an Organization can prosper only if labour is properly motivated towards the attainment of specific goals. A more humane approach is necessary to motivate them. †¢ †¢ Each worker, as an individual, needs a fair or reasonable wage to maintain himself and his family in good health and spirits. So the wage should be adequate so that the worker may meet the economic needs of his family, †¢ †¢ He Trade Union leadership should be developed from within the rank and file of workers, who would understand their problems and put it up to the management in the right perspective. Disciplinary Action: Indiscipline is the result of many interrelated reasons- economic, psychological, social etc. It needs to be properly handled. The disciplinary action must conform to certain principles e.g. †¢ †¢ The principal of natural justice must guide all enquiries and actions. No biased person to conduct inquiry, †¢ The principal of impartiality or consistency must be followed, †¢ †¢ The disciplinary authority should offer full opportunity to the worker to defend himself . Procedure for Punishment: †¢ Framing and Issuing of Charge sheet †¢ †¢ Receiving the defendants’ Explanation †¢ †¢ Issuing the notice of Inquiry †¢ †¢ Holding the Enquiry †¢ †¢ Findings of the Inquiry Officer †¢ †¢ Decision of the Disciplinary Authority †¢ †¢ Communication of the Order of Punishment Termination of Employment: †¢ †¢ Voluntary abandonment of Service by the Employee †¢ †¢ Resignation by the employee †¢ †¢ Discharge by notice thereof given by the employer †¢ †¢ Discharge or dismissal by the employer as a punishment for misconduct, †¢ †¢ Retirement on reaching the age of superannuation Type of Punishment Under Standing Orders: 1. Censure or Warning 2. Fines 3. Suspension 4. Dismissal Best of Luck.. Sample of labour grievance handling policy in a manufacturing unit: As a matter of Labour Policy name of the company, hereby lays down the following procedure for addressing employees’ grievances 1 An employee who has any grievances viz., (a) A complaint against their supervisor or co-worker (b) Problems related to methods or systems in the production floor (c) Inconveniences caused due to work environment (d) Disturbances caused by personal problems in the factory premises etc. 2 Apart from the above the management may take other problems which it may consider relevant 3 The aggrieved worker shall inform their problems in writing to any one of the following Factory Manager Technical Manager Admin Officer Welfare Officer 4 The gist of grievances of the employee shall be recorded in Employee’s Grievance Register mentioning the date and reference number if any 5 The registered complaints will be addressed within 48 hours 6 Employee may also drop their letter of grievance in the suggestion/complaint boxes kept in the production floor. 7 If the problem stated in the letter is found crucial the Factory Manager shall call concerned department head explanation and may order for enquiry. 8 The enquiry shall be done and redressal shall be made as per the company’s standing orders in force. 9 The action taken by the management will be recorded 10 The management shall refer the problems registered and action taken to solve it periodically and thus monitor the situation and ensure that the problems are not repeated. This policy on procedure for redressal is introduced to ensure good working environment in the factory, maintained at all time. NOTICE BY MINISTRY OF LABOUR FOR HANDLING GRIEVANCES DISPUTES AMONG EMPLOYEES!! MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT NOTIFICATION New Delhi , the 15th September, 2010 S.O. 2278(E).- In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of Section 1 of the Industrial Disputes (Amendment) Act, 2010 (24 of 2010), the Central Government hereby appoints the 15 th Day of September, 2010, as the date on which the said Act shall come into force. [F.No.S-11012/1/2007-IR(PL)] RAVI MATHUR, Addl. Secy. THE INDUSTRIAL DIPSUTES (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2010 No.24 OF 2010 [18 th August, 2010] An Act further to amend the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. Be it enacted by Parliament in the Sixtieth Year of the Republic of India as follows:- 1. (1) This Act may be called the Industrial Disputes (Amendment) Act, 2010. (2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint. 2. In the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act), in section 2, -. (i) in clause (a),- (a) in sub-clause (i), for the words â€Å"major port, the Central Government, and†, the words â€Å"major port, any company in which not less than fifty-one per cent of the paid-up share capital is held by the Central Government , or any corporation, not being a corporation referred to in this clause, established by or under any law made by Parliament, or the Central public sector undertaking , subsidiary companies set up by the principal undertaking and autonomous bodies owned or controlled by the Central Government, the Central Government and† shall be substituted: (b) for sub-clause (ii), the following sub-clause shall be substituted, namely:- â€Å"(ii) in relation to any other industrial dispute , including the State public sector undertaking, subsidiary companies set up by the principal undertaking and autonomous bodies owned or controlled by the State Government, the State Government.†; Provided that in case of a dispute between a contractor and the contract labour employed through the contractor in any industrial establishment where such dispute first arose, the appropriate Government shall be the Central Government or the State Government, as the case may be, which has control over such industrial establishment.†; (ii) in clause (5), in sub-clause (iv), for the words â€Å"one thousand six hundred rupees†, the words â€Å"ten thousand rupees† shall be substituted. 3. Section 2A of the principal Act shall be numbered as sub-section (1) thereof and after sub-section (l) as so numbered, the following sub-sections shall be inserted, namely:- â€Å"(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 10, any such workman as is specified in sub-section (1) may, make an application direct to the Labour Court or Tribunal for adjudication of the dispute referred to therein after the expiry of three months from the date he has made the application to the Conciliation Officer of the appropriate Government for conciliation of the dispute, and in receipt of such application the Labour Court or Tribunal shall have powers and jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the dispute, as if it were a dispute referred to it by the appropriate Government in accordance with the provisions of this Act and all the provisions of this Act shall apply in relation to such adjudication as they apply in relation to an industrial dispute referred to it by the appropriate Government. (3) The application referred to in sub-section (2) shall be made to the Labour Court or Tribunal before the expiry of three years from the date of discharge, dismissal, retrenchment or otherwise termination of service as specified in sub-section (1).† 4. In section 7 of the principal Act, in sub-section (3), after clause (e), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely:- â€Å"(f) he is or has been a Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner (Central) or Joint Commissioner of the State Labour Department , having a degree in law and at least seven years experience in the labour department after having acquired degree in law including three years of experience as Conciliation Officer: Provided that no such Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner or Joint Labour Commissioner shall be appointed unless he resigns from the service of the Central Government or State Government, as the case may be, before being appointed as the presiding officer; or (g) he is an officer of Indian Legal Service in Grade III with three years experience in the grade.† 5. In section 7A of the principal Act, in sub-section (3), after clause (aa), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely:- â€Å"(b) he is or has been a Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner (Central) or Joint Commissioner of the State Labour Department, having a degree in law and at least seven years experience in the labour department after having acquired degree in law including three years of experience as Conciliation Officer: Provided that no such Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner or Joint Labour Commissioner shall be appointed unless he resigns from the service of the Central Government or State Government, as the case may he, before being appointed as the presiding officer; or (c) he is an officer of Indian Legal Service in Grade III with three years experience in the grade.† 6. After section 9B of the principal Act, for chapter IIB, the following Chapter shall be substituted, namely:- â€Å"CHAPTER IIB GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL MACHINERY 9C. (l) Every industrial establishment employing twenty or more workmen shall have one or more Grievance Redressal Committee for the resolution of disputes arising out of individual grievances. (2) The Grievance Redressal Committee shall consist of equal number of members from the employer and the workmen. (3) The chairperson of the Grievance Redressal Committee shall be selected from the employer and from among the workmen alternatively on rotation basis every year. (4) The total number of members of the Grievance Redressal Committee shall not exceed more than six: Provided that there shall be, as far as practicable, one woman member if the Grievance Redressal Committee has two members and in case the number of members are more than two, the number of women members may be increased proportionately. (5) Notwithstanding anything contained in this section, the setting up of Grievance Redressal Committee shall not affect the right of the workman to raise industrial dispute on the same m atter under the provisions of this Act. (6) The Grievance Redressal Committee may complete its proceedings within forty-five days on receipt of a written application by or on behalf of the aggrieved party. (7) The workman who is aggrieved of the decision of the Grievance Redressal Committee may prefer an appeal to the employer against the decision of Grievance Redressal Committee and the employer shall, within one month from the date of receipt of such appeal, dispose off the same and send a copy of his decision to the workman concerned. Nothing contained in this section shall apply to the workmen for whom there is an established Grievance Redressal Mechanism in the establishment concerned.† 7. In section 11 of the principal Act, after sub-section , the following sub-sections shall be inserted, namely:- â€Å"(9) Every award made, order issued or settlement arrived at by or before Labour Court or Tribunal or National Tribunal shall be executed in accordance with the procedure laid down for execution of orders and decree of a Civil Court under order 21 of the Code of Civil Procedure , 1908. (10) The Labour Court or Tribunal or National Tribunal, as the case may be, shall transmit any award, order or settlement to a Civil Court having jurisdiction and such Civil Court shall execute the award, order or settlement as if it were a decree passed by it.† 8. In section 38 of the principal Act, in sub-section (2),- (i) clause (ab) shall be omitted; (ii) for clause (c), the following clause shall be substituted, namely:- â€Å"(c) the salaries and allowances and the terms and conditions for appointment of the presiding officers of the Labour Court, Tribunal and the National Tribunal including the allowances admissible to members of Courts, Boards and to assessors and witnesses;†.

Issues in Historic Building Conservation

Issues in Historic Building Conservation Construction Technology and Rehabilitation Referring to specific case studies this paper aims to investigate attitudes towards the preservation and restoration of historic buildings and the influences and constraints which might affect the development of such buildings. Why preserve? Many buildings are either deserted by their owners when the cost of restoration becomes too great, or demolished when the lesser expense of a new development and its saleability are of greater appeal. The future of historic buildings relies not only on the people or governing bodies that own them, but also on organizations such as English Heritage that list and protect buildings from development and raise public awareness through schemes such as the ‘Blue Plaque’ scheme (www.english-heritage.org). The relatively recent enthusiasm for television programmes about restoration have also helped heighten awareness. As Philip Wilkinson phrases it: ‘Old buildings form strong links with the past () to historians and archaeologists they are precious documents, unlocking information about the life, art, aspirations, and technology of the people who built them and used them.’ (Wilkinson: 2005, p.13) Long-term preservation can dramatically increase the economy of an area. For example, Bath and North East Somerset which is famous for its Georgian and stone buildings generates a huge revenue through tourism because of the efforts taken to conserve its rich heritage. The expense often proves a deterrent but in the case of either private land owners or council owned properties English Heritage and other such organisations such as the Funds for Historic Buildings (www.ffhb.org.uk) can provide financial aid in the form of grants, tax relief, and subsidised loans. Safety, Security and Assessment ‘The George Inn’ a mediaeval Inn, five miles south of Bath, owned by the Wadworth family, was restored in 1998 by Stansell Conservation, West Country Tiling, under the direction of Acanthus members, Ferguson Mann Architects. (http://www.buildingconservation.com/articles/george/george.htm). A major part of the building was unoccupied and unusable, and the task was to conserve and repair, then turn the pub into a small hotel with 12 bedrooms and ensuite bathrooms. Being of large timber framed structure with intricate stonework and huge stone slate roofs, the procedures had to be selected carefully. Other considerations were taken into account; such as its archaeological investigation, and adhering to the fire-safety requirements of creating hotel accommodation. The original plan depended on the creation of accommodation on the top floor of the main building: however, the provision of an alternative means of escape would have involved major interventions to the building so this plan was altered: Fire safety presented problems as the stair tower had to be protected from smoke and flames in the event of a fire. The standard solution, wired glass doors on either side of the stairs, would have had a disastrous impact on the character of the interior. The solution was to hide the fire doors in the walls so that they could not be seen when open, and to fit them with electro magnetic catches so that they would close automatically when a fire is detected. (http://www.buildingconservation.com/articles/george/george.htm). Factors to consider in the conservation of structures not only concern the building itself but also the area surrounding it. The situation of the George Inn, on the pavement of a busy main street, caused potential danger from falling stone slates and maintenance access was severely restricted. The scaffolding to the front had to be cantilevered out in a ‘complex, engineer-designed structure.’ It was therefore decided to opt for a high specification and every element of the roof covering was considered carefully. Temporary works are often needed during projects either because there is a risk that a structure might otherwise collapse or because it is necessary to remove some vital supporting member for renewal or alteration. In situations like this it is vital that the expertise of experienced architects and surveyors is sought so as to avoid unnecessary damage or alteration to the building as such mistakes can be irreparable. It is valuable to have a detailed specification for any particular project, bearing in mind that an historic building’s greatest value is the materials out of which it is made. Risk assessment and security surveys will be needed. Historic buildings can often harbour valuable treasures and can be at risk during building procedures; hence systems such as security lighting, CCTV and alarms might need installing on the site. Legislation Rehabilitation projects involve working closely with others progress depending on the reliability of contractors who could potentially go into receivership or resign. When legal matters are involved sites can often lie dormant until they are resolved. In some situations it is likely that legislative procedures will clash. For example, a fire escape on the top floor of the Inn might have impinged upon viable planning procedures for that age and type of building. More seriously, the listing of a property does not guarantee its safety. The English Heritage stipulates that the purpose of listing is to give a building ‘statutory protection against unauthorised demolition, alteration or extension.’ (www.english-heritage.org). Demolition or extensive alteration may be approved on a property if it becomes ‘de-listed’ however this usually only occurs if new evidence about the architectural or historic interest is uncovered or if extensive fire damage occurs. Decisions on the nature of works carried out on historic buildings normally depend on Listed Building Control which allows for the modification of proposals to alter or demolish the building. Sometimes planning permission can be granted and listed building co nsent refused: and unless both are approved then development cannot continue. As Michael Ross says in his publication on Planning and the Heritage: The emphasis is on conservation rather than preservation. In many cases, the two will be synonymous, but in others, the emphasis will not be on keeping the building as it is at all costs, but in ensuring that its life is guaranteed and lengthened in a way that will not destroy its special interest. That means in many cases that there will be a balance to be struck between the value of the old and the needs of the new. In others, no balance will be possible and consent will have to be refused. (Ross: 1996, p.92) If a building is not protected by law and modifications have the potential to appear unsightly or too radical in their design, then the Local Planning Authority use their discretion as to whether or not the application should be approved. In the case of Manor Farm, Over Haddon, (www.peakdistrict.org/ctte/planning/reports/2005) demolition and development of outbuildings themselves not listed but adjacent to a listed farmhouse, into office buildings and a car park was refused as the proposal was seen to seriously harm the setting and character of the listed building and the character of the Haddon conservation area. Time, Methods, and Materials Many historic buildings require consistent attention over time. For example, the Mediaeval Tithe Barn in Bradford-on-Avon was in a bad state of repair in 1914 and given to the Wiltshire Archaeological Society. Because of the war only  £400 could be spent on necessary repairs which failed to eliminate the cause of decay. (Ministry of Works, 1953). In July 1939 the Archaeological Society handed it to the Ministry of Works, and by 1975 all decaying timber in the roof trusses had been replaced, with the dangerously leaning north wall rebuilt. (Department of the Environment Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings, 1975). Restoring a building can be a monumental task and requires sufficient research and investment in order to complete the project. Furthermore, damage limitation must be considered: if a building is undergoing structural repairs then parts such as delicate roof timbers should not be exposed to the elements any longer than absolutely necessary, otherwise further problems might occur. Suitable materials need to be used, for example, lime mortar was most commonly used in old buildings as it allowed flexibility within the structure. The modern cement mortar could be disastrous as not only is it visibly different, but it’s harder consistency would restrict the movement of a building. The cleaning and repairs of the ‘Circus’ buildings in Bath during 1987 (Tindall: 1989) recorded painstaking care over the ancient stonework and close examination of the damage caused by acid rain. Problems occurred during cold weather where repairs had to be protected with dry cotton wool which gave sufficient insulation to prevent damage. Conservation and cleaning of stonework is a delicate process, and requires the patience and expertise of skilled workers. Compared to the number of people who practise modern building methods there is a shortage of knowledgeable masons, thus, as Hunter phrases it, there is’ a gap between the trained mason and the trained conservator.’ (Hunter:1980). Furthermore, this sort of conflict between traditional and modern methods arises in the function of the historic building itself. Many traditional farm buildings are abandoned, allowed to fall into ruin or demolished because they can no longer fulfil the purpose for which th ey were built. (Brunskill:1999, p.147). Such buildings can often be redeemed by converting them to domestic use, although this poses other problems such as the requirements of roof lights, windows, bathrooms and gardens which can all impinge upon the original character of the building. Conservation and repair work requires forethought and attention to detail; qualities which are not always promoted in today‘s society. Maintaining positive attitudes towards conservation is almost as essential as the work itself, and with continued education and investment the futures of historic buildings are becoming increasingly more secure. References Brunskill, R.W., 1999, 3rd Ed., Traditional Farm Buildings of Britain and their Conservation. London: Victor Gollancz Ltd. Department of the Environment Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings, 1975, The Medieval Tithe Barn, Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire. Edinburgh: HMSO Press. Hunter, D., 1990 , Bath Stone in Building: It’s use, repair and conservation. Bath City Council. Ross, M., 1996, Planning and the Heritage: Policy and Procedures. London: Spon Press Ministry of Works, 1953, The Mediaeval Tithe Barn. West Bromich: Joseph Wones Ltd. Tindall, L., 1989, Conservation in Bath, Four Studies (offprint from ASCHB). Vol.14. Bath City Council. Wilkinson, P., 2005, Restoration, the story continues.. Bath: English Heritage. www.buildingconservation.com/articles/george/george.htm www.english-heritage.org www.ffhb.org.uk www.peakdistrict.org/ctte/planning/reports/2005 Further Reading OrbaÃ…Å ¸lÄ ±, A., 2000, Tourists in Historic Towns: Urban Conservation and Heritage Management. London: E FN Spon. Stuchbury, H.E., 1973, Conservation and Development of the Historic Buildings of Bath. Journal of Planning and Environment Law, Jun 1973.

Hero Essay -- essays research papers

As a person grows so do the things they hold dear to themselves and the things they look up to. Heroes take many forms when we are children, from the comic book superhero to the imaginary friend. As we grow from children to young adults our heroes change to those more tangible, movie stars or athletes. When we reach adulthood, the definition of hero becomes clear and our heroes become those that we love and can look up to. It took me a while to realize it but my hero is an 83 year old woman. In 1986, at the ripe age of 6, I was given the news that a big storm was coming. As a child the news of a big storm frightened me, I was paralyzed by the fear of being struck by lightning. The sky became unsettled, a shade of gray that left even the brightest spirit longing. The rains came hard and fast, the thunder and lightning along with it. Shortly after the wind began to pick up. I had seen The Wizard of Oz and became extremely worried that our entire apartment building would be ripped from the foundation and taken to some far off world. At the pinnacle of the storm there was a knock at the door. Of course I didn’t hear the knock because it’s hard to hear when you have your ears plugged so as to avoid the thunder. It was Auntie Lou, everyones favorite babysitter. With rain cap on her head and umbrella in hand, she had braved the storm to come visit my sister and I. With a joyful look on her face Lou asks if anyone wanted to go for a walk. Had anyone els...

Features of Twentieth Century Literature Essay

20th century is the age of modernism in literature. 20th century’s literature follows differently from the 19th century literature, because of importance given to presentation of human consciousness and human psychology. As result new narrative techniques like impressionism and stream of consciousness has been introduced, the purpose of whom is to highlight human perception. Impressionism has been adopted by many writers, replacing realism. 20th century is an age of emphasis on inner reality, therefore psychoanalysis and human psychology is an important part of literature. Experience is given structural support by, motifs, myths, and parallel themes. Isolation and, loss of hope in humanity are one of the salient themes of modern literature. E. M. Forster, Joseph Conrad and James Joyce are three prominent writers of the twentieth century, who applied modern techniques and themes in their novels. Human consciousness is an important aspect of 20th century novel. Human, thoughts, feelings and stimulations are much important constituent of the century s fiction. In fact â€Å"A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man† is like a little world of Stephen’s mind, which is a result of an evolutionary process. Ulysses can be called the story of thought life of Stephen and Morgan within one day. Stream of consciousness is an emergent technique of 20th century novel, employed to explain human thoughts, feelings and stimulations. Stream of consciousness describes the flow of thoughts and feelings in the mind without a sequence, in other words in natural order.. Used for the first time by William James, Joyce gives new meanings to it by using in his novels, A Portrait, Ulysses and Finnegan’s Wake . Joyce makes use of stream of consciousness technique In Ulysses Mr Prince dines alone in a restaurant . Joyce takes us to his mind journey; an internal monologue â€Å"here is the soup, the smoking soup. Be careful that the waiter does not splash me†¦ in’ A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man† Stephen’s flow of thoughts is revealed when he meets a man besides the bridge. : it must be eleven he thought†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. as he turned away he heard a clock somewhere near him†¦ he laughed as he heard it as it made him think of Mac Cann†. Isolation is an evident theme of 20th century literature. Stephen in† A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man †is detached from his world. Stephen is an individual who wants to break free from the barriers of nationalism, religion and society. Stephen is standing apart from his fellows and peers,†but he apart from them and in silence, remembered in what dread he stood†¦ † Experience gets a structural support in modern literature, through parallel themes and use of myths. Ulysses is written parallel to odyssey. A portrait of the artist as a young man has the myth of Daedulus employed in it. In the writing of English fiction, the narrative technique has shifted from realism to a new method of impressionism. The purpose of impressionism is to lay stress on human perception and knowledge. It began from the work of Walter Pater and Henry James to flourish in the hands of, James Joyce, among others. Impressionism is vivid in â€Å"A Portrait of the Artist as Young Man†. Joyce uses impressionism in the epiphanic moment of Stephen’s life when he comes to know that he cannot repress nature and therefore his natural inclinations†. She seemed like one whom magic had changed into the likeness of a strange and beautiful seabird.. :† Impressionism is also employed in Joseph Conrad’s †Heart of Darkness†, which is a journey from darkness to light for Marlowe. Therefore he perceives things, learns and gets knowledge by interpreting things around him. Conrad employs impressionism for this process. .†Near the same tree two more bundles of acute angles sat with their legs drawn up†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ his brother phantom rested his forehead†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. † Imperialism and colonization is one of the modern themes in 20th century English literature. A Passage to India and, Heart of Darkness throw light on manipulation by man when he is in power. Both works utilize Britain’s Age of Empire as a backdrop for the narratives and they explore British attitudes and behavior in the foreign locales of the imperial frontier. Ivory has a strong drive for white man and he does not leave any chance to get it. The action of each work takes place against the backdrop of Empire Heart of Darkness has the morbidity and pathos of modern literature, as it shows the gruesome face of mankind. Conrad has lack of hope in the modern man. Therefore Heart of Darkness raises important questions about the development of civilization. The civilized man plays havoc with the surroundings of the jungle, unchecked by rules and regulations. The developed society thus is held questionable. The white man plays a worse role than the barbaric who according to Marlowe’s observation probably don’t even know the concept of time. Heart of darkness is also a journey of self realization, both of Marlowe and Kurtz. Marlowe has a passion for maps since childhood. Maps lead towards new ways and help in exploration. Marlowe explores human self and the rotten truths of colonization during his journey up to the river to meet Kurtz. Heart of darkness has the perspective quality of 20th century literature. Conrad places the narrator inside the action of the story in order to remain impersonal. The narrator has an individual voice he interprets the things in his own way and thus we see a perspective of an individual. Conrad does not project any ideology or theory, but just scans the grim faces of mankind. A Passage to India by E. M. Forster is a novel on colonial rule and differences between the natives and British are revealed. It is a relationship between colonized and the colonizer. It discusses the modern problem of clash between cultures . It is a discourse on the cultural differences between two nations. In A Passage to India, the story of Adela Quested false accusation against the Indian Dr. Aziz ,that he attempted to rape her on an expedition to the Marabar Caves, becomes symbolic of the distortions of understanding and interpretation that can occur between cultures, and of the injustice that inevitably occurs when one people holds power over another . The passage to India is a discourse on the in understandable existence of man. It has the questions about the man’s existence which are the feature of 20th century literature. Marabar Caves themselves are an important symbol Their freezing regularity, hard to decipher echo that follows any sound made within them, come to represent the nullity of human action, the meaninglessness of existence. As in all 20th century literature the psychological effect of the colonization is clear in a passage to India. The British people cannot come out of the psychological influence that they are a much exotic race than the Orientals, where as the natives are hostile to them. As a result it ends up that with their given psychologies the two nations cannot unite. Ms Adela quested cannot stand the reality, the real India and her illusion becomes symbolic of the psychological crisis. Ms Moore undergoes a transformation as compared to other English men.

The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Essays

The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Essays The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Paper The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Paper Human cells are the smallest structures capable of maintaining life and reproducing. They compose all living things, from single-celled plants to multibillion-celled animals. The human body, which is made up of numerous cells, begins as a single newly fertilized cell. Almost all human cells are microscopic in size. To give you an idea of how small a cell is, one average sized adult body, according to one estimate, consists of 100 trillion cells. The brain cells that create brain activity are called neurons. â€Å"The neuron (nerve cell) is the information-processing and information-transmitting element of the nervous system† (Carlson, 2007 p. 30). The brain and spinal cord are made up of many cells, including neurons and glial cells. Neurons are cells that send and receive electro-chemical signals to and from the brain and nervous system. There are about 100 billion neurons in the brain. There are many more glial cells; they provide support functions for the neurons, and are far more numerous than neurons. Structure of Brain Cells Each of the neurons has a cell body. â€Å"The soma (cell body) contains the nucleus and much of the machinery that provides for the life processes of the cell and its shape varies considerably in different kinds of neurons† (Carlson, 2007 p. 30). However, there are two kinds of fibers: axons and dendrites. Axons are â€Å"the long, thin cylindrical structure that conveys information from the soma of a neuron to its terminal buttons† (Carlson, 2007 p. 30). Dendrites are â€Å"a branched, treelike structure attached to the soma of a neuron; receives information from the terminal buttons of other neurons† (Carlson, 2007 p. 30). Each neuron has one axon along The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 4 which it sends electrical impulses to other neurons. Each neuron has a variable number of dendrites which have many branches. The axon from one neuron is attached to the dendrites of other neurons. The point at which they attach is called the synapse. The synapse is the â€Å"junction between the terminal button of an axon and the membrane of another neuron† (Carlson, 2007 p. 30). Furthermore, dendrites bring information to the cell body and axons take information away from the cell body. This is the process of thinking (Cohen, Kessler Gordon, 1988). A Map of the Brain Corpus callosum – Band of nerves between two hemispheres of the brain. Thalamus – Switching station for information going into the brain Basal ganglia – Control movement and cognitive functions Hypothalamus – Regulates sex hormones, blood pressure and body temperature Pituitary gland – Produces hormones; influences hormone production in other glands Amygdala – Regulates heartbeat; orders flight-or-flight reactions Hippocampus – Critical to long-term memory function Cerebellum – Coordinates movement How Nerve Signals Travel Carlson, (2007) states nerve signal proceeds in the following manner: 1. An electrical impulse is generated in the body of a neuron (nerve cell). The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 5 2. The impulse travels down the axon to an axon terminal (nerve ending). 3. At the axon terminal the impulse triggers the release of neurotransmitters. 4. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that enable a nerve impulse to jump across the synapse (the gap between nerve cells) at the axon terminal. 5. Once across the synapse, some neurotransmitters trigger the receiver cell; others prevent it from firing. Role of Brain in Mental Illness The belief that the mind plays an important role in physical illness goes back to the earliest days of medicine. From the time of the ancient Greeks to the beginning of the 20th century, it was generally accepted by both physician and patient that the mind can affect the course of illness, and it seemed natural to apply this concept in medical treatments of disease. Chemicals produced by immune cells signal the brain, and the brain in turn sends chemical signals to restrain the immune system. These same chemical signals also affect behavior and the response to stress. Disruption of this communication network in any way, whether inherited or through drugs, toxic substances or surgery exacerbates the diseases that these systems guard against: infectious, inflammatory, autoimmune, and associated mood disorders (Robert Sapolsky, 1998). The brain’s stress response system is activated in threatening situations. The immune system responds automatically to pathogens and foreign molecules. These two response systems are the body’s principle means for maintaining an internal steady state called homeostasis. A substantial proportion of human cellular machinery is dedicated to maintaining it. When The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 6 homeostasis is disturbed or threatened, a repertoire of molecular, cellular and behavioral responses comes into play. These responses attempt to counteract the disturbing forces in order to reestablish a steady state. They can be specific to the foreign invader or a particular stress, or they can be generalized and nonspecific when the threat to homeostasis exceeds a certain threshold. The adaptive responses may themselves turn into stressors capable of producing disease. The immune system’s job is to bar foreign pathogens from the body and to recognize and destroy those that penetrate its shield (Rubin Staddon, 1999). The immune system must also neutralize potentially dangerous toxins; facilitate repair of damaged or worn tissues, and dispose of abnormal cells. Its responses are so powerful that they require constant regulation to ensure that they are neither excessive nor indiscriminate and yet remain effective. When the immune system escapes regulation, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases or immune deficiency syndromes result. The central nervous and immune systems, however, are more similar than different in their modes of receiving, recognizing and integrating various signals and in their structural design for accomplishing these tasks. Both the central nervous system and the immune system possess â€Å"sensory† elements (Rubin Staddon, 1999), which receive information from the environment and other parts of the body; and motor elements, which carry out an appropriate response. Both systems also rely on chemical mediators for communication. Electrical signals along nerve pathways, for instance, are converted to chemical signals at the synapses between neurons. The chemical messengers produced by immune cells communicate not only with other The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 7 parts of the immune system but also with the brain and nerves (Robert Sapolsky, 1998). Chemicals released by nerve cells can act as signals to immune cells. Hormones from the body travel to the brain in the bloodstream, and the brain itself makes hormones. Indeed, the brain is perhaps the most prolific endocrine organ in the body and produces many hormones that act both on the brain and on the tissues throughout the body. A key hormone shared by the central nervous and immune systems is corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH); produced in the hypothalamus and several other brain regions, it unites the stress and immune responses (Science, 2001). The hypothalamus releases CRH into a specialized bloodstream circuit that conveys the hormone to the pituitary gland, which lies just beneath the brain. CRH causes the pituitary to release adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH into the bloodstream, which stimulates the adrenal glands to produce cortisol, the best-known stress hormone. Cortisol is a steroid hormone that increases the rate and strength of heart contractions, sensitizes blood vessels to the actions of norepinephrine, an adrenaline like hormone, and affects many metabolic functions as well as actions that help the body meet a stressful situation (Gerrig Zimbardo, 2002). In addition, cortisol is a potent immunoregulator and anti-inflammatory agent. It plays a crucial role in preventing the immune system from overreacting to injuries and damaging tissues. Furthermore, cortisol inhibits the release of CRH by the hypothalamus which also keeps this component of stress response under control (Rubin Staddon, 1999). Thus, CRH and cortisol directly link the body’s brain regulated stress response and its immune response. The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 8 CRH-secreting neurons of the hypothalamus send fibers to regions in the brain stem that help to regulate the sympathetic nervous system, as well as to another brain stem area called the locus ceruleus. The sympathetic nervous system, which mobilizes the body during stress, also innervates immune organs, such as the thymus, lymph nodes and spleen, and helps to control inflammatory responses throughout the body. Stimulation of the locus ceruleus leads to behavioral arousal, fear and enhanced vigilance (Rubin Staddon, 1999). Perhaps even more important for the induction of fear related behaviors is the amygdala, where inputs from the sensory regions of the brain are charged as stressful or not. CRH-secreting neurons in the central nucleus of the amygdala send fibers to the hypothalamus, the locus ceruleus, and to other parts of the brain stem. These CRH-secreting neurons are targets of messengers released by immune cells during an immune response (Rubin Staddon, 1999). Cytokines is the more general term for biological molecules that many different kinds of cells use to communicate. Each cytokine is a distinct protein molecule, encoded by a separate gene that targets a particular cell type. A cytokine can either stimulate or inhibit a response depending on the presence of other cytokines or other stimuli and the current state of metabolic activity (Science, 2001). This flexibility allows the immune system to take the most appropriate actions to stabilize the local cellular environment arid to maintain homeostasis. Activation of the brain by cytokines from the peripheral parts of the body induces behaviors of the stress response, such as anxiety and cautious avoidance that keep an individual out of harm’s way until full healing occurs. Anyone who has experienced lethargy and excess The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 9 sleepiness during an illness will recognize this set of responses as â€Å"sickness behavior† (Carson, Butcher, Mineka, 2000). Brain and Depression Although the role of the stress response in inflammatory disease in humans is more difficult to prove, there is growing evidence that a wide variety of such diseases are associated with impairment of the HPA axis and lower levels of CRH secretion, which ultimately results in a hyperactive immune system. Furthermore, patients with a mood disorder called atypical depression also have a blunted stress response and impaired CRH function, which leads to lethargy, fatigue, increased sleep and increased eating that often results in weight gain. A deficiency of CRH could contribute to lethargy in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome. Injection of CRH into these patients causes a delayed and blunted ACTH secretion by the HPA axis. That same response is also seen in patients whose hypothalamus has been injured or who have a tumor (Dobbs, 2006). Also, fatigue and hyperactivity of the immune response are associated with cortisol deficiency, which occurs when CRH secretion decreases. The hormone levels and responses in patients with fatigue syndromes suggest, but do not prove, that their HPA axis functions are impaired, resulting in a decrease in CRH and cortisol secretion and an increase in immune system activity. Together these findings indicate that human illness characterized by fatigue and hyperim unity could possibly be treated by drugs that mimic CRH actions in the brain (Dobbs, 2006). The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 10 When it comes to the chemistry of the human brain, dopamine and serotonin are the reigning stars. Like other neurotransmitters, they trigger and modulate the electrical signals that nerve cells use to communicate. In comparison, the chemicals called trace amines are considered mere bit players. Now, a study reveals that people have genes that encode cell surface proteins dedicated to responding to trace amines (Kowalski, 1999). Trace amines, so named because they’re present at low concentrations in the human brain, drew considerable interest in the 1960’s. They turned out to be the key neurotransmitters in insect brains, but interest in the chemicals waned when scientists failed to find dedicated receptors in vertebrates. The low concentrations of trace amines and their rapid turnover in the brain also made them difficult to study. Meanwhile, scientists identified receptors for dopamine and serotonin, which led to the development of crucial drugs (Kowalski, 1999). The trace amines, which include tryamine, betaphenylethylamine (beta-PEA), tryptamine, and octopamine, continued to draw some attention. Studies showed that diets rich in these chemicals can elevate a person’s blood pressure and trigger Imipramines in patients taking antidepressants know as MAO inhibitors. The reason for this is that unlike axons, there are no voltage-activated ion channels in the cell membrane of dendrites, so the electrical signal cannot regenerate itself. Instead, it gets smaller and smaller as it travels from the synapse to the cell body (Kowalski, 1999). Brain and Anxiety The classic form of depression, melancholia, is actually not a state of inactivation and suppression of thought and feeling; rather it presents as an organized state of anxiety. The The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 11 anxiety of melancholia is chiefly about the self. Melancholic patients feel impoverished and defective and often express hopelessness about the prospects for their unworthy selves in either love or work. The anxious hyper-arousal of melancholic patients also manifests as a pervasive sense of vulnerability (Carver Scheier, 2000). Many studies have been conducted on patients with major depression to determine whether the excessive level of cortisol associated with depression correlates with suppressed immune responses. Some have found a correlation between hypercortisolism and immunosuppressant; other have not. Because depression can have a variety of mental and biochemical causes, only some depressed patients may be immunosuppressed (Goldstein Dekker, 2001). The excessive secretion of cortisol in melancholic patients is predominantly the result of hyper secretion of CRH, caused by a defect in or above the hypothalamus. Thus, the clinical and biochemical manifestations of melancholia reflect a generalized stress response that has escaped the usual counter regulation, remaining stuck in the on position. The effects of tricyclic antidepressant drugs on components of the stress response support the concept that melancholia is associated with a chronic stress response. In rats, regular, but not acute, administration of the tricyclic antidepressant Imipramine significantly lowers the levels of CRH precursors in the hypothalamus (Jeanette, Webster Esther, 2002). Imipramine given for two months to healthy people with normal cortisol levels causes a gradual and sustained decrease in CRH secretion and other HPA axis functions, indicating that down regulation of important The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 12 components of the stress response is an intrinsic effect of Imipramine (Goldstein Dekker, 2001). Brain and Stress Stress not only is personal but is perceived through the prism of social interactions. These interactions can either add to or lessen psychological stress and affect our hormonal responses to it, which in turn can alter immune responses. For instance, in humans, loneliness is associated with a â€Å"threat,† or adrenaline-like pattern of activation of the stress response and high blood pressure, whereas exercising is associated with a â€Å"challenge† pattern of high blood flow and cardiac output (Sternberg, 2001). Studies have shown that people exposed to chronic social stresses for more than two months have increased susceptibility to the common cold. The popular belief that stress exacerbates inflammatory illness and that relaxation or removal of stress ameliorates it may indeed have a basis in fact. The interactions of the stress and immune systems and the hormonal responses they have in common could explain how conscious attempts to tone down responsively to stress could affect immune responses. How much of the response to stress is genetically determined and how much can be consciously controlled is not known. The set point of the stress response is to some extent genetically determined (Sternberg, 2001). In addition, factors in early development, learning, and later experiences contribute to differences in stress responsiveness. An event that is physiologically highly stressful to one individual may be much less or so to another, depending on the sum of each person’s genetic tendency to hormonal reactivity and their previous The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 13 experience. In my opinion, the degree to which stress could precipitate or exacerbate disease would then depend not only on the intensity and duration of the stressful stimulus but also on the person’s ability and learned perception of the event as stressful and on the set point of the stress system. Psychological stress can affect an individual’s susceptibility to infectious diseases. The regulation of the immune system by the neuro-hormonal stress system provides a biological basis for understanding how stress might affect these diseases. Thus stress hormones released from the brain, cortisol from the adrenal glands, and nerve chemicals, such as norepinephrine and epinephrine released from nerve endings, all modify the ability of immune cells to fight infectious agents and foreign molecules (Mayer Saper, 2000). There is evidence that stress does affect human immune responses to viruses and bacteria. In studies with volunteers given a standard dose of the common cold virus rhinovirus, individuals who are simultaneously exposed to stress show more viral particles and produce more mucus than do not stressed individuals (Jeanette, Webster Esther, 2002). Stress and the Role of Social Support in Bereavement; A Theoretical Analysis According to cognitive stress theories, critical life events such as bereavement are stressful because they require major readjustments. The intensity of stress created by a life event depends on the extent to which the perceived demands of the situation tax or exceed an individual’s coping resources, given that failure to cope leads to important negative consequences. Stress theory provides the theoretical underpinning for the â€Å"buffering model,† The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 14 which suggests that high levels of social support protect the individual against the deleterious impact of stress on health (Lazarus Folkman, 1984). According to Cohen and Willis (1985), there are two ways in which social support can buffer the individual against the negative impact of the stress experience. First, support can intervene between the stressful event and a stress reaction by attenuating or preventing a stress appraisal response. Second, adequate support may intervene between the experience of stress and the onset of the pathological response by eliminating the stress reaction or by directly influencing physiological processes. Whereas these two pathways reduce the individual’s vulnerability to the impact of the stressful event, however a third way in which social support may affect individual stress response, namely, by aiding in recovery. Thus, social support may also help individuals to recover more readily from the impact of the stressful life event. The Deficit Model of Partner Loss was developed as an application to cognitive stress theory to bereavement. On the basis of the interactional definition of stress, the deficit model offers an analysis of the situational demands characteristic of widowhood and of the coping resources needed to deal with these demands. Marital bereavement marks the end of a close mutual relationship, and the loss of a partner is likely to result in a number of deficits in areas in which the spouse had previously been able to rely on the partner. The Deficit Model suggests that the loss of a partner leads to deficits in areas that can broadly be characterized as loss of instrumental support, loss of validational support, loss of emotional support, and the loss of social contact support. The Deficit Model postulates that social support alleviates the stress of The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 15 bereavement, but only to the extent to which it helps to replace the deficits created by the loss of a partner (W. Stroebe M. Stroee, 1987; K. Gergen, M. Gergen, 1980, 1982). It follows from the Deficit Model that bereaved individuals are in greater need of social support than married individuals. The model therefore predicts an interaction of social support and marital status on the level of psychological symptoms, such as the buffering effect. However, because it is unlikely that family and friends are able to alleviate completely the deficits caused by the loss of the partner, one would also expect a main effect of marital status on symptomatology. In contrast, attachment theory rejects the notion that supportive friends can compensate for the loss of an attachment figure (Bowlby, 1969; Weiss, 1975). Bowlby (1969) proposed that the attachment figure, unlike other people in the social environment, was uniquely able to foster general feelings of security and that other people could not simply take over this function. He thus goes beyond optimal matching by not only requiring a match between the characteristics of stressful events confronting the individual and the form of social support that is beneficial in this context, but by stating categorically that this type of social support can only be provided by one specific type of person (Cutrona Russell, 1990). Weiss (1975) elaborated these ideas in his relational theory of loneliness, in which he drew a fundamental distinction between emotional and social loneliness and argued that the two types of loneliness cannot compensate for each other: The loneliness of emotional isolation appears in the absence of a close emotional attachment or the reintegration of the one that had been lost. Those experiencing this form of loneliness are apt to experience a sense of utter The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 16 aloneness, whether or not the companionship of others is in fact accessible (Weiss, 1975). Thus, according to attachment theory, social support from relatives and friends cannot compensate for the major deficit caused by bereavement, namely, the loss of an attachment figure. However, social support should help with a second type of loneliness, namely, the loneliness of social isolation. Social loneliness is associated with the absence of an engaging social network, and this absence can only be remedied by access to such a network. The dominant feeling of this type of loneliness is boredom, together with feelings of marginality (Weiss, 1975). Attachment theory thus suggests that marital status and social support influence well being by distinctly different pathways, with the impact of marital status being mediated by emotional loneliness and the impact of social support by social loneliness. According to this Dual-Path Model, one would predict main effects of marital status and social support on measures of symptomatology, but no interaction. Because each of these main effects is assumed to be mediated by a different type of loneliness, one would further expect marital status to affect emotional but not social loneliness and social support to affect social but not emotional loneliness. Finally, one would expect that control for emotional loneliness should reduce or eliminate the impact of marital status on symptomatology, whereas control for social loneliness should reduce or eliminate the effect of social support on symptom levels. The two major theories of bereavement outcome thus make different and partly contradictory predictions about the role of social support in adjustment to loss. Consistent with popular beliefs about the helpfulness of social support to the bereaved, cognitive stress theory predicts a social support times a marital status interaction on symptomatology constitutes the The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 17 buffering effect, in addition to a main effect of marital status. In contrast, attachment theory predicts main effects of both marital status and social support on levels of symptoms, but no interaction. It further suggests that these two main effects on symptomatology are mediated by different types of loneliness. These predictions have not yet been addressed by empirical research. Stress and the Role of Social Support in Adjustment to Loss; A Review of the Evidence Guided by stress theory, research on the role of social support in adjustment to loss has focused exclusively on testing the buffering against the main effect model. As Cohen and Wills (1985) argued in their influential review of the literature on the social support, such tests require a factorial design that includes at least two levels of stress and two levels of social support. Furthermore, to test whether social support buffers individuals against the negative impact of the loss of a marital partner, one has to compare the impact of social support in bereaved and married samples. Buffering effects would be reflected by a statistical interaction of social support with marital status on health. In the earlier review of literature on social support and bereavement up to 1986 (W. Stroebe M. Stroebe, 1987), there were no studies found that satisfied these criteria. In the meantime, a few studies using adequate designs, comparing the impact of levels of social support in bereaved samples to that of married controls, have been published. The results are not unanimous in favor of buffering. Although some do indeed report evidence of buffering (Krause, 1986; Norris Murrell, 1990; Schwarzer, 1992), albeit using measures of social integration or received social support, other do not (Greene Feld, 1989; Murphy, 1988). The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 18 Krause (1986) studied the impact of life stresses and social support on depressive symptoms in a random sample of 351 individuals older than 65 living in Galveston, Texas. Social support was assessed with a modified version of the Inventory of Socially Supportive Behaviors (ISSB: Barrera, Sandler, Ramsay, 1981). Depressive symptomatology was assessed with the Center for Epidemiology Studies Depression Scale (CES-D; Radloff, 1977). Whereas no buffering effects occurred for the overall indicator of stressful life events, buffering was found for the numerically undefined subgroup of individuals who had been bereaved within the previous year. These buffering effects modified weak bereavement main effects. As part of a larger study of individuals aged 55 and older, Norris and Murrell (1990) obtained interviews of three samples of older adults: 45 persons who had recently lost a spouse, 40 who had lost a parent or child, and 45 who were not bereaved. Depression was assessed with the CES-D. Social support was measured with the Louisville Social Support Scale which consists of two subscales reflecting social integration, or embeddedness in a social network, and expected help. â€Å"Expected help taps the respondents more specific expectations of help in an emergency from family, friends, and community† (Norris Murrell, 1987 p. 431) and appears to reflect aspects of perceived social support. However, expected help had no impact on depression, an ameliorative effect of social embeddedness on depression was reported. The more individuals were embedded in their social networks, the less they were depressed nine months after their loss. This association between social embeddedness and depression was The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 19 stronger for the widowed sample than for a combined control group consisting of individuals who were either not bereaved or had lost a parent or child. Schwarzer (1992) studied a sample of 248 individuals about the age of 60, of which 152 had lost a family member or a friend within the previous year. Social support was defined in terms of visits by children and family members. The criterion measure in this study was anxiety, assessed with a German version of the State-Trait Personality Inventory (Schwarzer Schwarzer, 1983). When the sample was dichotomized into those who were visited at least every other week and those who received fewer visits, a clear buffering effect was observed, with loss having no impact on anxiety for individuals who received many visits but a strong impact on those who received few visits. One puzzling feature of these studies is that buffering effects were observed for measures of social support that typically do not yield buffering effects. According to Cohen and Wills (1985), buffering effects ought only to be found with measures of perceived social support but not with network measures or scales assessing received social support. In contrast, the above studies report buffering effects with measures of social network (Krause, 1986) or received social support (Norris Murrell, 1990; Schwarzer, 1992). The one study that assessed both social embeddedness and perceived social support did not find any effects for perceived social support (Norris Murrell, 1990). It is plausible that this discrepancy has something to do with the fact that the study included only elderly individuals, a subgroup for whom the needs, provisions, consequences, and perceptions of social support are very different from those of younger groups. The Role of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression 20 Two studies, both using samples of more long term bereaved, did not find buffering effects. In a follow up assessment of 49 family members and close friends of 51 adult disaster victims of the Mount Saint Helens volcano eruption conducted 3 years after the disaster, in which their mental distress was compared with that of a non-bereaved control group, there was no evidence or main or buffering effects (Murphy, 1988). Social support was measured with an index developed by scientists that assesses social embeddedness, as well as perceived social support (Coppel, 1980). Greene and Feld (1989) examined the relationship between social support and well-being in groups of 151 married women and 60 widowed women who had lost their partner within the previous five years. Respondents were drawn from a national sample of women aged 50 and older. Social support was assessed in terms of the number of social support function for which respondents mentioned one or more social supporters. Well-being was measured w

An era of inhumanity essays

An era of inhumanity essays Uncle Toms Cabin is one of the most famous and popular pieces of Civil War literature. It was drawn from selected pieces of a real life memoir done by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Toms Cabin was a book that drew many people into the fight over the institution of slavery. Few books can truly be said to have altered the course of history, and even fewer can be said to have started an entire war. Uncle Toms Cabin was one such novel. It is a realistic, although fictional, view of slavery that burned into the consciousness of America the images of brutal beatings and unfair slave practices. Originally planned for a series of short essays for the National Era in 1851-1852, Stowe gathered so much information, that it was too large for newspaper print, and was published originally by the Boston publishing company Jewett. (Smith, 1). Immediately, it became a hot seller with Northerners and Southerners alike. Many argued that there were false reports in what she wrote because the slave owners were portrayed as heartless devilish men, and the slaves were portrayed as their victims. Uncle Toms Cabin tells a story of adversity in the struggle for freedom, a look into human cruelty as well as human compassion, and one mans loyalty to those he is indentured to. The novel is more than just a narrative of slaves, but of human emotion rising up in the face of adversity. It is a story of the fight for freedom and an account of the history of America. (Smith, 1). The author brings out the humanity in the slaves and describes the great injustices that took place during the time. The main characters in this story are Uncle Tom, Eliza, and George Harris. We are cordially introduced to Uncle Tom. He is a large, broad-chested, powerfully-made man, of a full glossy black, and a face whose truly African features are characterized by and expression of grave and steady ...

DiscussionCar Loans And Insurance Example

DiscussionCar Loans And Insurance Example DiscussionCar Loans And Insurance – Coursework Example Car Loans and Insurance affiliations Car Loans and Insurance The advantages of leasing a car include lower monthly payments with no or low down payments. The client also experiences no depreciation concerns since the car is owned by the bank or financial institution. The cons of leasing a vehicle are that it attracts huge monthly premiums and miles dictated by the bank or financial institution. The advantages of purchasing a car include the eventual ownership of the vehicle once the payments are complete. The client has the authority to customize the vehicle and modify accessories and never worry about the mileage. The disadvantages of purchasing a car include higher monthly installments, and the client has to consider the depreciation and repair costs than when buying a car. Deciding between purchasing and leasing an automobile would depend on the intended usage and the prevailing financial status (Delbridge, 2015). Lease companies in Hawaii require that lease buyers acquire gap in surance on their automobiles. The insurance provider issues the total amount relating to the value of the leased vehicle at the time of the total loss in case of a comprehensive or the collision coverage. Where the car has been purchased, the owner can acquire lower rate insurance cover from an insurance provider of choice. Mostly, the lease insurance premiums in Hawaii are higher than those of a purchased vehicle. The difference occurs due to the requirements placed by the leasing organization (Carlozo, 2015). Other variables that affect the insurance premiums include the car model with some regarded as safer than others by the insurance companies. The other factor is the client’s driving record and their credit history. A driver likely to cause more accidents and has a poor credit rating is required to pay higher premiums. The age and the marital status are also considered by most, but not all insurance companies when determining the premium rates. To ensure lower premiums, one should maintain a clean record, take a defensive driving course, improve the credit rating, and ensure there are no unnecessary coverage (Carlozo, 2015).ReferencesCarlozo, L. (2015). Why you should (Almost) never lease a car. Retrieved from moneyunder30.com/why-you-should-never-lease-a-car Delbridge, E. (2015). Pros and cons of leasing vs. buying a car - Car insurance. Retrieved from http://carinsurance.about.com/od/CarLoans/a/Pros-And-Cons-Of-Leasing-Vs-Buying-A-Car.htm

Minimum age for social networking sites Research Paper

Minimum age for social networking sites - Research Paper Example In this case, â€Å"inappropriate† means that the dangers outweigh the benefits of having an account on one of these sites. There are many dangers associated with these SNSs. One of the dangers is that these social networking sites often display sexual content. A content analysis of MySpace in 2006 found that 59% of the profiles on that site had photos that were sexual or risque, while 56% of the profiles had at least some profanity in them (Nyland, et al., 2007). Moreover, there is a general fear that sexual predators are lurking on-line – a 2008 study revealed that 4% of young people encountered unwanted sexual advances on an SNS (Ybarra & Mitchell, 2008, p. e350) - although at least one commentator believes that this fear is overblown, and that tech-savvy teenagers have found ways to thwart these predators by adjusting their privacy settings and their on-line behavior (Tynes, 2007, p. 582). Cyberbullying, which is defined as repeated harmful contact that is perpetrated by cell phone, e-mail or through an SNS, is another danger that young people may face on these sites (Mesch, 2009, p. 288). At the same time, there is evidence that young adults – ages 18 through 25 – benefit greatly from these websites. Research indicates that this is the period of life where long-term social skills are developed, skills that are essential to develop relationships and find careers. SNSs are important in this development, as they help the young person find new relationships and strengthen existing ones (Steinfeld, et al., 2008, p. 435). These relationships are integral in attaining â€Å"social capital,† which refers to the benefits an individual receives from his or her social connections, and develop psycho-socially (Steinfeld, et al., 2008, p. 435). Part of this development is the fact that shy young people often do not feel the same sense of awkwardness and shyness on-line that he or she feels in the

Discussion of 2 poems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discussion of 2 poems - Essay Example One of the bold statements made about fame in a negative manner is that of the poet Emily Dickenson. She uses metaphor to liken fame to a bee. It is known that a bee can be deadly and that is how the poet wants to paint what this most sought status really is. She implies that behind the good things that people see in fame, things are not always as they seem. Therefore, she uses figurative speech to catch the attention of her audience. Dickenson’s â€Å"Fame is a Bee† is a very short poem but it says a lot of things. The author effectively expressed her thoughts with four lines only by using simple but meaningful words. The analogy therefore is not difficult to understand rather could be easily seen by any observant. It does not even need keen observation in order for a person to be able to associate the characteristics of a bee to fame because it is explicitly mentioned to make things clearly and easily understood by readers. On the other hand, Edna St. Vincent Millay talks about love in her poem â€Å"Love is Not All†. Similarly, she speaks about the unfavorable side of love. For many people, when love is mentioned, they would think about passion and all the good feelings love brings. People easily create a positive attitude toward the subject matter because they associate it with the satisfaction derived from relationships formed through what is known as love. Nevertheless, Millay presents it differently. She draws the attention of her readers to the other side of the coin. She also uses metaphor to express her thoughts. However, unlike Dickenson, Millay uses negation to show her point. On the seventh line, Millay shifts her tone to a more serious one, mentioning death which could not have been expected at all when love is to be mentioned. The poet tries to draw her reader’s attention to the fact that behind every good thing, there is something that is not desirable yet every individual has to

Sport obermeyer, Ltd. Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Sport obermeyer, Ltd. - Case Study Example Employing use of 1,200 units would also assist in faster production and achievement of the 10 percent capacity target before the end of projected seven months. Choice of 1,200 units remains consistent and convenient for other styles used by Obermeyer. Forecasts of all the individuals in Exhibit 10 range up to 20, 000 units, therefore, affirming consistency with Wally’s production projection. The units would also not face more stringent rules because Hong Kong places fewer restrictions on minimum orders quantities for a given company. Therefore, the company would experience fewer risks in sourcing the units. It is imperative that quality products result from the use of manageable units. Obermeyer should conduct time operational change in the process of sourcing and production of raw materials. Conducting time operational change would involve reducing the period of acquiring raw materials from suppliers. Initially, Obersports suppliers took a longer time of 90 days to supply raw materials that consequently slowed the production process. Time operational change would ensure prompt production and improvement in performance of the company. Consequently, reducing period of sourcing raw materials and production process would effectively help Obersports to meet its market demands. Obermeyer should conduct market research and establish stronger business links with its retailers. Apparently, sale of Obermeyer products remains seasonal with its peak on December and January. Operational change that would ensure timely delivery of products in large quantities to trusted retailers would improve sales. Obermeyer should give its established retailers goods on credit to ensure timely delivery to the market. Obermeyer should conduct publicity campaigns to accelerate the popularity of its produce among retailers and customers. Proper advertisement would solve issues associated with retail replenishment orders. Currently, selling of Obersports products fluctuates throughout the

Oryx and Crake literacy argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Oryx and Crake literacy argument - Essay Example In the novel, genetic mutations and the creation of a new beings (hybrids of the human race), love and humanity slowly is growing extinct. The novel bases off of a realistic society in the future, despite the genetic transitions, flashing back to Snowman’s life, when he was still Jimmy, when he had morals and love in his life then flashing back to the present to a completely different dynamic in the world. Slowly, love is depleting; people giving themselves away to the opposite sex, families getting broken apart by divorce, young adults not fitting in and ending their lives. With the growing technology and advancement of science, soon the world might be a loveless, compassionless, and lifeless place. Snowman, previously known as Jimmy in his former life, has flashbacks to the compounds, the reader can see the way Jimmy lived and learned. There are several factors showing the reader that morality is not an interest. They have television shows showing aided suicides and live executions; the schools also cater prostitutes to the students regularly (Atwood 11). Snowman can see the new world and remember fragments of the past; he remembers love and the aspect of being in love. The new world consists of women giving themselves away to multiple men with no feelings or strings attached. Although Snowman still has these memories, he still has several habits that are very vulgar such as using woman for sexual intercourse by saying he â€Å"loves† them. The memories compound one of the major attributes that is to degrade the feminine gender completely and use them as objects to use at the will of the men. From the flashbacks it is evident that although Snowman has had some experienc e of love that does not seem to deter him from practicing the uncouth and immoral behaviors practiced by other men making the relationships that she has had with the other women baseless (Atwood

The Valuation of Real Option in the Corporate Finance Assignment

The Valuation of Real Option in the Corporate Finance - Assignment Example Due to the flexibilities viewed in management, actual real options are quite to relate properly to the size of the project, the operation of the project and the timing of the project once it has been established. In all cases used, every upfront expenditure that has not been recovered yet and related to this type of flexibility refers to the option premium. Additionally, real options apply in the valuation of the stock. There are different types of real options. The first one is options that relate to the size of the project (Angelis, 2002). This is whereby the scope of the project is not certain, constitutes are optional and the flexibility of the size of various facilities is valuable. In real options to expand, the project is designed with capability in excess of the output levels that are expected for it to give a high rate. The management gets the option of expansion that is exercising the options in case the given conditions go out to be favorable. Projects having expansion options cost more in establishing, the excess referred to as the option premium. In real options to contract, the project is designed in a way that the given output may be contracted in the future in case the conditions become unfavorable. Option exercise consists of one forgoing these future expenses. According to Angelis (2002), this is the same as put option and the excess upfront expense is the option premium. In real options to expand, projects are developed in a way that it can operate dynamically. The second type of real option is options that relate to timing and the project life. In this type of category, growth options are the most generic because they have options of exercising the projects that are profitable when initiated. When initiating the project, the management has the flexibility at the time the project needs to start.  Ã‚  

Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 4

Management - Essay Example The bank offers a wide range of banking services responding to the needs of individuals, businesses and corporations. The bank is going to enter the Brazilian market. A branch of the firm will open in Brazil. The relevant project will be completed by the end of the year. The employees will be mainly nationals who will be appropriately trained by Australians on the bank’s services and products. The aim of the organization is to continuously develop its customer relationships and its employee relationships (Westpac 2011). Moreover, the bank aims to ‘be a leader in the community’ (Westpac 2011). Current report aims to present the issues that managers in Westpac should take into consideration before the bank enters the Brazilian market. The Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions model and a SWOT analysis have been employed for presenting the characteristics of the environment in which the specific initiative will be attempted. 2.0 Political Environment 2.1 Government s tability The current president of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, has been the first woman president in Brazil ever. The last elections were held in October 2010. The country is characterized by political stability. During the presidency of the country’s previous president, President Lula, the quality of life of people in Brazil was improved (BBC News 2011). 2.2 Government and contribution The country’s government tries to keep good relations with other states; recently an agreement was developed between Brazil and Germany for the promotion of bilateral partnership and innovation (Federative Republic of Brazil 2011). The last years the Brazilian government tries to improve the quality of life of people and the limitation of poverty (BBC News 2011). 2.3 Analysis Local authorities will provide to Westpac the necessary support, a fact critical for the successful entrance of the bank in the Brazilian market. 3.0 Legal Environment 3.1 Regulatory framework The most important legisla tive text of the country is the Constitution. At the next level, supplementary laws have the power to regulate important issues; ordinary and delegated laws follow these laws. At the bottom of the hierarchy of laws in Brazil are the legislative decrees (Brazil Government 2011). 3.2 Business laws The Constitution of the country is used, along with the Taxation law, as described above, for regulating business activities across Brazil. The new Civil Code Law 10.406 is the main legislative text regulating the activities of businesses in Brazil (Nogueira 2004). The Law No. 9279/ 1996 is also used in cases that conflicts appear on Industrial property (Brazil Government 2011). 3.3 Labour laws The key legal texts regulating the labor in Brazil is the Federal Constitution of 1988 along with the Consolidation of Labor Laws (C.L.T.) (Brazil Government 2011). 3.4 Taxation laws Taxation in Brazil is regulated by the Federal Constitution (Title VI); additionally, the Law 5.172 (National Tax Code) is applied for any potential issue, which is not regulated by the Constitution (Brazil Governmen

Oryx and Crake literacy argument Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Oryx and Crake literacy argument - Essay Example In the novel, genetic mutations and the creation of a new beings (hybrids of the human race), love and humanity slowly is growing extinct. The novel bases off of a realistic society in the future, despite the genetic transitions, flashing back to Snowman’s life, when he was still Jimmy, when he had morals and love in his life then flashing back to the present to a completely different dynamic in the world. Slowly, love is depleting; people giving themselves away to the opposite sex, families getting broken apart by divorce, young adults not fitting in and ending their lives. With the growing technology and advancement of science, soon the world might be a loveless, compassionless, and lifeless place. Snowman, previously known as Jimmy in his former life, has flashbacks to the compounds, the reader can see the way Jimmy lived and learned. There are several factors showing the reader that morality is not an interest. They have television shows showing aided suicides and live executions; the schools also cater prostitutes to the students regularly (Atwood 11). Snowman can see the new world and remember fragments of the past; he remembers love and the aspect of being in love. The new world consists of women giving themselves away to multiple men with no feelings or strings attached. Although Snowman still has these memories, he still has several habits that are very vulgar such as using woman for sexual intercourse by saying he â€Å"loves† them. The memories compound one of the major attributes that is to degrade the feminine gender completely and use them as objects to use at the will of the men. From the flashbacks it is evident that although Snowman has had some experienc e of love that does not seem to deter him from practicing the uncouth and immoral behaviors practiced by other men making the relationships that she has had with the other women baseless (Atwood

Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 4

Management - Essay Example The bank offers a wide range of banking services responding to the needs of individuals, businesses and corporations. The bank is going to enter the Brazilian market. A branch of the firm will open in Brazil. The relevant project will be completed by the end of the year. The employees will be mainly nationals who will be appropriately trained by Australians on the bank’s services and products. The aim of the organization is to continuously develop its customer relationships and its employee relationships (Westpac 2011). Moreover, the bank aims to ‘be a leader in the community’ (Westpac 2011). Current report aims to present the issues that managers in Westpac should take into consideration before the bank enters the Brazilian market. The Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions model and a SWOT analysis have been employed for presenting the characteristics of the environment in which the specific initiative will be attempted. 2.0 Political Environment 2.1 Government s tability The current president of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff, has been the first woman president in Brazil ever. The last elections were held in October 2010. The country is characterized by political stability. During the presidency of the country’s previous president, President Lula, the quality of life of people in Brazil was improved (BBC News 2011). 2.2 Government and contribution The country’s government tries to keep good relations with other states; recently an agreement was developed between Brazil and Germany for the promotion of bilateral partnership and innovation (Federative Republic of Brazil 2011). The last years the Brazilian government tries to improve the quality of life of people and the limitation of poverty (BBC News 2011). 2.3 Analysis Local authorities will provide to Westpac the necessary support, a fact critical for the successful entrance of the bank in the Brazilian market. 3.0 Legal Environment 3.1 Regulatory framework The most important legisla tive text of the country is the Constitution. At the next level, supplementary laws have the power to regulate important issues; ordinary and delegated laws follow these laws. At the bottom of the hierarchy of laws in Brazil are the legislative decrees (Brazil Government 2011). 3.2 Business laws The Constitution of the country is used, along with the Taxation law, as described above, for regulating business activities across Brazil. The new Civil Code Law 10.406 is the main legislative text regulating the activities of businesses in Brazil (Nogueira 2004). The Law No. 9279/ 1996 is also used in cases that conflicts appear on Industrial property (Brazil Government 2011). 3.3 Labour laws The key legal texts regulating the labor in Brazil is the Federal Constitution of 1988 along with the Consolidation of Labor Laws (C.L.T.) (Brazil Government 2011). 3.4 Taxation laws Taxation in Brazil is regulated by the Federal Constitution (Title VI); additionally, the Law 5.172 (National Tax Code) is applied for any potential issue, which is not regulated by the Constitution (Brazil Governmen

The European Community Institutional Framework Essay Example for Free

The European Community Institutional Framework Essay The European community which has its history back in the 1950s when the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was formed to cater for the interests of expanding coal and steel market among member states which stood at six during its formation. In 1957 the European Economic Community was formed together with the European Atomic Energy Community, the Merger Treaty [Merging of the executives, 2007] saw the three bodies merge afterwards to give birth of the now twenty seven member-European Community (EC). The creation of this super body is based on a number of treaties that govern its operations, these treaties that were drafted and mutually agreed up on and accented to provide for the formation of various institutions tat oversee the day to day running of the community’s affairs. The formation of the European community was chiefly to iron out physical boundaries between member states and also to hasten the rate of economic development among other reasons. Due to the diverse interests of the populations of the member states, the community adopted various laws that provide the legal foundation for the representation of these interests. One of the main functions of the legal framework is to give the base for the creation of institutions which cater for the diverse interests of the members. The community’s institutional framework is considered to be unique chiefly because of its separation of power between the three arms that are the basis of it operation, i.e. the judiciary, legislature, and the executive, and partly due to its attempts to secure equal representation of diverse interests while keeping a proper balance between them. The community has got various institutions that are divided in to two categories i.e. politically based institutions ad the non-politically based ones. The political institutions include; the parliament, the commission, and the council, the non-political ones include; court of justice and the court of auditors.

Great Gatsby: Fitzgeralds Criticism of the American Dream

Great Gatsby: Fitzgeralds Criticism of the American Dream Charlette Montague Rather than an eager celebrant, Fitzgerald is a harsh critic of the American dream in his novel, The Great Gatsby . It is the American dream, and the idea of it that pushes the characters, more so, Jay Gatsby, the titled character and protagonist. Jay Gatsby is symbolic of the American dream and its corruption. Jay Gatsby is seen as innocent, optimistic and hopeful. He was born poor, and as such despised it. He yearned for the American dream and what it represented. It can be said then, that he loved Daisy, not for who she was, but what she represented in his eyes. He fell in love with Daisys life. He was fascinated with her world, her lifestyle, her grace and her charm, It excited him, too, that many men had already loved Daisyit increased her value in his eyes. (Chapter 8) The green light on Daisys dock can be used as an example for his longing, as he spends hours gazing at it a single green light, minute and faraway, that might have been the end of a dock. (Chapter 1, Page 22). The green light is symbolic of Gatsbys longing for the American dream, the color could also represent dollar bills, capital, which is another appealing aspect of the American dream. Her voice is full of money, he said suddenly. That was it. Id never understood before. It was full of money that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbals song of it high in a white palace the kings daughter, the golden girl. (Page 120, Chapter7) It is in Daisys character that we see what went wrong with the American dream, its corruption, so to speak. In Gatsbys mind, Daisy is seen as perfection, but though she is graceful and charming, she is also, selfish, hurtful and shallow, this is seen in the novel by her lying, cheating, and leaving Gatsby to take the blame for her murdering Toms mistress. In a sense, Gatsbys quest for the American dream is ill-fated, as his devotion for Daisy is misguided as she cannot fulfill the role and expectations placed upon her by him. Another symbol used in the novel to represent the disintegration of the American dream is the Valley of Ashes. This is symbolic as it represents the lost hopes and the moral and social decay of the period. This results from the pursuit of wealth, the American dream. Whereas at one time the American dream was simultaneous with various ideals of freedom, the novel shows how it became equated with material objects. Jay Gatsby represents this change very well as he flaunts the things he has in an attempt to win Daisy over. The author shows us the hollowness of the upper-class through the representation of old money versus new money Motifs are another device used by the author to develop the theme throughout the novel. This brings us to the use of geography as a motif. The author uses places to symbolize various aspects of the era. East Egg represents old money, West Egg new money while The Valley of Ashes represents the fall of the morality of the American dream and society. The new rich is portrayed by the author as lacking is social graces, pretentious and base, Gatsby is a perfect example as he lives in a monstrosity of a mansion, drives a rolls Royce and wears a pink suit. in contrast the old aristocracy is seen as graceful, tasteful , possess subtlety. Gatsby is the epitome of the fall of the moral values of society as we the readers see where he is involved in criminality, which accounts for his vast fortune. But even has graceful as the old aristocrats are; represented by the Buchanans, they lack in compassion as they prove themselves to be a careless bunch of inconsiderate individuals. This is seen to b e true where after Gatsbys death they (Tom and Daisy) simple move to an unknown destination with no forwarding address. Nick describes them as careless people. They were careless people, Tom and Daisythey smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money of their vast carelessness, or whatever it was that kept them together and let other people clean up the mess they had made. (Chapter. 9) Though Gatsby is seen as a criminal and as such represents the ideal of a self-made man, from rags to riches. He is the force that corrodes the American dream, it is through him that we see the harsh reality of the dream, its rise and its end. It is with his death that we see the death of the American Dream. All his hopes shattered with a bullet. The death of both him and George, the rich man and the poor man, show again the fall of the American dream. With nothing left for him there, Nick moves back to his home, away from the emptiness and the moral decay. To conclude, The Great Gatsby is a representation of the harsh reality of the American dream. It shows its corruption and its fall. Each of the characters in the novel are seen trying to attain happiness through one way or the other. They become lost, and lose their touch with morality and reality. Criminality, infidelity, murder and lies pervade the story. The theme of the corruption of the American dream was seen throughout the novel and was exemplified by the authors use of characterization, motifs and symbols. The American dream is of freedom and of social upward mobility through hard work and success. Gatsbys life in criminality gave him money but not freedom and not happiness. His goal of attaining the American dream was never realized. The Great Gatsby Response Paper