Film Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 6

Film Review - Essay Example In this respect, Islam occupies one of the leading places because its religious traditions literally pervade human life in all its manifestations. In particular, one can verify this after watching the movie Sabah directed by Ruba Nadda. The movie offers the viewer an excellent opportunity to see how traditional Islam has an impact on various aspects of Muslim life, including issues relating to family, romantic relationships, as well as professional and career growth and development of men and women in Islamic culture. The main theme of the movie can be defined as the freedom of human choice that is most clearly illustrated by the director by the example of the love relationship between the main heroes. To begin with, the film tells about the life of a Muslim family living in Canada. The family consists of numerous women and a man Majid, who is the brother of the main character by the name of Sabah. Majid is the epitome of a traditional Muslim. After their fathers death, he takes on the responsibility to provide the family with all they need. In contrast to their deceased father, the main religious philosophy of Majid is represented by his desire to strictly follow the customs and norms of traditional Islam. In turn, it has a significant impact on the characteristics of this Arab family. Firstly, as the defender of traditional Islamic values, Majid requires women of complete submission to his authority as the head of the family. The film shows that the foundations of the patriarchal family determine that the women do not have the opportunity to work and earn money. As the head of the patriarchal family, Majid does not allow his women to work, because following the logic of traditio nal Islam, a woman must first be a good housewife. The subordination of the women in the family is shown by the example of using the family budget. Majid controls the use of money and forbids the women to spend money to buy

Text exercises week 4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Text exercises week 4 - Essay Example The balance sheet of Technical Inc. for the year ended 31st December 2006 indicates the overall position of the company at that specific time. The statement provides a summary of the assets and liabilities and the long term debts. The shareholder’s equity and retained earnings are also included in the statement. The balance sheet provides a clear view on what the company owns and what it owes, in other words, the value of the company is depicted in the balance sheet. It also includes the details of the investments made by the investors and shareholders. The sum of all the liabilities and the shareholders’ equity always needs to be equal to assets. This statement provides the retained earnings for a specific period of time. The statement of Technical Inc shows that the company has total retained earnings of almost $73,100 as of 31st December 2006. The statement outlines the changes in the retained earnings for specific periods. These are generally prepared in accordance to the General Accepted Accounting Principles. The statement of retained earnings can be reconciled with the beginning and ending of the retained earnings for a specific period of time here 1st January 2006 until 31st December 2006. The retained earnings for a period can be obtained as the net of the previous retained earnings along with that of the current year. If the interest rate increases, the amount required after 20 years (from part a) will be lesser as the present value of the $ 20,000 required for 30 years will be lower. The reason is that the discount rate will be higher, which will reduce the amount required. An increase in the interest rate will also lower the amount required now (from part b), as higher interest will earn higher returns and hence the future value of the investment will be higher. This will lead to a lesser investment to obtain the required amount. An increase in the earnings rate will reduce the single deposit amount required computed in part a. The

Psychoanalytical Approach To Disney Films

Psychoanalytical Approach To Disney Films This essay will consider how Disney films can be regarded as projecting a range of stereotypes in film which seek to define what is normal and natural in society. I hope to reveal that these images actually are consciously constructed to adhere to and reinforce dominant ideological values and are a part of the Disneyfication process where everything is homogenized and turned into a product (See Bryman 2004). This entails the repetition of stereotypes from film to film in the arena of gender, sexuality and race, and while these roles vary slightly throughout the years, they remain largely consistent between 1923 when Disney was founded and 2010 when their most recent film Tangled (Greno Howard, 2011) was released. The fact that these stereotypes are so conservative has prompted a range of writers to criticise the impact Disney has had on American and even global society. Giroux stated in The Mouse That Roared: Disney and the End of Innocence (1999) that There are few cultural icons i n the United States that can match the signifying power of the Disney Company (2001: 123). He is not alone in his criticism of Disney; writers like Wasko (2001) and Bell (1999) have joined the ranks of those seeking to elucidate how pervasive Disneys influence has become. I will consider the impact these films potentially have on children, especially in the way their world views are formed. Methodology I will consider several Disney films in seeking to explore these stereotypes: Tangled, The Princess and the Frog (Clements Musker, 2009) The Lion King (Allers Rob Minkoff, 1994), Aladdin (Clements Musker, 1992) and The Little Mermaid (Clements John Musker, 1989) as I believe these all can be seen as very reflective of the societies in which they were produced and reveal Disneys world view. I will argue how the fact that these films are aimed at young people make them even more powerful. The Disney film seeks to naturalize these stereotypes, presenting them as part of the natural order, when in fact they are nothing of the sort. The world that Disney has constructed has historically tended to be defined and largely populated by white heterosexual characters, even when the narratives reside in the animal world. I will show how some of these more contemporary texts offer partial challenges to these norms while simultaneously reinforcing the predominantly hegemonic world view. I intend to approach the films from a semiotic, sociological and psychoanalytical perspective in an attempt to deconstruct the role these films play in society. In doing so I have attempted to look at the texts in as objective a manner as possible and read them as artistic artefacts to suggest what they say about the times and the culture in which they are made. I would argue that films are the most powerful of all artistic texts with a tremendous ability to move and motivate people in ways they often cannot understand or even register. Governments have regularly put the cinema to use in mobilising the public to support their political ideas, both in an explicit fashion (see the Soviet propaganda films made by Eisenstein and Pudovkin during the aftermath of the revolution in Russia in 1917) and in more implicit ways (for this we could consider how Hollywood films have continued to promote a variety of versions of the American Dream especially in the 1930s and 1940s). A lot has been written about Disney, especially in the fields of race and gender and these texts have been very useful in informing my critical approach to Dis ney as a company and a signifying entity. The Central Question How do Disney films and other Disney products influence young people and their lives? I would argue that far from being a benign and harmless relationship the connection between Disney and its consumers, as that is what they are, is a powerful one which starts at a very early age. Children are exposed to Disney images almost from birth on Disneys television channels and then at the cinema, then on home DVD. I suggest that this surreptitiously informs their world view in quite significant ways. This is especially perfidious because these texts are deliberately targeted at the young and impressionable who lack the defences and reasoning skills adults have developed which enable them to resist such strong images. The world view that Disney normalises for them is one in which certain behaviours are depicted as being the norm and even certain races, sexualities and gender roles are assigned with positive and negative attributes. A key aspect of these process is the way in which Disney fil ms market themselves as safe, innocent and even morally educational, suggesting to the parents that to entrust their children to Disney is to embrace something that is more than a company but something akin to a family. I hope to show in this essay that this is just another cynical marketing ploy that Disney employs to engender support for the company, and ultimately generate more revenue for the corporation. Sexism Since 1923 Disney has become an almost unrivalled multi media empire. However, Walt Disney did not believe his films were culturally influential, he suggested they were just entertainment (qtd in Wasko 2001: 3). Critics like Ward disagree and assert that such films aimed at young people can shape the way children think about who they are and who they should be (2002: 5). Disney films can be considered to promote sexist or even misogynist values to young women as the roles women are afforded are very limited and the narratives place men in positions of power. Here it is clear that Disney fits into stereotypes that reach across the breadth of Hollywood into all of its genres. Laura Mulvey argued that Hollywood reproduces the hegemonic and patriarchal society by presenting certain roles and images as the norm. In her analysis women are portrayed in a very reductive manner and presented as scopophilic objects for the purpose of being looked at by males and in the process dominated. In Mu lveys understanding Hollywood is part of the systematic process which reinforces the patriarchal ideology and we can see this at work from early Hollywood until now. Her works poses a lot of questions for audiences? Why do women get so few leading roles? Why are they relegated in films and cast as sex objects for the male oriented narratives? Why are women that transgress the natural order punished in Hollywood cinema? We can observe that this process works on two levels: the films both recreate and perpetuate dominant ideological values. Mulvey commented, There is no way in which we can produce an alternative [to the conservative values that Hollywood reproduces] out of the blue, but we can begin to make a break by examining patriarchy with the tools it provides, of which psychoanalysis is not the only but an important one (Mulvey 1989: 15). I would argue that Disney films are an effective embodiment of many aspects of Mulveys central thesis. In the history of Disney films women have largely tended to be defined as either perfectly pure princesses (to be valued, idealised and cherished and ultimately married), villains (who transgress unspoken laws of society by being corpulent, unattractive or refusing to submit to patriarchal dominance), mothers (who give up their independence, sexuality and individuality to be subsumed into the male defined family unit), or variations of these archetypes. Despite often being the protagonist (and having the film named after them), they are relegated to subservient positions in the narrative or rely on men for their ultimate salvation. Attractiveness is a key feature in Disney and it has been since even before Cinderella (1950) and Sleeping Beauty (1959). Women are categorized by whether they are attractive or not and beauty becomes a key to their moral status and their happiness. The goal for a woman in Disney films is often love, not a career or intellectual growth, and these visions o f womanhood are presented as something every woman should aspire to, without exception. If a woman departs from this stereotype she is shunned within the diegesis and presented as a corruption. Bell suggested there were only three predefined roles for females in Disney texts 1) beautiful young heroines, 2) cruel mother figures and 3) harmless, asexualised elderly women. (See Bell 1995) Here we see the imagery and ideology young girls are exposed to before they are old enough to understand and be critical of it. They are informed that to be a whole and happy person they must be beautiful, define themselves through relationships with the opposite sex and be submissive to their fathers and then their husbands. For me this is far from a healthy ideology to promote to young girls and offers up a disturbing and unbalanced gender relationship at a very important period in a young persons life. We can see examples of this paradigm in the majority of Disney texts produced over the years. In Snow White and the Seven Dwarves we have Snow White as the beautiful heroine and The Wicked Stepmother as the cruel mother archetype. Cinderella contains the eponymous character as the beautiful heroine, the sisters as cruel figures and the fairy godmother as asexualized elderly woman. If we consider some more modern examples we can see how far things have changed, or discern whether they have not changes at all. The Little Mermaid (1989) features the heroine Ariel, a beautiful young woman and mermaid at the centre of the narrative, she is slightly more independent than the antecedents that came before her, but she too is defined by her pursuit of love. She challenges her father, Triton, at the beginning of the narrative, eager to not be a part of a show being performed for him. Near the end of the film Ariel even gives up her identity for the sake of her true love. So despite minor chang es, she is still forced to make sacrifices that men in Disney films are not asked to make. It is no coincidence that the heroine of the film is beautiful and young and the villain of the film is the old, overweight and unattractive Ursula, who seeks to steal identity and power and by going outside of the norm can only be thought of as a corruption. This implicitly connotes that if a woman is not young, attractive and compliant she is then a threat to society. Supporters of Disney will suggest that these texts are just films, harmless entertainment for young people, but what moral lessons are they to draw from the ideologies presented? In my opinion they are far from innocent texts devoid of cultural meaning, they are immensely powerful artefacts that structure how young people look at the world. The Little Mermaid was also accused of racism on its release, the character of Sebastian the underwater crab was felt by many to be a stereotype of a Jamaican man who enjoys a lazy life under the sea which he prefers to the surface. The song he sings is suggestive of this Up on the shore they work all day, Out in the sun they slave away, While we devotin, Full time to floatin, Under the sea! This is just another example of how Disney chooses to frame certain characteristics in distinctly racial terms. The choice to have the character a black man embody this aspect perpetuates the racist stereotype that has remained pervasive in the society and here it is projected at children. Disneys newest film, Tangled, makes an interesting addition to the Disney oeuvre as it both subverts and reinforces some of these archetypes. It concerns the familiar fairy tale story Rapunzel, but like many modern adaptations (See Dreamworks Shrek, 2001) it deconstructs its tropes and its codes and conventions. Bruno Betelheim in his influential The Uses of Enchantment: The Meaning and Importance of Fairy Tales suggested that stories like this imparted powerful notions of ideology to generations through the ages and reflect what a society arbitrarily decides is moral and just. We can see this approach very much apparent in the work of Disney who often draw on these fairy tales in their films and see they role as some sort of unofficial moral educator for generations of children, whether they state this or not. The protagonist of the Tangled, Rapunzel, is a young woman who is, as per usual blonde, white and slim. One could ask what kind of messages this sends to young women? They sug gest that the way for happiness and success is through youth and beauty. That being young and looking a certain way makes you normal and fit into society. If you do not fit this paradigm then you are relegated from the narrative or cast as the villain. The way Disney promotes these messages is so veiled that the youths watching may never regard the issue so explicitly, but it is so deeply ingrained in our culture that it is hard to ignore. In this way films and the way people identify with the cinema screen can be associated with French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacans idea of the mirror stage. Lacan suggested that the child at the age of between six and eighteen months see themselves in the mirror and believe it not to be a reflection but the self in its entirety. Thus the way a spectator identifies and subsumes itself into the characters it sees projected on the cinema screen is just as illusory as the process the baby goes through. This is only one example of how a psychological appr oach to Disney is useful in coming to understand the film as texts with cultural resonance. Whether one holds with this theory or not it is clear that these images of princesses hold a distinct fascination for young girls which can be seen in the amount of merchandise that is sold across the world focusing on characters like Snow White, Cinderella and Ariel. Disney presents these figures as iconic characters that girls of the world should aspire to be like instead of doctors, authors, scientists and politicians. Rapunzel is more independent than Disneys usual heroines; she is not averse to action and combat, in fact when she first comes across Flynn, the dashing hero of the film she knocks him out. Rapunzel is also intelligent, quick witted and humorous, attributes that are not always connected to women in Disney films. Here we see evidence of Disneys ability to move somewhat with the times and identify that the needs of their audiences have changed since the 1950s, but I would argue that this is performed in a cynical fashion, seeking to anticipate what would sell to an audience rather than a desire to present more balanced role models for young women. The antagonist of the film is much more predictable, a cruel mother figure called Gothel who has kidnapped Rapunzel and imprisoned her in a tower, leaving Rapunzel unaware of the fact that she is a princess. Gothel uses Rapunzels powers to keep herself young. By being ignorant of her royal lineage the film places Rapunzel resolutely within th e fantasy of young women discovering they are princesses, an enduring trope particularly relevant in the last few years given media fascination with the courtship and eventual marriage between Prince William and a commoner Kate Middleton. Not only is Rapunzel a princess, but she secretly has magic powers and later we discover her tears can heal wounds and even bring the dead back to life. The character of Flynn embodies many archetypes familiar to the Disney canon, his swaggering posture denotes that is the handsome and dashing rogue with a heart of gold. It is worth pausing to consider that, while males are given more variety of characterization in Disney films than women, they still are forced into certain stereotypes of attractiveness, bravery and what constitutes masculinity. Disney makes one or two concessions to new millennial masculinity in portraying that underneath Flynns brash exterior he is sensitive. In a sequence where they both believe they are about to die Flynn reveals his real name is the considerably less dashing Eugene Fitzherbert. Yet despite these progressive aspects to Rapunzels character the film also has her life given meaning through her love for Flynn. Flynn proves the catalyst for her self-discovery and she is rarely a casual narrative agent of her own. She is the latest in a long line of Disney heroines that require a man to save her and teach her what true love is. The film ends with Gothel being killed; by moving outside of what is regarded as normal and moral behavior for women she must be punished. Rapunzel then marries Flynn and in doing so she has achieved the ultimate goal, in Disneys eyes, of what young girls must aspire to. At the beginning of the new millennium Disney believes that it is appropriate and right to suggest to young women that what they should dream of above all else, above a career, education, excitement, travel or adventure, is marriage with a young man. Racism The other prominent arena that Disney has been criticised for is its depiction of racial stereotypes in its films. From its very early days Disney films were permeated with racist characterisations which were delivered in the same way: as harmless depictions of how things really were and in no way a moral statement at all. One could point to how the crows in Dumbo (1941) or the Arabs in Aladdin are framed in distinctly racial and pejorative terms. It wasnt until 2010 that Disney produced a film with a black princess, The Princess and the Frog and the film emerges as a very interesting and ambiguous text. The film is set in New Orleans in 1912 and it too is a reinterpretation of a familiar fairytale updated for modern audiences. The princess is Tiana and, on the outside, she seems like a fairly modern construction. When her mother reads her the fairy story The Frog Princess at the start of the film unlike her friend Charlotte La Bouff, she rejects it, stating that she would never kiss a frog. This is one of many ways the film ironically comments on its own status as a fairytale text and allows the film-makers to make gestures towards contemporary attitudes and values. When the narrative moves to 1926, Tiana is far from what might be considered an ivory tower princess, as she works two jobs in an effort to save money and open her own restaurant. By portraying her as an industrious young business woman the film seems to be suggesting that there is more in life for young girls to aspire to than becoming a princess, wife or mother. However despite this the film relies on the old fashioned stereotypes that have permeated Disney since the very beginning with regards to how women should look. Tiana is black, yet she is beautiful, slim and pale skinned and thus contributes to the inculcation of a certain stereotype that Princesses must look a certain way. Again we must ask, how would young girls who do not look this way respond? When a prince is changed into a frog she agrees to kiss him in exchange for enough money to open her restaurant, but is surprised when she too turns into a frog. So while Tiana spends a large section of the film asserting her individuality through her hard work and feisty attitude she finds herself completed by the love of a man. The film does offer some variations on the stereotype of the male hero, in more or less the same way as Tangled, near the end of the film it is the sensitive prince Naveen who states that he is willing to give up his dreams for her, an act that is usually given to the woman to perform. When they are initially unable to change back to human form, they proclaim their love for one another and state that they will be happy to live as frogs as long as they are together. However, when they kiss Tiana becomes a princess and thus breaks the spell turning them both back into humans. Like Tangled, the film offers both improvements to Disneys traditionally conservative portrayals and also it perpetuates some of the same old stereotypes. I would argue that the film uses racial stereotypes in a different way to the way Disney has historically. By dwelling on voodoo, in particular in the character of the voodoo master Dr. Facilier, it relegates African identity to a crudely stereotyped Other. He is a malicious and evil characterization who, by transgressing the natural order, must be punished at the end of the narrative. The film Aladdin was also accused of perpetuating racial stereotypes on its release in 1992. As Disney moved into depicting an Arab culture in one of its films many predicted it would conjure up similar antiquated and racist characters. It too takes a familiar fairy tale and deconstructs it as became the trend in the 1990s and into the new millennium. The story follows a young boy, Aladdin, and his relationship with an evil wizard, Jafar, as they battle for the powers of a magic lamp which contains a genie. Critics felt that the film dwelled on images of barbarism and cruelty by Arabs which audiences would equate with the contemporary Muslim world. A particular song in the film was targeted by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee as being an embodiment of the attitude of the film towards the Middle East, its lyrics went Where they cut off your ear if they dont like your face/Its barbaric, but, hey, its home. In subsequent releases on video and DVD they were changed to Wher e its flat and immense and the heat is intense/Its barbaric, but, hey, its home. It is quite obvious that those with lighter skins are placed on the side of good and those with darker skins are evil. Giroux states that the bad Arabs in the film are determined by their thick, foreign accents and the good Arabs like Jasmine and Aladdin speak in standard American English. (1999: 105) The film was criticized for something Disney has historically done with many of its non white characters throughout the years, that is anglicize their features. We can see this in the case of not only Aladdin and Jasmine in Aladdin but Pocahontas and Mulan. Disney takes non-white characters and makes them appear more white in appearance than they actually are and thereby less threatening for the audience who they presume might be offended by watching an non-white character as a protagonist. The case of Aladdin and Jasmine is quite clear as they are changed from looking like Arabs to almost twentieth centur y American who happen to have healthy tans. It is no coincidence that the character was Aladdin seems to have been modeled on perhaps the all American symbol of the 1980s and 1990s, Tom Cruise. Such Manichean and racist accounts of morality can be found across the whole of Disney where the idea of evil is encapsulated by the dark skinned and obviously Arabic wizard Jafar. One of Disneys greatest critical and commercial successes in the modern era is undoubtedly The Lion King. It too is an example of a film which, arguably, embodies both the sexism and racism in inherent in the Disney world. It is an original rites of passage drama about a young cub Simba, who sees his father the King Mufasa killed. Scar tricks Simba into thinking he was responsible for his fathers death causing Simba to flee the kingdom in shame. The throne is claimed by Simbas cruel uncle Scar who had orchestrated the kings death. Throughout the course of the narrative women are almost entirely marginalized from the film and the realms of power and responsibility are only occupied by men. This is another way that female roles are constructed in Disney films, by legitimizing gender power relations and naturalising such imbalances. Here one might ask whether Disney are being sexist or just reflecting existing social structures in the real world? However this process of legitimization r esults in further exacerbation of such existing structures by reinforcing them. Like other Disney films this process is deemed as normal and part of the natural order, attention is not drawn to it within the plot and it is depicted as historically inherent and normal. The only female characters of note are Simbas mother who is relegated to the sidelines and the young cub which Simba grows to marry. Her only function is to act as a catalyst to prompt Simba to return to do his masculine duty and reclaim the throne. At the end of the film she has another role and that is to provide a son and heir for Simba when he becomes King. The villain of the film, Scar, has conspicuously darker skin than his biological relatives in the film and he is distanced from them by the fact that he speaks with an English accent. The creation of such a racial Other has been a historic strategy by Disney throughout the companys history. In modern films their racism is not so obvious as it once was but there is still an assumption that a villain must deviate from what society regards as normal, that is he or she must be non-white, overweight or old. Perhaps the films most racist element is the army of hyenas which Scar commands are also depicted as distinctly part of a racial minority in the way they speak: inner city, jive talk. When finding a group of characters supposed to represent menace and evil, Disney falls back on the same hackneyed stereotype it has used for more than fifty years. Critics of the film charged that The Lion King made racism and sexism acceptable and part of the natural order. Ward stated when racism and se xism becomes the norm that appears to represent reality, then Disney has lost its moral high ground (2002: 32). In recent times outside of Disney films directors like George Lucas and Michael Bay have been criticised for using the same stereotypes in their films. In The Phantom Menace (1997) the character of Jar Jar Binks was criticised by being a bumbling and foolish character who happened to speak with a Jamaican accent. In Transformers 2 (2009) the characters of Mudflaps and Skids were regarded as racist for the same reason. Many Disney films have come under a lot of criticism for including subliminal messages in their films in particular hidden erotic images like a phallus from The Little Mermiad, the word sex across the sky written in the clouds in The Lion King, and nudity in The Rescuers and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. After these criticisms Disney often removed the offending images from the video and DVD release of the films. They were mostly done by disenfranchised animators during the long and laborious process of animating a film which can last for several years. The powers of subliminal messages are well documented and it might be argued that this is another reason why Disney films should not be handed over to children to be watched without care and attention. Techniques like this have been used in advertising for decades to sell products and here in films targeted at families and children it is hard to tell what the effects may be. These stories of images in Disney films inspired the episode in th e satirical Fight Club where the protagonist Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) splices images from pornography into family films. The audiences do not ever know consciously what they have seen, but somewhere in their brain it registers, the scene ends with a shot of a little girl crying for a reason she doesnt understand. A concept which I feel has been largely neglected in most academic studies of Disney that I have read is the fact that children growing up in the Disney era being introduced to fairy tales through the Disney process rather than in one of their original forms. Of course this is a considerable shame for a variety of reasons: 1) that the stories are distinctly Americanised and populated with white characters and lack the diversity which can be found in many of the original texts. 2) That children are being (and have been for many decades) effectively raised by the television and having these stereotypes inculcated into them from a very early age. 3) That these rich stories are being manufactured to act as devices through which to sell products to children which, I would argue, perverts the important role which fairy tales play in our society. One must consider Disneys power as a cultural signifier in this first decade of the twenty-first century. Disney now has television stations that are projected into peoples living rooms everyday rather than once or twice a year when people take their children to see the latest Disney film at the cinema. This changes things in the sense that the company achieves an even greater intimacy with the consumer from an even earlier age. Fortunately this has coincided with what we might regard as greater awareness on issues of media culpability, although how much of this has filtered into the mainstream audience remains to be seen. I believe that the majority of parents regard the Disney brand as an example of safe and sincere entertainment that is automatically suitable for young people. Disney has branched out to produce hugely successful shows aimed at the wide spectrum of different demographics within the family audience from the very young, those dubbed tweens, into the early teenage years and beyond with shows like Hannah Montana which fit into the mould established within Disneys animated films. These shows are vibrant and aspirational and on the surface have positive messages for young people. However, as we have seen with Disney films this fails to account for what they leaves out of these narratives. There are very few characters from ethnic minorities, or with disabilities, or those who have different sexualities, or children who look different from the bright, predominantly white, clean teens that occupy the central positions in these shows. One might ask how relevant these characterisations are around the world? Or to children living in America who do not come from so obviously affluent families? Disney might argue that these shows are inspirational, but for many they ignore the realities of a large part of their audience forced to identify with characters very different to themselves. There can be no doubt that Disney has changed, to a certain extent, with the times both on the cinema screen and in the home entertainment arena. Many of Disneys television shows and films pay lip service to issues of political correctness as we have observed in films like The Frog Princess and Mulan. But I think it is still clear to see that a fundamental shift in Disneys approach to the social and political realities of the world has yet to happen. Disney has continued to perpetuate many racial stereotypes even in recent films, when they must have been aware of the impact of these issues and how important they have become to many parts of their audience. Conclusion It is clear to see that Disney are one of the most influential media companies in the entire world and to deny their influence on successive generations of youths is impossible. Once this influence is accepted one asks, what kind of influence is it? Peter and Rochelle Schweizer in Disney: the Mouse Betrayed: Greed, Corruption, and Children at Risk (1998) argue that Disneys image of wholesome and nostalgic Americana is a self-consciously created one that is only formed to generate income for the company. Disney films are not benign artefacts, but texts full of extremely potent symbols rife with meaning and ready to be decoded by people willing to look a bit deeper for these sorts of message in cultural texts. The images of gender and race we have seen in this essay seem harmless on the surface, but when considered closely one sees that the kind of ideals and norms they present to children they might not be as benign as they first appear and for this reason alone they are worthy of fur ther study. These images have tended to be ignored in the mainstream media as Giroux comments The more liberal critiques often entirely ignore the racist, sexist and anti-democratic ethos that permeates Disney films (1999: 85). Here we must identify something that often slips by parents in their relationship with Disney, the fact that it is a capitalist corporation designed to earn money for its shareholders. This is often lost in the fondly remembered nostalgia consumers have for the films of their childhood. This is perhaps one of the most effective marketing strategies in the history of modern America, how the company has sought to convince consumers that it does not real

Crime and the Media Essay -- essays research papers

Crime and the Media The public depends on the news media for its understanding of crime. Reportedly three quarters (76%) of the public say, they form their opinions about crime from what they see or read in the news (Dorfman & Schiraldi, 2001). After reviewing five hours of reality crime television shows, one is left with a very dismal look on society and a prejudice towards minorities as they are largely depicted as the perpetrators of crime. This new genre commonly referred to as reality television appears to be sweeping the nation by storm. Opinions vary, depending on whom you ask, to what extent reality plays a role versus the selling of a product. Sensationalism, advertising, ratings hype, profiling and fear all comprise the mass medias’ marketing strategy to America. Sadly, what we see portrayed by television shows such as â€Å"COPS† have contributed largely and in some cases unjustly to the prejudices that are present today. The predominant races of the suspects portrayed in the episodes of COPS were African Americans (Langley, 2005). The predominant genders of the suspects were male. However, the May 5, 2005, episode of COPS featured an exclusive on COPS: Bad Girls (Langley, 2005). Combining the special episode with the four and a half hours of regular viewing of COPS the numbers still reflect the predominance of suspects featured are African American males (Langley, 2005). In two cases out of the nineteen viewed, the suspects were Caucasian, and the reason for the stop was expired tags. This stop was handled much differently than the previous stop. The officers were not aggressive when they approached the car, and the incident proceeded in a civilized manner. Ironically, in the scene prior to the present, the officers had observed an African American suspect in a drug area with expired tags, and the encounter was very different. A car chase ensued, an ultimate arrest with the suspect forced to the grou nd in an aggressive manner, searched, and hand cuffed. The officers suggest to the audience their suspicions that drugs may be involved. Ultimately, their suspicions prove correct when the cameras capture the crack cocaine hidden in the pants of the suspect. Of the crimes, featured 90% were drug related and 10% were associated with domestic crimes. On the COPS episode aired on May 6, 2005, the suspect, African American observed in an undercover sti... ...stice system. Dr. West points out â€Å"The urgent problem of black poverty is primarily due to the distribution of wealth, power, and income-a distribution influenced by the racial caste system that denied opportunities to most "qualified" black people until two decades ago.† (West, 1994. p. 93-5). Clearly, economics contributed to the criminal propensities of the suspect viewed. The African American suspects compared to their counterparts, appeared scary, drug crazed and out of control. While it is unfortunate, people still believe, if it is on television it must be true. Reality crime television provides a false sense of legitimacy. Those that watch the show, often forget that in the final analysis, it is television, and the main point of television programming is to entertain, sell advertisement and achieve the best ratings possible. References Dorfman, L, & Schiraldi, V. (2001). Off balance: youth, race & crime in the news. Building Blocks for Youth Law Center. Retrieved May 5, 2005, from www.buildingblocksforyouth.org Langley, J. (Producer). (2005). COPS. (Television series). New York: Fox. West, C. (1994). Race matters. New York: Vintage Publishers.

Costa Rica Essay

Costa Rica is a very beautiful country and very independent. Costa Rica gained its independence from the Spanish in 1821 but still was mooched off of by Agustin de Iturbide in his Mexican Empire. Easter in Costa Rica is known as Semana Santa. On July 25th they have Guanacaste day, which is the celebration of the annexation of Guanacaste to Costa Rica in 1824. August 2nd they have Virgen de Los Angeles Day. Which celebrates the Patron saint of Costa Rica. This is one of the most important religious celebrations. On September 15th they celebrate Independence Day in Costa Rica. On October 12th they celebrate Dia de la Raza (Columbus Day). Lastly on December 25th they celebrate Christmas Day, which are Family-oriented celebrations. Costa Rica’s flag has tons of symbolism involved stating with the colors. The white stripe represents peace and honesty, the blue stripe represents vigilance, truth and loyalty while the red stripe represent hardiness, bravery, and strength. The emblem on the flag contains the volcanoes and their coat of arms. Costa Rica’s number one economic resource is coffee and bananas. Costa Ricans live just like we do in the U. S. A. Costa Rica and the United States of America get along quite well. Of course there has been a few bump in the road but nothing bad enough to make us hostile. We are good friends because we help each other out by buying each others products and such. Costa Rica and its relations with other countries are exquisite right now. They have been apart of the international community and have been neutral to most countries for quite some time. Of course it may be hostile to a few countries but everyone seems to have enemies. This country is said to be very beautiful so if I had the time I would gladly visit it and spend a few days on the beach. Things are cheap there and I can be cheap so it would work out great. This country is a very beautiful country that makes its money off of very natural things and I think that is very good. I think the people are nice and the amount of festivals and holidays they have is very cool.

Russian Minority and Border Issue in Baltic States

1. Historical background * Before the 18th century Baltic region had quite few contacts with Russian culture and Ortodox civilization. Region was already integrated to the West! And there was quite little common in the history of Lithuania in one side and Estonia+Latvia in another side! * Only since the end of the 18th century we can speak about the Baltic region as a region what has a common destiny. Destiny which is not pleasure to Baltic states.Since 18th century all Baltic States were as a part of Russian Empire: * Estonia and Livonia (modern Estonia and Latvia) as a part of Swedish Empire was incorporated into the Russian Empire after the Sweden's defeat by Russia in the Great Northern War in 1721. * The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (created in 1569) was partitioned in 1795 by the Russian Empire, Prussia, and Habsburg Austria. The largest area of Lithuanian territory became part of Russian Empire. * After the World War I in 1918 all baltic countries got independence.Thi s period was extremely important for national self-consciousness. * And again were occupied in 1940 by Soviet Union. After incorporation into Soviet Union Stalinistic red terror regime was started in Baltic region: systematic persecution and physical destruction of political, cultural, military elite of the nations. Mass deportations (to Siberia for example) began, also nationalisation and industrialisation were started. Strong ideological pressure by communists. So Latvians and Estonians historical hatred against Germans turned now against Russians.But memories from independence time actually helped these nations to survive Soviet period – at once we were independent, maybe will be again! * Regained their independence in 1990 after the fall of Soviet Union. Face some problems with Russia. As we can see all Baltic States was in similar position since 18th century. But if we look deeper, we can find that all these occupations made different impact on each country which caused different problems in each country. It was made by Russia delibarately. Latvia and Estonia had better industrial infrastructure before Soviet rule so it was more easy to carry on extensive industrialization here.Because of industrialisation there were lots of russian workforce brought to Latvia and Estonia. Lithuania was not so industrialized, so demanded more investments and also had more free workforce in its own rural districts, so Lithuania effectively prevented extensive Russian immigration, Latvia and Estonia couldn’t. 2. Issues after gaining independence As I mentioned before each of Baltic country faces different problems with Russia after independence. In Latvia and Estonia the biggest still remains russian minority issue. 2. 1. Russian minority issue.After gaining independence (in 1990) there left a huge russian minority in Estonia and Latvia, about 30% of population were russians. It was a huge problem to these countries bacause they wanted to emphasize their natio nal identity, unique language and culture. So the integration process of russian minorities was started just after the independence. Estonian citizenship was given only to the russians who lived in Estonia before World War II and their descendants. All Estonian residents, who had been Soviet citizens, had the right to register themselves as citizens of Russia or to choose any other citizenship.The Estonian Government actively promotes the acquiring of Estonian citizenship through naturalisation, thus reducing the number of persons with undetermined citizenship. A person who wishes to acquire Estonian citizenship by naturalisation must have been a permanent resident of Estonia for at least five years, have a basic knowledge of the Estonian language, have knowledge of the Constitution of the Republic of Estonia and the Citizenship Act. Residents without citizenship may not elect the Riigikogu (the national parliament) nor the European Parliament, but are eligible to vote in the munici pal elections.In 2012, 84. 3% of Estonia's population held Estonian citizenship, 8. 9% were citizens of other countries and 6. 8% were of undetermined citizenship. The same in Latvia – latvian citizenship was given only to the russians who lived in Latvia before World War II and their descendants. There is quite common non-citizen status in Latvia. Latvian non-citizens can be regarded neither as citizens, nor aliens or stateless persons but as persons with â€Å"a specific legal status†. They have the right to a non-citizen passport issued by the Latvian government as well as other specific rights.They have their own magazines, it‘s like uique community in Latvia. So a lot of russians don‘t bother about latvian citizenship and seek latvian citizenship only if they want to attend in political arena, because as non-citizens they can‘t do so. Otherwise there is no point for russians to learn latvian language. Russians in Latvia claim: „Latvian lang uage? Why do we need it? Americans didn‘t learn American Indian language, british didn‘t learn aborigine language. â€Å" Situation in Lithuania is totally different. There are 80% of lithuanians in Lithuania.Historically minorities in Lithuania usually knew and nowadays know lithunian language pretty well, apart some exceptions. Russia’s attitude to this issue. Russia is always complaining about russian minorities in Baltic countries. Russia state to European Union that human rights are trampled on because there is no appropriate respect to russian minorities in baltic countries. Complaints include all Balttic states although russian minority is not essential issue in Lithuania. Only 5,8% of total population are russians in Lithuania. Compared to Estonia (there is 25% of russian minority) and Latvia () , number is very low. . 2. The border issue. Estonia. Estonia had hoped for the return of more than 2,000 square kilometers of territory, named Petseri County, an nexed by Russia in 1945. The annexed land had been within the borders Estonia approved by Russia in the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty. The border treaty with Estonia was swiftly ratified by the Estonian parliament in 2005. However, the Russian minister of foreign affairs withdrew his signature from the Treaty because he objected to the Estonian parliament’s ratification law which made reference to texts mentioning the Soviet occupation of Estonia.The border remains substantially the same as the one drawn by Stalin, with some minor adjustments. Latvia. In the case of Latvia, the border treaty was not even signed till today because Russia was angered by the Latvian parliament’s desire to add a unilateral preamble condemning the Soviet occupation. Also Russia insisted that the situation of Russian-speakers in Latvia must be improved before any treaty could be signed. The Abrene District has been the main reason the two countries have not been able to agree on a border treaty. T he Latvian-Russian border is functional in de facto terms.There are two possible ways in which the situation might develop in the future. The possibility that Latvia might entirely waive the unilateral declaration or that Russia might agree to ratify a treaty with the appended declaration. Lithuania. Russia’s border problems with Lithuania were different from those with Estonia and Latvia. True, nationalist Lithuanian groups questioned the legality of Russia’s take-over of the Kaliningrad region from Germany, and the first President Vytautas Landsbergis demanded not only the demilitarisation but also the †de-colonisation† of the region.However, all Lithuanian governments recognised the existing borders with Russia. In 1997 the Lithuanian and Russian presidents finally signed a border treaty. The Russian Duma, however, refused to sign the border agreement, openly explaining that it would remove one of the last obstacles to Lithuanian NATO membership and NATO bases. The Duma also claimed that the transfer of Klaipeda (Memel) from the Russian share of German East Prussia to Soviet Lithuania in 1945 was illegal, complained about Lithuanian politicians raising territorial claims on Russia and discrimination of Russian-speakers in Lithuania, too.However it was ratificated by Lietuvos seimas (Lithunia’s Parliament) in 1999 and by Russian Duma in 2003. Russia‘s policy with Baltic countries: * With Estonia and Latvia, Russian foreign policy is focused on the protection of the rights of Russian minorities. With Lithuania, where this card is useless, Moscow has developed more subtle tactics. * Russia’s tactics take the form of oil sanctions, ‘gas isolation’ and dissuasion of Western firms from investing in Baltic energy projects. * Russian interest: Baltic states as a window to Europe. Baltic States as an obstacle for Russian trade and communication with Western Europe.

Free Essays on Pricing

Understanding Cost & Pricing for Profit Introduction Pricing your product or service is one of the most important business decisions you'll make. You must offer your products for a price your target market is willing to pay–and one that produces a profit for your company–or you won't be in business for long! There are many approaches to pricing, some scientific, some not. This article provides a framework for making pricing decisions that takes into account your costs, the effects of competition and the customer's perception of value. A quick note about how the terms "cost" and "price" are used in this article: o Cost is the total of the fixed and variable expenses (costs to you) to manufacturer or offer your product or service. o Price is the selling price per unit customers pay for your product or service. So, when customers ask, "How much does it cost," your answer is your price. The Fundamentals: Price Floors and Ceilings Think of cost as the floor–you must set prices above the floor to cover costs or you will quickly go out of business. (If you decide to set prices at or below cost it should be for a temporary, specific purpose such as to gain market entrance.) Think of customer "perceived value" as the ceiling–this is the maximum price customers will pay based upon what the product is worth to them. This is sometimes described as "what the market will bear." Perceived value is created by an established reputation, marketing messages, packaging, sales environments, etc. An obvious and important component of perceived value is the comparison customers and prospects make between you and your competition. Somewhere between the floor and the ceiling is probably the right price for your product or service; a price that enables you to make a fair profit and seems fair to your customers. Consequently, once you understand your cost floor and your value price ceiling, you can make an informed decision about how to pr... Free Essays on Pricing Free Essays on Pricing Understanding Cost & Pricing for Profit Introduction Pricing your product or service is one of the most important business decisions you'll make. You must offer your products for a price your target market is willing to pay–and one that produces a profit for your company–or you won't be in business for long! There are many approaches to pricing, some scientific, some not. This article provides a framework for making pricing decisions that takes into account your costs, the effects of competition and the customer's perception of value. A quick note about how the terms "cost" and "price" are used in this article: o Cost is the total of the fixed and variable expenses (costs to you) to manufacturer or offer your product or service. o Price is the selling price per unit customers pay for your product or service. So, when customers ask, "How much does it cost," your answer is your price. The Fundamentals: Price Floors and Ceilings Think of cost as the floor–you must set prices above the floor to cover costs or you will quickly go out of business. (If you decide to set prices at or below cost it should be for a temporary, specific purpose such as to gain market entrance.) Think of customer "perceived value" as the ceiling–this is the maximum price customers will pay based upon what the product is worth to them. This is sometimes described as "what the market will bear." Perceived value is created by an established reputation, marketing messages, packaging, sales environments, etc. An obvious and important component of perceived value is the comparison customers and prospects make between you and your competition. Somewhere between the floor and the ceiling is probably the right price for your product or service; a price that enables you to make a fair profit and seems fair to your customers. Consequently, once you understand your cost floor and your value price ceiling, you can make an informed decision about how to pr...

How Long Is the ACT With Writing

How Long Is the ACT With Writing SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips The ACT is a standardized test that requires endurance. You're asked to answer 215 multiple-choice questions subject area by subject area- a style of testing that causes fatigue for many students. The normal four-section (English, Math, Reading, Science) ACT is already lengthy, but how much longer does it get when you add on the Writing test? In this article, you'll find out just how long the ACT with Writing is,along with some actions you can take to deal with its monstrous length. Feature Image Credit:Joe Haupt/Flickr How Long Is the ACT With Writing? The first thing to think about is how long each section of the test is on the ACT Plus Writing. In the chart below, you can see the order, time, and number of questions for each ACT section, including the optional Writing (essay) section: Section Time # of Questions 1. English 45 minutes 75 2. Math 60 minutes 60 3. Reading 35 minutes 40 4. Science 35 minutes 40 5. Experimental* 20 minutes (approximately) ? 6. Writing (optional) 40 minutes 1 essay *Given to only some test takers. If you take the ACT with Writing,the time for each section (English, Math, Reading, Science, and Writing) adds up to a total of threehours and 35 minutes of test sections (excluding breaks). By contrast, the total time of the ACT without Writingis only two hours and 55 minutes.The exception to this rule is when there is an additional 20-minute unscored section ("Experimental" in the above chart) added to the ACT without Writing, raising the total test time to three hours and 15 minutes. How Long Is the ACT Plus Writing Test-Taking Experience? Just knowing the amount of time each section takes doesn't tell you the whole story. In order to get the full picture of how long the ACT with Writing is, you also have to account for breaks.Below, I've added in the two breaks that occur during the ACT Plus Writing Test: Section Time 1. English 45 minutes 2. Math 60 minutes Break 10 minutes 3. Reading 35 minutes 4. Science 35 minutes 5. Experimental* 20 minutes (approximately) Break** 5 minutes 6. Writing 40 minutes *Not scored; only administered to select studentsnottaking the ACT Plus Writing. **Only for students taking the ACT Plus Writing; all other students are free to leave. When breaks are included, the ACT Plus Writing takes a total of three hours and 50 minutes. With breaks but without Writing, the ACT is only three hours and five minutes long (or three hours and 25 minutes long if you have to take the experimental section). Some students dislike the breaks in-between sections. While it's true that breaks do make the test longer (which, in turn, requires you to keep your brain in test mode longer), they're also beneficial. During the breaks, you'll not only be able to use the restroom, but you'll also get the chance to briefly relax your mind.These actions should lead to a higher ACT score (since you won't lose time running to the restroom mid-section, for instance), which will then save you time by making it unnecessary to retake the test. Be aware that proctors occasionally forget about breaks or accidentally cut the breaks short. That said, the breaks between Math and Reading and between Science and Writing are absolutely your right as a test taker. If it seems as if a break is going to be shorter than the maximum time or get skipped over altogether, be sure to request a break.Read our guide to learn what to do if your ACT testing center experiences any problems like these. ACT Plus Writing Test-Taking Experience With Extended Time If you normally get extended time on tests in school, or if you think you might need extra time on the ACT, there are a few different accommodations that allow you to have more time. National Extended Time for ACT Plus Writing will give you sixtotal hours(including breaks) for the ACT Plus Writing.If you qualify for Special Testing time, you may receive even more time (depending on your diagnosis and the accommodations deemed necessary).Check out our guide to learn more abouthow to request and get ACT accommodations. How to Deal With the ACT Test Length: 5 Key Tips Even if you don't get extended time on the test, the ACT with Writing is still pretty long. So what can you do to prepare for such a lengthy test? Here are our top tips. #1:Build Up to It Think of the ACT with Writing as a marathon. Some people have naturally higher endurance levels than others, but everyone still needs to train in order to get up to running 26.2 miles in one go.In the case of the ACT, this means you'll need tostart out by practicing questions on individual sections, move up to taking entire sections at once, and finally work your way up to taking full-length, timed ACT practice tests (including breaks). #2:Make Your Practice Tests as Realistic as Possible It's not enough to simply practice taking a full-length ACT with Writing. If you really want to know how you'll do on test day, you'll need to take practice tests under the exact same (or close to it) conditions that you'll have on test day. This means you should wake up early on a Saturday morning to take your practice test at 8 am, and find a quiet place to take it. It also means following all time restrictions on the test, including breaks. Be sure topractice using a non-mechanical pencil, particularly on the Writing test. The more closely you can emulate real testing conditions, the better prepared you'll be for the ACT. #3:Use the Breaks Well Breaks are important for your mental and physical well-being. Get up and move around during these times if your energy levels are getting low. Make sure to bring a snack and water so you can replenish yourself quickly (and don't have to go hunting for a vending machine). Get back to your seat at least two minutes before the test resumes so that you can calm back down and reenter a test-taking mindset. If your energy or anxiety levels tend to be high during tests and you're worried that getting up and moving might break your concentration, try to at leastdo some stretches in your seat. Shaking out and stretching your hands and arms is very important (particularly before the Writing test), as your fingers can get cramped from gripping your pencil too tightly. It might also help to slowly roll around your head and stretch your neckin order to release any tension that's gathered there. #4:Get Enough Sleep Multiple Nights Before Test Day It's not just the night before that matters- making sure you have a solid night's rest two and three nights before the ACT can make a big difference. I know that for me, a bad night's sleep catches up with me a couple of days later rather than the next day! I recommend aiming for about eight or nine hours of sleep a night, or whatever amount you need to feel well rested. #5:Eat a Balanced Breakfast the Morning of the Test You don't want to have a sugar crash or an upset stomach halfway through the ACT; you also don't want to faint because you didn't eat anything that morning. So what should you do? Eat a healthy, balanced breakfast that isn't too greasy or too sugary. Protein and complex carbohydrates (rather than something sweet like cereal) are the way to go. You must ignore the seduction and sorcery that is a doughnut cupcake (?!?!?!) for your test-day breakfast. (Chris Martin/Flickr) What’s Next? Want a quick way to boost your ACT Writing score? Read our 15 tips and strategies for getting a high score on the ACT essay. Get to know the ACT Plus Writing even better with our article on how to get a perfect score on the ACT essay. Discover how the length of your ACT essay is related to your ACT Writing score. Want to improve your ACT score by 4 points? Check out our best-in-class online ACT prep program. We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your ACT score by 4 points or more. Our program is entirely online, and it customizes what you study to your strengths and weaknesses. If you liked this ACT Writing lesson, you'll love our program.Along with more detailed lessons, you'll get your ACT essays hand-graded by a master instructor who will give you customized feedback on how you can improve. We'll also give you a step-by-step program to follow so you'll never be confused about what to study next. Check out our 5-day free trial:

How to Use Google to Create a Winning Resume

How to Use Google to Create a Winning Resume So you found the perfect job posting and think you really want to make the plunge this time and apply. But what’s stopped you in the past is likely what’s making you take pause now- you (of course) need to provide a resume, and the thought of updating yours or creating a new one from scratch is just too daunting to tackle. Hmm, maybe you don’t  need to apply to this job? Nonsense. Do it. No idea how to start building (or rebuilding) your resume? Lucky for you there are a ton of templates out there that can serve as a useful starting point. You don’t just have to sit there with a new Word document, the cursor blinking at you on the blank page.Next time you’re stuck, turn to Google Docs. Their template archive is a wealth of possible head starts for you to make a gorgeous and professional looking resume. And all you need is a Google account to get started- it’s completely free. And the best part is, you’ll be able to access your docume nt from anywhere, on any computer, in any document format.Here are a few tips on how to use Google Docs resume templates to your best advantage.1. Search for exactly what you want and like.The template gallery is huge- and includes more than just resumes. Use the search function to narrow things down. Just enter the word â€Å"resume† and start browsing through what’s available that suits your needs.And if you don’t have a sense of the type or style that you want? Really, don’t let the numbers overwhelm you. Find the first one that looks clean and classy and professional. Pick that one- done and done. Use the preview function to make sure you’re happy with your choice. If you don’t love it, keep looking for clean and classy. If you do, simply click â€Å"Use this Template† and get started.2. Personalize it piece by piece.Your template will be full of dummy text for a fake job applicant, and you’ll have to go in and change all o f the information to your own. Enter your details by clicking on each section as you edit it. The most convenient part? Your changes are automatically saved in Google Docs. (Though, in general, please practice saving as you go- it’s a great habit.)To save a copy to your computer, simply â€Å"Download as† then choose your file extension of choice. You can then attach your file to an email if needed, or print your file directly from Google Docs.3. Choose a good file name.Simply click on the title of the Google Doc to rename it. Remember to make it something you’ll be able to search for easily, and that will not confuse a hiring manager- something like â€Å"Smith Resume 2017 July† will do. If you’re making multiple versions for multiple positions, be sure to make the file names specific enough to find later when you need them.Honestly, the toughest part of this whole process is getting started. It’s hard to picture filling up a whole page of information when you have an expanse of white space sitting in front of you. A template seems like a simple thing, but trust us when we say that having set boxes to fill in is often all it takes to get your fingers typing, your brain moving, and the information about your work history into those neat little compartments.

International Legal Personality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

International Legal Personality - Essay Example Above all the government is tasked to ensure security of its citizens, protect its boundaries and apply the law. (iv) Capacity to enter into relatives with other Nations: - A recognized has the right of entering into relations with other states. This is aimed at bolstering good relations with other states and to promote the interests of the other nation in a Foreign Country. This promotes peace amongst nations and promotes trade as well. In essence not states alone are recognized as International personal International bodies and Organizations representing other nations as their members like world Health Organization (WHO) World Trade Organization (WTO) are recognized to be International Legal persons within the definition of International Law. Generally a state is recognized when it possesses essential elements of statehood. The recognition of a state means that it has been included as a member of International Community. Once a state has been recognized, it becomes a member of International Community. By recognitions the International Community determines that the recognized state possesses the essential quality of a state, and is able and willing to fulfill its International obligations. According to this theory, recognition clo... Overtime various theories have evolved over recognition of statehood. The main theories on recognition of statehood are:- a) Constitutive theory b) Declaratory or Evidentiary theory. (a) Constitutive Theory:- According to this theory, recognition clothes the recognition of a state with rights and duties of International Law. Recognition is a process through which a political community acquires International Personality by becoming a member of family of Nations. Hegel, Anzilloti, Oppenheim etc. are the chief exponents of constitutive theory. In the words of Oppenheim (Supra note I, pg 125) a state is and becomes an International person, through, recognition only and exclusively. According to constitutive theory, statehood and participation in the International legal order are attained by a political group only in so far as they are recognized by established state (P.E. Corbett, The Growth of world Law (1971) pg 62.) (b) Declaratory Theory Looking at declaratory theory, statehood or the authority of new government exists as such prior to and independently of recognition. The chief exponents of this theory are Hall Wagner, Brierly, Pitt Corbett and Fisher. According to Prof. Hall, a state enters into the family of nations as a light when it has acquired the essential attributes of statehood. Pitt Corbett has expressed the view that existence of a state is a matter of fact. In his words "so long as a political community possesses in fact the requisites of statehood, formal recognition would not appear to be in a condition precedent to acquisition of the ordinary rights and obligations incident thereto. Briefly has also remarked the granting of recognition to a new

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

ASTRONOMY - Essay Example The gravitational force will be greater if the object’s mass is greater. 7. Terrestrial planets are those that under the asteroid belt: Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. Jovian Planets are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Terrestrial planets are much smaller in size when compared to Jovian Planets. Jovian Planets take much longer time for revolving around the sun and rotating in their own axis. 8. Comets are made of ice, rock and different organic compounds where as meteorite is made of space rocks that are left by comets. When meteor enters earth’s atmosphere it ignites, which is called as meteor and when it hit earth it is called as meteorite. 9. One of the important theories for continental drift and plate tectonics is that Earth is constantly moving (revolution and rotation) and the landscapes have to adjust themselves to this phenomenon. Because of this process continental drift and plate tectonics are occurring. When carefully observed on globe the continents are once upon a time were one huge landscape. 10. The major surfaces of moon are craters, highlands, lighter and darker areas. The temperatures on lighter areas are very high and on darker areas very low. It is believed thousands of centuries ago moon was covered with volcanic eruptions. 11. Venus is much closer to sun than earth. That is the reason its atmosphere is very hot compared to that of earth. Most of its terrain consists of volcanoes that are taller than Mount Everest. Lava flows like a river in

Media Artifact Analysis Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Media Artifact Analysis - Research Paper Example ital media is becoming more complicated because is teaching today’s generation how to live entirely depending on virtual reality which is associated with time-saving simulation of actual real experience that enable to face time with genuine people (Berger, 2012). As a child everybody remembers spending a lot of time in front of a television and all over sudden your parent comes from nowhere yelling at you sending you outside to play with other kids. The reason behind this was to discourage you get addicted to the television but go outside and have fun as you have real life experience with other kids. This experience helped as to have a chance of interacting and learning from others as we socialize (Ball & Helbing, 2012). The twoube with Twitters is now a trend parody of a current popular online social networking application known as Twitter. This application enables an individual to update their status and activities constantly anytime they feel like throughout the day. When it was first discovered and came into the scene in 2006 after some few years of getting ready the site has cemented following and became home for many global chatter. With the modern culture where convenience is key, the dependence on Twitter is high from the television all the way to billboards, it has proved to be a free platform for marketing of all kind of business, it provides people with an opportunity to always keep in touch anywhere with friends and families, and therefore, Twitter gives something for everyone. The main condition while using Twitter is to within its limit of about 140 characters when posting your massages. The massages or as they are known as â€Å"tweets† being the language used are posted regularly on Twitter’s timeline in real time, here is where tweets originating from followers are contained although there are a number of Twitter’s applications that an individual can download for both cell phones as well as computers (Dijck, 2013). The following are the

The Third World War-- the Cold War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Third World War-- the Cold War - Essay Example During the cold war period, the third world suffered more than those two countries. Beginning of the Cold War After the end of the World War II, there was a race between the United States and the Soviet Union to be the superpower in the whole world. This conflict started from 1945 onwards and it lasted for over 45 years till 19911. This is known as the Cold War. The two superpowers tried their best to dominate the world in their own way which suited their interest. As a result, when both these countries confronted each other in any part of the world, there was a sense of tension between them. This was mainly due to the fact that both of them were aware of each other’s power. However, both the US and the USSR never broke into any kind of a direct war. And since there was no â€Å"hot† war between them, it is known as the cold war2. The cold war had impact on more parts of the world than the World War II. There were real wars in many parts of the world due to the cold war . With the use of the nuclear weapons during the World War II, many people had this fear that this might lead to the third world war, which did not happen fortunately. Otherwise, with the nuclear weapons available to both these nations, they are capable of destroying the whole world, not once but many times. During the Second World War both these countries joined their hands and were able to defeat the Germans. But after this, the quest to become the superpower of the world started between these two nations. Interestingly, they were very much familiar with each other’s power. As a result, none of them did actually break down into a direct state of war. Truman Doctrine and the role of containment On March 12, 1947, the president of the U.S. gave a speech to a joint session of congress. He addressed the state of global affairs while he did not discuss anything regarding â€Å"containment† being a strategic concept3. He pointed towards the economic need of Greece and Turk ey. This proposal for economic assistance was termed as â€Å"Truman Doctrine†. The Greek government has asked for an urgent help from the U.S., both financially and economically. Greece, being not a rich country was under tremendous economic pressure. As a result of the invasions by the foreign nations they were in a state of bother. They were in such a condition that they did not have funds for food, cloth and shelter. Same was the case with Turkey, but it was somehow in a better position than Greece4. The main objective of the foreign policy of the U.S. was to create such conditions so that they can be in a state of harmony with other nations. For this reason, the U.S. participated in an immense way in the creation of the United Nations. The main objective of the United Nations was to arrange freedom for all its members5. It started a new relationship with the Soviet Union and the world. The Truman Doctrine described urgency on the part of the U.S. to help Greece and on th e same hand, to stop the spread of communism. With this foreign policy the U.S. was trying to earn the support of their people showing their mercy character towards others. Eventually it was also a way towards making them a leader in front of the world. Great Britain being unable to help out Greece and Turkey, the U.S. had taken this opportunity to look for extending their help to other poor nations with sole motive of acquiring them. U.S. accomplishments The United States has a very interesting history regarding the invasions it made in the past. There was a

Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Art - Essay Example No doubt I have always been influenced with magazine cover photos such as the one below. I have always thought that an ideal female should look just like what the cover photos and advert images preach to us, and nothing less. Moreover, these cover photos are always of celebrities and models, and as such, my perception has always been shaped to believe that any other female need to match the celebrity standards. This image not only influences the belief and behavior of individuals, but also defines the culture of today’s society, whereby an ideal human to be acceptable is given standards that must be achieved. The artist statement accompanying this photography is, â€Å"Great American Women†. This explicitly reveals how the current culture defines greatness of female women. For example, they have to be fashion superstar, modern women, and all these come with super-slim bodies. This image is very alluring and sends a message both to young girls and grown up women to strive to look like such celebs because those are the culturally acceptable standards in today’s society. In turn, people also choose to view these photographs in one perspective, that is, the influence on body standards such as extremely tiny waist and generally slim bodies. However, there are several negative impacts that the above image inflicts in the society, especially among the female population. For example, young girls grow up to believe that if they do not attain such body sizes than they are not worthy. Therefore, I am going to critique this image in terms of the negative effects that it generates in th e society such as preference for cosmetic surgery, objectification of women bodies with reference to sex sells and media exaggeration of celeb glamour and glitz. The image links women’s beauty to the cult of thinness whereby the current society emphasizes, not on the substance, but on the surface of human being, and thus social and economic

The Hisory of Investigations Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The Hisory of Investigations - Research Paper Example This research tells that historical aspect of investigations is widely studied in cultural, social, political, and economic concepts. The recent decades have seen vast numbers of researchers and scholars develop interest and enthusiasm to the study of how investigations are conducted, as well as the rationales for these processes. This includes investigation activities primarily owing to the drastic pace of industrialization, the arising security needs in all phenomenon, the improvements in the technological knowledge, and rampant changes that have taken preeminence in all realms among others. Investigations have been conducted since the beginning of the middle age as a result of knowledge requirements by the early man, who made many historical discoveries. The carrying out of investigations acts as a vital instrument in the provision of a road to essential information discoveries in accordance with its requirements. Moreover, the impacts of investigations conduction include vital in formation retrievement, the realization of various problems that are taken as matters of concern by particular people and at particular periods or seasons as well as providing a rationale for implementing change within various sectors. The context of investigation is quite wide owing to it application in all realms regardless of the kind of operations that are dealt with. Appropriate investigation procedures are those that employ ample methodologies and approaches with an intention of promoting effectiveness and efficiency measures in addition to providing the desired findings.... It is also crucial to provide a presentation of the investigation process conduction by the subjects entrusted with such roles. This will also study factors that influence the need for investigations, its development, and limitations, in addition to the strengths and weaknesses of a public defendant’s office. An overview of the context of investigations The process of studying phenomena in details to enhance comprehension of its course of action entails investigations. The investigation that is conducted in any study field entails efforts of a team, individual searches, or classes of professional groups in certain fields. A wide array of specific studies and subjects are applied in distinct phenomena in order to develop better comprehension of the original requirements. The completion of any kind of investigation entails the interplay of the factors driving to such a study need, the importance of the investigation being conducted, the involved investigators, as well as the sco pe into which the investigations are conducted. The methodologies and processes of conducting the investigations also play a major part in the investigation activities. In addition, evidence of study by investigators include the skin cells or body fluids that are biological like, course dynamics and fingerprints in the study of crimes and other required areas (Husserl and Moran xxix). Investigations require the application of proper formats with the intention of capturing real details in the required field. Different investigators apply distinct investigatory procedures and methodologies in a bid to promote efficiency and effective measures. There are different phenomena in the

Art Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Art - Essay Example No doubt I have always been influenced with magazine cover photos such as the one below. I have always thought that an ideal female should look just like what the cover photos and advert images preach to us, and nothing less. Moreover, these cover photos are always of celebrities and models, and as such, my perception has always been shaped to believe that any other female need to match the celebrity standards. This image not only influences the belief and behavior of individuals, but also defines the culture of today’s society, whereby an ideal human to be acceptable is given standards that must be achieved. The artist statement accompanying this photography is, â€Å"Great American Women†. This explicitly reveals how the current culture defines greatness of female women. For example, they have to be fashion superstar, modern women, and all these come with super-slim bodies. This image is very alluring and sends a message both to young girls and grown up women to strive to look like such celebs because those are the culturally acceptable standards in today’s society. In turn, people also choose to view these photographs in one perspective, that is, the influence on body standards such as extremely tiny waist and generally slim bodies. However, there are several negative impacts that the above image inflicts in the society, especially among the female population. For example, young girls grow up to believe that if they do not attain such body sizes than they are not worthy. Therefore, I am going to critique this image in terms of the negative effects that it generates in th e society such as preference for cosmetic surgery, objectification of women bodies with reference to sex sells and media exaggeration of celeb glamour and glitz. The image links women’s beauty to the cult of thinness whereby the current society emphasizes, not on the substance, but on the surface of human being, and thus social and economic

Juvenil Crimes Essay Example for Free

Juvenil Crimes Essay They look at Juveniles on how unreliable and inconsistent they are on making bad decisions. But often minors bring unparticular brutally attracting impulsive claims on their behalfs on their crimes. Though the mind of a teenagers brain is pretty much dazed out, meaning how would you think they could handle prison. Well people say if they can handle committing crimes they should put up with what should be disserved. This brought a concern to society should Juveniles be charge as adults? In the article assertions from Liptak, Lundstrom, Krikorian, and Thompson, bring us vidence of how Juveniles are being tried as adults. These Journalists bring concerning information on how teens react to hatred crimes that they commit. Liptak and Lundstrom consideration against ones opinion on how Juveniles crimes should be thought are at most similar to one anothers thoughts. Liptak thinks that Juveniles should be brought to thought, that they commit crimes to diminish their responsibilities to some of what of danger to themselves and others. Lundstrom says that theyre only kids until they mess up and commit crimes, then were more eager to all them adults. Krikorian believes that teens are seriously impaired, are less likely to recognizes the risks and dont really think about the consequences. Thompson finds that mathematical the brain system grows little until puberty corresponding with abstract concepts before then. Krikorian and Thompson have the agreement that teens are at a stage were they really dont think because they are still kids and that they dont know better. In the article Supreme Court to rule on Executing Young Killers By Adam Liptak, Robert Acuna was convicted of killing two elderly eighbors referring to Execution Style then stealing a car. Mr. Acuna was the latest person to be convicted with a death row sentence before the age of 18. In Kids Are Kids until They Commit Crimes by Marlie Lundstrom writers about a 12 year-old savagely beated a 6 year-old girl to death, Lionel Tate said he was imitating his world wrestler icon. In April. Nathaniel Braizl was charged with first-degree murder at the age of 14, for shooting an English teacher that didnt let him say goodbye to two girls on the last day of school. In Many Kids Called Unfit for Adult trial y Greg Krikorian researched that teens are emotionally or intellectually unable to contribute to their own defense in court. In studies shown thousands of Juveniles went to an adult trail when they shouldnt because of their inability to stand the courts proceeding. In Startling finds on Teenage Brains by Paul Thompson discovers that the patterns of brain growth in children and teenagers. The brain is like a puzzle that grows fast at the point of learning skills. Also, that the massive loss of brain tissue happens in teenage years at risk taking, controlling impulses, and self-control. The Supreme Young Juveniles are incompetent on being well behaved as what Krikorian says Seriously Impaired or is that Just an excuse? But knowing that you took a life is Just unimaginable and horrifying. So if you did the crime now youre going to pay the time. Even though your seriously impaired if you know that then why you take advance of that abuse and commit crimes. If you blame the teens youre basically blaming the parents for unfit parenting their children. They dont teach their kids form right or wrong and dont control their kids. So minors are what so to be unished for what inconsiderable parenting. Many Juveniles are sentenced as adults for the crimes they commit at a young age being irresponsible. Their for theyre the ones who should pay for the price they commit if they went against the law so the law should be put to Justices. Teens are impulsive when it comes to things that are serious at times which they cant really control themselves either. Juveniles commit crimes today like Homicides, Murder, First-degree murder, Second-degree murder, Voluntary manslaughter, and Involuntary manslaughter. People who commit uch horrible crimes should be taken seriously and let it be brought to Justices. It doesnt matter what characteristics makes a person an adult, a Juvenile, or a child if you committed the crime at any age you should be held responsible for what you did so you should be tired no matter what. Juveniles are able to commit crimes but then, so they should be punished the same way as adults. Teens try to be like adult but they do it in an unfair manner to make them seem cool so when they acted like adults why not try them as adults give them what they want.

History of the Japanese Samurai

History of the Japanese Samurai The Samurai: Warrior and Ruler of Ancient Japan Few countries have a warrior tradition as long and exciting as Japan. It is a tradition found in the Samurai, the loyal and self-sacrificing knight of ancient Japan. The Samurai is a valiant warrior who can both appreciate the beauty of nature in that of a rose blossom but will also kill or die for his master in an instant. This well-rounded warrior was the ruling class of Japan for almost seven hundred years. He fought for control of his country and to keep Japan free from outside influences. (Turnbull 1) This aristocratic warrior class arose during the 12th century wars between the Taira and Minamoto clans and was consolidated in the Tokugawa period. Samurai were privileged to wear two swords, and at one time had the right to cut down any commoner who offended them. They cultivated the martial virtues, indifference to pain or death, and unfailing loyalty to their overlords. Samurai were the dominant group in Japan. Under the Tokugawa shogunate, the samurai were removed from direct control of the villages, moved into the domain castle towns, and given government stipends. They were encouraged to take up bureaucratic posts. The Hagakure, has been dubbed the book of the samurai. It was written after a century of peace around 1716. It came to be the guide of samurai ethics until the end of the feudal period. Its short passages reflect and outline the qualities that make a samurai. Yamamoto Tsunetomo expresses in the hagakure the framework and mindset of being a samurai. â€Å"Although it stands to reason that a samurai should be mindful of the Way of the samurai, it would seem that we are all negligent. Consequently, if someone were to ask, ‘what is the true meaning of the Way of the Samurai?’ the person who should be able to answer promptly is rare. This is because it has not been established in one’s mind beforehand. From this, one’s unmindfulness of the Way can be known. Negligence is an extreme thing.† (Wilson, 17) â€Å"The Way of the Samurai is found in death. When it comes to either/or, there is only the quick choice of death. It is not particularly difficult. Be determined and advance. To say that dying without reaching one’s aim is to die a dog’s death is the frivolous way of sophisticates. When pressed with the choice of life or death, it is not necessary to gain one’s aim. We all want to live. And in large part we make our logic according to what we like. But not having attained our aim and continuing to live is cowardice. This is a thin dangerous line. To die without gaining one’s aim is a dog’s death and fanaticism. There is no shame to this. This is the substance of the Way of the Samurai. If by setting one’s heart right every morning and evening, one is able to live as though his body were already dead, he gains freedom in the Way. His whole life will be without blame, and he will succeed in his calling. (Wilson, 17) The samurai had extreme religious ideals. One samurai in particular, Tsunetomo, he began to despair of ever gaining a position as a retainer, and her began to visit a man who was to have no small influence on his life. This was the Zen Buddhist priest Tannen (? – 1680), a man of unbending integrity and will, who had resigned his post as head priest at the major Nabeshima temple as a protest against the death sentence of another priest, and when recalled, refused to return. Zen Buddhism and the samurai had been closely related since the thirteenth century in Japan, when the Hojo regents had discovered that its vitality and rejection of life as an object of special craving had much to offer the warrior. Tannen had his own ideas concerning the relationship of Zen and the warriors. â€Å"He declares that religious matters are for old men, and if young samurai learn about Buddhism it will only bring them disaster, for they will begin to look at the world from two sets of values ra ther than one.† (Wilson, 13) The warriors of early Japan bore only a passing resemblance to the later samurai. Weaponry and armor were of a distinctly Chinese flavor, and the earliest warriors carried shields, a device evidently out of vogue even before the Heian period. Some of our knowledge of the weapons and protection the early Japanese warrior carried comes from artifacts excavated from the tombs constructed in the 4th and 5th centuries to house departed royalty. Another, just as valuable resource are the haniwa, which were clay statues evidently used as grave markers. A good number of these haniwa depict warriors, and these provide us some insight into the nature of ‘home-grown’ Japanese armor of the time. The horse was imported to Japan sometime in the 4th or 5th century, and quickly became a valuable commodity. Also brought over from the continent were Keiko, or suits of lamellar scaled armor. This type, which is traditionally associated with horsemen, provided the foundation from which the classic patterns of samurai armor construction would build. Just as important is the samurai’s weaponry is the code of ethics by which they lived by which is known as the code of Bushido. This term refers to the moral code principals that developed among the samurai class of Japan, on a basis of national tradition influenced by Zen and Confucianism. The first use of the term apparently occurred during the civil war period of the 16th century; its precise content varied historically as samurai standards evolved. Its one unchanging ideal was martial spirit, including athletic and military skills as well as fearless facing of the enemy in battle. Frugal living, kindness and honesty were also highly regarded. Like Confucianism, Bushido required filial piety; but, originating in the feudal system, it also held that supreme honor was to serve one’s lord unto death. If these obligations conflicted, the samurai was bound by loyalty to his lord despite the suffering he might cause to his parents. The final rationalization of Bushido thought occurred during the Tokugawa period, when Yamaga Soko equated the samurai with the Confucian â€Å"superior man† and taught that his essential function was to exemplify virtue to the lower classes. Without disregarding the basic Confucian virtue, benevolence, Soko emphasized the second virtue, righteousness, which he interpreted as â€Å"obligation† or â€Å"duty†. This strict code of honor, affecting matters of life and death, demanded conscious choice and so fostered individual initiative while yet reasserting the obligations of loyalty and filial piety. Obedience to authority was stressed, but duty came first even if it entailed violation of statue law. In such an instance, the true samurai would prove his sincerity and expiate his crime against the government by subsequently taking his own life. By mid-19th century, Bushido standards had become the general ideal, and the legal abolition of the samurai class in 1871 made Bushido even more the property of the entire nation. In the public education system, with the emperor replacing the feudal lord as the object of loyalty and sacrifice, Bushido became the foundation of ethical training. As such, it contributed both to the arise of Japanese nationalism and to the strengthening of wartime civilian morale up to 1945. The term â€Å"Samurai† means those who serve. These mystical knights served many functions in Japanese society. During time of war, they were the masters of the battlefield. In peace they were the administrators and the aristocrats. As statesmen, soldiers, and businessmen, former samurai took the lead in building modern Japan. The Japanese warrior, known as the samurai, has played a significant role in Japans history and culture throughout the centuries. Their ancestors can be traced back to as far as can be remembered. Some stories have become mysterious legends handed down over the centuries. In this report you will learn who the samurai were, their origins as we know them, how they lived and fought and their evolution to today. It will be clear why the samurai stand out as one of the most famous group of warriors of all times. Looking back in time, the first Japanese battles recorded are in the first few centuries AD. At this time Japanese warriors went across the sea to Korea to help one kingdom battling two rival kingdoms. Four hundred men set out and fought on foot carrying their bows, spears and swords. They were quickly beaten by warriors attacking on horseback. They probably had never seen an attack like that before, with horses being ridden. Even though there were horses in Japan they had not been used for riding or fighting, but to help in carrying and pulling goods. In the next century, however, there is evidence that horses were being ridden and used in warfare by warriors who would later be called samurai (History Channel). The term samurai was first used in the 10th century and means â€Å"those who serve†. In the beginning it stood for men who guarded the capital for the Emperor, some where used as tax collectors. Later the word grew to include any military man who served a powerful landlord, almost like a police force for that time. They would go around the countryside on horseback collecting taxes from the peasants, often this was in the form of rice. This money helped the Emperor pay for his lavish life style. The word, samurai, quickly spread and was respected (and maybe feared a little) for the men it represented. The noblemen depended on the strength of the samurai. Since their power and wealth was directly related to how much land they owned, the noblemen kept small armies of samurai to protect their property from thieves and invaders. Eventually many noble families joined together to form clans that became more powerful than the emperor, who was the traditional head of the Japanese government (How Samurai Work 11). In the 12th century the two most powerful clans were the Minomoto and the Taira. The two came to battle in 1160 with the Taira winning. Twenty years later in 1180 those Minomotos who had escaped death (they were children during the first attack) led a new attack that turned into a war that lasted five years and was called the Gempei War. The Minamotos won, and the emperor made Minamoto Yoritomo shogun, the head of the military. Yoritomo however wanted more and took all power away from the emperor and made himself dictator. At this time the samurai gained power, through land given to them by the new shogun. Their rise in status was beginning. The battles that were fought during The Gempei War were very important in the history of the samurai. They set a new and honorable standard for all samurai to live by. These standards would last throughout the existence of the samurai warrior. The Gempei War provided a role model for Japanese samurai’s courageous and noble behavior (Turnbull 14). Almost all the important characteristics attributed the samurai culture came out of the Gempei war; â€Å"Archery, hand-to-hand fighting, undying loyalty to one’s lord and the tremendous tradition of ritual suicide all have key passages and proof texts in the tales of the Gempi War†(Turnbull 15). The samurai had an unwritten code of honor called the bushido. Bushido means â€Å"way of the warrior† (History of the Samurai 3). This provided them with a code to help show them how to live and conduct themselves at home and in battle. One of the most important duties of the samurai was their loyalty to their lord. The samurai would defend their lord until the death. Revenge was also central in the samurai’s life and if someone had killed their master or attacked their master’s honor revenge must be gotten. The same vengeance was given if they themselves or their family were disrespected or defeated. Not just anyone could become a samurai warrior. You had to be the child of a samurai, being born into this class was a privilege. The samurai were not all rich, in fact their wealth was judged on the amount of Koku (which is the amount of rice that the fields produced). Other things like the size of the samurai’s house were based upon the wealth and rank of the samurai. There were also strict traditions to be followed for a young samurai. When a samurai was born, he would be given a small sword charm to wear on his belt. When the boy is five he gets his first haircut and begins to learn martial arts. At age seven he receives his first wide trousers called hakama. When the young samurai is fifteen he goes through a ceremony called gembuku where the boy becomes a man. He then receives his adult name, his adult haircut, and his first real sword and armor. Most boys would be taught combat skills by their father and eventually as he got older he would be taught by a local sensei. Those boys from wealthier families were expected to be educated men and may be sent to an academy where they would study literature and the arts along with martial arts. The training of the samurai for battle was intensive. There was more than just physical training involved. Strong mental concentration and focus were necessary to channel their energies before battle. The samurai warrior would spend endless hours practicing a set of complex battle movements called kata. â€Å"This practice started slowly at first increasing speed, until they became effortless and perfect. The movements were based on strategies of attack, defense, and counterattack† (Gaskin Hawkins 73). However, the only way these young samurais would ever gain experience is to take part in actual battle. So the sons of the samurai would follow their fathers into battle to test their newly learned fighting techniques. The samurai were also known for having a psychic awareness of the world around them in addition to their great skill. This is something practiced from an early age as well. An example of this keen awareness is seen in the story of three brothers told by their father. The father decided to test the ability of his three sons. He placed a vase on top a door so that it would fall when someone entered. The youngest son entered the room and he cut the vase in half with his sword before it hit the ground. The father’s response was, â€Å"This son has a long way to go.† Then he called for his middle son, this son caught the vase right above his head. This time his father’s response was that, â€Å"he is strong and improving but still has much to learn.† Finally, the oldest was called into the room, when he reaches for the door he immediately feels the weight of the vase. He slides the door open a crack and catches the vase and walks in. His father replies, â€Å" This son is doing well.† (Gaskin Hawkins 75). Their goal for perfections and their training and dedication were endless. The samurai is famous for his sword and it is one his most prized possessions. There are two main swords, one called the katana and the other the wakizashi. The wakizashi is worn on his belt at all times and a shorter blade of the two that was used in battle. The katana is the longer curved sword that was the samurai’s main weapon. The sword is given to a samurai at birth and placed next to that samurai when he dies. The samurai would take the sword everywhere he went, even to bed. It was treated with great respect and most would have been passed down from generation to generation. The process for making each sword from iron and steel is long and tedious requiring many steps and much patience. When finished a decorative handle would be added. The sword makers were respected and treated with almost reverence for the job they performed. â€Å"Like an artist the master sword maker would often sign his work (Gaskins Hawkins 10). This sword would be the difference between life an d death for many samurai. The 1500s began as time known as the Period of Warring States. This term was borrowed from the Chinese even though Japan was battling between families and clans, and not states. The leader of the clan called himself an ashigaru. which means great names. Only the strongest clan could survive these battles and the daimyo would do anything to win. The powerful daimyos had large armies made up of foot soldiers called ashigaru. During this time there was also a big change in how the samurai fought. In addition to using the traditional bows they were introduced to guns for the first time. First the guns came from European traders and were made in China, but it didn’t take long for the Japanese to start manufacturing their own weapons. (Turnbull 19). The samurai’s armor was one of the most elaborate and unique creations of their time. Today they are seen as works of art. Their armor was made from lamellar armor which took small metal plates and fastened them together and covered with a lacquer to make them waterproof. The outside of the armor was very colorful and sewn and covered with silk and leather designs. There were two types of armor, one called yori, which was heavier and used for riding on horseback. The other was called do-maru this was lighter and more practical for the foot soldiers. Both allowed for the samurai to have flexibility to move able to use their weapons and move in battle. This armor covered the entire body from samurai’s helmet to his chest protector and panels protecting his hips, arms and legs. One interesting fact is the about the kote. It is an armored sleeve only worn on the left arm so that the right arm would be free for the samurai to shoot his bow. Even when the bow was no longer us ed for battles this type of armor was seen as honoring a sense of tradition (How Samurai Work 5). The samurai’s helmet was also very important. It provided heavy duty protection to the head and neck. They also wore an â€Å"iron face mask, which might represent demons, ghosts, or barbarians† (Gaskin Hawkins 71) to help intimidate the enemy. An older warrior might want to use the face of a younger warrior so no one would know his age. The heavy duty neck covering helped in battles, and also helped prevent beheadings. Another example of samurai pride and courage is the ritual of burning incense in his helmet before battle. This was done so if he was defeated and beheaded he would leave behind a pleasant scent. Another example of their legendary bravery was in 1281 when Genghis Khan (leader of the Mongols out of Asia) attempted to invade Japan. But, because of the brave samurai and a well timed storm called a kamikaze, they were destroyed along with their ships. The word kamikaze means â€Å"winds of the gods†, but after that day it took on another meaning to include, destroying an enemy. Even in 1945 the term kamikaze pilot was used for the Japanese pilots that attacked the American fleet at Pearl Harbor. This victory against the Mongols was another added to the list of samurai’s brave and notable victories (Gaskin Hawkins 28). To the samurai, their pride went hand in hand with their honor and heritage. One example of this is when one samurai would challenge another to battle. It was tradition at this time for each samurai to speak publicly the names of all his ancestors, along with their accomplishments in battle ( some stories became embellished over time). This showed the deep pride and respect they held for his ancestors. (Turnbull 47). By the 14th century a samurai’s lineage had gotten quite long and just reciting your ancestors was difficult. The family pedigree was so important it was written down to be kept safe at all cost. An example of this devotion is when a samurai’s house caught fire and one samurai volunteered to go in and get the family tree that was written on a banner. â€Å"After the fire they found the samurai laying dead on his stomach, when they turned him over they found he had cut his stomach open and put the family tree inside to protect it from the flames† (Tur nbull 53). This is another example of their devotion to their family and to duty. The ancestors of the samurai were very much involved in the present life of the samurai. Every year during the Bon Festival they would be welcomed back through religious ceremonies. These ceremonies showed a deep appreciation felt toward their ancestors. They felt great gratitude for who they were, this included their name and their status. There were even rituals held before battles to bring the ancestors to help (Turnbull 48). The death of the samurai was treated with the same respect and honor as was his life. Seppuku is the word used for suicide by cutting open the stomach (also known as hari kiri). Seppuku was performed with a dagger. To the samurai warrior seppuku was something to be honored and respected. It could also bring back honor to him and his family if he had been beaten in battle or disgraced. This took incredible bravely and was extremely painful. Often a friend of the samurai’s would to end his pain by cutting off his head. (History Channel). This could also be something planned out ahead of time or done quickly during battle. Nitta Yoshisada is one of the most famous stories of a samurai’s death in 1336. Going into battle one day he was worried, the battle was difficult and he had to lead his men through rice fields. Yoshida went charging in, despite a heavy attack of soldiers and arrows. His horse was hit and fell down pinning him underneath. He had no time or way to reach his stomach to perform seppuku so they say he cut off his own head. This is just one of many extreme acts of seppuku over the many years of the samurai. As clans all over Japan dispersed there became a large amount of samurai without a master these samurai were called ronin. These ronin were different from most samurai because they were not loyal to any lord. Many of them became personal body guards for farm owners, and some became senseis, and others took the time to master the technique of the sword. As time has passed the so did the importance of the samurai warrior. There were no more battles to be fought and peace was among the country. This with Japan becoming a more industrialized nation. After years of isolationism and their declining economy Japan was finally forced to open trade with western countries including the United States. This caused a split in Japan between the conventional samurai ideals and those who wanted to bring in the new ways of the west. In 1876 the emperor decided that there would be no wearing swords unless you were part of the imperial armed forces. This was another symbol of the samurai‘s power no longer needed. Over time the samurai could no longer support themselves and returned to farming or working in cites. The role of the samurai warrior was finished. The Japanese samurais have been extremely influential figures throughout Japan’s history. Their influence has been seen is all aspects of Japanese life from the education of young boys in body and mind, to governing of the Emperors, to the study of the martial arts. Their code of honor and loyalty are traditions that all Japanese respect and try to live up to even today. The self sacrifice of ones own life for a common cause was even seen in World War II when Japanese pilots deliberately crashed their planes into United States ships anchored at Pearl Harbor. This was a devastating attack and can show the horror caused by revenge and their belief in sacrifice and honor. They were even called kamikaze pilots after the famous samurai battle of long ago. The influence of the samurai continues to be seen in Japan today in a positive way with the stories and legends of heroic samurai and the bushido as their guide. Works Cited Gaskin, Carol. and Hawkins, Vince. The Ways of the Samurai. New York: Byron Preiss Visual Publications, 2003 â€Å"History of the Samurai.† http://home.online.no/~p-loeand/samurai/hist-eng.htm â€Å"How Samurai Work.† http://science.howstuffworks.com/samurai.htm The History Channel: The Samurai. Videocassette. AE Television Networks, 2003. 100 min. Turnbull, Stephen. Samurai, The World of the Warrior. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2003