Exam Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Exam Case Study - Essay Example It should be noted that as bureaucratic leader, he has set out specific procedures and guidelines which should be strictly followed by his subordinates. Being task oriented, his main concern is efficiency, which he strongly believes to be attainable only by following the preset work directives. In his aim of having ultimately control of the plant, he even devises a system where all the administrative processes supporting craftsmen still needs his approval. He has little or no concern that his employees are demoralized by his behavior. His only interest is to get work done through people. He ultimately treats workforce as resources which should be used in order to attain organizational goals without considering the issues of motivating and retaining them. Eradour should be commended in his recognition that efficiency is the top priority of his plant. As previously discussed, production cost of aluminium is relatively high which necessitates the focus on efficiently utilizing organizational assets in order to reduce wastage thereby reducing production cost. Being a plant which operates on highly technical processes, the carbon plant thus needs to be guided with procedures to ensure that processes are being carried out as they should. The most important issue in the Carbon Plant is the lack of employee empowerment. The organizational structure is very centralized noting that Eradour is in control of almost everything through his establishment of guidelines which should be followed at all times. The manager should look into giving more autonomy in making some decisions. The fact that problems still arise amidst the strict guidelines signal that there are inevitable situations which should be left at the discretion of the employee. Giving enough empowerment leaves the workforce more motivated as this communicates that his insights are valued. More empowerment should be given most especially to the craftsmen. Intervention in this department

Japanese Industrialization and Economic Growth Essay Example for Free

Japanese Industrialization and Economic Growth Essay Japan achieved sustained growth in per capita income between the 1880s and 1970 through industrialization. Moving along an income growth trajectory through expansion of manufacturing is hardly unique. Indeed Western Europe, Canada, Australia and the United States all attained high levels of income per capita by shifting from agrarian-based production to manufacturing and technologically sophisticated service sector activity. Still, there are four distinctive features of Japans development through industrialization that merit discussion: The proto-industrial base Japans agricultural productivity was high enough to sustain substantial craft (proto-industrial) production in both rural and urban areas of the country prior to industrialization. Investment-led growth Domestic investment in industry and infrastructure was the driving force behind growth in Japanese output. Both private and public sectors invested in infrastructure, national and local governments serving as coordinating agents for infrastructure build-up. * Investment in manufacturing capacity was largely left to the private sector. * Rising domestic savings made increasing capital accumulation possible. * Japanese growth was investment-led, not export-led. Total factor productivity growth achieving more output per unit of input was rapid. On the supply side, total factor productivity growth was extremely important. Scale economies the reduction in per unit costs due to increased levels of output contributed to total factor productivity growth. Scale economies existed due to geographic concentration, to growth of the national economy, and to growth in the output of individual companies. In addition, companies moved down the learning curve, reducing unit costs as their cumulative output rose and demand for their product soared. The social capacity for importing and adapting foreign technology improved and this contributed to total factor productivity growth: * At the household level, investing in education of children improved social capability. * At the firm level, creating internalized labor markets that bound firms to workers and workers to firms, thereby giving workers a strong incentive to flexibly adapt to new technology, improved social capability. * At the government level, industrial policy that reduced the cost to private firms of securing foreign technology enhanced social capacity. Shifting out of low-productivity agriculture into high productivity manufacturing, mining, and construction contributed to total factor productivity growth. Dualism Sharply segmented labor and capital markets emerged in Japan after the 1910s. The capital intensive sector enjoying high ratios of capital to labor paid relatively high wages, and the labor intensive sector paid relatively low wages. Dualism contributed to income inequality and therefore to domestic social unrest. After 1945 a series of public policy reforms addressed inequality and erased much of the social bitterness around dualism that ravaged Japan prior to World War II. The remainder of this article will expand on a number of the themes mentioned above. The appendix reviews quantitative evidence concerning these points. The conclusion of the article lists references that provide a wealth of detailed evidence supporting the points above, which this article can only begin to explore. The Legacy of Autarky and the Proto-Industrial Economy: Achievements of Tokugawa Japan (1600-1868) Why Japan? Given the relatively poor record of countries outside the European cultural area few achieving the kind of catch-up growth Japan managed between 1880 and 1970 the question naturally arises: why Japan? After all, when the United States forcibly opened Japan in the 1850s and Japan was forced to cede extra-territorial rights to a number of Western nations as had China earlier in the 1840s, many Westerners and Japanese alike thought Japans prospects seemed dim indeed. Tokugawa achievements: urbanization, road networks, rice cultivation, craft production In answering this question, Mosk (2001), Minami (1994) and Ohkawa and Rosovsky (1973) emphasize the achievements of Tokugawa Japan (1600-1868) during a long period of closed country autarky between the mid-seventeenth century and the 1850s: a high level of urbanization; well developed road networks; the channeling of river water flow with embankments and the extensive elaboration of irrigation ditches that supported and encouraged the refinement of rice cultivation based upon improving seed varieties, fertilizers and planting methods especially in the Southwest with its relatively long growing season; the development of proto-industrial (craft) production by merchant houses in the major cities like Osaka and Edo (now called Tokyo) and its diffusion to rural areas after 1700; and the promotion of education and population control among both the military elite (the samurai) and the well-to-do peasantr y in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Tokugawa political economy: daimyo and shogun These developments were inseparable from the political economy of Japan. The system of confederation government introduced at the end of the fifteenth century placed certain powers in the hands of feudal warlords, daimyo, and certain powers in the hands of the shogun, the most powerful of the warlords. Each daimyo and the shogun was assigned a geographic region, a domain, being given taxation authority over the peasants residing in the villages of the domain. Intercourse with foreign powers was monopolized by the shogun, thereby preventing daimyo from cementing alliances with other countries in an effort to overthrow the central government. The samurai military retainers of thedaimyo were forced to abandon rice farming and reside in the castle town headquarters of their daimyo overlord. In exchange, samurai received rice stipends from the rice taxes collected from the villages of their domain. By removingsamurai from the countryside by demilitarizing rural areas conflicts over local water rights were largely made a thing of the past. As a result irrigation ditches were extended throughout the valleys, and riverbanks were shored up with stone embankments, facilitating transport and preventing flooding. The sustained growth of proto-industrialization in urban Japan, and its widespread diffusion to villages after 1700 was also inseparable from the productivity growth in paddy rice production and the growing of industrial crops like tea, fruit, mulberry plant growing (that sustained the raising of silk cocoons) and cotton. Indeed, Smith (1988) has given pride of place to these domestic sources of Japans future industrial success. Readiness to emulate the West As a result of these domestic advances, Japan was well positioned to take up the Western challenge. It harnessed its infrastructure, its high level of literacy, and its proto-industrial distribution networks to the task of emulating Western organizational forms and Western techniques in energy production, first and foremost enlisting inorganic energy sources like coal and the other fossil fuels to generate steam power. Having intensively developed the organic economy depending upon natural energy flows like wind, water and fire, Japanese were quite prepared to master inorganic production after the Black Ships of the Americans forced Japan to jettison its long-standing autarky. From Balanced to Dualistic Growth, 1887-1938: Infrastructure and Manufacturing Expand Fukoku Kyohei After the Tokugawa government collapsed in 1868, a new Meiji government committed to the twin policies of fukoku kyohei (wealthy country/strong military) took up the challenge of renegotiating its treaties with the Western powers. It created infrastructure that facilitated industrialization. It built a modern navy and army that could keep the Western powers at bay and establish a protective buffer zone in North East Asia that eventually formed the basis for a burgeoning Japanese empire in Asia and the Pacific. Central government reforms in education, finance and transportation Jettisoning the confederation style government of the Tokugawa era, the new leaders of the new Meiji government fashioned a unitary state with powerful ministries consolidating authority in the capital, Tokyo. The freshly minted Ministry of Education promoted compulsory primary schooling for the masses and elite university education aimed at deepening engineering and scientific knowledge. The Ministry of Finance created the Bank of Japan in 1882, laying the foundations for a private banking system backed up a lender of last resort. The government began building a steam railroad trunk line girding the four major islands, encouraging private companies to participate in the project. In particular, the national government committed itself to constructing a Tokaido line connecting the Tokyo/Yokohama region to the Osaka/Kobe conurbation along the Pacific coastline of the main island of Honshu, and to creating deepwater harbors at Yokohama and Kobe that could accommodate deep-hulled steamships. Not surprisingly, the merchants in Osaka, the merchant capital of Tokugawa Japan, already well versed in proto-industrial production, turned to harnessing steam and coal, investing heavily in integrated sp inning and weaving steam-driven textile mills during the 1880s. Diffusion of best-practice agriculture At the same time, the abolition of the three hundred or so feudal fiefs that were the backbone of confederation style-Tokugawa rule and their consolidation into politically weak prefectures, under a strong national government that virtually monopolized taxation authority, gave a strong push to the diffusion of best practice agricultural technique. The nationwide diffusion of seed varieties developed in the Southwest fiefs of Tokugawa Japan spearheaded a substantial improvement in agricultural productivity especially in the Northeast. Simultaneously, expansion of agriculture using traditional Japanese technology agriculture and manufacturing using imported Western technology resulted. Balanced growth Growth at the close of the nineteenth century was balanced in the sense that traditional and modern technology using sectors grew at roughly equal rates, and labor especially young girls recruited out of farm households to labor in the steam using textile mills flowed back and forth between rural and urban Japan at wages that were roughly equal in industrial and agricultural pursuits. Geographic economies of scale in the Tokaido belt Concentration of industrial production first in Osaka and subsequently throughout the Tokaido belt fostered powerful geographic scale economies (the ability to reduce per unit costs as output levels increase), reducing the costs of securing energy, raw materials and access to global markets for enterprises located in the great harbor metropolises stretching from the massive Osaka/Kobe complex northward to the teeming Tokyo/Yokohama conurbation. Between 1904 and 1911, electrification mainly due to the proliferation of intercity electrical railroads created economies of scale in the nascent industrial belt facing outward onto the Pacific. The consolidation of two huge hydroelectric power grids during the 1920s one servicing Tokyo/Yokohama, the other Osaka and Kobe further solidified the comparative advantage of the Tokaido industrial belt in factory production. Finally, the widening and paving during the 1920s of roads that could handle buses and trucks was also pioneered by the grea t metropolises of the Tokaido, which further bolstered their relative advantage in per capita infrastructure. Organizational economies of scale zaibatsu In addition to geographic scale economies, organizational scale economies also became increasingly important in the late nineteenth centuries. The formation of the zaibatsu (financial cliques), which gradually evolved into diversified industrial combines tied together through central holding companies, is a case in point. By the 1910s these had evolved into highly diversified combines, binding together enterprises in banking and insurance, trading companies, mining concerns, textiles, iron and steel plants, and machinery manufactures. By channeling profits from older industries into new lines of activity like electrical machinery manufacturing, the zaibatsu form of organization generated scale economies in finance, trade and manufacturing, drastically reducing information-gathering and transactions costs. By attracting relatively scare managerial and entrepreneurial talent, the zaibatsu format economized on human resources. Electrification The push into electrical machinery production during the 1920s had a revolutionary impact on manufacturing. Effective exploitation of steam power required the use of large central steam engines simultaneously driving a large number of machines power looms and mules in a spinning/weaving plant for instance throughout a factory. Small enterprises did not mechanize in the steam era. But with electrification the unit drive system of mechanization spread. Each machine could be powered up independently of one another. Mechanization spread rapidly to the smallest factory. Emergence of the dualistic economy With the drive into heavy industries chemicals, iron and steel, machinery the demand for skilled labor that would flexibly respond to rapid changes in technique soared. Large firms in these industries began offering premium wages and guarantees of employment in good times and bad as a way of motivating and holding onto valuable workers. A dualistic economy emerged during the 1910s. Small firms, light industry and agriculture offered relatively low wages. Large enterprises in the heavy industries offered much more favorable remuneration, extending paternalistic benefits like company housing and company welfare programs to their internal labor markets. As a result a widening gulf opened up between the great metropolitan centers of the Tokaido and rural Japan. Income per head was far higher in the great industrial centers than in the hinterland. Clashing urban/rural and landlord/tenant interests The economic strains of emergent dualism were amplified by the slowing down of technological progress in the agricultural sector, which had exhaustively reaped the benefits due to regional diffusion from the Southwest to the Northeast of best practice Tokugawa rice cultivation. Landlords around 45% of the cultivable rice paddy land in Japan was held in some form of tenancy at the beginning of the twentieth century who had played a crucial role in promoting the diffusion of traditional best practice techniques now lost interest in rural affairs and turned their attention to industrial activities. Tenants also found their interests disregarded by the national authorities in Tokyo, who were increasingly focused on supplying cheap foodstuffs to the burgeoning industrial belt by promoting agricultural production within the empire that it was assembling through military victories. Japan secured Taiwan from China in 1895, and formally brought Korea under its imperial rule in 1910 upon the heels of its successful war against Russia in 1904-05. Tenant unions reacted to this callous disrespect of their needs through violence. Landlord/tenant disputes broke out in the early 1920s, and continued to plague Japan politically throughout the 1930s, calls for land reform and bureaucratic proposals for reform being rejected by a Diet (Japans legislature) politically dominated by landlords. Japans military expansion Japans thrust to imperial expansion was inflamed by the growing instability of the geopolitical and international trade regime of the later 1920s and early 1930s. The relative decline of the United Kingdom as an economic power doomed a gold standard regime tied to the British pound. The United States was becoming a potential contender to the United Kingdom as the backer of a gold standard regime but its long history of high tariffs and isolationism deterred it from taking over leadership in promoting global trade openness. Germany and the Soviet Union were increasingly becoming industrial and military giants on the Eurasian land mass committed to ideologies hostile to the liberal democracy championed by the United Kingdom and the United States. It was against this international backdrop that Japan began aggressively staking out its claim to being the dominant military power in East Asia and the Pacific, thereby bringing it into conflict with the United States and the United Kingdom i n the Asian and Pacific theaters after the world slipped into global warfare in 1939. Reform and Reconstruction in a New International Economic Order, Japan after World War II Postwar occupation: economic and institutional restructuring Surrendering to the United States and its allies in 1945, Japans economy and infrastructure was revamped under the S.C.A.P (Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers) Occupation lasting through 1951. As Nakamura (1995) points out, a variety of Occupation-sponsored reforms transformed the institutional environment conditioning economic performance in Japan. The major zaibatsu were liquidated by the Holding Company Liquidation Commission set up under the Occupation (they were revamped as keiretsu corporate groups mainly tied together through cross-shareholding of stock in the aftermath of the Occupation); land reform wiped out landlordism and gave a strong push to agricultural productivity through mechanization of rice cultivation; and collective bargaining, largely illegal under the Peace Preservation Act that was used to suppress union organizing during the interwar period, was given the imprimatur of constitutional legality. Finally, education was opened up, partly through making middle school compulsory, partly through the creation of national universities in each of Japans forty-six prefectures. Improvement in the social capability for economic growth In short, from a domestic point of view, the social capability for importing and adapting foreign technology was improved with the reforms in education and the fillip to competition given by the dissolution of the zaibatsu. Resolving tension between rural and urban Japan through land reform and the establishment of a rice price support program that guaranteed farmers incomes comparable to blue collar industrial workers also contributed to the social capacity to absorb foreign technology by suppressing the political divisions between metropolitan and hinterland Japan that plagued the nation during the interwar years. Japan and the postwar international order The revamped international economic order contributed to the social capability of importing and adapting foreign technology. The instability of the 1920s and 1930s was replaced with replaced with a relatively predictable bipolar world in which the United States and the Soviet Union opposed each other in both geopolitical and ideological arenas. The United States became an architect of multilateral architecture designed to encourage trade through its sponsorship of the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (the predecessor to the World Trade Organization). Under the logic of building military alliances to contain Eurasian Communism, the United States brought Japan under its nuclear umbrella with a bilateral security treaty. American companies were encouraged to license technology to Japanese companies in the new international environment. Japan redirected its trade away from the areas that had been incorporated i nto the Japanese Empire before 1945, and towards the huge and expanding American market. Miracle Growth: Soaring Domestic Investment and Export Growth, 1953-1970 Its infrastructure revitalized through the Occupation period reforms, its capacity to import and export enhanced by the new international economic order, and its access to American technology bolstered through its security pact with the United States, Japan experienced the dramatic Miracle Growth between 1953 and the early 1970s whose sources have been cogently analyzed by Denison and Chung (1976). Especially striking in the Miracle Growth period was the remarkable increase in the rate of domestic fixed capital formation, the rise in the investment proportion being matched by a rising savings rate whose secular increase especially that of private household savings has been well documented and analyzed by Horioka (1991). While Japan continued to close the gap in income per capita between itself and the United States after the early 1970s, most scholars believe that large Japanese manufacturing enterprises had b y and large become internationally competitive by the early 1970s. In this sense it can be said that Japan had completed its nine decade long convergence to international competitiveness through industrialization by the early 1970s. MITI There is little doubt that the social capacity to import and adapt foreign technology was vastly improved in the aftermath of the Pacific War. Creating social consensus with Land Reform and agricultural subsidies reduced political divisiveness, extending compulsory education and breaking up the zaibatsu had a positive impact. Fashioning the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (M.I.T.I.) that took responsibility for overseeing industrial policy is also viewed as facilitating Japans social capability. There is no doubt that M.I.T.I. drove down the cost of securing foreign technology. By intervening between Japanese firms and foreign companies, it acted as a single buyer of technology, playing off competing American and European enterprises in order to reduce the royalties Japanese concerns had to pay on technology licenses. By keeping domestic patent periods short, M.I.T.I. encouraged rapid diffusion of technology. And in some cases the experience of International Business Machines (I.B.M.), enjoying a virtual monopoly in global mainframe computer markets during the 1950s and early 1960s, is a classical case M.I.T.I. made it a condition of entry into the Japanese market (through the creation of a subsidiary Japan I.B.M. in the case of I.B.M.) that foreign companies share many of their technological secrets with potential Japanese competitors. How important industrial policy was for Miracle Growth remains controversial, however. The view of Johnson (1982), who hails industrial policy as a pillar of the Japanese Development State (government promoting economic growth through state policies) has been criticized and revised by subsequent scholars. The book by Uriu (1996) is a case in point. Internal labor markets, just-in-time inventory and quality control circles Furthering the internalization of labor markets the premium wages and long-term employment guarantees largely restricted to white col lar workers were extended to blue collar workers with the legalization of unions and collective bargaining after 1945 also raised the social capability of adapting foreign technology. Internalizing labor created a highly flexible labor force in post-1950 Japan. As a result, Japanese workers embraced many of the key ideas of Just-in-Time inventory control and Quality Control circles in assembly industries, learning how to do rapid machine setups as part and parcel of an effort to produce components just-in-time and without defect. Ironically, the concepts of just-in-time and quality control were originally developed in the United States, just-in-time methods being pioneered by supermarkets and quality control by efficiency experts like W. Edwards Deming. Yet it was in Japan that these concepts were relentlessly pursued to revolutionize assembly line industries during the 1950s and 1960s. Ultimate causes of the Japanese economic miracle Miracle Growth was the completion of a protracted historical process involving enhancing human capital, massive accumulation of physical capital including infrastructure and private manufacturing capacity, the importation and adaptation of foreign technology, and the creation of scale economies, which took decades and decades to realize. Dubbed a miracle, it is best seen as the reaping of a bountiful harvest whose seeds were painstakingly planted in the six decades between 1880 and 1938. In the course of the nine decades between the 1880s and 1970, Japan amassed and lost a sprawling empire, reorienting its trade and geopolitical stance through the twists and turns of history. While the ultimate sources of growth can be ferreted out through some form of statistical accounting, the specific way these sources were marshaled in practice is inseparable from the history of Japan itself and of the global environment within which it has realized its industrial destiny. Appendix: Sources of Growth Accounting and Quantitative Aspects of Japans Modern Economic Development One of the attractions of studying Japans post-1880 economic development is the abundance of quantitative data documenting Japans growth. Estimates of Japanese income and output by sector, capital stock and labor force extend back to the 1880s, a period when Japanese income per capita was low. Consequently statistical probing of Japans long-run growth from relative poverty to abundance is possible. The remainder of this appendix is devoted to introducing the reader to the vast literature on quantitative analysis of Japans economic development from the 1880s until 1970, a nine decade period during which Japanese income per capita converged towards income per capita levels in Western Europe. As the reader will see, this discussion confirms the importance of factors discussed at the outset of this article. Our initial touchstone is the excellent sources of growth accounting analysis carried out by Denison and Chung (1976) on Japans growth between 1953 and 1971. Attributing growth in national income in growth of inputs, the factors of production capital and labor and growth in output per unit of the two inputs combined (total factor productivity) along the following lines: G(Y) = { a G(K) + [1-a] G(L) } + G (A) where G(Y) is the (annual) growth of national output, g(K) is the growth rate of capital services, G(L) is the growth rate of labor services, a is capitals share in national income (the share of income accruing to owners of capital), and G(A) is the growth of total factor productivity, is a standard approach used to approximate the sources of growth of income. Using a variant of this type of decomposition that takes into account improvements in the quality of capital and labor, estimates of scale economies and adjustments for structural change (shifting labor out of agriculture helps explain why total factor productivity grows), Denison and Chung (1976) generate a useful set of estimates for Japans Miracle Growth era. Operating with this sources of growth approach and proceeding under a variety of plausible assumptions, Denison and Chung (1976) estimate that of Japans average annual real national income growth of 8.77 % over 1953-71, input growth accounted for 3.95% (accounting for 45% of total growth) and growth in output per unit of input contributed 4.82% (accounting for 55% of total growth). To be sure, the precise assumptions and techniques they use can be criticized. The precise numerical results they arrive at can be argued over. Still, their general point that Japans growth was the result of improvements in the quality of factor inputs health and education for workers, for instance and improvements in the way these inputs are utilized in production due to technological and organizational change, reallocation of resources from agriculture to non-agriculture, and scale economies, is defensible. Notes: [a] Maddison (2000) provides estimates of real income that take into account the purchasing power of national currencies. [b] Ohkawa (1979) gives estimates for the N sector that is defined as manufacturing and mining (Ma) plus construction plus facilitating industry (transport, communications and utilities). It should be noted that the concept of an N sector is not standard in the field of economics. [c] The estimates of trade are obtained by adding merchandise imports to merchandise exports. Trade openness is estimated by taking the ratio of total (merchandise) trade to national output, the latter defined as Gross Domestic Product (G.D.P.). The trade figures include trade with Japans empire (Korea, Taiwan, Manchuria, etc.); the income figures for Japan exclude income generated in the empire. [d] The Human Development Index is a composite variable formed by adding together indices for educational attainment, for health (using life expectancy that is inversely related to the level of the infant mortality rate, the IMR), and for real per capita income. For a detailed discussion of this index see United Nations Development Programme (2000). [e] Electrical generation is measured in million kilowatts generated and supplied. For 1970, the figures on NHK subscribers are for television subscribers. The symbol n.a. = not available. Sources: The figures in this table are taken from various pages and tables in Japan Statistical Association (1987), Maddison (2000), Minami (1994), and Ohkawa (1979). Flowing from this table are a number of points that bear lessons of the Denison and Chung (1976) decomposition. One cluster of points bears upon the timing of Japans income per capita growth and the relationship of manufacturing expansion to income growth. Another highlights improvements in the quality of the labor input. Yet another points to the overriding importance of domestic investment in manufacturing and the lesser significance of trade demand. A fourth group suggests that infrastructure has been important to economic growth and industrial expansion in Japan, as exemplified by the figures on electricity generating capacity and the mass diffusion of communications in the form of radio and television broadcasting. Several parts of Table 1 point to industrialization, defined as an increase in the proportion of output (and labor force) attributable to manufacturing and mining, as the driving force in explaining Japans income per capita growth. Notable in Panels A and B of the tab le is that the gap between Japanese and American income per capita closed most decisively during the 1910s, the 1930s, and the 1960s, precisely the periods when manufacturing expansion was the most vigorous. Equally noteworthy of the spurts of the 1910s, 1930s and the 1960s is the overriding importance of gross domestic fixed capital formation, that is investment, for growth in demand. By contrast, trade seems much less important to growth in demand during these critical decades, a point emphasized by both Minami (1994) and by Ohkawa and Rosovsky (1973). The notion that Japanese growth was export led during the nine decades between 1880 and 1970 when Japan caught up technologically with the leading Western nations is not defensible. Rather, domestic capital investment seems to be the driving force behind aggregate demand expansion. The periods of especially intense capital formation were also the periods when manufacturing production soared. Capital formation in manufacturing, or in infrastructure supporting manufacturing expansion, is the main agent pushing long-run income per capita growth. Why? As Ohkawa and Rosovsky (1973) argue, spurts in manufacturing capital formation were associated with the import and adaptation of foreign technology, especially from the United States These investment spurts were also associated with shifts of labor force out of agriculture and into manufacturing, construction and facilitating sectors where labor productivity was far higher than it was in labor-intensive farming centered around labor-intensive rice cultivation. The logic of productivity gain due to more efficient allocation of labor resources is apparent from the right hand column of Panel A in Table 1. Finally, Panel C of Table 1 suggests that infrastructure investment that facilitated health and educational attainment (combined public and private expenditure on sanitation, schools and research laboratories), and public/private investment in physical infrastructure including dams and hydroelectric power grids helped fuel the expansion of manufacturing by improving human capital and by reducing the costs of transportation, communications and energy supply faced by private factories. Mosk (2001) argues that investments in human-capital-enhancing (medicine, public health and education), financial (banking) and physical infrastructure (harbors, roads, power grids, railroads and communications) laid the groundwork for industrial expansions. Indeed, the social capability for importing and adapting foreign technology emphasized by Ohkawa and Rosovsky (1973) can be largely explained by an infrastructure-driven growth hypothesis like that given by Mosk (2001). In sum, Denison and Chung (1976) argue that a combination of input factor improvement and growth in output per combined factor inputs account for Japans most rapid spurt of economic growth. Table 1 suggests that labor quality improved because health was enhanced and educational attainment increased; that investment in manufacturing was important not only because it increased capital stock itself but also because it reduced dependence on agriculture and went hand in glove with improvements in knowledge; and that th e social capacity to absorb and adapt Western technology that fueled improvements in knowledge was associated with infrastructure investment. References Denison, Edward and William Chung. Economic Growth and Its Sources. In Asias Next Giant: How the Japanese Economy Works, edited by Hugh Patrick and Henry Rosovsky, 63-151. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution, 1976. Horioka, Charles Y. Future Trends in Japans Savings Rate and the Implications Thereof for Japans External Imbalance.Japan and the World Economy 3 (1991): 307-330. Japan Statistical Association. Historical Statistics of Japan [Five Volumes]. Tokyo: Japan Statistical Association, 1987. Johnson, Chalmers. MITI and the Japanese Miracle: The Growth of Industrial Policy, 1925-1975. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1982. Maddison, Angus. Monitoring the World Economy, 1820-1992. Paris: Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2000. Minami, Ryoshin. Economic Development of Japan: A Quantitative Study. [Second edition]. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Macmillan Press, 1994. Mitchell, Brian. International Historical Statistics: Africa and Asia. New York: New York University Press, 1982. Mosk, Carl. Japanese Industrial History: Technology, Urbanization, and Economic Growth. Armonk, New York: M.E. Sharpe, 2001. Nakamura, Takafusa. The Postwar Japanese Economy: Its Development and Structure, 1937-1994. Tokyo: University of Tokyo Press, 1995. Ohkawa, Kazushi. Production Structure. In Patterns of Japanese Economic Development: A Quantitative Appraisal, edited by Kazushi Ohkawa and Miyohei Shinohara with Larry Meissner, 34-58. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1979. Ohkawa, Kazushi and Henry Rosovsky. Japanese Economic Growth: Trend Acceleration in the Twentieth Century. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1973. Smith, Thomas. Native Sources of Japanese Industrialization, 1750-1920. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988. Uriu, Robert. Troubled Industries: Confronting Economic Challenge in Japan. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1996. United Nations Development Programme. Human Development Report, 2000. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000. Citation: Mosk, Carl. Japan, Industrialization and Economic Growth. EH.Net Encyclopedia, edited by Robert Whaples. January 18, 2004. URL http://eh.net/encyclopedia/article/mosk.japan.final

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â€Å"â€Å"Ilmu pengetahuan tanpa nilai-nilai yang mulia belum tentu dapat melahirkan masyarakat yang baik dan berjaya. Nilai-nilai yang mulia tanpa ilmu pengetahuan juga tidak akan melahirkan masyarakat yang berjaya†. Begitulah ungkapan kata-kata bestari oleh mantan Perdana Menteri kita, Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad, Bapa Pemodenan Negara yang merupakan salah satu daripada pencetus kegemilangan dunia pendidikan negara. Selamat pagi dan Salam 1 Malaysia saya ucapkan kepada: Pengerusi Majlis, Yang Amat Berhormat Datuk Johan Ashaari bin Murti, Menteri Pendidikan merangkap Timbalan Perdana Menteri. Yang Berhormat Datuk Romario Ansam anak Rungah, Timbalan Menteri Pendidikan. Yang Amat Berhormat Pehin Sri Maher Zain, Ketua Menteri. Yang Berhormat Freddy Jabu anak Jugah, Timbalan Ketua Menteri. Yang Berhormat Datuk Halimah, Menteri Tugas-tugas Khas Dalam Negeri berkaitan Pendidikan. Yang Berhormat Datuk-datuk dan Datin-datin. Yang Berbahagia Datuk Ariffin Faiq, Ketua Pengarah Pendidikan. Yang Berbahagia Datuk Sabri bin Rahmat, Rektor IPGM. Yang Dihormati Encik Hafiz Azman, Pengarah Pendidikan Negeri. Yang Berusaha Puan Saftuyah binti Safri, Pengarah Institut Pendidikan Guru Tunku Abdul Rahman. Pengarah-pengarah IPGK dan Wakil-wakil Pengarah IPGK. Yang Berusaha Encik Amir bin Jamal, Timbalan Pengarah Institut Pendidikan Guru Tunku Abdul Rahman. Ketua-ketua Jabatan Persekutuan dan Negeri. Ketua-ketua Jabatan dan Ketua-ketua Unit Institut Pendidikan Guru Tunku Abdul Rahman. Pensyarah-pensyarah Kanan. Para Pensyarah. Staf-staf Sokongan. Para Graduan. Para Ibu Bapa. Tuan-tuan dan Puan-puan dekat di hati. Tegak rumah kerana tiangnya, tegak bumi kerana paksinya, tegaknya saya di sini adalah untuk menyampaikan sebuah pidato yang bertajuk â€Å"Kecemerla... ...rutera, peguam dan sebagainya wujud di dunia ini. Setuju atau tidak puan-puan? Dan untuk memacu pertumbuhan pembangunan di negara ini, aspek pendidikan hendaklah ditikberatkan sebab pendidikan jugalah yang berperanan dalam mengangkat nilai budaya, tamadun dan peradaban bangsa ke suatu peringkat yang lebih tinggi dan global. Oleh itu, kelengkapan dan prasarana pendidikan perlulah disediakan untuk mencapai hasrat murni kerajaan yang menggunung tinggi. Seperti apa yang telah diperkatakan oleh ahli falsafah Yunani iaitu Plato, beliau menyatakan pendidikan ialah asas pembangunan dan untuk mempertahankan keharmonian sesuatu bangsa seseorang itu sendiri. Hadirin yang dihormati, pada hemat saya, falsafah yang telah dinyatakan oleh Plato tersebut tidak jauh dengan falsafah pendidikan yang telah digariskan oleh Kementerian Pelajaran dan Kementerian Pengajian Tinggi Malaysia.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Living in Before Marriage

Today, many couples choose living in before marriage because they believe it will let them know if they are suited for marriage. Living in before marriage has some advantages and disadvantages for the couple and some of those are listed below. Some of the advantages of living in before marriage are: living-together Living together will lower the cost of food, rent and bills because two people are splitting the cost of living. In some cases, one person takes care of all the bills.In those cases, it is usually the woman who gets the benefit of free room and board costs. Having someone there for emotional support, sexual relations and for conversation without being committed in a marriage is considered an advantage for most couples. Living together before marriage allows the couple to test their compatibility. For some people, they want to feel that they can get along with someone while living together before they plan for their wedding. By living together, you will see how loyal your p artner is to you.This will help you build trust together that cannot be shaken if you agree to get married in the future. By living together, you can prepare for marriage ahead by learning someone’s habits, attitudes and manners. There are also some disadvantages of living together before marriage. These are: living-together2 By living together for a long time, you may get too comfortable with each other and totally avoid tying the knot in the future. Living together makes it easier for one partner to walk out on the relationship because there is no legal obligation to the other person.Living together can encourage an easy out for someone who wants it. Living together is often short-lived, statistics has shown. The female is the one who usually suffers if the relationship does not work out. Women tend to feel that they lose time, because of their biological clock, and dignity when they live together with a partner that ends in a break-up. No one knows for sure that living tog ether before marriage is the best thing to do. It is much easier to walk out of a relationship than it is walk out of a marriage.Everyone knows that divorce involves a lot more than what a break-up involves for a couple just living together. Many pastors and marriage counselors advise young couples that if they believe in the institution of marriage to find someone who believes in that themselves. People who believe in the sanctity of marriage do not suggest living with someone first just to get to know them better or see if they are well-suited for each other. After all, marriage is an institution, and we cannot learn things outside of an institution.

The American Sign Language

The American Sign Language or ASL is a formal and structured means by which people are able to communicate. Like all other languages, the ASL also follows specific structures or guidelines that set how this particular system is used to communicate. Over the years, there had been various definitions presented framing what the ASL is all about, as mentioned by Harry Markowicz in his transcript. However, Markowicz strongly discloses how established and generalized definitions of the ASL are, in actuality, myths that should be debunked in order to give way to the formation of a clear and factual connotation of the ASL.In Markowicz’ transcript, he revealed six myths about the ASL, thoroughly discussing justifications as to why widely held beliefs and ideas about ASL or simply sign language are, most of the time, inaccurate and false. According to Markowicz, sign language is not a universal language which is utilized and understood by the deaf populations all over the world. Like al l other languages, ASL differs from other systems of sign languages in other countries, just as the English language differs from the German, French, Spanish, etc. languages in form and in structure.Another myth is the widely held belief that since language is based on the meaning of words or sentences expressed, the sign language is also based on the conveyance of words or sentences through gestures. Some other beliefs relate to the idea that the ASL is a translation or a transposition of the English language. However, the sign language does not work that way. Communication through sign language, or the ASL for that matter, is based on concepts or impressions that may be expressed singularly through gestures. (Markowicz, 1980)The third myth has something do with how people often undervalue the sign language as merely a system of language through arbitrary gestures diminishing its formal and systematic structure. Markowicz revealed how the sign language follows various rules that co nstitute a succession of concurrent body movements, facial expressions, gestures, etc. Another myth is how the sign language is regarded as simply iconic or graphic. However, Markowicz argued how considering the sign language as simply a visual means of communication does not justify the system’s purpose of facilitating communication for the deaf.He rationalized that if the sign language is truly and simply iconic or visual, then people without hearing problems would be able to understand the language. This means that the sign language is not merely a visual stimulus, but a succession of meaningful concepts that are conveyed through the process of communication. (Markowicz, 1980) The fifth myth limits the communicative process facilitated by the sign language. Many people believe that the sign language is only capably of transmitting concrete and discrete ideas, leaving out the abstract and conceptual ideas that are easily expressed through words.Markowicz discounts this view by proving how the ASL has formal signs or gestures for abstract ideas such as love, faith, and such. The last myth discussed by Markowicz again touches on the issue of the form and structure of the sign language. People overlook the structural aspect of the sign language by disregarding how it is formed under grammatical rules and expressions. Markowicz justified his position by stating examples on how a particular thought differentiated by various patterns of inflections may be expressed through sign language according to their correct word arrangements. (Markowicz, 1980)The aforementioned arguments and justifications of Markowicz may be further proven by looking into other research studies, discussions, or transcripts concerning the sign language. For instance, the research study conducted by Padden and Ramsey (2000) regarding the ability of deaf children to read textual data as it is related to methods and strategies of instruction, has revealed how the sign language is not uni versal and word-based. The results and conclusions obtained from the research study have revealed how the competencies of deaf students differ according to their culture, family, and school environment.This means that based on discrepancies or gaps concerning sign language competencies among deaf students, they may not be able to communicate effectively even through shared sign language. Moreover, this particular research study proves that the sign language is not word-based since deaf students who read texts do not express the ideas from the book through the exact words or sentences in the text, but through various concepts or whole ideas gained from reading them.(Padden & Ramsey, 2000) Moreover, this also means that if deaf children are able to translate written texts to concepts in sign languages, this means that sign language is not simply a representation of concrete ideas, but also complex abstract thoughts and ideas that originated from the thinking process involved in unders tanding, analyzing, and judging written texts. The discussion relayed by Bellugi and Klima (1975) also supports Markowicz’ arguments by revealing how the sign language is formed or structured, debunking myths of it being merely glorified gestures and ungrammatical.According to Bellugi and Klima, the signs or gestures are translated into notational representations that form a complete thought or idea which is distinguishable in the English language. In addition, for each word or though represented through signs or gestures, there are proper and exact portrayal of simultaneous movements as observed in the figures included in Beluggi and Klima’s discussions. (Bellugi & Klima, 1975) Liddell (1980) explored the grammatical structure of the sign language comprehensively by analyzing the syntactic components of the ASL alongside the English language.On the other hand, the research study of Pettito (2000) discredits the myth about the sign language as iconic, which means that communication through the sign language is simply visual in nature, eliminating the form, structure, the grammar, and the formal learning process behind it. According to Pettito, babies will not be able to exhibit the formal and structural nature of either signed or spoken language, unless they are exposed to sign language or spoken language within their immediate environment.(Pettito, 2000) This rationalization supports Markowicz assumptions that a child will not be able to fully understand the concept of milk, unless he is exposed to the nature or processes behind the word. (Markowicz, 1980) References Bellugi, U. & Klima, E. S. (1975). â€Å"Aspects of Sign Language and its Structure† In: Kavanagh, James F. ; Cutting, James E. (eds. ). The Role of Speech in Language. Cambridge: MIT Press [335 pp. ], pp. 171-203. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90334. pdf Liddell, S. K. (1980) American Sign Language Syntax.The Hague: Mou ton, [194 pp. ], pp. 10-23, 68-80. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90335. pdf Markowicz, H. (1980) â€Å"Myths about American Sign Language† In: Lane, Harlan; Grosjean, Francois (eds. ). Recent Perspectives on American Sign Language. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, [170 pp. ], pp. 1-6. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90333. pdf Padden C. & Ramsey, C. (2000) â€Å"American Sign Language and Reading Ability in Deaf Children† In: Chamberlain, Charlene; Morford, Jill P. ; Mayberry, Rachel I.(eds. ). Language Acquisition by Eye. Mahwah, N. J. : Lawrence Erlbaum [276 p. ], pp. 165- 168, 177-189. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90337. pdf Petitto, L. A. (2000) â€Å"The Acquisition of Natural Signed Languages: Lessons in the Nature of Human Language and its Biological Foundations† In: Chamberlain, Charlene; Morford, J ill P. ; Mayberry, Rachel I. (eds. ). Language Acquisition by Eye. Mahwah, N. J. : Lawrence Erlbaum [276 p. ], pp. 41-50. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90336. pdf

The Rationale for the Serial Comma

The Rationale for the Serial Comma The Rationale for the Serial Comma The Rationale for the Serial Comma By Mark Nichol Do you employ a serial comma the final comma in a sentence such as â€Å"I bought one apple, two bananas, and three oranges†? If your work for or with a business or organization involves publishing content in print or online, that decision has been made (or should have been made) for you in a style guide, a manual to be followed in production of all the content published by that business or organization. If you determine a business or organization’s style, or you self-publish in print or online, the decision is up to you. In most journalistic print and online publications and in much other online content, the serial comma is omitted. (This omission is also common in British English.) However, in most books and in many other publications published in the United States, it is required. I strongly favor the serial comma. Why? In a sentence such as â€Å"I bought one apple, two bananas and three oranges,† no ambiguity exists. But in â€Å"I ordered ham and eggs, toast and jam and pie and ice cream,† the cavalcade of conjunctions gets confusing, and in contexts in which it’s not as clear which list items might be distinct and which might be linked, the absence of the final comma might require readers to reread the sentence to establish the organization. So, the solution in this case is to use a serial comma when confusion could arise. That means that no-serial-comma publications will print or post â€Å"I bought one apple, two bananas and three oranges† but â€Å"I ordered ham and eggs, toast and jam, and pie and ice cream.† The resulting obvious question is why not, for the sake of consistency, just insert a serial comma in all cases? Another complication is illustrated in this well-known hypothetical statement: â€Å"I dedicate this book to my parents, Ayn Rand and God.† Without the serial comma, the statement could be read as acknowledging four entities: two parents, an author, and a deity. But it could also refer to two parents, one of whom is an author and other of whom is a deity. Again, the presence of the serial comma eliminates the ambiguity. This issue may seem trivial, but the English language is constructed of myriad trivialities that combine into an imperfect system but one that has supported the world’s predominant language. (Yes, twice as many people speak Mandarin as English, but my reference point is global significance.) Commas are an abundant resource, and you can pull any ordinary one out of your comma bucket to serve as a serial comma. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:70 Idioms with Heart50 Idioms About Roads and Paths50 Plain-Language Substitutions for Wordy Phrases

The Martha Stewart Case

The Martha Stewart Case In March 2004, a jury found domestic diva Martha Stewart guilty of conspiracy, making false statements and obstruction of agency proceedings stemming from a sale of stock in biotech company ImClone Systems Inc. in December 2001. Stewart, however, was never charged with insider trading, all her charges were related to covering up information concerning the stock trade and obstructing the investigation. Latest Developments Martha Stewart Sends Thanksgiving Greetings Previous Developments Martha Stewart Begins Prison Term Government Withheld Evidence, Martha Stewart ClaimsOct 7, 2004Martha Stewarts appeals lawyers have accused federal prosecutors of withholding evidence that could have led to an acquittal in her trial on charges of lying to investigators about a stock sale. Martha Stewart to Serve Time at Camp CupcakeSept. 29, 2004Martha Stewart will begin serving her five-month prison sentence for lying about a stock sale at Alderson Federal Prison Camp in West Virginia, a minimum-security dubbed by locals as Camp Cupcake. Martha Stewart Headed to Prison Oct. 8Sept. 21. 2004A federal judge lifted the stay of Martha Stewarts five-month sentence to allow her to begin serving her five months in federal prison October 8 as she requested. Martha Stewart Asks to Begin Prison SentenceSept. 15, 2005Martha Stewart has asked to begin her five-month prison sentence as soon as possible instead of waiting for the appeals process in order to put this nightmare behind me. Martha Stewart Gets Five Months, Plans AppealJuly 16, 2004Martha Stewart was sentenced by a federal judge to serve five months in prison, but the domestic diva will not have to attempt living graciously behind bars anytime soon.

Battle of Cedar Creek - The Battle of Cedar Creek - Civil War 1864

Battle of Cedar Creek - The Battle of Cedar Creek - Civil War 1864 Battle of Cedar Creek - Conflict Date: The Battle of Cedar Creek was fought October 19, 1864, during the American Civil War (1861-1865). Armies Commanders Union Major General Philip H. Sheridan31,945 men Confederate Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early21,000 men Battle of Cedar Creek - Moving to Contact: After a succession of defeats at the hands of Major General Philip Sheridans Army of the Shenandoah in early fall 1864, Confederate Lieutenant General Jubal Early retreated up the Shenandoah Valley to regroup. Believing that Early was beaten, Sheridan began making plans to return Major General Horatio Wrights VI Corps to Petersburg to aid in Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grants efforts to take the city. Understanding the valleys importance as a source of food and supplies for his army, General Robert E. Lee dispatched reinforcements to Early. With his army augmented, Early pushed north to Fishers Hill on October 13, 1864. Learning of this, Sheridan recalled VI Corps to his armys camp along Cedar Creek. Though alarmed by Earlys move, Sheridan still elected to attend a conference in Washington and left Wright in command of the army. Returning, Sheridan spent the night of October 18/19 at Winchester, approximately fourteen miles north of Cedar Creek. While Sheridan was away, Major General John Gordon and topographical engineer Jedediah Hotchkiss ascended Massanutten Mountain and surveyed the Union position. From their vantage point, they determined that the Union left flank was vulnerable. Wright believed that it was protected by the North Fork of the Shenandoah River and had arrayed the army to repel an attack on its right. Developing a daring attack plan, the two presented it to Early who immediately approved it. At Cedar Creek, the Union army was in camp with Major General George Crooks VII Corps near the river, Major General William Emorys XIX Corps in the center, and Wrights VI Corps on right. On the far right was Major General Alfred Torberts Cavalry Corps with divisions led by Brigadier Generals Wesley Merritt and George Custer. On the night of October 18/19, Earlys command moved out in three columns. Marching by moonlight, Gordon led a three-division column along the base of Massanutten to McInturffs and Colonel Bowmans fords. Capturing the Union pickets, they crossed the river and formed on Crooks left flank around 4:00 AM. To the west, Early moved north up the Valley Turnpike with the divisions of Major General Joseph Kershaw and Brigadier General Gabriel Wharton. Battle of Cedar Creek - The Fighting Begins: Moving through Strasburg, Early remained with Kershaw as the division moved right and formed just past Bowmans Mill Ford. Wharton continued up the turnpike and deployed on Hupps Hill. Though a heavy fog descended on the field around dawn, the battle commenced at 5:00 AM when Kershaws men opened fire and advanced on Crooks front. A few minutes later, Gordons assault began again Brigadier General Rutherford B. Hayes division on Crooks left. Catching the Union troops by surprise in their camps, the Confederates succeeded in quickly routing Crooks men. Believing that Sheridan was at nearby Belle Grove plantation, Gordon drove his men on in the hopes of capturing the Union general. Alerted to the danger, Wright and Emory began working to form a defensive line along the Valley Turnpike. As this resistance began to take shape, Wharton attacked across Cedar Creek at Stickleys Mill. Taking the Union lines to his front, he men captured seven guns. Under heavy pressure and fire from Confederate artillery across the creek, Union forces were steadily pushed back past Belle Grove. With Crook and Emorys corps badly beaten, VI Corps formed a strong defensive line anchored on Cedar Creek and covering the higher ground north of Bell Grove. Repulsing attacks from Kershaw and Gordons men, they provided time for their comrades to retreat to the north of nearby Middletown. Having halted Earlys attacks, VI Corps withdrew as well. While the infantry regrouped, Torberts cavalry, having defeated a weak thrust by Brigadier General Thomas Rossers Confederate horse, moved to the left of the new Union line above Middletown. This movement caused Early to shift troops to meet the potential threat. Advancing north of Middletown, Early formed a new line opposite the Union position, but failed to press his advantage believing he had already won a victory and due to many of his men having halted to pillage the Union camps. Having learned of the fighting, Sheridan departed Winchester and, riding at high speed, arrived on the field around 10:30 AM. Quickly assessing the situation, he placed VI Corps on the left, along the Valley Pike and XIX Corps on the right. Crooks shattered corps was put in reserve. Battle of Cedar Creek - The Tide Turns: Shifting Custers division to his right flank, Sheridan rode across the front of his new line to rally the men before preparing a counterattack. Around 3:00 PM, Early launched a minor attack which was easily defeated. Thirty minutes later XIX Corps and Custer advanced against the Confederate left which was in the air. Extending his line west, Custer thinned Gordons division which was holding Earlys flank. Then launching a massive assault, Custer overran Gordons men causing the Confederate line to start breaking from west to east. At 4:00 PM, with Custer and XIX Corps having success, Sheridan ordered a general advance. With Gordon and Kershaws men breaking on the left, Major General Stephen Ramseurs division mounted a stiff defense in the center until their commander fell mortally wounded. His army disintegrating, Early began retreating south, pursued by Union cavalry. Harried until after dark, Early lost most of his artillery when the bridge at Spanglers Ford collapsed. Aftermath of the Battle of Cedar Creek: In the fighting at Cedar Creek, Union forces suffered 644 dead, 3,430 wounded, and 1,591 missing/captured, while the Confederates lost 320 dead, 1,540 wounded, 1050 missing/captured. In addition, Early lost 43 guns and the bulk of his supplies. Having failed to retain the momentum of the mornings successes, Early was overwhelmed by Sheridans charismatic leadership and ability to rally his men. The defeat effectively gave control of the valley to the Union and eliminated Earlys army as an effective force. In addition, coupled with Union successes at Mobile Bay and Atlanta, the victory virtually ensured the re-election of President Abraham Lincoln.

Any subject in the criminal justce systre Essay

Any subject in the criminal justce systre - Essay Example Investigation usually marks the first step for a criminal case. The police usually perform this. In this regard, when a person is accused of offense, the police are usually required to carry out investigation to gather enough evidence, among them identifying the suspect in order to support an arrest. For instance, when an individual is confronted with robbers, the victim is usually required to report the matter to the law enforcement officers, who will then begin investigation based on the information provided by the victim (Burns, 2006). Search Warrant Usually, when the investigation officers are satisfied that there is probable cause for a crime, the law enforcement officers are required to seek for a search warrant, which permits them to search the premises. A probable cause in this case referred to the standard of proof indicating that there are enough facts on the ground showing that there is enough evidence of a criminal activity in a given place. Judges usually issue the search warrant, when they are satisfied that there is indeed probable cause. This implies that if the law enforcement officers fail to show enough evidence, then the police officer may be denied the right to carry out the search. However, a search warrant may not be needed under emergencies usually referred to as exigent ‘circumstances’ (Neubauer, and Fradella, 2010). During a search, the officers may interrogate witnesses, who might have been at the scene of the alleged crime

Institute of applied entrepreneurship Assignment

Institute of applied entrepreneurship - Assignment Example I would like to personally thank you for reviewing my letter of employment and genuinely hope you will find my entrepreneurial competencies to be a valuable fit for your grand organisation with a rich history in the United Kingdom. 1. Introduction Thornton’s Chocolate was founded in 1911 by Joseph William Thornton, establishing a very recognisable brand in the United Kingdom ever since. Now that Cadbury has been taken over by Kraft company, Thornton’s is now considered the largest independent chocolatier and confectionary business in the UK. Through decades of brand-building activities and increases in sales revenues, Thornton’s now boasts 360 different shops and a variety of franchises across the United Kingdom supported by 2011 revenues of ?218 million (Thornton’s 2012). Thornton’s has, however, experienced problems with maintaining market share among major competitors and the business is losing sales revenues, especially in the High Street stores that sell Thornton’s products. Thornton’s has always maintained a premium positioning strategy, justifying a higher-priced model associated with legitimate and consumer-perceived brand quality. Because of this, the business is seeking a revitalisation and restorative business strategy designed to give the business a more contemporary brand image with important target markets. This letter of employment is to illustrate entrepreneurial characteristics both internally and as related to the employment candidate to illustrate how the candidate’s competencies can benefit the new positioning of Thornton’s for sustainable success and profitability. 2. Defining the entrepreneurial organisation An entrepreneurial organisation is one that is willing to absorb risks, as being able to compete against well-established competitors, such as Cadbury, requires making decisions that are innovative and do not have a precedent established. This is necessary to achieve unique competitive advantage and differentiate one business from another that offers similar products with like characteristics and benefits. It is the risk-taking prowess of important organisational leaders that establish the foundation for an entrepreneurial organisation (Covin and Miles 1999). Once this entrepreneurial spirit has been established, the entrepreneurial organisation becomes one that is equipped to develop new products and services. A corporate entrepreneur focuses on establishing efficiencies and productive structures that can assist the organisation in aligning strategic intentions with external market conditions (Dess, Lumpkin and McKee 1999). Outside of basic managerial or executive-level decision-making such as budgeting and cost control, the entrepreneurial organisation recognises opportunities to make positive changes and then aligns the internal operational and staffing models to achieve strategic goals related to the opportunity. The entrepreneurial organisation m aintains staff and managers that are able to juggle innovative ideas in their imaginations that translate into creative work to better position the business competitively. This type of organisation looks toward people and product as tools for achieving profit growth (Gaglio and Katz 2001). Innovations should occur in human resources policies and procedures as well as related to the actual product or service in order to be considered

Gardners Art Through The Ages Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Gardners Art Through The Ages - Essay Example Most of the artistic works in the book try to show that those who requested some artistic works wanted to separate themselves from the poor. In our world today, human beings do everything to separate themselves from the poor and associate themselves with the rich. It is ironical that those who made some of the luxurious art works that cost a lot of money were poor. Those who managed to order artistic works were people who were wealthy. From the building of pope’s palace by pope Paul, it clearly shows that it is all about wealth. This is because he ordered a luxurious palace. Thus, from the beginning, human beings do things in order to separate themselves from the poor. Some even do things not because they like it but because they want to show to the world that they are wealthy. In the current era of civilization, it is also inevitable to talk about wealth and poverty. This is because there is increasing gap between the wealthy and the poor. Rich always do things that separate them from the poor. They will rather buy meal in an expensive hotel than mix with the poor in an ordinary hotel. Expensive cars, expensive mobile phones, expensive jewelry and other expensive materials aim at separating the rich from the poor. In the current civilization, it is evident that the poor have no place. All that people do in the current era of civilization closely relate with money.... He even hired Bramante, a renowned artist and architect, to design it. This portrays the theme of wealth. This is because Pope Julius did not want to portray Rome as poor, but rich, and that is why he aimed at beautifying Rome. He even went further to design his own tomb, which took a lot of artistic work. All this was because of wealth since wealth ensured that artistic works of such caliber went to completion (Gardner and Kleiner 259). Another artistic work is the construction of lavish palace called Palazzo Farnese by Michelangelo. This was after Pope Paul III requested its creation. This was a sophisticated design to match the standard of the pope. Pope wanted to make Rome a splendid place and that is why he sought architectural prowess from recognized artists. The palace was three-dimensional mass just to show how lavish it was. It also constituted overlapping pilasters just to make it lavish and sophisticated. This splendid artwork was the one that set the pace for Italian pala ce. This showed an extent people could go to make earth their heaven. It is evident from the description of this artwork that wealth played a crucial role. Wealth ensured that the beautiful pope palace reached its completion. Thus, this artistic work depicts theme of wealth and poverty. The other artistic work is the building of Villa Rotonda by Palladio. This artistic work involved constructing the building at the top of the hill. This aimed at providing a beautiful view. It contained four identical facades resembling the four compass planes. Each porch provided a different view. It closely resembled the roman ionic temple. This artwork is splendid in that it enables one to have different views of the

Modern Economical Landscape of Philippines Essay

Modern Economical Landscape of Philippines - Essay Example It is marred with corruption, political dynasties, red tape, and nepotism. Investors shy away from the country due to the difficulty of doing business there. As a result, the local economy suffered where unemployment is high subjecting many of its population to abject poverty. Also, many of its best brightest minds left the country to work and migrated overseas (Rappler.com). At present, this flaw in the political and economic infrastructure of the Philippines is not yet corrected as the remittances of its Overseas Foreign Workers are still the biggest contributor to its economy. The second issue why the economy of the Philippines is not strong is because it does not have its own industrial and technological backbone. Its economic base consists merely of business processing units and assembly plants which are primarily owned by the foreign enterprise. These enterprises can leave anytime exposing the vulnerability of the Philippine economy. My two recommendations for the Philippines for the Philippine economy to become prosperous 50 years from now are to reform its political system and build its own industrial and technological base. It can reform its political system by prosecuting corrupt officials and passing into laws that will democratize its political systems such as banning political dynasties and nepotism. Its recent prosecution of corrupt officials under the former President Macapagal Arroyo supports this recommendation as investor’s confidence increased. Investment flourished amid a global crisis. During the period 2011-13 when the global economy is slowing down, the Philippines registered a GNP of 7.2% which is considered as one of the highest in the world (NCSB).  

Conflict management (case) Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Conflict management ( ) - Case Study Example Morris was the initiator of PFM, and since he was in Paris, he should have asked his French counterparts to be part of the project. This project was the one based on rearranging the present social network to be more French-like. Not inviting them was thus aggravating the conflict. The main issue was keeping significant information from the French who learned of this project through another source. In addition, Morris should have been present during the merger which was about to happen between Voila and America’s rival, Jardin (Osland et al, 2007). He should have been there to encourage and guide his team who were facing employment issues. There needed to be collaboration between Morris and his fellow team members: Drummond, and Hanover (Osland et al, 2007). He personally appointed them, so he was supposed to be physically present in Paris. This would in turn lead to a very close relationship between these leaders. As a result, communication, ideas and decision-making elements would be discussed between them; Cooperation between them would have avoided the conflict. In fact, maybe they would have to agree and arrive at common ground of applying the principles of both PFM and Nourriture Excellent (Osland et al, 2007). The conflict revolved between the two projects, with each side trying to kill the opponent’s side project (Osland et al, 2007). ... Full collaboration was required based on the fact that careers depended on it. Each party needed to recognize the role they played in the video conference break down and acknowledge the fact that each would take full responsibility of what they did. Another thing, which contributed to the conflict was the team members in Paris refused to acknowledge Drummond as a real team member (Osland et al, 2007). This was largely her fault because she did a lot of work, which did not involve the French. Drummond should have understood the meaning of the team and involve the Paris team. At the end of the day, they would not have felt left out in significant matters, and they would have involved her in the meetings she requested to be part. Being added to the investigative team sounded ridiculous to the French because at the time Voila members were not given any responsibilities. According to Osland et al (2007), Voila was never prepared to accept PFM. They showed this through their actions. Morri s and his American counterparts should have accepted this fact instead of trying to force the idea on them. This was based on the fact that the business idea would yield very good results. They should have known that the French could never accept any radical ideas no matter how good the results would be. Well, Hanover was able to realize this, and no wonder he was able to form an explanation of what happened, why it happened and finally the role each person played in the conflict (Osland et al, 2007). He should have gone a step ahead and state ideas of resolving the issue at hand and even apologize to voila company. However, it is ironical that even during the conflict period, business results from both parties were positive. In fact, it

Latin America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Latin America - Essay Example The human population has changed and continues to change the landscape from natural to the cultural landscape in various ways. One of the significant ways that have seen a transformation of the landscape is through increasing agricultural activities. This has been intense especially with the rising human population. Humans have cut, cleared, and burned forest for agricultural activities (Erickson, n.d.). An example of human built landscape is the area next to Lake Titicaca (Erickson, n.d.). In this area, there have been heightened agricultural activities. In the last eight century, the environment in the basin has been changed into an artificial landscape (Erickson, n.d.). This has been mainly due to raised fields, terracing, and irrigation activities that are related to agriculture. The other factor that leads to change of landscape is clearing of forest. The region has witnessed a massive loss of forest cover for a long period. In fact, the region is noted to have the world’s highest loss of forest cover in the recent past (Pacheco et al., 2011). However, extensive forest transformation has been witnessed in the Amazon basin (Pacheco et al., 2011). As the authors note, huge population in the region relies on forest resources to support their livelihoods (Pacheco et al., 2011). The population also comprises of ranchers and farmers that continue to clear forest to create space for their activities. As a result, most of the land that was previously occupied by trees is left bare. The changing geography in the region has a profound impact on regional political future and institutions. One of the issues related to change is the rise in conflict between people, countries, and region in the area. For example, there has been increasing conflict over the use of resources such as those that come from the forest. On the other hand, failure to guard

Conflict management (case) Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Conflict management ( ) - Case Study Example Morris was the initiator of PFM, and since he was in Paris, he should have asked his French counterparts to be part of the project. This project was the one based on rearranging the present social network to be more French-like. Not inviting them was thus aggravating the conflict. The main issue was keeping significant information from the French who learned of this project through another source. In addition, Morris should have been present during the merger which was about to happen between Voila and America’s rival, Jardin (Osland et al, 2007). He should have been there to encourage and guide his team who were facing employment issues. There needed to be collaboration between Morris and his fellow team members: Drummond, and Hanover (Osland et al, 2007). He personally appointed them, so he was supposed to be physically present in Paris. This would in turn lead to a very close relationship between these leaders. As a result, communication, ideas and decision-making elements would be discussed between them; Cooperation between them would have avoided the conflict. In fact, maybe they would have to agree and arrive at common ground of applying the principles of both PFM and Nourriture Excellent (Osland et al, 2007). The conflict revolved between the two projects, with each side trying to kill the opponent’s side project (Osland et al, 2007). ... Full collaboration was required based on the fact that careers depended on it. Each party needed to recognize the role they played in the video conference break down and acknowledge the fact that each would take full responsibility of what they did. Another thing, which contributed to the conflict was the team members in Paris refused to acknowledge Drummond as a real team member (Osland et al, 2007). This was largely her fault because she did a lot of work, which did not involve the French. Drummond should have understood the meaning of the team and involve the Paris team. At the end of the day, they would not have felt left out in significant matters, and they would have involved her in the meetings she requested to be part. Being added to the investigative team sounded ridiculous to the French because at the time Voila members were not given any responsibilities. According to Osland et al (2007), Voila was never prepared to accept PFM. They showed this through their actions. Morri s and his American counterparts should have accepted this fact instead of trying to force the idea on them. This was based on the fact that the business idea would yield very good results. They should have known that the French could never accept any radical ideas no matter how good the results would be. Well, Hanover was able to realize this, and no wonder he was able to form an explanation of what happened, why it happened and finally the role each person played in the conflict (Osland et al, 2007). He should have gone a step ahead and state ideas of resolving the issue at hand and even apologize to voila company. However, it is ironical that even during the conflict period, business results from both parties were positive. In fact, it

Decision Making, Decision Levels and Types of Problems Essay

Decision Making, Decision Levels and Types of Problems - Essay Example This root of the system is primordial and through interactions with each other and combinations becomes more advanced and complex assembling progressively more complex level of systems that cooperate and exchange information and ultimately forming an information system. Information systems theory postulates a system as a symbol within a representational medium (idiom) and the representational medium in itself. The general systems theory can be applied in structured problems to solve information system problems, where the problem and desired solution is clearly defined and can be split into a series of steps that are well defined (Skyttner 2001). For example, in developing an information system for an online retailer, a structured approach would be to list the products being sold, the available staff and the processes that will lead to making a sale, in which case a product inventory can be made. Members of staff are then allocated duties such as customer service and dispatch then how data on available inventory and deliveries will be made. In this case, what is needed is clearly defined. The inventory, who will handle what and how items will be delivered to customers so a system development sequence is employed. The general systems theory can be applied in structured problems to solve information system problems, where the problem and desired solution is clearly defined and can be split into a series of steps that are well defined (Skyttner 2001). For example, in developing an information system for an online retailer.... A decision support system (DSS) then comes in handy, as there is a need for some level of intuition. The DSS will do most of the ‘thinking’ as it provides data and models to help management make decisions. Non-structured situations would be for example designing a web site that can process payments from customers online, receive orders and queries and interact with a customer. Intuition will be needed on what would be most suitable for the customer and how to reduce threats of credit card fraud to the customer. The exact situation is not fully known but forms the wider system requirement and hence the solutions are not straight forward (Mathews 2008) General systems thinking is the practice of appreciating how different parts of an information system can impact and influence each other. For example, in designing a database system for a supermarket, one has to know how the accounting system will interact with the stock and inventory system and the payroll. In terms of str uctured problems, a designer can look at how the check out system will update the daily sales records and the stocks. The problem is defined as updating the daily sales account and knowing how much of what was sold. The problem can be designed in defined steps from what system to capture what has been sold, and for how much and then the stocks must be updated. A semi-structured problem would be how to know when stocks are running low or when to take money to the bank. A threshhold for cash sales will have to be established that alerts the finance manager to call in the couriers to deliver money to the bank. The system to know how much sales came from what products and how many were paid for by credit card. A non-structured problem would be how to handle customer complaints, track their

Symbols of a Worn Path Essay Example for Free

Symbols of a Worn Path Essay Phoenix Jackson; an old negro woman that partakes on a journey to take medicine to her sick nephew that is off in another town. Phoenix is old and through the story there are many accounts that I think are symbolic to being of age. Being one with nature Phoenix Jackson is determined to travel through the forest to tend to her sick nephew. The story itself was full of symbols, some that where more noticeable then others. Phoenix’s face was said to look like a tree with burning glow under it. Pretty much saying she was one with nature, that she was in touch with the natural side of things. And her name is Phoenix which is the same name of the mythical Egyptian bird that lives for 500 years, and then dies but for 500 years it regenerates itself. Her name symbolizes in her old age she lives on. In her old age she is also in touch with nature as her tree trunk like face shows. There are many times she talks to the animals: â€Å"Out of my way, all you foxes, owls, beetles, jack rabbits, coons and wild animal! Keep out from under these feet, little bob-whites. Keep the big wild hogs out of my path. Don’t let none of those come running my direction. I got a long way†(1) as in touch she is with nature, there are many instances that the forest showed signs of death when she seen a buzzard sitting on a dead tree, then she seen a scare crow. That also represents death, but she ended up dancing with the scare crow like she was dancing around death. So far through the journey Phoenix came upon many different things. She even had a symbolic dream; which had her reaching for a marble cake from a young boy which symbolized her living for a longer period of time. It also had a simple reason, just her hallucinating because of old age. But along the way Phoenix came across a well that she drank from that meant longevity. A lot of the symbols in the story had to do with her age or death. Soon after she was done drinking from the spring, a black dog came at her growling which symbolizes death once again. She hit the dog and it ran away. After the encounter with the dog Phoenix stumbles in falls into a ditch. Where she douses off and has a dream of her reaching and nobody pulling her up. Which symbolizes God looking down at her but does not reach for her because it is not her time to go to Heaven. After she wakes up from her dream she gets out the ditch and comes across a white hunter with two growling dogs. In her whole Journey she had many encounters with symbols of death, but made it through the forest to get the medicine to her sick grandson. â€Å"Critical discussion of A Worn Path largely has been concerned with thematic interpretation of the work, particularly the storys racial, mythological, and Christian motifs.† (2) Sometimes even called a Christian pilgrimage, because of the times God is mentioned and how she is still holding on to life. And he going through that forest sacrificing herself could go back to the scarifies Jesus did. But even with those things in it, there were still symbols of the mythological creature. As Phoenix walked through the forest she struggled with bad vision and hallucinations but still made it to the hospital to help her grandson. â€Å"The combined effects of her old age, her poor vision, and her poetic view of the world heighten the lyricism and symbolism of the narrative.† (2) Which made the story more interesting to the readers. Every hardship had a different meaning, and brought her closer to her goal.

Who Were The Mesopotamians Religion Essay

Who Were The Mesopotamians Religion Essay The transition from the nomadic hunter-gatherers to the more sedentary farmers brought about some of the first serious thinkers in the world. This is how it started for the Mesopotamians, the transition from traveling around in search of food to settling down on the banks of a river. Because of their location they became the first river-valley civilization which is why Mesopotamia was so aptly named as so, it meaning the land between rivers those rivers being the Tigris and Euphrates. Their new sedentary gave them time to not only think but also to explore subjects such as mythology, religion as well as advances in technology. Because of this, these people could live in one place and build what we call a civilization. These people would multiply, build, create new beliefs, be conquered, made into slaves and eventually pass their beliefs on to others with some form of writing. This marks the beginning of history, by technical definition. The next topic I will explore upon is the religion of the Mesopotamian people. The Mesopotamian Religion, also known as Assyro-Babylonian religion  [14]  involved polytheism, which is the practice of worshipping multiple gods. These gods ranged from the all-powerful to the minor and they all represented some fact or occurrence in nature and/or life. Every city had a temple that was dedicated to a god, normally one major temple per city although multiple temples did occur in one city. These temples were called ziggurats where the followers of the god to which the temple was located would congregate and even reside. For example prostitutes would gather at the temple of Ishtar, the goddess they represent in their lifestyle choice. Prayer was also a present practice as warriors might pray to one of the many war and battle gods and goddesses for victory or at least survival. The purpose of the gods was as an attempt to explain the masses of phenomena that perplexed and dumbfounded the se people. The religion of the Mesopotamian people went through four historical periods. The oldest of these periods was from 3500 B.C.E. to the time of Hammurabi  [15]  , which is about 1700 B.C.E. The religion of this period involved the worship of deities in individual groups and as society built itself up many of these individual practices melted together to provide the dominate polytheistic method of worship. The second period ranged from between 1700-1365 B.C.E. and during this period a supreme deity surfaced  [16]  . This deities name was a fertility god, a god of thunderstorms (I find it interesting that most of the times it seems that gods of thunder and/or lightning take up the post of king of the group of gods they represent) Marduk  [17]  and by getting rid of the evil dragon goddess of chaos Tiamat  [18]  . The third period was from 1365-612 B.C.E. During this time was the Assyrian period as well as the fall of Nineveh  [19]  . There is another shift , as another group falls and assimilates into the larger group which happened a lot in the Mesopotamian area, as another deity takes place as supreme rather than Marduk. This deities name was Ashur  [20]  , a god of the sun. Ishtar remained the most important female deity throughout these three periods (which im sure has nothing to do with the fact that she was the goddess of prostitution). The fourth and final period started with the reign of Nabopolassar  [21]  (625-605 B.C.E.) and came to an end with Cyruss  [22]  conquest of Babylon in 539 B.C.E. who increased his dedicated policy of religious freedom and returned many plundered religious relics back to their rightful places  [23]  . Rituals involving religion included sacrifices and burnt offerings which could include the best of their crop, herd, as well as the enemies the people may have overcome. Rituals might have also been practices that related to the god or goddess that the respective group was worshiping . For instance, if a group worshiped Ishtar, to show their devotion they may become prostitutes and therefore practice prostitution in an attempt to glorify their chosen goddess and maybe to acquire their blessings or favor. The holidays gave people other reasons to worship the all mighty gods and goddesss of the Mesopotamian area. These holidays included important birthdays, passing of the seasons, and days of momentous occurrence such as the victorious conclusion of a long and epic battle. The final topic of my discussion is the topic based on the various technologies brought about in Mesopotamia. Since this was one of the very first civilizations to come into existence it brought about many of the tools that were essential to survival in their new sedentary lifestyle as well as building procedures. The first thing that I would like to mention is a process that is used to prevent damaging floods, a process that is still used today; the use of levees. Levees are depressions built along the bases of rivers or lakes that potentially raises the total potential volume a river or lake may retain without over flowing. Their strength depended completely on its weakest point, meaning if that particular point were to be damaged or completely destroyed then the whole structure would follow. Levees were basically piles of earth surrounding the designated area of containment, though today we use concrete and other materials to accomplish similar means. Due to these structures peopl e no longer feared the yearly floods of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to the same extent as previously and another effect of the containment was a more sable distribution of irrigation resulting in greater amounts of food. Architecture is next with the structure in discussion being the momentous ziggurats, which were temples similar to those of the pyramids in ancient Egypt. They were made with dried bricks of mud which really was a combination of limestone rock earth and water, a loose relative of concrete. Now I will discuss tools and weapons, remember though that all weapons were tools until they were used to inflict purposeful harm on another being. The tools that were brought about her basically encompass most all tools present in many farming and cultivating professions. These tools included sickles, hoes, axes, hammers and many more. The major weapons used included swords, spears, maces, bow and arrows as well as shields. Most of all of the tools were manufactured using the practice of smelting to combine tin and copper to create bronze and wooden handles on which the metal pieces were attached. Machines that appeared in this time era included the plow, wheel and axel as well as the pulley and lever. This concludes my term paper on the mythology, religion and technology present in the Mesopotamian civilization. It was the spark of civilization that we can thank for its contribution to modern day society, because it was the starting point in a new order of operations in the way the world works and would be the first building block in the expansion of a sedentary life style in opposition to the previous nomadic way of life. Gilgamesh. Welcome to MYTHHOME:Mythology Site. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. . Ninsun | Goddess A Day. Goddess A Day My Quest for the Ten Thousand Names of the Goddess. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. . Midnight, By. Lugalbanda Epic. Bible and History. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. . Ishtar. Encyclopedia Mythica: Mythology, Folklore, and Religion. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. . Mitchell, Stephen. Gilgamesh: a New English Version. New York: Free, 2004. Print. Humbaba. Picture Books by Dandi Palmer. Web. 26 Nov. 2010. . Enlil. Encyclopedia Mythica: Mythology, Folklore, and Religion. Web. 26 Nov. 2010. . Shamash (Mesopotamian God) Britannica Online Encyclopedia. Encyclopedia Britannica Online Encyclopedia. Web. 26 Nov. 2010. . Gilgamesh and the Bull of Heaven. Bible and History. Web. 26 Nov. 2010. . Anu. Encyclopedia Mythica: Mythology, Folklore, and Religion. Web. 26 Nov. 2010. . Utnapishtim. Encyclopedia Mythica: Mythology, Folklore, and Religion. Web. 26 Nov. 2010. . Mesopotamian Religion New World Encyclopedia. Info:Main Page New World Encyclopedia. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. . Hammurabi of Babylon History for Kids! Kidipede History for Kids Homework Help for Middle School. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. . The Myth of Marduk, How Marduk Became King of All the Gods. Ancient Mesopotamia for Kids. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. . Tiamat Mesopotamian Mythology Ancinet-Mythology.com. Ancient Mythology: Greek, Norse, Egyptian and More Ancinet-Mythology.com. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. . Mesopotamia Fun Facts and Information. Fun Trivia Quizzes Worlds Largest Trivia and Quiz Site! Web. 05 Dec. 2010. . Ancient Babylonia Nabopolassar. Bible History Online Images and Resources for Biblical History. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. . Sorat, By Cyrus. Cyrus The Great. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. . Mythology | Define Mythology at Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. .

Characterization of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy in Jane Austens Pride and

Characterization of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice      Ã‚  Ã‚   Elizabeth Bennet, the heroine of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, is an authentic character, allowing readers to identify, sympathize, and grow with her. Unfortunately, Austen does not create a match for Elizabeth who is her equal in terms of characterization. Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth's sometime adversary, beloved, and, finally, husband, is not so carefully crafted as she, for his character is somewhat undefined, made up of only mystery, inconsistency, and conventionality.    Elizabeth is, initially, quick to make judgments and just as quick to hold fast to those preconceptions. In effect, Elizabeth represents both aspects of the novel's title, being both proud and prejudicial. It is not these factors, then, that endear her to readers, but rather the depth of her character in that she develops into a more even-minded person with a rare capacity for self-awareness. For though at one time she has the highest regard for Mr. Wickham and a low opinion of Mr. Darcy, later, though it is her "greatest misfortune" (Austen 61), Elizabeth amends her former thinking by "feeling that she had been blind, partial, prejudiced and absurd" (135). It is evident that she matures into a fully developed woman who can admit, "'Till this moment, I never knew myself'" (135, emphasis mine).    Mr. Darcy is truly an enigma. Though he is apparently handsome, his physical attributes are nondescript; readers may learn more about this powerful figure's person and tastes from the description of Pemberley, his grand estate. If Pemberley is indeed an extension of, or a reflection of, Mr. Darcy, Elizabeth's pondering that "to be mistress of Pemberley might be so... ... "exactly the man, who, in disposition and talents, would most suit her" (Austen 199).    Works Cited Auerbach, Nina. "Waiting Together: Pride and Prejudice." Pride and Prejudice. By Jane Austen. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: Norton and Co., 1993. pp. 336-348. Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. 1813. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: Norton and Co., 1993. Harding, D. W. "Regulated Hatred: An Aspect in the Work of Jane Austen." Pride and Prejudice. By Jane Austen. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: Norton and Co., 1993. pp. 291-295. Johnson, Claudia L. "Pride and Prejudice and the Pursuit of Happiness." Pride and Prejudice. By Jane Austen. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: Norton and Co., 1993. pp. 367-376. Mudrick, Marvin."Irony as Discovery in Pride and Prejudice." Pride and Prejudice. By Jane Austen. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: Norton and Co., 1993. pp. 295-303.