Positive influence by a person on my life Essay

For the past eighteen years that I have walked this earth, the most influential person in my life has been my mother. Although the passing of my father deeply affected her, she was still able to persevere and raise me and my siblings to think and act like responsible young men and women. She motivated me to make something more of myself than to sit and become waste on a street corner. My mother played an important role in my life and has always been a positive factor in me growing up. My mother is my mentor and my friend; these two qualities make her more than a mother. She is like my guardian angel, always watching every move and keeping me on the right track. My mother is a strong woman and she holds well for a single mother. But, the days that she has to struggle are the days I have to stand up and help her by lifting some of the burdens off her shoulders. My mother has taught me how to not only overcome the death of my father, but also how to overcome some of the hardships that will affect my life in the future. Being the eldest male in my home, she helps me realize that my brothers look to me for guidance. By emulating her leadership, I often take on some of her roles, such as helping my younger siblings in their schoolwork and leading them away from negativities in their surrounding environment. She sees many great things in me that, at times, are not so obvious to me. She constantly tells me to become something great in life to make her and my dad’s spirit proud. This encourages me to strive for the best of my abilities. I reflect back to the day of my high school graduation when my mother approached me and told me, â€Å"It’s time.† It was weird because it was like a time bomb went off inside of me. I got up and I knew what I had to do. It was â€Å"time† to use the skills she equipped me with and finally become a young man. I wanted to get into college and I wanted to eliminate all my weaknesses and turn them into my strengths, and all of my threats into opportunities. In the future, I see myself taking the reins as patriarch of my family. I  believe with my mother’s guidance I have the necessary tools to stand against almost anything; she has trained me well. I have overcome deaths, and many more personal struggles. I believe I have what it takes to make it through college because of my â€Å"angel.† My mother has prepared me mentally and spiritually to withstand the trials and tribulations that await me in the future. She is a strong woman and I am proud to call her my mom.

Importance of Literature Essay

Literature is the foundation of life. It places an emphasis on many topics from human tragedies to tales of the ever-popular search for love. While it is physically written in words, these words come alive in the imagination of the mind, and its ability to comprehend the complexity or simplicity of the text. Literature enables people to see through the lenses of others, and sometimes even inanimate objects; therefore, it becomes a looking glass into the world as others view it. It is a journey that is inscribed in pages, and powered by the imagination of the reader. Ultimately, literature has provided a gateway to teach the reader about life experiences from even the saddest stories to the most joyful ones that will touch their hearts. From a very young age, many are exposed to literature in the most stripped down form: picture books and simple texts that are mainly for the sole purpose of teaching the alphabet etc. Although these are not nearly as complex as an 800-page sci-fi novel, it is the first step that many take towards the literary world. Progressively, as people grow older, they explore other genres of books, ones that propel them towards curiosity of the subject, and the overall book. Reading and being given the keys to the literature world prepares individuals from an early age to discover the true importance of literature: being able to comprehend and understand situations from many perspectives. Physically speaking, it is impossible to be someone else. It is impossible to switch bodies with another human being, and it is impossible to completely understand the complexity of their world. Literature, as an alternative, is the closest thing the world has to being able to understand another person whole-heartedly. For stance, a novel about a treacherous war, written in the perspective of a soldier, allows the reader to envision their memories, their pain, and their emotions without actually being that person. Consequently, literature can act as a time machine, enabling individuals to go into a specific time period of the story, into the mind and soul of the protagonist. With the ability to see the world with a pair of fresh eyes, it triggers the reader to reflect upon their own lives. Reading a material that is relatable to the reader may teach them morals and encourage them to practice good judgement. This can be proven through public school systems, where the books that are emphasized the most tend to have a moral-teaching purpose behind the story. An example would be William Shakespeare’s stories, where each one is meant to be reflective of human nature – both the good and bad. Consequently, this can promote better judgement of situations, so the reader does not find themselves in the same circumstances as perhaps those in the fiction world. Henceforth, literature is proven to not only be reflective of life, but it can also be used as a guide for the reader to follow and practice good judgement from. The world today is ever-changing. Never before has life been so chaotic and challenging for all. Life before literature was practical and predictable, but in present day, literature has expanded into countless libraries and into the minds of many as the gateway for comprehension and curiosity of the human mind and the world around them. Literature is of great importance and is studied upon as it provides the ability to connect human relationships, and define what is right and what is wrong. Therefore, words are alive more than ever before.

Extrinsic Element (Mutual Friend)

Charles Dickens was born in 1812 in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, to John and Elizabeth Barrow Dickens. The second of eight children, Dickens spent his childhood on the southern coast of England, where he attended a good school until the age of eleven. The family then moved to London and shortly thereafter his father was sent to debtor's prison. Young Charles went to work in a blacking warehouse and was forced to live on his own in cheap lodgings in a state of near starvation. Although he was soon rescued by his father and sent to school in London, the brief period of abandonment and uncertainty affected his life and his writings for years to come. Dickens did not attend college but was admitted as a reader to the library of the British Museum, where he immersed himself in the study of great literature, particularly Shakespeare. He worked for some time as a clerk, as a shorthand reporter, and eventually as a news reporter for the Morning Chronicle, a position which required him to travel all over the country. Career Dickens's first success, both critical and popular, was Sketches by Boz (1836), a series of short pieces on life in London. His first novel, Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club (1837), was published, as were all of his novels, in serial form, and by the time the fourth monthly installment was issued, Dickens was the most popular author in England. His writing, once full of hope and optimism, grew increasingly pessimistic as he aged, with ima ges of decay and corruption dominating the later works. Our Mutual Friend was his last completed novel; with its images of dustheaps and death, it is widely considered one of the author's darkest visions. In 1870, while working on The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Dickens suffered an aneurysm in the brain and died the next day. He was buried in the Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey. – Dickens’ Works Over the next thirty years, he continued to publish successful novels, among them: Oliver Twist (1838), A Christmas Carol In Prose (1843), The Personal History of David Copperfield (1850), Bleak House (1853), Hard Times for These Hard Times (1854), A Tale of Two Cities (1859), and Great Expectations 1861). – View Charles Dickens distaste for the upper class and his strong interest in social reform is very evident in all of his writings. Throughout his life, he continually worked on writing novels that reflected his own view of the social classes. Dickens writes his characters of the lower social class to have more value than the aristocrats that in his own view he has grown to despise B. SOCIOLOGICAL ASPECTS World view: most people in england in the middle of 19th century did not have money. They could not become ladies and gentlemen. They were the working class. Some working class people, like Bradley Headstone and Charley Hexam wanted to do better in life. – Economy: England in the middle of 19th century grew wealthy. Many people suddenly became rich. People who have money could become part of Society. Society people were known as ladies and gentlemen.

Report on use of information seeking skills Essay

Report on use of information seeking skills - Essay Example My first impulse was to type in the search engine (directed by the pink arrow) the keyword "Nursing Health Care Teams Journal". However, upon doing so I got listings which were very vague and very irrelevant. The first on the list was about a nursing organization with no indication of what I was looking for. Then, I thought, if I was searching the documents manually, I will go to the library. It occurred to me that there was a library icon in the interface directed by the blue arrow. Upon clicking the library icon, I entered a site where there was a category dubbed as Resource which contained the subcategory Database. I figured that since I needed data regarding a journal then this is what exactly I am looking for so I clicked the Database icon. What appeared on the screen were search categories such as Database Titles and Database Subjects. These categories were accompanied by letters A to Z indicating the first letter of the title of the database. I clicked the letter N under the database Subjects as I was searching journals regarding Nursing. I was given a list of databases which started with the letter N. I saw the subject "Nursing and Health: A SAGE Full Text Edition" as I reckoned that since I was looking for the text of a journal, this would be the most probable place to search. What appeared in the screen was a text stating the terms and condition of use of the database and decision icons on whether I was agreeing to the terms of use or not. I clicked the "I Agree" button and entered my official username and password provided by the University. What happened next was that I was directed to the CSA Illumina site where I clicked Browse Full Text besides the Health Sciences: A SAGE FULL TEXT Collection. A list of the journals appeared in the screen where I clicked Policy, Politics and Nursing Practice Volume 1-7, 2000-2006. I chose this because I was looking for information regarding nursing and team health care. Politics and policy certainly applies to teams and organizations. I browsed through the available volumes and issues and I found many articles which relates to my inquiry. Among the many articles I chose the "The effect of nurse's use of principles of learning organization and organizational effectiveness" by Jeong, et. al. (2007) provided by the Medline database and the "Learning From the Best: The Benefits of a Structured Health Policy Fellowship in Developing Nursing Health Policy Leaders"

The development program for graduate students Research Paper

The development program for graduate students - Research Paper Example For example: students can help in figuring out whether the communication skills of instructors are of desired standard by rating how easily they understand what their instructors are teaching. Students can even help in figuring out whether the instructor has the analytical skills and the experience required to teach a particular subject to the undergraduate sections. Secondly, the instructors can themselves provide insight regarding the issues they experience while teaching students. Thirdly, grades of students in their exams can even help identify whether the students are able to understand the teacher or not. While determining who to train, it is necessary to figure out who lack the skills require teaching. If both the future as well as the current instructors lacks those skills, they should be trained. Those teachers whose students are not getting good grades plus those teachers who are rated low in the context of classroom communication and students understanding should even be

The Marketing Mix of Mini Cheddar Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Marketing Mix of Mini Cheddar - Essay Example The good results of the company were because of the good strategy of the company price and product quality. However, the company needed to improve on promotion and the place as it caused the company some problems. The study through the questionnaire pointed out that the company needed to do more on its strategies to improve it marketing strategy and meet good customer base. Introduction The source of the information on this part was from Kenilson who is the author of the book, â€Å"Marketing (Daewin, 2011)† .Cheddars are products of baked Cheddar cheese, which are flavored with the British savory biscuits with granular crumby texture. Cheddars in the present market are sold under the McVitie’s. Mini cheddars came in as a result of diversification of the products by theMcvities’ as the sales of their unique products started to wane. They products became increasingly popular in the 1970s, which led to the introduction of new flavors in the market The flavors intro duced in include the Marmite, BBQ Beef, Pickle and Mature Cheddar. The new variety of crispier lined Mini Cheddars called Crinkly were also launched .The company strategy is to be the market leader in a competitive market to ensure their sales are higher and have a great customer base. Product quality and price plays a crucial role in the marketing strategy of the company. The company has customers in all categories which range from children to adults. The company products are unique and are of high quality. The company prices are reasonable and affordable to their cu8stomers.However, the questionnaire administered indicated that there is the need to improve on the strategy of promotion and the location of the company’s outlet (http://www.minicheddarusa.com/AboutUS MinicheddarHistory.php). Methodology In the process of administering the questionnaire I had four members in my team, Mary, Paul, and me. As a team we decided to sit down and decide to design the best questionnaire which we will carry research on the cheese brand and establish the concept of Marketing Mix. We came up with 20 closed questionnaires in order to come up with valid results from the respondents. Lastly, we administered the questionnaires on about 100 respondents in Upper Tilley Shopping mall and we managed to receive 80 feedbacks concerning the study. Results and the analysis of the Mini Cheddar The findings on the administered questionnaire were presented in percentage form. Majority of the correspondence to the questionnaire knew what Mini Cheddars and it represented 80% of the population. On the other hand, the number of those who did not know this product completely was 20% of the total samples in the questionnaire. The questions were entirely based on the 4P Marketing Mix strategy. Products The cheese products from the company is meant for several categories of people who include the children and adults and in order to meet the needs of these diverse groups of people the compa ny products should be of high quality. On the question on what the consumers look at in buying the Mini Cheddar products, many correspondents to the questionnaire said that they look at quality, which 35% of the total questionnaires administered. 20% of the questionnaires liked the taste of the products, thus making them to buy the product. Still on the product, most of the customers who responded to the questionna

Fill out chap 11-12 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Fill out chap 11-12 - Essay Example In addition to this, food plays a crucial role in contributing to stress levels as people undergo two types of hunger. One is physical hunger while other is emotional hunger. Emotional hunger is there as an output of stress and requires one to have a certain craving of selected foods that contain elevated sugar and fat levels. Some foods that are required for emotional hunger can exacerbate stress condition. Directions: For a period of one month, starting today, keep track of all those purchases you make. This includes not only objects you buy—necessities and luxuries-- but also splurges for meals and social activities. After you have accumulated your list, go through the items one at a time and ask yourself in retrospect, with strict objectivity, which of these purchases you wish you could cancel. Which ones represented an impulsive decision? Circle those items on your list. The clothes that I bought contained certain items such as trousers and shirts that were not required or necessary currently because I was able to deal without them. I also got additional pair of socks that could be shifted to two months ahead for the purchase. I also consumed a lot of fast foods that I consider as additional expenses. I also got a cushion that I liked but did not need. Therefore, I could cancel two of the clothes items, two additional pair of socks, some fast food expenditures and the cushion. If I would have saved the money that I used on all these items, I could have obtained some intensely needed product after two months or so. Saving is in itself rewarding so that action would have merited me. Directions: Analyze how your dietary patterns for three days by using the following table provided. Examine it and write a summary about it. Is what you eat conducive to handling much stress and improving health? Look at the frequency and amount of food you eat. I usually skip morning breakfast that

'Petroglyph Park' by Jaune Quick-to-See Smith and 'The large Blue Term Paper

'Petroglyph Park' by Jaune Quick-to-See Smith and 'The large Blue Horses' byFranz Marc - Term Paper Example Franz, was a very sensitive painter who was well known for expressing his feelings and emotions through his pieces of art. He loved painting animals, especially horses because he felt that animals are innocent creatures and are much closer to God than human beings. Both artists, Juane and Franz had their own unique and peculiar style of painting but yet shared some commonality between them – such as abstract figures and the use of rich colors. Juane’s paintings are well known as â€Å"inhabited landscapes† while she makes use of modernist color and unique techniques created from her vocabulary of art work which includes oil painting as well as works on paper. The Petroglyph Park was started by Juane about five years later when she completed her MA in art in 1980, from the University of New Mexico and it is this series of paintings that established her artistic voice in the lineage of landscape painting in America. In her modern abstraction of the Petroglyph Park, she makes use of a unique compositional style with brilliant colors and gestural layers of paint. ‘The Large Blue Horses’ by Franz Marc is an expression of his feelings towards animals in general. His type of painting belongs to the category of ‘Expressionists’ as it depicts the sensitive feelings and emotions of the artist.

Chinese Cinema Analysis Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Chinese Cinema Analysis - Research Paper Example I figured pursuing Chinese cinema will be a considerable source of information regarding the section. In addition, studying Chinese cinema will offer me different approaches that are outside the average of what any film student’s scope. This is an area where most people to do not venture in their studies. Chen has been visible in Chinese cinema from the 1980s up to recent times. In analyzing Chen, the paper will focus on various elements present in the films under his name. For instance, the subject matter of the film, plot, setting, characters depicted theme and cinematography. Two films, Farewell My Concubine and Yellow Earth will be the main focus of Chen’s film. Chen Kaige Films from China have become a celebrated part of world cinema, winning prizes at film festivals and widespread viewers. The force behind these achievements is the vision and talent of a young group of filmmakers who emerged in the 1980s. One of the major contributors to these achievements is Chen Kaige. Most of the characters in Chen’s films stand out as happy and carefree people, which cannot be a reflection of the director’s life. This renowned director in Chinese cinema was born in Beijing in 1952, to the father who was equally popular because of his effort in the cinema industry in Chi na. At a remarkably tender age, Chen pursued his dream in film and in the year 1978, he joined Beijing Film Academy. While in the academy, Chen met other presently renowned film-makers, Zhang Yimou and Tian Zhuangzhuang, who helped revolutionize the film industry in China. Most people who studied film in the academy later came to be known as the Fifth Generation. From the works of Chen Kaige in the 1980s and the present, it is evident that China has undergone tremendous changes. According to Chen, the dream of an idealized socialist society had a new place in the fashionable need for material wealth. Despite this change, totalitarian predispositions remain evident in Chinese cinema such as censorship of films.  

Cast study Case Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Cast - Case Study Example Exports of agricultural produce constitute Brazil’s major revenue earner. Brazil’s manufacturing industry lacks competitiveness because there is no comparative advantage in the industrial sector. The cost of energy, raw materials and wages is high and the consequence is the escalation of the manufacturing costs. Brazil has failed in the quest to keep the industrial operating costs below those incurred in other countries. Therefore, the countries with lower operating costs are more competitive in manufacturing compared to Brazil. Brazil’s governments in the 20th and 21st centuries have been eagerly developing a world class manufacturing strategy. The government’s course of action is aimed at switching from the agricultural based economy to one that is industrial based. The government wanted to protect the local industries from international competition by imposing taxes on imports through the practice of protectionism. For Brazil to move its resources from the uncompetitive industrial sector to competitive industries, comparative advantage should be given prior consideration. The country should stick to developing agriculture and diversifying the use of agricultural products. For instance, sugar cane can be used to produce more ethanol whose demand is high. Sugar cane is primarily used to produce sugar but diversification will provide a platform for the production of ethanol. The global ethanol trade is lucrative and Brazil would have an upper hand in the international market as a result of its comparative advantage with regard to agriculture. For effective competitive advantage, the agricultural resources should be developed and harnessed into different industries to diversify products coupled with the expansion of the global market (Chaddad, 2014). President Rousseff’s policies limit Brazil’s dependence on foreign goods but they disregard the aspect of comparative advantage. The

Project management and control - the topic is up to you Term Paper

Project management and control - the topic is up to you - Term Paper Example In all this report is a detailed, comprehensive instruction set of what to plan for and how to plan for it. Introduction This is not a small project. The duration for lodging, the number of field visits and the probable number of partakers are all quite excessive for a usual university industrial visit. Meeting the requirements of organizing and managing the activity are not a job for a team of a few people. From the administration executives to the student organizers everyone has to get involved if we want this event to be successful. In addition to this we have to connect to a lot of professional individuals and organizations, and work in tandem with them to manage the occasion. However if the planned event gets to completion without any major hitches it will certainly go down the history book of this institution and perhaps into some local newspapers as well. Goals and Tasks There is a wealth of objectives from an academic standpoint that can be achieved by the organization of thi s trip. An obvious one is giving the students, and the faculty for that matter, a chance to bring fun and pragmatism into their standard academic curriculums; a chance to link the outside world to the sober and unidirectional outlook of the scholarly learning process. So building students’ interest into their academic curriculums and letting them experience and see and take interest in their potential future roles in society. The club wants to make an effort to make this kind of trip an annual event and push the administration of the university to increase its focus on allowing the students to form a link between industrial practices and their scholarly knowledge. This trip will be a chance to acquaint the students with professional life. These professional lives are important for the students because they are of people from the students’ future professions. Students can only wonder about what would become of them once they graduate until they have seen it as clearly a s the organizers of this trip want them to see. Many students will have a chance to meet with people who were once in the students’ place and who the students might aspire to be like in the future. Not all aspects of professional life the students get to see will be uplifting though some will be but the important thing is that all will be very true and relevant. The participants will be acquainted with standard industrial practices that are common to all industries wherever the students go in the future, like the implementation of Standard Operating Procedures at work sites. The students will also get to see what these SOPs are for companies of their particular fields. Similarly the participants of the trip will gain knowledge about how issues in industrial processes are identified and dealt with, what kind of problems can and do arise and the universal principles and tricks of the trade that are always to be kept in mind. We want to show the academia what the common industri al processes are in the local industry, what operational standards are used around the world and how machinery and services are acquired and maintained and where their academic curricula may be lacking in terms of stressing on industry-relevant topics and complying with the level of technological advancement in the industrial work place. For students of engineering and other technical disciples it will be a chance to examine the machinery they might want to study about in their course curricula and research about like piping and flow

IT Business Outsourcing Essay Example for Free

IT Business Outsourcing Essay Outsourcing basically means a process of constricting to another party. It is done at the outsourcing client’s location under their supervision. There are many essential factors which are needed to decide whether to outsource the information process or not. First major factor is the activity or the process itself. Main concern should be the process, whether it’s really needed to be outsourced (Loh et. al, 1992). If it is core job to that organization, then its better not to outsource it. If the task really requires highly efficient skills which is not available in your organization, then it’s better to outsource it. Second most important factor is the financial strategy. While deciding whether to outsource, main goal of company is to save money. It’s essential to verify, what will be the total cost in both the cases, if the task to be performed within the organization or outside. Hence, the main factors for deciding why to outsource are outsourcers cost, their capabilities and the potential end product which ultimately will reduce the risk and increase organization profit. Influence of Risk Assessment on the decision making process when seeking to outsource information processes Risk is always associated with the process of outsourcing. Many organizations who went for outsourcing, failed and few of the reasons are like cultural misalignment, end product not as per the quality and deadlines or delivery times missed. There are mainly two types of risk associated with the process of outsourcing: external risk and internal risk. Read more:Â  Essay on Business Process Outsourcing External risks are those risks which occur outside the organization and upon which organization do not have any control. these risks includes a search of outsourcer who will offer the required skills in a cost effective manner, an exchange rate fluctuation that can impact the cost savings, lack of ability to guard organization intellectual protection property and physical location of outsourcer which includes economic and political risk as well (Aubert, 1998). Internal risks are those risks which occur inside the organization while outsourcing. Language is the most targeted risk if outsourcing happen between two different countries where English is not the primary language and the ability of communicating to outsourcers in a remote location where technology is not so updated. Influence of change management requirements on the decision making process when seeking to outsource information processes One of the key factors for a successful outsourcing is the organizations effective change management policy. Organizations who failed to manage the changes effectively suffer a lot. Within an organization, the most important change management program is to create such a reliable communication strategy, so that the employees don’t feel scared about the job security. There should be proper redeployment and retention plans for all employees to make them feel secure. Proper training should be provided to make them understand how to deal with outsourcers. Few change management factors during this process are good leadership quality, crystal clear procedures, strategy safeguarding stakeholder’s interests, communication strategy and a change-over course of action for every step (Wullenweber et al, 2008). Inclusion of different entities by business when making decisions on the processes to outsource and the third party entity to outsource to Businesses include entities when time comes to decide whether to go for outsourcing or not. When an organization needs a process to be outsourced, decision of top level (CEO or a Director) is essential. Without their confirmation, company can’t think of moving ahead. After the confirmation, now its middle management turns to check whether all the important factors are going in favor of outsourcing or not. Here come different entities like finance, Hr, marketing, quality and third party. Finance department will check outsourcing in terms of cost saving, while HR will check if the company really needs outsourcing staff or it has its own (DiRomualdo et. al. , 1998). Marketing people will do a survey to acquire a list of best outsourcing companies and quality will judge whether the decision is anywhere hampering the quality and how to improve it in future. Third party will also play a vital role as their location, cost of doing outsourcing and few other factors will also effect the decision (W. McFarlan et. al, 1995).

Essentials of Tourism and Hospitality Operations

Essentials of Tourism and Hospitality Operations Assignment title: Essentials of tourism and Hospitality operations Introduction The dynamism around the world has many reasons. Tourism organizations are working in order to make all corners of the world easy to visit. The globalization as defined by Scholte J. (2000),†A world wide process of spreading objects and experiences to people at all the corners of the earth (e.g. spreading computing, television, etc.)†, lead the tourism to merge. A hotel is an organization that plays a major role in the tourism and hospitality operations. It has several departments with specific roles. Examples of these are: Front office, food and beverage, housekeeping, maintenance and security. All these departments work together, for the guest to have a good stay. This team work contributes to make more profit for the hotel. States Huyssten et al (2001) This assignment is focus on the front office and housekeeping and based on researches from different writers and the pepper club hotel. Pepper club is a five star hotel located into Cape Town on 167, loop street. Pepper club has 210 bedrooms, a fitness room, an Odeon cinema, a bar called paparazzi, a restaurant called Sinatra, penthouse with swimming pool. Pepper club hotel is not far from the wonderful table mountain. Their future plans are to develop all the sectors of the hotel. Hassanien et al (2010) recommends that a hotel should consider updating facilities and all the sectors of the hotel. The front office The front office is the front of the house. This is the department that welcomes the guest and helps him for checking in and out. The front office manager is responsible of all the activities in the front office and for training all the workers in this department. In order to maintain the standard, he has to make sure of selecting good personnel, easy to be trained and quick learners. This people should work with high manners and behaviors in a professionalism way. Gillespie (2007). Many services are organized in the front office, such as reception, switchboard, reservation, concierge, potter, casher and guest relation. The same, as listed, at pepper club, these are the services organized in front office. But at pepper club, the potter is working under the concierge and it is called concierge and pottering. Reception A receptionist is the person who is handling guest’s check-in and giving him information about the entire department in the hotel. â€Å"A well-functioning reception gives the guest a good impression of the hotel. This helps to establish the hotel’s image and reputation, as well as to encourage the guest to return in the future†.page107, Baker et al (1994). Being the first person to meet the guests on checking in or when he/she walks in for any information, the receptionist should be able to give a good impression to the guest with a nice smile, a tone of voice, though the first impression last. Baker et al (1998) At pepper club, the reception is the first service to interact with the guest when arriving at the hotel. The main duties are: welcoming and checking-in of a new arrival, selling the facilities of the hotel, providing guest information for other services of the front office and other departments of the hotel. For a group arrival, at pepper club, the reception has to prepare documentations that will be required by the guests. Envelopes are prepared with letters inside to explain facilities to the guests in the language they understand Switch board As similar to Kappa et al (1997), this is the controller of the calls from outside and sends them to the relevant department or room. The person working here should be able to listen and speak clearly to the phone and have a good telephone manner. At pepper club, the switchboard does the same. But it also help in switching calls from one service or department to another, in case, if the caller does not know the number of the relevant service or department. Reservation In the same idea with Henning, R. (2003), there are many ways of doing reservation. This can be done through internet (web site, e-mail, twitter, face book), telephone, fax, walk in. As we advertise the hotel we must be able to handle with reservations in any way that it comes to us. There for we should have trained personnel who can professionally handle it. According to Gillespie (2007), all the workers should behave professionally when doing their duties. There are procedures to follow to make a reservation, and these are the same for everyone. There are not special enquiries for any reservation. It is very imperative to have a reservation chart so we will not keep the guest waiting while we are busy looking for information to give him. â€Å"The most important administrative document is the reservation chart†. Henning, R. (2003) This should be checked to see if there are available rooms. Taylor, M. et al (1999) identifies two ways of making reservation, as follow: -Advance reservation: At pepper club the person working in this area makes bookings, deal with agencies and writes queries. In planning and preparing the guest’s needs, the advance reservation is preferable, because it gives you more time to do so. This idea is also supported by Taylor et al (1999). The reservation in advance is better because nothing will be in rush, you know already about the guest arrival and you expect him to arrive. If it comes that you find out about the reason of the guest’s trip, you will be able to prepare decoration for such event. For example a booking for a honey moon, I will organize a decor according to the event. -same day reservation: This kind of reservation should be handled with lots of care. States Whyte, S.(2006), some tourists arrive in town with nowhere to sleep and start to look for accommodation, calling here and there. A guest, who calls for same day reservation, should pay in advance and his referral source and preferences should be recorded. The person who’s doing reservation uses two types of reservation system. At pepper club they use the electronic system and the manual system. The electronic system used at pepper club is opera system, for any reservation on line. The manual system used at pepper club is the reservation chat. Hunters, G. et al (2010) states, â€Å"An operation system of reservation enquiries tracks availability and rates and provide management and supervisors with essential reports.† page 369 Check-in and out This will be explained according to the pepper club’s way. After arriving and entering inside the building, the guest has to present his/her passport. A registration card recorder will be given to him to fill up (home address, mobile number, etc†¦) and the receptionist will make a copy of it. After that he signs and binds himself to the rules of the hotel. The receptionist will ask the guest’s credit card for the credit card authorization for any extras or incident that can happen during his stay. The guest will always be accompanied to his room, by an associate. He will receive a call, from reception within 20 minutes of arrival. No guest will ever be roomed in unmade accommodation. Should there be early arrivals that cannot be accommodate immediately, areas will be arranged with coffee, tea, Danish, newspaper and the availability of telephones/email for the guest in the lounge area. On checking out all the bills will be printed and presented to the guest. If ther e is any change to give to the guest that will be ready, for the guest will not have to wait. Everything should be done the night before the departure day of the guest. The potter will carry the luggage from the room to the car. Concierge At pepper club the concierge is focus on all guest’s services, he is responsible of all the potters. The concierge is locating the guest sites to visit, organizing transport, he also get all the deliveries for the guest from outside. Huyssten et al (2001) identifies that, the concierge is the person who links the guest to the outside services, such as tourism agencies. Being, in charge of the guest satisfaction, he consults to make itinerary. Potter At pepper club, the potter is working under the concierge but having specific duties such as: caring the luggage for the guest to and from the room. Rooming the guest when he checks- in. Huyssten et al (2001) support this idea saying, when the guest is checking out, the potter has to make sure that the guest did not forget anything behind and he should check the room if there is any damage and report to the reception. If the guest booked the hotel’s car, the potter is the one who will be in charge to go with the car and the guest from the airport. Cashiering At pepper club, the cashier is dealing with all the cash in the hotel. He also deal with end of shift, balance the total cash, credit card transaction and foreign currency. Huyssten et al (2001) share the same idea with pepper club, saying that, he closes the specific transactions taken for the day and get generally get checked to see it balances. Guest relation At pepper club, the guest relation is the guest assistance provider. He gets closer to the guest, provides assistance for him, sold guest’s problems and make the guest feel comfortable offering him personal service. Denney et al (2007) says, to provide assistance he has to know the guest’s preference, request, there for, programs can be designed, where by all guest’s requests, preference, will be logged. The link The link between the front office and other department is to make each department aware about what is happening or what is going to happen about the guest’s need, concern and what he expect from the hotel. Because each department has got responsibilities, for the guest to have a good stay. The food and beverage for example, has to know about the arrival to prepare food and drink according to the number and preference if there is any. The room service should also be kept in touch, for; the guest can request any service in the room. If it is about fixing anything the maintenance should be aware. Huyssten et al (2001) identifies that, the front office is the link between the guest and all the departments. Guest cycle The front office department has got large responsibilities to support guest’s services. There for the front office operations are largely defined by the type and number of transactions made during different stages of the guest’s stay. As mentioned by Baker et al (1994), a typical stay will be divided into 4 stages: pre-arrival, arrival, occupancy and departure. At pepper club the guest cycle is considered as the guest journey through the hotel, from the reservation (pre-arrival), arrival (check-in), occupancy (enjoying), to departure (check-out). Agreeing with 4 phases of the guest cycle, but after departure, still the hotel will follow up to know about the feedback. Did he enjoy his stay in our hotel? I will suggest a fifth phase which is the feedback. Methods of payment The method of payment is the way which the guest handles his payment through. There are different methods of payment. Each guest has his way of payment which is easy or possible for him. Some of these methods are: cash, credit cards, travelers’ cheques, cheques, credit facilities, travel agency voucher. Huyssten et al (2001) This applies also at pepper club, this methods of payment are experienced in the same way. Daily banking According to the pepper club way, all charges, postings, payments dealt with during the shift must balance with opera. At the end of the day, the audit casher closes the baking but before that he/she has to check all the balances on opera. Housekeeping Keeping the house is to maintain it in a good state. The housekeeping plays a major role to develop the economy of the hotel. By keeping the establishment and all the furniture clean, the housekeeping saves as many costs as possible. Branson, Lennox (1998) Role of the housekeeping The role is basically, cleaning and maintaining the standard. Make sure that all the public areas are clean. Branson, Lennox (1998) states, in any establishment, the housekeeping is the department that works to make people feel comfortable staying in the building. At pepper club the housekeeping should service daily the suites, during late morning and early afternoon or at the guest convenience. Essential high quality toiletries will be provided and the turn down service will be prepare in the early evening. An overnight laundry service will be also offered. A daily pre-shift meeting will be held by the executive housekeeper. This will cover the previous day’s inspections, cleaning procedures, wearing of uniforms and guest relations. Furniture As the hotel is receiving guests from different background, countries and cultural traditions, each guest should be comfortable to stay in our hotel. Henning et al (1999) states that, â€Å"furnishing should look comfortable and welcoming, so that guests can feel that they can relax there. Use as much upholstered furniture as possible.† All furniture should be according to the standard of the hotel and the status of the room where the item will be used. I agree with Branson, Lennox (1998) saying, it will be very important that the item should be easily movable. Cleanliness Cleaning is to maintain the good state of the house hygienically and by appearance. Cleaning keeps the house and all the furniture against deterioration. For all the linen used in different sectors in the hotel, the housekeeping is responsible of keeping them clean and ready to be used. In the same idea with Branson, Lennox (1998), kitchen, bar, restaurant, banqueting, etc, the supervisor or manager of these relevant sectors should keep a happy atmosphere between him and the housekeeper to ensure that all the linens are exchanged on time. What happen at pepper club is the suites will be serviced daily, during late morning and early afternoon or at the guest convenience. Essential high quality toiletries will be provided and the turn down service will be prepare in the early evening. The hotel will also offer an overnight laundry service. *Turndown All suites must be serviced nightly; bed turned down with sheet folded, on the entry side, at a 450angle. Curtains closed, one or two lamp turned one according to the procedure. Room attendant to replace all dirty towels with clean ones, toilet articles rearranged, toilet papers refolded. Bath to be cleaned, friction towels placed on floor at each bedside, gowns and good night amenity placed at bedside, any loose clothing or shoes should neatly folded and hung in closet, fresh ice should be brought in and placed in room with mineral water and fresh lemon slice. The turn down service will not start before 7:00 pm. *laundry and valet As an extra added service to the hotel, pressing is to be made available throughout the day. This service is available seven days a week with the quickest possible return. As a guest will be taken to his/her suite on arrival, the associate will ask if there is any immediate pressing to be done and take some to the valet. Guest pressing will be done immediately. Suits and dresses are to be returned in wicker baskets with a paper inlay. *Public rest rooms They must be checked every 15 minutes by the public areas attendant, as the hotel is also judged by the rest rooms. Both hand cloths and paper cloths will be provided. *Pool procedures The houseman will arrange and rearrange, however necessary, throughout the day, the pool area as uniform as possible. He will clean the pool before it opens in the morning and at the close in the evening. The pool area will be policed during the day for cigarette butts, paper container, etc. The houseman will arrange lounge chairs for guests and ensure necessary towels are available. At night he will leave the pool deck thoroughly clean and rearrange the furniture as per standard set-up. Magazines, lotions, tanning oils, sunglasses, baseball caps with logo will be available for sale. Inspection To inspect is to control if the level of the cleaning performance reaches the standard. Though a cleaning schedule should be designed to specify who is doing what, when and how. For Henning (2007), the supervisor or the executive housekeeper will check-up to appreciate or correct if necessary. Security To secure is to keep out of danger. In a hotel, it is very important for all the staff to mind the security, as it is not only one person’s matter. Danger could come from any sector, so everyone working in the hotel should be able to report suspicious movement or any hazard around the building. â€Å"Security is not the prerogative of any one person in an establishment †¦Staff should realized the necessity of not giving information regarding internal matters†.page54 Branson, Lennox (1998) Conclusion Economic, politic, religious, social, cultural, etc, these may be reason of the dynamism around the world. Spreading objects and experiences to people at all the corners of the world, makes people move around. Our assignment was showing a good welcoming procedures, to people visiting our place. From different writers and the pepper club hotel, we can understand the major role of the hotel within tourism and hospitality operations. One of its departments was subject of our studies. We are so glad finishing explaining and describing the front office and housekeeping and their role within a hotel. We are great full to the pepper club hotel staff for their assistance which was very helpful. It could be difficult for us to complete this assignment without their help. All the ideas in this assignment did not come from us, the books we red from different writers were also very helpful. References -Baker, S., Bradley, P. and Huyton, J. (1994) Principles of front office operations: Hospitality press, Australian edition, London -Baker, S., Bradley, P. and Huyton, J. (1998) Principles of front office operations: Hospitality press pty ltd, Australian Material, London -Baker, K. and Huyton, J. (2001) Hospitality Management and Introduction: Hospitality press, LOndon -Denney, G., Rutherford, Ph., D., Micheal, J. and O’fallon (2007) Hotel Management and Operations, 4th edition, John Wiley and sons inc., London -Clayton, W., Barrows and Powers, T. (2009) Introduction to the hospitality industry, 7th edition, John Wiley and sons inc. Amazon, USA -Henning, R., Koster, C. and Wilense, C.(1999)Your own guest house, J.L. Van Shaik publishers. -Hunters, G., Tinton, T. and Mannall, C. (1999) Hospitality supervision level 3 S/NVQ, Cengage learning EMEA, LOndon -Taylor, M. and Taylor, R. (1999) Start and run a bed and breakfast: Self-consil press, London -Whyte, S. (2006) Starting and running a BB : How to books, London -Henning, R. (2004) Effective guest house management : Juta co ltd Cape Town -Kappa, M., M., Nitschke, A. and Shappert, B., P (1997) Housekeeping management: American hotel and lodging association .Canada -Branson, J., C. and Lennox, M. (1998)Hotel, hostel and hospital housekeeping : copyright Joan C. Branson and Margaret Lennox -Henning, R. (2007) Guest house management : Juta co ltd, Cape Town -Hassanien, A., Dale, C. and Clarke, A. (2010) Hospitality business development: Ahmed, H., Crispin D. Alan C. published by elsivier ltd, London -Gillespie, A. (2007) Shutters hospitality studies: Shutter shooter publishers Pty, Ltd, Pietermaritzburg area, South Africa. -Huyssten, H., V., Nanny, R., Diedericks, T., Steyn, M. and Steynberg, M. (2001) Hotel-keeping and catering to day: Nasou, Cape Town Suzi , Mujingila CTH no. 76480 Front office and Housekeeping. [Type text]Page 1

Jet Airlines Analysis Of Information System Business Essay

Jet Airlines Analysis Of Information System Business Essay Management Information System Management Information Systems (MIS) provides information to managers and help them in decision-making based on databases. Data analysis plays vital role in determining which resources to use in order to achieve the mission of an organization. The world is developing an increasingly global market and economy. The basic management information system measures inputs and/or outputs, allowing managers to analyse the  relationship  between them and make decisions based on the outcomes they desire.Day to day example can be a speedometer, a speed-measuring system Types of Management Information Systems . The different types of MIS can be classified into the following: Transaction-Processing Systems: With the advent of mainframe computers, Transaction-processing systems were introduced in the 1960s. They are designed for the banks to handle a huge volume of routine, recurring transactions. They record deposits and payments into the accounts, record sales and track inventory.. Operations Information Systems After transaction-processing systems, operations Information Systems came into existence. It gathers information, organises and summarises it in a useful form. It access data from TPS and moulds it into suitable form. One can obtain sales report or inventory etc from this. Decision Support Systems (DSS) DSS is an interactive  computer system. It hasthree fundamental components: database management system (DBMS), model-based management system (MBMS) and dialog generation and management system (DGMS) which can be used for decision making. Expert Systems and Artificial Intelligence ESAI use human knowledge encapsulated in a computer to solve various problems that usually requires human expertise. Computer recognizes, formulates and then solves a problem. It also explains the solution and learns from its experience as well. Introduction to Jet Airways Jet Airways  is a leading Indian  airline  with its head quarter in  Mumbai,  Maharashtra. It is the second largest airline in India  and the market leader in the domestic sector. It offers over 400 flights daily to 67 destinations worldwide. Main domestic hubs:  Mumbai  and  Delhi. International hubs: Brussels  Airport,  Belgium. It is owned by the  London-based businessman, Mr.NareshGoyal. BACKGROUND Jet Airways emerged with its first flight in 1993. It is one of the fastest expanding airlines in the world, and in future will become the most preferred airline making your journey enjoyable. Jet Airways offers flights to 24 international destinations and 43 destinations in India. OVERVIEW Jet Airways was incorporated as an air service operator on 1 April 1992. It commenced Indian commercial airline operations on 5 May 1993. On 4th January 1995, Jet Airways was granted a scheduled airline status.The company is registered on the  Bombay Stock Exchange. Although,a major portion (80% of its stock) is controlled by Naresh Goyal. It has over 10,017 employees (March 2007).Jet Airways currently operates a fleet of 90 aircraft. With an average fleet age of 4.99 years, the airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world. Flights to 65 destinations span the length and breadth of India and beyond. CORPORATE VISION Jet Airways will become the most preferred domestic airline in India.Jet Airways will achieve this outstanding position by offering a high quality of service and reliable, comfortable and efficient operations.Jet Airways will uplift the concept of domestic airline travel -to be a world class airline. It will achieve this objective even while ensuring consistent profitability, achieving long-term returns for its investors and providing its employees with an environment for excellence and growth. Information Systems in Airlines Airlines exist to connect people to distant locations very efficiently and safely while making profit for the shareholders. . There has to be a trade-off between the three aspects. Thus, the designing of information system is very essential and its management helps them reach the organizations purpose. Key indicators in management are required to guide the working of the process and making changes in resource allocation. A management information system regularly provides information about the efficient working and function of the organization. The ultimate aim of the airline industry is to make the passengers journey comfortable and convenient. The different procedures in the airport and airplane should be simplified and highest degree of customers satisfaction have to maintained in order to succeed in todays competitive world. The Current Scenario The airline industry is constantly evolving and incorporating the latest innovations and technologies all with a common aim to make the journey of the passengers more and more comfortable and convenient. All the different procedures that the passenger goes through in the airport and airplane have to be simplified and highest quality of satisfaction for customers have to maintained by airlines in order to succeed in todays competitive scenario. Flying is now-a-days one of the fastest and easiest way to cover large distances. It saves a lot of travelling time compared to other means of transport. For employees this is a huge bonus as business can be carried out at a faster speed as they can reach their destinations in a matter of hours . The 4 basic factors that the airline industry has to carefully tackle are as follows: Efficiency Speed Safety Comfort Every year more and more people are resorting to airlines as a mode of transportation and hence constant innovation and establishing a unique relationship with the passengers is the need of the hour. Hence , the importance of the technology of integrated systems has become clearer and unavoidable in the airlines for the future as well. Improving Air Transport Information Systems It has been seen that many vendor companies are doing constant research and development in the technologies which have a prime aim to improve customer satisfaction and provide better services to the customer. Huge investments are also being made in this area which has a lot of scope of improvement. Example of such service can be self- checking kiosks, in-flight entertainment and connectivity, check-in via mobile phones, airport and baggage management services. Currently what can be seen as the prime objective of the airlines is: Optimizing revenues while maximizing customer relationships. Management Information system in Jet Airlines VENDOR: IBM Jet Airways, ,one of Indias premier international airline, and IBM (NYSE: IBM) have announced that the companies have signed a strategic business transformation for ten years and information technology (IT) services agreement. Valued at 62 million US dollars, the agreement is a major step towards Jet Airways journey of technology led business transformation, which will help the airline to achieve significant growth by implementing the companys IT with business strategies. Jet Airways aims to use IBMs domain knowledge of the global airline industry and its leadership in technology to meet the groups business transformation objectives. As part of the deal, IBM will provide with the latest technological solutions to transform the airlines various business areas such as airport operations, direct distribution and frequent flier programs. This engagement will help Jet Airways to improve and integrate its IT systems to deliver a highly differentiated customer service and to improve the efficiency of its various operations. Constant innovation to stay ahead of industry growth has been Jet Airways operating philosophy since it started its operations in 1993, said Nikos Kardassis, Chief Executive Officer, Jet Airways (India) Ltd. We are delighted to partner with IBM, the worlds leading IT services company, and see this as an exciting opportunity to use IBMs technology to lead business transformation in the Indian aviation sector and augment growth. This association will enable us to focus on our core business and improve our operational efficiencies, besides delivering a seamless customer experience. India, as a country, will take a leading edge position in delivering innovative ideas and solutions in the Global Aviation terrain, remarked Mr. Kardassis. IBM has provided Jet Airways with cutting edge IT Infrastructure and application to support services including employee transition, data centre operations, helpdesk support and storage operations, internet security services, network management, SAP and various other operating systems. Commenting on the developing relationship with Jet Airways, Ashish Kumar, General Manager, Global Technology Services, IBM India/South Asia, said, This strategic services deal with Jet Airways will begin a a new era in the Indian aviation industry. It will enable the airline to provide and enhance its business value and gain competitive advantage through innovative use of technology. IBM will bring its global experience and expertise in this industry to deliver services and solutions to help Jet Airways achieve its mission to innovate and lead as it continues to grow and expand internationally. The contract was signed in June 2010. Customer Relationship Management CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It is methodology used to learn more about customers needs in order to develop stronger relationships with them. CRM has always been a matter of great concern for airlines aspiring to improve relationships with the customers. Airlines that can effectively target, attract, serve and hold the best customers will definitely experience significant benefits. The better the bonding the airline holds with these customers, the more opportunities will be open for selling additional products and services. However, as the e-business is evolving, the hurdles of establishing customer relationships have become even greater. Airlines must be completely responsible for a customers satisfaction whilst the want it, buy it and use it experience. Advantage of CRM In Sales and Marketing CRM defines marketing processes and satisfy customer requirements using functionality to improve management of resources, segments and lists, campaigns, trade promotions, and marketing analytics. It also enables management of accounts, product configuration, opportunities, quotations, orders, contacts, activities pricing, billing, and contracts. Make smart business decisions with improved customer relations. Speedy access to databases so faster marketing. Improve visibility of your entire marketing process Increase returns on investments. Grow profitable relationships Maintain focus on productive activity Eliminate barriers to productivity Improve sales efficiency Service Transform service into a profitable line of business Increase customer loyalty Reduce costs of customer service and field service CRM in Jet Airways The figure 5 shows a few special offering from Jet Airlines The special offerings from it are as follows: It offers free tickets Special rates for Students Special Fares for corporate deals Jetlite Surprises The other Customer Relationship Management activities also include: Rapid Rewards program for all passengers that make all their reservations online. Incentives include lower rates, express boarding passes, and in-flight bonuses like free snacks drinks. Business Rapid Rewards for Business travelers. Special Benefits and services for Senior Vendor For Jet Airways CRM: EPSILON The emerging digital marketing company Epsilons email solution will now provide customer and trade communication services to Jet Airways in order to improve their relationship with customers. Jet Airways known for its in-flight services is striving hard to enhance its customer relationship management and loyalty management. .     Various surveys were conducted and was found that customers prefer email as the channel for communication. Thus, in order to be forward it selected Epsilons email marketing services. Epsilon is a pioneer in email sevices and provides exact view of all the customers . Such an overview allows the airways to design solutions for targeted customers which also increase its brand equity and nurtures great profits with loyalty. To provide a world-class customer experience, we chose Epsilon for their best-of-class email marketing solutions that enable us to stay close to our customers throughout the relationship lifecycle and ensure that we are providing the most relevant information, optimised in a timely fashion as and when they want it, said Rahul Kucheria, GM, Relationship Marketing with Jet Airways. Epsilons email platform speeds up the email delivery. Ithas an intense tracking and report forming features as well as optimisation tools that enable Jet Airways to enjoy the benefits of relevancy in communicating with the customers. It also allows Jet Airways to monitor and track the position and status of specific email communication all the way from booking to enquiry transaction. This allows the airline to improve its profile and transaction behaviour data to ultimately achieve one-to-one relationship with its customers.   Jet Airways currently publishes a monthly email newsletter to Jet Privilege members, all the travel agency partners and corporate clients. The company is planning to introduce transactional e-mailing through the Epsilon platform, such as registration confirmation, welcome messages and purchase confirmations. Conclusion In general, the airlines have to ensure that they strike a proper balance between the customer services and operating costs. In the aviation industry, the competition is ever increasing as more players enter each year. Effective management of information systems can definitely help in attaining these goals and also assist to incorporate the innovative solutions as well. In order to meet to meet these challenges, lot of companies and firm are working on different software and solutions with a common objective in mind to make travel both easy and convenient It is important to choose the suitable information that will help managers observe their situation clearly. When airlines observed management information systems that included loss in the revenue due to not selling empty seats or rooms, they managed ways to get some value from latecomers at deep discounts. A good information system in practice can ensure that the operation is able to run efficiently with clear focus on customers. By incorporating better and better technology systems, we can reach out to demands of more customers and also strengthen vital features like security, avoiding delays, reducing the cost of travel. The scope of improvement is virtually endless and the companies will have to keep on evolving in order to survive in the future as well.

Proclaim Your Freedom of Speech †Burn a Flag! -- Argumentative Persua

Proclaim Your Freedom of Speech – Burn a Flag!      Ã‚  Ã‚   "This flag, which we honor and under which we serve, is the emblem of our unity, our power, our thought and purpose as a nation. It has no other character than that which we give it from generation to generation. The choices are ours" (quoted in Smith 87). This statement by Woodrow Wilson summarizes the debate over a proposed amendment to outlaw burning of the American flag. Is this symbol of our nation too powerful to be defiled in our collective mind, or is its manifestation of values the reason for us to outlaw its desecration? We see many constitutional and non-constitutional reasons both for and against passing the amendment; an analysis of the Constitution is vital to forming a valid opinion on this issue.    In the past, the Supreme Court has ruled that burning the flag is a form of free speech which may not be limited by the government. One of the earliest decisions on this issue was in Street v. New York (1969). After hearing about the murder of civil rights leader James Meredith, Sidney Street, a decorated veteran of World War II, burned a flag he had been displaying at his home (Cohen 185), telling bystanders that "if they let that happen to Meredith, we don't need an American flag" (Cohen 185). He was arrested, tried before a jury, and convicted under the state's statute prohibiting both the desecration of the flag and publicly speaking contemptuous words about it. Street's attorney appealed to the Supreme Court, which ruled the sentence unconstitutional. The Court's opinion was based mainly upon Mr. Street's words; it stated that his declarations were a form of protest which is protected by the First Amendment and that he did not provoke retaliation fro... ...mocracy. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon, 1998.    4. "H.J.RES.5." Online. Thomas . October 29, 2000.    5. "H.J.RES.33." Online. Thomas . October 29, 2000.    6. O'Brien, Tim. "The Great Divide: Flag Burning Decision Split the Court." ABC News OnLine. 1999. October 11, 2000.    7. "S.931." Online. Thomas . October 29, 2000.    8. Smith, Whitney. The Flag Book of the United States. New York: William Morrow and Company, 1970.    9. U.S. Supreme Court. "Street v. New York." 21 April 1969. FindLaw. Online. . October 29, 2000.    10. Webb, Sandi. "A Grand Old Flag? Does the U.S. really need to Prohibit Flag Burning?" Online. September 1995. Libertarian Party News . September 30, 2000.    11. Williams, Armstrong. "The Flag Burning Amendment." New York Amsterdam News: 8.28. October 1999. EbscoHost . October 29, 2000.

Essay --

5 SOFTWARE REQUIREMENT SPECIFICATIONS This chapter discusses the software requirement specification about the project followed the functional and non-functional requirement of the â€Å"INTERACTIVE SKETCHED BASED IMAGE SEARCH†. 5.1 Purpose When a sketch is input by a human there will clearly be a degree of accuracy to which the point of reference and scale of the shapes will remembered, and so errors with comparison to the target image or images will be present. The edges of objects and neighborhood within the image define shapes; extraction of these shapes can be used for image similarity. This supports indexing leads to imaginative memory usage since the indexes are always smaller than images themselves. Indexing speeds up the search process lengthily which is very important in the image search application. 5.2 Scope The input plan of this project is the improvement of a system to allow the searching of database of images using the visual data stored within the images. Here the aim is to develop a system which allows query upon the image content of the images, with the user providing a sketch of the image or images that they desire to retrieve. The key aim is the development of a speedy and correct algorithm for the extraction and comparison of the visual data from images. Some important point takes in consideration while development they are as follows: †¢ Identification of the restriction of current content based images retrieval systems so that these areas can be improved upon. †¢ Research into the field of content based image retrieval and rapid algorithm development. †¢ Design and accomplishment of a system to perform content based image retrieval using sketched input. †¢ Expansion of an algorithm for the extraction and sim... ... for that. In Unit testing, is the first level of testing and is performed prior to integration testing. All error handling paths should be tested. Drivers and/or stubs need to be developed to test incomplete software. 7.2.2 Integration Testing In integration testing the individual tested units are grouped as one and the interface between them is tested. There are mainly three approaches to do integration testing, Top-down approach, Bottom-up approach Big bang approach Integration testing is a software testing methodology used to test individual software components or units of code to verify interaction between various software components. Main program used as a test driver and stubs are substitutes for components directly subordinate to it. Subordinate stubs are replaced one at a time with real components (following the depth-first or breadth-first approach).

David Walker’s Appeal

Chatarpaul 1 David Walker’s Appeal to the Colored Citizens of the World is aimed towards African-American slaves and freedmen. His goal was to have all his â€Å"brethren†, rise up and fight against slaveholders and farmers. Walker called for vengeance against white men, but he also expressed the hope that their cruel behavior toward blacks would change, making vengeance unnecessary. His message to the slaves was direct; if they were not given liberty, then should take action and rebel. The Appeal caused a stir among slaveholders and slaves.In it, Walker argued that armed resistance was justified and should be used if necessary. As could be expected, slaveholders feared that it would cause slave uprisings. Slaves on the other hand, were encouraged by its message. It was common for groups of slaves to gather and listen to the reading of the text. Depending upon whether one was a slave or a slaveholder, the Appeal had become both dangerous and inspiring. David Walker†™s appeal to me is targeted towards blacks. More specifically it is aimed at slaves and freedmen.It is clear that Walker is very well strong about making his point to his brethren when he states, â€Å"The whites want slaves, and want us for their slaves, but some of them will curse the day they ever saw us. As true as the sun ever shone in its meridian splendor, my color will root some of them out of the very face of the earth. They shall have enough of making slaves of, and butchering, and murdering us in the manner which they have. †(22) In this quote, it may appear that Walker is bad spirited but he is not because he wants the whites to feel the same pain as his people and he is feeling.Walker only wants the worse for those slaveholders that abuse their power over their slaves. I am sure many slaves agreed with what Walker said here because Chatarpaul 2 whites don’t know how much pain and suffering they’re causing to the slaves. Walker believed that slaver y was a crime against humanity. He wanted the whites to feel what his people were feeling. Walker’s appeal is really about trying to get black people in the north and south to prepare themselves any way they can for resistance and slavery. The man who would not fight under our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, in the glorious and heavenly cause of freedom and of God† (14), as Walker states, had no right to be free; but those who did were promised by Walker a renewed sense of self-respect, and communal and spiritual identity. Walker later goes on to say, â€Å"Are we men! I ask you, O my brethren! Are we men? Did our Creator make us to be slaves to dust and ashes like ourselves? †¦ Have we any other Master but Jesus Christ alone? † (18). The answers to these questions would only be determined by the slaves themselves because it was up to them to make a stand.Walker appeals to the slaves and freedmen when he later says, â€Å"America is more our country than it i s the whites-we have enriched it with our blood and tears†¦ will they drive us from our property and homes, which we have earned with our blood? † Walker here is referring to colonization, where free blacks were supposed to be moved to a colony in Africa. By what Walker said in the above quote, he believed that America belonged to all who helped build it. He also emphasizes this by saying to the whites, â€Å"America is as much our country, as it is yours. Treat us like men, and there is no danger but we will all live in peace and happiness. † This quote is basically addressed to his white readers in hoping to change their heart. With that being said, Walker knows that it will be Chatarpaul 3 hard to convince whites to change their minds, but at least he mentions it and whites can take it with a sigh of relief. The readers of Walker’s Appeal are supposed to be enlightened and arouse by it because he is urging them to claim their human rights. He states, â₠¬Å"Oh! My colored brethren, all over the world, when shall we arise from this death-like apathy? -And be men!! In this quote there’s a sense of urgency and Walker makes that clear. I think that by reading this many slaves were feeling connected to Walker and with that connection they were ready to accept the appeal and do something about slavery. Those who were free was also ready to make a stand because Walker preached that all â€Å"brethren† should unite, those free and those not free. In order for blacks to make a statement to the whites, they all had to unite to prove that they shouldn’t be treated the way they were. In the following quote he clearly addresses his fellow blacks by saying, â€Å"I would wish, candidly †¦ o be understood, that I would not give a pinch of snuff to be married to any white person I ever saw in all the days of my life. † Here he is trying to show that no matter what the situation is he will not have anything to do wit h white people, men or women. He really wants his readers to understand him in many ways more than one. He goes on to say, â€Å"†¦until you see your way clear-when that hour arrives and you move, be not afraid or dismayed†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , he doesn’t want slaves to be afraid of the whites. With this appeal, many slaves and freedmen would agree with Walker because he is giving them great reasons to make a stand.He is also encouraging them by talking about god and what rights they have as humans. Although it took many a while to understand Walker’s points, his appeal was definitely a starting point for blacks to put an Chatarpaul 4 end to slavery. If blacks are successful in putting and end to slavery then he states,†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦we will want all the learning and talents among ourselves, and perhaps more, to govern ourselves. † By saying this adds a positive point to Walker’s appeal because he is telling them about the possible outcome of ending slavery. Walker’s appeal inspired the slaves and freedmen to try and put an end to slavery. The appeal was a document aimed towards blacks, slaves and freedmen. It urged and encouraged them to fight for their liberty, and if they didn’t get that, then they rise in rebellion. Both of these two groups, black slaves and freedmen would agree to Walker’s appeal because he was trying to show them a way towards liberty and happiness. Although it didn’t happen at that point, it certainly opened up new ways for blacks to fight for their own rights.This appeal inspired many that were there at the present time of David Walker and also those who followed such as Frederick Douglas, and Nat Turner. The appeal was successful because many slave revolts began soon after it was published and smuggled around by seamen. This appeal sought out to get slaves to fight for their freedom and blacks as a whole to get their liberty, and it did that. Walker died in Boston on June 28, 1830, u nder mysterious circumstances. His challenge to the slaves to free themselves was an important contribution to the assault on human slavery.

Major Trends in Bank Management

The banking industry of the United States has experienced tremendous changes over the past few decades.   Regulation has had to keep up with the times, of course.   The three major changes that the banks of America have worked around in recent decades have required regulatory transformations in order to increase the profits of the banks and at the same time to make banking a more convenient facility on offer to the consumers, investors, etc.   Banks have merged and also ventured into the provision of nontraditional banking services to increase their revenues. An example of added convenience that the recent changes in the industry have brought about is the growing number of American banks in foreign countries.   Seeing that globalization has shifted a large number of American businesses into foreign markets as multinational corporations, the wisdom behind opening American banks in the self same foreign markets is apparent.   As a matter of fact, besides consolidation and the provision of nontraditional banking services, globalization is the third major trend that has faced the banking industry of the United States especially in the latter half of the twentieth century. The McFadden Act of 1927 was an enemy of the expansion of U.S. banks.   By prohibiting banks from expanding across state lines, this Act was not only a barrier to competition but was also responsible for the establishment of a huge number of small banks with little to show in terms of assets.   Thanks to the loopholes that McFadden carried along, the Act was eventually repealed, but only after the states of America began to allow their banks to branch across state lines.   It was in 1975 that the state of Maine first allowed interstate branching unto its bank holding companies.   Other states of America developed their own banking regulations to the same effect, eventually to rule out the McFadden Act, which was actually replaced by the  Congress in the year 1994 when the Riegel-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act was passed. This new legislation allowed all U.S. banks to branch across state lines.   Consequently, there were important bank mergers that reduced the number of banks in the country, but did not decrease the number of physical banks or branches sprawled across the United States.   Many of the physical banks or branches of banks remained under the supervision of the big, merged banks.   Although economists believe that the big, merged banks should be experiencing economies of scale in addition to economies of scope, there is no evidence yet to suggest that the consolidated banks of America have indeed experienced economies of scale and scope.   At the same time, it has been shown that bank mergers have the capacity to check inefficiency.   When an efficient bank takes over an inefficient bank that did not fare too well during the McFadden days; there are obvious quality improvement implications. The second major trend that the banking industry of the U.S. experienced especially in the latter half of the twentieth century was concerned with the provision of nontraditional banking services.   Given that banks are functioning for the sake of profits – anything that threatens a source of bank revenue must be replaced by a different revenue source and the changes backed by regulation.   The Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 was an obstruction to the revenue generating function of U.S. banks. This Act prohibited banks from venturing forth into investment markets, allowing the financial markets alone to enjoy the blessings of the large corporate loans business.   Another loss facing the banks of the nation was a new regulatory requirement introduced during the 1980s making it mandatory for banks to keep a specified minimum ratio of equity capital to total assets. Fortunately, however, during the 1960s, the banks of the United States had already  begun to publicly decry the Glass-Steagall Act, ultimately to have it repealed and replaced by the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999.   Subsequently, today’s banks are permitted to provide a variety of nontraditional banking services, including interest rate swaps, financial futures, and financial options; and thereby increase their revenues.   Increases in bank profits are expected to lead to quality improvements also in the traditional banking areas. In addition to the above, the banks of the U.S., especially since the last two decades of the twentieth century, have increasingly assumed the responsibilities of globalization.   The Edge Act of 1919 had granted express permission to American banks to establish their subsidiaries abroad in order to ease the functioning of international business.   Even so, there were only eight U.S. banks with foreign branches until the 1960s. Today, there are more than one hundred U.S. banks with foreign branches – all making it easy especially for American businesses in foreign countries to transact with them.   As globalization has replaced the Cold War era in a period of unprecedented integration among markets and economies, a great number of foreign banks have also opened their branches in the United States.   These foreign banks in the U.S. were by and large unregulated until the year 1978.   The International Banking Act of 1978 changed this to mandate that all foreign banks must also be regulated like the local (American) banks in the country. Even though globalization arrived full-fledged at the banking industry during the last two decades of the twentieth century, its signs had begun to appear as early as 1960s.   During that time, the Regulation Q, putting a ceiling on interest rates in the United States, had compelled a huge number of investors to move into European markets where regulations were relatively  relaxed.   Eurodollars were created when the U.S. dollars began to move out of their home country to be deposited into and borrowed from banks that were outside the country. The Eurobond market, for long-term investment, was similarly created outside the United States, albeit committed to transactions in U.S. dollars in countries where regulations were more relaxed than in the U.S.   These countries were not just in Europe, however.   The Bahamas and the Caymans, for example, played an active role in the Euromarket because of little or no regulation as well as nearly zero taxation. The most recent development in the banking industry in the area of globalization has been the permission granted by Federal Reserve for the establishment of International Banking Facilities.   Allowed since 1981, these special facilities are based in the U.S. and largely unregulated.   The only condition that these International Banking Facilities are required to meet is twofold: (1) International Banking Facilities should only deposit money that comes to them from outside the United States; and (2) They must only lend to borrowers that are based abroad.   American multinational corporations in foreign countries may also avail the services of International Banking Facilities.     This kind of departmentalization in terms of the sources and uses of funds is meant to add to the convenience of banking.   Furthermore, the creation of International Banking Facilities, plus the changes that the banking industry has experienced in terms of consolidation and the provision of nontraditional banking services; proffer evidence that the regulatory agencies are in fact committed to the improvement of business in general.   

Musical Instrument Essay

It seems that no matter what at some point in a child’s life they wander up to their parents and ask, â€Å"Mom, Dad, can I learn to play an instrument?† Whether or not it is the guitar, drums, piano, or flute a child could possibly have the thought of wanting to learn how to play an instrument. When Mom and Dad end up saying no to their child they should stop and realize that when a child knows how to play a musical instrument it can help them out in many more ways than they know (iDiva). Having a young kid learn an instrument can help develop better coordination, build better concentration, help with stress relief, and enhance a child’s intelligence, along with many other positives (o5). I personally play the guitar, and it has helped me out throughout the years. Probably the largest positive that comes out of a kid learning how to play a musical instrument is that it enhances their brainpower. It improves their memory, helps the child out socially and can even give them some extra intellect (Caron). Why would a parent not want to put their kid through music lessons? If playing an instrument can improve the child’s brainpower, it is a no brainer to give the kid a musical instrument to try out (Caron). Parents should let their children at the very least try out the instrument. With enhancing the brain comes enhancing other skills. â€Å"Studies show that learning music can help improve reading comprehension, mathematics, and cognitive skills (o5).† Parents today seem like they are pushing harder and harder for their offspring to do better in school; if these parents give their children a musical instrument it can increase their IQ (iDiva). Not only does learning an instrument help improve brainpower it also has other benefits to it. Being a typical American I am not accustomed to having any patience; however whenever I sit down and start to play the guitar I have all the time in the world. Once I start to learn a new song patience has to be sitting there right next to me, because no one can learn a whole song in only five minutes. Playing an instrument teaches kid’s to have patience (Caron). When people are in a band slamming away on the guitar, or pounding on the drums they have to be able to wait for the right time to play. â€Å"You need to work together in a group to make music (Caron).† One person in the band can’t be playing faster or slower than everyone else because then the music ends up sounding out right bad. This is where patience comes into play. Having to be able to wait for the right time to strike a chord or beat the snare drum. Patience will not just be used only when someone is playing in a band, they can take the patience that they learned from all the practice of the instrument and put that towards everyday use. Having patience is a wonderful trait to have, but every now and then patience are going to run thin and one may become angry, and this is another area where knowing how to play an instrument can help. I myself can say that whenever I am angry, sad, depressed, or flat out stressed my guitar has always been right there waiting for me to pick it up. It is a way for me to let my emotions out; it is a superb way to relax. â€Å"Engaging in a calming expressive ability proves more effective than merely sitting down to relax; music calms the nerves and stimulates the brain. It also increases the ability to absorb more information (iDiva).†Ã¢â‚¬ ¨I cannot tell people how jamming on my guitar has helped me get through those stupid middle school and high school problems. Parents should want to get their kid’s into an instrument simply for this reason. Would a parent rather have their child dealing with their problems with drugs and alcohol, or by locking themselves in their room and getting lost in their instrument? Stress is something that everyone has; studies have shown that playing an instrument can lower heart rates and blood pressure (o5). Having a way for their children to get their frustrations out is why parents should let their kids play a musical instrument, but it also lets them be creative (Caron). Mozart, Beethoven, and Bach are some of the most creative people in the history of the World, and what did they do? They played instruments. Playing a musical instrument for a child is a creative pursuit (Caron). Parents are always pushing their children to be more and more creative, well parents why not buy them an instrument and let their creativity be expressed? â€Å"Everybody is born creative, but many people don’t realize it because it’s not encouraged in their early years (iDiva).† Having your child play an instrument would let that creativity that is bundled up inside them, that they did not even know they had, and would let it sore out. Look at the creativity that the guitarist in the last thirty to forty years have. Eddie Van Halen, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Angus Young are three of the greatest guitarist. Imagine if their parents would have never bought them a guitar. Then some of the best music ever would have never been written. It is the ultimate feeling someone can receive when they are just playing along on an instrument and all of a sudden compose some sort of music. When I’m playing my guitar just doing really nonsense chord progressions, or playing random riffs, and I build a song on the guitar the feeling is unreal. Once that happens the only thought that goes through my head is, â€Å"Whoa, I just made music on my own.† I’ve been playing for about 8 years now and that feeling never goes away. Along with being creative a musical instrument is a way for a young child to express his or herself (Caron). Today people express themselves in different ways. Whether it would be through protest, or occupying the stock market everybody expresses himself or herself in one way or another. Playing a musical instrument can be a way for a person to express their identity (Caron). Moms and Dads are always telling their children to be themselves, or don’t follow the crowd. Well how can they not follow the crowd if they do not have anyway to express themselves, or have a different identity? Giving a kid a musical instrument can help him express emotions and give that kid an identity (Caron). For me in middle school me being the so called â€Å"guitar guy† was my identity. It did not stick with me through high school, but that was because I didn’t want to be that guy anymore. Having the guitar right by my side through middle school helped out a huge amount, â€Å"It gives pleasure and expresses nuances of emotional life for which there are no words (Caron).† Of coarse with anything positive people will try to come back and say that there is something bad about it. Well the positives far out way the negatives. The biggest arguments against learning a musical instrument are not even the fact that you should not learn how to play the instrument, but that one should not take formal music lessons (Oldenburg). Another argument is that a child should not learn how to play more than one instrument (Turtenwald). Let’s see why that a child should not take formal music lessons. One of the simplest arguments against formal music lessons is the cost (Oldenburg). I took formal music lessons when I was a kid to learn guitar, and yes the lessons may not have been the cheapest; however, having the one on one experience definitely helped hone out my guitar skills. Something else that is a negative to formal music lessons is the time. Driving back and forth to music lessons and having to sit and wait for your child is a downfall to lessons (Oldenburg). Parents, who is learning the instrument? It is the child who is getting the experience of learning an instrument. If the parent isn’t close enough to be able to go home and wait bring something to do: work, read a magazine, maybe even learn an instrument yourself. The last argument against formal music lessons is the loss of passion (Oldenburg). This is certainly not true. Having lessons helps one build passion. Teaching oneself how to play an instrument can be very hard, if anything I would loose passion doing that. In formal lessons you get that one on one time and learn something new. When you teach yourself how to play you have to read out of a book, and there is no one around to help you out if you don’t get something. Learning the instrument on your own will mean that no one is around for you to ask questions to. Finally the other argument against playing a musical instrument is that a child should not learn how to play more than one instrument (Turtenwald). There are two main arguments against learning how to play more than one instrument. The first is, like against formal music lessons, the time (Turtenwald). Learning how to play one instrument can be challenging enough, but taking on a second one at the same time will be tough (Turtenwald). This is completely understandable, but notice that she never says anything about not playing a musical instrument she only says do not play more than one. â€Å"Taking on the challenge of learning more than one instrument requires a greater time commitment (Turtenwald).† The second argument is lack of commitment. What this means is a child may not put forth the same effort towards both instruments. Again she is not saying do not play an instrument, but don’t play more than one. Teaching a child how to play an instrument can help them in school, and throughout life. Parents it may be a good idea to buy your child the guitar or drum set they have been talking about, and get them started as soon as possible. Works Cited â€Å"5 Reasons to Encourage Kids to Learn a Musical Instrument.† 5 Recipes For Life. o5. n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2012. Caron, Sarah. â€Å"10 Ways Music Benefits Children.† Sheknowsparenting. SheKnows, Inc., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2012. Oldenburg, Chris. â€Å"Why Your Child Shouldn’t Take Formal Music Lessons.† Benefits of Music Lessons. Better Parenting, Inc., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2012. Turtenwald, Kimberley. â€Å"Advantages & Disadvantages of Learning a Secondary Instrument.† eHow. Demand Media, Inc., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2012. â€Å"Why Your Child Should Learn a Musical Instrument.† iDiva. Times Internet Limited. n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2012.

Oedipus the King: A Theme Analysis

Oedipus the King is one of the group of three plays by Sophocles known as the Theban plays since they all relate to the destinies of the Theban family of the Oedipus and his children.   The other two plays of this group are Antigone and Oedipus at Colonus. Oedipus the King relates the story of Oedipus who reached Thebes, having killed on the way an old man with whom he picked a quarrel. The city of Thebes was then suffering terribly because of the monster, the Sphinx. He solved her riddle and citizens of Thebes offered him the kingdom as city is afflicted with the loss of their king, who had been murdered while on a pilgrimage.So he assumed the power and married the widowed queen. Here the tragedy of Oedipus takes its final course. As city was afflicted with famine, so Delphic oracles were consulted who disclosed that troubles of the city arose from the fact that it is harboring an unclean person, the murderer of late king Laius. Oedipus resolved to get to the bottom of this myster y and punish the wrongdoer. However, he ultimately discovered that the culprit he was seeking was none other than he himself. He blinded himself and went on exile. There are various standpoints for looking at the theme of the play.It may be considered as a play enacting the theme of insecurity and illusoriness of human happiness. Or the theme may be that of the inadequacy of human intelligence in resolving the riddles of destiny. The identification of themes in Oedipus differs from reader to reader and from critic to critic. I think that Sophocles wanted to convey that a man is plunged from prosperity and power to ruin ands ignominy due to his own human failings.   It was something[1] in his character that brought his tragedy. Anything foreign to his own character only augmented the tragic proceedings but it was only his own disposition that made him a prey to disgrace. Dodds is of the view, â€Å"If Oedipus is the innocent victim of a doom which he cannot avoid, does this not re duce him to a mere flaw puppet?† Whereas Knox (1984) is of the view that Oedipus’ tragedy takes place due to tragic flaw[s] and fate as no part to play in Oedious Rex.Distinguished Professor Butcher has identified four possible ranges of human failings in Oedipus. The foremost of these connotations is an error due to unavoidable ignorance of circumstances whereas an error caused by unawareness of conditions that might have been identified and for that reason to some extent morally blameworthy The third range is â€Å"A fault or error where the act is conscious and intentional, but not deliberate. Such acts are committed in anger or passion.† (313) Where as fourth one is â€Å"A fault of character distinct, on the one hand, from an isolated error, and, on the other, from the vice which has its seat in the depraved will†¦a flaw of character that is not tainted with a vicious purpose.† (315)The crucial point is that whether Sophocles wants us to think th at Oedipus has basically unsound character. One way of deciding this question is to examine what other characters in the play say about Oedipus. The only result that we can arrive at in this way is that Sophocles intends us to consider Oedipus an essentially noble person. In the opening scene of the play, the priest of Zeus refers to him as the greatest and noblest of men and the divinely inspired savior who saved Thebes from being destroyed by the Sphinx. The Chorus also considers him to be noble and virtuous. They refuse to believe in Tireseas accusations of him. When catastrophe befalls Oedipus, not a single character in the play justifies it as a doom which has deservedly overtaken Oedipus. (Dodds, p.39) So there were certain other tragic flaws that were acting behind the curtain to bring about Oedipus tragedy. Let us examine those.Oedipus seems to be obsessed with his own intelligence and this leads him to very unfortunate and uncomfortable situations. This human weakness[2] of Oedipus laps over with his pride as he is extremely proud of the fact that he was able to solve the riddle of the Sphinx which had proved too much for any other person. He thinks that Gods has capacitated him with intelligence and wisdom to solve riddle that the Thebes is afflicted with. Oedipus even taunts Tireseas on his inability in solving the Sphinx’s riddle. He says;And where were you, when the Dog-faced Witch was here?Have you any word of deliverance then for our people?There was a riddle too deep for common wits;A seer should have answered it, but answer there came noneFrom you†¦..  Ã‚   (12-16)After calling the soothsayer false prophet, Oedipus boasts of his own skill in having solved the puzzled which proved too much for the blind seer;Until I came—I, ignorant Oedipus, came—And stopped the riddler’s mouth, guessing he truthBy mother-wit, not bird-lore.  Ã‚   (17-19)So he describes Tireseas predictive cautions as the whims of a fanatic and opposes the seer’s prophecy with arguments of his own. Self-confidence and pride in his own wisdom is an outstanding feature of his character that also brings his tragedy. Here Oedipus also fulfills the traits of Aristotelian tragic hero as he possesses a noble tragic flaw. The man who sets out on his new task by sending first for the venerable seer is not lacking in pious reverence; but we also observe that Oedipus manifests unrestrained arrogance in his own intellectual achievement. No seer found the solution, this is Oedipus boast; no bird, no god revealed it to him, he â€Å"the utterly ignorant† had to come on his own and hit the mark by his own wit. This is a justified pride but it amounts too much. This pride and self-confidence induce Oedipus to despise prophecy and feel almost superior to the gods. He tell the people who pray for deliverance from pathos and miseries they are afflicted with if they listen to and follow his advice in order to get a remedy.La stly his unrelenting pursuit of the truth is demonstrated when he believes he is the murderer and that Polybus was not his father, yet he continues with his search with the statement, â€Å"I must pursue this trail to the end,†(p.55).   These characteristics were only fuel to the fire and added to the pride created a blaze that consumed him. Bernard Knox eulogizes Oedipus’ â€Å"dedication to truth, whatever the cost† (p.117)Another characteristics of his character that contributes toward his tragedy is Oedipus’ longing for thoroughness. His inquisitive nature is not content with anything which is either half-hearted or incomplete. Nor can he brook any delay. He damns that the direction of the oracle should be given effect at once. As before, Oedipus speaks on the basis of the workings of his own mental faculties that has been tested time and again and have proved their intelligence.It can be said that the tragedy of Oedipus is the result more of his go od qualities than his bad ones. It is his love for Thebes which makes him send Creon to Delphi to consult the Oracles. It is the same care for his subjects who make him proclaim a ban and a curse on the murderer of Laius. It is his absolute honesty which makes him include even himself within the curse and the punishment. He replies by saying â€Å"Sick as you are, not one is sick as I, each of you suffers in himself†¦but my spirit Groans for the city, for myself, for you†.  (62-62)He is angry with Tireseas because he is unable to tolerate the fact that   although the prophet says that he know who the murderer of Laius is , he refuses top give the information to the king. His rage and rashness is due to the fact that the masses are suffering and Tireseas does not provide the murderer’s name. Oedipus cannot but regard this as a clear manifestation of the seer’s disloyalty to his city.To Oedipus the discovery of truth is more important than his own good an d safety. Even when it seems that the investigation that he is carrying on will not produce any result which will be him, he decides to carry on with it. He is so honest with himself that he inflicts the punishment of self-blinding and banishment from the city of Thebes.So his moral goodness also seems as a human failing that brings his ruin.There is another important human failing that contribute toward his tragedy i.e. his intellectual myopia. He has a limited vision and is unable to assess the situations in a right perspective. Robert L. Kane (1975) puts this preposition in this way; â€Å"He[Oedipus] was the victim of an optical illusion†. (p. 196) The juxtaposition between â€Å"outward magnificence and inward blindness of Oedipus and the outward blindness and inward sight of the prophet† (Kirkwood, p. 130) depicts two types of blindness i.e. physical and intellectual. One is related to physical sight whereas the other, the most pernicious type of blindness, perta ins to insight. Tiresias is physically blind but whereas Oedipus is blind intellectually. This intellectual blindness of Oedipus also contributes greatly to lead him to his tragic destination.Oedipus possesses faultless physical vision throughout play except in the end but he remains blind to the reality regarding himself. At one point in the play, he has the ability to see but he is not willing to do so. He intellectual vision comes with his physical loss of sight but he is unable to cast away the psychological â€Å"slings and arrows† and mental sufferings that intellectual blindness has afflicted on him. So his blindness, both intellectual at the start of the play and physical at the end of the day, is the worst.Blindness interweaves with the main plot from the very start of the play when Oedipus says, â€Å"I would be blind to misery not to pity my people kneeling at my feet. (14)† It manifest that he refers to blindness that if h will not recognize the distress of his people. This shows his physical sight but intellectual blindness as he himself was the cause of those afflictions.   Later he acknowledges that although Tiresias is physically blind but has prophetic power when he says, â€Å"Blind as you are, you can feel all the more what sickness haunts our city. (344)†. Tiresias response refers to the gravity of Oedipus’ inability to see his future. He says, â€Å"How terrible – to see the truth when the truth is only pain to him who sees! (359)†Later on Oedipus denounces his own acknowledgement of Tiresias as a seer and abuses him by saying, â€Å"You've lost your power, stone-blind, stone-deaf – senses, eyes blind as stone!(423)† and â€Å"Blind, lost in the night, endless night that nursed you! You can't hurt me or anyone else who sees the light – you can never touch me. (425)†. It is illustrated that it is Oedipus who is blind intellectually as he is not willing to comprehend the situation and to understand the truth. In retort to his slur, Tiresias refers to worst form of blindness that Oedipus is suffering. He says, â€Å"You with your precious eyes, you're blind to the corruption of your life, to the house you live in, those who live with – who are your parents? (470)† and foretell, â€Å"Blind who now has eyes, beggar who now is rich, he will grope his way toward a foreign soil, a stick tapping before him step by step. (517)†.These supportive texts clearly manifest that Oedipus was afflicted with severe intellectual myopia as he was unable t see the truth that was pervasive all around him. Actually he was unwilling to see truth around him, prior to his physical blindness and afterwards as he blinds himself not to observe the things around him. His is the most insidious form of blindness.Oedipus can be held guilty due to another human flaw—his inability to take appropriate preventive measures. It is said that he fails to take logical steps and precaution s which would have saved him from committing the crimes.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Could not Oedipus†¦have escaped his doom if he had been more careful? Knowing that he was in danger of committing parricide and incest, would not really a prudent man have avoided quarrelling, even in self-defense and also love-relations with women older than himself?†¦ real life I suppose he might. But we not entitled to blame Oedipus either for carelessness failing to compile a hand list or lack of self-control in failing to obey its injunctions.†Ã‚  Ã‚   (Dodds, p.40)Oedipus has necessary human failings of anger and rashness. He rashly jumps into conclusions. Choragos points this out in scene II after a long speech by Creon who tries o remove the ill-fed and hastily formed suspicions of Oedipus about Creon. They say, â€Å"Judgments too quickly formed are dangerous† (II, 101)But Oedipus justifies this, arguing that ruler have to take quick decision. He says later on, â€Å"But is he not quick in his duplicity? / And shall I not be quick to parry him?† (II, 102-103) Later at the conclusion of scene II, Creon indicates the same fault in his character by saying, â€Å"Ugly in yielding, as you were ugly in rage! / Nature like yours chiefly torments themselves.† (II, 151-152) It is this rashness that makes to not merely suspect Creon but accuse him and even declares that he deserves the sentence of death. The rashness can be observed in his treatment of Tireseas. Oedipus does not lack analytical thinking but his rashness does permit him to weigh up the situation rightly and he makes hasty decision. In retrospect we see that rashness of Oedipus has something to do with the murder Laius at the hands of Oedipus. The self-blinding also is an act of rashness although Oedipus tries to give several arguments in favor of it.His bad temperament is demonstrated in the squabble between Teiresias and himself, where Teiresias utter the propheti c truth and Oedipus retorts, â€Å"Do you think you can say such things with impunity?† and afterward attributes him as a â€Å"Shameless and brainless, sightless, senseless sot!†(p.36). His character is further marked with suspicion about Creon to whom he considers as a conspirator. Kirkwood is of the view that â€Å"The Creon he [Oedipus] is battling is a figment of his imagination† (Kirkwood, 1958. p. 132) and nothing else. He says with reference his tà ªte-à  -tà ªte with Tiresaeas, â€Å"Creon! Was this trick his, then, if not yours?† So here his imagination works together with anger and rashness.All the above-mentioned manifestations of tragic flaw, their supported arguments and views of the critics clearly proves the thesis that Oedipus unavoidable ignorance was the major factor of his tragedy because he was unable to locate that the man whom he assaulted on the crossroads to Thebes was his father. Secondly, if he would not have been occupied by his aspirations, he would have possibly explored the horror of his deed and could have avoided the additional tricky situations by not marrying his mother. Thirdly, his â€Å"conscious and intentional† act includes his decision to â€Å"bring what is dark to light† (133).Furthermore, as result to revelation of Tireseas, he charges Creon with conspiracy and murder and denounces Tireases as an accessory. Although these actions were intentional and bring Oedipus to tragic end but have a clear background that illustrate that these actions were not â€Å"deliberate†. Fourthly, all these errors originate from a hasty and obstinate temperament, unjustified anger and excessive pride that compel him to an energized inquisitiveness. With the development of the plot, all these ascriptions of his character jumps back with amplified force on his head that finally culminates at his tragedy. Knox (1957) sums up in this way;â€Å"the actions of Oedipus that produce the catast rophe stem from all sides of his character; no one particular action is more essential than any other; they are all essential and they involve not any one trait of character which might be designated a hamartia but the character of Oedipus as a whole† (31).Here I want to point out that all these human failings were not innate or inborn but he developed these as his habitual formations. It was inculcated in his spirit so that it became a part of his natural disposition. If it were innate then he could not be blamed for his downfall. It was human failings rather than the destiny that brought his tragedy. So Sophocles has successfully put across that a man is plunged from prosperity and power to ruin ands ignominy due to his own human failings.ReferencesBloom, Harold. Sophocles' Oedipus Rex. : New York : Chelsea House Publishers. 1988. Butcher, S.H. Aritotle’s theory of Poetry and Fine Arts. Hell and Wang: New York. 1961.Dodds, E. R. On Misunderstanding the Oedipus. Greece & Rome. Vo. 13. No. 1. (Apr.1966). Pp. 37-49.Cook, Albert Spaulding. Oedipus Rex, a mirror for Greek drama. Prospect Heights, Ill. : Waveland Press.1982. Gould, Thomas. Greek tragedy. Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press. 1977. Gould, Thomas. Oedipus the King: A Translation with Commentary. Englewood Cliffs. 1970. Kane, Robert L. Prophecy and Perception in the Oedipus Rex. Transaction of theAmerican Philological Association. Vol. 105 (1975). pp. 189-208.Kirkwood, G.M. A study of Sophoclean drama. Ithaca, N.Y., Cornell University Press. 1958. Knox, Bernard. Oedipus at Thebes. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1957. Knox, Bernard. Introduction to The Three Theban Plays. New York & London: PenguinBooks,1984.O’ Brien, John M. Twentieth century interpretations of Oedipus Rex; a collection of critical essays. Englewood Cliffs, N.J., Prentice-Hall. 1968 [1] Moral flaw, habitual formations, behavioral defect etc. [2] in any other context, pride in one’s intelligence cannot not a human weakness but course of the play depicts clearly that in Oedipus the King it was a human weakness.