Project Management - Bubble Bee Case part 2 [sap4] Essay

Project Management - Bubble Bee Case part 2 [sap4] - Essay Example This permits removal or alteration of work assignments of the tasks affected. Leveling creates splits in the work that is remaining. This will ensure that over-allocated tasks are split before the instance of over-allocation. It restarts the remaining portion of the task at some point in time when resources are sufficient. 3. It is not easy to wholesomely resolve the over-allocation challenge, though the project end-date cannot be moved out. The reason is when using the "slack" meaning that the amount of time in which activities are delayed without the project end-date getting affected, cannot delay some tasks. Leveling only within existing slack† is an endeavor to reorganize the schedule through taking the benefit of the slack that is obtainable to resolving the problem without protracting the project. 4. Constrained resource means that the project has scarce resource though the time provided is agile. By leveling outside the slack, the over allocation challenges are settled. Nevertheless, the project duration which is 135 days, is significantly increased to 150 days. The new finish date will be 6/20/2012, instead of 5/23/2013. The managerial connotation results in the delay of the following projects employing similar resources. The critical path will be altered while project costs are increased. For instance, trial marketing will have to wait for the shelf life report to be produced. The project will delay due to the resource constraint while idle resources are costly. 6. I have learned that Gantt chart provides situations of tracking project progress as well as mapping the performance of schedule, cost and time. Leveling of resources has also allowed me to understand the implication of manipulating tasks falling within and outside the critical path. I now know that the project manager rearranges the logic of the network where critical activities are set in parallel as opposed to sequential arrangement. I have also learned that Gantt charts determine th e critical paths and aid the planners to estimate costs and guide the project to meet its obligations. Through leveling of resources, I have known use of MS project as a powerful tool to establish under or over allocation of tasks, resources and costs. The software is a quick win for project managers involved in handling large projects spanning more than two years. I am now confident in using PERT/CPM and Gantt charts to guide projects. 7. The project on bubble bee gum is optimal and can proceed without straining available resources Table 1: Gantt chart with the schedule table after leveling within slack Table 2: Gantt chart with the schedule table after leveling outside the slack References Project Management Institute. (2004). A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge: PMBOK ® Guide, 3rd Edition. Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, Project Managemen

Onychomycosis Treatment Evaluation

Onychomycosis Treatment Evaluation A synopsis on Onychomycosis in patent with high degree of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) Essa Ajmi Alodeani, Mohammad Asrar Izhari, Mohammad Arshad Abstract: Onychomycosis is an intercontinental disease burden and poses growing concern for the health-care establishment. It is a comparatively quotidian dermatologic manifestation. It is an infection of the nail plate or nail bed caused by fungus which leads to the imperceptible destruction of the nail plate, accounting for about half of all disordered nails and almost 30% of cutaneous mycoses. Variation in the incidence of the ailment reflects region and age. Usually it is not a self-limiting dermatologic representation and may trigger more infectious lesions at another site of the body owing to progressive nature of mycosis. Cosmetically unsightly affected nails may begin to be painful and lead to functional impairment. In case of patients with high degree of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) which is now days evaluated as an indicator of diabetes control, onychomycosis treatment becomes more imperative owing to the association between diabetes and the diabetic foot ulcer which one of the most s erious sequelae of diabetes in the lower extremities. Especially lower limb sequelae are great contributors to hospitalization of diabetic patients accounting for the majority of in-hospital stay and huge consumption of resource leading to the great deal of economic setback of the health care system of the country. Approximately 15% of diabetic patients develop a lower extremity ulcer during the course of their ailment. Diabetic foot syndrome (DFS) affects 1 out of 5 diabetic patients at least once in his/her lifetime. The necessity of the selected treatment in these patients must be exercised to minimize or anticipate any adverse drug interactions as they concurrently use other medications. With the avalanche of scientific evidences and keeping all the aspects of the onycomycosis, it would be worth to undertake the subject under investigation. Keywords: Onychomycosis, diabetic patients, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) Introduction: Onychomycosis is a global and comparatively quotidian dermatologic manifestation raising disease burden and poses growing concern for the economy of health-care establishment. It accounts for about half of all disordered nails and almost 30% of cutaneous mycoses. In case of patients with higher degree of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c)-a diabetic monitoring marker, the treatment becomes more imperative owing to the association between diabetes and the diabetic foot ulcer which one of the most serious consequences of diabetes in the lower extremities. Which is a great contributor to hospitalization of diabetic patients accounting for the majority of in-hospital stay and huge consumption of resource leading to the great deal of economic setback of the health care system of the country. Onychomycosis is a very common nails infection globally and responsible for 30% of cutaneous mycotic infections and 50% of all nail disorders [1-3]. It is associated with morbidity and long lasting treatment with anti-fungal agents and leads to substantial patient distress, disability, pain, negative self image and can predispose to the soft tissue infection, particularly cellulitis [4-7]. It is more common in diabetic than nondiabetic patients and the patients with diabetic infection have a greater risk of serious complications from the disease such as limb amputations [9-23]. Recent epidemiologic study reveals that diabetic patients are 2.8 times more likely to have onychomycosis than nondiabetic patients. Diabetic patients are very much susceptible to fungal nail infections as they often experience impaired sensation; lack of pain sensation can make them less aware of trauma to their feet, such as nail changes that develop during onychomycosis [23]. Thickened mycotic nails can cause pressure necrosis of the nail bed in diabetic patients, and sharp infected nails can pierce the skin. In diabetic patients the minor ulcerations are serious as they are often unrecognized and can lead to serious diabetic foot infections [23]. The morbidity associated with the onychomycosis infections itself and in combination with the diabetic infection and also the hepetotoxicity of the available drugs is a great problem both at nationally and internationally. With the avalanche of scientific evidences and keeping all the aspects of the onycomycosis, it would be worth to undertake the subject under investigation. Review of literature: Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) was firstly identified as an â€Å"unusual† haemoglobin in diabetic patients with over 40 years ago [24]. Then studies were conducted for correlating it to glucose measurements resulting in the idea that HbA1c could be employed to measure the glycaemic control. After that it enters into clinical use in the 1980s and subsequently has become a cornerstone of clinical practice [25]. It reflects average plasma glucose over the previous eight to 12 weeks [26] and can be done at any time of the day and does not require any special preparation such as fasting. These qualities made it the preferred test for assessing glycaemic control in people with diabetes. Recently it has been used as a diagnostic test for diabetes and as a screening test for persons at high risk of diabetes [27, 28]. There are many approaches to treat onychomycosis such as mechanical debridement, surgery, sys-temic/oral interventions and topical treatment [9] and also the agents for tr eatment of onychomycosis include both systemic and topical medications showing the mycological cure rates of 76% with the use of terbinfine, 63% with the use of itraconazole pulse dosing, 61% with the use of griseofulvin, and 48% with the use of fluconazole [9]. Itraconazole which is a triazole nucleous containing anti fungal agent inhibiting fungal lanosterol 14-demethylase, an essential enzyme in ergosterol synthesis. Brod spectrum of antifungal activity is possessed by this antifungal agent in comparison to all the broadest spectrum of activity includes activity against dermatophytes, Candida species as well as some moulds [29]. It has high lipophilicity and high affinity for keratinous tissues, in which the concentration is many times greater than that obtained in plasma. Itraconazole exerts a lasting inhibitory effect due to the high and long lasting stages in the epidermis [30]. Terbinafine is well-tolerated by most patients and one study reveals that terbinafine or pulse-dose itraconazole reported greater ease and convenience, and higher overall satisfaction [31]. Safety concerns associated with oral treatments include hepatotoxicity, cardiovascular disease, hypogeusia, gastrointestinal disorders, skin rashes, menstrual disorder, visual and taste disturbance, headache and riversible evaluation of liver enzymes [31]. Erick M et al.studied the disease riskfactors and treatment responses in an urban population due to Microsporum spp. (onychomycosis) [32]. Leelavathi M. et al. reported the common microorganisms causing onychomycosis in tropical Climate [33]. Pericher et al. evaluated of onychomycosis among diabetic patients of Yazd diabetic center [34]. R.R. Hafidh1 et al. presented a case report on Cladosporium spp. as a causative agent of white superficial onychomycosis [35]. Lisa M. et al. reviewed the safety and efficacy of tinea pedis and onychomycosis treatment in people with diabetes [36]. There are many othere studies that acknowledge the complexity of treating tinea pedis and onychomycosis in people with diabetes and recommended as safe and effective treatment [37-39]. Marchetti et al. performed the first U.S.based pharmacoeconomic evaluation comparing oral griseofulvin, itraconazole, ketoconazole, and terbinafine using the previously constructed decision-analytic model by the onychomycosis study group [40]. Mahin moghaddami and Mohammad reza shidfar studied the onychomycosis infections in Tehran [41]. Mohammad Ali Boroumand et. studied the level and clinical outcomes of HbAc1in diabetic patients following coronary artery stenting [42]. Peterson et al reported that interpretation of HbAc1 can be achieved as an average of the blood glucose which is present over past 3-4 months [43]. Muhammad S. et al. isolated the causative pathogens and correlated the various clinical patterns of onychomycosis with causative pathogens in Qassim region of Saudi Arabia [44]. Ahmed Medhat M H. et al. reported the epidemiology of cutaneous mycosi s in the Medina region of Saudi Arabia correlated with studying the effect of light-induced gold nanoparticles on the in vitro growth of dermatophytes [45]. Abdulrahman Y. Al-Zoman et al. studied the pattern of skin disease in Riyadh military hospital, Saudi Arabia [46]. A steady increase in the diabetes prevalence found in Saudi Arabia due to the demographic changes such as urbanization and change in the life style [47-48]. Bacchus RA et al. estimated prevalence of diabetes in Saudi Arabia and the author concluded that prevalence of diabetes started to increase at 35 years of age reaching its peak at the 45-54 age groups [49]. Fatani HH. et al. noticed the steady increase of prevalence according to age [50]. Abu-Zeid and Al-Kassab performed a study of the prevalence of diabetes in Southern Arabia [39]. El-Hazmi MA et al. did a survey on prevalence of diabetes mellitus [52] one more survey was done by El-Hazmi and Warsy the prevalence of overweight in the Saudi population. A. Alkhie r A. reported the epidemiology of diabetes mellitus and diabetic foot problems in Saudi Arabia [53]. Epidemiology of dermatophytes in eastern province of Saudi Arabia was studied by hashem al sheikh [54]. Some other studies are also carried out by David Pariser, Richard K. Scher, et al., Phoebe Rich, et al., Boni Elewski, et al., David Pariser, et al., and presented in Seminars in cutaneous medicine and surgery [55-60]. Conclusion: The avalanche of evidences from the available scientific research comprehensively suggests that Onycomycosis is an intercontinental disease burden and poses raising concern for the health-care establishment. It is a comparatively quotidian dermatologic manifestation. It becomes extremely serious especially when it happens in case of patients with varying degree of HbA1c. The review would contribute to the understanding of clinical types and the severity of the toe nail lesions in the Saudi patients with varying level of HbA1c together with prevalence and the chief etiological agents involve in onycomycosis. Scientific research data obtained from the present review would contribute to the early prediction of susceptibility of the patients with high HbA1c to onycomycosis which would lead to a great deal of reduction in economic burden on health care establishment of Saudi Arabia, moreover it would improve the awareness of clinician and social segment as regards severity, heptotoxicity of the current treatment strategy and susceptibility to onycomycosis especially in case of the patients with high level of HbA1c.

Searching for Knowledge and Expert Opinions Essay -- Expertise Knowled

In the search for knowledge and truth, there are times in which assumed experts provide insubstantial and useless, if not uneducated, opinions and guidance on their assumed field of expertise. In most of these cases, the assumed expert is not truly an expert. An expert is one who is highly knowledgeable and skillful in a particular field, through an unusually large amount of experience, training, and studies, to the point that he or she is sought after to receive opinions, guidance, and wisdom on the particular field by people that are not highly knowledgeable and skillful on the particular field. A definition equal to the previous one for ‘expert’ is, a master in a particular field. The opinions of true experts in their particular field of expertise are very important and should be highly valued in the search for knowledge. People are able to seek guidance and educated opinions from experts because of the vast and lengthy expertise in their field. People, contrastingly do not normally seek the opinions of non-experts because they lack sufficient knowledge, experience, and wisdom to be able to give educated and worthy opinions on the supposed field of interest. Experts, however, have enough knowledge and experience to give worthy opinions and ideas for the search for knowledge and greater understandings in the particular fields of interest. Both Payton Manning and Tom Brady are expert quarterbacks. Peyton Manning’s â€Å"anticipation and accuracy are virtually unmatched because he throws the ball before defenders are ready and puts it in a place where only his guy can catch it† (Tucker 3). Tom Brady was an incredible leader who put up astounding numbers at times while seemingly willing his team to multiple Super Bowl titles... ...ecessary training and experiences to be extremely proficient, knowledgeable, and skillful in their specific fields of interest to the point that they are sought after for guidance and wisdom and further knowledge searching. Works Cited Marine Corps News Service. "Marine Corps Scout Sniper Training." US Military. About.com, 3 Sept. 2003. Web. 14 Dec. 2010. cs/marines/a/marinesniper.htm>. Naik, Abhijit. "Famous Economists." Buzzle.com Intelligent Life on the Web. N.p., 1 Oct. 2010. Web. 14 Dec. 2010. famous-economists.html>. Tucker, Ross. "Why Manning Is a Better NFL Quarterback than Montana, Brady." Editorial. SI.com. Ed. Ross Tucker. Ross Tucker, 3 Feb. 2010. Web. 14 Dec. 2010. peyton.manning/index.html>.

Should Rich Nations Lend Aid to Poor Ones

Globalization is one of culprits causing greater development gaps among countries over the world, and the act of lending aid is remarkable behavior of rich nations to assist poor ones. To some people, rich nations should lend aid to poor ones because of its economic, diplomatic, politic and military advantages. Meanwhile, opponents claim that on account of their possibilities of financial distress in the future, they should not do so. I am of the former notion for the following reasons. The first reason for rich countries do lend aid to impoverished ones is economic advantage. By dint of this act, they can achieve particular preferences from recipients which other ones cannot have, such as: economic cooperation agreements in types of ODA , mineral exploitation priorities and so on. Furthermore, companies in rich nations also benefit through expanding consumption markets in abroad easily, opening new branches, production and assembly factories to take advantages of redundant natural resources and cheap-labor source that receiving countries possess. This is enormously meaningful to their economic development. The intensity in international relationship, in addition, is another benefit of this activity. As the result of financial assistance to each others, the relationships between countries becomes friendlier, which is the foundation of international integration, cooperation and peace Finally, these financial supports might provide developed countries with favorable conditions to affirm their positions both in the region and in the world. This allows them have enough authority to affect other ones politically and militarily, which is stepping-stone to implement their ambitions to become number one in the whole world.

A Study of the Speaking Ability of Second-Year Students

Speaking is one of the language skills which are important for second language learners to be developed. Capability to speak English is the priority for many scandalmonger or foreign language learners. Therefore, this research was aimed at knowing the speaking ability of the second year students of SAM N 2 Sick Hull.The students may tell their experience after preparation before performing in front of the lass. This is the important part in developing their memory to make a well-arranged story. Their speaking will be analyzed through five components: pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. This research needs three raters in order to avoid subjectivity in evaluating the test. Keyword :Descriptive Research, Speaking ability, telling experience INTRODUCTION Speaking is a productive skill with which people produce words or send a message orally. This skill is closely bound up with the listening.Harmer (2001) states that in many situations productive skill is comb ined with the practice of receptive skills. The communication between two or more people is a blend of listening and speaking where the comprehension of what has been said is necessary for what the participant says next. Productive skills include speaking and writing, two critical components of the complex process of communication. There are countless reasons for communication between individuals: they have something they wish to express, there is something they wish to learn, and the list goes on and on.Speaking requires a greater degree of fluency and thinking â€Å"on the spot†, and requires practice and exposure to the language over time. While productive skills are the skills that involve the process of language production either in oral or written forms. Speaking as one of the productive skills should be learned by the students in order to carry out a communication with other people easily. Speaking plays an important role in social communication. Perhaps, this is becau se we can deliver our ideas and information to other people with oral communication.According to Martin Begat (1987) People speak to make interactions with other people, we often need confidence to speak in order to carry out many of our basic interactions. Consequently, improving your English speaking skills will help you communicate more easily and effectively. Furthermore, speaking is good for motivating the students to learn the language in their school. Speaking is designed to enable the students to communicate and interact to other people in order to gain and enrich their knowledge. Essentially, the goal of language learning is to enable the students to communicate in the language.Therefore, the main purpose of learning is aimed at increasing the students' skills in communicating English well. Definition of immunization mentioned is to understand and express information, mind, feelings and develop science, technology, and culture by using the English language (Depending, 2003) . English achievement in the future expected by learning English can develop their knowledge to all people in the world. Harris (1969) stated that speaking ability has five components which are generally recognized in analyzing speaking.They are as follows: a. Pronunciation includes the segmental features of vowels, consonants, stress, and intonation patterns. B. Grammar correct use of language with respect to word form and word order at the sentence level . Vocabulary is one of words include in language, have many words that must mastery to make the acquisition of an adequate vocabulary as essential for successful second language use. D. Fluency is probably best achieved by allowing the air stream of speech to flow then as some of this speech spill over beyond comprehensibility. E.Comprehension in brief speaking requires that not only knowing how to produce it well but also understanding when, what, and why to produce the language. The ability to speak cannot be separated from thes e five components. A good speaker will deliver the topic to make listener understand it easily. In some cases, students get problems in speaking. It is the fact that to be a good speaker or able to speak becomes a problem for most of students. Teachers always give lessons Just with old teaching techniques without give the students' chances to speak or deliver their ideas; students might be shy to make mistakes in speaking.In fact, students are not interested in studying more about English because of lack of motivation in classroom learning, students only receives materials, write, and follow all the teachers command. According to Joanna Baker and Heather Western (2003), there are many reasons why dents may find learning and using English difficult such as cultural differences, personal differences, and lack of confidence, no time for speaking when studying for examinations, preparation for speaking, and interest in topic.This can lead to real barriers to communication, and can contr ibute to poor motivation in learning. Whereas, we know that the purpose of learning English especially in speaking is to enable the students to use English well both accurately and fluently. In a language lesson, students need to spend time on becoming more accurate. But they also need o practice using the language fluently. 2 METHODOLOGY The population of this research is the second year students of SAM N 2 SICK HULL academic year of 2012-2013.The number of the students is 315. Because the population is large enough, it is necessary to have sample. According to Gay (2004), sampling is the process of selecting number of individuals for a study that represented the larger group from which they were selected. There are several appropriate techniques for selecting a sample which is suitable in certain situations. In this research, the writer use cluster random sampling technique. Cluster random sampling is sampling in which groups, not individuals, are randomly selected.The reason for choosing this technique is less time and easier to obtain permission to use all the students in certain class than several students in many classes. So, the writer takes only one class out of 9 classes as the sample of this research. There are 35 students who took the speaking test. The process of choosing the class is by using lottery. In this case, the writer uses the research instrument of speech in telling experience (recounting events) to collect the data. Each student will speak about their experience in front of the class one by one as a performance test.In order to get the data needed for this research, the writer had administered a test. The test was conducted to know the students' ability in speaking. Three raters checked the result by listening to the students' recorded speech and checking the pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension aspects. The raters give scores for each student. Finally, the scores of the raters are totaled and then divided by th ree. In scoring the students speaking ability, the writer uses the scoring which found in Harris (1974). All the aspects of speaking is divided by 5.Analyzing the students' speaking ability can be done as follows: 5 In order to know the level of ability of the students' speaking ability can be classified as follows: Test Score Level of Ability 81-100 Excellent 61-80 41-60 Mediocre 21-40 Poor 0-20 Very Poor Harms (1986) 3 RESULT AND DISCUSSION There are 35 students who took the speaking test. The students' score has been analyzed by three raters. After calculating the real scores of the students from each rater, the writer computes the students' scores from each rater to know the regenerates of the students who get excellent, good, mediocre, poor, and very poor level in speaking.The result of it can be seen as in the following table: Table 1 . The Percentages of the Students' Ability According to the Three Raters No 2 4 Score Range 81 -100 61 -80 41 60 21 -40 Total Frequency 9 17 35 Percentage 0. 00% 25. 71% 48. 57% 100% From table 1, the result of the test is mediocre. It is calculated by combining the students' scores from each rater and it divided by three. It shows that none of the students is in excellent level, 9 (25. 71%) students are in good level, 17 (48. 57%) dents are in mediocre level, then 9 (25. 1 are in poor level, at last, there is none of the student who got very poor level. By this, the writer concluded that this speaking test is not difficult for the students. After getting the score of the students from the raters, the writer classified the students' scores based on each component of speaking as shown in the following table: Table the Students' Average Scores for Each Aspect of Speaking According to The Three Raters Rater 1 The Aspects of Speaking Pronunciation Grammar Fluency Vocabulary Comprehension Rater 2 x 89 79 102 2. 26 2. 54 2. 57 2. 91 72 78 7 107 Rater 3 2. 06 2. 3 2. 49 3. 06 85 91 101 2. 29 2. 43 2. 60 2. 89 The Average Scores of Three Raters 44. 0 48. 0 47. 4 49. 0 59. 0 49. 5 Table 2 shows that the students' average scores for each aspects of speaking according to the three raters. The average scores of Pronunciation aspect is 44. 0. It means that 4 the most difficult aspect in speaking is pronunciation. Few students can say the words correctly and some of them frequently use wrong words. It can be shown in the following table: Table 3. The Percentages of the Students' Pronunciation Score Range Level of Ability Frequency 15 42. 86% 12 34. 29%

Krapps Last Tape and the Futility of Human Existence Essays

Krapps Last Tape and the Futility of Human Existence Essays Krapps Last Tape and the Futility of Human Existence Paper Krapps Last Tape and the Futility of Human Existence Paper Question: Absurdist drama is often said to be a critique of the human existence, that the situation is often meaningless and absurd. Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape is a typical absurdist drama. How does Beckett, through the use of language, setting and the character Krapp, highlight the futility of the human existence in this particular drama? Absurdist drama originated in the 1950s and follows Albert Camus’s philosophy that the human situation is meaningless and absurd (Culik). As such, absurdist drama is, in a sense, absurd. It follows none of the typical rules of modern drama, and that is in fact its true intention, to go against the norm so as to surprise or shock readers out of their comfort zone, to force people to confront the weaknesses and hopelessness of mankind. Many components of an absurdist drama will be seen as illogical, ridiculous or mundane. Samuel Beckett’s drama, Krapp’s Last Tape, is an excellent example of an absurdist drama. Perhaps the first thing that the audience is drawn to, when reading the play at least, is the setting itself. Beckett goes to great length to describe how he wishes the setting to be, right down to the last trivial detail of Krapp’s clothes. â€Å"Rusty black narrow trousers too short for him. Rusty black sleeveless waistcoat, four capacious pockets. Heavy silver watch and chain. Grimy white shirt open at nick, no collar. † Beckett further describes Krapp’s slow, laborious actions in a lengthy and monotonous manner. â€Å"Krapp remains a moment motionless, heaves a great sigh, looks at his watch, fumbles in his pocket, takes out an envelope, puts it back, fumbles, takes out a small bunch of keys Indeed, Krapp himself is a source of ridicule, for he is poorly dressed, slow, clumsy and even almost trips on a banana skin that he tosses on the ground. One must note, however, that despite Krapp’s frailties, Beckett constantly reminds the audience that Krapp is a â€Å"thinker†, from his constant pacing to his â€Å"meditative† way of eating banana. Hence , by putting together both messages, Krapp epitomizes the proverbial unsuccessful scholar, the intellectual who tries to survive on idealism but soon realizes that cold hard truth of reality. Indeed, Beckett has foreshadowed the later parts of this drama with this initial hint of who Krapp is as a person, and the reader learns much later that Krapp is in fact a failed writer bemoaning the mistakes he made when he was young. In essence, Beckett’s portrayal of Krapp is as a symbol of ridicule, and made even more ridiculous from the fact that Krapp is supposed to be of considerable intellect. Hence one sees the first example, right from the beginning, of an absurdist piece. Beckett further uses a minimalist setting for a reason. The stark empty space present in a minimalist setting serves to highlight to the audience that there is no one else in the room, for Krapp is there, alone in his own solitude. The audience focuses on Krapp and only Krapp, which is the essence of absurdist drama; for the audience to focus on the human so as to realize, throughout the course of the drama, the futility of the human existence. Interesting too, is Beckett’s use of lighting in the drama. He specifies, above all, that: â€Å"Table and immediately adjacent area in strong white light. Rest of stage in darkness. † Light and darkness has often been used as an allegory to success and failure, knowledge and ignorance. By putting Krapp in the light and the rest of the stage in the dark, it would appear that Beckett is attempting to portray Krapp as having had the knowledge to succeed in life, hence Beckett’s choice to have light and darkness on the stage as a stark comparison as opposed to having the stage fully lighted. However, one soon suspects, and later realizes, that Krapp is anything but successful. Hence, the audience realizes the irony of the situation; Beckett’s use of light to portray Krapp’s dark life shows a yearning for a success that never came, and this is in fact the case, which the audience sees later. The themes of light and darkness are shown repeatedly throughout the entire play, as shall be discussed later. With regards to the drama itself, reminiscence on the part of Krapp is a major theme. The audience is introduced to a total of three Krapps, all different from one another. Hence the audience is able to view each Krapp as being detached from one another, in an intense separation of self (Lagier). Sixty-nine year old Krapp listens to a tape made by his thirty-nine year old self, in which his thirty-nine year old self muses on his actions when he was twenty-nine. To deduce exactly what Krapp is reminiscing about, the audience must listen closely to the content of the narration, as well as the present day Krapp’s reactions to it. Twenty-nine year old Krapp, as recounted by his thirty-nine year old self, was living with a woman named Bianca, whom twenty-nine year old Krapp described as â€Å"hopeless business†. Thirty-nine year old Krapp derides his twenty-nine year old self for being â€Å"young whelp†, for making aspirations and resolutions like to drink less and to have a â€Å"less engrossing sexual life†. Thirty-nine year old Krapp believes that Bianca and the above resolutions are silly, for he â€Å"sneers at what he calls his youth and thanks to God that it’s over†. Twenty-nine year old Krapp then talks about the â€Å"shadow of the opus magnum†, which in essence belies his desire to be a great and successful writer, to publish an amazing and impressive piece of work that none will rival. This, thirty-nine year old Krapp appears to concur fully; in fact, he describes a moment of epiphany that he has when he is thirty-nine. â€Å"What I suddenly saw then was this, that the belief I had been going on all my life, namely-† â€Å"The dark I have always struggled to keep under is in reality my most-† Once again the theme of light and darkness emerges, and Krapp believes that he has seen the light, seen the truth of what must be done in order to achieve the â€Å"shadow of the opus magnum† that he talked about when he was twenty-nine. To do so, Krapp must accept the darkness that is manifest in him, instead of trying to keep it under wraps, as seen when he says â€Å"my dissolution of storm and night with the light of the understanding and the fire-†. The audience, however, should be wary, as is Beckett’s intention in portraying enlightenment through the acceptance of darkness. This blatant contradiction stands in fact for the irony of Krapp’s situation; he believes that by giving up love and companionship, and hence embracing darkness, he will be able to attain success. It should be evident to the audience that such logic is clearly absurd, and Krapp realizes this much later when he is sixty-nine. Hearing his thirty-nine year old self talk about his visions of grandeur disgusts the present Krapp, as is seen by his swearing and fast-forwarding of the tape. â€Å"Krapp switches off impatiently, winds tape forward, switches on again. † Later, as is customary of Krapp’s birthday, he makes a fresh tape and curses himself for being a fool. â€Å"Just been listening to that stupid bastard I took myself for thirty years ago, hard to believe I was ever as bad as that. The scene poignantly reminds the audience of the thirty-nine year old Krapp mocking his twenty-nine year old self, much like the present day Krapp is mocking his thirty-nine year old self. What is starkly different, however, is that sixty-nine year old Krapp is now mocking his thirty-nine year old self for something his thirty-nine year old self derided himself for doing at twent y-nine; for being with Bianca, or perhaps, for the companionship and humanity that Bianca symbolizes, for what his thirty-nine year old self swore to give up. In essence, the present Krapp realizes that he has spent thirty years pursuing a dream of writing, with little achievement of speak of. His â€Å"shadow of the opus magnum†, his great literary vision, is nothing more than â€Å"Seventeen copies sold, of which eleven at trade price to free circulating libraries beyond the seas. Getting known. One pound six and something, eight I have little doubt. † On a higher level, one may perhaps see this as Beckett’s warning to society about the frailties of mankind, and how one will fail more often than succeed. Human beings are selfish and self centred, and are forever striving to achieve ever greater heights, resulting in ever greater failures, which is clearly illustrated in the case of Krapp. The Absurdist Theatre, as such, paints this thoroughly pessimistic picture of the existence of human kind. A second major theme present in the drama is that of solitude and isolation. This isolation can be considered a self-imposed one, a result of Krapp turning away from the women in his life when he was younger. There are two instances of this, one when Krapp was aged twenty-nine and the woman was called Bianca, and one when Krapp was aged thirty-nine. It is clear that Krapp regrets his situation. Both sixty-nine year old Krapp and thirty-nine year old Krapp jeer at his younger self, and one can consider these Krapps ‘‘emotional bananas†, in which Krapp attempts to ‘‘stop up’’ any regrets he may feel through mockery (Moran). However, his actions give him away, for Krapp cannot forget the women, or rather, the symbol of humanity he gave up. â€Å"Krapp switches off, winds tape back, switches on again. Whereas Krapp impatiently fast-forwards the parts of him musing about his epiphanies, he listens intently and repeatedly to his memories of the woman he used to have. He then belatedly muses what could have happened if he had not chosen to turn her away. â€Å"Could have been happy with her, up there on the Baltic, and the pines, and the dunes. Could I? † He realizes that he has made a horrible mistake, choosing his delusions of grandeur over love, and is now left with nothing except superficial sex from the whore Fanny, which he once again mocks. I told her I’d been saving up for her all my life. † Also present are many literary obscurities that Beckett uses throughout the play. The presence of bananas, for one, plays a bigger role than being a mere food. Beckett chooses to add an element of physical degeneration in the play to complement that of Krapp’s spiritual degeneration; Krapp’s fondness for bananas causes him to suffer from a bowel problem. Twenty-nine year old Krapp had â€Å"unattainable laxation†, thirty-nine year old Krapp ate â€Å"three bananas and only with difficulty refrained a fourth†. At the beginning of the play, sixty-nine year old Krapp had eaten two bananas already. It is easy to see that the bananas are symbolic. Krapp eats so many bananas even though they make his constipation problem worse as a form of escapism; he wishes to bury his emotions within him even as his stool stays stubbornly within his body. This is similar to the way thirty-nine year old Krapp resolves to bury his emotions, end his relationships with women and retreat into a life of solitude with the false hope that doing so would allow him to achieve his â€Å"shadow of the opus magnum†. Ironically, or perhaps aptly, Krapp’s last name sounds remarkably similar to the word â€Å"crap†, which means to defecate. This is yet one more example Beckett utilizes to make Krapp an object of ridicule; he cannot achieve laxation even though his name suggests the very same thing. Krapp also appears to place special emphasis on the word â€Å"spool†. While it is entirely possible that Beckett has Krapp repeat the word over and over, drawing it out, in order to make Krapp seem even more absurd so as to fit the character he is playing, the word â€Å"spool†, and even all the tapes in Krapp’s boxes, may in fact have special significance to Krapp. Indeed, it appears that Krapp has been documenting his life every birthday in an individual spool, perhaps in hope that in the future, he would be able to look back and reminisce about the evolutions of his success. The real reason for Krapp’s documentation of his past, however, may be the simple fact that he has become so detached from the others that the only way he may hear a voice speak, is to hear his own voice. Hence, Krapp guards his tapes and boxes zealously, labelling them carefully, because they are the only connection he has left to humanity, the only method he has to break the monotony of his solitude. In retrospect, Krapp’s Last Tape does an excellent portrayal of a very real fear that society, caught up in fulfilment of never-ending wants and desires, will result in a generation of people who lead a meaningless existence, finding all too often that instead of achieving their desires, they not only fail to do so, they also lose whatever speck of humanity they had in them. All too often, they find themselves alone in their old age, having turned away or denied companionship in the mistaken thought that it would prevent them from attaining their ideals. Overall, this presents a powerful issue for one to consider. Still, one should note that while Absurdist Theatre is thoroughly pessimistic, it may not always be representative of the real situation. Hence, cone can disagree that the human situation is always meaningless and absurd, but concur to the possibility of one leading a meaningless existence as a result of misjudgements.

Thomas Edison Saw the Value of Renewable Energy

Thomas Edison Saw the Value of Renewable Energy American inventor Thomas Edison often gets a bad rap from environmentalists. After all, he invented those incandescent light bulbs we are all so busy replacing with more efficient models.  He developed many industrial chemicals in conditions that would alarm modern environmental cleanup crews. And of course, he is known best for inventing or improving  a whole slew of power-thirsty electric machines and appliances- from the phonograph to the motion picture camera. Edison merged his own company to create General Electric, one of the worlds largest corporation. By the end of his life, Edison had been awarded more than 1,300 individual patents. Almost single-handedly, it seems, Edisons work at the end of the 19th century made modern civilization dependent on electricity- and the natural resources required to generate it. Edison Experimented With Renewable Energy More than a tireless promoter of electricity, Thomas Edison was also a pioneer in renewable energy and green technology. He experimented with home-based wind turbines to generate electricity that could replenish batteries to provide homeowners with an independent source of power, and he teamed up with his friend Henry Ford to develop an electric car that would run on rechargeable batteries. He saw electric cars as a cleaner alternative for moving people in smoke-filled cities. Most of all, Edison’s keen mind and insatiable curiosity kept him thinking and experimenting throughout his long life- and renewable energy was one of his favorite topics. He had a deep respect for nature and loathed damage made to it. He was a renown vegetarian, extending his non-violence values to animals.   Edison Favored Renewable Energy Over Fossil Fuels Thomas Edison knew that fossil fuels such as oil and coal were not ideal power sources. He was very aware of the air pollution problems fossil fuels created, and he recognized that those resources were not infinite, shortages would become a problem in the future. He saw the virtually untapped potential of renewable energy sources- such as wind power and solar power- that could be harnessed and put to work for the benefit of mankind. In 1931, the same year he died, Edison confided his concerns to  his friends Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone, who by then were retirement neighbors in Florida: We are like tenant farmers chopping down the fence around our house for fuel when we should be using natures inexhaustible sources of energy - sun, wind,  and tide. I’d put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don’t have to wait until oil and coal run out before we tackle that.† Edited by Frederic Beaudry

Synonymous vs. Nonsynonymous Mutations - Definitions

Synonymous vs. Nonsynonymous Mutations - Definitions Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the carrier of all the genetic information in a living thing. DNA is like a blueprint for what genes an individual has and the characteristics the individual shows (the genotype and phenotype, respectively). The processes by which DNA is translated using Ribonucleic acid (RNA) into a protein is called transcription and translation. DNAs message is copied by messenger RNA during transcription and then that message is decoded during translation to make amino acids. Strings of amino acids are then put together in the right order to make proteins that express the right genes. This is an intricate process that happens quickly, so there are bound to be mistakes, most of which are caught before they are made into proteins, but some slip through the cracks. Some of these mutations are minor and do not change anything. These DNA mutations are called synonymous mutations. Others can change the gene that is expressed and the phenotype of the individual. Mutations that do change the amino acid, and usually the protein, are called nonsynonymous mutations. Synonymous Mutations Synonymous mutations are point mutations, meaning they are just a miscopied DNA nucleotide that only changes one base pair in the RNA copy of the DNA. A codon in RNA is a set of three nucleotides that encode a specific amino acid. Most amino acids have several RNA codons that translate into that particular amino acid. Most of the time, if the third nucleotide is the one with the mutation, it will result in coding for the same amino acid. This is called a synonymous mutation because, like a synonym in grammar, the mutated codon has the same meaning as the original codon and therefore does not change the amino acid. If the amino acid does not change, then the protein is also unaffected. Synonymous mutations do not change anything and no changes are made. That means they have no real role in the evolution of species since the gene or protein is not changed in any way. Synonymous mutations are actually fairly common, but since they have no effect, then they are not noticed. Nonsynonymous Mutations Nonsynonymous mutations have a much greater effect on an individual than a synonymous mutation. In a nonsynonymous mutation, there is usually an insertion or deletion of a single nucleotide in the sequence during transcription when the messenger RNA is copying the DNA. This single missing or added nucleotide causes a frameshift mutation which throws off the entire reading frame of the amino acid sequence and mixes up the codons. This usually does affect the amino acids that are coded for and change the resulting protein that is expressed. The severity of this kind of mutation depends on how early in the amino acid sequence it happens. If it happens near the beginning and the entire protein is changed, this could become a lethal mutation. Another way a nonsynonymous mutation can occur is if the point mutation changes the single nucleotide into a codon that does not translate into the same amino acid. A lot of times, the single amino acid change does not affect the protein very much and is still viable. If it happens early in the sequence and the codon is changed to translate into a stop signal, then the protein will not be made and it could cause serious consequences. Sometimes nonsynonymous mutations are actually positive changes. Natural selection may favor this new expression of the gene and the individual may have developed a favorable adaptation from the mutation. If that mutation occurs in the gametes, this adaptation will be passed down to the next generation of offspring. Nonsynonymous mutations increase the diversity in the gene pool for natural selection to work on and drive evolution on a microevolutionary level.

Research Report Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Report - Research Paper Example Misdemeanors are petty crimes and felonies are crimes of a more serious nature like the murder in question. 3. The litigants in this case were the people or rather the state against the accused person who in this case is Michael Seaton. When it comes to criminal cases, any offender, the person who commits the crime that is, is considered to have harmed not only the victims of his offence but the entire population of that state through his actions. This explains why criminal cases do not depend on the victims or complainants to bring the case to court for the trial to begin. However, this is not to say that the victims/complainants are of no importance to these trials because they are, through their testimonies in court. The court prosecutors are charged with the duty of defending the interests of the people/state in criminal cases. The court prosecutors initiate the criminal proceeding, but they need the complainants help to give evidence of the accused persons guilt. No court will convict a man without evidence of his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. In this case Britni Glover, the littl e boy’s mother was one of the witnesses testifying against Michael to prove his guilt. 4. In all criminal cases, the burden of proof is the task of the prosecution. The term burden of proof simply means the duty or liability of a party to prove their claim or allegation against another party. An accused person is considered innocent until proven guilty. On one hand, since the prosecution - representing the public - brought the case to court they have to be the ones to prove Michael’s guilt. This is where victims of crime or rather complainants in other words like Britni Glover come in to help prosecution prove his guilt. On the other hand, Michael’s duty, was to prove his innocence if he felt the need to. This was optional for him since he could have chosen to let the case take its own cause. 5. With criminal cases if the prosecution, bearing the

White Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

White Paper - Essay Example Next, David DeVore notes the importance of identifying fans and amplifying the digital brand. Some important objectives in this case include provision of relevant and useful content to engage fans, using email to share previous content with fans, and enlisting the help of brand fans. Rishi Shah identifies the shares five steps that digital marketers can use to grow their email lists successfully. These include offering gifts to website visitors in exchange for their email address, offering relevant gifts, creating their own unique gifts, hosting their files, and collecting leads. Jen Ribbie observes that content marketing does not have to be an expensive undertaking. She picks out commitment to content, using engaging, entertaining and/or educational content, recycling success stories in other formats, involving the audience, and focus on quality as key to creating content. Phil Daniels suggests that responsive design is essential to ensuring user-friendly experience on the mobile browser. To develop a responsive site, sufficient investment, strategic planning around the organization and content, enhancing technical support, and monitoring mobile trends on the site are necessary. Aaron Lee talks states that mobile phones have become a major communication tool, as shown in figure 1. about how social media can help brands gain a competitive edge by listening and responding to consumer expectations, creating trust, value, and community around their brand, and personalizing the consumer’s experience. The email list is important in deepening relationships with the consumer. The data collected from the digital marketing audience should be used to create value by turning it into smart data. The data can be used to improve the brand’s engagement, meaning, and relevance to the consumer in their online experience, email correspondence, and advertising. Trevor Yager

Several Choices Available - Highlighted Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Several Choices Available - Highlighted - Essay Example Dealing with the piracy to the software is a herculean task which has proven difficult even to the most developed parts of the world. Intellectual property right allows for the owner of an invention to posses the ownership of such creativity. Some of the ways in which intellectual property right ensures that the innovator is protected is through provision of patent, copyrights, designs as well as trademark. One of the most rampant problems that has increasingly grown in the world of software is its unlawful duplication and sharing as well as the piracy. Though software piracy has been a problem in United States and North America, the rate of piracy would not be compared to that of the other parts of the world. (Craig, P., Honick, R., & Burnett, M., 2005) This is majorly because in several parts of the world, copyrights and patent laws specifically those in the United States are not recognized in such places. Additionally, because it is quite easy to distribute the software, it becomes difficult to control the intellectual property rights beyond borders. For software privacy to be ensured there is a need for amalga mation of technology, education, and legislation that would be accompanied by enforcement. (Greg, A., 2009)The policies that need to be developed should be in a manner that ensure promotion of anti-piracy but in no means deterring the use of the software by the legal users. The illegal copying and sharing of software applications and packages that violates patent laws and software licenses would be referred to as software piracy. (Johns, A., 2009) Like laws that protect any other intellectual properties, such as literature, music and movies, software, Software is also protected by such laws. However, software is a new entrant within the intellectual property protection. Software piracy is not always considered as stealing considering that users only do that through making of copies as well as

Jury System of UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Jury System of UK - Essay Example But considering the complexity of many trials today - especially with the advances made in forensic science and the complexity of many civil trials, severe doubts regarding the efficacy of the jury system have been made. First of all, it is correct to consider whether a jury can in fact be "objective", especially when there has been a lot of pretrial publicity. Many studies have documented adverse effects of pre-trial publicity on juror decision making (Linz & Penrod, 1992; Otto, Penrod & Dexter, 1994; Ogloff & Vidmar, 1994; Studebaker & Penrod, 1997). These studies point out that jurors do not exist in a vacuum and are likely to have some opinion of a well-known case before they enter the courtroom. In many ways this can be linked to the ideas of groupthink. Just as the jury may be influenced by what the public outside supposedly 'thinks' regarding a case - usually influenced by the media - so as a whole they may come to conclusions based upon a kind of consensus feeling rather than rational thought. This type of situation has been called "groupthink". Janis Irving has created a perhaps more sober definition in which she describes groupthink as "a mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members' strivings for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action" (Irving, 1972). There are various interpretations and analyses of the practical results of groupthink that have occurred over the years. In the original article in which the term groupthink was postulated, Whyte described group think in the following way: We are not talking about mere instinctive conformity - it is, after all, a perennial failing of all mankind. What we are talking about is a rationalized conformity - an open, articulate philosophy which holds that group values are not only expedient but right and good as well. (Whyte, 1952) (emphasis added) One way of improving jury decisions, and thus making them more reliable, would be to actively educate juries on the dangers of groupthink before a trial starts. Just as their knowledge of the case, predisposition towards certain verdicts, experience of this type of crime/action are often tested through the process of voir-dire, so juries could be taught in a short workshop on the problems of groupthink and how to avoid them before the trial begins. There are various interpretations and analyses of the practical results of groupthink that have occurred over the years. Some, such as McCauley (1987) have concentrated on some of the more ominous sides of the tendency in which individuals may be swayed into ways of behaving that they would not otherwise consider. For example, extreme cases of groupthink can often be found within various religious cults, sometimes leading to disastrous and tragic consequences such as the mass suicides at Jonestown or of the Heaven's Gate group. These are thankfully rare examples of an extreme example of groupthink in which what may be a powerful good is turned into a destructive negativity because of the pathological nature of those who are leading the groupthink. Other cases of groupthink have been found within organizations of some of the most intellectual and highly educated people (who would not be expected to be easy 'followers' as were the mostly uneducated

OPERATIONS AND LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

OPERATIONS AND LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT - Assignment Example The various elements of its (Tesco’s) corporate strategy, and their bearing on the numerous aspects of the organisation’s vast enterprise, will be analysed, with a view to determining the nature of the relationship. An attempt will also be made to identify/evaluate possible areas of improvement in the organisation’s operations management; in addition, the ways in which Tesco’s operations add value to the delivery of its products/services will be explained. Corporate Strategy is essentially the long-term direction of an organisation. As a global mogul in the retail business, Tesco has a long-term business strategy of: (a) succeeding as an international retailer, (b) being as strong in food as in no-food business, (c) development of its retail services, (d) growth of its core UK business, (e) putting the community at the heart of its activities. In line with its organisational strategy of success as an international retailer, Tesco has imbibed a Facilities culture that reflects this aspiration. Ideally, organisational business activities should integrate the needs of people (customers and staff), machinery and material to provide a smoothly-functioning system. Tesco’s introduction of Tesco Link, giving its suppliers access to in-store sales and stock availability data, exemplifies this concept (the logistical underpinnings of a smooth flow of materials/goods from the suppliers through Tesco to the consumers, are obvious). This is further enhanced by the Capacity management efforts of Tesco, whereby it utilises an online delivery system to replenish its stores thrice daily, to achieve (in addition to meeting customer needs and the activity-level needs of staff) shorter lead-time in the supply chain and lower inventories (Case Studies From Tesco HSC, 2010). This, the source further notes, has helped the organisation ac hieve improved product availability and a boost in its labour productivity. There is a connection in the context of obvious benefits to

First American Physicist Benjamin Franklin Research Paper

First American Physicist Benjamin Franklin - Research Paper Example Ben Franklin’s life shows that only those people who dare to risk securities of home, have a strong desire to learn continuously and have a great sense of humor, can lead a happy, content and meaningful life. Hence, for anyone who desires to lead a meaningful and joyful life, and desires to live every moment of life to the fullest, the characters and life of Ben Franklin can be great inspiration, as he is an epitome of qualities that lead to success and happiness in both, the personal and the professional life. Early Years Ben Franklin was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on January 17, 1706 (Glass, 2004, p. 4). Franklin had sixteen siblings and he was the fifteenth child of his parents (Glass, 2004, p. 4). He went to school at the age of eight but left the school at the age of 10 to become an apprentice to his father (Glass, 2004, p. 4). He was exposed to work life very early. However, he was very fond of reading books and never stopped learning new things (Glass, 2004, p. 5). His mind was active, sharp and curious. Ben learned how to make soaps and candles in his father’s shop (Nettleton, 2004, p. 5). However, he never liked making it and enjoyed reading better (Glass, 2004, p. 6). Even though he was able to attend the school only for two years, his interest in reading books remained intact (Nettleton, 2004, p. 6). ... 6). The interest in reading and gaining knowledge from books developed his skills and business acumen. Moreover, he learnt how to be â€Å"good, just and prudent in the conduct of life† from his father (Russell, 1926, p.5). While working under his father, Ben developed interest in different tools of making artifacts by watching â€Å"joiners, bricklayers, turners, braziers and other artificers at work† (Russell, 1926, p.5). This helped him later in life in making his own tools to conduct different experiments in his laboratory (Russell, 1926, p.5). However, Ben never liked his father’s business and also did not intend to become a clergy, as his father wanted him to be (Russell, 1926, p.7). After some time, he joined his brother in printing shop (Glass, 2004, p. 6). However, Ben soon realized that he will have to make a separate way for himself, as his relationship with his brother was not going smooth. Independent Path Benjamin Franklin’s brother James was a printer (Glass, 2004, p. 6). Ben joined his brother as an apprentice and started learning how to make new papers at his printing shop (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). At the time he joined his brother as apprentice, Ben was just 12 years old (Russell, 1926, p.4). James used to print newspaper articles written by Ben without knowing that Ben had written them as Ben used to write them under female name (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). When he learnt that it was Ben who was writing it, he stopped publishing them (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). Ben was not able to carry on working with James as he argued with him a lot (Nettleton, 2004, p. 11). James was abusive (American Physics Society, n.d., para. 3) and never showed appreciation towards what Ben did. Hence, Ben ran away to Philadelphia when he was 17

OPERATIONS AND LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

OPERATIONS AND LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT - Assignment Example The various elements of its (Tesco’s) corporate strategy, and their bearing on the numerous aspects of the organisation’s vast enterprise, will be analysed, with a view to determining the nature of the relationship. An attempt will also be made to identify/evaluate possible areas of improvement in the organisation’s operations management; in addition, the ways in which Tesco’s operations add value to the delivery of its products/services will be explained. Corporate Strategy is essentially the long-term direction of an organisation. As a global mogul in the retail business, Tesco has a long-term business strategy of: (a) succeeding as an international retailer, (b) being as strong in food as in no-food business, (c) development of its retail services, (d) growth of its core UK business, (e) putting the community at the heart of its activities. In line with its organisational strategy of success as an international retailer, Tesco has imbibed a Facilities culture that reflects this aspiration. Ideally, organisational business activities should integrate the needs of people (customers and staff), machinery and material to provide a smoothly-functioning system. Tesco’s introduction of Tesco Link, giving its suppliers access to in-store sales and stock availability data, exemplifies this concept (the logistical underpinnings of a smooth flow of materials/goods from the suppliers through Tesco to the consumers, are obvious). This is further enhanced by the Capacity management efforts of Tesco, whereby it utilises an online delivery system to replenish its stores thrice daily, to achieve (in addition to meeting customer needs and the activity-level needs of staff) shorter lead-time in the supply chain and lower inventories (Case Studies From Tesco HSC, 2010). This, the source further notes, has helped the organisation ac hieve improved product availability and a boost in its labour productivity. There is a connection in the context of obvious benefits to

Conflicts can lead to distruction Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Conflicts can lead to distruction - Essay Example As per the assumptions and predictions among political observers, China may replace America from the superpower post in near future itself. It should be noted that communism is prevailing in China whereas Japan is a democratic country. Naturally, America’s policies are more aligned more in favour of Japan rather than China. â€Å"Its approach seems to have been "planned by bookworms and entrepreneurs, rather than politicians† (Jingsheng). America knows that a war between Japan and China would slow down the progress of China considerably and hence they are not doing anything to ease the tensions between these countries. This paper analyses the China and Japan confrontation over the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands through the lenses of Classical Realism and Neorealism. Key facts Japan annexed the islands in 1895 China started showing interest in them only in the early 1970sNo one has lived in any of these two islands after WW2 These two islands are very small in size The islands, known as the Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China China’s interest in the islands rose in the late 1960s, when scientists began saying the nearby seafloor could hold oil deposits (Fackler) The current tensions began earlier this year when the nationalist governor of Tokyo announced his desire to buy three of the islands from their owner, a Japanese citizen (Territorial dispute involving Japan) Predictions of Realist theory and Neorealist theory Realism explains the relationships between nations in terms of power. In realist theories power is defined as capabilities that can create influence. Military force is perceived as the most important element of power by realists. States with higher power always use its power for getting leverages in a bargaining process. However, strategies and other parameters also have the ability to influence the outcome of a negotiation or barging process (Chapter Summary). Realist theories believe that self-interest is the primary objective which drives international politics. It argues that international systems are highly anarchic, a concept which believes that there is no universal sovereign government which can resolve international disputes. Neorealist theories argue that states by their nature are security seeking. In other words, security and survival are the primary objectives of each state. Another concept of neorealist theory is that states seek only relative security in comparison to other states (Bordner, p.1). Neorealism argues that there are only three possible systems in international politics; a unipolar system, bipolar system and multipolar system. In their opinion, bipolar system is more stable than multipolar system because of the greater balancing act it can provide. Neorealism believes that war is inevitable and permanent peace is only a distant dream because of the anarchic structure of current international system. Classical Realist explanation of the China-Japan island confrontation   â€Å"The val ue of the islands has never been in their aesthetics, but in history and geopolitics: what control of the islands says about the relative power of Asia’s two economic giants, one rising and the other in what many see as a slow decline†(Fackler). China is one of the rapidly emerging economies in the world at present. Many people believe that China may expel America from the superpower spot in near future itself. In fact no other country in the world at present is capable of matching the economic growth of China. In fact the recent

A Streetcar Named Desire | Blanche And Stella Analysis

A Streetcar Named Desire | Blanche And Stella Analysis Tennessee Williams was America ´s most controversial playwright. He was marked by his troubled private life and was constantly struggling with his own self-doubts. Nevertheless he was the dramatist, who produced some of the most compelling works for the American theatre. In 1947 Tennessee Williams set new standards for American drama with his masterpiece A Streetcar Named Desire. The play opened on December 3, 1947, and was received with great acclaim. Neither the theatre audience at the premiere evening, nor the audiences at the other 844 performances, which the play gave on Broadway, were disappointed and made A Streetcar Named Desire Williams ´ second success on Broadway after his triumph with The Glass Menagerie.  [1]   Down to the present day A Streetcar Named Desire has not lost its enormous fame and fascination. A reason for the perpetual popularity of the play is probably the fact that Williams is the only American playwright, who is able to analyze women with such subtlety and compassion  [2]  . Hence, critics such as Felicia Hardison Londrà © denote Tennessee Williams ´ A Streetcar Named Desire also as a lyrical drama about the decline and fall of Blanche DuBois  [3]  . With this statement Londrà © emphasizes that both, the character as well as the inner development of Blanche Dubois, are the focus of attention in Williams ´ play. However, in my way of thinking, it is not only crucial to examine the Blanche ´s character in detail, but also to study the character of the play ´s second female protagonist Stella, Blanche ´s sister, more closely. Hence, the aim of this seminar paper is to compare and contrast the characters of the two sisters. At the beginning of the paper the author ´s biographical context and the bibliographical history of A Streetcar Named Desire are discussed. In order to lay the foundations for a detailed characterization of the two female protagonists, chapter two contains a brief summary of the play ´s plot, focussing on the internal developments of Blanche and Stella. Afterwards, a detailed analysis of Blanche ´s and Stella ´s character follows. Finally, the most important findings are briefly summed up in the conclusion. 2. Tennessee Williams and his masterpiece A Streetcar Named Desire In order to be able to fully grasp the meaning of Tennessee Williams celebrated play A Streetcar Named Desire, it is absolutely necessary to take the author ´s biographical context as well as the work ´s bibliographical history into account. Biographical context Like in several of his other plays, also the plot of A Streetcar Named Desire was strongly influenced by Williams ´ own biographical background. Tennessee Williams himself stated once that A Streetcar Named Desire was his favourite play since it said everything I had to say  [4]  . Williams never concealed that his works reflect his own history and even welcomed comparisons between his own life and the characters in A Streetcar Named Desire. In a controversial interview with Robert Jennings he explicitly compared himself with his character Blanche DuBois: I can completely identify with Blanche [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] we are both hysterics. Many critics, such as Nancy Tischler, Roger Asselineau, or Kenneth Holditch, asserted that there are several other links between Blanche and Williams. In a letter to his agent Audrey Wood he wrote the following sentence, which again stresses his strong identification with the dramatis personae of his play: I was and still am Blanche [à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦] [but] I have a Stanley in me, too.  [5]  Nevertheless, the connections between Blanche and Tennessee Williams are not always uncomplicated. In contrast to Tischler, Asselineau and Holditsch, other critics regard the relationship between Blanche and Stanley as a reflection of the contours of William ´s life. They claim that Blanche and Stanley represent divisions of Williams ´ own complex life and personality. Yet studies conducted by John Clum, Mark Lilly and David Savran arrive at another conclusion. All three see Blanche and Stanley as a projection of Tennessee Williams ´ homoerotic desires. Clum, for instance, says that the actions of his heterosexual female character Blanche hide a homosexual subtext.  [6]   Bibliographical history Similar to other of Williams ´ plays the plot of A Streetcar Named Desire evolved over several years.  [7]  Tennessee Williams drew, for instance, much of his inspiration from his life in the French Quarter of New Orleans. During his time in New Orleans he lived on Royal Street. Two streetcars where running down the street. One of the two streetcars was named Desire.  [8]  Accordingly the title of Williams ´ play is among other things an illusion to this particular streetcar. In the early 1940s he outlined the story line as well as his idea for a film version in a letter to his agent Audrey Wood. In this first draft of A Streetcar Named Desire, the play was a one-act drama.  [9]  The story line was mainly based upon a scene which he had written earlier. The plot was murky, but I seem to see a woman sitting in a chair, waiting in vain for something. Maybe love. Moon rays were streaming through the window and that suggested lunacy. I wrote the scene and titled it Blache ´s Chair in the Moon.  [10]   In the end, Tennessee Williams had written twelve different drafts for A Streetcar Named Desire. Each of his drafts had a different title, such as The Poker Night or The Moth, and was first set in Chicago, then in Atlanta and finally in New Orleans. Due to the influence of Elia Kazan, an influential Greek-American director, who staged the play and directed the film version of A Streetcar named Desire, Williams revised his work several times through and after its production, which had a considerable effect on the script of A Streetcar Named Desire. By changing the characters ´ nationality as well as their conception and motivation he transformed the play from a romance to a tragedy. While writing, Williams had to grapple two major problems: firstly, the relationship between Blanche and Stanley, and secondly, the varying degrees and onset of Blache ´s madness.  [11]   Furthermore, four early one-act plays, which were written around 1945, had an impact on A Streetcar named Desire. The first one of these plays is This Property is Condemned, a play focusing on a young girl ´s desires to be like her dead sister, who was a prostitute. The second play, entitled Portrait of a Madonna, chronicles the story of an old maid sent to an asylum after hallucinating. In contrast to the first two plays, The Lady of Larkspur Lotion focuses on a faded southern belle, who had become a prostitute. Moreover, parallels can also be found in Hello from Bertha, a play dealing with a dying prostitute begging her ex-lover to rescue her. In addition to the numerous different drafts of A Streetcar Named Desire, several different editions of the play have been printed up to the present day. For instance, there are substantial differences between the reading and the acting editions. Some differences can also be identified between the American and the English version. In the American version, for instance, the homosexuality of Blanche ´s husband was censored. Another difference is the structure of the play. In the British edition the play is divided into three acts, whereas the play consists of eleven successive scenes in other editions.  [12]   The roles of Blanche DuBois and Stella Kowalski in the plot of A Streetcar Named Desire In order to lay the foundations for the characterization of Blanche DuBois and Stella Kowalski, I would like to give a brief summary of the contents of Tennessee Williams ´ play. Since the aim of this paper is to compare and contrast the characters of the two female protagonists, special attention has hereby been paid to the internal development of Blanche and Stella. In scene one Blanche, a faded southern belle, arrives at the home of her younger sister Stella in a fairly run-down district of New Orleans. She is shocked about the circumstances in which Stella and her husband live and makes no secret of her disapproval. After a warm reunion of the two sisters, Blanche explains that she has taken time out from school, where she is teaching English, because of her upset mental state. Later she further admits that she has lost Belle Reve, their family estate in Mississippi. Although Belle Reve slipped through Blanche ´s fingers, she reproaches Stella for not returning to her home to help her with the troubles. When Stanley returns with his friends from the bowling alley, he accepts Blanche ´s presence; however, the atmosphere between Blanche and Stanley is tense from the beginning. While Blanche is bathing the next day, Stella tells Stanley about the loss of Belle Reve. He immediately suspects Blanche of having swindled them about the reasons for the loss of the family estate. As a result of Stanley ´s mistrust the relationship between Stanley and Blanche becomes more problematic. The situation even becomes worse when Stanley starts inquiring Blanche about the circumstances for the loss of Belle Reve and by it he discovers a bundle of old love letters, which reveal Blanche ´s marriage to a young man, who finally died. Also Stanley discloses a secret and tells Blanche about Stella ´s pregnancy. In the next scene Stanley and his friends are playing poker, when Blanche and Stella return from an evening out together. One of them, Mitch, is very politely to Blanche and pays her compliments. Also Blanche notices that he is superior to the others  [13]  . In contrast to Mitch, Stanley, who has had already one too many, is not delighted about the appearance of the two women. The situation gets out of hand and Stanley beats pregnant wife. Blanche protectively rushes Stella upstairs, but Stanley begs his wife to return to him. In the end Stella, who is somehow attracted by his animal behaviour, forgives her husband and spends the night with him. As scene four opens, it is the following morning and Stella and Blanche are having a private discussion about Stanley. Blanche can obviously not understand why Stella was insane enough to come back in here after what [had] happened  [14]  and tries to persuade her sister to leave him. She tells her of a millionaire, a former admirer of hers, who surely would give them money to start a new life. Yet Stella makes clear that she is not willing to leave her husband and embraces Stanley passionately in front of Blanche, when he sees him come in, to demonstrate her loyalty to him. However, both women do not know that Stanley overheard a good deal of what they said before. Over the course of the summer (scene five and six) it becomes clear that Blanche and Mitch have a deep affection for each other. Blanche event entrusts him with details about her brief marriage, which was overshadowed by her husband ´s homosexuality and his suicide after she had discovered him in bed with another man. Meanwhile, Stanley makes inquiries about Blanche ´s past and unmasks her distinguished behaviour as hypocrisy. He learns about her numerous one night stands and her affair with a seventeen-year-old boy, which led to her dismissal. Scene seven takes place at Blanche ´s Birthday. Stanley, who is craving to get rid of his sister-in-law, passes the gathered information on to Mitch, who does not longer wish to marry her since she is not clean enough to bring in the house with [his] mother  [15]  . Unlike Mitch, Stella is not impressed by her husband ´s story. At the beginning she is denying his reproaches but, as the list lengthens, she defends her sister by referring to her tragic marriage. The mood at Blanche ´s birthday dinner (scene eight) is tense and miserable, because Mitch does not show up. The situation reaches its climax when Stanley presents Blanche with a bus ticket back to Laurel. Blanche is insulted and rushes out. At this moment Stella feels her first labour pains and requests to be taken to hospital. Later the same evening (scene nine), Mitch drops by to confront Blanche with the rumours of her past. Finally, she admits her failures but immediately justifies her behaviour by explaining that her loneliness after her husband ´s death forced her to seek physical affection. After her confession Mitch, who is drunk, tries to rape her, but Blanche manages to kick him out of the apartment. In the subsequent scene Stanley returns fairly cheerful, but drunk, from hospital where Stella is still in labour. At home, he meets Blanche, who is drunk too. Her claim, that she has received a telegram from an oil magnate inviting her on a cruise, is her last attempt to escape into her world of illusions. First Stanley takes the situation with humour until she lies to him about what has happened between her and Mitch. Stanley becomes aggressive and rapes her. This act of violence results in Blanche ´s absolute nervous breakdown. Although Blanche informs Stella that her husband has committed a crime, she decides not to leave him since she couldn ´t believe her story and go on living with Stanley  [16]  . At Stanley ´s request Blanche is admitted to a mental hospital some weeks later (scene eleven). The fact that she believes until the end that she is going on holiday with an admirer (who is actually the doctor) again emphasizes her bad mental condition. Even though Stella is not completely convinced that it was the right decision to admit her sister to a mental home, she makes no attempt to prevent it.

Quayle’s Views on Why Illegitimacy Rates are Rising :: Speaker Evaluation Essays

Quayle’s Views on Why Illegitimacy Rates are Rising One’s views of the problems in society and how to fix them can be quite hard to press upon the ears of the public without experience in how to use argumentation affectively. Dan Quayle, in his speech â€Å"Restoring Basic Values: Strengthening The Family,† tries to convey a point which is the more we stray from family values the worse off things are going to become in our society. Quayle gave his conservative speech while he was serving his last year as the U.S. Vice-President. Quayle explains that the lack of family values and other good virtues in our society are some of the problems that lead up to the 1992 LA riots. Quayle Believes that the main problem is not that everyone is poor but that there is â€Å"a poverty of values† in our society witch allows the would have been outcasts of the early years to now become the norm in terms of values. He uses ethos to display his credibility as someone that should be listened to, logos to back what he is saying w ith statistics and facts, and pathos to connect with the audience on another level other than a professional one. Quayle sets the tone by stating his authority as the vice president, which makes his argument hold more weight to his audience. He starts his speech off talking about his weeklong trip to Japan where he commemorated the 20th anniversary of the reversion of Okinawa to Japan, which was done by the U.S. This is one of the duties that the vice president carries out, so without stating that he was Vice President he still got the point across that he had the authority to make his claim. It is also evident that he has experience since it is his last year serving as the vice-president. In this Dan Quayle uses his ethical appeal as a person with experience in a high position in the political arena to gain credibility. He also uses ethical appeals after stating some statistics about black illegitimacy to touch basis with his audience. This happens when he talks about himself being a baby Boomer, since he was born in 1947. Quayle explains the notorious legacy of the â€Å"Boomer† generation to say, â€Å"I have been there and experienced what you are experiencing, † so I understand.

The Collapse of the American Dream in Death of a Salesman by Arthur Mil

Prosperity, job security, hard work and family union are some of the concepts that involves the American Dream, generally speaking. Some people think this dream is something automatically granted; or in contrast, as in the story â€Å"Death of a Salesman† written by Arthur Miller, as something that has to be achieved in order to be successful in life. The play takes issues with those in America who place to much stress on material gain, instead of more admirable values. American society is exemplified with Miller’s work and demonstrates how a dream could turn into a nightmare. Arthur Miller’s, â€Å"Death of a Salesman†, is a play that portrays the author’s life and the psychological problems that brings the collapse of the American Dream for this in a lower-middle family in an economical depression. The reader can see how Arthur Miller was inspired to write this play because of his family background using a biographical approach. Miller’s father â€Å"was a prosperous businessman until the Crash of 1929, after the family suffered through the Depression† (Rollyson) which had a significant influence on his life and works. As we see in the play, Willy Loman in a sense has two different realities. There is a Willy Loman -- â€Å"the financially burdened and emotionally exhausted main character (Thompson) -- is broken, an exhausted man in his sixties, near the end of his life. And there is the more confident, vigorous Willy Loman of some fifteen years before, who appears in flashbacks in the story. If we make a parallel between the story and the author’s life, these two realities are the before and after of the great depression that Miller’s father suffered through when Miller was a child. His life served as the inspiration to create the characters of the story: â€Å"Miller drove trucks, unloaded cargoes, waited on tables, and worked as a clerk in a warehouse.† (Rollyson) Moreover, the psychological view of Willy Loman is shown as a person who works as a traveling salesman and decides to commit suicide because the â€Å"American Dream† overwhelms him. As Charley says in the story: â€Å"the only thing you got in this world is what you can sell†. He is a normal person â€Å"who embodies traditional American values of success.†(Hansberry) In fact, Willy Loman wants to a great extent believe that he is one of the finest salesmen, a winner in life and a great father. For Mr. Loman, the accomplish... ...y he is so obsessed with trying to attain it. He is the product of his own illusions and of a society that believe that with hard work everything is possible. The reader can understand that Willy’s skewed perspective of the â€Å"American Dream† is due to his distortion of his life and the dream that he thinks he lives in everyday. In conclusion, the play represents the collapse of the â€Å"American Dream† for a typical lower-middle class family in Brooklyn during an economic depression. The story represents â€Å"the brutality of the system toward man† (Kroll). Willy, with his illusions of living the present with the mementos of the past represents the unwanted desire to accept reality. Therefore, he decides to commit suicide in a coward way and leave the insurance money to the family. Moreover, his wife sees the whole process of Willy’s death without interference in order to not hurt his pride. His sons, Biff and Happy, always had a constant pressure to achieve luxuries and comforts of the American Dream and due to that pressure they were unable to attain it. Willy dies believing in a dream that his family did not believe because they were seeing reality a little bite closer than him.

Long Term Care

What is long term care? Long-term care refers to a collection of services that are intended to meet the medical and non-medical needs of disabled or chronically ill patients. These services include social, medical/nursing, and community services. They often require assisting the patient or patients in performing day-to-day tasks like dressing, bathing and eating. Long-term care can be provided for anybody and can be performed in a nursing home, in the individual's residence or in assisted living centers.What is continuum of care services in the United States? Continuum of care is a concept involving an integrated system of care that guides and tracks patient over time through a comprehensive array of health services spanning all levels of intensity of care, providing a framework to guide day-to-day decision-making and providing a framework for delivery of optimum health care to patient populations.Basically what that means is that it allows for you as a patient to have your care mana ged effectively from basic care, like prescriptions and making appointments, to more advanced care, like in-hospital and critical care. It creates the â€Å"medical community† where the doctors and ancillary staff involved in your treatment all communicate regarding your diagnoses, procedures, treatments etc. It links all your services and avoids duplicating them. Meaning, your primary care orders tests that your specialists don't repeat.Everyone sees everything and it allows for better treatments! Why is long term care one of the greatest challenges facing the healthcare delivery system today? Why I think it has become a challenge is because a lot adults in this world rather put their parents into long term care than taking care of them, and it costs thousands of dollars to be able to pay for that kind of treatment. Some people have that kind of money and some don’t, to even consider putting their parents into a facility.Because of the great number of adults now reach ing 65 and retirement age, as well as reaching the time in life when medical problems increase. Many seniors also are living alone & may need help at home as they age. Also many children have moved away due to out of state jobs, so the seniors are alone. Some have medical problems and they will need or do need help with physical care & meals, and before there were many family members living together, but now everyone wants to be independent.Many seniors want to remain in their homes, but living on a limited income, they can no longer pay mortgages & high taxes. Does everyone really want to give up their independence, their homes, their pets, their flowerbeds, their cars and their privacy to wind up in a facility where they don't know anyone & may have to share a bedroom with someone who they may in fact don't even like? It's always better for people to be able to stay in their own homes, but how on a fixed income.

How and Why Is the Grotesque Used in Tennessee Williams’ a Streetcar Named Desire Essay

Throughout this semester, we were introduced to varying degrees of literary styles and themes. From the epiphanies discovered through American Realism, to the skepticism explored through Literary Modernism, to the conflicts of social conformity and individualism approached by a Post-Modernistic America and its writers. We have had the great opportunity of being exposed to individuals who questioned and pushed the boundaries of creativity and expression. Tennessee Williams was an author and playwright who balanced the enigmatic, macabre, and often cruel disintegration of his characters with a poetic grace. He became the keystone of a style that is known as Southern Gothic. A Streetcar Named Desire became the quintessential manifestation of the grotesque through the unraveling of the â€Å"Old South†. More specifically, his themes on the conflict between the â€Å"sensitive, non-conformist† individual against conventional society, the disintegration of the southern woman, and the divergence between southern gentiles and northern brutality to which all of Williams’ characters contributed to in some degree. The grotesque style of literature supplies the reader with a historical as well as social perspective. This provides a metaphorical reference to the â€Å"dying† South and the struggle to exist against the progressive ideals of the North, all the while, fraught with trying to keep the Southern identity and dignity intact. It is stated that â€Å"A common description (of the grotesque) has to do with causation: Southern grotesque is often said to be the literary aftermath of historical misfortune. (Presley 37). If we take into account the surrounding setting of the play, â€Å"†¦a two-story corner building on a street in New Orleans which is named Elysian Fields and runs between the L & N tracks and the river (Elysian Fields is a New Orleans street at the northern tip of the French Quarter, between the Louisville & Nashville railroad tracks and the Mississippi River. In Greek mythology the Elysian Fields are the abode of the blessed in the afterlife. ) The section is poor but, unlike corresponding sections in other American cities, it has a raffish charm† (Klinkowitz & Wallace 2187), the reader is thrust into the ensuing chaos before any of the characters are even introduced. Williams was very particular about each detail with regards to the style in which he was writing. The drama is not only a result of the surroundings, but is a symbiotic portrayal of the daily lives that exist within the grotesque. â€Å"The disorders are threefold: narcissism, familial conflict, and dream- like confusion†: (Presley 37). The Southern Gothic, grotesque style of writing can best be characterized by the profound ability of an author to evoke feelings of disgust while contrarily evoking feelings of compassion among his/her audience as well as between the characters within the work. These emotions are presented and contained within, what seems to be, a lost individual. This character may also display traits of incontinence due to physical or mental incapability. â€Å"Literature of the grotesque, according to the authoress, is distinguished by a moral or theological vision not usually associated with realistic works. Freaks appear in her fiction, she said, to reflect quite simply what man is like without God† (Presley 38). In keeping with the grotesque, Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire stretched the boundaries of this theme through the representation of the disintegration of the southern woman. By exploring the torrid longing of his character, Blanche Dubois, and her desires and fears. â€Å"Grotesque writers are â€Å"faced with the reality that they live in an age whose distortions function as indicators of how far man has drifted from his true image as a creature of God. In this vein, Williams explores the corruption of mankind, along with its difficulties in reconciling its primal nature with the rules of society: Blanche’s charm and beauty is overridden by her alcoholism, nymphomania, and general debauchery† (Presley, 1). Blanche DuBois provided the extreme case of what it is like to lose yourself. Blanche was â€Å"Deceptive, dishonest, fraudulent, permanently flawed, unable to face reality, Blanche is for all that thoroughly capable of commanding audience compassion, for her struggle and the crushing defeat she endures have the magnitude of tragedy. The inevitability of her doom, her refusal to back down in the face of it, and the essential humanity of the forces that drive her to it are the very heart of tragedy, No matter what evil she may have done, nor what villainies practiced, she is a human being trapped by the fates, making a human fight to escape and to survive with some shred of human dignity, in full recognition of her own fatal human weaknesses and increasing absence of hope† (Crandell 93). The obscure relevance to her deceptions are only a portion of why Blanche represents the grotesque. Her necessity to cling to the â€Å"old† southern ways (with a â€Å"death grip†) allows her to cling to her own sanity. She exudes narcissism to the fullest extent, but is unable to see the damage that it is causing to herself and the people around her. In the very first scene, Blanche describes the loss of Belle Reve. She goes on to embellish the loss as a personal encounter with death, to which she is the only witness to and the only effected party: â€Å"I, I, I, took the blows in my face and my body! All of those deaths! The long parade to the graveyard! Father, mother! Margaret, that dreadful way! So big with it, it couldn’t be put in a coffin! But I had to be burned like rubbish!†¦. And, oh, what gorgeous boxes they packed them away in! Unless you were there at the bed when they cried out, â€Å"Hold me! † you’d never suspect there was the struggle for breath and bleeding. You didn’t dream, but I saw! Saw! Saw!†¦. † (Williams 2193). This description was a faint cry for compassion or an attempt to restore the relationship with Stella, but through a premeditated state of self preservation. The grotesque narcissism with which she approaches the loss of the estate and their relatives only happened to her. It is this over dramatic perception that reinforces the author’s emphasis on the Southern Gothic or grotesque style apparent throughout his play. The culmination of the loss of Belle Reve, her husband’s suicide, and, later, her dismissal from her job, could have contributed to her current state. But it in the end, she chose not to face her demons, she opted to hide behind the ruse of entitlement associated with old Southern Society that proved to be her ultimate demise. â€Å"If there is any character in modern dramatic literature whose identity is bound up in such fantasies and sees erself as unique, special and entitled, it is Blanche DuBois, whose very name conjures up images of French, chivalric romances. Furthermore, it is clear that she identifies with the role of the â€Å"Southern Belle† and, in fact, retreats to memories of herself as â€Å"Southern Belle† when confronted with death and trauma. Ironically, from Blanche’s point of view, although the â€Å"Southern Belle† is fundamentally superior, she is also, simultaneously, a vulnerable, even fragile figure, in need of constant attention and care, dependant on others. (Ribkoff & Tyndall 327). The reason why the grotesque is so important to the decline of the Southern woman, and this particular character, is because there is this realization that there are no happy endings. Blanche is happy to wallow in her own self destructions and with this she is libel to take down everyone within her distinct vicinity. Blanche’s character is deprived of the one thing that she longs for which is love and by reaching for the facade of the Southern Belle, she does more damage because she is the complete antithe sis of the Southern Belle. There is also a lot of symbolism associated with Blanche’s decline. Throughout her short time at her sister’s apartment, it is evident that she was taking a lot of baths through the progression of the story. As more information gets divulged about what really happened in her past, it is almost as if she is trying to maintain that she is a Southern Belle. She is trying to convince herself that she is still clean or that she can wash away her past through her frequent bathing. There is also the issue of light. Blanche does her best to conceal herself from the light of reality by placing paper lanterns over lamps to soften the light â€Å"So, too, in A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche is described (in the same stage direction! ) as both attracted to and repulsed by light. On the one hand, she is described as moth-like in appearance. Comparable to the moth, she is strangely attracted to that which has the power to destroy her. On the other hand, â€Å"her delicate beauty must avoid a strong light†. To avoid it, she dresses naked light bulbs in paper lanterns, and when she goes out, with Mitch for example, it is always at night. † (Crandall 95). This pertains to her willingness to escape reality and is yet another way that Williams exhibits the grotesque through his writing. In further examination of Blanche, her dependency on men is another portrayal of the grotesque. She is constantly looking for and acquiring the affections of men and seems to feed upon the generous nature of Mitch, Stanley’s friend. Here we see the grotesque outlined in the form of female dependence on the male figures in their lives. At one point, Blanche rejects the union of her sister with that of the abusive Stanley Kowalski. She fantasizes about an alternative life with the financial support from Shep Huntleigh, but this still emphasizes a need for the support to exist from a male figure. Even though this wouldn’t be a stable situation for Stella, this would free her from her dependency on Stanley. This reiterates the progression from the old to the new south, but isn’t a source of stability for Stella. She still needs to rely on Stanley and in doing so we see the indignity of the human spirit due to sacrifice. It is also a theme of Williams’ that the removal of the simply â€Å"country† life, and into the throngs of a bustling city, create the setting for the grotesque situations that these characters find themselves in. Williams thought that in moving away from the country life, we are separating ourselves further from the life that God had intended us to live. There is a quiet simplicity that is associated with working the land in the country and in moving to the trappings of a large city, there is room for trouble. This is also apparent through the loss of Belle Reve. When Blanche falls into misfortune and loses the house, she is forced into a life of less prestige and honor. She loses her job as a teacher due to moral discrepancies, she is called on at the hotel that she is staying at by many men, and she is forced to move in with her sister in New Orleans. This transition represents a removal of all that is decent and good with humanity and confines us to the â€Å"cramped† quarters of a city where we lose ourselves. Stanley Kowalski’s character impresses upon the reader an animalistic quality that can only be implied to represent the conflict of the divergence between southern gentiles and northern brutality. â€Å"As much as Blanche is the representative of dreams, Stanley is the emissary of quotidian reality. His Napoleonic Code and the State of Louisiana are the realistic counterparts to Blanche’s more ephemeral Belle Reve. Whereas Blanche values civilization and its refinements-art, poetry, and music-Stanley indulges in more primitive pleasures-eating (bringing home meat from the kill); drinking, to the point of intoxication; and sleeping with women. He knows what his pleasures are and indulges them, often to excess. He enjoys life to the fullest-â€Å"be comfortable is his motto†. In his drunken paroxysms, he easily forgets himself, and becomes one with his buddies. He is, for the most part, spontaneous and unselfconscious† (Crandall 97). In the climax of the play, we bear witness to Stanley’s submission to the atavistic urges and northern brutality by the rape of Blanche. As the story progresses, Mitch (Stanley’s friend) exhibits how the loss of the Southern Gentile adds to the grotesque setting with which all of the characters exist in. At the end of the play, we are made aware that Blanche is being committed to an insane asylum. As the Doctor starts to take Blanche away, Mitch had an opportunity to intervene, but he didn’t. He felt a great deal of sympathy for Blanche, but chose to not act on those feelings and instead Blanche is committed. The reason that this is such an important example of the loss of the Southern gentile was because he had the opportunity to act and didn’t step up to defend Blanche. Southern gentiles are all about honor and dignity. With the loss of these important qualities within him, he has just let Blanche succumb to the darkness that has shrouded her since she arrived at Stella’s apartment. Even though Blanche didn’t see the hero within Mitch, they had a bond between them. They were both looking for love and for someone to take care of them. With him not coming to her rescue, the true Mitch is presented-a person who is devoid of the heroism that Blanche so desperately needed. On the conflict between the â€Å"sensitive, non-conformist† individual against conventional society, we have to re-examine Blanche Dubois. From the beginning of the play, we are well aware of Blanche’s â€Å"sensitive, non-conformist† characteristics. She is someone who was unwilling to uphold he civilities that should exist within each person. In her having tarnishing relations with a pupil of hers, she sacrifices the only thing that she had left- her dignity. â€Å"However defensive Blanche becomes, from the moment she enters the stage until the moment she leaves it, she is in search of direction and empathy or â€Å"kindness† of others in order to work through the traumas of the past and present. Ultimately, this search for understanding is he main reason she comes to New Orleans and not simply for a place to stay† (Ribkoff & Tyndall 327). The climax of the grotesque within this play seems to come as a result of Blanche’s sensitive, non-conformist attitude towards life. Her inability to accept responsibility for her current situation is the catalyst to the way that Stanley shows no tolerance for her. Stanley’s brutalities, along with his intolerance for Blanche’s current state of mind, clash to create the ultimately grotesque act of rape later in the play. â€Å"Many critics believe Stanley’s rape of Blanche precipitates her descent into madness. According to Mary Ann Corrigan, this descent is part of the overall trajectory of the play: â€Å"in each of the [play’s] 11 scenes Blanche moves inexorably closer to the disintegration of her mind and the total rejection of reality† (Humanit 334). After the disintegration of the world that Williams created in A Streetcar Named Desire, we are left with the overwhelming themes of the struggle for human affection, dignity, and resolve. Through this in-depth dissection of the characters, plot, and settings, emerge the themes that exemplify the Southern Gothic/grotesque style of writing.