What Was the Role of the Temple for Ancient Judaism an Example by

What Was the Role of the Temple for Ancient Judaism? There are two kinds of Judaism, one that existed Before Christ and the other was After Christ. The first which existed Before Christ was the Judaism practiced by Abraham, Moses, David and Isaiah. This was the ancient Judaism, which had altar, sacrifices, priests and temple. The After Christ Judaism on the other hand is the Judaism that is practiced today. They have synagogues, rabbis or teachers and they have no sacrifices, no altar, no priests and no temple. Need essay sample on "What Was the Role of the Temple for Ancient Judaism?" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed College Students Very Often Tell Us: Who wants to write paper for me? Specialists propose: Essay Help Provided Here With Beneficial Facilities! Cheap Essay Help Get Paid To Write Papers Cheap Custom Essays Cheap Custom Writing Service Latter day Jews, reform and conservative, refer to their synagogue as temple. Traditional Jews, however take offense. They claim that historically, the Temple of Jerusalem is the only temple of Judaism. For them calling the synagogue as temple is very inaccurate. A synagogue, according to the Jews, is a house for meeting, which is both: (1) a center for worship, study, and social work of a community, and (2) a place to gather. In Jerusalem, The Temple was the center of worship, where sacrifices and religious ceremonies were done. This was since the time of Solomon until its partial destruction by the Romans during the Babylonian Exile. The Temple was rebuilt and became known as the Second Temple. The Wailing Wall, were remains of the original wall on the western side, so the Jews refer to it as the Western Wall or the Kotel to the Hebrews. The Temple is also where the Dome of the Rock and the Al-Aqsa, the Muslims shrine for pilgrims and house of prayer respectively. It is the belief of the traditional Jews that The Temple will be rebuilt on the Messiahs (Moshiachs) coming, which they hope and pray for with great anticipation. The modern Jews are against The Temples rebuilding and practicing sacrifices again. For them the temples are their houses of prayer and those are sufficient for their worship, like the Temple in Jerusalem. This is a source of conflict between the traditional and modern Jews. For the modern Jews, temples are places of worship like their synagogues. For the traditional it is the center of worship, and there is only one Temple. References: Rich, Tracey R. (1995-2001). The Temple. Retrieved January 31, 2007, from http://www.jewfaq.org/shul.htm Judaism 101: Synagogues, Shuls and Temples.

How Relevant Are the Issues Raised In Educating Rita In the Year 2000 Essays

How Relevant Are the Issues Raised In Educating Rita In the Year 2000 Essays How Relevant Are the Issues Raised In Educating Rita In the Year 2000 Essay How Relevant Are the Issues Raised In Educating Rita In the Year 2000 Essay Essay Topic: Literature In this essay I am going to go into full detail how an unconfident working class women (Rita) and a middle class tutor who is on the bottle get there life together and Im going to write about the issues surrounding them. In the first couple of scenes Frank appears to be the person in control as he is a middle class man and Rita is unsure of what she wants out of a higher education. Frank doesnt really want to tutor Rita and states yes I suppose I did take it on to pay for the drinks. Rita is a less formal person to Frank and you can tell that as soon as she walks into franks office speaking slang saying Its that stupid bleedin handle on the door. Rita took up schooling, as she didnt want to learn whilst at her upper school as learning was for wimps and you should be buying new clothes be into music and chasing fellers when youre a teenager. People dont want Rita to change but she feels she has to and says y have to decide whether its gonna be another change of dress or a change in yourself. Then Frank says But you erm you managed to resist another new dress. This part of the scene has a lot of tension in it but then Willy Russell uses humour to break the tension by using the previous quote. -This is part of an informal education because Rita has learnt from the mistake she made not to learn at school that she wasnt perfect and needed re educating. Rita doesnt know what she wants from her tutor as he asks her what do you want to know and she replies everything. Later on the script Rita wakes up Frank to a bit of life as theyre in a conversation Rita asks What y lookin at me for and Frank replies Because-I think youre marvellous. This is the start of continuous flirting between Frank and Rita. Rita Is a bit self-conscious of what people think about her being twenty-six, married and she still hasnt got a baby. Her husband wants her to have a baby and she has lied to him saying she has come off the pill but she hasnt. She states I dont wanna baby yet. See I wanna discover meself first. I think this is part of the changing role in society because in the twenty first century you wouldnt expect that married twenty-six year old women should certainly have a child. Frank is low in confidence and believes hes not the right tutor for Rita because he says Im actually an appalling teacher and then says appalling teaching is quite in order for most of my appalling students he then says you want a lot and I cant give it. Coming towards the end of the second scene the fist bit of noticeable flirting starts when frank says Right now theres a thousand things Id rather do than teach; most of them with you, young lady. Then Frank asks why didnt you walk in here twenty years ago? This is the start of continuous flirting from Frank. Willy Russell uses this hint of romance between Frank and Rita to keep the audiences attention because from my point of you it kept me reading just to see if the two finally did fall in love. In the third scene Frank waves Ritas essay in the air and asks whats this then Rita replies its a bledin piece of paper isnt it? Again Willy Russell attracts the audiences attention this time by using sarcasm. At the end of the first act Frank tells Rita that if she wants to write essays the way she does shes got to change. Rita wants to change but Frank doesnt want her to change because he likes her the way she is. The second act has just started and Rita has just come back from summer school and has gained a lot of confidence and knowledge. This act is a huge turning point for the relationship between Frank and Rita because Rita got together with a few pupils and she mentions a man called Tiger. They have invited her to go to the South Of France for the Christmas holidays with them. Frank gets very jealous and says is there much point in working towards an examination if youre going to fall in love. Frank tells her she cant go because of her exams even though her exams are before Christmas. Rita trys to change her dress style and the ways she speaks to a more posh way just like her new flat mate. Frank feels that he and Rita are drifting away and turns to the bottle. At the point Tyson is the centre of jealousy and Frank doesnt want Rita to change. Ritas new flat mate then commits suicide and Rita realises she wasnt so special and realises theres no reason why she would want to be like her. Rita then takes her exam and says I never thought there was anythin I could give you anything. But there is Rita then gives frank a haircut and the story is over. The end of the story is left open, which is a good ending because it lets you give your own opinion on what happened after the story finished. I think Willy Russell used romance in the story to get the audiences attention because even though nothing serious happened between the two it just kept you reading to see if anything did. Willy Russell used many techniques to get the audiences attention such as humour, and sarcasm.

A Study Of The Coca-Cola Brand Using Maslow Hierarchy Of Needs Theory

A Study Of The Coca-Cola Brand Using Maslow Hierarchy Of Needs Theory Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory has existed for many decades and it is used to describe human beings behaviour and needs The theory describes how people have well defined needs which they desire to fulfil according to different degree of emergency. Physiological need is the first stage or the basic need stage which includes food, clothing, shelter, air and sex. Physiological needs are the factors that human beings cannot exist without and therefore they must be met (Lee, 2011). Moreover, the next step is the need of safety or security iswhere a person needs to feel secure or no harm can occur to him.The need of affiliation is another step where a person desires to interact with fellow human beings. The higher step in the hierarchy is the need for esteem where a person feels the need to be appreciated by people around him as a valuable person. The need for esteem may occur in a family setting or in a group in which one exists. The need for esteem may occur in an organization which the individual works in. An individual’s esteem may be fulfilled through recognition by status, sex, performance, experience, duration in which the person has been in the organization or by bonuses. The final stage of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is the indispensablerequirement of self-fulfilment which shows a person’s desire to use all the abilities one has to reach the supreme level that can be reached to feel satisfied and comfortable (Dima, Man , Kot, 2010) . From the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the Coca-Cola company products and the brands can be classified in self-fulfilment or accomplishment level (Donovan, 2003). This is because these beverages are not a necessity, but are used to achieve a need of fulfilment or luxury. Consumers use these commodities to make their lives more comfortable. Conclusion The Coca-Cola Company is a known brand in Australia and it offers a variety of brands. Consumers use the five step process in making decisions on which products to buy by comparing the Coca-Cola products to other substitute products in the market before arriving to the decision of purchasing the products offered by theCoca-Cola Company. The factor that may mostly influence decision making in buying the products is the financial status of the consumer. This is because most people may not afford them therefore, foregoing the products or opting for a cheaper option. In the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the products can be classified in the self-fulfilment level since they are just needed to make the consumers more comfortable.

Juvenile Justice Authority in Maine Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Juvenile Justice Authority in Maine - Term Paper Example The juvenile justice system in Maine is functional inside the greater juvenile justice framework of the United States. The theory behind this framework is based on extensive research, experience, and sociological introspection. Critical theorists and sociologists hold juvenile delinquency and juvenile justice in the terms of a class structured capitalist society. â€Å"They point to economic and social inequalities that increase the probability of lower-class youth turning to crime because so few opportunities are open to them. Critical criminologists contend that the origin of the concept of delinquency and juvenile justice in America is based on economic and class differences.† (Hesse and Lawrence, 2010, p. 59) The juvenile justice authority in Maine practically implements the conceptual framework based on this theoretical perspective. Under the auspices of Maine Department of Corrections (MDOC), the juvenile services of the state seek to establish a society oriented approac h that will give rise to a collaborative and supportive social system including the individuals along with their communities and families. Thus, the factors that put children at risk can be addressed and necessary action can be taken in proper time. Technically, the resultant functionary is both proactive and amply oriented to the social needs. The Maine Department of Corrections (MDOC) regulates juvenile justice in the state through its Division of Juvenile Services, which is the main juvenile justice authority in the region. In their publication Taking Measure, the authorities have explicitly explained their mission in the following words: â€Å"To promote public safety by ensuring that juvenile offenders are provided with education, treatment and other services that teach skills and competencies.

The Vietnam War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Vietnam War - Essay Example This semi-autobiography of the author is his exploration of his past as he travels through his home land, Vietnam, which also helps him in accepting his identity and hence provides the hope for a better future. The reason that the writer needed to go on this journey was because his transsexual sister had committed suicide under the pressure of not being able to identify her existence. This had triggered the author to look for his own identity. So, he goes on a trip to his homeland Vietnam travelling through various places that had held meaning to him during his childhood. He hopes to see the same Vietnam that he had left years ago, looking for his dear friend the one he trusted so much. However, as he travels through the land he is confused and surprised to see the way things had changed. This book is remarkable in the way Pham explains the changes, his feelings and the confusion of an out of place Vietnamese American. The main theme that is easy to pick up from this book is that of the confusion that exists for the second generation of refugees. â€Å"I tell them I’m Vietnamese American. They shriek, ‘Viet-kieu!’ It sounds like a disease. The news travels down the procession and the excitement subsides. Half of the group peels away, losing interest since I am not a real foreigner† (Pham, A. page no. 125). I think the identity of a person is very important for him and the way a person’s identity is created through his nation, his name, his family and through people associated with him. When a person has to move away from his nation, his family, his friends a part of his identity is lost. Creating a new identity is not easy especially when the new place happens to be so different from where they come from. This results in the constant dilemma that the writer also faces. â€Å"In this Vietnamese much, I am too American. Too refined, too removed from my que, my birth village. The sight of my roots repulses me. And this shames me deeply† (Pham, A. page no. 183). When people like the writer himself go back to their roots it is more of a displeasure to see that what they had left does not exist anymore. The roots they can associate themselves with does not exist anymore. This does not just further confuses them about their identity but forces them to rethink about their identity. â€Å"They smashed all the alley homes a long time ago. New homes are built right against the back of all the street-front houses. No more alley. But what about the people who used to live there? The Vo family? Gone. All gone†¦.Come. Meet the new people and some of the old ones who are still here. I want to leave . This place is empty.† (Pham A. page no. 101). Pham explains the feeling of seeing everything that should remind him of his roots and yet does not connect to him. His words are a solace to all those who have gone through the same phase. Seeing things change so drastically does leave the feeling of emptiness , it is difficult to accept the changes, even though had the person been in the same place he would have gone with the flow changing with the changes brought about. But it’s different for somebody like the author whose memory holds a different picture not allowing the person to accept a different picture. It is just not easy to easily accept the change. â€Å"

International Mergers Essay Example for Free

International Mergers Essay Recent years have seen waves of mergers and acquisitions occurring in the international arena. Whilst the nature of such M A activity has enlarged from being mostly IT focussed in the 1990s to include other areas like consumer goods, automobiles, and metals in the 2000s, its intensity remained unabated until the onset of the global financial crisis in 2008. Although M A activity in the domestic space has continued to occur despite the high failure rate of such initiatives, international M A s face the additional challenge of having to overcome issues of different national cultures. The recent break-up of Daimler Chrysler evidences the difficulties that such initiatives face and the enormous harm that can occur if they do not work. This dissertation attempts to investigate the numerous challenges that confront the managements of the two concerned organisations, the hazards posed by such challenges, and the measures that can be adopted to overcome them. Table of Contents Serial Details Page Abstract 2 1. Introduction 5 1. 1. Background and Overview 5 1. 2. Definition of Problem 8 1. 3. Aims and Objectives 12 2. Literature Review 14 2. 1. Motivation for International M A Activity 14 2. 1. 1. Strategic Objectives 14 2. 1. 2. Other Drivers of International Mergers and Acquisitions 18 2. 2. The Cultural Context 20 2. 2. 1 National Culture 20 2. 2. 2. Organisational Culture 23 2. 2. 3 The Impact of Culture on International Mergers and Acquisitions 25 2. 2. 4 Overcoming Cultural Differences in International Mergers and Acquisitions 32 3. 0 Research Methodology 38 3. 1. Research Questions 38 3. 2. Choice of Research Methodology 38 3. 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Methods 39 3. 4. Choice of Methodology 41 3. 5. Primary and Secondary Data 41 3. 6. Ethics 42 4. 0 Data Collection 43 5. 0 Findings and Analysis 48 6. 0 Conclusions 52 Bibliography 53 1. Introduction 1. 1. Background and Overview Corporate mergers and acquisitions (M A) are an accepted form of external growth and are becoming increasingly common with time. With business corporations having realised the benefits of M A activity in terms of growth in sales, increase in capacity, accessing of new markets, obtaining of technology and skills, acquisition of brands, savings in costs, and achievement of synergies in areas of sales, production, and costs, it forms an integral component of the objectives and strategies of most forward looking and ambitious business firms (Gaughan, 2002). Two decades of globalisation, along with progressive development of technology, intensification of competition, increasing pressure on costs, and the continual emergence of new equal skill/ lesser cost production and service centres in Asia, East Europe, and South America are accentuating the need for consolidation and for achieving leadership in costs and quality, the basic tenets of Michael Porter’s theory of competitor advantage (Gaughan, 2002). Such developments are also increasing the number of companies searching for appropriate M A opportunities. The enormous changes that have taken place in the global, economic, political, and trade scenario have added another dimension to the issue of M A activity, that of international mergers and acquisitions (IMA). These pertain to those mergers and acquisitions that take place beyond the borders of specific countries and which are also known as global or cross border M As. The collapse of the Soviet Union, the crumbling of the Berlin Wall, the emergence of East European countries, the formation of the European Union, and the dismantling of trade barriers led to a significant increase in M A activity between European countries. Apart from the remarkable developments in Europe, the last two decades also saw a wave of trade liberalisation and economic and financial reforms sweep through the developing world, and the emergence first of China and then of India on the global economic scene, bringing with them huge markets, strong production and service skills and cheap costs (Gaughan, 2002). With western businesses having realised the import of the enormous business opportunities that are constantly being generated on a global basis, the lid has been taken off IMA activity, which is now increasing furiously, particularly in the USA, the UK, and Europe. â€Å"While USA has always been the pioneer in merger and acquisition activities, UK too has registered high levels of mergers and acquisitions. With the European countries gaining momentum in mergers and acquisitions, international mergers and acquisitions also received a major boost. † (International Mergers and Acquisitions, 2009) IMA is taking place in â€Å"different forms, for example horizontal mergers, vertical mergers, conglomerate mergers, congeneric mergers, reverse mergers, dilutive mergers, and accretive mergers† (International Mergers and Acquisitions, 2009). Whilst IMAs are also driven by the same motives as regular M A activity, international M A helps companies in accessing markets in distant lands, allows companies to build global competitive advantage, and otherwise leads to build up of Foreign Direct Investment. IMA activity is also far more complex than regular M A actions because of the presence of far greater complexities that arise from companies having to deal with different political structures, governmental regulations and policies, economical situations, and investment and other laws (Gaughan, 2002). Despite the presence of such obstacles, international M A activity was gathering pace until the onset of the financial crisis, which has effectively put all commercial and business activity in a state of suspended animation. â€Å"2006 was a record year for acquisitions worldwide when, for the first time, the annual value of these transactions exceeded US$ 4 trillion, and cross-border acquisitions alone amounted to a record high of US$ 1. 3 trillion (Larsen, 2007). This trend continues in 2007, given that the transaction value of global acquisitions in the first three months of the year reached US$ 1. 13 trillion, setting up a record for the busiest first quarter in acquisition history. † (Rottig, 2007) The size of North American IMA activity increased practically by 100 % in 2006 to USD 242 billion from USD 132 billion in 2005. The value of IMA deals in Europe in 2006 touched USD 451 billion (Rottig, 2007). Whilst the most of IMA activity took place in the US, it was followed by the UK and Germany (Rottig, 2007).

Warnings in Shakespeares Sonnet 95 Essay -- Sonnet essays

Warnings in Shakespeare's Sonnet 95      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   William Shakespeare is the master of subtle humor and sexual puns.   In his "Sonnet 95," a poem to a blond young man, both are seen while pointing out a couple of realities about sexual sin.   He speaks directly to a young man whose physical beauty compensates for his lack of sexual morality.  Ã‚      Shakespeare would like for this young man to realize that his handsomeness is the sole aspect of his person that prevents absolute disapproval of his behavior in other people, and he also wants him to be aware of the ultimate consequences of his actions.   Through a clever use of diction, imagery, and meter in a typical Shakespearian format, Shakespeare warns his young friend of the risks involved with the overindulgence of sexual activity.    In the first quatrain, Shakespeare presents the young man to the readers by contrasting his beauty and his character.   He tells the young man that he renders "shame" (1) "sweet and lovely" (1).   That is, he is much too handsome to be overshadowed by his questionable conduct.   His "shame" may not be a dominant trait, but it does sneak around behind the scenes "like a canker" (2).   A canker is a nasty internal ulceration, or growth; it is a flaw that cannot be seen in an otherwise beautiful object, such as a "fragrant rose" (2).   This flaw in the young man, sexual vice, may "spot" (3), or taint his image later on in his life, as he is still "budding" (3); he is still young, and there is plenty of time for his reputation to be completely damaged by his sexual impropriety.   This young man is indeed beautiful and he is lucky to have such "swee... ...re slyly and jovially slips in the idea that if the young man is careless, he will spend his allowance of energy before his time comes; that is to say, he will become sexually impotent.   This image is brilliantly conjured up with the picture of a dull knife that will cut no more after years of its owner using it as a hatchet.   The simple lightness of his joke is expressed through the simple evenness of the iambic pentameter throughout the couplet, and its straightforwardness adds to the wryness of the humor.    Works Cited Shakespeare, William. "Sonnet 95." The Norton Anthology of English Literature.   Eds. M. H. Abrams and Stephen Greenblatt. Seventh ed. 2 vols. New York: Norton, 2000. 1:1041-42.    Works Consulted Oxford English Dictionary. Eds. James A. H. Murray, et. al.   Oxford, 1961. Warnings in Shakespeare's Sonnet 95 Essay -- Sonnet essays Warnings in Shakespeare's Sonnet 95      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   William Shakespeare is the master of subtle humor and sexual puns.   In his "Sonnet 95," a poem to a blond young man, both are seen while pointing out a couple of realities about sexual sin.   He speaks directly to a young man whose physical beauty compensates for his lack of sexual morality.  Ã‚      Shakespeare would like for this young man to realize that his handsomeness is the sole aspect of his person that prevents absolute disapproval of his behavior in other people, and he also wants him to be aware of the ultimate consequences of his actions.   Through a clever use of diction, imagery, and meter in a typical Shakespearian format, Shakespeare warns his young friend of the risks involved with the overindulgence of sexual activity.    In the first quatrain, Shakespeare presents the young man to the readers by contrasting his beauty and his character.   He tells the young man that he renders "shame" (1) "sweet and lovely" (1).   That is, he is much too handsome to be overshadowed by his questionable conduct.   His "shame" may not be a dominant trait, but it does sneak around behind the scenes "like a canker" (2).   A canker is a nasty internal ulceration, or growth; it is a flaw that cannot be seen in an otherwise beautiful object, such as a "fragrant rose" (2).   This flaw in the young man, sexual vice, may "spot" (3), or taint his image later on in his life, as he is still "budding" (3); he is still young, and there is plenty of time for his reputation to be completely damaged by his sexual impropriety.   This young man is indeed beautiful and he is lucky to have such "swee... ...re slyly and jovially slips in the idea that if the young man is careless, he will spend his allowance of energy before his time comes; that is to say, he will become sexually impotent.   This image is brilliantly conjured up with the picture of a dull knife that will cut no more after years of its owner using it as a hatchet.   The simple lightness of his joke is expressed through the simple evenness of the iambic pentameter throughout the couplet, and its straightforwardness adds to the wryness of the humor.    Works Cited Shakespeare, William. "Sonnet 95." The Norton Anthology of English Literature.   Eds. M. H. Abrams and Stephen Greenblatt. Seventh ed. 2 vols. New York: Norton, 2000. 1:1041-42.    Works Consulted Oxford English Dictionary. Eds. James A. H. Murray, et. al.   Oxford, 1961.

Early Childhood Intervention Services on Social Performance Essay

Based on many researches, surveys, and studies conducted recently, the early intensive intervention method showed a significant outcome for children having autism. The behavioral approach as intervention on preschoolers with the said disorder showed an affirmative short- and long-term effect (Anderson, Avery, DiPietro, Edwards, & Christian, 1987; Fenske, Zalenski, Krantz, & McClannahan, 1985; McEachin, Smith, & OI, 1993). It was said that results showed a partial to nearly complete recovery from symptoms of autism where the most hopeful and positive result suggests a nearly 50% recovery through intensive early intervention (Handleman, Harris, Celiberti, Lilleheht, & Tomchek, 1991; Hoyson, 1984; Lord & Schopler, 1989; Lovaas, 1987; Sheinkopf & Siegel, 1998). The reported improvement was based on the outcomes from â€Å"standardized pre-post test scores† and at times, was based on behavioral outcomes (Handleman, Harris, Celiberti, Lilleheht, & Tomchek, 1991; Hoyson, 1984; Lord & Schopler, 1989; Lovaas, 1987; Sheinkopf & Siegel, 1998). Also, in contrast to the previous approximations that implied only 50% of all children have a chance to learn to use â€Å"functional speech†, more recent approximations as based from participating children under early intervention showed at least 85% to 90% of these children can utilize the functional speech if intervention begins in the preschool stage (Koegel, 2000). The intricacy in terms of mutual social interactions involved in autism disorders paved way to the need of early identification of this disorder to children because of the significant advantages that resulted if early intervention is performed. It is also this same complex nature on the social feature of autism that led to formulation of early intervention programs. But to date, there are few intervention programs that focus on the enhancement of social interactions to peer groups and siblings since most programs formulated were on â€Å"child-adult† interactions (Koegel, Koegel, & Frea, 2001). There is also the inadequate outcome of these programs on the child’s â€Å"true† functioning in his or her natural environment such as social and behavioral improvements because most outcomes are based on the alterations of the child’s IQ scores and post-intervention assignments (Koegel, Koegel, & Smith, 1997). It was also noted that few assessment studies were conducted on the consequences or results of early intervention programs on autistic children less than three years of age since the knowledge of possibility for practitioners to diagnose autism prior to age three was only recent. CHAPTER 1 The Historical Viewpoint behind Early Childhood Intervention Programs The concept that brain development can be manipulated during the early childhood period necessitates the need for early treatment or intervention of autism since this imposes a greater chance of success and the possibility of a long-term treatment being prevented and reduced (Ornitz, 1973). The trainings in communication, social learning, and self-help skills from the family, school, community, peers, and group can further help autistic children on their social and emotional development. In an early intervention program, the factors being evaluated that become indicator if improvement occurred are age and IQ. There are studies showing that the incidence of a higher IQ and an earlier age at the start of intervention is a positive predictor of better chances of recovery and better outcomes (Gabriel, Hill, Pierce, Rogers, & Wehner, 2001; Handleman, Harris, Celiberti, Lilleheht, & Tomchek, 1991). Recently, the recognized predictor of intervention outcome in the language and peer aspect is the stage of the child with autism on peer social avoidance after under intervention program for six months (Ingersoll, Schreibman, & Stahmer, 2001). Peer social avoidance is described as the frequency of the child’s avoidance near peers. Some studies showed a noteworthy connection of the child’s use of joint attention behaviors and later communicative language improvement (Mundy, Sigman, & Kasari, 1990). These joint attention behaviors include eye gaze alternation and pointing. There is also a study demonstrating that child initiations anticipate very high favorable treatment outcomes (Koegel, Koegel, Shoshan, & McNerney, 1999). Child initiations are defined as the start of a new interaction or changing where the interaction is headed for. These three characteristics namely peer avoidance, joint attention, and initiations are described in nature as exceedingly analogous. They are also called as intervention target behaviors. Before early intervention or treatment services are done, a proper and thorough evaluation of the child with autism should be conducted to identify the appropriate approach to conduct (Shackelford, 2002). First, this assessment should be performed by a trained staff to work on a suitable methods and procedures to be followed. Secondly, it should be based on â€Å"informed clinical opinion† from skilled medical professional for the said specialization. And lastly, there should be a review of the relevant records that would be applicable in evaluating the child’s current health and medical history and child’s level of functioning on the critical development areas such as cognitive, physical (including vision and hearing, communication, social or emotional, and adaptive aspects (Shackelford, 2002). As defined, the term â€Å"early intervention† generally refers to program options for the child with autism at six years of age and below (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). There are many described and formulated different early intervention options specifically center-based programs for children with an array of developmental delays, conventional and expert preschool programs, center-based programs specializing in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), home-based programs on a certain therapy approach, specific therapies from particular clinics, agencies that organize the early intervention personnel to visit the child’s home on a regular or semi-regular basis or outreach service, and programs that are investigated and organized with parents (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). There are many different types of services offered under the early intervention program. These are family support services, funded specialist programs, non-funded specialist programs, specific therapies, alternative therapies, and behavioral assistance services. Many family support services are available (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). Example is the â€Å"Early Childhood Intervention Services† from the Department of Human Services that funds support programs like â€Å"Early Choices† and â€Å"Making a Difference† for a successful implementation of these programs. The local councils can also render this support service as they are funded too to provide such (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). The support and information service under family support services can help families through immediate guidance, sensible and emotional support, and provision of necessary information regarding autism through library, information packages and tip sheets, and published magazines (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). The funded specialist programs are funded under the Department of Human Services purposely for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). These are center-based programs and outreach programs (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). But still, funding is greatly limited and these funded programs are only available to offer services just a not so many hours per week. Outreach programs are where trained personnel visit the patient in his or her home, or are community based services such as child care or preschool for autistic children. The non-funded specialist programs are programs that do not receive funding from the federal government (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). Example of this is the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). The ABA is a home-based therapy that is structured in pattern to the work of Dr. Ivar Lovaas (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). The format of this program is one-to-one instruction, and support and strengthening. But an ABA trained teacher or psychologist is the only one certified to develop and supervise the program. On the other hand, only the parent and/or trained ABA therapists can carry out the teaching conferences. It is known that ABA program outcomes are positive but still, as usual, the outcomes vary from child to child. The only possible disadvantages being seen are on the financial and time viewpoints, that is, it is expensive and not all families can afford it (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). Another type of service for early intervention is the conduction of specific therapies. These trained therapists are those already skilled in executing therapies in relation to autism (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). These are the psychologists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, early intervention teachers, physiotherapists, music therapists, and dance and movement therapists. Most of these therapists are in private practice and have explicit professional fees. Some families are able to secure funding from support programs while others have to pay it on their own. In year 2006, the federal government tried to include mental health conditions in Medicare insurances to help families to lessen expenditures if therapy is the proper approach to the autism condition of the child (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). The identified alternative therapies are those treatments or approaches that showed constant positive outcomes (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). These are usually the educationally and/or behaviorally based programs (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). These programs are intensive, planned, ordered, and long-standing. There is no instant approach. The behavioral assistance programs are more often than not where parents ask for help (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). In view thereof, Gateways Support Services developed an interactive website with a large data bank as guidance for these parents (â€Å"Early Intervention†, 2007). Researchers and educators have debated the question of how communication goals and objectives for children with autism and related disabilities should be derived. The perspective espoused by traditional behavioral programs has been to establish goals and objectives a priori (Lovaas, 1987). Behavioral discrete-trial programs begin with general compliance training to get a child to sit in a chair, look at the clinician, and imitate nonverbal behavior in response to verbal commands. Speech is taught as a verbal behavior, and objectives are targeted beginning with verbal imitation, following one-step commands, receptive discrimination of body parts, objects, person names and pictures, and expressive labeling in response to questions. Later, language objectives include prepositions, pronouns, same or different and yes or no. More contemporary behavioral approaches have developed goals for outcomes from a functional assessment. Goals and objectives are individualized, based on a child’s repertoire of communicative behaviors, teaching functional equivalents of challenging behavior, and addressing the child’s individual needs. The functional emphasis focuses on goals that affect a child’s access to choices of activities in which to participate, opportunities for social interaction, and community settings (Brown, 2006). Contemporary behavioral programs emphasize teaching communication skills so that greater access is provided to a variety of people, places and events, thereby enhancing the quality of life of children with autistic spectrum disorders. The perspective espoused by developmentally oriented approaches has been to focus on the communicative meaning of behaviors and to target goals and objectives that enhance a child’s communicative competence by moving the child along a developmental progression (Ornitz, 1973). Contemporary developmentalists begin with social-communicative goals, including gaze to regulate interaction, sharing positive affect, communicative functions, and gestural communication. Language goals are mapped onto social communication skills and are guided by a developmental framework (Koegel, Koegel, & Frea, 2001). Developmental perspective usually guides the goal-setting in an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention. Beukelman and Mirenda (1998) state that the goals of an AAC intervention are to assist individuals with severe communication disorders to become communicatively competent in the present, with the view toward meeting their future communication needs (Lovaas, 1987). One major purpose of communication assessment is to document change as an outcome measure of treatment. However, most formal or standardized language assessment measures focus primarily on language form and rely on elicited responses. Because language impairments associated with autism are most apparent in social-communicative or pragmatic aspects of language, formal assessment instruments can provide information about only a limited number of aspects of communication for children with autism (Shackelford, 2002). Formal language measures are especially imprecise in measuring nonverbal aspects of communication and therefore are not sufficient, particularly for low-functioning children with autism. In many situations, the tests used for pre- and post-assessment are different, due to the child’s increasing age, making interpretation of results difficult. Another major purpose of assessment is to provide information for educational planning that can be directly translated into goals, strategies, and outcome measures for communication enhancement. Several communication abilities have been identified as important to assess for children with autism like use of eye gaze and facial expression for social referencing and to regulate interaction, range of communicative functions expressed, rate of communicating, use of gestures and vocal/verbalizations, use of repair strategies, understanding of conventional meanings, and ability to engage in conversation (Shackelford, 2002). It is pointed out that communicative abilities of children with autism should be documented in natural communicative exchanges, with a child’s symbolic abilities serving as a developmental frame of reference (Mundy, Sigman, & Kasari, 1990). To supplement formal measures, the systematic use of informal procedures to assess language and communication is needed. In order to gather an accurate picture of the communication and symbolic abilities of children with autism, a combination of assessment strategies has been recommended that includes interviewing significant others (i. e. , parents, teachers) and observing in everyday situations to find out how a child communicates in the home, classroom, and other daily settings (Mundy, Sigman, & Kasari, 1990). Although there is consensus on the importance of enhancing communication abilities for children with autism, intervention approaches vary greatly, and some even appear to be diametrically opposed (Koegel, 2000). The methodological rigor in communication intervention studies in terms of internal and external validity and measures of generalization has been stronger than in many other areas of autism intervention studies. Nevertheless, there have been relatively few prospective studies with controls for maturation, expectancy, or experimenter artifacts. The strongest studies in terms of internal validity have been multiple baseline, ABAB, or similar designs that have included controls for blindness of evaluations (Koegel, 2000). There have been almost no studies with random assignment, although about 70 percent of the studies included well-defined cohorts of adequate sample size or replication across three or more subjects in single subject designs. A substantial proportion of communication interventions have also included some assessment of generalization, though most often not in a natural setting (Koegel, 2000). In order to examine the critical elements of treatment programs that affect the speech, language, and communication skills of children with autism. It is then useful to characterize the active ingredients of treatment approaches along a continuum—from traditional, discrete trial approaches to more contemporary behavioral approaches that used naturalistic language teaching techniques to developmentally oriented approaches (Koegel, 2000). The earliest research efforts at teaching speech and language to children with autism used massed discrete trial methods to teach verbal behavior by building labeling vocabulary and simple sentences. Lovaas (1987) provided the most detailed account of the procedures for language training using discrete trial approaches. Outcomes of discrete trial approaches have included improvements in IQ scores, which are correlated with language skills, and improvements in communication domains of broader measures, such as the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (McEachin, Smith, & OI, 1993). A limitation of a discrete trial approach in language acquisition is the lack of spontaneity and generalization. Lovaas (1987) stated that â€Å"the training regime†¦its use of ‘unnatural’ reinforcers, and the like may have been responsible for producing the very situation-specific, restricted verbal output which we observed in many of our children†. In a review of research on discrete trial approaches, Koegel (2000) noted that â€Å"not only did language fail to be exhibited or generalize to other environments, but most behaviors taught in this highly controlled environment also failed to generalize†. There is now a large body of empirical support for more contemporary behavioral approaches using naturalistic teaching methods that demonstrate efficacy for teaching not only speech and language, but also communication. According to Koegel 2000, there are many approaches that could be considered that include natural language paradigms (Koegel et al. , 1987), incidental teaching (Hart, 1985; McGee et al. , 1985; McGee et al. , 1999), time delay and milieu intervention (Charlop et al. , 1985; Charlop and Trasowech, 1991; Hwang and Hughes, 2000; Kaiser, 1993; Kaiser et al. , 1992), and pivotal response training (Koegel, 1995; Koegel et al. , 1998). These approaches use systematic teaching trials that have several common active ingredients: they are initiated by the child and focus on the child’s interest; they are interspersed and embedded in the natural environment; and they use natural reinforcers that follow what the child is trying to communicate. Only a few studies, all using single-subject designs, have compared traditional discrete trial with naturalistic behavioral approaches. These studies have reported that naturalistic approaches are more effective at leading to generalization of language gains to natural contexts (Koegel 2000). There are numerous intervention approaches based on a developmental framework. While there are many different developmental programs, a common feature of developmental approaches is that they are child-directed. The environment is arranged to provide opportunities for communication, the child initiates the interaction or teaching episode, and the teacher or communicative partner follows the child’s lead by being responsive to the child’s communicative intentions, and imitating or expanding the child’s behavior. Although the empirical support for developmental approaches is more limited than for behavioral approaches, there are several treatment studies that provide empirical support for language outcomes using specific strategies built on a developmental approach providing the largest case review. Developmental approaches share many common active ingredients with contemporary naturalistic behavioral approaches and are compatible along most dimensions. Many researches had been done on the effectiveness of â€Å"early intervention† because a proper selection of goal when dealing the autistic spectrum disorder should be done since the disorder is characterized of many complexities that treating it also involves critical selection of approach. In general, it was shown that researches on these intervention programs had focused on the effectiveness of the programs and not the appropriateness of different goals. For example is knowing a certain intervention program to be effective but the parent and child had to travel across town once a week for the said program or the child is taken out from class in order to be treated by his therapist. Educational objectives must be based on specific behaviors targeted for planned interventions. However, one of the questions that arises repeatedly, both on a theoretical and on a clinical basis, is how specific a link has to be between a long-term goal and a behavior targeted for intervention. Some targeted behaviors, such as toilet training or acquisition of functional spoken language, provide immediately discernible practical benefits for a child and his or her family. However, in many other cases, both in regular education and specialized early intervention, the links between the objectives used to structure what a child is taught and the child’s eventual independent, socially responsible functioning are much less obvious. This is particularly the case for preschool children, for whom play and manipulation of toys (e. g. , matching, stacking of blocks) are primary methods of learning and relating to other children. Often, behaviors targeted in education or therapy are not of immediate practical value but are addressed because of presumed links to overall educational goals. The structuring of activities in which a child can succeed and feel successful is an inherent part of special education. Sometimes the behavior is one component of a series of actions that comprise an important achievement. Breaking down a series of actions into components can facilitate learning. Thus, a preschool child may be taught to hold a piece of paper down with one hand while scribbling with another. This action is a first step in a series of tasks designed to help the child draw and eventually write. Other behaviors, or often classes of behaviors, have been described as â€Å"pivotal behaviors† in the sense that their acquisition allows a child to learn many other skills more efficiently (Koegel, Koegel, Shoshan, & McNerney, 1999). Schreibman and the Koegels and their colleagues have proposed a specific treatment program for children with autism: pivotal response treatment. It includes teaching children to respond to natural reinforcers and multiple cues, as well as other â€Å"pivotal† responses. These are key skills that allow better access to social information. The idea of â€Å"pivotal skills† to be targeted as goals may also hold for a broad range of behaviors such as imitation (Stone, 1997; Rogers and Pennington, 1991), maintaining proximity to peers (Hanson and Odom, 1999), and learning to delay gratification (understanding â€Å"first do this, then you get to do that†). Longitudinal research has found that early joint attention, symbolic play, and receptive language are predictors of long-term outcome (Siller and Sigman, 2002). Although the research to date has been primarily correlational, one inference has been that if interventions succeed in modifying these key behaviors, more general improvements will occur as well (Kasari, 2000). Another explanation is that these behaviors are early indicators of the child’s potential developmental trajectory. Sometimes goals for treatment and education involve attempting to limit and treat the effects of one aspect of autism, with the assumption that such a treatment will allow a child to function more competently in a range of activities. For example, a number of different treatment programs emphasize treating the sensory abnormalities of autism, with the implication that this will facilitate a child’s acquisition of communication or social skills (e. g. , auditory integration; sensory integration). For many interventions, supporting these links through research has been difficult. There is little evidence to support identifiable links between general treatment of a class of behaviors (e. g. , sensory dysfunction) and improvements in another class of behaviors (e. g. , social skills), especially when the treatment is carried out in a different context from that in which the targeted behaviors are expected to appear. However, there are somewhat different examples in other areas of education and medicine in which interventions have broad effects on behavior. One example is the effect of vigorous exercise on general behavior in autism (Koegel, Koegel, Shoshan, & McNerney, 1999). In addition, both desensitization and targeted exercise in sports medicine and physical therapy often involve working from interventions carried out in one context to generalization to more natural circumstances. Yet, in both of these cases, the shift from therapeutic to real-life contexts is planned explicitly to occur within a relatively brief period of time. At this time, there is no scientific evidence of this kind of link between specifically-targeted therapies and general improvements in autism outside the targeted areas. Until information about such links becomes available, this lack of findings is relevant to goals, because it suggests that educational objectives should be tied to specific, real-life contexts and behaviors with immediate meaning to the child. Because the range of outcomes for children with autistic spectrum disorders is so broad, the possibility of relatively normal functioning in later childhood and adulthood offers hope to many parents of young children. Although recent literature has conveyed more modest claims, the possibility of permanent â€Å"recovery† from autism, in the sense of eventual attainment of language, social and cognitive skills at, or close to, age level, has been raised in association with a number of educational and treatment programs (Ingersoll, Schreibman, & Stahmer, 2001). Natural history studies have revealed that there are a small number of children who have symptoms of autism in early preschool years who do not have these symptoms in any obvious form in later years. Whether these improvements reflect developmental trajectories of very mildly affected children or changes in these trajectories (or more rapid movement along a trajectory) in response to treatment (Lovaas, 1987) is not known. However, as with other developmental disabilities, the core deficits in autism have generally been found to persist in some degree in most persons with autistic spectrum diagnoses. There is no research base explaining how â€Å"recovery† might come about or which behaviors might mediate general change in diagnosis or cognitive level (Ingersoll, Schreibman, & Stahmer, 2001). Although there is evidence that interventions lead to improvements and that some children shift specific diagnoses within the spectrum and change in severity of cognitive delay in the preschool years, there is not a simple, direct relationship between any particular current intervention and â€Å"recovery† from autism. Because there is always room for hope, recovery will often be a goal for many children, but in terms of planning services and programs, educational objectives must describe specific behaviors to be acquired or changed. Research on outcomes (or whether goals of independence and responsibility have been attained) can be characterized by whether the goal of an intervention is broadly defined (e. g. , â€Å"best outcome†) or more narrowly defined (e. g. , increasing vocabulary, increasing peer-directed social behavior); whether the study design involves reporting results in terms of individual or group changes; and whether goals are short term (i. e. , to be achieved in a few weeks or months) or long term (i. e. , often several years). A large body of single-subject research has demonstrated that many children make substantial progress in response to specific intervention techniques in relatively short time periods (e. g. , several months). These gains occur in many specific areas, including social skills, language acquisition, nonverbal communication, and reductions of challenging behaviors. Often the most rapid gains involve increasing the frequency of a behavior already in the child’s repertoire, but not used as broadly as possible (e. g. , increasing use of words) (Mundy, Sigman, & Kasari, 1990). In single-subject reports, changes in some form are almost always documented within weeks, if not days, after the intervention has begun. Studies over longer periods of time have documented that joint attention, early language skills, and imitation are core deficits that are the hallmarks of the disorder, and are predictive of longer-term outcome in language, adaptive behaviors, and academic skills. However, a causal relationship between improvements in these behaviors as a result of treatment and outcomes in other areas has not yet been demonstrated. Many treatment studies report post intervention placement as an outcome measure (Mundy, Sigman, & Kasari, 1990). Successful participation in regular education classrooms is an important goal for some children with autism. However, its usefulness as an outcome measure is limited because placement may be related to many variables other than the characteristics of a child (such as prevailing trends in inclusion, availability of other services, and parents’ preferences). The most commonly reported outcome measure in group treatment studies of children with autism has been IQ scores (Lord & Schopler, 1989). Studies have reported substantial changes in IQ scores in a surprisingly large number of children in intervention studies and in longitudinal studies in which children received nonspecific interventions. However, even in the treatment studies that have shown the largest gains, children’s outcomes have been variable, with some children making great progress and others showing very small gains. Overall, while much evidence exists that education and treatment can help children attain short-term goals in targeted areas, gaps remain in addressing larger questions of the relationship between particular techniques and both general and specific changes (Lord & Schopler, 1989). The child with autism is also protected in the federal state law. These are the Public Law 108-77 also called Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 and Public Law 105-17 also called Individuals with Disabilities Act or IDEA of 1997. This mandates the major care provider to refer the child with autism and the family to an early intervention service. It was stated that every state has an early intervention program and must make it available to children from birth to three years of age, thus, autistic children are covered under this law. Examples of these program are behavioral methods, early developmental education, communication skills, occupational and physical therapy, and structured social play.

Attitude Formation

Attitude FormationCCSF, Shardlow In Social Psychology attitudes are defined as positive or negative evaluations of objects of thought. Attitudes typically have three components. †¢ The cognitive component is made up of the thoughts and beliefs people hold about the object of the attitude. †¢ The affective component consists of the emotional feelings stimulated by the object of the attitude. †¢ The behavioral component consists of predispositions to act in certain ways toward an attitude object. The object of an attitude can be anything people have opinions about.Therefore, individual people, groups of people, institutions, products, social trends, consumer products, etc. all can be attitudinal objects. †¢ Attitudes involve social judgments. They are either for, or against, pro, or con, positive, or negative; however, it is possible to be ambivalent about the attitudinal object and have a mix of positive and negative feelings and thoughts about it. †¢ Attitude s involve a readiness (or predisposition) to respond; however, for a variety of reasons we don’t always act on our attitudes. †¢ Attitudes vary along dimensions of strength and accessibility.Strong attitudes are very important to the individual and tend to be durable and have a powerful impact on behavior, whereas weak attitudes are not very important and have little impact. Accessible attitudes come to mind quickly, whereas other attitudes may rarely be noticed. †¢ Attitudes tend to be stable over time, but a number of factors can cause attitudes to change. †¢ Stereotypes are widely held beliefs that people have certain characteristics because of their membership in a particular group. †¢ A prejudice is an arbitrary belief, or feeling, directed toward a group of people or its individual members.Prejudices can be either positive or negative; however, the term is usually used to refer to a negative attitude held toward members of a group. Prejudice may lead to discrimination, which involves behaving differently, usually unfairly, toward the members of a group. Psychological factors involved in Attitude Formation and Attitude Change 1. Direct Instruction involves being told what attitudes to have by parents, schools, community organizations, religious doctrine, friends, etc. 2. Operant Conditioning is a simple form of learning. It is based on the â€Å"Law of Effect† and involves voluntary responses.Behaviors (including verbal behaviors and maybe even thoughts) tend to be repeated if they are reinforced (i. e. , followed by a positive experience). Conversely, behaviors tend to be stopped when they are punished (i. e. , followed by an unpleasant experience). Thus, if one expresses, or acts out an attitude toward some group, and this is reinforced by one’s peers, the attitude is strengthened and is likely to be expressed again. The reinforcement can be as subtle as a smile or as obvious as a raise in salary. Operant conditi oning is especially involved with the behavioral component of attitudes. 3.Classical conditioning is another simple form of learning. It involves involuntary responses and is acquired through the pairing of two stimuli. Two events that repeatedly occur close together in time become fused and before long the person responds in the same way to both events. Originally studied by Pavlov, the process requires an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) that produces an involuntary (reflexive) response (UCR). If a neutral stimulus (NS) is paired, either very dramatically on one occasion, or repeatedly for several acquisition trials, the neutral stimulus will lead to the same response elicited by the unconditioned stimulus.At this point the stimulus is no longer neutral and so is referred to as a conditioned stimulus (CS) and the response has now become a learned response and so is referred to as a conditioned response (CR). In Pavlov’s research the UCS was meat powder which led to an UCR of sa livation. The NS was a bell. At first the bell elicited no response from the dog, but eventually the bell alone caused the dog to salivate. Advertisers create positive attitudes towards their products by presenting attractive models in their ads. In this case the model is the UCS and our reaction to him, or her, is an automatic positive response.The product is the original NS which through pairing comes to elicit a positive conditioned response. In a similar fashion, pleasant or unpleasant experiences with members of a particular group could lead to positive or negative attitudes toward that group. Classical conditioning is especially involved with the emotional, or affective, component of attitudes. 4. Social (Observational) Learning is based on modeling. We observe others. If they are getting reinforced for certain behaviors or the expression of certain attitudes, this serves as vicarious reinforcement and makes it more ikely that we, too, will behave in this manner or express thi s attitude. Classical conditioning can also occur vicariously through observation of others. 5. Cognitive Dissonance exists when related cognitions, feelings or behaviors are inconsistent or contradictory. Cognitive dissonance creates an unpleasant state of tension that motivates people to reduce their dissonance by changing their cognitions, feeling, or behaviors. For example, a person who starts out with a negative attitude toward marijuana will experience cognitive dissonance if they start smoking marijuana and find themselves enjoying the experience.The dissonance they experience is thus likely to motivate them to either change their attitude toward marijuana, or to stop using marijuana. This process can be conscious, but often occurs without conscious awareness. 6. Unconscious Motivation. Some attitudes are held because they serve some unconscious function for an individual. For example, a person who is threatened by his homosexual feelings may employ the defense mechanism of r eaction formation and become a crusader against homosexuals.Or, someone who feels inferior may feel somewhat better by putting down a group other than her own. Because it is unconscious, the person will not be aware of the unconscious motivation at the time it is operative, but may become aware of it as some later point in time. 7. Rational Analysis involves the careful weighing of evidence for, and against, a particular attitude. For example, a person may carefully listen to the presidential debates and read opinions of political experts in order to decide which candidate to vote for in an election.

The Components of an Intriguing Biography

The Components of an Intriguing Biography A biography is a story of a persons life, written by another author. The writer of a biography is called a biographer while the person written about is known as the subject or biographee. Biographies usually take the form of a narrative, proceeding chronologically through the stages of a persons life. American author  Cynthia Ozick notes in her essay Justice (Again) to Edith Wharton that a good biography is like a novel, wherein it believes in the idea of a life as a triumphal or tragic story with a shape, a story that begins at birth, moves on to a middle part, and ends with the death of the protagonist. A biographical essay is a comparatively short work of nonfiction  about certain aspects of a persons life. By necessity, this  sort of essay  is much  more selective than a full-length biography, usually focusing only on key experiences and events in the subjects  life. Between History and Fiction Perhaps because of this novel-like form, biographies fit squarely between written history and fiction, wherein the author often uses personal flairs and must invent details filling in the gaps of the story of a persons life that cant be gleaned from first-hand or available documentation like home movies, photographs, and written accounts. Some critics of the form argue it does a disservice to both history and fiction, going so far as to call them unwanted offspring, which has brought a great embarrassment to them both, as Michael Holroyd puts it in his book Works on Paper: The Craft of Biography and Autobiography. Nabokov even called biographers psycho-plagiarists, meaning that they steal the psychology of a person and transcribe it to the written form. Biographies are distinct from creative non-fiction such as memoir in that biographies are specifically about one persons full life story from birth to death while creative non-fiction is allowed to focus on a variety of subjects, or in the case of memoirs certain aspects of an individuals life. Writing a Biography For writers who want to pen another persons life story, there are a few ways to spot potential weaknesses, starting with making sure proper and ample research has been conducted   pulling resources such as newspaper clippings, other academic publications, and recovered documents and found footage.    First and foremost, it is the duty of biographers to avoid misrepresenting the subject as well as acknowledging the research sources they used. Writers should, therefore, avoid presenting a personal bias for or against the subject as being objective is key to conveying the persons life story in full detail. Perhaps because of this, John F. Parker observes in his essay Writing: Process to Product that some people find writing a biographical essay easier than writing an  autobiographical  essay. Often it takes less effort to write about others than to reveal ourselves. In other words, in order to tell the full story, even the bad decisions and scandals have to make the page in order to truly be authentic.

Watching TV Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Watching TV - Essay Example For that reason, it keeps people more aware of their surroundings making people smarter when it comes to solving societal issues. Therefore, in my opinion TV makes people to be intelligent. This argument is in agreement with Steven Johnson essay† watching T.V makes you smarter.† The choice of material that people choose to watch on television is what matter in relation to the intelligence it is going to add on that person. For example, shows like Simpson have an entertaining aspect while at the same time has quality of morals and knowledge that it shares with it viewers. For that reason, most people who spend their time watching the Simpson get to grasp knowledge what the show is trying to bring out (Johnson 170). Furthermore, the shows targets the average American so promoting the life of a middleclass American. By so doing, it encourages individuals who watch the show because they know that there is a person who understands what they are facing each day, hence adding and intellectual advantage. Moreover, television has its advantages when it comes to the group of people it wants to target. The television shows that are aired have an age bracket meaning that the content that is aired for children adds some intellectual value. For example, tellytubbies and other cartoons act as a good method to measure the children intellectual capability to establish whether they understand the content. Thus, although the content is entertaining it also grabs the attention of the children meaning that at the end of the show they will have achieved something. Furthermore, television acts as an intellectual advantage because it promotes many possibilities such as higher learning, as well as, providing entertainment (Johnson 175). For example, when watching a documentary a person get to understand many thing and by seeing the visual pictures on the documentary makes them more alert; hence, acting as a great source of gathering

Native American Music Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Native American Music - Essay Example Dance competitions are usually a part of a Powwow to promote interaction between the people within the same tribes or between different people from different tribes. The Grand entry marks the beginning of a Powwow. All the people enter the showground and everyone is asked to hoist up flags. These flags include different tribal flags along with a US flag which is raised in memory of all the wars and battles waged by the tribesmen in the country. The music for the songs and the dance competition is provided by the drums. The drum is specially designed to be large and a group of drummers beat it while the traditional songs are being sung. There is generally a starting song for the event, the grand entry song as a call for all the people who have participated, flag songs to show patriotism and respect and a closing song to mark the end of the Powwow. The Powwow is a way of the tribes’ thanksgiving to the creator and the dances are treated like an offering. The dance performances a re a way of celebration of the circle of life and for this reason the setting of the Powwow is also a circle. The area reserved for dancing is known as arbor and is also a large circular area within the location. Most of the cultural activities like contest dancing, drum competition, ceremonials, singing and cultural exhibition usually take place inside the arbor. Contest dancing is actually an evolution of the traditional dancing in which good dancers were awarded with small prizes. Now the dancers have huge fan following and are given heavy cash prizes for the entertainment they provide to everyone attending the Powwow. The other entertainment activities like gambling games, parades, food stalls, exhibition of arts and crafts usually take place outside the arbor. After the grand entry performance and the flag songs, there are traditional dances performed which include the sneak-up dance, victory dance, inter-tribal dance and veteran’s dance. An important part of the Powwow culture is the respect and veneration which they hold for traditions and individuals. Honoring songs are hence also an essential part of a Powwow. Honoring songs are sung not only for particular persons but also in reminiscence of a particular event. These songs may praise the valor of a hero or the administration skills of a well known leader of a particular tribe. These songs may also be sung in remembrance of a war or a particular cultural practice. Sneak up dance song: The sneak up dance is one of the most famous dances of the Native American tribes. The dance is actually a tableau of a scene which depicts how to ‘sneak’ up on an enemy or a prey. There are many different versions of this dance but all of them run on the same theme of using stealth to gain an advantage over the opponent. In the most famous and the oldest version of the dance, arbor represents a battle ground where some men have become wounded and need help from their companions. Before the start of t he dance, the wounded are escorted in the middle of the arbor. During the first part of the dance the wounded stay in their position motionless while the dancers dance with their heads facing the wounded. Then the rolling beat starts on the drums to create thundering sound which actually symbolizes the action and mayhem of the battlefield. The drum beats then become slow and the dancers slow their movement and advance towards the wounded. When the beating stops, the dancers freeze in