Principles of Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Principles of Law - Essay Example Doctrine of Judicial Precedence This doctrine is based on the principle of stare decisis which simply means to â€Å"stand by what has been decided and do not unsettle the established† (Dernbach and Richard 1981, p.35). The decision is based on two principles, ratio decidendi and obiter dictum, which means the reason for the judgment and other things, said pertaining to the case respectively. It is important to note that, though the obiter might not be part of the judgment, but it can be used in future judgments because of its persuasive nature (Knoops 2005, p.2). Original precedence present themselves in the nature that the present case is coming to the court for the first time and the presiding judge does not have the opportunity or chance to look at past decisions to make a decision on a point of law (Rossini 1998, p.34). This is what is known, as reasoning by analogy and the decision made in the case at hand will be binding at future cases. For example in the case of DPP v Smith (2006), where the defendant had gone to visit her former girlfriend and held her down cutting out her valued hair, the learned magistrate held that it was not actual bodily harm resulting out of assault. On appeal, it was held that even if the issue of the hair was to be determined scientifically or medically, the hair above the scalp was still regarded as hair regardless of its nature. The judges therefore decided that this was actual bodily harm and therefore the case provided precedence for future cases. Binding precedence on the other hand or those whereby a case has been made and future judges or the present judge must abide by it regardless of his or her own opinion. This therefore means that courts in the lower ranks must follow the particular decision regardless of any new issue arising and the cases presented must be similar to the previous decision or must have facts that are almost similar to the case at hand. The judicial system in England and Wales are such that courts are bound and they must follow the cases and decisions made in the upper or superior courts as the decisions in these cases provide precedents that must be followed in future cases with similar circumstances. These cases must therefore be followed or applied by courts down the hierarchy. It is important to note that magistrates or subordinate courts do not set precedent but they must follow the cases set by the superior courts, in this case the House of Lords or the appellate courts (Antoine 2008, p.118). Persuasive precedents are those in which the court decides whether to follow the precedence set or not to follow it. This precedence is not binding to the court and the court can follow them or ignore them depending on the legal principle in the case (Mitchelle and Minel 2003, p.73). These precedents can come from the lower courts or the magistrate courts and only the legal principles present in them can be applied in the upper courts. In R v R 1991, the Court of Appeal prov ided a persuasive precedence for an upper court, the House of Lords holding that a man can be found guilty of rape as against his wife. The Privy Councils in England and Wales are also influential providers of persuasive precedence to the courts of law though the decisions are not as binding as decisions made in a court of law. For example in R v Mohammed 2005,

The Plan of Marching of the Poor of Martin Luther King Junior Coursework

The Plan of Marching of the Poor of Martin Luther King Junior - Coursework Example 1968 was a year with both good and bad occurrences.   Good because it was the year when Martin Luther King Junior had led the plan of marching of the poor. Luther had intended to mobilize the poor in America to move to Washington on a campaign he dabbed Poor People’s Campaign. At the beginning of 1968, King had been able to travel widely so that he could get more and more support from the poor in America.   In his quest, King intended to bring broad and mixed racial together for a common course, a move that worked in uniting Americans for a common purpose at a time when racism was at its height in United States of America. King was advancing his argument to the wider American poor community with reference to how America had treated the majority poor badly without exposing them to resources to make them productive in the society. King had addressed matters that he believed were ailing America as at that time. He pointed racism, poverty and war as the main problems of America. Specifically, he had condemned the involvement of America with the Vietnam war and described the war as the most unjust war that America had involved itself with. The year was bad because in the same period when King was planning for the march, he was murdered. This made it had for the march to continue successfully. Led by Ralph Abernathy, the march went ahead but it was described as a failure. The march had been marred with rain. The media had given it a wide berth and the congress ignored the event.

The Public Transport In London Sociology Essay

The Public Transport In London Sociology Essay London is the capital of England and is one of the largest cities of the world as well of the United Kingdom. The city has a huge population of 8,174,100, making it the  most populous municipality in the European Union. All these people have to move in order to lead their life and a huge number of the population take the private transport for travelling. Although there are many people who travel on their private vehicles, an appreciable number of people take the public transport. London being one of the most modern cities of the world also offers many options to its citizens for travelling. There are  underground train services,  London Buses,  Tram link, the  Docklands Light Railway,  over ground, air transports and other options. A report suggests that annually in London, there are a staggering 2 billion of bus journeys, 1 billion of underground journeys and 800 million journeys on National Rail networks. Body All the people of London travel in the public transports throughout the day. People travel, go to their work, students go to schools by these public transports. A survey was made on the public transport in London by taking opinions from the people of London. The survey was done with people of different ages. The people were asked different questions and their answers were studied. The question asked comprised of two types. One category had one word answers and the other had elaborate options. However, all the questions were multiple choice questions. We gathered a clear idea about the public transport in London from the survey. The first ten questions were one word answers. The survey takers just ticked on any one of the option between yes and no. We found different opinions from different people. Peoples responses also differed with their ages and economic capacities. The first ten questions are given in the table below, along with their answers. The answers are given in percentage after making a calculation from the responses and opinions of the people. Serial Question Answer in Percentage 01 Do you travel in Public transport? 60% 02 Do you have a private transport? 50% 03 Are you a regular traveller? 50% 04 Do you have any income? 70% 05 Do you go to work by public transport? 90% 06 Is Public Transports of London comfortable? 60% 07 Is it cheaper than private transports? 100% 08 Do you find the Public Transports crowd? 80% 09 Do other members of your family travel in public transports? 60% 10 Are you happy with the Public Transports of London? 70% Table No. 01 The outcome of the survey helps to draw a picture of the Public transport of London. The study shows that more than half of the people of London avail public transport. Here we see the figure stands 60%. In addition to that it is seen that a good number of people do not have a private vehicle. Now, the next question asked to the survey takers was if they were regular travellers. 50% of them agreed that they were regular passengers. It meant that they were regular customers and that they depended of public transport. People travel and make journeys for various purposes. The study shows that most of the people went to work in public transport. So, public transport is a very essential medium for going to the work place. It is at the same time a very prominent option for the employees. However, one thing cannot be denied at all. During rush hours and even at some other time of the day, there are huge crowd in these transports. This problem does not happen at all time but mostly during rush hours. The problem is not because there is less number of vehicles but that there are more people at the same time. The scenery is common while people start for office and then again when they return. For this reason 80% of the people said that public transports were filled with crowd. The survey went to details about the topic and about the feeling of the people. The questions were done for the other family members of the people. The individuals were asked if other members of their families used public transports as a mean of travelling. A good number of 60% of the people informed that other members of their family also travelled on these transports. This means that the families that use public transport use the maximum use of it. The last question that was asked to the survey takers was their feeling about the transport systems. It was asked if they were happy with the public transport of London. A total of 70 percent of the people said they were happy with the situation. This conveys a very positive feeling about the Public Transport of London. It also depicts that the communication system of the city is very good, developed and advanced. At the same time it is also very public friendly. The second phase of the survey was the open questions. After getting a picture of the public transport of London the purpose was to go deeper. A total of 5 open questions were asked to get a more elaborate picture. The questions were asked to know about the different types of public transports that the people used. The first of the open question was about the age of the people. The people were asked to disclose their age so that it could be calculated that which age of people took he public transport more. The chart below shows the age wise transporters. Chart No. 01 The chart clearly shows that the most of the people taking public transports are from the age of 15-30. The next group of people who take this transport are the people of aging between 30 and 45 years. Almost no people aging below 15 take the public transport and there are a few people aging 45 to 60 years old take the transports. People aging above 60 do use public transport but they are very few. It means the children are not independent, they depend on their parents. So, they normally do not travel on public transports. The do not usually travel much. If they even do, they are accompanied by their parents. The old people do less travelling, so their percent is also low. The people, who are young aging between 15 to 45 years, are the ones who take the public transport most. It is because they go to work, attain classes, and do all other travelling by the public transports. The next question that was asked to the people was their occupation. It was really needed to know which class or group of people used the public transport most. The chart below reflects the travelling of different people. Chart No. 02 The chart clearly shows which category of the people takes the public transport most. It shows that the working people use the maximum utilization. Next are the students and then are the people looking for work. People go to their work places with the public transports. The students also take this for going to their educational institutions. People who are looking for work are also taking the help of the public transport. The later questions elaborate why these people use this means. The third question that was asked to the people was that which public transports they found more comfortable. London is a city of many dwellers and there are also many options of public transports. The city firstly like all others have public buses. The city has a long and connected underground rail line. It is one of the oldest in the world but much advanced. The railway changed and advanced to the highest extends with the introduction of all the modern technologies. Normal trains are also available added with trumps. The chart below shows the percentage of the different public transports taken by the people. Chart No. 03 The chart clearly shows that most of the people of London take the underground. That means the underground rail transport holds the maximum passengers. It alone carries about 50 percent of the public. The next are the buses and then the trump. The airways is least taken by the people. Air is not so popular because it is expensive. The next question was asked which public transport was lower in cost. The options were the same. The chart below shows the result. Chart No. 04 The data shows that the underground train is the cheapest. That is one of the reasons why people take this transport. The percentage is 70 percent. The figure next to it is the bus which is about 25 percent. The last question that was asked to the people was that which transport saved more time. The chart shows the situation below. Chart No. 05 The answer to the question that which transport saves time is different from all the others. Although very few of the people took the air lines, most of them agreed that airn transport saved the time most. The percent was 70%. The reason again why it was not 100% is because of the distance. Shorter distance could easily be travelled by train and then by buses. Conclusion All the data and the discussions above show a clear picture of the transport system of London. It shows that most of the people of London do take the Public Transport. The study finds that the underground railway dominates among the public transports. London has a very well organized public transport and it is also very advanced in technology. The people living in London are also comfortable with their Public Transport.

What does religion do for us? :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What exactly does religion do for us? Sure, it’s a nice concept that makes one believe in other worldly things. Spirits and angels flood the heads of many children whose parents partake in the average slice and dice of Catholic smorgasbords, but what does it do for their souls? Are they all just workaholics who need a reason to be the way they are, or are they monsters merely extending a strange and open faà §ade in order to gain acceptance in the afterlife? All the same, religion does have its effect on many.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What we can be sure of is that the preachers believe in what they’re saying. Or do they? The display of onerous, burdensome stages of guilt seem to plague most of the bible passages, but no harm is seen in the acceptance of these. Sure they are all hand-me-downs of rinse cycle lives, but who is the one to blame for all this? Is it God? Or is there one to blame for all of this? What kind of question is to be answered by this cunning display of fortitude? The fact that their focus determines their reality has nothing to do with the audience captivated by the stunning repetition so often spoke, but it often is said that it does. One should believe in such a myth because of its popularity and outright approval.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Could the choir have something to do with why religion is so popular? Do angelic voices seem to enslave mans ideals and shun them to the furthest reaches of space, or is that done himself? One must come to believe in a God he cannot see because of the hymns blissfully sung by the elder women who have retired many years ago and have nothing better to do with their time than go to choir practice. In these extraordinary hymnals, people are told how much God and Jesus love them, and that the soul is free to choose its place. It makes one wonder if they have a soul.

Child & Young Person Development

0-3 yearsNewborn babies will have next to no control over their own bodies. Very small movements such as sucking and grasping these are all dependent on a series of reflexes; they do these in order to survive. By the end of their first year they would of gain more advanced mobility.Gross motor skills- for using their larger muscles to being into the sitting position without any assistance. And more fine motor skills- for using much smaller muscles like fingers and toes to being able to pass objects from hand to hand.In their second year babies/toddlers will still continue to development stronger muscles and continue to grow quickly. By this age they might be able walk and they will have more control on these movements and maybe able to feed themselves. They will have much enjoyment in playing games and toys such as playing ball, climbing on furniture or on the stairs. By the third year they might be able to dress themselves maybe with little assistance from others. And for fine motor skills with holding and drawing with pencils and pens. Also by this age they should have full ability for feeding themselves. As they continue to grow to grow so does their confidence as well.3-7 yearsBy this age children would of already started school and therefore will be able to show many different co-ordinated movements. Still be growing as a small person in confidence as a result. They should be improving skills already acquired so far but they will learn to have more control on fine motor skills such as using scissors for cutting and a pen for writing. As they continue to develop their gross motor skills will be more refined in more active activities such as running, playing sports and with use of larger equipment.7-12 years By this age group children will still continue to grow and train them skills. And now should have interest and hobbies, in which they will enjoy doing them. They will start to become more experienced in some areas a great example of this could be playing a particular sport such as football or even dance. In these activities much finer movement might be needed and this will be required for playing an musical instrument. As from this early age girls just might have started some signs of puberty, but boys usually start this later on.12-16 years This is when boys usually start puberty where girls will have now to have regular periods. There might be a large variety in height and strength. Boys will tenders to be taller than most girls on average.16-19 years This is when young people are now classed as young adults. Most girls would of now reached physical movement. Where on the other hand boys will still grow and change into their mid 20s.Communication and intellectual development Children will learn and develop at different stages. Language is a link to learning. They pick things up from their own experiences and from opportunities that they might be given from a very early age. Both communication and intellectual development can be s eem from certain tasks, and then will show own strengths and abilities by those tasks. People will have many different ideas/ways about the learning development of the way children learn. 0-3 yearsThere have been many studies shown, that in cases children who have been neglected from an early age; who don’t spend time with adults to those who have time spending time with adults. Those children who have been neglected will find it hard to learn skills and won’t have effective communication in later life. Even though babies are unable to grasp what is being said to them.They will listen and will enjoy songs and dance movement. By the end  of their first year children will start to communicate through odd words then will start to put one and two words together. As they develop so will their vocabulary will increase quite quickly, to on average most children at this age of two will know about 200 words. When they reach 2-3 years old they will still make errors with in th e correct grammar when speaking.3-7 yearsAs children start nurseries and schools as they become more social, they will gain a wider range of encounters, by this they will start to increase the number of parses that are well known and expressing. As they develop more they will start to ask a lot of questions such as â€Å"why† and â€Å"what†. Talking in past and further tenses will become easier and will be spoken with more confidence. And will look for approval from adults when starting a task.7-12 years By this age children will become fluent speakers on their main language(s). Their reading and writing abilities will become more developed. They will start to deliberate ideas they may have. They will start to show learning in more abstract terms. They will start to grasp information and will start in a more intellectual way.12-18 years By this age children would be starting or already started high school and will know what they like and dislike, favourite or least fa vourite subjects at school. And more interest will be shown in these liked subjects and activities and therefore be more absorbed in these. By this age children will be getting ready to select their chosen GCSE’s and A’ levels they would like to accomplish. If young adults lack confidence this maybe with the way it is being truant. Every young adult will feel the need to belong and feel good with what they doing and within them.16-19 years This is the time that most young adults will be leaving education and will start thinking about careers or university. And from them subjects they have chosen what qualifications they have gained. In these areas of interest,  strength will still carry on to develop as they move on.Social, emotional and behavioural development To become confided independent adults, as children we learn and develop from watching and relating to others. By being social from an early age we then learn the rights and wrongs and what is normal for accept able behaviour. In order to develop they will need to feel safe and in a secure setting environment to develop into a confided strong minded adult who advises their best ability.0-3 years As from every early age babies will gain a strong bond or attachment to which they spread most time with e.g. parent or carers. Though this social development as time goes by they will want to start to do for themselves and though disturbance will or may have tantrums of some kind.3-7years Children will still continue to find their identities. They will adore starting to play with others and with using imaginative play they will then be able to socialise. It is vital that they learn boundaries and grade lines, and why they are there. Children will still long for adult approval when given responsibility.7-12years Children will start to gain long term friends and come to be more settled in these relationships. They will be able to accomplished many forms of different activities and learn to solve pro blems. As they gain more experience they will still need to be reassurance and will quickly learn to be aware of what others think of them. All children should be given plenty of praise and encouragement to help them find themselves and nurture.12-16years As children become into young adults there will be a lot of change inside and out, with various different signs of maturity and may become vulnerable. Therefore children will still need adult guidance from many ways. Even  though they are will spending more time with other peeps; they will show some signs of childish behaviour. This age group will find themselves under pressure or stress of growing up, doing well in exams at school and what will or might be expected from them. They therefore might be unaware on how to behave in different circumstances that might occur.16-19years As they leave education and entre adulthood they will require guidance from others. As they start to entre careers and jobs thy will have none or very li ttle experience. This will influence on their emotional development and will have a knock on effect to the way they interact with others. And therefore adults should understand to their needs.1.2 From a child having an ability or disability to do something can have an effect on their development as a whole. A child’s development could be slip into groups, but they interlink with one another. If a child doesn’t develop well in a subject or an area it can affect many different ones. For example if a child is overweight not only can disrupt with their physical development, it could also have a huge impact on their social and emotional. If other peers tease them about either being overweight or by not being able to do some actives, it could make them less social with making friends. Then the child could find it humiliating, embarrassing and become self-conscious and this will affect their emotional side by low self-esteem. But if a child is talented at something it could a lso affect motions of development.Physical development Social, emotional and behavioural development – Fine motor skill & hand-eye coordination – sharing mealtimes with one another – taking turnsCOOKINGCommunication and intellectual development Measuring quantities Deciding on appropriate menus Using language to describe foods Learning how food and nutrition affect growth and health Sitting down to eat together and conversing with one another2. Understand the kinds of influences that affect children and young people’s development2.1 There are many different influences that could effect on a child’s development. These developments are subjective by a range of factors such as their backgrounds, their health and their environment. All these influences will have impact on different areas.Pupils’ background and family environment Many families will go through change within a child’s time at school these may be due to arrange of different e nvironment within family life different cultures and circumstances and school maybe unaware of any changes. These may be a loss of a family member, illness, moving house or even moving to a new country. Anyone of these could have a huge impact on a child’s life by their emotional development and might have a knock on effect on their intellectual development, then this could change a child’s behaviour and to learn as a factor.Pupils Health It is important that adults to be aware of any health problems that arise. If a child/young adult suffers from poor health or as a disability or impairment. This may restrict their development opportunities. A great example is if a child is overweight due to a medical conditions might be less able to take part in some activities. This may start to affect their physical development; this will then affect social activities. The knock on effect to again emotional will also be impacted. So with adults well aware they should be aware of co nditions & circumstances and that the right amount of support can be given.Poverty and deprivation These are likely to have a extreme influence on a child’s development, it’s proven that if a child comes from a deprived background; they are less likely to achieve well in school. They might find it hard due to lack of opportunities due to parents finding it too hard to manage their needs. By this it will have a turn on impacting on all areas of their development, or lack of it, by this the child will respond differently to situations than others.Personal choices As children turn in to young adults they will start to make their own choices on life, friendships and activities and so on. They will need advice and support from adults to enable then to make the right choices that are right for them.Looked after/ care status If a child is in care, this will have an impact on their development in many different ways. Each child should be monitored closely for any change by hav ing regular meetings. This is too able to meet their needs of that child. And to make sure they are making expected levels of progress. For where any concerns that arise they can be addressed straight away.Education Children learn at different stages; but some children may start school without any previous education. Alternatively that child may come from home schooling environment or maybe just a different way of schooling altogether. Therefore the way o child could be taught can be very well different. So as a result that child may need some extra support till they have settled in.2.2 Anyone who works with or raises children, they need to have a solid understanding of a child development and what makes that child tick. As it is very important to know what is normal for that child and what’s not. By looking out for any problems, we will be able to offer the care and support  needed to get that child back on track. For example, if a child is suffering from a break up in the family; it can be very stressful for that child and this could have an influence on their development as they could become very upset, lash out, could stop eating or could stop talking altogether.It is at most importance that the child feels they’re not at fault. There is certain problem that arises that needs to be disclosed with the school so that safety, integrity and respect on how the issue might impact on the child. In effect is to be proactive to let the child’s teacher know the following problems can stave off more severe issues, that including behaviour problems, poor grades or having difficulty to adjust to the situation the child’s family will be facing. The teacher should inform the child’s parents/carers of any concerns they feel they might have. The sooner the parents are aware the easier it will be to step in and help given any additional support that may be needed.3. Understand the potential effects of transitions on children and young pe ople’s development.3.1 Most children/ young adults may experience transitions. This may be long or short term. Transitions is known as a significant stage or experience in the life this could have an effect on their behaviour and development. Some children go through transitions when starting school for the first time or changing from one school to another, moving house can also have an impact on the child, in that they will have to make new friends. Many children make these transitions without prior personal experience. This can seem appear to them as a daunting list of ‘firsts’. For example a child’s first day at nursery or school; first night away from mum and dad etc. All these could affect the different areas of development.3.2 Sometimes transition can happen that can’t be prepared for, and it is important that the school have polices and carry out the right procedure for dealing in these seduction. If there isn’t a procedure to follow t hat it can be quite different to deal with. Sometimes it can be over looked when the  school is informed of any changes; but if we notice any changes within a child who is behaving uncharacteristically it is important that others are informed. Bereavement can have a huge impact on a child, Even if it is expected. Again the right procedure needs to be followed. Parental separation is likely to happen to a child at the school.And we will need to be sensitive when speaking to parents about this and the effects its having on the child. If a new member is being introduced, or if the amount of contact with a parent changes, this can also have a big impact on the child. Again sensually is required again when speaking about this matter. New siblings – this can found to be difficult to cope with. Emotional and behavioural development can change due to vying for parental attention, maybe for the first time.Moving house – a child can find moving house to an unknown school or ar ea to be very upsetting. It is likely that additional support should be given to help settle them. Change of carer – if a child that as moved a number of times this could again be upsetting and the child can become unsettled if they have a change of a career. The school should have both support and advice needed from social services. They both will need to work closely to help support that child. Illness or injury – we need to come to term with it and any changes in circumstances, even though these could be their own or loved one.3.3 It would be great if any advance notice could be given if a child/ group will be going through a transition so that the right opportunity to support them when or how needed. Some find it important to talk to people about their feeling during these periods by having positive relationships available. A child or group of children that are going through a transition may experience different ways. This may be:Become attention seeking Show signs of uncharacteristic behaviour Be very anxious Become quite and withdrawn If a child doesn’t receive any support other development could also be affected; by social and their emotional development. Children could find some transitions potentially traumatic.

Culture and Anthropology

Evidently culture is difficult to be defined from a single definition. E. B. Tylor, in 1871 described culture as â€Å"that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society† this explanation however, is just a wide collection of different categories that all combined together give rise to the term. A much more accurate term of culture is the one suggested by Ralph Linton, as â€Å"the configuration of learned behavior and results of behavior whose component elements are shared and transmitted by the members of a particular society†. In this term we observe an obvious behaviorist approach which connects culture with the concept of learned behavior and more precisely with the importance of language. Finally Victor Barnouw, based on the previous behaviorist definition, names culture as â€Å"the way of life of a group of people, the configuration of all of the more or less stereotyped patterns of learned behavior which are handed down from one generation to the next through the means of language and imitation† (Victor Barnouw, 1963). Throughout investigating various definitions of culture we accomplished a correlation between learning (mostly through language) and enculturation. Enculturation is a lifelong unconscious process and each child learns the language of its community by imitation, instruction, and from the verbal behavior of others. The capacity of human beings to enlarge and transmit complex cultural patterns is dependent upon language. Then the idea of learning a language is equivalent with the idea of learning a culture. In most of the cases, no individual is aware of all the elements that create his culture but by the time he is grown, he has most probably learned the universal beliefs shared by the members of his community. Cultures vary from the importance they put on formal education as opposed to informal learning. Formal education is present in complex societies with the form of teaching institutes; nevertheless informal education is present within the family and peer group that have equally important role in enculturation. In addition to the importance of language, many societies give great significance even in the vocabulary used by very young children. Charles Ferguson has made a comparative study of infant talk in various societies and the results were fascinating similarities in phonology and morphology as well as the repetition of syllables (â€Å"bye-bye†, â€Å"pee-pee†). The most important reason why anthropologists should study young children’s speech is because it indicates a great deal about the child’s world, as well as its cultural perspective (Philip K. Bock, 1974). From the wide-ranging area of culture to the much more defined function of language, the sphere of research around the study of a particular group of people within the same boarder lines of a city is easier understood if the researcher (anthropologist) concentrates the interest of his attention, around a variety of traits with a common base the formal teaching or the informal learning from the inner community, always through the usage of language as an unconscious procedure. When you live in city like Athens and in general into a comparatively small country like Greece, an idea of universality is created in the individual. This might be the result of the modern-informational ages we are living or the outcomes of globalization that puts pressure on the individual to think always â€Å"big† and fast and not to stop in small details or differences. But in the end, those small differences compose our everyday lives and our everyday morality and finally time is needed to reveal those differences that the most of us wrongly take for granted.

Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance Essay Example

Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance Essay Example Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance Essay Skills for Life Assessment and Learning Guidance Essay Please note that this content is based on the Skills for Life Assessment and Learning guidance booklet Initial and diagnostic assessment a learner-centered process. The original booklet can be found at: http://sflip.excellencegateway.org.uk/assessment/assessmentguidence.aspx. This adapted version is part of the Being functional resource which builds on effective practice to support the planning and delivery of functional skills. For more information, go to www.excellencegateway.org.uk/beingfunctional. What is an initial and diagnostic assessment? Initial and diagnostic assessment begins the process of getting to know learners and building a relationship with them. Initial assessment happens at the time of a learnerâ„ ¢s transition into a new learning programme. It is a holistic process, during which you and the learner start to build up a picture of their achievements, skills, interests, previous learning experiences and goals, and the learning needs associated with those goals. This information is used as a basis for negotiating a course or programme. Diagnostic assessment helps to identify specific learning strengths and needs. It determines learning targets and appropriate teaching and learning strategies to achieve them. This is important because many learners have higher-level skills in some areas than in others. Diagnostic assessment happens initially at the beginning of a learning programme and subsequently when the need arises. It is related to specific skills needed for tasks. The two processes are closely linked: diagnostic assessment adds to the information gathered from initial assessment. Together they help you and the learners to use this information in order to: * personalise learning; * develop individual learning plans; * begin the process of assessment for learning that will continue throughout the learnersâ„ ¢ programme; and * make links to progression routes and prepare for the next steps. A positive experience Initial and diagnostic assessment can be among learnersâ„ ¢ first experiences of your organisation and will influence their early impressions. If the experience is positive, active and involving, this will help to create a climate in which learners are able to negotiate and take responsibility for their learning. You can help make the experience positive for learners by: involving them â€Å" do the assessment with themâ„ ¢ not to themâ„ ¢; helping learners to take an active part will encourage motivation and independence; building their self-esteem and sense of self-worth; recognising their strengths and achievements, not just their weaknesses; linking initial and diagnostic assessment to their own aspirations, such as their career choices or aspects of their everyday lives; taking the opportunity to discuss issues such as cultural perceptions, learning difficulties or disabilities that might form barriers to success and lead to career stereotyping; using active listening skills to foster an atmosphere of mutual respect, build relationships with learners and make each learner feel valued; encouraging and establishing a level of trust so that issues for learning can be discussed openly, in context, and dealt with constructively; and making the assessment relevant to their specific context for learning, which will enhance their confidence and self-esteem. Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approaches Initial and diagnostic assessment should involve a range of methods and approaches, none of which is sufficient on its own. It is important to evaluate the quality of information obtained from particular methods. Once you have begun to get to know the learners and their learning preferences, you will be better able to select the appropriate assessment methods. The diagram below shows a range of possible methods. Adapted from The initial assessment toolkit (Key Skills Support Programme, 2007). Documents and records give evidence of achievements and include qualifications, records of achievement, references, non-academic certificates and awards. Self-assessment gives learners some idea of where their strengths and weaknesses lie. It is vital to take learnersâ„ ¢ own views into account and to make the most of this knowledge. Discussions and interviews allow teachers and learners to get to know each other. They also provide an excellent opportunity to feed back the results of other assessment methods and to probe more deeply. Assessment tools can play an important role in objective initial and diagnostic assessment of functional skills. Tools are also sometimes used to assess occupational skills and learning difficulties and/or disabilities. Structured group or individual activities during induction and early parts of the programme allow learners to apply specific skills. A free writing task, for example, gives a rounded picture of how someone actually writes. Such a task also helps to put learners at the centre of the assessment process because they can write about themselves and their interests. Observation gives a broader picture of the whole person and how they perform in a range of contexts. This will give insights into learnersâ„ ¢ strengths, how they work with others, how they think, how confident they are and how willing they are to ask for help. Try this: 1.Make the assessment relevant to learnersâ„ ¢ context and interests. This may mean planning activities or using assessment tools related to learnersâ„ ¢ vocational areas or everyday interests. Providing a context for the assessment helps the learners to see how skills can be transferred. 2.Gather information from activities that learners carry out in other parts of their programme. For example, you can: a.observe them on a work placement; b.use examples of their writing to assess their skills. 3.Select a blend of assessment methods to suit individual learners and their circumstances. Tools for assessing functional skills/Skills for Life Tools that have effectively supported the assessment of Skills for Life could be adapted to provide support for assessing functional English and functional mathematics and incorporate functional ICT. It is important that the following points are understood. Functional skills standards should be applied and adhered to. For more information on functional skills and the standards, go to www.qcda.gov.uk or the Ofqual website at www.ofqual.gov.uk/. It is important to recognise that the levelâ„ ¢ of a functional skill is determined by a combination of factors: familiarity of the situation or problem to the learners; independence of the learners in identifying and selecting the skills they will need, and in tackling the situation or problem; complexity of the situation or problem the learners are tackling; and technical demand of the skill required. Learners whose functional English, functional mathematics or functional ICT is being assessed should be able to: consider a problem or task; identify the functional skills (whether English, mathematics or ICT) that will help them to solve it; select from the range of skills in which they are competent (or know what help they need and who to ask); and apply their skills appropriately. Any terminology used should be consistent with that of functional skills (for example, LLNâ„ ¢ should be replaced with functional Englishâ„ ¢ and/or functional mathematicsâ„ ¢, as required). Assessment may highlight areas of individual support learners may need which could enable them to achieve goals and targets agreed as part of their individual learning plans. Initial assessment tools provide information about learnersâ„ ¢ current levels of functional skills, measured against national standards. They are useful in helping to match learners to an appropriate learning programme and in directing further, more in-depth, assessment. Diagnostic assessment materials assess all aspects of functional skills. There are also materials that can be used to explore whether learners would benefit from further assessment for specific learning difficulties (such as dyslexia). Specific diagnostic tasks should be selected and used at the start of a learning programme but also regularly throughout the programme to assess particular skills as further needs are identified. Diagnostic materials help you to discuss and agree with individual learners: learning targets for both consolidating existing skills and developing new ones; recommendations about how the learner will tackle new learning; and their own priorities: for example, skills needed at work. For details on functional skills standards and tools built specifically for the assessment of functional skills, see the Want to know moreâ„ ¢ section on page 8. Who carries out initial and diagnostic assessment What skills are needed Staff who carry out initial assessment are able to: understand the whole assessment process; present it to learners in a positive and constructive way; value and engage with learners; use a variety of approaches appropriate to individual learners and their context for learning; interpret results appropriately and give professional feedback to learners; recommend learning programmes; and refer learners for further expert assessment. In addition to the above, staff who carry out diagnostic assessment can also: use the outcomes to plan individual and group learning; and monitor progress. It is important that staff involved in initial and diagnostic assessment are well trained and able to use professional judgement. A team approach ensures consistency and reliability and increases staff confidence and skills. If tools are used as part of the assessment process, staff need to have training in using them effectively. Feedback from assessment Giving timely, constructive feedback to individuals is crucial to effective initial and diagnostic assessment. Try this: 1.Stress the positive. Always celebrate what learners have done well. This helps to build confidence. 2.Seek learnersâ„ ¢ views and value their contribution. This will help them to get better at assessing their own work, which is vital to their becoming independent learners. 3.Frame questions carefully and use prompts such as Would you like to say more about thatâ„ ¢. 4.Pause for a few seconds after questions have been posed or responses have been given, to encourage learners to carefully consider and expand on what they say or have said. 5.Be specific. Avoid generalisations such as There are a lot of inaccuraciesâ„ ¢ and instead focus on individual points which you can discuss with the learners. This will enable them to set their own individual short-term targets with guidance from assessment as evidence. 6.Focus on things learners can change, and avoid overloading them with too much feedback at once. 7.Look for ways forward together. Share ideas and explore solutions rather than always putting forward your own suggestions. 8.Agree what you will both do as a result. This could include agreeing new targets or planning learning opportunities. Feedback is not a one-way process. Invite learners to comment on what you do as well. Using the data from initial and diagnostic assessment For you and the learners Information from the initial and diagnostic assessment process should be used to develop individual learning goals and targets and to inform appropriate teaching and learning strategies and use of resources. It should be recorded in the individual learning plans, session plans and schemes of work. Effective use of assessment data: makes sure that planned learning is grounded in the learnersâ„ ¢ needs and priorities; avoids learners wasting time by going over old ground unnecessarily; and reduces the risk of learners being frustrated by tasks that are beyond them. Data should be shared with all staff supporting the learners so that all learning can be differentiated to take account of their strengths and needs. It is important that where learners are following vocational pathways, vocational and functional skills staff work together to plan learning in response to the findings from initial and diagnostic assessment. This ensures that learners have opportunities to develop functional skills in their vocational context. For managers and the organisation Good initial and diagnostic assessment make a significant contribution to the overall quality of provision by: ensuring that learners are on the right course or programme; maintaining motivation; and improving learnersâ„ ¢ achievement and progression. Your organisation should require you to record assessment results on the Management Information System (MIS). Assessment data should be collated and analysed to ensure that programmes offered are appropriate for learnersâ„ ¢ skills profiles. Key messages from the assessment data relating to particular programmes should be fed back to curriculum teams to inform the development of appropriate teaching and learning strategies, so that all learners are provided with suitable opportunities to develop and progress. How initial and diagnostic assessment fit in with other assessment processes Want to know more To find out more about functional skills: www.qcda.gov.uk For support with functional skills: www.fssupport.org/ Rethinking induction (cross-curricular): http://tlp.excellencegateway.org.uk/tlp/xcurricula/index.html Rethinking induction (Engineering): http://tlp.excellencegateway.org.uk/tlp/eng/resource/rethinkinginduc/index.html Motivational dialogue: http://tlp.excellencegateway.org.uk/tlp/personalisation/md/resource/#content.php Top tips introduction If you are a manager or teacher with responsibility for teaching and learning, the curriculum or quality assurance, using these booklets will support you in planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluating high-quality assessment practices for functional skills provision. Just as in other programmes, your assessment practices for functional skills need to align themselves to the needs of learners and to help deliverers to provide the best possible advice and feedback, so that the learners are able to develop English, mathematics and ICT skills and become more aware of their skills and how they select and use these skills to achieve their educational, employment and life goals. Everything we know about good assessment can be transferred to assessing functional skills. In particular, the assessment for learning principles, which encourage learners to take a role in their assessment as a way to develop awareness and independence, are very useful to functional skills managers and practi tioners. This resource allows you to benefit from best practice in assessment using lessons from assessment for learning. The following practical tips can be used to address particular issues or development needs in your organisation. The booklets contain key messages, checklists and flowcharts that can be adapted for a wide range of audiences and purposes, such as staff/team development, working with learners, guidance notes or handouts. The booklets can be used together to support improvement at each stage and type of learner assessment: initial, diagnostic, formative and summative. The Top Tips leaflets listed below offer some practical suggestions for getting the most out of the information and guidance contained in the accompanying booklets. 1.High-quality assessment processes â€Å" guidance for managers 2.Using skills checks 3.Initial and diagnostic assessment 4.Individual learning plans 5.Assessment for learning All the leaflets can be downloaded as Word documents and customised with your own logos and text to suit your individual purposes. Please note that in the resource Being functional, numbers 2, 3 and 5 accompany CPD activity 1: Assessment for learning and numbers 1 and 4 accompany CPD activity 3: Whole organisation approach. Initial and diagnostic assessment Top Tips â€Å" some practical suggestions For staff Use the leaflet as a staff development tool, together with the initial and diagnostic assessment checklist which can be downloaded from: http://sflip.excellencegateway.org.uk/assessment/assessmentresources.aspx Tailor this to your organisation to provide a focus on what is well-developed practice and practice that needs further development. The Feedback from assessmentâ„ ¢ section on page 5 provides an effective checklist for staff involved in assessing learners. This good-practice guidance applies to giving all feedback, and you could use it in staff training â€Å" perhaps using role play. Remember that functional skills focuses on how learners select and apply their skills in context. So ensure that your initial and diagnostic assessments look at how well, how confidently and how independently learners use their skills. Allow them to comment on their confidence and how well they feel they used their skills. For learners The information can be adapted for learners to explain the assessment processes that will happen, often during induction sessions. This will enable you to tailor the information to your own organisationâ„ ¢s assessment processes. For example, the information from page 1 may be adapted to speak directly to the learner: Initial and diagnostic assessment begin the process of getting to know you and working together. Initial assessment happens when you move onto a new learning programme and helps us to build up a picture of you and your skills, interests and achievements ¦ Ask learners to comment on their skills and confidence themselves, allowing you to note their speaking skills and self-awareness while promoting their ownership of their skills and of their learning. For managers You could adapt the Using the data from initial and diagnostic assessmentâ„ ¢ section on page 6 as a memo or notice to staff, particularly at key points during programmes. The information could be used to develop staff practice in effective information sharing and underline the importance of completing and reporting such data in an accurate and timely manner. It can also raise awareness of the importance of this information in enabling managers to make decisions and to monitor systems. The Information Mapping Action Plan, which can be downloaded from http://sflip.excellencegateway.org.uk/assessment/assessmentresources.aspx provides additional resources for identifying who needs what information from assessment processes and why. The visual representation of how initial and diagnostic assessment fit with other assessment processes (page 7) could be adapted to make a poster for display in staff workrooms and resource centres. Information For staff The text of the leaflet or relevant sections e.g. Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approachesâ„ ¢ on page 2, could be customised to your particular organisation so that staff involved in assessment have access to up-to-date and focused information about the processes in place. Changes to systems and processes (such as data collection or use of specific tools) can then be made easily and speedily. For learners Information about your vision to ensure a positive experience of assessment for learners could be adapted from the A positive experienceâ„ ¢ section on page 1. This could be used in course brochures and programme information for parents and learners to promote understanding and good practice. This could also be used in learner feedback, allowing you to judge how positive the experience has been for learners. For managers You could adapt information on approaches, tools and data management from the following sections: Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approachesâ„ ¢ (page 2); Tools for assessing functional skills/Skills for Life (page 3); and Using the data from initial and diagnostic assessmentâ„ ¢ (page 6). Use these sources to create a brief summary for managers to use with a range of audiences such as governors, inspectorate, programme funders and cross-organisation sharers of information (such as diploma consortia). Used together with information from other leaflets in the series, specifically High-quality assessment processes: guidance for managers, this could provide a comprehensive overview of assessment to support effective practice and disseminate these approaches more widely. Sections on Initial and diagnostic assessment: methods and approachesâ„ ¢(page 2) and Tools for assessing functional skills/Skills for Life (page 3) could be used to develop an audit and review process for assessment materials currently in use in your organisation. This could also include protocol for evaluating potential new materials and methods supported by a reflective cycle (which might include processes support by the IfL: www.ifl.ac.uk/cpd). Examples of key prompts: What Establish key definitions and main priorities. Agree on what this means to you and your organisation and identify both positives and negatives. So what Reflect on why this is important and the impact that it could have, both on your practice and, ultimately, on your learners. Now what Explore opportunities to improve and agree next steps. Record and reflect on the steps as you take them.

Albania essays

Albania essays For many years, foreign travel to and from Albania was severely restricted. Although the country has been a tourist destination for Europeans for several years, the majority of people in the United State still know very little about this Eastern European country. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the geography, people, government and economy of Albania and to provide facts and information about this fascinating country. Albania is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas and is surrounded on its northern, eastern, and southern sides by Yugoslavia, Kosova, Maqedonia, and Greece. (www.albania.com). The country is less then 80 Km (40 miles) across the Adriatic from Italy. (www.albania.com) Albania has broad access to the sea. Its coastline has two main features: the flatter dection of the area along the Adriatic and the mountainous part of the land that borders the Ionian Sea. Albania is known as one of the most mountainous countries in Europe, with a man altitude quarter then 700 meters (2.300 feet) above sea level. The weather is cool in winter and hot in summer with a small numbers of cloudy days. Albania has population of 3.3 million (www.albania.com). Approximly 312.00 of these people live in Tirana, the countrys capital and largest city. (Background). Three major religions are practiced in Albania. Seventy percent of the people are Muslim; twenty percent are Orthodox; and ten percent are Catholic. (Background). Albania is the official state language (Tosk is the official dialect). (Background). Nine years of education are required by law, but large majorities of the people finish high school. After they complete high school, most of the teenagers want to go to Europe or the United State to complete their higher education to have a better future. Majorities of the people are self-employed. More than eighty percent of the population is white, and less then twenty percent is gypsy. ...

Analyse the portrayal of the character of Mercutio as the vehicle of Shakespeare's tragic outcome in the play 'Romeo and Juliet'

Analyse the portrayal of the character of Mercutio as the vehicle of Shakespeares tragic outcome in the play Romeo and Juliet Essay Of all of Shakespeares tragedies Romeo and Juliet is perhaps the best known one, Shakespeare based much of his play on the reality of his time by managing to encompass much of his context in the play. This was the Elizabethan era, In the Elizabethan era it was very different in the way we live our lives today. In how there were different class structures and people were treated differently and judged differently depending on which class they fell in. There was religious and politic conflict. The religious conflict was where the hate between Christians, there were two main factions of the Christian, Protestants and The Catholics, Queen Elizabeth the 1st was the head of the Church of England (which the protestants followed) and anyone found out to be a Catholic or practising the Catholic faith would have to change to The Church of England. Mercutio is Romeos best friend. Mercutio is first introduced to us in Act 1, Scene 4. It is the scene preceding the ball. At this point, the audience are aware of Romeos feelings for Rosaline, there Mercutios point view is easy to understand. In speaking to his friend, Mercutio reveals a wit and a strong sense of confidence in himself. He acts the part of Romeos advisor, implying that Mercutio is somewhat older; more level headed than Romeo and has superior intelligence. He also prompts Romeo to stop being a wimp as such and to be more confident and pro-active rather than passive and to wallow in himself and his adolescent thoughts and fantasies. By telling Romeo that, you are a lover, borrow Cupids wings and soar with them above a common bound. (Act 1, scene 4, line 15.) Mercutio encourages, but not enforcing his opinion on Romeo, just to teach him to be the master of his own destiny and not let fate decide a path for you and to do nothing about it. Mercutio wishes for Romeo to take control and aspire something more special than a common relationship. The theme of fate and destiny can be linked to Romeo and Juliets love for one another because they believe fate brought them together and it was their destiny to be together, but because of their families differences their fate was chosen for them before they even met. The whole aura circulating the Queen Mab is a warning to Romeo. When Romeo says I dreamt a dream tonight and Mercutio replying with And so did I Romeo asks Well what was yours? and Mercutio finishes Romeos question by saying that dreamers often lie. (Act 1, Scene 4). Mercutio is warning Romeo that dreams are of nothing and should be thought of as nothing. This theme of dreams runs/flows throughout the whole play. Mercutio is implicit and bluntly a fundamentalist which goes back to the Puritans of the time. In spite of this, Romeo continues to ponder, question and dabble in love, lust and fickle fantasies. Mercutio has a large impact on the people around him, for example Romeo, Benvolio, etc. He is a leader and wins his way over by being a joker and gets his point across by jokes, Romeo and Benvolios ways of showing that they agree is through their response, usually in laughter. Mercutio has to use Jokes because that is the only way his friends will understand, Mercutio is far too int elligent and most of the time the likes of Romeo and Benvolio do not understand what he is trying to illustrate. READ: The relationship between Juliet and the nurse is a better example of the mother-daughter relationship than that of Juliet and Lady Capulet EssayIn the Queen Mab speech (Act 1, scene 4) Mercutio leads into warning Romeo that Dreams are fantasies which are neither realistic nor real. Queen Mab is the Celtic Queen of Dreams, Mercutio describes who she is and what she is about, the way he does this is how unrealistic she is when he says such things like her chariot it an empty hazel-nut. Mercutio then goes on trying to show Romeo what Queen Mab and dreams can bring about, which are unlikely dreams in unrealistic, impossible situations. Mercutio sarcastically mocks Romeos dreams because he sees Romeo as immature and wants Romeo to learn from Mercutios experiences and mistakes. By Romeo saying thou talkst of nothing Shakespeare reveals Romeos lack of understanding and immaturity, and when replying to Romeo True, I talk of dreams, again Mercutio will not let it go that he knows what is true here that Romeos dreams are of nothingness. Mercutio is upset that Romeo has not listened to a word that he said to him, Mercutio originally thinks that he must have gone home, listened to him a gotten over his infatuation, not only would this satisfy Mercutios ego as the dominant male of the group, but it would have helped his best friend. Mercutio asks Benvolio what has Romeo drifted to, Benvolio tells Mercutio that he climbed over the Capulet wall. Mercutio is disappointed with him disappearing. Mercutio is elder, more experienced and is a brother figure, so he is disappointed with Romeo still keeping secrets, hiding and that he still has not got over his childish dreams and blind fantasies, but here is a use of a dramatic device where the audience know something that a character does not, this adds a hint of excitement and for the more intelligent ones of the audience a perspective or a look in at something bad that may happen. In the fight scene (Act 3, Scene 4) Benvolios statement I pray thee, good Mercutio, lets retire. The day is hot, the Capels are abroad and if we meet, we shall not scape a brawl, for now these hot days, is the mad blood stirring. (Act 3, Scene 1, Line 2-5) this Implies whenever the Capulets and the Montagues meet they cannot escape a fight and how Benvoilo (the peace keeper) is begging Mercutio and desperate not to fight he is tired of the on going feud, we can empathise with him because what he asks of Mercutio is ignored with a sarcastic comment, once again the Montagues and Mercutios are slaves to war. This is the final time we see Mercutio. Mercutio was aware that Tybalt was ready for a fight this did not bother Mercutio in the slightest. Tybalt wants to fight with Romeo, but Mercutio is willing to replace him and risk his own life for Romeo because without a doubt Mercutio believes Romeo shall lose. Mercutio is confident and ready so he fights. Tybalt does not know (like everyone else) the reason Romeo will not fight is because he sees Tybalt as a family member now, I think this is an example of collapsed stereotype because they hated each other (Tybalt and Romeo) and now Romeo refuses to fight Tybalt because he sees him as not an enemy anymore. In the fight Mercutio is injured by Tybalt and claims it to be just a scratch as usual Mercutio plays the jester character and lives up to protecting his friends, because they neither see nor feel Mercutios pain so Mercutio thinks what they dont know cannot hurt them. Mercutio implies he will be dead the next day in his line look for me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man (Act 3, Scene 1, line 99). With Mercutios dying breath he calls a plague on both you houses he does this three times, in the Elizabethan Era a word spoken on a mans dying breath was to become true, (like fate/destiny) he says this three times another superstition in those times. He wanted the feud to end but he had to die in the middle of it even though he was not a member to either houses. Romeo felt guilty and responsible in a way for Mercutios death for not fighting Tybalt and feels he must avenge his friend if he wants to be worthy as a man, to himself and not a coward as we have seen before. It is extrem ely ironic that The Prince a relative of Mercutio warned them of might happen and that Mercutio had to die to make it clear to them. READ: Thesis Statement For Romeo And Juliet EssayIn Conclusion to the question Analyse the portrayal of the character of Mercutio as the vehicle of Shakespeares tragic outcome in the play Romeo and Juliet . The audience always sees Mercutio at key scenes in the play, like an implication that he fuels the key scenes and sets them off. We see him at the ball when Romeo forgets about Rosaline and finds Juliet. He arrives just before the nurse arranges the marriage like he was there to show that the wedding should not happen like a fairy god-mother to Romeo to help him out in his situations of need and to give Romeo the hints which are like subliminal signs hidden throughout the play. The final time he is seen is at the fight scene where he is killed and calls the curse which creeps through the play right to the end where both Romeo and Juliet Commit suicide. The foolishness, pure stupidity and simple ignorance of the two houses leads to the death of a person who was neutral to the feud , did not agree with it and got caught up in the middle of it. The Prince banished Romeo which was a more like a punishment for Mercutios death rather than Tybalts which put more guilt on Romeo and because Romeo and Juliet were apart they needed to create a plan, the plan failed which lead to both their deaths. Mercutio was the vehicle for the tragic outcome of the play. He influenced and impacted on key events by ironically appearing before key moments. He contributed to helping the play move by enforcing and encouraging Romeo to go to the ball where he inevitably met Juliet. If Mercutio was not in the play there would be no story because he drove the play to where it needed to be and where it went, ended up, but when he had gone this lead to Romeo and Juliets deaths. Mercutio was one of the Main Characters if not Romeo and Juliet. He entertained the audience with his intelligent wit and sarcastic humour, Shakespeare uses him as the vehicle to show how someone innocent can die over a petty and meaningless feud.

How HPV causes cancer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

How HPV causes cancer - Essay Example Most of cancer cases that exist in the world happen because of viruses. Both DNA and RNA viruses are able to cause cancer in humans. One of the DNA viruses is Human papilloma virus (HPV)(Liao, 2006), which belongs to the family of papoviruses, non-enveloped, double stranded DNA viruses (Levinson and Jawetz, 2000) figure 1. Human papillomavirus were discovered after cottontail rabbit papillomavirus (CRVP). The first investigation of HPV in human cancer was conducted in 1970s, particularly in patients with epidermodysplasia verruciformis. (Howley, 2006). HPV usually causes benign papillomas or warts in humans (Liao, 2006). These viruses can also affect humans worldwide, especially women as they are susceptible to acquiring cervical cancer (Schiffman et al., 2007). Most studies consider these viruses as a major cause of cervical cancer. Also, these studies have identified the mechanism of cervical cancer development (Schneider, 1993; Boulet et al., 2007; Schiffman et al., 2007). This ca n explain the progression of disease. Most, if not all cases of cervical cancer occur due to the persistent infection of HPV, particularly the HPV-16 (Liao, 2006). Furthermore, HPV can be divided into several types and species such as HPV16, 18, 31, 33, 35, and 39 (Zur Hausen, 1999). Specific types of HPV linked with cervical cancer are HPV16, 18, 31 and 45 (Chumworathayi et al., 2010). The genome of the virus can encode several proteins such as (E1, E2, E4, E5, E6, E7 and E8) and two capsid proteins (L1, L2). This classification depends on the types of HPV (Su et al., 2010). Cervical cancer requires particular genes to be developed, such as E6 and E7 as Boulet and his colleagues have found (Boulet et al., 2007) and that have been encoded by HPV (Howley, 2006). Once HPV enters epithelia cells and integrates in the host DNA, the malignant transformation increases by the E6 and E7 production (Liao, 2006). These genes have effects on cell cycle progression in cervical cancer. However, HPV can also play a role in aggravating other forms of cancer in humans such as head and neck tumor and skin cancers in immunocompromised individuals (Liao, 2006). Apart from cervical cancer, HPV can also cause cancer according to HPV diversity both in humans and animals. Examples are the cottontail rabbit papillomavirus (CRVP) infection in domestic rabbits, epidermodysplasia verruciformis patient HPV5, 8, 14, Bovin paoillomavirus type 4 (BPV4), alimentary tract cancer in cattle, and Bovin papillomavirus type 1 in horses (Howley, 2006). As several studies observe the association between HPV and cervical cancer, this essay aims at discussing cancer development caused by HPV. Transmission and infection of HPV: Human papillomavirus can be transmitted in different ways both sexually and non-sexually. However, the most common transmission happens through sexual intercourse. This causes anogenital warts of type (6 and 11 HPV) which are considered low in risk with respect to many HPV types. Other types of cervical cancer such a s HPV16, 18 are responsible for about 70 % of cervical cancer and 50 % of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) grade 3 (CIN3) (Schiffman et al., 2007; Smith et al., 2007). The HPV16 and 18 are considered as high risk types of HPV. Additionally, infection of HPV is usually transmitted by direct contact such as skin to skin and mucosa to mucosa, nevertheless, the likelihood of infection for each sexual intercourse is still unknown. Furthermore, several types of HPV can be transmitted collectively according to high proportion of infected women. On the other hand, men also may be infected by different types of HPV, therefore, any sexual act can quickly result in the transmission HPV types (Schiffman et al., 2007). In case of non sexual transmission, a child can acquire the infection of HPV from the mother (Castellsague et al., 2009) especially by placenta as Rombaldi and his colleagues have observed. For example, transmission from mother to the child may occur via amniotic fluid and fetal

Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 169

Assignment Example The supporters and advocates for Affordable health care in their previous sign up efforts, have come to the realization that from the few lessons learnt during the sign up efforts, in which a significant number of individuals previously uninsured managed to buy the cover. From the lessons learnt during the sign up effort, the supporters, and advocates of the Affordable health care plan on implementing the same effort that saw millions of uninsured people get the cover, as a marketing strategy for the next enrolment period, in an urge to increase awareness of the importance of buying the cover. Previously, many people opted for private insurance; however, the approach faced certain technical problems prior to the sign up process (Radnofsky), an aspect that proves the success of the sign up effort. As an aspect of in for the fall, research has shown that indeed, there is an increased focus on in-person help with testimonials from real people, making more emphasis on deadlines as pertai ning to Affordable health care. On the out aspect, getting a health care coverage has become an individualized mandate, which motivates more people into signing up for the cover. Previously the law required that all people should sign up for the cover or risk a penalty when filing their taxes (Radnofsky). The main aspect of study in this particular course is marketing, especially on the role that it plays in making informative approach to potential customers on the benefits of a particular good or service as addressed or provided by an organization against other competitors in the same industry. Based on such a perspective, it is significantly clear that marketing increases the chances of an organization or institution getting access to a bigger market. The article Health-Law Advocates to Tweak ACA Marketing Campaign for the fall, clearly indicates that before the sign up effort by the advocates

Children who are raised by single parents can be just as progressive Essay

Children who are raised by single parents can be just as progressive with emotional, social and behavioral skills as those who are raised by both parents - Essay Example Single parenthood is on the rise across the globe resulting in mixed reactions pertaining to the stability of children raised by single parents. The high prevalence is attributable to a multitude of factors; for example, the rampant spread of feminist ideologies, technological advancement and high divorce rate (Ellwood & Jencks 1). Feminist ideologies advocate for women empowerment achieved through financial liberation, and disputing socially constructed gender based stereotypes that confine women to specific social roles. The modern, liberated woman defies traditional social expectations whereby, marriage becomes less of a priority as the focus shifts to career development. In addition, these women are free to express their sexuality openly; for example, pre-marital sex and having children out of wedlock is now common and met with minimal disapproval by the society (Ellwood & Jencks 4). In some cases, these women explore alternative methods of having children on their own such as ad option or procuring the services of fertility specialists trained to perform artificial inseminations. Technological advancements targeting reproductive health have made the latter possible. Finally, the high divorce rate also contributes to the rise in single parenthood. Initially, courts required proof of infidelity, neglect or abuse to dissolve a marriage. This is not the case in contemporary society whereby, legislative directives approve no-fault divorces (divorces based on irreconcilable differences) (Ellwood & Jencks 5). In â€Å"Resilience and Vulnerability†, authors Hetherington & Elmore (182-212) discuss the role of resilience in influencing positive development of children raised by single parents. Resilience refers to an individual’s ability to cope and adapt to changes in their physical and social environment. Hetherington and Elmore infer that parenting styles adopted by parents function to build or destroy a

The Canterbury Tales Writing Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Canterbury Tales Writing Assignment - Essay Example Later on, the Miller’s Tale tells a rather lustful and vulgar story of a Carpenter and his wife who deceives her husband with a clerk. Overall, the loathsome and vulgar character of the Miller surpasses the aversion of other characters from The Canterbury Tales. The Miller’s Tale effectively illustrates the lecherous personality of the Miller who narrates a lewd story of a carpenter named, John and his wife, Alisoun. John, who works as a carpenter rents out a room of his house to a student named Nicholas. Another clerk named Absolon is also there in town who later falls in love with Alisoun. The story exhibits a high degree of deception where Alisoun becomes involved with Nicholas as well as Absolon at the same time while her husband leaves town for a few days. At another occasion, Nicholas fools John of a deluge of the same intensity as that of Noah’s time. John climbs into a basket to save himself from the flood while Nicholas and Alisoun are spending time toge ther in their bed. At the same time, Absolon arrives and brands Nicholas upon which he cries â€Å"Water!† (Chaucer 3815). Upon hearing this, John cuts the rope to his basket and falls down. The townspeople arrive at the scene and laugh at John. The whole story of the carpenter’s wife, Alisoun cheating her husband by having an affair with two younger men at the same time represents an indecent and boorish side to the personality of the Miller. Thus, this example suggests the lecherous internal character of the Miller apart from his already obnoxious physical outlook. The Miller is a character possessed not only by a vile internal nature but also an outrageous physical character. The detail regarding the Miller’s activities and interests build on to his strong and physical personality. In the prologue, Chaucer introduces its readers to the Miller’s most regular practice of wrestling where he always wins the ram (548). His ability to break doors with his he ad (Chaucer 550-551) and the wrestling matches he has won demonstrate his strong physical capabilities adding on to his huge and disgusting outlook. Further details of his appearance reveal his unappealing outward image that makes him an ugly individual. The descriptions of ugly features including his red beard, huge physique, wart with tufts of hair, and huge dark nostrils display a repulsive character that conjures up horrific images in the mind of the readers. As a person closely observes the explanation of the Miller’s personality, it is not hard to picture a disgusting character with repulsive features that is dishonest and vulgar by nature. During his conversation with the Host prior to the narration of his tale, he announces that he is drunk and that he should be forgiven in case he says anything wrong. When he goes on to tell his tale, his story points out the immoral side of wives. The Miller’s huge personality along with his red beard and hairy wart represent a coarse side to the character of the Miller who although has a large physique but little intelligence. Apart from the Miller’s rude and ribald inclinations, he is also a dishonest man in his business. The Miller is not only a lustful and physically disgusting character, but also a dishonest man who tricks his customers by stealing corn or getting them to pay more (Chaucer 562). With the huge

Profanity and Women Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Profanity and Women - Essay Example Profanity as utility is as much part of language and communication as the norm that defines it as a deviation (Jay, 2009, p.155). According to Jay through the use of taboo/swear words "one can achieve myriads of personal and social goals" (Jay, 2009, p.155). Thus combining the socio-physical context and overarching emotiveness of foul language. For it is at a personal level that the dogmatic inappropriateness of taboo words is initially perceived through inflicted punishment and restrictions. Its inadvertent use, however, conveys a necessity to go beyond the formally recognized means of expression. A psychological sociolinguistic reading of taboo language would probably best describe it as an articulated emotional trespassing. Being extreme in essence it is often associated with extreme emotions and states of mind such as anger, frustration, violence, etc. in the expression of which the two genders perform differently depending on their age and social ranking (Eckert & McConnell-Gine t,2003; James, 1998; Jay, 2009 ). Course language and profanity have always existed in the discourse irrespective of language and culture. Profanity is a form of expression intended to convey a variety of feeling and emotions, as well as to intensify and emphasize a point in such a way that can not be paralleled by using correct and what are deemed appropriate words and expressions. Taboo words are used to express anger; they could be a form of rebellion against social norms as well as a means of belonging to a social group. Their frequent insertion between words in a sentence could be an involuntary way of phrasing, intending no harm and lacking significance, or it could simply be a way to fill the void of a limited vocabulary. Taboo words fall into a number of categories: Taboos in English are placed primarily on sexual references (blow job, cunt) and on those that are considered profane or blasphemous (goddamn, Jesus Christ). Taboos extend to scatological referents and disgusting objects (shit, crap, douche bag); some animal names (bitch, pig, ass); ethnic-racial-gender slurs (nigger, fag, dago); insulting references to perceived psychological, physical, or social deviations (retard, wimp, lard ass); ancestral allusions (son of a bitch, bastard); substandard vulgar terms (fart face, on the rag); and offensive slang (cluster fuck, tit run). (Jay, 2009, p. 154) In Language and Gender Eckert and McConnell-Ginet draw upon Robin Lakoff's 1970s theory about "women's language" (Eckert et al., 2003, p.158). They describe the choice of language utilized by women as historically, socially and culturally determined and sustained through existing power structures related to male dominance. Furthermore, a female is a priori perceived as powerless simply through positioning herself as a woman. Hence the language she uses is a "powerless language" and it prevents her from interactional effectiveness (Eckert et al., 2003, p.159). A type of language, which has been also attributed to other marginalized and discriminated against categories such as homosexuals and people of various racial and ethnic backgrounds. From an early age, people and especially women, are conditioned to perceive certain words as profane,

Children who are raised by single parents can be just as progressive Essay

Children who are raised by single parents can be just as progressive with emotional, social and behavioral skills as those who are raised by both parents - Essay Example Single parenthood is on the rise across the globe resulting in mixed reactions pertaining to the stability of children raised by single parents. The high prevalence is attributable to a multitude of factors; for example, the rampant spread of feminist ideologies, technological advancement and high divorce rate (Ellwood & Jencks 1). Feminist ideologies advocate for women empowerment achieved through financial liberation, and disputing socially constructed gender based stereotypes that confine women to specific social roles. The modern, liberated woman defies traditional social expectations whereby, marriage becomes less of a priority as the focus shifts to career development. In addition, these women are free to express their sexuality openly; for example, pre-marital sex and having children out of wedlock is now common and met with minimal disapproval by the society (Ellwood & Jencks 4). In some cases, these women explore alternative methods of having children on their own such as ad option or procuring the services of fertility specialists trained to perform artificial inseminations. Technological advancements targeting reproductive health have made the latter possible. Finally, the high divorce rate also contributes to the rise in single parenthood. Initially, courts required proof of infidelity, neglect or abuse to dissolve a marriage. This is not the case in contemporary society whereby, legislative directives approve no-fault divorces (divorces based on irreconcilable differences) (Ellwood & Jencks 5). In â€Å"Resilience and Vulnerability†, authors Hetherington & Elmore (182-212) discuss the role of resilience in influencing positive development of children raised by single parents. Resilience refers to an individual’s ability to cope and adapt to changes in their physical and social environment. Hetherington and Elmore infer that parenting styles adopted by parents function to build or destroy a

Profanity and Women Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Profanity and Women - Essay Example Profanity as utility is as much part of language and communication as the norm that defines it as a deviation (Jay, 2009, p.155). According to Jay through the use of taboo/swear words "one can achieve myriads of personal and social goals" (Jay, 2009, p.155). Thus combining the socio-physical context and overarching emotiveness of foul language. For it is at a personal level that the dogmatic inappropriateness of taboo words is initially perceived through inflicted punishment and restrictions. Its inadvertent use, however, conveys a necessity to go beyond the formally recognized means of expression. A psychological sociolinguistic reading of taboo language would probably best describe it as an articulated emotional trespassing. Being extreme in essence it is often associated with extreme emotions and states of mind such as anger, frustration, violence, etc. in the expression of which the two genders perform differently depending on their age and social ranking (Eckert & McConnell-Gine t,2003; James, 1998; Jay, 2009 ). Course language and profanity have always existed in the discourse irrespective of language and culture. Profanity is a form of expression intended to convey a variety of feeling and emotions, as well as to intensify and emphasize a point in such a way that can not be paralleled by using correct and what are deemed appropriate words and expressions. Taboo words are used to express anger; they could be a form of rebellion against social norms as well as a means of belonging to a social group. Their frequent insertion between words in a sentence could be an involuntary way of phrasing, intending no harm and lacking significance, or it could simply be a way to fill the void of a limited vocabulary. Taboo words fall into a number of categories: Taboos in English are placed primarily on sexual references (blow job, cunt) and on those that are considered profane or blasphemous (goddamn, Jesus Christ). Taboos extend to scatological referents and disgusting objects (shit, crap, douche bag); some animal names (bitch, pig, ass); ethnic-racial-gender slurs (nigger, fag, dago); insulting references to perceived psychological, physical, or social deviations (retard, wimp, lard ass); ancestral allusions (son of a bitch, bastard); substandard vulgar terms (fart face, on the rag); and offensive slang (cluster fuck, tit run). (Jay, 2009, p. 154) In Language and Gender Eckert and McConnell-Ginet draw upon Robin Lakoff's 1970s theory about "women's language" (Eckert et al., 2003, p.158). They describe the choice of language utilized by women as historically, socially and culturally determined and sustained through existing power structures related to male dominance. Furthermore, a female is a priori perceived as powerless simply through positioning herself as a woman. Hence the language she uses is a "powerless language" and it prevents her from interactional effectiveness (Eckert et al., 2003, p.159). A type of language, which has been also attributed to other marginalized and discriminated against categories such as homosexuals and people of various racial and ethnic backgrounds. From an early age, people and especially women, are conditioned to perceive certain words as profane,

Euthyphro - Piety Essay Example for Free

Euthyphro Piety Essay The discussion between Socrates and Euthyphro is one of the most famous Socratic discussions because of the meaning set behind the actions. This discussion is focused on what is the piety or the holiness asked by Socrates to Euthyphro. Socrates appoints Euthyphro to help him understand what piety is as he admits he does not know, in order to help with his case against him. They argue about Euthyphro’s answer that piety is what the Gods love and impiety is the opposite. Socrates then questions which is dear because they love or they love because it is dear. Socrates challenges to comprehend an understanding of this indefinable concept and uses logic to understand what holiness is as provided by Euthyphro who is acting religious. This paper will show how the concept of holiness emerges from Euthyphro’s three definitions of piety. In addition this paper will suggest why Socrates goal for this discussion. Euthyphro’s three definitions of piety are well used with great examples, but Socrates always tries to shoot them down by trying to have a rejection. The first definition Euthyphro says is â€Å"Piety is doing as I am doing; that is to say, prosecuting any one who is guilty of murder, sacrilege, or of any similar crime-whether he be your father or mother, or whoever he may be-that makes no difference; and not to prosecute them is impiety† (Plato, 380 B. C. E. ). But at once Socrates says Bear in mind that I did not bid you tell one or two of the many pious actions but that form itself that makes all pious actions pious, for you agreed that all impious actions are impious and all pious actions pious through one form (Plato, 380 B.C. E. ). As you can see Socrates is determined to not have piety for anything that is happening at the time. Drawing a line between these particular contradictions is difficult because of cultural differences, values, moral, and religious beliefs within society. Euthyphro’s most important attempt to define piety comes with the suggestion that the pious is what all the gods love. Euthyphro states that The godly and the pious is a part of the just that is the care of the gods, while that concerned with the care of men is the remaining part of justice (Plato, 380 B. C. E. ). Socrates then asks, The pious is loved by the gods because it is pious, or is something pious because it is loved by the gods (Plato, 380 B. C. E. ). But since the gods are in a state of discord, and are at odds with each other and therefore have different views on what things are pious and what things are impious. He therefore proves that if an action or a man dear to the gods is pious, but an action or a man hated by the gods is impious then the same things then are loved by the gods and hated by the gods, and would both be god-loved and god-hated, which would make the same things both pious and impious at the same time. Socrates was a man who wanted his son to know that there is always moral reasoning to everything and that the right way is the correct way. By arguing with Euthyphro he tried to make him understand that no matter who you are or where you come from, you should always do everything because it is morally correct to do it. By Socrates going against every definition of piety he had, I think he made Euthyphro think deeper in himself about the actions played out from him. Socrates had an intense belief in the importance of virtue, he believed that if man was able to gain the wisdom that attended virtue then he would no longer do wrong simply because humans do not choose to do the wrong actions. Socrates felt that the first step in becoming virtuous was to acknowledge ones own ignorance and rid him of it. He encouraged men to be more apprehensive with their self-development and less obsessive in obtaining material wealth.. However, Socrates expresses that virtue is not a goal that can be taught, but that it must be learned in each individuals own experience. To me he meant that not only by experiencing the good and the bad will a human understand how to make things right. Piety to me is knowing how to make the moral situation correctly. I think that by someone wanting to do the right thing it can make other do them as well. Being piety knows that one must always abide by the rules given to them no matter who you are and where you might be. This does not pertain to every one is the world we live in because loopholes are always around and someone always knows how to use them when they need to. Religion has, is, and always will be a point of conflict for people for one that not everyone prays in the same way and believes in the same kind of religious beliefs. We are always free to believe or disbelieve in what we want to, and this leads to an inability for us to universally agree on a single kind of doctrine. But religion is exactly that, a doctrine and everyone follows one, whether they know it or not, people follow it and some live by it. A doctrine is something that defines a person’s life by dictating the choices that person’s chooses and tends to live on. God’s will can be someone’s doctrine the same way a person’s own set of morals can. Following this logic, a religious person is simply someone who follows a predetermined set of ideals, God’s. With this in mind, it can be concluded that while an atheist chooses to follow his own set of morals, the religious man simply chooses to follow an already existing set. I think a good example of following the rules are like traffic violations. The violations set on the road are to keep everyone from getting hurt and letting others get away with anything they can. This is an example of treating everyone equally and not letting no one get away with something just because of the their race, religion, money or even fame. The problem that we face in the world we live in is that people who do have money, fame or some kind of high importance are let of a lot easier than others how are struggling in life. Money and fame plays a major role in the world that we live in and it is sad that everyone has to stand by and see it with no options of saying what they might want to say to be heard. Reference Page Ackah, K. (2006). Platos euthyphro and socratic piety. Scholia: Studies in Classical Antiquity, 15, 17-34. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com/docview/211628972? accountid=32521 EUTHYPHRO. (1982). World Philosophy, 115. Mosser, K. (2010), A Concise Introduction to Philosophy. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.

Characteristics Of Victorian Age Literature

Characteristics Of Victorian Age Literature Historical Background of Victorian Age In the year 1837, Queen Victoria ascended the throne of Great Britain and Ireland and succeeded William the IV. She served for a period of 64 years, till her death in 1901 and it is one of the longest reigns in the history of England. The period was marked by many important social and historical changes that altered the nation in many ways. The population nearly doubled, the British Empire expanded exponentially and technological and industrial progress helped Britain become the most powerful country in the world. Chief Characteristics of Victorian Period While the country saw economic progress, poverty and exploitation were also equally a part of it. The gap between the rich and the poor increased significantly and the drive for material and commercial success was seen to propagate a kind of a moral decay in the society itself. The changing landscape of the country was another concern. While the earlier phase of Romanticism saw a celebration of the country side and the rich landscape of the flora and fauna, the Victorian era saw a changing of the landscape to one of burgeoning industries and factories. While the poor were exploited for their labor, the period witnessed the rise of the bourgeoisie or the middle class due to increasing trade between Britain and its colonies and the Reform Bill of 1832 strengthen their hold. There was also a shift from the Romantic ideals of the previous age towards a more realistic acceptance and depiction of society. One of the most important factors that defined the age was its stress on morality. Strict societal codes were enforced and certain activities were openly looked down upon. These codes were even harsher for women. A feminine code of conduct was levied on them which described every aspect of their being from the proper apparels to how to converse, everything had rules. The role of women was mostly that of being angels of the house and restricted to domestic confines. Professionally very few options were available to them as a woman could either become a governess or a teacher in rich households. Hence they were financially dependent on their husbands and fathers and it led to a commercialization of the institution of marriage. Victorian Novels Victorian Era is seen as the link between Romanticism of the 18th century and the realism of the 20th century. The novel as a genre rose to entertain the rising middle class and to depict the contemporary life in a changing society. Although the novel had been in development since the 18th century with the works of Daniel Defoe, Henry Fielding, Laurence Sterne, Samuel Richardson and the others, it was in this period that the novel got mass acceptance and readership. The growth of cities, a ready domestic market and one in the oversea colonies and an increase in printing and publishing houses facilitated the growth of the novel as a form. In the year 1870, an Education Act was passed which made education an easy access to the masses furthermore increasing literacy rates among the population. Certain jobs required a certain level of reading ability and simple novels catered to this by becoming a device to practice reading. Also the time of the daily commute to work for men and the time alone at home for women could be filled by reading which now became a leisure activity. As a response to the latter, the demand for fiction, rose substantially. The novels of the age mostly had a moral strain in them with a belief in the innate goodness of human nature. The characters were well rounded and the protagonist usually belonged to a middle class society who struggled to create a niche for himself in the industrial and mercantile world. The stress was on realism and an attempt to describe the daily struggles of ordinary men that the middle class reader could associate with. The moral tangents were perhaps an attempt to rescue the moral degradation prevalent in the society then and supplied the audience with hope and positivity. These moral angles allowed for inclusion of larger debates in fiction like the ones surrounding the woman question, marriage, progress, education, the Industrial Revolution. New roles for women were created because of the resultant economic market and their voice which was earlier not given cadence was now being spotted and recognized and novels became the means where the domestic confinement of women was qu estioned. Novels reflecting the larger questions surrounding women, like those of their roles and duties. In the latter half of the century, Married Womens Property Acts was passed, the women suffrage became an important point of debate, and poverty and other economic reasons challenged the traditional roles of women. The novel as a form became the medium where such concerns were raised. Charles Dickens: A Popular Victorian Author In the same year that Queen Victoria ascended the throne, Charles Dickens published the first parts of his novel Oliver Twist, a story of an orphan and his struggle with poverty in the early part of the century. As the Industrial Revolution surged on, the class difference between the traditional aristocracy and the middle class was gradually getting reduced and with the passing of the Reform Act, the middle class got the right to vote and be politically engaged in the affairs of the nation. While the aristocracy criticized the work that the bourgeoisie had to do in the factories and the industries, to maintain the supremacy that they had the privilege of, the middle class in response promoted work as virtue. The result of this led to a further marginalization of those struck by poverty and were part of neither groups. The Poor Law that was passed made public assistance available to the economically downtrodden only through workhouses where they had to live and work. The conditions of these workhouses were deliberately made to be unbearable so as to avoid the poor from becoming totally dependent on assistance from outside. Families were split, food was inedible, and the circumstances were made inhospitable to urge the poor to work and fight a way through poverty. However, these ultimately became a web difficult to transgress and people chose living in the streets rather than seeking help from a workhouse. Dickens was aware of these concerns as a journalist and his own life and autobiographical experiences entered the novel through Oliver Twist. His novel enters the world of the workhouses, the dens of thieves and the streets and highlights that while there was economic prosperity on one side, there was poverty on the other and while morality, virtue were championed, hypocrisy was equally a part of society. His social commentary entered the world of his fiction. In 1836, before Oliver Twist, his serials of Pickwick Papers were published which led him to instant recognition and popularity. It started the famous Victorian mode of serial novels which dominated the age till the end of the century. It not only made the reader anxious for the next serial to come and spread the popularity of the book itself, but also gave the writer a chance to alter his work according to the mood and expectation of his audience. His works enjoyed continuous popularity and acceptance and Dickens as a writer became famous for his wit, satire, social commentary and his in depth characters. Bleak House, A Christmas Carroll, David Copperfield, Great Expectations are some of his other great works. William Makepeace Thackeray: English Victorian Writer Thackeray was born in Calcutta, India and was also an important writer but one who expressed his age very differently from Dickens and other writers. He is most noted for his satirical work Vanity Fair that portrays the many myriads of English society. Although he was seen as equally talented as Dickens, but his views were deemed old-fashioned which hindered his popularity. He did not readily accept the changing values of the age. His work is seen almost as a reactionary voice. Vanity Fair for example has the subtitle A novel without a Hero and in a period where other writers usually embarked on a portrayal of the coming of age of a hero, Thackeray himself very deliberately opposes it. While the protagonist of Dickens David Copperfield invites the reader to identify with him, Thackerays Becky Sharp is the conniving, cynical and clever. Even his novel Pendennis, is a complete opposite of the novel David Copperfield, although both were published the same year. Thackeray did not identif y with the middle class because hence his novels lack a middle class hero. When novels were catering to reassure middle class self-worth, Thackeray denied to give that assurance. Even, Dobbin, a middle class character in Vanity Fair, is not completely granted hero status and a tone of criticism lingers on the character throughout the work. In The History of Henry Esmond, Thackeray deals with questions of not only of the concerns of society at large but also of individual identity. While most writers supported the idea of innate goodness in the individual human self, Thackeray differed. For example the character of Henry Esmond is also not a completely positive character and the negatives of his self, is perhaps Thackerays critique of Victorian emphasis on the individual. An individualism that focused on personal virtue and morality is seen as Thackeray to at the risk of selfishness bordering on narcissism and self-absorption. His discontent with his age became more vocal in later works like Phillip and The New Comes. While the former is injected with autobiographical accounts and is goes back to the satirical tone of Vanity Fair, the latter is a harsh critique of the material greed of the age and a critique of the contemporary culture of the age. As a result of his strong opinions of his society and its issues, and a critical rejection of the dominant concerns found in works of other writers of the same age, Thackeray stands in isolation as an outsider to this circle due his skepticism of the changing Victorian society. His stand did not change with time and lends to a social criticism and commentary of a very different sort in his works. Catherine, A Shabby Genteel Story, The Book of Snobs are some of his other works. Women Novelists of the Victorian Era The era saw a proliferation of women writers. The novel as a genre was initially seen as feminine literature and as the literacy rate among women increased, a new need for women writers catering to this segment was answered by these writers. Mrs. Gaskell Elizabeth Gaskell, popularly called Mrs. Gaskell wrote short stories and novels that dealt with presenting a social picture of her society in the 1850s. While it was a time when doubts about material progress reaching the actual lives of the ordinary man were starting to be raised, Gaskell mostly gave an optimistic view of the time. Gaskells North and South for example, seeks to present an answer to division and difference by presenting a form of a social reconciliation. There is an attempt at reconciliation of many divergent streams in the novel. Mary Barton was her first novel, published in 1848 with a subtitle, A Tale of Manchester Life and sticks to the Victorian concern of presenting the daily life of the middle class. Cranford came next in the form of a serial and was edited by Dickens for the magazine called Household Words. It was received positively and Gaskell gained immediate popularity for it. It centered on women characters like Mary Smith, Miss Deborah and the others. However the book was also critiqued for its lack of a significant story line. She was also famous for her gothic style in some of her works and this made Gaskell slightly different from other novelist of her time. Ruth, Sylvias Lovers, Wives and Daughters were other significant works by her. George Eliot Perhaps the one most famous women writers, George Eliot still maintains a canonical status. Her real name was Mary Ann Evans or Marian Evans and she adopted the pseudonym George Eliot to escape the stereotype attached with women writers and successfully entered the domain of serious writing. She had a controversial personal life and there too was not hesitant to break the norms of societal feminine boundaries. Adam Bede was her first novel, published 1859, set in a rural landscape and deals with a love rectangle. It received critical appreciation for its psychological descriptions of the characters and a realistic description of rural life. Mill on the Floss, 1860, revolves around the life of Tom and Maggie Tulliver and traces their life as they grow up near the River Floss. Historical, political references to those of the Napoleonic Wars and the Reform Bill of 1832 inform the novel and lend it a more intellectual and serious strain. Autobiographical elements also form a part of the novel as George Eliot fuses herself partly with Maggie, the protagonist of the book. After Silas Marner (1861), Romola (1863), Felix Holt the Radical, (1866) came Eliots most popular novel Middlemarch in the year 1871. The novel revolves around the life of complex characters and the Reform Bill of 1832. Subtitled A Study of Provincial Life the plot is based in the fictitious town of Midlands. The greatness of the novel was because of the vast portraiture of country and urban life that it depicts, its complex plots and characters, and its stark realistic projection of the time its set in. The role of education, the women question, politics, s ocial commentary, idealism are other complicated strands of the novel. Bronte Sisters Charlotte, Emily and Anne Bronte were the three famous novelist daughters of Patrick Bronte, a well-educated man and a writer himself; and Maria Bronte. The family together went through a series of tragedies where Maria Bronte died very early and none of the three sisters could reach the age of 40. Charlotte died at the age of just 39, Emily at 30 and Anne at 29. All three were educated by their father at home and all of them were fond of storytelling since childhood. Charlotte Bronte is famous for her novel Jane Eyre, published in 1847. The titular protagonist of the book, Jane Eyre, and her struggles in life and love for Mr. Rochester along with the process of her mental and spiritual growth are traced. The novel is believed to have a feminist tone to it and the famous woman in the attic character of Bertha Mason raises several gender and feminist issues. Emily Bronte, the second of the trio, became famous for her novel Wuthering Heights, published in the year 1847 and the only boo k written by her. Like George Eliot, Emily wrote under the pseudonym of Ellis Bell but after her death Charlotte published the novel with her sisters real name. The novel is the love story of Heathcliff and  Catherine Earnshaw. Anne Bronte, the last of the three, wrote two novels: Agnes Grey  (1847) and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall  (1848). The former was an autobiographical work and the latter is about a woman named   Helen Graham who transgresses marital and social boundaries to assert her freedom. It is seen a substantial piece of feminist writing. All three sisters hence larger societal questions through mostly women characters and the plot focusses on their life with themes of love and passion. They hence enjoyed a large female readership and have achieved status as classics of literature. Late Victorian Novelists Thomas Hardy was the most important writer in the later part of the Victorian Era. He was influenced by both the romanticism of the earlier era and the social commentary of Dickens. He is famous for the conception of the fictional town of Wessex. Far from the Madding Crowd  published in 1874,  The Mayor of Casterbridge  in 1886,  Tess of the dUrbervilles  in 1891, and  Jude the Obscure  in 1895 are his famous novels but Hardy was also known for his poetry. The late part of the period also saw the rise of the sensational novels by writers like Wilkie Collins and they too were based on the life of the middle class. The Woman in White (1860) and The Moonstone (1868) are Collins famous sensational novels. Anthony Trollope, another writer in the second half of the era, was himself from a middle class background and wrote the Phineas Finn (1869) and The Way we Live (1874). It was the time when Lewis Carroll wrote his famous Alices Adventures in Wonderland published in 1865 an d stood very different from other because of the child fiction genre it became a classic of the Carrolls different dreamy world that stood in direct contrast with the realistic tone of novels that was at its peak. George Gissing, George Moore, Samuel Butler, Henry James, Robert Louis Stevenson were other novels of the era. Rudyard Kipling and his short stories based in India pointed to the larger historical process of colonialism happening at the time. It was in 1877 that Queen Victoria became the Empress of India. Then also came George Bernard Shaw and Oscar Wilde, another two most famous writers of the time. Overview of Victorian Period The age hence was important for the rise of the novel as a genre and form which itself saw transformation within the period. From romanticism to realism, politics to passion, optimism to pessimism, the novel could successfully deal with the changing mood of the society. Class, gender, individualism, society all were given space in the novel. The period was known to have witnessed the massive change of Britain from an agrarian to industrial landscape. All concerns informed the novel and the novel was made into perhaps the most important genre of the age and the ones that would follow. Modern Period After Queen Victorias death in 1901 came the period which saw writers like Joseph Conrad, H.G Wells, D.H Lawrence, E.M Forster and others. The most important event in the early part of the 20th century was the First World War that took place from 1914 to 1918. It was a crucial event that changed the way of the world, impacted the psyche of the people and also the way literature was written. The pessimism and doubts that were a part of the writings of the earlier period may perhaps have anticipated the War. Hence Joseph Conrad, instead of talking of the society and its change now focused on dislocated individuals, a question of where one belongs in a seemingly cruel world. Colonialism are important part of his works wherein he presents a stark reality of exploitation and greed. Lord Jim, Nostromo, Heart of Darkness, are some of his major works. H.G Wells was a prolific writer and wrote around a hundred novels. The Time Machine, Ann Veronica, The History of Mr. Polly, The War of the Wo rlds, are some his important novels and Tono- Bungay is seen as his most brilliant work. Lawrence, was a controversial writer because of the open sexual references in his work. His work was different because of the sensual language and emotional feelings that made them. Therefore the novel then moved from the realism of the world outside more towards a description of the reality of the individual within. Sons and Lovers, The Rainbow, Women in Love are important works by him. E.M Forster, lastly wrote his famous Howards End that deals with the Schegel and the Wilcox family and the society in 1910, brilliantly and delicately described which would then be transformed permanently by the First World War. The Georgian Poets and World War I During the reign of George V, was published five anthologies of poetry by Edward Marsh in the year 1912 to 1922. Many important writers like of the time like Edward Thomas, Robert Graves, D.H Lawrence, Walter de la Mare contributed to these anthologies. The main concern was to depict the real issues surrounding the world around the World War. Modernism Modernism as a movement was a response to the horrors of World War-I and to the rising industrial societies and growth of cities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It challenged the harmony and the rationality of the Enlightenment and sought to reinvent art and literature of the age. To do so, it broke away from the works of the past and conventions that were earlier held at a pedestal. The view that traditional conceptions of beauty and on the whole the meaning of art itself did not fit the age lead to another movement called Dadaism that consciously set to redefine art itself. The movement was seen as anti-art that aimed to upturn its order. Chaos then as the basic antithesis to order was abundantly used by artists. Started by Tristan Tzara (1896- 1963) as a reaction against the senseless violence of the First World War and to reflect the anarchy that it spread in the social system as well as in the lives of ordinary people. What was also opposed was the conception of what was worthy of being the object of art. The classical subjects were replaced by the mundane as the urinal that Marcel Duchamp placed as an object of art in his gallery. Also in his LHOOQ Duchamps Mona Lisa with a moustache was a direct means to shake the viewer and the age out from his complacency that lead to the war itself. It was the direct expression of disillusionment with the war and that art too had lost its meaning like the literature of the classical time. The breaking down of any previously set rules and a violent portrayal of freedom of expression to shock and awe was the channel of the time that saw the violence of the World War firsthand. The artists and writers of the Dada movement were mostly war veterans and expressed through their work the psychological devastation of the war. The call for re-invention was echoed in the movement and stood for what modernism broadly aimed at. Thematic and Technical Features of Modern Literature The conception that reality could be easily be comprehended was replaced by modernism with a more subjective argument. Reality became not what was directly seen but what was behind the apparent surfaces and it took a crude look at the ugly, the stark behind the glossy surfaces. It was to raise these questions that distortion became a crucial trope in the visual arts of the era. Comtes Positivism could no longer be used to describe reality. The distorted images force the onlooker to step out of his comfort zone and to question his conception of reality. It highlights the dialectical relationship between the object of expression and the language that expresses it. This was echoed in the Literature of the time where sentences are fragmented and deliberately left incomplete as in Waiting for Godot. Dialogues are seldom completed and there is an inability to find the correct words to describe the state of the self. This breakdown of language after the World War calls out for a need to rei nvent language to fit the post war world. Hitlers use of almost an enigmatic, opera type use of words (he admired Wagner) that achieved his mass appeal, did also lead to the war. It was perhaps then necessary to breakdown language to reinvent it. The distortion and the fragments not only hint at the former but to a unity that needs to be rediscovered. The half-sentence make the reader seek to complete them and participate in the call for a search of a new unity and identity which is Pounds injunction to Make it New. The onlooker/reader is removed from his role as a mere passive observer to an active one who contributes to the meaning of the art he views/reads. Hence the incompleteness was not aimed at a completely pessimistic answer that leads to a loss of hope, but to different source of comfort similar to what T.S Eliot finds in the world of shanti shanti shanti at the end of Wasteland. Overview of Modern Age Literature James Joyce set his novels and short stories in a small city of Dublin. Dubliners published in 1914 is a part of the modernist literature along with The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Ulysses. Stephen Daedalus is a central character both in the Portrait and Ulysses. The latter however was banned. The next important writer was Virginia Woolf who was associated with the Bloomsbury Group which was a group of intellectuals and writers that met at her house which included E.M Forster and Leopold Woolf. Woolf attempted to present the changed world through a changed style of writing. In 1915 came her first novel called The Voyage Out and then came Night and Day in 1919. There was a realistic serious tone to both these books. Modernist strain in her writing began with her next novel call Jacobs Room which was published in 1922 along with Ulysses. The rest of the novels like Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse, The Waves, and Orlando had the same modernist tone. Stream of Consciousness Picassos cubism became an important part of modernisms subjective view of reality and a need to move away from traditional forms of art. It was this subjectivity that lead to the stream of consciousness technique of narration, as used by Virginia Woolf in Mrs. Dalloway. The focus on the interiority of the self and its perception of the objects it conceives was way to grasp the changed notion of reality. The Pre-Speech level of consciousness (as Henry James called it) of the character where the narrative deals with what is freely sensed or felt by the characters rather than what is directly uttered changed the way that narratives functioned. The expression of the self was also to highlight the crisis of the self within itself. The existential view of life and its cyclical futile form was what entrapped it rendering it unable to transcend futility of existence. This pessimistic view was a residue of the war which saw man as Sisyphus with his worthless search for meaning, identity and u nity in an age that cannot satiate his search. In The Myth of Sisyphus Albert Camus dwells on this futility of the modern experience. Poetic Drama The term poetic drama was made popular during the middle of the 20th century. The term was made famous due to the works of T.S Eliot who used his work as a reaction to the drama of G. B Shaw and Galsworthy who were immensely influenced by Henrik Ibsen who wrote A Dolls House and Ghosts. In the The Quintessence of Ibsenism written by G.B Shaw, he accepted the formers influence on him. T.S Eliot apart from being a poet was also a critic and wrote many important works like Possibility of Poetic Drama and Poetry and Drama in which he expressed his belief that poetry and drama are linked inseparably. W.B. Yeats, W. H. Auden and other poets also tried writing poetic drama. IMPORTANT LITERARY TERMS Dramatic Monologue A persona poem or what is popularly termed as a dramatic monologue in poetry, uses the theatrical device of a monologue where a character or person on stage speaks alone. Often done to highlight the character or authors internal thoughts and vocalize them to an implied audience, it was used in poetry in the 20th century. Romantic poetry was seen as the root of the same. It is usually one persons speech to oneself or the audience / reader wherein he talks about a subjective view on a situation, topic, or any other character. Robert Browning was the poet who perfected the use of dramatic monologue in his poems like My Last Duchess, Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister. His use of the device influenced Eliot and other modernist writers. Paradox As the term signifies, a paradox occurs when there is self-contradiction in a sentence. Even ideas can have a paradox in them. It is done often for stylistic reasons and to express a complicated thought or feeling. Hamlets line I must be cruel only to be kind. (Act 3, Scene iv line 178) in Shakespeares play with the same title is an example of paradox where two contradictory emotions of kindness and cruelty are brought together. Antithesis It basically denotes the coming together of complete opposites in a sentence. It is a rhetorical device often used by orators. For example, Goethes quote Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing is an example of the same. Symbol Derived from the greek word Symbolom, a symbol is a word or object that stands for another word or object. For example a fox is a symbol for cleverness and dove is the universal symbol for peace. Problem Play Used mostly with reference to drama, a problem play usually deals with an attempt to focus the public opinion about a social concern. It engages therefore with a problem in the most feasible manner and may either seek to solve it or complicate it further. It was made famous by Henrik Ibsen, a Norwegian Playwright and even used by G.B Shaw in his plays. Essay Usually a piece of prose writing that is aimed at being a thoughtful piece of writing with strong intellectual debates and undertones. It is derived from the word exagium that in Latin means a trial by weight. The form is believed to have emerged in the Renaissance and Francis Bacon in 1597 published his Essays. Novel A novel is a piece of literature that can be fictional or real and is written in prose. It is very different from drama and poetry by the extent of its length. There are many sub genres that can be a part of the novel itself. In fact a single novel is often is result of play of these various strands of literature. The root of the word Novel or Novella signifies something new as it was a later conception in the history of literature. It came after poetry and drama. It was the 18th and the 19th century that form became a major literary field with writers like Daniel Defoe, the author of Robinson Crusoe; Fielding, who wrote Tom Jones and Samuel Richardson, Charles Dickens and others. After the romantic phase there was a revival of the gothic fiction in works like Ann Radcliffs Mysteries of Udolfo and Mary Shelleys Frankenstein. Gothic was one such genre of the novel form. Realist novels, Sensational novels, domestic novels are just some of the others. On the whole the novel can be seen as a fictional narrative in prose, generally longer than a short story. Unlike the epic, which is now seen as a dead genre, the novel is still enjoying its high status in the literary market as perhaps, it has evolved with the continuously evolving world. Free Verse Free verse is a type of structure which does not have a fixed meter or regular rhythm. Even the line length varies from one sentence to another. The cadence is dependent solely on the wish of the writer but sometimes alternates between stressed and unstressed syllables. It was derived from the word freo a middle-english word that meant free. Many great writers and poets experimented with the free verse style including Milton in his Samson Agonistes. Short Story   A short story is also a form of fiction writing but is different from the novel because of the length due to which it gets its name. It can be a highly serious work of literature, a didactic one with a moral, a part of childrens fiction and is also open to experimentation. For example, Rudyard Kipling wrote many short stories. The word short comes from the word sceort which means the same. Defoe also wrote short stories because of the popularity of serial novels at his time. It is however Edgar Allen Poe, who is considered to be a seminal figure responsible for the popularity of short stories as a genre. Joyce wrote them in his work titled Dubliners and Kafka wrote Metamorphosis using the same. FEATURES AND FORMS OF DRAMA Drama is one of the oldest forms of literature along with the epic. It is believed to have derived from the ancient Greek and Roman works. Plot A plot is the main trajectory of drama and called be called as its story line. In Poetics, while defining all the major parts of a drama, Aristotle believed that the plot was of prime importance. It was so because it the plot that could be success at achieving a catharsis in the audience which is the purging of the feelings of fear and pity. It was catharsis that Aristotle believed was the main aim of drama and a good plot was one that could successful