What to Do When a Child Faces Racial Bullying in School

What to Do When a Child Faces Racial Bullying in School Racial  bullying  in school  should be taken as seriously, if not more so, than other forms of mistreatment children endure at the hands of peers.  Parents dont have to sit idly by while a bully chips away at their childs self-esteem. By learning to identify bullying, whos at risk and how it can be stopped, parents can take action. Bullying Want to end race-based bullying? First, it’s necessary to outline exactly what bullying is. Bullying may consist of physical violence, such as punching, shoving and hitting, or verbal assaults, such as spreading gossip about a classmate, calling the classmate names or teasing the classmate. In the electronic age, bullying also manifests in mean-spirited emails, text messages or instant messages. Additionally, bullying may involve excluding a classmate from group activities or ignoring the classmate. Sophisticated bullies are another matter entirely. Instead of abusing a person directly, they enlist their friends to gang up on a classmate for them. Studies on bullying indicate that 15% to 25% of U.S. students are bullied frequently. What’s shocking is that both bullies and their targets suffer from the practice. Students who bully have a higher chance of dropping out of school, abusing substances and committing crimes than others. On the flip side, up to 160,000 targets of bullies skip school annually to avoid abuse. Who’s at risk? Make good grades or have a cute boyfriend? A bully may target you. That’s because bullies pick on those they envy as well as those who don’t fit in. Because students of color in predominantly white schools stand out in the crowd, they make convenient targets for bullies. It requires little imagination for a bully to insult a classmate because of race. A racist bully may leave racially tinged graffiti on school grounds or verbally single out a minority student’s skin color, hair texture, eye shape, and other distinguishing features. Hit 1996 film â€Å"The Craft† has a storyline in which a white character named Laura racially harasses an African American classmate named Rochelle. In one scene, Laura and Rochelle are in the locker room after gym class, and Laura says, â€Å"Oh, God, look, there is a pubic hair in my brush. Oh, no wait, wait, that’s just one of Rochelle’s little nappy hairs.† When Rochelle asks Laura why she relentlessly teases her, Laura responds, â€Å"Because I don’t like Negroids. Sorry.† Rochelle is clearly hurt by the remark and her performance in gym class suffers because of Laura’s constant teasing. Targets of bullies not only suffer academically but may have trouble sleeping and eating. Their moods may change markedly as well. As the only black student in an exclusive Catholic high school, Rochelle finds herself in a clique of other misfits, including a new girl from out of town with magical powers. To stop the racist bullying, Rochelle enlists the help of the new girl to make Laura’s hair fall out. Too bad magical spells cant stop bullying in real life. Standing Up to Bullying How do you stop bullying? Ending it will likely require action from parents, students, and schools, alike. By talking with children, parents can pinpoint when bullying is most likely to happen and act to prevent their children from being targeted at such times. For instance, if a student is bullied before or after school, parents can arrange to have the child-driven to school or picked up afterward to prevent the child from being alone with a bully. Parents may also enroll their children in an assertiveness training course to give them tools to stand up to bullies. If a child is subjected to physical violence by a bully, parents may provide self-defense lessons as well. Reaching out to the family of a bully may also stop the abuse. However, one of the reasons children bully is because they witness bullying at home or have chaotic home lives. The bully may be picking on minority classmates because of racist attitudes they’ve been exposed to by family members. Given this, the bully’s family may be of little help in ending the abuse. Parents may also opt to discuss the bullying with school officials and enlist the help of administrators and teachers to end the mistreatment. As violence on school campus increasingly makes headlines, schools take bullying more seriously now than ever. When reaching out to school officials, let them know that you want your child’s role in having the bully punished to be a secret. Since bullies often increase their abuse when found out, it’s important that their targets are protected from acts of retaliation. Does your child attend public school? Academic institutions that receive federal funds are mandated to prevent students from exposure to racially hostile environments. Should a school fail to take action to thwart racist bullying, parents have the option of filing a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights, which investigates such matters. OCR typically resolves such complaints by requiring schools to adopt anti-harassment policies and procedures, train staff and students and address the incidents in question, according to its website. To boot, schools and teachers can reduce the likelihood that racist bullying will occur by pairing students of different races together on projects, holding diversity workshops and encouraging students of all races to sit in the cafeteria together. Damage Control Racist bullying may give children a complex about their ethnic background. To counteract the messages of a racist bully, help children feel good about their racial heritage. Celebrate important cultural events, put up images of individuals from diverse backgrounds around the home and allow children to socialize with peers from diverse backgrounds. Expose them to literature, film, and music in which people from their ethnic group figure prominently.

How to write health promotion documents - Emphasis

How to write health promotion documents How to write health promotion documents The health sciences have their own language. And those who dont understand it can simply feel like theyre not part of the club. If your remit is to communicate health promotion messages to the public, you need to walk a tightrope between scientific fact and digestible chunks of practical health information. Your message needs to be both authoritative and accessible. The trouble is that when you spend most of your time communicating with colleagues, its easy to forget that you have developed a vocabulary that is somewhat at odds with the general population. Studies have shown that the number of words people have in their vocabulary ranges from 600 to 5000 depending on level of education and profession. But there is a pool of common words that most people understand and are comfortable using. The secret is to think of your reader first and choose words they will connect with. Thats not to say that this is easy. Writing that persuades, educates and informs doesnt happen by accident. Critically appraising scientific findings is a very different skill from communicating these findings to laypeople. It involves a specific set of writing skills that have to be learnt. In the same way that a physics degree doesnt fully prepare someone for the NASA space programme, professional health qualifications do not prepare people to become effective writers of health promotion material. Health promotion is about persuading individuals, groups and communities to take action, so the messages must be crystal clear. The public dont want to read reports, leaflets or articles which skirt around issues. They want a definitive viewpoint. From the writers point of view, this can seem like a risky prospect, especially if there are complex policy changes and even legal implications to consider. Clear writing gives you no place to hide, as your goals and reasons for writing become transparent. But effective writing is a powerful tool that can improve peoples lives, so it is well worth mastering this skill. Dont get lost in translation Imagine your brief is to create a range of leaflets and bookmarks for a pharmacy chain to help the poorest sectors of society to give up smoking. What title has more impact? Smoking cessation advice or How to give up smoking? The second option is punchier and is far more likely to get your target audience to sit up and take notice. The phrase Smoking cessation advice just isnt something that most people say. And here lies the problem. These phrases find their way into public health promotion, because the writers have become completely immersed in healthcare language. The messages become lost in translation and lose their impact. Your work may be informed by medicine, psychology, epidemiology and public health science, but the needs of the reader must come first. Ask yourself: Who will read the document? How much experience do they have of the topic? How much do they know about it? What is their likely attitude towards it How involved in the topic are they? How interested are they in the topic? Once you have answered these questions, consider your purpose for writing the report, leaflet or other document. Think about what you really want to achieve with your message. Often we use buzz words, talking about things such as advocacy, social mobilisation and community participation. But it can help instead to think of the discrete actions you want your reader to take. Jargon is not always the bogeyman Writing in plain English doesnt mean you have to dumb down. You can still include technical information, as long as you focus on your audience. For instance, jargon such as body dysmorphic disorder will be commonly understood to mean bad body image for some laypeople. For others, it will be a meaningless medical phrase. In contrast, abbreviations such as NHS have moved into common usage. Unless you are writing specifically for an immigrant community or for people whose second language is English, its likely that they will know that it stands for National Health Service. Dont spell out every single abbreviation if its not necessary, but dont stuff your document full of terms that may perplex your readers. Remember that most people overestimate how much their audience knows and so use an inappropriate number of technical terms. Keep asking yourself whether your document is instantly readable. If not, keep revising it until the meaning is clear. Finally, your writing needs to be more than grammatically correct and scientifically sound. It needs to connect with your reader. So try to ignore well-meaning advice from your colleagues if they have little knowledge of your audience. Six steps to better writing Keep it short Keep your sentences short and simple and avoid flowery phrases. Aim for an average length of 15-20 words and stick to the rule of one sentence, one idea. Use active language Write the Government invested 15 million in this new health initiative last year, rather than last year an investment of 15 million was made by the Government in a new health initiative. The second version, which says who before what, is livelier and easier to read. Cut the clichs Cutting out redundant phrases, such as of paramount importance simplifies your messages and makes them easier to read and understand. So instead of writing It is of paramount importance to eat a healthy diet, write Make sure you eat a healthy diet. Use bullet points If youre dispensing advice, bullet points work well because they make the text stand out. Make sure that they are not too wordy and stick to one bullet for each piece of advice. Use verbs instead of nouns Verbs add movement to sentences and make them shorter and easier to understand. Use consider instead of give consideration to and provide rather than the provision of. Be specific and include people Putting people into writing makes it more powerful. Writing one in a hundred people is likely to produce a much bigger reaction from your readers than one per cent, even though they obviously mean the same thing. And when writing for the general public, one readers story can override even the most powerful numerical evidence. So dont be afraid to use case studies or stories about real people. People connect with other people. Perfect presentations These guidelines also work well with presentations. But when speaking, your sentences can be even shorter. This helps you to make your communication even punchier, to help your audience follow your line of thought. Remember that in writing, your readers can re-read sections if they choose, whereas in presentations, you pre-determine the sequence. Create an effective structure for your presentation by asking yourself the questions: what?, where?, when?, how?, why? and who? You can then lay out your core idea first, and expand on it in the rest of the speech. Analogies, such as the thought of giving up smoking is as bad as the prospect of root-canal surgery, are a useful tool for engaging your listeners. Alliteration also works well. For example, you can say, this is the most effective help for heartburn sufferers. The repetition of the h sound makes the words jump out. Your job is to take your listener from passive to passionate. Arranging your important messages in trios gives a sense of movement, progression and resolution. This is especially powerful when you are making closing comments or recommendations. Saying, Fad diets can be dangerous, unpleasant and ineffective for instance pushes the message home that you are recommending a healthy, balanced way of life. By then including a couplet in your recommendation, such as fruit and vegetables, you further emphasise that balance is at the heart of your health promotion message. Robert Ashton is the Chief Executive of Emphasis.

Criminology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Criminology - Essay Example The labeling theory was developed from the interactionist perspective of criminology. Interactionists believe that a person does not become a criminal on their own. Interactionist theories "assume that everyone has the potential to violate the law and that criminality is not an innate human characteristic," according to Schamlleger (2005, p. 245). While social constraints are the primary cause of crime, this alone does not cause someone to act unlawful. Instead these deviant behaviors must be learned and reinforced, which is why the process of socialization is an important factor in determining if someone is going to become a criminal. This means that interactions with society, peer groups, family, the education system, and other social groups play a prominent role, as these interactions provide the individual with morals, values, and a slate of norms in which to adhere to. In addition, this theory believes that a person's position in society will influence their involvement in crime , with those in higher positions in society less likely to partake in criminal behaviors. The labeling theory helped criminologist differentiate between primary and secondary deviance. An offender's initial act of deviance is considered primary deviance. However, continuing these acts is considered secondary deviance, especially if these acts occur as a result of being around other deviant individuals (Schmalleger, 2005). For example, while someone may initially rob a gas station as their primary deviance, secondary deviance may come from being sentenced to jail, meeting fellow criminals, and engaging in additional deviant behavior with them that would not occur if the individual was not associated with them. However, the individual does not have to have direct interaction with other deviant individuals for it to be considered secondary deviance. The action of simply being labeled a criminal can result in secondary deviations (Schmalleger, 2005). Noting and studying labeling in regards to secondary deviance is important, because the negative labels put on an individual e ventually become internalized. The individual labels himself as deviant, and therefore performs deviant behaviors to fit these labels (Schmalleger, 2005). In the 1960s and 70s, criminologists began to question the labeling and interactionist theory. It was during this time that there were a lot of social problems that were causing criminologists to question their loyalty and support to these and other earlier proposed theories. Some of these social problems included the civil rights movement, which gave blacks and whites equal rights, and the war in Vietnam, which was hugely unpopular. Criminologists began to question how they could support theories and interpret laws that discriminated against people and reinforced or caused human suffering. It was at this time that things in the world of criminology began to shift, as a new perspective, Marxist criminology, began to develop. This criminology theory strongly questioned the labeling theory and other theories before it. It was founded upon the writings concerning capitalism by Karl Marx. He was an individual who believed that capitalist societies were divided into two social classes, a small, rich, elite and a large, poor, working class. The elite class served as the ruling class and exploited the poor class

Thinking How to Quit Smoking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Thinking How to Quit Smoking - Essay Example Experts consider smoking as an expression of escapist tendencies, whereby, people result in the use of cigarettes, which induce a sense of wellness despite the lack of wellness. This makes it extremely difficult to stop; therefore, addicts need to prepare themselves both physically and psychologically for the impending challenges (Robinson). Experts qualified in dealing with rehabilitation of addicts from addictive behaviors recommend addicts to outline a list of reasons why they intend to eliminate an addictive habit. They posit that this facilitates the acknowledgement of an existence of a problem. In the case, of someone struggling with an addiction to smoking, the list helps to pinpoint the reasons leading to smoking as an addiction. This plays a crucial role in addressing the psychological implications associated with smoking. The list also serves as a reality check, whereby, an individual discovers the issues which require immediate attention. Eliminating issues responsible for inducing cigarette cravings allows one to be psychologically ready to kick the unhealthy habit to the curb. This also generates the willpower to confront future issues, which might be detrimental to the progress of staying nicotine free. Counselors also encourage individuals to find alternate, constructive ways to deal with these feelings and situations. Experts recommend the designing of a personal help plan, which ought to be unique or specific to an individual’s needs. This customized plan ought to address the intended reasons for quitting smoking. These experts further recommend that copies of the personal help plan ought to be placed in areas which used to be storage places for cigarettes (Robinson). Dealing with the physical addiction also presents an enormous challenge to individuals struggling with the addiction of smoking. During the initial days of quitting, withdrawal symptoms occur frequently. They include; nausea, dizziness, restlessness and headaches among othe rs. Withdrawal symptoms represent the body’s way of indicating deprivation of a certain substance; in this case nicotine. Individuals attempting to quit smoking ought to have prepared well in advance for the occurrence of withdrawal symptoms. Establishing a strong willpower to brave through the withdrawal symptoms marks the first step of preparation. Experts recommend other ways to deal with the withdrawal symptoms resulting from nicotine deprivation. Firstly, they recommend frequent deep inhalation. This allows an individual to remain relaxed despite the discomfort brought about by withdrawal symptoms, which might cause a panic attack. Secondly, they recommend the intake of water in large quantities. Water assists in the flushing of toxins out of the body. In addition, they recommend that individuals in withdrawal ought to keep their sugar levels slightly higher during the initial withdrawal phase. This helps to cater for the sugar-related cravings brought about by the absen ce of nicotine in the body (Health). Experts also recommend that individuals to prepare for the onset of a few extra pounds. They cite exercise and a proper, well-balanced nutrition as one of the ways to shed off the extra pounds or maintain an individual’s desired weight. It is crucial for a person to consult with their physician before embarking on the quitting process especially if they suffer from other

“Archetypes for a Contemporary Audience” Essay Example for Free

â€Å"Archetypes for a Contemporary Audience† Essay Myths are an important cultural aspect that were, and are to this day, used commonly to help teach morals and life lessons. Strength, courage, and fortitude are just a few characteristics addressed in mythology. The archetypal layout of an exemplary story is composed of the Twelve Stages. The Twelve Stages of a hero’s journey are the steps every person must take in order to prove one’s self as a hero. Mythical heroes such as Theseus, Sigurd, and Beowulf clearly demonstrate the archetypal qualities of a hero. A typical hero is seen as a morally just individual, with a noticeably ethical intent. An archetypal quality of a hero is moral goodness. The hero is always opposing evil and wrong-doing, while attempting his best to halt it. The hero is selfless always willing to give his life in place of another. A villain, or monster, is the opposed force of the hero, whose intent is solely based around a malicious and self-centered motive. The shadow-self of a character is often portrayed as the villain, or monster, but it has a much greater importance. The shadow-self illustrates the two extremes of a personality. Since the shadow-self is the complete opposite of a character, the good and bad qualities of that character are shown, the shadow self of a character can have both good and bad aspects. When someone is able to control the good aspects of both characters, the individual is able to grow and learn from themselves. The shadow-self is often used in literature, because it is seen as the perfect challenge for the protagonist. An example in literature would be Beowulf and Grendel. Beowulf is a great hero driven by good morals and intentions, while Grendel is a soulless monster living only to cause pain and death. Another example would be Sigurd and Regin. Sigurd is somewhat naive and physically strong, Regin, being the opposite, is extremely intelligent and persuasive, but not physically robust. Monsters are often confused with the shadow-self, but the monster can share similar qualities, values, and goals with the protagonist. Most monsters are shown as creatures, or people, who are not bound by the conforming laws set in place for the average person. In many cases with monsters in literature, there is a figurative veil drawn over them; shrouding them in mystery and uncertainty. These aspects draw people’s fascination by providing the reader with a form of escapism. Thus, allowing the reader to break away from the dull, constant, day-to-day routine of  their lives, and discover a new unfamiliar world. By providing this new reality for the reader the monster’s role in the narrative is greatly enhanced. When combining heroic qualities with villainous attributes, a perfect balance is formed. Most literature contains some manner of conflict between heroes and villains. Without conflict, the story would have no distinguishable design or purpose. Without the purpose or design the story would ramble aimlessly, until a much desired conclusion is reached. This leads back into the balance between hero and villain, because the existence of a hero or villain depends greatly upon the existence of the other. The reason for this is simple, because there is no need for a hero if there is no villain, and the same applies to a villain, who has no hero to rise up against. The voyage and quest of a hero is often riddled with hardship and treachery: Then an old harrower of the dark happened to find the hoard open, the burning one who hunts out barrows, the slick-skinned dragon, threatening the night sky with streamers of fire. People on the farms are in dread of him. He is driven to hunt out hoards under ground, to guard heathen gold†¦ When the dragon awoke, trouble flared again. He rippled down the rock, writhing with anger when he saw the footprints of the prowler who had stolen too close to his dreaming head. So may a man not marked by fate easily escape exile and woe by the grace of God. (Heaney-155) This quote from Beowulf shows that quest for treasure is always challenging. The road to the treasure is filled with tests and confrontations that are put in place to challenge the hero’s skills and knowledge. When the location of the treasure is finally reached, there is always a final obstacle blocking the way of the treasure. A common example of this is a dragon in its lair, sleeping soundly, guarding its treasure from unwanted thieves. Beowulf’s final fight with the dragon is an obvious example. In the story, â€Å"Theseus and the Ariadne Thread† Theseus uses a thread given to him by Ariadne. â€Å"As may be imagined, he made no difficulty about that, and she gave him the clue she had got from Daedalus, a ball of thread which he was to fasten at one end to the inside of the door and unwind as he went on. This he did and, certain that he could retrace his steps whenever he chose, he walked boldly into the maze, looking for the Minotaur.†(â€Å"Theseus† 776) The thread was used to help Theseus remember where he had already been,  and to lead him back to his original starting position, and keep him from getting lost in the maze. A valuable lesson can be learned from this thread, as it symbolizes connection to a person, place, or thing that brings us back to reality, when we are in need of direction. The slaying of the dragon is seen as the overcoming of an obstacle: After what seemed minutes, he thought, I must risk it now. With that he straightened his knees and drove the sword upward with all his force. It tore up through the cloak, through the loose earth, and on with the force of his arm until it buried itself to the hilt. A great cry came from the monster. (Who Are You Quoting Here?) Being able to overcome an obstacle is important, because it allows the person to undergo change and growth. As a contemporary audience we are able to read this, and be able to apply the knowledge gained from reading, in our own lives. The heroic epic poem Beowulf is a remarkable example of archetypes in a story. Beowulf is centered on a Scandinavian hero who is both strong and cunning. Beowulf is the classic hero everyone envisions when they think of a hero. Grendel, Beowulf’s shadow-self, is an obvious archetypal villain. Beowulf’s many quests represent the typical hunt for treasure. Beowulf’s final adventure, which would lead to his death, was by far the most archetypal of all of his endeavors, completing the last few stages of the Hero’s Journey. The poem Beowulf has a lot of psychological depth contained within the story. In preparation for the battle with Grendel’s mother, Beowulf must sink to the bottom of a lake, to get to the underwater lair. Beowulf must sink for hours to get to the bottom, and in doing so, this event displays that Beowulf’s mental strength is just as robust as his physical strength. Once Beowulf reached Grendel’s mother’s lair, Hrunting, a sword that had never failed in battle, was broken when it attempted to pierce the monster’s skin. Beowulf was quick to disarm the sword and reequip with a giant’s  sword, which happened to be conveniently placed in the lair. The significance of this in the story demonstrates the idea that un-useful things should be quickly discarded, as they are only weighing you down. Letting go of things that only slow you down, or hold you back from your true potential, will free you to move forward in your lifes quest. Once an obstacle, or hindrance, in your life is gone, you are able to look for another alternative or way out. The last important archetypal piece in Beowulf is Beowulf’s final fight with the dragon. This fulfills two of the 12 stages: The Resurrection and the Return with the Elixir. When Beowulf defeats the dragon, but is also killed in the process, the resurrection is displayed when Beowulf comes to release his death. When Beowulf realizes his death is upon him he reminisces about his old heroic deeds, and comprehends the valor of his actions. The twelfth stage is exemplified when Wiglaf, the only one of Beowulf’s men who didn’t desert him, retrieves some of the treasure, won by Beowulf, and shows Beowulf the spoils. Finally, when Wiglaf returns to the people and tells them of Beowulf’s death, along with a prediction of the upcoming days, the people fully realize what their leader has done for them, and they feel sorrow and remorse. The works of literature Beowulf, â€Å"Sigurd the Dragon Slayer†, and â€Å"Theseus† still maintain relevance in today’s society. The heroic qualities of these heroes are still admired and sought after by the people of today. Reading these stories will provide the reader with a greater knowledge of how our society bases its morals. The morals of any society are based on the archetype of whom ever that society deems to be the ultimate â€Å"good† example. The age old battle between good and evil is still being fought out in everyday life, and each one of us is a character in the drama of human history. We all need heroes, because we all feel the threat of evil, or villains, in our lives.

The Monkey’s Paw by W. W. Jacobs, The Clubfooted Grocer by Sir Arthur E

The Monkey’s Paw by W. W. Jacobs, The Clubfooted Grocer by Sir Arthur Canon Doyle, The Red Room by H. G. Wells and The Signalman by Charles Dickens Analyse how the writers successfully use aspects of the supernatural to create dramatic tension in the short stories you have read. The nineteenth century was an era of general belief in ghosts and spirituality. This is what made gothic stories even more appealing and successful during this era – the fact that they would be seen as being realistic. One major reason for the rise in spirituality during this era was the fact that many people had started to lose their Christian faith (mainly because the Church was unable to give an explanation as to why ghosts existed) and so they started to search for a new way of understanding and accepting death. I think that the Victorian’s enjoyed reading horror stories because they offer a challenge – to see whether the reader can figure out who the â€Å"ghost† or spectre represents and what they are doing. By involving the reader, the writers were able to keep them interested throughout the story. During the Victorian era, the short story became a very popular genre and ghost stories were well-liked with the readers. It was therefore very important for the authors to build tension and suspense to keep their readers interested. I will be studying: â€Å"The Monkey’s Paw† by W. W. Jacobs, â€Å"The Clubfooted Grocer† by Sir Arthur Canon Doyle, â€Å"The Red Room† by H. G. Wells and â€Å"The Signalman† by Charles Dickens. In this essay, I will be exploring the ways in which the writers use the supernatural to create dramatic tension in the above stories. â€Å"The Monkey’s Paw† is a short story by W. W. Jacobs, written in 1902. The title of a sto... ...cause there is a lot of mystery present throughout the story. The strangest thing is the fact that the Signalman himself is an educated man, yet he sees strange, unexplainable Apparitions which eventually lead to his death. Overall, I believe that these short stories are effective in entertaining the reader and keeping them interested throughout the story. The writers use many different techniques such as personification, metaphors, similes and imagery to create vivid images throughout the stories. The best technique used is when there are many questions which are left unanswered at the end of the story. This makes the readers create their own conclusions about the reasons as to why certain events occurred. Also, the use of the first person narrative is effective in ghost stories because they give a clear view of what happens and how the narrator feels.

Despite Their Cultural Differences Essay

Despite Their Cultural Differences, Do Jeanette From ‘Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit’ & Celie From ‘The Colour Purple’ Both Share The Same Struggle?  The cultural differences of the two characters are numerous and the implications far reaching. The austere but comfortable working class security of ‘Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit’, contrasts greatly with the urban squalor of ‘The Colour Purple.’ Even though there is such a massive social divide the two women share many similar struggles. Both women are struggling against the imposition and enforcement of belief systems and intolerant judgements upon them. In Jeanette’s life her mother mainly imposes her controlling and stifling religious views upon her. She feels press – ganged to the extent that ‘I had been brought in to join her in a tag match against the Rest of the World.’ The entirety of Jeanette’s early life is a moulding process, where she is forced to endure the influence of ‘enemies’ including ‘The Devil (in his many forms), Next Door, Sex (in its many forms), and slugs.’ Celie’s initial struggle takes on a much more chilling and darker tone. Her perspective comes from her being made to accept the role of a victim. Her stepfather tears away her basic human rights as he abuses her, ‘He start to choke me, saying you better shut up and git used to it.’ It is a constant challenge to achieve the recognition by others that she has nothing in her present, miserable existence.  Ã¢â‚¬ËœWhy don’t you look decent? Put on something! But what I’m sposed to put on? I don’t have nothing.’ One challenge faced by Celie is how to access a decent education, and further her basic skills. As she is seen as little more than a servant, her family believes that there is little need for her to further herself and grow.  Ã¢â‚¬ËœThe first time I got big Pa, took me out of school, He never care that I love it.’ In the initial section of ‘Colour Purple,’ the writing skills of Celie are very poor and reflect the poor education she has received. The entire opening diary entries are littered with colloquialisms and miss spellings, ‘Left me to see after the others. He never have a kine word to say to me.’ This often leads to the impression that the words of Celie are coming from an intelligent mind that does not quite have the tools to express itself properly. Later on in the novel, influenced by reading her sister’s letters and her own determination to succeed, she develops a much more fluid and sharper style, ‘Even thought you had the trees with you, the whole Earth. The stars. But look at you. When Shug left, happiness desert.’ It is still not writing of an educated woman, but a woman who is beginning to analyse her situation. The struggle of Jeanette’s education is never one that is based on literary or language deficiencies. From a young age she is encouraged to have a firm grasp of The Bible. Jeanette’s initial keeping away from school limits her to her mother for a source of information. This leads to Jeanette having a bizarre view on the world from a young age.  Ã¢â‚¬ËœMy favourite was Number 16, the Buzule of Carpathian.’  As Celie has been at the mercy of such extreme sexist views for the beginning of her life, and Jeanette at the mercy of religious ones, they both struggle not pass their misguided views on to others. When Celie is not successful in refraining from doing so, it has a profound impact upon Sofia. The insecurity and inadequacy of Celie forces her to offer advice to Harpo, which leads to domestic violence. Celie has become so use to ritualised violence that the promotion of it actually becomes a strange form of advice. Only the pathetic nature of her advice save s her friendship with Sofia. ‘She stood their a long time, like what I said took the wind out of her sails. She mad before sad now.’  Jeanette struggles not to pass on her misguided and often inappropriate religious views while at school. Her teachers are alarmed by religious maturity and obsessive views, ‘That’s not the point you have been talking about Hell to young minds.’ Her unintentional preaching of her mothers dogma scares the children, and marks her out for abuse, ‘And why, and this is perhaps more serious, do you terrorize, yes, terrorize the other children. This criticism eventually leads to the developing of awareness that she not teach her mother’s dogma.

Williams and Utilitarianism

In his critique of Utilitarianism, Williams finds fault in the Utilitarian commitment to maximum utility in that it undermines the integrity of moral agents and denies people the projects and relationships they inherently value. Famously known as his â€Å"Integrity Objection†, this proposition is immediately very enticing in that it appeals to the idea of the invaluable and imperative nature of benevolence and compassion, versus the cold, impartial hand of Utilitarianism. That is not to say, however, that Utilitarians have been dealt a hefty criticism from which they have no defense.While Williams may be correct in claiming that abandoning commitments or devaluing personal relationships may be counterintuitive, a Utilitarian could argue that his construction of â€Å"integrity† is equally counterintuitive in that it would require one to override their intrinsic pursuit of self- preservation. Additionally, if we were to presuppose Williams’ correctness, a Utilita rian could argue that the only plausible implementation of such a theory would mean valuing these emotional engagements above one’s own agency, a scenario even more demanding and sacrificial of one’s identity than the Utilitarian proposal.Williams directs this objection specifically toward Act-Utilitarianism, a branch of Utilitarian thought that deems the morally correct action as the one that produces the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people. He claims that such a theory is incompatible with the aspect of human happiness that is found in the commitment to personal projects and relationships: â€Å"Utilitarianism would do well then to acknowledge the evident fact that among the things that make people happy is not only making other people happy, but being taken up or involved in any of a vast range of projects. 1 While Utilitarians actually need lower order projects comprised of relationships and commitments in order to validate their higher order projects, the lower order projects will always serve the concerns of the first order. In turn, Williams asserts that such a compromise of emotional engagements for maximum utility usurps one’s sense of self, consequently marring the distinction between one’s commitment and one’s identity: â€Å"(†¦ ) that criterion would eliminate any desire at all which was not blankly and in the most straightforward sense egoistic.Thus we should be reduced to frankly egoistic first-order projects, and- for all essential purposes- the one second-order utilitarian project of maximally satisfying first-order projects. †2Abandoning certain commitments for the sake of another project can be acceptable, but when forced to relinquish those which a person deeply values, Williams argues they are robbed of â€Å"a sense of one’s moral identity† or what he describes as one’s integrity.Williams offers us two scenarios to further exemplify his theory: â€Å"Jim†, who is told by the edicts of utilitarianism to murder one innocent Amazon Indian in order to prevent twenty more being murdered, and â€Å"George†, a chemist who is (also by the parameters of Utilitarianism) forced to take a job creating weapons of mass destruction, since the balance-sheet of utilities shows that if George refuses, a far younger, more zealous chemist will carry the project along even further and more efficiently than George.While these scenarios may seem like far-fetched constructions meant to reveal Utilitarianism pursuing the wrong choice, Williams conversely (perhaps begrudgingly) admits that these would be the â€Å"right† choices for the given circumstances. The true problem, he argues, is 1? CITATION? 112? 2? CITATION? 113? ? hat the emphasis should not simply be on the â€Å"rightness† of the action but the considerations involved in reaching that conclusion. This is a feature of Utilitarianism Williams claims â€Å" cuts out a consideration which for some others makes a difference to what they feel about such cases†. 3 He continues to explain that excluding such considerations denies our sense of personal accountability for our own actions and in turn â€Å"makes integrity as a value more or less intelligible†. In sum, if we were to reduce William’s entire integrity objection to its most salient points, they would be the following: the emotional commitments that are incompatible with the parameters of Act- Utilitarianism are not only impossible to abandon entirely but are an integral facet of human happiness, therefore creating a dilemma for the Utilitarian in that they must allow for it. The potential defense of a Utilitarian to Williams’ objection begins with the examination of his construction of integrity, which he seems to define as one’s â€Å"sense of self†.Looking simply at this definition alone, it could be said that subjectivity suggested with this variety of integrity incorrectly presupposes that a person’s sense of their identity is always correct. Utilitarianism could make a claim for the value in assessing reality with the sort of impartiality that Williams’ rejects, seeing as if one is not being appraised objectively, their sense of self is entirely contingent on their own conception.More importantly, and the crux of the Utilitarian defense, is that while Williams’ is correct in his claim that abandoning these emotional entanglements is counterintuitive, maintaining such commitments are at odds with the human desire for self-preservation, a 3? CITATION? p99? 4? CITATION? p99? ? conflict that Utilitarianism not only recognizes but Williams does not offer any viable solution for.Based on his examples and criticisms of Utilitarianism, it could be inferred that Williams assumes that we have a moral obligation to help others in a time of crisis, that one has an inherent responsibility to compassion a nd benevolence. This is clearly in conflict with the Utilitarian theory that one’s responsibility is to maximum utility, so even if the Utilitarian were to concede to Williams objection, it would be implausible to imagine a scenario in which the two could be regarded as being of equal value.In turn, the only option available to maintaining this ethos of selflessness would be to regard it as superior to maximum utility. This, a Utilitarian could argue, could prove to be extremely problematic. Firstly, it is extremely unrealistic to assume that people have the capacity to function entirely out of selflessness. Even though benevolence and emotional attachment can provide a certain level of happiness and fulfillment to a person, the expectation to unilaterally value the welfare of others over our own is not only implausible but ultimately self-defeating.Abandoning or betraying commitments in order to further advance a larger more important agenda certainly isn’t an idea pa rticular to Utilitarianism. A quick browse of a history textbook would support that, by and large, humans are inherently self-serving and while one may commit to an act, cause or person, it does not necessarily mean that they themselves aren’t using such relationships for their own agency. Utilitarianism may require that a person abandon a particular commitment for the sake of the reater good, but it can certainly be said that in the absence of utilitarianism, the commitment could be abandoned anyway, except in this case it would be for a self-serving purpose. A Utilitarian could potentially argue that their moral theory simply recognizes and curbs the inwardly focused desires of mankind and attempts to redirect such motivation toward the greater good. One could argue that Williams’ is somewhat disillusioned with mankind as he makes sweeping idealizations of the human psyche.Williams’ examples of â€Å"Jim† and â€Å"George† seem to both be conting ent on the idea that what makes said examples disconcerting is premise that both men would be acting against their conscience, in turn making the assumption that all people have consciences that should be considered. Secondly, if one could clear the hurdle of the first argument, the actual implementation of such a theory is extremely difficult. Williams argues that Utilitarianism is far too demanding to be plausible but in fact, trading this impartiality for benevolence proves to be far more exhausting.Considering the world’s current state of affairs, there are always people in dire need of help, so one calls into question exactly what parameters would be set in place in order to orchestrate such a society. What would be the stipulations of a worthy recipient of another’s benevolence? If Williams was simply talking about people’s obligation to those close to them, valuing those relationships above maximum utility creates a bias that is even more incompatible wit h benevolence than Utilitarianism, which at least works in the interest of the entire population.A Utilitarian could also argue that it simply because they are outweighed by maximum utility does not mean that substantial relationships are not valued in Utilitarianism. While they are indeed lower order projects, a Utilitarian could make an argument that it is through maintaining such relationships that the value of one’s own welfare is realized and are only outweighed by serious interests of first order projects.The analyses above reflect the same conclusion. Williams’ objection brings to light shortcomings in Utilitarianism that are easily felt by those uncomfortable with the impartial and seemingly unfeeling Utilitarian mentality. However, the arguments put forth by Williams regarding the counterintuitive and overly demanding nature of impartiality neglect the similarly inherent and insatiable desire for self-preservation.

Essay on About Quincy

Essay on About Quincy Essay on About Quincy An impresario in the broadest and most creative sense of the word, Quincy Jones’ career has encompassed the roles of composer, record producer, artist, film producer, arranger, conductor, instrumentalist, TV producer, record company executive, magazine founder, multi-media entrepreneur and humanitarian. As a master inventor of musical hybrids, he has shuffled pop, soul, hip-hop, jazz, classical, African and Brazilian music into many dazzling fusions, traversing virtually every medium, including records, live performance, movies and television. Celebrating more than 60 years performing and being involved in music, Quincy’s creative magic has spanned over six decades, beginning with the music of the post-swing era and continuing through today’s high-technology, international multi-media hybrids. In the mid-50†²s, he was the first popular conductor-arranger to record with a Fender bass. His theme from the hit TV series Ironside was the first synthesizer- based pop theme song. As the first black composer to be embraced by the Hollywood establishment in the 60†²s, he helped refresh movie music with badly needed infusions of jazz and soul. His landmark 1989 album, Back On The Block–named â€Å"Album Of The Year† at the 1990 Grammy Awards– brought such legends as Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan and Miles Davis together with Ice T, Big Daddy Kane and Melle Mel to create the first fusion of the be bop and hip hop musical traditions; while his 1993 recording of the critica lly acclaimed Miles and Quincy Live At Montreux, featured Quincy conducting Miles Davis’ live performance of the historic Gil Evans arrangements from the Miles Ahead, Porgy and Bess and Sketches of Spain sessions, garnered a Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Performance. As producer and conductor of the historic â€Å"We Are The World† recording (the best-selling single of all time) and Michael Jackson’s multi-platinum solo albums, Off The Wall, Bad and Thriller (the best selling album of all time, with over 50 million copies sold), Quincy Jones stands as one of the most successful and admired creative artist/executives in the entertainment world. His 1995 recording, Q’s Jook Joint, again showcased Quincy’s ability to mold the unique talents of an eclectic group of singers and musicians, in what resulted in a retrospective of his broad and diverse career from that of a seasoned Jazz musician, to skilled composer, arranger, and bandleader, to acclaimed record producer. A reference to the backwoods club houses of rural America in the 1930†²s, 40†²s, and 50†²s, the platinum selling Q’s Jook Joint featured performances by artists such as Bono, Brandy, Ray Charles, Phil Collins, Coolio, Kenny â€Å"Babyface† Edmonds, Gloria Estefan, Rachelle Ferrell, Aaron Hall, Herbie Hancock, Heavy D., Ron Isley, Chaka Khan, R. Kelly, Queen Latifah, Tone Loc, the Luniz, Brian McKnight, Melle Mel, Shaquille O’Neal, Joshua Redman, the Broadway musical troupe Stomp, SWV, Take 6, newcomer Tamia, Toots Thielemans, Mervyn Warren, Barry White, Warren Wiebe, Charlie Wilson, Nancy Wilson, Stevie Wonder, Mr. X, and Yo-Yo, among others, and garnered seven Grammy nominations. His recording, From Q, With Love, featured a collection of 26 love songs that he recorded over the last 32 years of his more than 50 year career in the music business. Named by Time Magazine as one of the most influential jazz musicians of the 20th century, Quincy Jones was born on March 14, 1933, in Chicago and brought up in Seattle. While in junior high school, he began studying trumpet and sang in a gospel quartet at age 12. His musical studies continued at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he remained until the opportunity arose to tour with Lionel Hampton’s band as a trumpeter, arranger and sometime-pianist. He moved on to New York and the musical â€Å"big leagues† in 1951, where his reputation as an arranger grew. By the mid-50†²s, he was arranging and recording for such diverse artists

Idioms Referring to Colors of the Rainbow

Idioms Referring to Colors of the Rainbow Idioms Referring to Colors of the Rainbow Idioms Referring to Colors of the Rainbow By Mark Nichol The six colors of the spectrum have contributed significantly to expressions and turns of phrase that are themselves often quite colorful. Here’s a sampling of idioms employing the words for colors. Red Because of the association of the color red with danger and deficits, most idioms that include the word red for example, â€Å"in the red† (meaning â€Å"in debt†) â€Å"red tape† (referring to bureaucratic complications), and â€Å"seeing red† (being so angry that one’s vision is blurred) have negative associations. However, they overshadow a few positive ones: â€Å"paint the town red† (enjoying oneself dining and drinking), â€Å"red-letter day† (an occasion for celebration), and â€Å"red-carpet treatment† or â€Å"roll out the red carpet† (referring to paying special attention to someone, based on the color of carpeting usually seen at the entrance to a gala event for celebrities or VIPs). A red herring is a deliberate diversion, a red-eye flight is a late-night airplane trip (from the bloodshot eyes of tired passengers), and to have a red face or to go beet red is to be embarrassed. Orange Among the colors of the rainbow, orange is curiously absent from idiomatic usage. Although it is a bright, cheerful color often found in nature, the only common expression that uses the word orange employs the plural form referring to the fruit of that name â€Å"apples and oranges,† meaning â€Å"unrelated subjects or issues,† to emphasize irrelevance. Yellow The few idioms incorporating the word yellow have negative connotations. To have a yellow belly or a yellow streak down one’s back (the reason for the choice of locations is obscure) is to be a coward, and yellow journalism, based on an early comic strip character named the Yellow Kid, is that which is sensational and/or biased. Green The phrases â€Å"green-eyed monster,† an epithet for jealousy, and â€Å"green with envy† are perhaps based on the idea that one’s complexion turns a sickly hue when feeling these emotions; similarly, to say that someone looks green (or is green around the gills) means that they appear to be sick. But green also has positive connotations: To give someone the green light, based on the universal traffic-signal color to indicate â€Å"Go,† is to approve a proposal. If you have a green thumb (or, in British English, green fingers), you are adept in gardening probably because successful gardeners are apparent from the green pigmentation that rubs off from healthy plants to their hands as they handle the vegetation. Because US paper currency is green, in American English, the color is associated with money and wealth. Blue Because it is the color of the sky, blue is associated with idioms such as â€Å"out of the blue,† â€Å"like a bolt from the blue,† and â€Å"out of a clear blue sky† that refer to a person, thing, or idea that arrives as if from nowhere. (â€Å"Into the wild blue yonder,† meanwhile, refers to a venture into unknown territory.) â€Å"Blue collar† connotes people who work at a trade or as laborers, because such workers at one time commonly wore durable shirts made of blue cotton (as opposed to â€Å"white collar,† referring to dress shirts worn by professionals and office workers, and â€Å"pink collar,† a later, now frowned-on, reference to women in clerical positions, so labeled because men rarely wore pink.) Two idioms generally negative in sense include blue-blooded, meaning â€Å"aristocratic,† probably because during the era in which the term was coined, nobility tended not to spend time in the sun and their veins showed blue under their pale skin, and â€Å"blue-eyed boy,† referring to a favored protà ©gà ©; this phrase likely stems from the fact that fair-skinned and fair-haired people, who at one time had a social advantage over their swarthier counterparts, are likely to have blue eyes. Other negative idioms include the use of blue to refer to a sad or bleak mood, as well as â€Å"black and blue,† meaning â€Å"bruised,† from the color of bruised skin, and â€Å"blue in the face,† referring to someone trying (in vain) to persuade another until, from lack of breath, they attain this state. Purple or Violet Purple, also called violet, like its color-spectrum counterpart yellow, has little representation in idiomatic language: Purple prose is that which is overwrought or overly complicated, and a shrinking violet is a shy person, though the usage is usually employed in such phrases as â€Å"not a shrinking violet† to refer to someone who is anything but shy. The color purple, because materials for dying fabric in that color were rare and therefore expensive, was reserved for royalty or the wealthy in western cultures and still has an association with nobility. This association resulted in another idiom, â€Å"born to the purple,† meaning â€Å"someone born to royalty during their reign† and, by extension, referring to children of prominent people. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 Classes and Types of PhrasesHomonyms, Homophones, Homographs and HeteronymsThe Difference Between e.g. and i.e.?

The Importance of Reflection in Nursing Practice Essay

The Importance of Reflection in Nursing Practice - Essay Example This process, called a meta-cognitive process, is normally reflected in a number of our daily routines and activities. Thus when we have to attend a call from a patient in pain, what priority we accord to it will be determined by the values and beliefs we hold and how we assess the situation. Reflective learning calls for instilling of the critical nursing skills in nurses through participative and emancipative education. This in turn helps in empowering the practitioners to deal with contradictory situations. Such training implies learning continuously with regular evolutionary inputs. Daloz (1986) describes the characteristics of support and challenge and the ways in which they might combine to foster learning. He describes support as an affirming activity. When a teacher supports a learner, the teacher lets the learner know that the learner is cared about. White (1997) suggests that new knowledge and theory can be generated when a structured and analytical methodology is applied to reflect on experience. In general, reflective practices can be categorized in two types; Reflection-in-action is when someone is working, and learning at the same time i.e. being fully aware of he's doing. Reflection-on-action is learning in a simulated environment when the nursing practitioners are taught by their tutors with the help of practical. For example nursing calls for advice being offered to the relatives and friends of the patients. Nursing is a science as it requires studying the medical practices and science, but it's an art as well because working with different types of people requires an attitude of understanding the feelings and compassion. Profession of Nursing involves being well versed with the technical gadgets, bio-medical terms, clinical tests, test reports as well as psychology, since during the majority of the times, when doctors are not around, nobody from family or friend circle is nearby, a Nurse is supposed to be the bedside companion taking care of the person with all sincerity. During such times most of our behaviors represent a mixture o f influences from both implicit, subconscious activations, and conscious considerations. The profession often requires long hours of working and heavy workloads while dealing with a range of people from all walks of life. Therefore, reflection-in-action is observing the things and the surroundings from one point of view and then devising 'in-time' appropriate reflections. Therefore in my opinion the profession of nursing requires; Compassion for another's suffering and love for the feelings of their patients Very high ethical standards Commitment to their profession Good interpersonal communication ability Critical cognitive process based thinking ability Highest standards of integrity and honesty Dealing with difficult and often unpleasant circumstances Working in physically demanding and often stressful environment Continuous aptitude for learning throughout one's life. Schon (1983) therefore calls for a "reflective practicum" to be an integral part of professional education. Lamb & Huttlinger, (1989) advocates reflection has a method by which nurses can enhance their future prospects and research practices. Williams (2001) enlists the results of a survey