Walt Whitman Song of Myself - 1260 Words

January 20th, 2012 It’s Only Natural: Racial and Gender Equality in Walt Whitman’s â€Å"Song of Myself† In the opening line of Walt Whitman’s â€Å"Song of Myself,† it becomes immediately evident that his song is not about himself, but about the entire human race: â€Å"I celebrate myself, and sing myself, and what I assume you shall assume, / for every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you†. His poem extols the mundane aspects of everyday life that a traditional poet of his day would not have considered worthy of poetic material. The meaning of his poem is best expressed in a quote from the Declaration of Independence: â€Å"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain†¦show more content†¦Having worked through some of the conditions of perception and creation, Whitman arrives, in the third key episode, at a moment where speech becomes necessary. In the twenty-fift h section he notes that â€Å"Speech is the twin of my vision, it is unequal to measure itself, / it provokes me forever, it says sarcastically, / Walt you contain enough, why don’t you let it out then?† Having already established that he can have a sympathetic experience when he encounters others (â€Å"I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person†), he must find a way to re-transmit that experience without falsifying or diminishing it. Resisting easy answers, he later vows he â€Å"will never translate [him] self at all.† Instead he takes a philosophically more rigorous stance: â€Å"What is known I strip away.† Again Whitman’s position is similar to that of Emerson, who says of himself, â€Å"I am the unsettler.† Whitman, however, is a poet, and he must reassemble after unsettling: he must â€Å"let it out then.† Having catalogued a continent and encompassed its multitudes, he finally deci des: â€Å"I too am not a bit tamed, I too am untranslatable, / I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.† â€Å"Song of Myself† thus ends with a sound—a yawp—that could be described as either pre- or post-linguistic. Lacking any of the normalShow MoreRelatedSong Of Myself By Walt Whitman1795 Words   |  8 Pageschemical also released during sex and eating. In his gutsy poem to America, Song of Myself, Walt Whitman uses repetition to make music that will bring pleasure to his readers and also shape how they perceive the world. Whitman begins his poem by boldly stating that he celebrates himself. Like the chorus to a song he repeats the word â€Å"I† throughout the entirety of the poem. The meaning of the word transitions from â€Å"I† being Whitman himself, to the people reading his book, and then ending with the readerRead MoreSong of Myself by Walt Whitman2251 Words   |  9 Pagesâ€Å"I celebrate myself, and sing myself / and what I shall assume you shall assume† (Whitman 1-2). These lines not only open up the beginning of one the best poems of the American Romantic period, but they also represent a prominent theme of one of this period’s best poet, Walt Whitman. In Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself, Whitman deals with his time period’s most prominent theme of democracy. Whitman tells readers that they must not only observe the democratic life but they must become one with it. AsRead MoreThe Song Of Myself By Walt Whitman And Howl1353 Words   |  6 PagesBoth â€Å"Song of Myself† by Walt Whitman and â€Å"Howl† by Allen Ginsberg are important pieces of American poetry. â€Å"Song of Myself† was written in the 1850’s and â€Å"Howl† was written about a century later. Both poets were part of groups that wanted to change America – the Transcendentalists and the Beats. Transcendentalists believed in the goodness of people and nature. Th ey believe that people are at their best when they are truly independent. The Beats rejected standard values and materialism. They experimentedRead MoreAnalysis Of Song Of Myself By Walt Whitman1451 Words   |  6 Pagesself-wisdom, discovery and betterment – is the ground-breaking poet, Walt Whitman. In his poetry, Whitman explores the surreal and cosmic, relating the supernatural to the mundane .With an emphasis on oneness with nature, Whitman’s celebratory attitude of the human soul in all of its complexity, beauty, and contradictions is most noted in his extensive poem titled â€Å"Song of Myself†, and is developed further in his poem â€Å"Kosmos†. Moreover, Whitman pioneers the future of modern poetry while incorporating hisRead MoreSong of Myself by Walt Whitman903 Words   |  4 Pagesultimate threat to the United States at the time, Whitman wished to mend Americas social and political demands through his poetry. Throughout Whitman’s wo rks, the reader can evidently observe the widths and basis of his social and political philosophy and the layers of various circumstances that exist within his American culture – which is an essential part of his democratic vision. Many of Whitmans poems, including major works such as Song of Myself, can be studied with this tidbit, but yet theseRead MoreWalt Whitman s Song Of Myself1191 Words   |  5 Pages Walt Whitman’s â€Å"Song of Myself† Walt Whitman was an American poet born in May 31, 1819 in New York, and he died in March 26, 1892 in New Jersey. He grew up going to school in separate facilities from people of color, so he was growing up along with the nation. He was self-taught by exploring things for himself, for example, going to the museums when he could. Whitman as a young boy alternated from being in the city to being in the countryside with his grandparents. He was exposed to be beingRead MoreSong of Myself by Walt Whitman Essay1343 Words   |  6 PagesIn his first anthology of poems entitled â€Å"Song of Myself†, Walt Whitman reveals some of his views on democracy through the use of symbolism and free verse poetry. His use of symbolism and free verse poetry creates indeterminacy, giving the reader hints rather than answers about the nature of the poem. In the sixth part of â€Å"Song of Myself†, a child asks the narrator of the poem, â€Å"What is the grass?† (Whitman). Instead of simply giving an answer, the narrator cannot make up his mind, and stumblesRead MoreWalt Whitman - Song of Myself822 Words   |  4 PagesWalt Whitman has neither related his biography nor glorified himself in the poem as the title suggests. Infact, the apparent indication of the title is here of no importance. The poem is the song of celebration of every object of nature in general where a question put to the poet by a little child triggers off a philosophical trend of thought relating to death and the meaning of death. In the poem, he has celebrated his own idea (that nothing collapses due to death but instead life moves on) andRead MoreAnalysis Of Walt Whitman s Song Of Myself1178 Words   |  5 Pagesa Poem Using the Same Ideas from Another Person The idea that the artist is a single individual coming to stand and speak for the masses is one of Emerson’s main transcendentalist ideas. Walt Whitman met Emerson’s ideal artist description as he spoke as one man for the multitude in his poem, â€Å"Song of Myself†, which openly demonstrates Whitman’s faith in the imperative indivisibility of self-reliance. He shares many of the same ideas as Emerson, such as the importance of the self and views on religionRead MoreAnalysis Of Walt Whitman s Song Of Myself Essay2414 Words   |  10 Pages The prevalence of Hegelianism in Walt Whitman’s â€Å"Song of Myself† is indisputable, yet a consensus on the meaning remains elusive, and therefore, insidious to the democratic progress Whitman attempts. Whitman uses Hegel to support his ideas about the dialectical theory of consciousness, the spiritualization and importance of art, and America’s manifest destiny. I later elucidate on these catego ries and break them down into more precise ideas. I use a variety of scholars for evidence of structural

Emilia, A Heroine of Shakespeares Othello Essay - 1305 Words

Emilia, A Heroine of Shakespeares Othello Shakespeare, in his tragedy Othello, presents a minor character who does great things in the final act. Her character is deserving of analysis. Kenneth Muir, in the Introduction to William Shakespeare: Othello, explains the motivation of Emilia through most of the play: Emilia’s character, too, is determined by the plot. In the source, the villain’s wife is privy to the nefarious designs. Shakespeare wisely makes her, like the other characters, ignorant of Iago’s character. She knows that she has lost his love, and her unhappy marriage drives her to cynicism about sex; but she tries to win back her husband’s affections by carrying out his wishes, even when this involves betrayal†¦show more content†¦She shows herself mentally unfit to fight off the verbal attacks of Iago, which are demeaning to her: â€Å"her tongue she oft bestows on me†; â€Å"chides with thinking†; â€Å"Bells in your parlors, wildcats in your kitchen / Saints in your injuries, devils being offended.† So Desdemona intervenes on Emilia’s behalf with: â€Å"O, fie upon thee, slanderer!† directed to Iago. She continues to critique the ancient’s answers to her questions: â€Å"These are old fond paradoxe s to make fools laugh i the alehouse† and â€Å"O heavy ignorance! thou praisest the worst best.† Desdemona is Emilia’s protectress against her husband. Unfortunately, later Emilia is manipulated by her husband. Iago, in planning his strategy following the dismissal of Cassio, says, â€Å"My wife must move for Cassio to her mistress; I’ll set her on†; and she shortly thereafter gives the lieutenant access to Desdemona: â€Å"I will bestow you where you shall have time / To speak your bosom freely.† Emilia is sheepish at times: She announces to Desdemona, who is with Cassio, â€Å"Madam, here comes my lord,† referring to the Moor. Emilia functions basically as a servant to Desdemona and a dupe for Iago. She freely gives him the handkerchief which he has asked her to steal, knowing quite plainly that the loss would pain her mistress: I am glad I have found this napkin; This was her first remembrance from the Moor. My wayward husband hath a hundred times Wooed me to steal it; but sheShow MoreRelatedShakespeare otherness in othello1349 Words   |  6 Pagesï » ¿Michael Grey Paper #2 11/14/13 Shakespeare’s otherness in Othello Shakespeare when writing Othello uses many different underlying themes for the reader to try and pick up on. One of the biggest is otherness. Otherness is defined as the quality or condition of being other or different, especially if exotic or strange. Shakespeare throws at the reader some interesting topics to think about race, a handkerchief, feminism, and many more. All these different topics Shakespeare wants the readerRead MoreWilliam Shakespeare s Othello And Glaspell s Trifles995 Words   |  4 PagesThroughout history great writers have brought women’s struggle under male dominance to light. Shakespeare’s Othello and Glaspell’s Trifles bring great female characters to the stage that share similarities. Both Glaspell and Shakespeare follow the same theme, while using both foreshadowing and irony to illustrate that Desdemona, Emilia, Bianca, Mrs. Wright, Mrs. Peters, and Mrs. Hale live under similar oppressive conditions. Both authors write about Patriarchal dominance. Shakespeare reveals hisRead More Feminine Roles in Othello Essay1310 Words   |  6 PagesFeminine Roles in Othello  Ã‚        Ã‚   A variety of roles have women in them in William Shakespeare’s tragic drama Othello. Let us in this essay examine the female characters and their roles.    One key role for the heroine of the drama, Desdemona, is to support the general. David Bevington in William Shakespeare: Four Tragedies states the hero’s dependence on Desdemona:    Othello’s most tortured speeches (3.4.57-77, 4.2.49-66) reveal the extent to which he equates the seemingly betrayingRead MoreShakespeares Criticism Of Feminism1864 Words   |  8 PagesShakespeare’s works had few females because women were not allowed to act in London in the late 1500’s into the early 1600’s. He however disregarded the standards that were imposed on women of this time. Shakespeare created these daring, strong-willed, quick witted female characters that went against the norm of society. Shakespeare lived during a time person in which the world was essentially male dominated, women weren’t their own people. They were objects that had no freedom to do what they wantedRead More Othello and the Force of Love Essay3011 Words   |  13 PagesOthello and the Force of Love  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   The William Shakespeare tragedy Othello features various types of love, but none compare to the love we find between the protagonist and his wife. In this essay let us examine â€Å"love† as found in the play.    In her book, Everybody’s Shakespeare: Reflections Chiefly on the Tragedies, Maynard Mack comments on the love that exists between the hero and heroine:    Magical in my view, though I know how far opinions differ on this point, as a wayRead More Othello’s Female Roles Essay1945 Words   |  8 PagesOthello’s Female Roles  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   Let’s look at the roles of the three lady-characters in the Shakespearean drama Othello. Their roles are not marginal, but are rather vital to the tragedy.    In the Introduction to Shakespeare’s Othello: The Harbrace Theatre Edition, John Russell Brown summarizes the role of the heroine of the play:    When considered functionally, Desdemona’s role may be seen to be every bit as demanding as those of the principals. The fact that she has far fewerRead MoreEssay about Shakespeares Othello - Desdemona the Wonderful2444 Words   |  10 PagesOthello: Desdemona the Wonderful  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   The innocent and charming personality of the wife of the general in William Shakespeare’s tragic drama Othello can hardly be rivaled – and yet she died the victim of a horrible murder. Let’s consider her case in this essay.    Louis B. Wright and Virginia A. LaMar in â€Å"The Engaging Qualities of Othello† comment on the virtue within the innocent wife of the Moor, and how pain came into her life:    Desdemona is warmhearted, tender, faithfulRead More Othello and the Virtue of Love Essay2758 Words   |  12 PagesOthello and the Virtue of Love  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚  The love of the protagonist and his wife in William Shakespeare’s trgedy Othello can not stand up against the repeated assaults of the sinister Iago. Let us in this essay search for and comment on the examples of love found in the play.    Helen Gardner in â€Å"Othello: A Tragedy of Beauty and Fortune† highlights the love between the hero and his beloved:    The love between Othello and Desdemona is a great venture of faith. He is free; she achievesRead More Othello: Emilia’s Metamorphosis Essay example1209 Words   |  5 PagesOthello: Emilia’s Metamorphosis  Ã‚        Ã‚   In his tragic play Othello, Shakespeare endows the minor character Emilia with some important functions. Her character, which changes dramatically in several ways toward the finale of the play, is the topic of this essay.    A.C. Bradley, in his book of literary criticism, Shakespearean Tragedy, defines the character of the ancient’s wife:    Few of Shakespeare’s minor characters are more distinct than Emilia, and towards few do our feelingsRead MoreThe Beautiful Character of Desdemona in Shakespeares Othello2743 Words   |  11 PagesOthello and the Beautiful Character of Desdemona  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   The good character of Desdemona in William Shakespeare’s tragic drama Othello meets a wretched end because of the sinister treachery of an ancient. In this essay let us analyze the beautiful character of Desdemona.    Valerie Wayne in â€Å"Historical Differences: Misogyny and Othello† comments on the proper manner of interpreting Desdemona’s body as referred to by an irate Othello:    Desdemona’s body before her supposed adultery

Elderly Driver Dangers Essay Research Paper What free essay sample

Aged Driver Dangers Essay, Research Paper What should be done to maintain aged drivers and others safe on the route? Equally society as a whole gets to be older and more older people are on the route, the safety for the older driver and the other automobilists is going a job we are all traveling to confront. The # 8216 ; baby boomer # 8217 ; coevals is acquiring older. There are many options to the job but which one is the best? We need to take safety for our roads and the rights of the older driver into consideration. Older drivers are equal to teens in the high figure of accidents they cause. With immature drivers it is rawness that causes accidents. With older drivers it is the rate of their reaction clip. We do non desire to know apart against the older driver. There are good and bad drivers of every age. Do we do safe driving an age issue or should we prove and develop all insecure drivers? There are three possible ways to implement a alteration. We will write a custom essay sample on Elderly Driver Dangers Essay Research Paper What or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page First, have the aged over the age of 65 renew their licences every two old ages. The driver can hold their eyes examined each clip of reclamation. It will besides maintain path of their accident rate or tickets they have received in the preceding interval. The 2nd manner of implementing this is to hold route trials at each reclamation. This alternate seems a small extreme and expensive for the motor vehicle section. With the figure of citizens going older it would be impossible to offer adequate drive trials. The discourtesies that aged drivers are being charged with are minor and are normally a inquiry of physiological reactions and eyesight non unsafe driving wonts. Therefore a mandatory-driving trial is remarkably rough merely to control the aged driver. The 3rd option is a combination of the first two. As drivers get above the age of 65 the licence could be renewed every two old ages, eyes examined and records checked. If the drivers were shown to hold insecure drive by commendation so the drivers who habitually are more unsafe would be given a impulsive trial. The aged can be offered a defensive drive class at a community college or at the DMV office. Merely a limited figure of drivers should be required to take route trials and if they do, it should be in their ain auto, and practising the moves that cause the most jobs for older drivers. As drivers get above 75 old ages old a compulsory defensive drive class could be required. The older driver could hold privileges taken off in a similar mode. As the driver’s seeing is decreasing, the limitation of lone daytime drive might be implemented. As privileges are taken away the cost of the licence should be reduced. If we as a society take away the rights of older drivers to drive, the older coevals will free some of their freedom. For some aged citizens, drive is merely manner for them to travel to the physician and to purchase food markets. A concluding option, like medical trials for older drivers has non worked. These thoughts have to be voted on by the populace and since the populace is acquiring older, it has been voted down. They would be voting to restrict their rights. The most frequent offenses reported by DMV are slow reaction clip and vision jobs ; these should be on a regular basis monitored and tested. Many older drivers may merely welcome the opportunity to brush up on their drive accomplishments. Many drivers learned to drive when many fewer drivers were on the route and the roadways were less complicated. We can non insulate aged drivers, for some it is the lone transit available to them. In decision, I think a combination of the options is the best manner to travel. Drivers over the age of 65 would regenerate their licences every two old ages and they can hold their eyes examined at that clip. An optional defensive drive class could be offered. As a driver reaches the age of 75 a drive this trial would be compulsory. A compulsory trial should be given for aged drivers between 65-75 with questionable drive records. These alterations can be implemented over the following four old ages. In order to see if these alterations are making good, statistics of senior citizens driving records from 2000-2004 can be compared to those of 1995-1999. If the figure of accidents and commendations has gone down the province authoritiess will cognize that the alterations have worked.

The Kite Runner Chapter Two Essay Example

The Kite Runner Chapter Two Essay During the early stages of any narrative there are certain expectations that, when met, typically form the basis on which a story can develop – expectations that Hosseini doesn’t seem to directly address within this chapter. Whilst we, as the reader, yearn for an insight into our protagonist’s thoughts and feelings, we are instead faced with an analeptic episode of facts and formalities. Founded upon dates, times, historic detail and directly quoted dialogue, not omitting the Farsi language sporadically woven throughout, this chapter creates an oddly formal tone. Embedded quotes such as, Baba always called it ‘fattening the pipe’’ only reinforce the report-style tone created by specific details ‘One cold winter day in 1964.' This detached writing style seems to reflect Amir’s attitude to the content of the chapter; perhaps he feels ashamed and wants to distance himself from any emotional accountability? The tone could therefore possibly foreshadow Hassan’s verbal abuse from the soldiers later in the chapter when Amir waits until, later, when they are, in the dark, to comfort his supposed friend. This, public versus private, motif develops throughout the text to highlight the cultural and hierarchical divides between Amir and Hassan. Only now with hindsight, the chapter is written in past tense, can Amir feel guilt about not openly defending Hassan so chooses to adopt a reporting tone to mask this guilt. Perhaps this whole mini-storyline is in fact constructed by Hosseini to further foreshadow the events of chapter seven. On both occasions Amir could have defended Hassan yet on both occasions he chose not to, yet there is a stark contrast in the tones of these two chapters. By chapter seven Amir cannot mask his shame anymore, no matter how much he may want to. We will write a custom essay sample on The Kite Runner Chapter Two specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Kite Runner Chapter Two specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Kite Runner Chapter Two specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The reinforcement of just how different Amir and Hassan are is certainly a key theme within chapter two; their respective lifestyles are the culmina

Explaining the Start of Apartheid in South Africa

Explaining the Start of Apartheid in South Africa The doctrine of apartheid (separateness in Afrikaans) was made law in South Africa in 1948, but the subordination of the black population in the region was established during European colonization of the area. In the mid-17th century, white settlers from the Netherlands drove the Khoi and San people out of their lands and stole their livestock, using their superior military power to crush resistance. Those who were not killed or driven out were forced into slave labor. In 1806, the British took over the Cape Peninsula, abolishing slavery there in 1834 and relying instead on force and economic control to keep the Asian and Africans in their places. After the Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902, the British ruled the region as the Union of South Africa and the administration of that country was turned over to the local white population. The Constitution of the Union preserved long-established colonial restrictions on black political and economic rights. The Codification of Apartheid During World War II, a vast economic and social transformation occurred as a direct result of white South African participation. Some 200,000 white males were sent to fight with the British against the Nazis, and at the same time, urban factories expanded to make military supplies. The factories had no choice but to draw their workers from rural and urban African communities. Africans were legally prohibited from entering cities without proper documentation and were restricted to townships controlled by the local municipalities, but strict enforcement of those laws overwhelmed the police and they relaxed the rules for the duration of the war. Africans Move Into the Cities As increasing numbers of rural dwellers were drawn into urban areas, South Africa experienced one of the worst droughts in its history, driving nearly a million more South Africans into the cities. Incoming Africans were forced to find shelter anywhere; squatter camps grew up near major industrial centers but had neither proper sanitation nor running water. One of the largest of these squatter camps was near Johannesburg, where 20,000 residents formed the basis of what would become Soweto. The factory workforce grew by 50 percent in the cities during WWII, largely because of expanded recruitment. Before the war, Africans had been prohibited from skilled or even semi-skilled jobs, legally categorized as temporary workers only. But the factory production lines required skilled labor, and the factories increasingly trained and relied on Africans for those jobs without paying them at the higher skilled rates. Rise of African Resistance During World War II, the African National Congress was led by Alfred Xuma (1893-1962), a medical doctor with degrees from the United States, Scotland, and England. Xuma and the ANC called for universal political rights. In 1943, Xuma presented the wartime Prime Minister Jan Smuts with Africans Claims in South Africa, a document which demanded full citizenship rights, fair distribution of the land, equal pay for equal work, and the abolishment of segregation. In 1944, a young faction of the ANC led by Anton Lembede and including Nelson Mandela formed the ANC Youth League, with stated purposes for the invigorating of an African national organization and developing forceful popular protests against segregation and discrimination. Squatter communities set up their own system of local government and taxation, and the Council of Non-European Trade Unions had 158,000 members organized in 119 unions, including the African Mine Workers Union. The AMWU struck for higher wages in the gold mines and 100,000 men stopped work. There were over 300 strikes by Africans between 1939 and 1945, even though strikes were illegal during the war. Anti-African Forces Police took direct action, including opening fire on demonstrators. In an ironic twist, Smuts had helped write the Charter of the United Nations, which asserted that the people of the world deserved equal rights, but he did not include non-white races in his definition of people, and eventually South Africa abstained from voting on the charters ratification. Despite South Africas participation in the war on the side of the British, many Afrikaners found the Nazi use of state socialism to benefit the master race attractive, and a Neo-Nazi grey-shirt organization formed in 1933, which gained increasing support in the late 1930s, calling themselves Christian Nationalists. Political Solutions Three political solutions for suppressing the African rise were created by different factions of the white power base. The United Party (UP) of Jan Smuts advocated the continuation of business as usual, that complete segregation was totally impractical but said there was no reason to give Africans political rights. The opposing party (Herenigde Nasionale Party or HNP) led by D.F. Malan had two plans: total segregation and what they termed practical apartheid. Total segregation argued that that Africans should be moved back out of the cities and into their homelands: only male migrant workers would be allowed into the cities, to work in the most menial jobs. Practical apartheid recommended that the government intervene to establish special agencies to direct African workers to employment in specific white businesses. The HNP advocated total segregation as the eventual ideal and goal of the process but recognized that it would take many years to get African labor out of the cities and factories. Establishment of Practical Apartheid The practical system included complete separation of races, prohibiting all intermarriage between Africans, Coloureds, and Asians. Indians were to be repatriated back to India, and the national home of Africans would be in the reserve lands. Africans in urban areas were to be migratory citizens, and black trade unions would be banned. Although the UP won a significant majority of the popular vote (634,500 to 443,719), because of a constitutional provision that provided greater representation in rural areas, in 1948 the NP won a majority of seats in the parliament. The NP formed a government led by D.F. Malan as PM, and shortly thereafter practical apartheid became the law of South Africa for the next forty years. Sources Clark NL, and Worger WH. 2016. South Africa: The Rise and Fall of Apartheid. London: Routledge.Hinds LS. 1985. Apartheid in South Africa and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Crime and Social Justice 24:5-43.Lichtenstein A. 2005. Making Apartheid Work: African Trade Unions and the 1953 Native Labour (Settlement of Disputes) Act in South Africa. The Journal of African History 46(2):293-314.Skinner R. 2017. The dynamics of anti-apartheid: international solidarity, human rights . Britain, France and the Decolonization of Africa: Future Imperfect? London: UCL Press. p 111-130.and decolonization

Biography of Richard Nixon, 37th U.S. President

Biography of Richard Nixon, 37th U.S. President Richard M. Nixon (January 9, 1913–April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. Prior to that, he was a U.S. senator from California and vice president under Dwight Eisenhower. As a result of his involvement in the Watergate scandal, a cover-up of illegal activities connected with his reelection committee, Nixon became the first and only U.S. president to resign from office. Fast Facts: Richard Nixon Known For: Nixon was the 37th president of the United States and the only president to resign from office.Also Known As: Richard Milhous Nixon, â€Å"Tricky Dick†Born:  January 9, 1913 in Yorba Linda, CaliforniaParents: Francis A. Nixon and Hannah Milhous NixonDied:  April 22, 1994 in New York, New YorkEducation: Whittier College, Duke University Law SchoolSpouse:  Thelma Catherine Pat Ryan (m. 1940–1993)Children: Tricia, JulieNotable Quote: â€Å"People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I’m not a crook. I’ve earned everything I’ve got.† Early Life Richard Milhous Nixon was born on January 19, 1913, to Francis A. Nixon and Hannah Milhous Nixon in Yorba Linda, California. Nixon’s father was a rancher, but after his ranch failed he moved the family to Whittier, California, where he opened a service station and grocery store. Nixon grew up poor and was raised in a very conservative, Quaker household. Nixon had four brothers: Harold, Donald, Arthur, and Edward. Harold died of tuberculosis at age 23 and Arthur died at age 7 of tubercular encephalitis. Education Nixon was an exceptional student and graduated second in his class at Whittier College, where he won a scholarship to attend Duke University Law School in North Carolina. After graduating from Duke in 1937, Nixon was unable to find work on the East Coast and decided to move back to Whittier, where he worked as a small-town lawyer. Nixon met his wife, Thelma Catherine Patricia â€Å"Pat† Ryan, when the two played opposite one another in a community theater production. He and Pat were married on June 21, 1940, and had two children: Tricia (born in 1946) and Julie (born in 1948). World War II On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked the U.S. Naval base at Pearl Harbor, ushering the United States into World War II. Shortly afterward, Nixon moved from Whittier to Washington D.C., where he took a job at the Office of Price Administration (OPA). As a Quaker, Nixon was eligible to apply for an exemption from military service. He was bored with his role at the OPA, however, so he applied to the Navy and joined in August 1942 at the age of 29. Nixon was stationed as a naval control officer in the South Pacific Combat Air Transport. While Nixon did not serve in a combat role during the war, he was awarded two service stars and a citation of commendation and was eventually promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander. Nixon resigned his commission in January 1946. Congressional Service In 1946, Nixon ran for a seat in the House of Representatives for the 12th Congressional District of California. To beat his opponent, five-term Democratic incumbent Jerry Voorhis, Nixon used a variety of smear tactics, insinuating that Voorhis had communist ties because he had once been endorsed by the labor organization CIO-PAC. Nixon won the election. Nixon’s tenure in the House of Representatives was notable for his anti-communist crusading. He served as a member of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), which was responsible for investigating individuals and groups with suspected ties to communism. Nixon was also instrumental in the investigation and conviction for perjury of Alger Hiss, an alleged member of an underground communist organization. Nixon’s aggressive questioning of Hiss at the HUAC hearing was central to securing Hiss’ conviction and won Nixon national attention. Wikimedia Commons   Nixon ran for a seat in the Senate in 1950. Once again, he used smear tactics against his opponent, Helen Douglas. Nixon was so overt in his attempt to tie Douglas to communism that he even had some of his flyers printed on pink paper. In response to Nixons smear tactics and his attempt to get Democrats to cross party lines and vote for him, a Democratic committee ran a full-page ad in several papers with a political cartoon of Nixon shoveling hay labeled â€Å"Campaign Trickery† into a donkey labeled Democrat. Under the cartoon was written, â€Å"Look at Tricky Dick Nixon’s Republican Record.† Despite the ad, Nixon went on to win the election- but the nickname Tricky Dick stuck with him. Run for Vice President When Dwight D. Eisenhower decided to run as the Republican Partys candidate for president in 1952, he needed a running mate. Nixon’s anti-communist position and strong base of support in California made him an ideal choice. During the campaign, Nixon was nearly removed from the ticket when he was accused of financial improprieties for allegedly using an $18,000 campaign contribution for personal expenses. In a televised address that became known as the â€Å"Checkers† speech delivered on September 23, 1952, Nixon defended his honesty and integrity. In a bit of levity, Nixon stated that there was one personal gift that he just wasnt going to return- a little Cocker Spaniel dog, whom his 6-year-old daughter had named Checkers. The speech was enough of a success to keep Nixon on the ticket. Vice Presidency After Eisenhower won the presidential election in November 1952, Nixon, now vice president, focused much of his attention on foreign affairs. In 1953, he visited several countries in the Far East. In 1957 he visited Africa, and in 1958 he visited Latin America. Nixon was also instrumental in helping push the Civil Rights Act of 1957 through Congress. In 1959, Nixon met with Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev in Moscow. In what became known as the â€Å"Kitchen Debate,† an impromptu argument erupted over the ability of each nation to provide good food and a good life to its citizens. The profanity-laced argument soon escalated as both leaders defended their countrys way of life. After Eisenhower suffered a heart attack in 1955 and a stroke in 1957, Nixon was called on to assume some of his high-level duties. At the time, there was no formal process for the transfer of power in the event of a presidential disability. Nixon and Eisenhower worked out an agreement that became the basis for the 25th Amendment to the Constitution, which was ratified on February 10, 1967. The amendment detailed the procedure for presidential succession in the event of the presidents incapacitation or death. Failed Presidential Run of 1960 After Eisenhower completed his two terms in office, Nixon launched his own bid for the White House in 1960 and easily won the Republican nomination. His opponent on the Democratic side was Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kennedy, who campaigned on the idea of bringing a new generation of leadership to the White House. The 1960 campaign was the first to make use of the new medium of television for advertisements, news, and policy debates. For the first time in American history, citizens were afforded the ability to follow the presidential campaign in real time. Bettmann Archive / Getty Images For the first debate, Nixon chose to wear little makeup, wore a badly selected gray suit, and came across looking old and tired compared to the younger and more photogenic Kennedy. The race remained tight, but Nixon eventually lost the election to Kennedy by 120,000 votes. Nixon spent the years between 1960 and 1968 writing a bestselling book, Six Crises, which recounted his role in six political crises. He also ran unsuccessfully for governor of California against Democratic incumbent Pat Brown. 1968 Election In November 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson assumed the office of the presidency and easily won re-election in 1964. In 1967, as the 1968 election approached, Nixon announced his own candidacy and easily won the Republican nomination. Faced with mounting disapproval ratings, Johnson withdrew as a candidate during the campaign. The new Democratic front-runner became Robert F. Kennedy, the younger brother of John. Wikimedia Commons   On June 5, 1968, Robert Kennedy was shot and killed following his victory in the California primary. Rushing now to find a replacement, the Democratic Party nominated Johnson’s vice president, Hubert Humphrey, to run against Nixon. Alabama Governor George Wallace had also joined the race as an independent. In another close election, Nixon won the presidency by 500,000 popular votes. Presidency Major domestic accomplishments during Nixons presidency included Neil Armstrongs and Buzz Aldrins historic walk on the moon in 1969; the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1970; and the passage of the 26th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1971, which granted 18-year-olds the right to vote. Nixons focus on foreign relations had him initially escalating the Vietnam War as he implemented a controversial bombing campaign against the neutral nation of Cambodia to disrupt North Vietnamese supply lines. Later, however, Nixon was instrumental in withdrawing all combat units from Vietnam, and by 1973 he had ended mandatory military conscription. Fighting within Vietnam finally ceased when Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese in 1975. In 1972, with the help of his Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, President Nixon and his wife Pat embarked on a week-long trip to China in order to establish diplomatic relations. Resentment between China and the U.S. had lingered following the Korean War, during which China had fought against U.S. forces. The visit marked the first time a U.S. president had visited the communist nation, which was then under the control of Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong. Nixons visit was an important step in improving relations between these two powerful nations. Watergate Scandal Nixon was reelected in 1972 in what is considered one of the largest landslide victories in U.S. history. Unfortunately, Nixon was willing to use any means necessary to ensure his re-election. On June 17, 1972, five men were caught breaking into the Democratic Party headquarters at the Watergate complex in Washington, D.C., to plant listening devices. Nixon’s campaign staff believed the devices would provide information that could be used against Democratic presidential candidate George McGovern. While the Nixon administration initially denied involvement in the break-in, two young newspaper reporters for the Washington Post, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, obtained information from a source known as â€Å"Deep Throat,† who became instrumental in tying the administration to the break-in. Nixon remained defiant throughout the Watergate scandal, and in a televised statement on November 17, 1973, he infamously stated, â€Å"People have got to know whether or not their president is a crook. Well, I’m not a crook. I’ve earned everything I’ve got.† During the investigation that followed, it was revealed that Nixon had installed a secret tape-recording system in the White House. A legal battle ensued, with Nixon reluctantly agreeing to the release of 1,200 pages of transcripts from what became known as the â€Å"Watergate Tapes.† Mysteriously, there was an 18-minute gap on one of the tapes, which a secretary claimed she had accidentally erased. Impeachment Proceedings and Resignation With the release of the tapes, the House Judiciary Committee opened impeachment proceedings against Nixon. On July 27, 1974, with a vote of 27-11, the Committee voted in favor of bringing articles of impeachment against Nixon. On August 8, 1974, having lost the support of the Republican Party and facing impeachment, Nixon delivered his resignation speech from the Oval Office. At noon the next day, Nixon became the first president in United States history to resign from office. Nixon’s vice president Gerald R. Ford assumed the office of president. On September 8, 1974, Ford granted Nixon a â€Å"full, free and absolute pardon,† ending any chance of an indictment against Nixon. Death After his resignation from office, Nixon retired to San Clemente, California. He wrote both his memoirs and several books on international affairs. With the success of his books, he became somewhat of an authority on American foreign relations, improving his public reputation. Toward the end of his life, Nixon actively campaigned for American support and financial aid for Russia and other former Soviet republics. On April 18, 1994, Nixon suffered a stroke and died four days later at the age of 81. Legacy In his time, Nixon was known for his uneasy public persona and intense secrecy. He is now best remembered for his involvement in the Watergate scandal and his resignation from office, a presidential first. He has been depicted in a variety of dramatic films and documentaries, including Frost/Nixon, Secret Honor, The Assassination of Richard Nixon, and Our Nixon. Sources Ambrose, Stephen E.  Nixon. Simon and Schuster, 1987.Gellman, Irwin F.  The Contender, Richard Nixon: the Congress Years, 1946-1952. Free Press, 1999.

Comparing and Contrasting Literary Forms Assignment

Comparing and Contrasting Literary Forms - Assignment Example Such an effect is achieved by play inference. The writer can adequately describe the scene and deftly introduce a mood. Poetry, drama, and short story are literature constituents, but they bear some identical differences. Dialogue accommodates extensive dialogue, which can be either non-fiction or fiction, a short story narrates brief experiences that are non-fiction while poetry can be either nonfiction or fiction and may rhyme (Cuddon & Habib, 2013). Poetry, drama, and short stories have a setting. The setting is a fictional work of establishing a geographic, physical, and historical context (Cuddon & Habib, 2013). Setting adds attitude to poetry, drama, or short story, and a good example of attitude is the change attitudes towards women. Myth, symbol, and allegory are other features shared by drama, short stories, and poetry. Allegory is use of two meanings that are parallel in the story where one is literal while the other one is figurative (Meyer, 2004). Allegory serves the purpose of deepening the meaning in writing and to teach a lesson. A myth reflects social or religious values often involving heroes or a god. A symbol acts as a representative of an association or a relationship. The tool of foreshadow is used in poetry, short stories and drama. Foreshadow gives the audience a hint of future happenings. In poetry, foreshadow can be captured as early as the poem title to shed some light to the reader of what the poem entails. Mood is also extensively utilized in all these three literature works to aid in conveying the theme (Meyer, 2004). Conflict is also common in short stories, drama, and poems. It denotes a struggle between forces that oppose each other. A conflict can be expressed as an internal conflict within an individual or between characters (Cuddon & Habib, 2013). It helps build the element of suspense as scenes unfurl in the

Second assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Second - Assignment Example Hitherto, one needs to clarify this result: was she pushed to stealing because of her social structure or was it her choice? In anthropology, this question can be shaped and reformed into one of the most famous debates in this field: what drives human action? Is it the social structure in which the human exists, or the agent, wherein the human action is due to decisions and free will? Not so long ago have I had the fortune to enter such a debate with some friends. The main subject of the debate was: was one of our friends actions due to her environment or was it her decision? I, honestly, believed that it was because of her environment and apparently her ability to deal with it was all because of how her environment shaped her. Therefore, going back to Liesel, I would say that her stealing was caused by her choking environment. In other words, its the social structure that shapes the human actions. Likewise, theorists such as Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, and Marvin Harris would also agree in such notion. Social structure, in the simplest definitions, would be the arrangement of human relations in a society. At the same time, social structure would also be the environment in which humans exist. In this environment, it could either be the society or of the biological, physical or chemical origin (Harris). Now, going back, Marx, being one of the key theorists in anthropology, looked at human actions based on the interest of the individual itself. He gave the idea that an individual formulating ideologies force these ideas to the society in order to reshape the society where this individual grew up in. Incidentally, these ideologies formed by the individual came from the ideas presented by the society. In other words, Marx was trying to point out that humans would not be altering their society if, in the first place, they were not introduced to such

Role of Banks in the Economic Development Essay Example for Free

Role of Banks in the Economic Development Essay Bank: An organization, usually a corporation, chartered by a state or federal government, which does most or all of the following: receives demand deposits and time deposits, honors instruments drawn on them, and pays interest on them; discounts notes, makes loans, and invests in securities; collects checks,drafts, and notes; certifies depositors checks; and issues drafts and cashiers checks. Features of Bank: †¢ Money Dealing †¢ Acceptance of Deposit †¢ Grant of loan and advances †¢ Payment and withdrawal of deposits †¢ Transfer of funds †¢ Portfolio management †¢ Foreign Exchange dealing Banking; In general terms, the business activity of accepting and safeguarding money owned by other individuals and entity and then lending out this money in order to earn a profit. Banking is a business of accepting deposits and lending money. It is carried out by financial intermediaries, which performs the functions of safeguarding deposits and providing loans to the public. In other words, Banking means accepting for the purpose of lending or investment of deposits of money from public repayable on demand and can be withdrawn by checks, draft order and so on. Banking Company: Any company, which transacts the business of banking Banking System: Banking System is a principal mechanism through which the money supply of the country is created and controlled. The banking system enables us to understand Commercial Banks, Secondary Banks, Central Banks, Merchant Bank or Accepting Houses and Discount Houses but to exclude the Saving Banks and Investment and other intermediaries. Number and types of Banks: The number of banks in all now stands at 49 in Bangladesh. Out of the 49 banks, four are Nationalized Commercial Banks (NCBs), 28 local private commercial banks, 12 foreign banks and the rest five are Development Financial Institutions (DFIs). Sonali Bank is the largest among the NCBs while Pubali is leading in the private ones. Among the 12 foreign banks, Standard Chartered has become the largest in the country. Besides the scheduled banks, Samabai (Cooperative) Bank, Ansar-VDP Bank, Karmasansthan (Employment) Bank and Grameen bank are functioning in the financial sector. The number of total branches of all scheduled banks is 6,038 as of June 2000. Of the branches, 39.95 per cent (2,412) are located in the urban areas and 60.05 per cent (3,626) in the rural areas. Of the branches NCBs hold 3,616, private commercial banks 1,214, foreign banks 31 and specialized banks 1,177. Bangladesh Bank (BB) regulates and supervises the activities of all banks. The BB is now carrying out a reform program to ensure quality services by the banks. Commercial Bank: A bank offering checking accounts, savings accounts, certificates of deposit, personal and business loans, and other, similar services. Commercial banks charge fees and/or interest for many of their services, though they may pay interest on other services. A retail bank is often an individual branch of a commercial bank where one may procure these services. The main functions of commercial banks: The main functions of commercial banks are accepting deposits from the public and advancing them loans. However, besides these functions there are many other functions which these banks perform. All these functions can be divided under the following heads: 1. Accepting Deposits: The most important function of commercial banks is to accept deposits from the public. Various sections of society, according to their needs and economic condition, deposit their savings with the banks. For example, fixed and low income group people deposit their savings in small amounts from the points of view of security, income and saving promotion. On the other hand, traders and businessmen deposit their savings in the banks for the convenience of payment. 3. Over-Draft: Banks advance loans to its customer’s up-to a certain amount through over-drafts, if there are no deposits in the current account. For this banks demand a security from the customers and charge very high rate of interest. 4. Discounting of Bills of Exchange: This is the most prevalent and important method of advancing loans to the traders for short-term purposes. Under this system, banks advance loans to the traders and business firms by discounting their bills. In this way, businessmen get loans on the basis of their bills of exchange before the time of their maturity. 5. Investment of Funds: The banks invest their surplus funds in three types of securities—Government securities, other approved securities and other securities. Government securities include both, central and state governments, such as treasury bills, national savings certificate etc. Other securities include securities of state associated bodies like electricity boards, housing boards, debentures of Land Development Banks units of UTI, shares of Regional Rural banks etc. 6. Agency Functions: Banks function in the form of agents and representatives of their customers. Customers give their consent for performing such functions. The important functions of these types are as follows: 1. Banks collect checks, drafts, bills of exchange and dividends of the shares for their customers. 2. Banks make payment for their clients and at times accept the bills of exchange: of their customers for which payment is made at the fixed time. 3. Banks pay insurance premium of their customers. Besides this, they also deposit loan installments, income-tax, interest etc. as per directions. 4. Banks purchase and sell securities, shares and debentures on behalf of their customers. 5. Banks arrange to send money from one place to another for the convenience of their customers. 7. Miscellaneous Functions: Besides the functions mentioned above, banks perform many other functions of general utility which are as follows: 1. Banks make arrangement of lockers for the safe custody of valuable assets of their customers such as gold, silver, legal documents etc. 2. Banks give reference for their customers. 3. Banks collect necessary and useful statistics relating to trade and industry. 4. For facilitating foreign trade, banks undertake to sell and purchase foreign exchange. 5. Banks advise their clients relating to investment decisions as specialist 6. Bank does the under-writing of shares and debentures also. 7. Banks issue letters of credit. 8. During natural calamities, banks are highly useful in mobilizing funds and donations. 9. Banks provide loans for consumer durables like Car, Air-conditioner, and Fridge etc. Central Bank: The entity responsible for overseeing the monetary system for a nation (or group of nations). Central banks have a wide range of responsibilities, from overseeing monetary policy to implementing specific goals such as currency stability, low inflation and full employment. Central banks also generally issue currency, function as the bank of the government, regulate the credit system, oversee commercial banks, manage exchange reserves and act as a lender of last resort. Function of Central Bank: In the monetary and banking setup of a country, central bank occupies central position and perhaps, it is because of this fact that this called as the central bank. In this way, this bank works as an institution whose main objective is to control and regulate money supply keeping in view the welfare of the people. Central bank is an institution that fulfills the credit needs of banks and other credit institution, which woks as banker to the banks and the government and which work for the economic interest of the country. 1. Monopoly of note issue: Note issue primarily is the main function of a central bank in every country. These days, in all the countries where there is a central bank generally it has got the monopoly of the sole right of note issue. In the beginning this was not the function of central bank, but gradually all the central bank gas acquires this function. There are many advantages of the note issue by central banks some important ones are as follow: 1. Central bank controls the credit creating power of commercial bank. By controlling the amount of currency in circulation, the volume of credit can be controlled to quite a large extent. 2. People have more confidence in the currency issued by the control bank because it has the protection and recognition of the government. 3. In the event of monopoly of note issue of central bank, there will be uniformity in the currency system in the country. 4. The currency of the country will be flexible if the central bank of the country has the monopoly of note issue because central bank can bring about changes very early in the volume of paper money according to the needs of business, industry and messes. 5. The system of note issue has some advantages. If the central bank of the country has the monopoly of note issue, all such advantages will accrue to the government. 2. Bankers, Agent and Adviser to the Government: As banker to the government, central bank provides all those service and facilities to the government which public gets from the ordinary banks. It operates the account of the public enterprise. It mangers government departmental undertaking and government funds and where there is a need gives loan to the government. From time to time, central bank advice the government on monetary, banking and financial matters. 3. Custodian of Cash Reserve of Commercial Bank: Central bank is the bank of banks. This signifies that it has the same relationship with the commercial banks in the country that they gave with their customers. It provides security to their cash reserves, give them loan at the time of need, gives them advice on financial and economic matter and work as clearing house among various members bank. 4. Custodian of Nation’s Reserve of International: Central bank is the custodian of the foreign currency obtained from various countries. This has become an important function of central bank. These days, because with its help it can stabilize the external value of the currency. 5. Lender of The Last Resort: Central bank works as lender of the last resort for commercial banks because in the time of need it provides them financial assistance and accommodation. Whenever a commercial bank faces financial crisis, central bank as lender of the last resort comes to its rescue by advancing loans and the bank is saved from being failed. 6. Clearing House Function: All commercial bank have their accounts with the central bank. Therefore, central bank settles the mutual transactions of banks and thus saves all banks controlling each other individually for setting their individual transaction. 7. Credit Control: These days, the most important function of a central bank is to control the volume of credit for bringing about stability in the general price level and accomplishing various other socio economic objectives. The significance of this function has increased so much that for property understanding it. The central bank has acquired the rights and powers of controlling the entire banking. A central bank can adopt various quantitative and qualitative methods for credit control such as bank rate, open market operation, changes in reserve ratio selective controls, moral situation etc. Other functions Besides the 7 functions explained above, central banks perform many other functions that are as follows: 8. Collection of Data: Central banks in almost all the countries collects statistical data regularly relating to economic aspects of money, credit, foreign exchange, banking etc. from time to time, committees and commission are appointed for studying various aspects relating to the aforesaid problem. 9. Central Banking in Developing Countries: The basic problem of underdeveloped countries is the problem of lack of capital formation whose main causes are lack of saving and investment. Therefore, central bank can play an important role by promoting capital formation through mobilizing saving s and encouraging investment. Role of banks in the Economic development: There should be no anonymity as about the importance of Banking in the Economic development of a developing country like Bangladesh. Banks performs some vital role that are conducive to economic development are as follows:- 1. To create generate capital market. 2. To play effective role in the Economy by supplying capital. 3. To persuade quench, bill of exchange etc. for easy mode of exchange 4. Financing of industries. 5. Financing of Trade and Commerce and rendering services to its chants. 6. Financing of Agriculture. 7. To maintain balance of foreign trade and to check price hike in the market by controlling credit.

The Patriot Essay -- essays research papers

The Patriot, written by Robert Rodat, takes place in South Carolina and reveals a widowed father’s love for his family and trying to keep them together, despite the Revolutionary War that had begun. Trying to keep his demons from reappearing, Benjamin Martin faces his fear of his past coming back to haunt him after serving in the French and Indian War. Martin is a South Carolina farmer who lost his wife, Elizabeth, and reluctantly signs up to join the Continental Army after his eldest son, Gabriel joined the regulars to fight against the British. After a battle began on Martin’s plantation, Benjamin helped wounded soldiers from both sides and was approached by William Tavington, a colonel with the British. During this confrontation Tavington informed Martin that anyone who assisted soldiers of the Continental Army would lose their home. Tavington then threatened Martin’s children and captured Gabriel, a military courier delivering dispatches between Continental A rmy units, and a younger son, Thomas was killed by Colonel Tavington, while trying to save his brother’s life. And despite Martin’s soulful plea, his son was not spared nor was his home. Leaving five children to fight with his eldest son, Gabriel, Benjamin enlists a group of peasants, old warriors, farmers, and one black slave to fight with the militia against the British soldiers. The remaining five children; Meg, Nathan, Samuel, William and Susan are left with their aunt on their mother’s side, Charlotte. The rag-...

Heritage Assessment

Heritage Assessment NRS-429V | Culture and Cultural Competency in Health Promotion John Thomas 3/24/13 The Heritage Assessment tool is primarily used as a device to evaluate health maintenance, health protection, and health restoration of a person’s cultural beliefs and values (Spector, 2006). This assessment helps aid in providing quality patient care in that it helps to meet and respect the needs of different types of people and their respective backgrounds (Spector, 2002).This particular paper serves to compare and contrast the ethnicities of Indian, Caucasian, and Arabic families using health maintenance, health protection, and health restoration as evaluation markers. The purpose was to identify and isolate different groups of people and their unique health practices and traditions that were based off their heritage or background. An assessment of these ethnicities led to several discoveries that I believe could truly improve our methods of health care. Cultural awareness is an essential part of life, especially in this country that is considered to be the melting pot of the world.Cultural awareness can be defined as understanding and appreciation the difference between oneself and people of other backgrounds and cultural beliefs (Shen, 2004). Cultural competence is a term used to refer to awareness and skill acquired to be able to care for people of different ethnicities and cultures (Purnell, 2002). The heritage assessment tool serves as a questionnaire of sorts that is used by personnel in management or care-providing positions in order to gain a better familiarity of a patient/client’s values before providing care (Spector, 2002).These can include questions about everything from their childhood experiences to varying health practices carried out in their homes. These all contribute in helping the nurse/caregiver to be culturally sensitive and utilize the questionnaire to provide quality care to the patient without unknowingly overstepping any boundaries. The Indian family I observed and talked to was my own. Growing up in India had a huge impact on my life and the choices I still make today. Upon working out the Heritage Assessment tool, I found that I still hold deeply rooted ties to my homeland and that I have tried to raise my children in the ame way. Though lifestyles are completely different when comparing the person living actually in India to the individual with an Indian background, a plethora of factors pertaining to health still carry over. Indian families tend to eat foods that are heavy with spices and capsaicin. Studies have shown that these have a number of health benefits including weight loss. When looking into some of the decisions that my family has made that seem to stand out from my friends of different background, diet and religion seem to stand out the most.Indian families are acutely aware of balance and moderation and this can be seen in the average meal. Religion is also a key factor in heal th protection. I have found that families will turn to God to keep their loved ones safe. Being from an Indian Catholic family, I am painfully aware this can also have its down side. For example, Catholicism discourages the use of contraceptives. This is a serious issue when understanding how this affects the growth of the AIDS epidemic not only among Indians but the rest of the world.In terms of restoration, there are more herbal remedies and natural medicines involved than antibiotics and pills. My wife still makes an array of teas and extracts for our children before resorting to taking them to a doctor. The Arabic family I talked to had a surprising number of parallels to my own. They were also driven by religion when it came to health protection. An illness was often considered to be unlucky and a curse from Allah for your sins. The diet high in spices and vegetables seemed a reasonable method of health maintenance.The values of the Arabic values were much stricter than the oth er families I talked to. An incident comes to mind of when it is very important to keep the values and traditions of the patient in mind. A Muslim woman was pregnant and nearing her due date. When it came time for her delivery, the only available Gynecologist was male and went through with the standard procedure and she delivered a healthy baby boy. The woman however, was shunned from her community because the doctor was a man who was not her husband.Situations such as these are important to keep in mind when providing care to patients. The Arabic family also was more open to natural medicine and homeopathic medicine and sought to find a way to cure themselves before seeking outside help at a medical facility. Lastly, the Caucasian family that were my neighbors seemed the most different from the families that I had talked to but the most open and attentive to the world around them. Though their diet was not the best, they seemed more inclined towards exercise and consumption of vita mins to maintain their health and protection of their health.They were also much better about keeping up with regular doctors’ visits and checkups and opted for more immunizations and vaccinations. They seemed more up to date and modernized in all aspects of health. They were also more trusting of modern medicines and prescriptions. They heavily relied on the healthcare system for health restoration even for the simplest medical issues. In conclusion, all three ethnicities have varying lifestyles that contribute to their current status of health. It is important to keep in mind that this is not an accurate report of that general culture.Rather it is an extremely small sample that I found to compare to other families in a somewhat suburban town. I found it very interesting that even with drastically different beliefs and values, all three cultures seemed to value their immensely, even though each had their own traditions and methods so as to preserve that state of health. From the stories and experiences I have heard in talking with these people, I believe it is more imperative than ever that nurses direct more attention to the usefulness of the Heritage Assessment tool.References Purnell, L. (2002). The Purnell model for cultural competence. Journal of transcultural nursing,  13(3), 193-196. Shen, Z. (2004). Cultural competence models in nursing. Journal of Transcultural Nursing,  15(4), 317-322. Spector, R. E. (2002). Cultural diversity in health and illness. Journal of Transcultural Nursing,  13(3), 197-199. Spector, R. E. (2004). Culture care: guide to heritage assessment and health traditions. Prentice Hall. Heritage Assessment Heritage Assessment Cultural competency is an essential part of nursing. Catering to the population of the United States as a nurse, one must embrace the cultures of others to provide competent care that will address the needs of the patient in a holistic manner. Beliefs of health management and care differ for all cultures. Being familiar with all backgrounds and cultures is a key factor in providing culturally appropriate care for patients. Illness and the care for illness and disease is viewed differently from culture to culture.The ability to understand and respect the differences among all cultures needs to be utilized by all healthcare providers. Since the perception of illness and disease and their causes varies by culture, these individual preferences affect the approaches to health care. Culture also influences how people seek health care and how they behave toward health care providers (Cultural Diversity, 2012). As health care providers we must learn how to take the proper steps in assessing cultural backgrounds of patients.Asking the appropriate questions can help create a treatment plan that will provide quality care that tends to the patients cultural beliefs as well. In assessment of three cultures: Filipino, Chinese, and Asian-Indians although they share similar views on health care they also have some differences as well. Health beliefs of the Chinese culture are centered on harmony and how to achieve it. Influences of this harmony involved, Yin/Yang, Relationship of elements: wood, fire, earth, metal, water, Psychosomatic Integration, Buddhism, and Taoism.In all the listed influences balance is the key factor that they share. Knowledge of historical experiences of Filipino cohort groups may provide health care providers with additional insights into an older person and the family members’ responses to clinical encounters and the recommended plan of care (McBride, 1996). Indigenous health beliefs of the Filipino culture like the Chinese culture centered on balance. The Filipino people call it â€Å"timbang† which is translated into balance. The belief that a rapid shift from hot to cold will end in illness for the individual, thus causing the body to be imbalanced.For Asian-Indians Hinduism is a social system as well as a religion; therefore customs and practices are closely interwoven. â€Å"Karma† is a law of behavior and consequences in which actions of past life affects the circumstances in which one is born and lives in this life. Despite complete understanding of biological causes of illness, it is often believed that the illness is caused by â€Å"Karma† (Alagiakrishnan, 1996). They believe that the body was connected and looked at as a whole. Mind, body and spirit are one and health is highly tied to all factors of the whole being.Asian- Indians also believe in balance that needs to be attained mentally, physically and spiritually to achieve balance within the entire being. Health prote ction for the Chinese culture derives from traditional Chinese treatments such as acupuncture to help realign the energy of the body, herbology to protect the body from illness or to get rid of the illness in the body and correct the â€Å"chi† within the individual. The most common is the use of yin/yang. Some Chinese elders will avoid food that can be considered cold food because of fear that it will throw their body off balance and diminish the harmony.Meditation and prayer is a form a protection used by the Filipino, Chinese and Asian-Indian Culture. Meditation is most often seen in Chinese and Asian-Indian culture than the Filipino cultures. Religion plays a huge role in cultural beliefs in health protection. Although all cultures believe in different forms of a higher being or power, nonetheless traditional elders of the cultures seek faith as a form of protection from illness and disease. Health restoration among the Filipino, Chinese and Asian-Indian cultures share th e similarity of balance.Just like the focus of health promotion, restoration is also centered around a form of balance, depending on the culture that is being addressed. The Chinese culture use methods of yin/yang and cupping with the use of heated bamboo cups to reduce stress of the mind and body. The Filipino culture uses â€Å"heating† which acts as a balancing tool to achieve harmony. Filipino cultures uses healers to aid in removing illness from the body through methods of herbs, prayer and rituals. The Asian- Indian culture also uses elder healers to restore health back into the body.Since the cultures being compared are all of Asian descent. The cultures show significant similarities as far as the goals they are trying to achieve: promote, maintain and restore health to the body. The balance of all aspects of the body showed grave importance in all cultures. The methods however are different in the sense of rituals that are preformed, the Gods that are prayed to for pr otection, and the types of herbs that are used to create medicine. The ancient and traditional methods mentioned are practiced and exercised more by the elder generations of the cultures.As more generations are being born here in the United States it seems as if the rituals and methods of healthcare are becoming fused with western medicine as well. Incorporating was has been passed down from generation to generation as well as things learned from physicians and nurses here, the younger generation of the cultures somewhat pick and choose cultural practices and methods that they feel would best suit the issue that is being experienced. In a situation such as a minor cold is starting to become an issue, the families will use traditional methods such as hot teas, soups or broths to restore the balance.On the other hand if the issue is too great to be just treated on a traditional level, they will seek medical attention and take the proper medicine to get better. The Conclusion Although the genetic makeups of all the cultures are distinctly different, all the cultures still share similar ties in tradition. The Filipino and Chinese culture share more similarities but knowing the history of the two countries one can see that the Filipino people was taken over by the Chinese for sometime. Thus, their influences are seen in many traditions of the Filipino culture. ReferencesMelen McBride, RN, PhD (1996). HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE OF FILIPINO AMERICAN ELDERS. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. stanford. edu/group/ethnoger/filipino. html. [Last Accessed 22 February 13]. Linda Ann S. H. Tom, M. D. (1996). Health and Health Care for CHINESE-AMERICAN ELDERS. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. stanford. edu/group/ethnoger/chinese. html. [Last Accessed 22 Februray 13]. Kannayiram Alagiakrishnan, M. D. (1996). HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE OF ASIAN INDIAN AMERICAN ELDERS. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www. stanford. edu/group/ethnoger/asianindian. html. [Last Accessed 22 Februray 13]. Heritage Assessment Heritage Assessment NRS-429V | Culture and Cultural Competency in Health Promotion John Thomas 3/24/13 The Heritage Assessment tool is primarily used as a device to evaluate health maintenance, health protection, and health restoration of a person’s cultural beliefs and values (Spector, 2006). This assessment helps aid in providing quality patient care in that it helps to meet and respect the needs of different types of people and their respective backgrounds (Spector, 2002).This particular paper serves to compare and contrast the ethnicities of Indian, Caucasian, and Arabic families using health maintenance, health protection, and health restoration as evaluation markers. The purpose was to identify and isolate different groups of people and their unique health practices and traditions that were based off their heritage or background. An assessment of these ethnicities led to several discoveries that I believe could truly improve our methods of health care. Cultural awareness is an essential part of life, especially in this country that is considered to be the melting pot of the world.Cultural awareness can be defined as understanding and appreciation the difference between oneself and people of other backgrounds and cultural beliefs (Shen, 2004). Cultural competence is a term used to refer to awareness and skill acquired to be able to care for people of different ethnicities and cultures (Purnell, 2002). The heritage assessment tool serves as a questionnaire of sorts that is used by personnel in management or care-providing positions in order to gain a better familiarity of a patient/client’s values before providing care (Spector, 2002).These can include questions about everything from their childhood experiences to varying health practices carried out in their homes. These all contribute in helping the nurse/caregiver to be culturally sensitive and utilize the questionnaire to provide quality care to the patient without unknowingly overstepping any boundaries. The Indian family I observed and talked to was my own. Growing up in India had a huge impact on my life and the choices I still make today. Upon working out the Heritage Assessment tool, I found that I still hold deeply rooted ties to my homeland and that I have tried to raise my children in the ame way. Though lifestyles are completely different when comparing the person living actually in India to the individual with an Indian background, a plethora of factors pertaining to health still carry over. Indian families tend to eat foods that are heavy with spices and capsaicin. Studies have shown that these have a number of health benefits including weight loss. When looking into some of the decisions that my family has made that seem to stand out from my friends of different background, diet and religion seem to stand out the most.Indian families are acutely aware of balance and moderation and this can be seen in the average meal. Religion is also a key factor in heal th protection. I have found that families will turn to God to keep their loved ones safe. Being from an Indian Catholic family, I am painfully aware this can also have its down side. For example, Catholicism discourages the use of contraceptives. This is a serious issue when understanding how this affects the growth of the AIDS epidemic not only among Indians but the rest of the world.In terms of restoration, there are more herbal remedies and natural medicines involved than antibiotics and pills. My wife still makes an array of teas and extracts for our children before resorting to taking them to a doctor. The Arabic family I talked to had a surprising number of parallels to my own. They were also driven by religion when it came to health protection. An illness was often considered to be unlucky and a curse from Allah for your sins. The diet high in spices and vegetables seemed a reasonable method of health maintenance.The values of the Arabic values were much stricter than the oth er families I talked to. An incident comes to mind of when it is very important to keep the values and traditions of the patient in mind. A Muslim woman was pregnant and nearing her due date. When it came time for her delivery, the only available Gynecologist was male and went through with the standard procedure and she delivered a healthy baby boy. The woman however, was shunned from her community because the doctor was a man who was not her husband.Situations such as these are important to keep in mind when providing care to patients. The Arabic family also was more open to natural medicine and homeopathic medicine and sought to find a way to cure themselves before seeking outside help at a medical facility. Lastly, the Caucasian family that were my neighbors seemed the most different from the families that I had talked to but the most open and attentive to the world around them. Though their diet was not the best, they seemed more inclined towards exercise and consumption of vita mins to maintain their health and protection of their health.They were also much better about keeping up with regular doctors’ visits and checkups and opted for more immunizations and vaccinations. They seemed more up to date and modernized in all aspects of health. They were also more trusting of modern medicines and prescriptions. They heavily relied on the healthcare system for health restoration even for the simplest medical issues. In conclusion, all three ethnicities have varying lifestyles that contribute to their current status of health. It is important to keep in mind that this is not an accurate report of that general culture.Rather it is an extremely small sample that I found to compare to other families in a somewhat suburban town. I found it very interesting that even with drastically different beliefs and values, all three cultures seemed to value their immensely, even though each had their own traditions and methods so as to preserve that state of health. From the stories and experiences I have heard in talking with these people, I believe it is more imperative than ever that nurses direct more attention to the usefulness of the Heritage Assessment tool.References Purnell, L. (2002). The Purnell model for cultural competence. Journal of transcultural nursing,  13(3), 193-196. Shen, Z. (2004). Cultural competence models in nursing. Journal of Transcultural Nursing,  15(4), 317-322. Spector, R. E. (2002). Cultural diversity in health and illness. Journal of Transcultural Nursing,  13(3), 197-199. Spector, R. E. (2004). Culture care: guide to heritage assessment and health traditions. Prentice Hall.

Gerald graff pop culture in academics Essay

In Gerald Graff’s â€Å"Hidden Intellectualism,† Graff argues that schools should encourage students to think critically, read, and write about areas of personal interest such as cars, fashion, or music but as long as they do so in an intellectually way. I happen to agree with Graff and his perspective for many different reasons. I personally believe that students should be giving the opportunity to engage intellectually with pop cultural topics that interest them and get to apply their â€Å"street smarts† to their academic work. Teenagers can also relate to what’s going on in their own lives with the pop culture world. Sometimes it’s hard for teenagers to understand a certain topic but if teachers can explain it to them in a way that they can understand using pop culture, teachers should be allowed to do so. Pop culture should be allowed in the classroom as long as it’s used in an educational way and can help students learning. Graff talks a lot about â€Å"street smarts† in his essay. We all know someone who is â€Å"street smart† but they just don’t do to well in school and are unable to do well in academics. Some people may feel that it’s a waste of intelligence and knowing so much about life isn’t going to help you academically. Graff feels that it’s not those students fault and those students can be helped. He states that â€Å"What doesn’t occur to us, though, is that schools and colleges might be at fault for missing the opportunity to tap into such street smarts and channel them into good Gonzalez 2 academic work† (pg. 380). Meaning schools and colleges should be held accountable for not being able to help those street smart teenagers and help turn their knowledge of life into academic work. Teachers should help these students learn how to understand the academics their teaching them with examples of the street smart knowledge they already obtain. Personally, I feel that street smarts beat out book smarts in today’s world. Street smarts is something that’s real knowledge to me and can help someone in the future unlike book smarts where everything feels unreal. Graff’s speaks of his own experience in school and how he felt he was the typical teenage anti-intellectual. All throughout high school Graff hated reading and books. The only thing he truly cared for was sports, and the only reading he did was reading sports magazines. Graff says â€Å"I have recently come to think, however, that my preference for sports over schoolwork was not anti- intellectualism so much as intellectualism by other means† (pg. 382). What Graff is saying here is just because he had rather choose sports over schoolwork doesn’t make him unintelligent it makes him smart but in a different way. I can personally agree with Graff. I’m not very interested in academic work but I grew up watching sports. Sports are full of challenging debates, arguments, analysis, and statistics. You can debate which team is better so why not use that same tactic but a different topic. I remember being in class not doing my work and talking about football or basketball. If a teacher was to explain reading or writing to me with using sports as an example I probably would’ve understood what they were saying and succeed in school. Have teenagers analysis sports topic and have them relate to them and see if they agree or disagree with that sport topic. Schools should create debates or arguments that teenagers can relate to. It will get teens to feel more involved and they might actually engage in the Gonzalez 3 conversation. We should be able to incorporate sport topics in school because not many students find educational topics very understanding or interesting. Teachers can easily use sports as a topic in every classroom discussion. Music in pop culture today has such a big influence on students. Everyone listens to at least some type of music any chance of the day they get. One of the main influences is hip hop music. Hip hop is all over the radios and you can find it in at least the majority of student’s phone players, iPod, or even CDs. Music has a huge influence on myself, personally. Music helps me concentrate and even helps me learn academic material better. It even helps my mind grow and develop better. Music actually improves communication between the right and left sides of the brain, allowing you to gain better comprehension and memorization skills which develop your brain to a higher level. Music has so much to do with metaphors and understanding lyrics and truly understanding the meaning of a song. It even helps to improve reading and comprehensive skills. Take Tupac Shakur for instance, his rap music has such meaningful metaphors which should be used in the classroom because they can truly help teenagers understand the meaning of a metaphor and students will actually be interested in the topic. Music is such a complex language that even incorporates mathematics, science, history, physical education,  ­coordination, and even mental ability. Most teenagers find hip hop artist like Tupac interesting because they can relate to Tupac’s music about daily life struggles about gangs, drugs and growing up in the â€Å"ghetto†. Since teenagers go through these struggles we should help give them something to relate to so they can know the real world isn’t perfect and a lot of people can be going through the same struggles as you. Gonzalez 4 Most people will disagree with the fact that schools should allow pop culture influences in education. That schools are made for learning academics and nothing else, like pop culture, should influence anything not academic. An argument could be that pop culture is a bad influence and can send the wrong message to teenagers. For instance that sports can send the message of promoting violence and that teenagers should stick to their own personal friends and not communicate with other groups of people. It can cause tension in the classrooms over debates because not everyone has the same opinion about a certain team. Or the simple fact that not everyone is interested in sports or have knowledge of sports and they don’t want teenagers to feel as if they don’t fit in. A lot of people will have negative comments about music in education and academics. Most will argue that music send the wrong message to teens. Some can even say rap music like Tupac exploits women and uses vulgar language. It promotes violence and criminal like activity. Which in some rap music and even Tupac’s music is true. He uses extreme vulgar language and talks about the â€Å"thug life†. It even includes sexual conduct in his rapping. Some can even say hip hop music period is distracting and if we promote music in schools. Like this, it will promote teenagers to get the wrong idea about school and education. That teens will go out and join a gang, become sexually active, and do criminal like activity. Even though some teenagers have a hard life and can relate to this music we should not remind them of their personal life’s and keep everything strictly academic. In conclusion, you can see that there is a positive and negative to having pop culture in today’s education. I personally feel that there should be a connection to education which Gonzalez 5 teenagers like I should be able to be interested in as long as it’s educational. Not everyone will have the same opinion as Graff and I so there should be an option to be able to take classes which you can use pop culture in your learning process or if you want to keep it strictly educational you should be able to as well. Either way pop culture is huge to teenagers today. Everything from music, fashion, sports, TV and celebrities. Teenager’s world revolves around pop culture and if we want to keep teens interested in learning we should find ways, like using pop culture, to keep them interested. Works Cited Graff, Gerald. â€Å"Hidden Intellectualism. † They Say, I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing. Eds. Graff, Gerald, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russell Durst. New York: W. W. Norton and Co. , 2012. 380-87. Print.

Compositional Unity

Compositional Unity Unity is one of the features that are used to add value to an image in art and design. Some artists don’t know how to use the elements of design collectively to portray collectiveness thus when a viewer looks at that image, his/her attention is focused on parts that have been made to shout for attention than others.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Compositional Unity specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This paper explains how artists use various techniques to bring unity in an image. The strategies used to achieve unity include proximity, repetition, and continuation (Skaalid, 1999). Graham (2004) argues that an image in art and design is supposed to present unity all over the frame of the work. The artist should therefore choose his elements carefully to avoid conflicts of elements. For instance, let us take a look at Soap bubbles by Simeon Chardin (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2010). In this painting a young man is seen blowing soap bubbles using a small pipe and besides him is a glass containing the soap liquid which is used to reveal to the viewer the source of the bubbles. First and foremost unity is created in this image by drawing the objects close to each other and in fact the objects are touching each other. This is also referred to as proximity because there is some form of pattern in the painting. If the objects in this image were scattered there would be no unity. Overlapping has also been applied to create unity in this image. Besides, overlapping enables the viewer to view other objects in the background which are blended with the main image. In soap bubbles work, overlapping does not only create unity but it also reveals the other objects that are in the background such as the young fellow who seems to be shorter than the main character (Graham, 2004).Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The concept of similarity is depicted in the picture because color has also been distributed evenly to create unity. This achieved by repeating the pale brown color all over the painting. This image suggests that Chardin is a seasoned artist because the emphasis of his coloring is even. If he had used brighter colors on some objects and dull colors on others the unity of the image would have been lost. Continuation in this image is brought by the repetition of the outline of the boy’s body structure which is progressed by the edge of the platform on which his arms rest. Another work that applies unity is an art work that was done by Claude Monet of The Woman in Green Dress in 1866 (Top of Art, 2010). In this painting repetition has been employed by having a continuous line of the edge of the lady’s dress which brings association among the objects of this image that is the woman and the ground on which she stands. The line which is portrayed by the edges of the ground is progressed by the line on the edge of the lady’s dress. The pattern on the lady’s dress has been realized by repeating the two colors simultaneously, that is green and black. The upper body of the woman is blended with the lower body by the smooth edge of the coat that she wears. The shape on the edge has been repeated on other parts to indicate where her arms are and her neck. It is important to note that the color on the edges of her jacket resembles that of the ground thus the two of them are bound by color. In fact the colors on her dress are used to add diversity to the image. Monet used dark shading which blends well with the color of this lady but she used temperate lighting to enable the viewer to differentiate between the shadow and the hair of this lady. Monet did another painting in 1873 which was referred to as The Lilacs in the Sun (Printing Mania, 2010). In this image Monet presents unity by repeating the pink color on the bushe s which blends well with the brightness of the sun.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Compositional Unity specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More She does this to prevent the green color from dominating the image. Barasch (2000) argues that color can be repeated to add unity and in deed in this image the green color on the surface of the grass below blends with that of the bushes above which binds them together collectively. In conclusion, for unity in art work to be realized the artist must choose colors that are closely related. In addition to that the artist must place his/her objects close in order to bring out the intended theme of the work. Another important aspect is to ensure that there is some sort of continuation of line or direction. Therefore, the principle of unity within an art piece depicts the understanding of the principles of design. References Barasch, M. (2000).Theories of Art 3: From Impressionism to Kan dinsky. New York, NY: Routledge. Graham, P (2004).An Introduction to Painting Still life. Edison, N.J: Chartwell Books, Inc. Printing Mania. (2010). Lilacs in the Sun – Claude Monet Paintings. Web. Skaalid, B. (1999). Principles of Design: Unity. Web. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.(2010). â€Å"Jean Simà ©on Chardin: Soap Bubbles (49.24)† Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. Web.Advertising Looking for essay on art and design? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Top of Art. (2010). Camille (The Woman in the Green Dress). Web. Appendix 1. Soap Bubbles, ca. 1734 Artist: Jean Simà ©on Chardin (French, 1699–1779) Medium: Oil on canvas Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.(2010) 2. Camille (The Woman in the Green Dress) – 1866 Artist: Claude Monet: Germany Medium: Oil on Canvas Source: (Top of Art, 2010). 3. Lilacs in the Sun 1873 Artist: Claude Monet Medium: Oil on Canvas Source: (Printing Mania, 2010)

Beware of These 26 Worst College Majors

Beware of These 26 Worst College Majors SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips One of the biggest decisions you’ll have to make while you’re in college (or even before you begin) is what you’ll want to major in.When you choose a major, you might primarily think about your academic interests or long-term career goals. But perhaps you’re concerned about more practical matters, like employment and earnings opportunities. If you want to scope out majors that will make it more difficult for you to be professionally successful in the long run, you’ve come to the right place. Here, I’ll lay out what makes a major â€Å"bad† before listing the worst college majors in a variety of categories (like worst paying majors, majors with the highest unemployment rates, and lowest value majors). Keep in mind, however, that these can still be great subjects to study. Already majoring in one of the subjects on this list or planning to in the future? Don’t worry - that doesn’t mean you’re doomed to professional failure. At the end, I’ll list tips and strategies for success if you’ve decided to pursue one of the majors on these lists. Let’s get started! What Makes a Major â€Å"Bad?† There's no such thing as an objectively bad major - you should study whatever topic you choose. But in the context of this article, I’m defining the "worst" college majors as onesthat may make it more difficult for you to: Find employment post-graduation (based onaverage unemployment rates) Make a good living (based on average salary) Both find a job AND find a job that pays well There are a lot of reasons why a particular major might make it more difficult for a graduate to find a relatively well-paying job quickly. You’ll want to do your own research on majors that you’re interested in, but here are some possible explanations for why a major may end up on one of our â€Å"worst† lists: Competition in an industry is particularly high, making it harder for recent grads to break into the field. There isn’t a lot of demand for a particular professional with that major, which drives down salaries. A bachelor’s degree may not be enough to gain success in the field. Students may need to pursue a graduate degree in order to find gainful employment. Jobs in a particular field may be found mostly in the public sector. Public sector jobs tend to pay less than private sector jobs. These majors can still be great areas of study and lead to fulfilling careers; they are just, on average, less lucrative ones. Majors With the Worst Employment Rates The following majors are the ones that may make it most difficult for you to find a job after graduation, especially in your field. These majors are correlated with higher-than-average unemployment rates based on a recent report out of Georgetown University. Here are some recent, important figures for reference: Unemployment rates for high school graduates, aged 18-24: 18.9% Unemployment rate for graduates with bachelor’s degrees, aged 18-24: 6.7% *Source: National Center for Education Statistics, 2014 You’ll notice that the unemployment rates listed below are much lower than 18.9%, which is the unemployment rate for people without a college degree. They are, however, higher than the average unemployment rate for young people with bachelor’s degrees (6.7%). I’ve also included unemployment for â€Å"experienced graduates† of these majors - you’ll notice that unemployment rates drop as people age and gain more professional experience. We can’t tell, however, whether these people are working in the particular field they majored in at school. On this list, recent college grads are defined as individuals with bachelor’s degrees aged 22-26. Experienced college grads are defined as individuals with bachelor’s degrees aged 35-54. The most recent data is from 20-2012, which is a few years ago now, but given how long this sort of research can take it’s the best information we currently have. These majors may lead to increased job search timelines, which means more stress and less money in your pocket. International Business Unemployment for recent college grads: 12.3% Unemployment for experienced college grads: Not enough information available Computer and Information Systems Unemployment for recent college grads: 12.1% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 4.3% Anthropology and Archaeology Unemployment for recent college grads: 10.9% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 7.1% Political Science Government Unemployment for recent college grads: 10.9% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 5.8% Architecture Unemployment for recent college grads: 10.3% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 7.3% Philosophy and Religious Studies Unemployment for recent college grads: 10.3% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 6.4% Fine Arts Unemployment for recent college grads: 10.2% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 6.5% Commercial Art and Graphic Design Unemployment for recent college grads: 9.9% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 6.8% Economics Unemployment for recent college grads: 9.8% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 4.4% Psychology Unemployment for recent college grads: 9.3% Unemployment for experienced college grads: 6.3% Worst Paying Majors If your primary concern when choosing a major is earning potential, you might want to stay away from the ones on the following list. They’re correlated with particularly low earnings for â€Å"experienced† grads (aged 25-59) according to that same Georgetown report. Median earnings are more helpful than average earnings because averages are easily skewed by very high or very low outliers. Keep in mind that the most recent information from this report is from 20-2012, so salaries are probably slightly higher now. For reference, the average graduate with a bachelor’s degree makes $45,478 right out of college. The average adult with a bachelor’s degree regardless of age makes about $59,124. You may want to avoid the following majors if this empty wallet makes you sadder than it would the average person. Fine Arts Median earnings for recent grads: $28,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $52,000 Drama and Theater Arts Median earnings for recent grads: $28,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $52,000 Anthropology and Archaeology Median earnings for recent grads: $29,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $57,000 Physical Fitness, Parks, Recreation, and Leisure Median earnings for recent grads: $30,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $53,000 Social Work Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $44,000 Family and Consumer Sciences Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $47,000 Music Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $52,000 Psychology Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $53,000 Philosophy and Religious Studies Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $56,000 Film, Video, and Photographic Arts Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $56,000 Chemistry Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Median earnings for experienced grads: $73,000 Lowest Value Majors In this category, I used information from that Georgetown Report to consider the lowest value majors. These are majors that are associated with both high rates of unemployment AND low salaries - that is, they’re the majors that showed up on both of the lists above. Here, you can check out unemployment and median earnings for both recent and more experienced grads for the lowest value majors. Anthropology and Archaeology Unemployment for recent grads (22-26 years old): 10.9% Median earnings for recent grads: $29,000 Unemployment for experienced grads (30-54 years old): 7.1% Median earnings for experienced grads: $57,000 Philosophy and Religious Studies Unemployment for recent grads (22-26 years old): 10.3% Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Unemployment for experienced grads (30-54 years old): 6.4% Median earnings for experienced grads: $56,000 Fine Arts Unemployment for recent grads (22-26 years old): 10.2% Median earnings for recent grads: $28,000 Unemployment for experienced grads (30-54 years old): 6.5% Median earnings for experienced grads: $52,000 Philosophy and Religious Studies Unemployment for recent grads (22-26 years old): 10.3% Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Unemployment for experienced grads (30-54 years old): 6.4% Median earnings for experienced grads: $56,000 Psychology Unemployment for recent grads (22-26 years old): 9.3% Median earnings for recent grads: $31,000 Unemployment for experienced grads (30-54 years old): 6.3% Median earnings for experienced grads: $53,000 Are You Doomed If You’ve Chosen One of the WorstMajors? The short answer: no. There are a lot of reasons you can be successful even if you’ve chosen a major that’s associated with low salary, high unemployment, or both. Many students prioritize personal and academic interests over high future salaries, and that’s 100% OK (as long as you’re well-informed and realistic about your employment prospects). Still concerned? Here are a few reasons why you shouldn’t be too worried about choosing a â€Å"bad† major. Don’t abandon ship until you’ve read the rest of this post. You Don’t Have to Pursue a Career That’s Directly Related to Your Major Some of the majors listed above are fairly flexible or broad in scope (like psychology or philosophy). If you’re concerned about getting a job or making enough money after you graduate, you should know it’s possible to switch gears and look for entry-level employment that isn’t directly related to your major. Many employers will view your past employment history as more important that your college major, especially as you get older. You may have to spend more time working your way up the ranks from an entry-level position, but that’s super common with recent college grads anyways. You Can Pursue Graduate Degrees in Your Field A graduate degree may lead to an increase in salary and a decrease in the chance you’ll stay unemployed. Some BA degrees won’t get you anywhere in a particular field without a graduate degree (e.g. you can do next to nothing in psychology without at least a master’s). This won’t apply to every major, but you may want to look into whether a graduate degree (either an MA or a PhD) is all but required for a job in a particular field. Graduate degrees can be expensive and costly, but they can really pay off in the long run with better employment prospects and higher salaries (again, though, it’s important to do your own research on this). Alternatively, you may be able to pursue a graduate degree in a new field, especially if your undergraduate major is one of the more flexible options. 4 Tips If You’re Studying One of the Worst College Majors If you’ve chosen one of these majors (and will be sticking with it), there are a few important things you can do to make sure you don’t end up unemployed or underpaid. Know What You Can Expect to Make If you have a specific career in mind, you can look at websites like payscale.com or salary.com for more info on average earnings. If you’re happy (or unhappy) with these prospects, this will give you an idea of whether you should stay the course or pivot to another career path. Speak With Other Graduates in Your Major Are they working in the same field, or are they doing something different? Are they happy with what they’re earning? Was it difficult to find a job? Keep in mind that any information you get is is anecdotal evidence, so take it with a grain of salt. Meet With a Career Counselor You can often schedule a meeting with a counselor through your school’s career center. They can speak with you more about possible career options based on your major, interests, and strengths. They may also have more info about job growth and earning potential. Finally, career counselors may have contacts in your field in case you wanted to connect with grads in your major - this could turn out to be a great resource. Have a Career Plan Coming up with a solid plan means asking yourself a ton of questions about what you want, including: Do you want to stay in your field and look for jobs directly related to your major, or do you want to branch out? Can you start getting entry-level experience now so that you’ll be better prepared to enter the workforce after you graduate? Would it pay off to look into graduate degree programs? Would a graduate degree make you significantly more valuable as an employee? As your answers to these questions shift (or not) over time, you can amend your plans and goals so that your professional career ends up where you want it to. Coming up with a plan - even if you have to scrap it a few times - is never a bad idea. Wrapping Up The way I defined â€Å"worst† at the beginning of this article was pretty narrow. If your primary concerns are job availability and/or salary, the majors listed here may not be the best fit for you. However, that doesn’t mean that these majors should be avoided at all costs and under all circumstances, and it doesn’t mean you can’t be successful if you’ve chosen one of these majors. It does mean that you should think carefully and critically about your career prospects, especially if you’re interested in choosing one of these majors. To be frank, however, everyone should be doing this if they want to be optimally successful with their degree, no matter how â€Å"good† of a major they’ve chosen. What’s Next? Still stressed about selecting a college major? Only you can figure out which major is best for you, but we may have some information to make the decision a bit easier. Learn about how to choose a major for your college application, and then check out our post on the average college GPA by major. If you’re thinking longer-term about your career prospects, you might be interested in learning about job shadowing - it’s a great way to test out a particular profession to see if it may be a good fit. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now: