APA format

Due to follow a guide for citation and assignment paper, the American Psychological Association PAP) style created a gulled for academic format specified In â€Å"Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association† In July 2009. (American Psychological Association, 2014). So probably you'll wonder why and how it is useful. PAP format basically help you to do a better research and provide a good list of reference avoiding copyright issues and/or plagiarism.Besides, paraphrasing can be use, but only with citation in the text, since you haven't do the research directly, just taking it from the source, giving credit to the original author. Furthermore, for school/college/ university paper work evaluate your ability to collect Information to build up your work. For Instance, a research for having a good Idea, and be able to support It with source, is equivalent a good work. As it was mention before, it will give the document a specific format in which help everything to b e in order and at the same time to provide a professional look.General rules are to be written in 12-point size Times New Roman. For the title, don't underline or bold it. Double-space with uniform margins of 1 In (2. 54 CM). Hanging indents at the reference list (starts on a new page ND also arrange sources In alphabetical order with only the author's given name (not full name) with space between Initials. Provide the year of publication edition number, place of publication, publisher name, and the page. For web pages, include the day it is retrieved.In addition, capitalize only the first letter of first word in a title, and italicize the title. (BBC The Library, 2014) Provide number of pages at the top right header of the page, and at the left size the title. (Lecher C. M. , E. A. Singer, & American Psychological Association. 2008). In order to gain a complete understanding of PAP format, It Is necessary to read the gulled provide In books or even at Google, following the examples provided and avoiding the mistakes.

Education policy Essay

Security, quality education, access to healthcare, prospects of a reasonable job on merit and sound economy are the ingredients to be provided by the state to its citizens to run the state and the society smoothly. Growth of successful nations is denoted particularly to the education. There was a time when people believed that higher education should be available to people of all social classes and, obviously, it was freely available to all who wanted it. The fact that it is not, that public education was once available and now it is very hard to access is indicative of deep problems in Pakistan. Encouraging colleges and universities to raise their own resources by charging higher fees has clearly excluded a significant section of students belonging to poor sections of the society. Education in Pakistan is now so expensive that poor can’t even imagine of their children becoming doctors and engineers. Our education system is passing through a very bad phase now and it is regarded as perhaps amongst the poorest in the world. Cream of the Pakistani brain is either becoming idle due to non-availability of ever rising cost of education or going to other countries. UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS Article 1 provides; every child has the right to have equal access to an education, irrespective of their color, creed, nationality, ethnicity, or social and financial status, so they may obtain gainful employment and contribute to the growth of their society, being born free and equal in dignity and rights. Life for a common man in Pakistan in this so called â€Å"democratic† regime has already become difficult owing to the all-round price rise across the country. Inflation, combined with policies of privatization, has caused a complete deterioration in living standards of the people. Frankly speaking, there is no such thing as democracy in Pakistan. This type of â€Å"democracy† has often left the common man in constant struggle for survival. Majority of Pakistanis are living in poverty and unsustainable economic conditions; when they are struggling for their livelihood education loses its utility in their eyes and it becomes far from their desire. But for the riches and powerful corrupt politicians, things are very rosy. Pakistan is suffering terribly for that, with socio-political and economic crises strewn all over the society like a straw hut in a typhoon. Lack of good education and unemployment in Pakistan would contribute many social ills, including crime, prostitution, and the break down in law and order. In Pakistan, providing education to the masses had always been state responsibility. Now there has been a major push for the private provision of educational services. Moreover, corrupt politicians, feudalism, injustice are such problems which have further pressed the most pressed people of the country. Education is a tremendous tool for social change as well as an opportunity out of poverty traps. People trapped in the lower classes have trouble climbing out of it because they lack the tools to do so, because they live in a feudal society that actively works to keep them there, and education can be a form of escape hatch. But Education System in Pakistan In Human development Report Pakistan is placed at 136th position for having just 49. 9% educated population. In addition to that, Pakistan is ranked at 113th out of 120 registered UN members according to the research conducted by UNESCO et. all. Some of the very basic flaws of the education system in Pakistan contribute to the economic, ethnic and sociopolitical crisis within the country. Flaws of Education System in Pakistan Firstly, the education system of Pakistan is based on unequal lines. Medium of education is different in both, public and private sector. This create a sort of disparity among people, dividing them into two segments. Such a distraught infrastructure is a basic cause of high illiteracy rate in Pakistan and high drop out rates in rural areas and public school. Secondly, regional disparity is also a major cause. The schools in Balochistan (the largest province of Pakistan by Area) are not that much groomed as that of Punjab (the largest province Of Pakistan by Population). In FATA, the literacy rate is deplorable constituting 29. 5% in males and 3% in females. The third major cause of flawed education system in Pakistan is gender discrimination. The current primary school ratio of boys and girls is 10:4, which is a cause of huge concern. For the last few years there has been an increase in the growth of private schools. It is believed that Pakistan is among the most prominent states affected by gender discrimination. That not only harms the quality of education in Pakistan but create a gap among haves and have nots. Fourthly, the lack of technical education is a biggest flaw in the education policy that has never been focused before. Therefore, less technical people means low standard of education. Fifthly, the allocation of funds for education are very low. It is only 1. 5 to 2. 0 percent of the total GDP. It should be around 7% of the total GDP. At that budget allocation, the illiteracy rate in Pakistan would not decrease but rather increase. The federal and provincial governments need to cut down their expenditures in other areas and spend a bigger proportion of income on education. Moreover, the quality of education in most of the public schools and colleges is well below par; the teachers in government schools are not well trained. People who do not get job in any other sector, they try their luck in educational system. They are not professionally trained teachers so they are unable to train a nation. Quality of teaching needs special attention in rural areas where the teachers lack in all departments. In America, Europe and most of the developed countries, the emphasis of the states is on developing virtual education systems i. e. provision of education through online networks. The idea of online education is gathering momentum and many online institutions have been set up which offer online courses and online degrees. The Higher Education Commission and Education ministry need to focus on developing a strong online education network so that students through out the country can benefit. Universities such as Harvard, Berkley and MIT are offering online courses and degrees. It reflects the importance of online education in today’s modern high tech world. Finally, Poverty is also another factor that restrict the parents to send their children to public or private schools. So, they prefer to send their children to Madrassas where education is totally free. The government has to make changes to financial infrastructure to improve the situation. Bank loans for education purposes should not be interest based as it discourages the people of Pakistan to acquire loans. Education loans are offered at low rates through out the world and it enable people to acquire quality education. Social awareness regarding all these issues need to be spread and we, the people of Pakistan have to work hand in hand with the government authorities to improve the current system. Our children should not be deprived of their basic right to acquire knowledge. All these issues contribute to high illiteracy rate, which in turn result in economic crisis in shape of high unemployment rate and below-par quality of labor. Moreover, the country suffers on social, political and technological front! There are hundred other problems which need attention but the core-issues need to be addressed as soon as possible. You can read my article Pakistan’s Educational System which is an overview of the education infra-structure within the country. In today’s world, the benchmark for excellence is education. Moreover, if a country has a distraught academic infrastructure, the chances to survive in current competitive world are petite. The illiteracy rate in Pakistan is alarmingly high which calls for critical attention. The federal and provincial governments need to work together towards elimination of flaws of education system in Pakistan. The first time I thought about education and its significance to this society was when I went on a field trip to a school set up by an NGO in the late 1990s. It is now a rightly famous NGO but back then during my sixth grade field trip it just seemed like a project of a group of cranky Karachi businessmen who had decided to spit against the wind of the government’s non-interest in providing education to its people. These rich grouches had  gotten together in the chaos of 1995 Karachi and seeing the government more interested in massacring hard-boiled militants than provide social services, they decided to simply pool their own money and build their own schools. How benevolent of them. I would love to see these rich men’s tax receipts. The citizens of a country shouldn’t be dependent on the benevolent charity of rich men. Through their own democratic political process, citizens must enforce upon their richest members the income taxes necessary to fund an education system that reaches every child in the state. The fact that Pakistanis have not done so points towards the weakness of their political system in dealing with its population’s educational needs. There is no real shortcut from the state actually enforcing a tax system that extracts the adequate revenue needed to fund the creation of a school near every human settlement in Pakistan. The goal I have described of having a school near every human settlement in Pakistan, is what Pakistan is obligated to do under its current international treaties and the simplest and most straightforward way it can be done. It is certainly not impossible. Pakistan has managed to make sure that no human settlement lacks a mosque. The same needs to be done for schools. Where we went wrong Nationalisation of schools, as was done by the Z. A. Bhutto administration, was a shortcut that cannot be used, and was actually instrumental in ruining government schools. The provincial governments that ran education departments became overstretched then to the point of breaking. The schools that were nationalised saw the prospect of future capital and human investment in them pointless, as the former owners were now dispossessed of their old stake in the schools. Good teachers left, rather than become government employees to be posted in far flung places, and the lack of good teacher training colleges, a necessity unacknowledged up until recently, saw little competent replacement. By nationalising the missionary (Christian), faith-based (Muslim) and private schools, an unwieldy, unplanned expansion of Pakistan’s school system reduced the status of government school teachers to the corrupted, incompetent, ineffective place it finds itself in today. Teachers do not come to classes, and if they do, they are ill-prepared to teach. It becomes difficult to weed out and penalise underperforming teachers because their status as government employees prevents them from being penalised as they would be in the private sector. As much as this rhetoric may sound similar to the United States, Pakistan’s teachers’ unions continue to shelter wildly incompetent teachers, who beyond being simply bad at teaching, many times do not even show up. Anti-participatory environment We are not helped either by large class sizes, low teacher to student ratios, non-production of teachers in a sufficient quantity and quality by the low number of Pakistani teacher-training colleges. Central to this remains the criminally low expenditure on education by Pakistan, and the failure to collect or divert enough revenue to the education sector. Taking the education emergency of Pakistan seriously would mean finding means to increase the amounts spent on education in Pakistan, on a war footing. Students cannot themselves push for an effective learning environment. Despite the fact that some students actually do want to learn, the environment that exists in classrooms, does not brook dissent. This discourages students from bringing up flaws in their educational setting. This anti-participatory environment in classrooms is facilitated by excessively large class sizes, which discourages teachers from having more individualised interactions with students. This anti-participatory trend in classrooms is complemented by an anti-democratic trend in schools, where no voting is done to elect new prefects or monitors, rather the relevant students are appointed by the school administration. Giving students an opportunity to actually vote for their school leaders might inculcate democratic and participatory values in them at an earlier age, and teach them the responsibility of making their own decisions. If and when these students reach Pakistani universities, they can adequately recognise the entrenched authoritarianism accumulated in many of Pakistan’s universities over the last three decades. Student politics This persistent anti-democratic trend within Pakistan’s educational establishments has reinforced the low academic quality of these institutions. There is little legitimate input from the student bodies on how their education is conducted. Since the 1980s student union elections have been either banned or delayed, witnessing unrest in a violent country like Pakistan ripple into campuses as violence, as opposed to measured  debate. The situation turned chaotic in the 1990s when the general mayhem of the city of Karachi coincided with violence on the Karachi University campus. The presence of such violence made the students of that decade disinterested in participatory politics. This suited the authoritarian and bureaucratic administrations of varsities, as well as the sclerotic, unelected leadership of Pakistan’s political parties. They did not mind that the students of Pakistan slid into political apathy. However, the importance of student politics was re-kindled in the 2007 lawyer-led movement against the dictatorship of General Musharraf. The importance of student politics was even acknowledged by the government that won against Musharraf in 2008, when it lifted the ban on student and trade union elections. However, the twist in the tale has been the glaring domestic democratic deficit of this government. The anti-participatory atmosphere on campuses has not lifted as no memorable student elections have been held. Neither have any well-publicised trade union elections been held. And most significantly, no internal party elections have been held in any party that maintains a decisive number of seats in parliament. What the lack of student democracy has to do with Pakistan’s state of education is that there is no feedback from students, who are the objects of education. There is no diminishment in the cruel authoritarian atmosphere of Pakistani government classrooms, where teachers, in negligent enough environments can still use sticks to punish students. I never really thought about education in society as a child. That would have been expected of any 11 year old. But when I visited a third grade NGO school classroom in the late ’90s and saw another 11 year old struggling with phrases I would read just for fun, it hit me how serious the problem of illiteracy was for Pakistani society. In a misbegotten decade as that one, beyond the Gordian knot we had witnessed of Karachi’s bloody politics, the reality of children’s mis-education struck me as a crueler fate, a dire issue that had to be resolved immediately. That’s because these ill-educated children would not remain children much longer. They would soon be badly-educated adults. And if this cruel act of omission by Pakistani society was not amended quick enough, then one more generation would see their adulthoods wasting away under the 21st century curse of illiteracy. Tax the rich, teach the kids. We have an education emergency on our hands. The Education System of Pakistan is divided into five levels 1. Primary level (Class 1 to 5) 2. Middle level (Class 5 to 8th) 3. Secondary level (S. S. C) 4. Intermediate level (H. S. C) 5. University level (Graduation, Masters and Research) Another division of Education System in Pakistan according to the School System 1. 1.  Public Schools or Government Schools These schools are managed and financed by the government. Unfortunately, the majority of the schools are in poor condition.  » There is no any merit system; teachers and other staff are appointed by the ministers on their own wishes.  » There is no any accountability; a large number of GHOST SCHOOLS AND GHOST TEACHERS are listed in the documents. They are receiving funds and pays, but, in reality they did not exists.  » In Rural areas, the buildings of public schools are mostly held by Waderas and Feudal. They use them as marriage halls, otaks, bethaks etc. â€Å"Public schools are the nurseries of all vice and immorality. † (Henry Fielding) 1. 2. Elite Class Schools (private schools) Due to badly failure of government in providing the Education, the Elite Class Education System in Pakistan got successes very quickly. Today, even poor prefer to send their child in these private schools but because of high fee structure many aspirants are unable to part this Education System. It is generally accepted that, the standard of Elite Class Education System is more reliable and first-rate than Public Schools and Madarsas. There is accountability, transparency and checking system. Generally, the students of private schools are more competent than those of public schools and Madarsas. The government should take lessons from this Education System. These are successive models for the government i. e. CITY SCHOOL, BEACON SCHOOLS, PAK-TURK SCHOOLS etc. 1. 3. Madarsas Madarsas are the largest NGOs of the world. Today in Pakistan about 8000 Madarsas are working. They provide not only Education but also accommodation and food. They provide Islamic as well as worldlyEducation. Mostly, poor parents who are unable to educate their child prefer this Education System. The government should introduce the reforms for the Madarsas and improve their standard. This will be helpful in two ways. Firstly, it will provide free of cost education to poor child. Secondly, it will lessen the burden the government. Before the 18th Amendment, the EducationSystem in Pakistan was the responsibility of Federal Government. The Ministry of Education at Federal level was responsible for formulating Policies, Planning and Promotion of Educational facilities across the country. But, after the passing of 18th Amendment, the responsibilities of Education System are divided among the Federation and the Provinces. The responsibilities of the Provinces 1. To set the Curriculum 2. To set the Syllabus 3. Standards of Education up to Grade 12 (F. Sc, H. S. C, I. Com, etc). 4. Islamic Education The responsibilities of Federation are following 1. Planning and Policy 2. External Affairs; Signing, implementation and monitoring of Bilateral and Multi-lateral Educational Agreements, Pacts, Protocols, MoUs 3. Controlling of Libraries, museums, and similar institutions 4. Federal agencies i. e. FATA 5. Special Studies 6. Inter-provincial matters and co-ordination. † 7. Legal, medical and other professions. 8. National planning and national economic coordination including planning and coordination of scientific and technological research. 9. National Education Policy and clear cut Domain over the following acts. 1. 1. Centres of Excellence Act 1974 2. Area Study Centres Act 1975 3. Pakistan Study Centres Act 1976 4. National Book Foundation Act 1972 5. Fed. Board of Intermediate & Sec Education Act 1975 6. Federal Directorate of Education Isb. [Article 142 (d)] 7. Federal Supervision of Curricula, Textbooks and Standards of Education Act 1976 8. National Education Foundation Ordinance 2002. Source: http://www. defence. pk/forums/national-political-issues/125588-education-system-pakistan-good-bad. html#ixzz2PKkMjbtM Flaws hovering over Pakistan’s education system Filed under ISSUES 0 According to the reports of Human development our country is placed at 136th with just 49. 9 percent educated population. There is lack of uniform education system. Private and Govt. educational institutions has different syllabus. The flaws in education system lead to sociopolitical, economic and ethical issues in our society. Our education system is based on uneven lines. Even the medium of education is different in private and public educational institutions. This inequality has divided people among two segments. Such a distressed educational infrastructure is a crucial cause of increasing rate of illiteracy in Pakistan. The regional discrepancy is also main reason illiteracy in Pakistan. The schools in largest province of Pakistan Baluchistan are not establish and sparked as schools in Punjab. There is lack of awareness among people about the significance of education. In FATA the literacy rate is very poor constituting 29. 5% in men and 3% in women. The gender discrimination is also one of the major causes of educational flaws in country which is projecting the boys and girls primary schools ratio 10:4 correspondingly. In the last few years many new primacy schools for girls and boys are established but still there is need to establish more and more primary schools to meet the educational needs of increasing population. In the last decade the growth of private sector schools is tremendously increased. The private schools trend not just harms the quality of education but also created a huge gap between rich and poor. The people of lower class couldn’t afford the fees of private educational schools and colleges. In public schools there is lack of quality education. There is also shortage of required facilities like qualified, train staff, furniture and school buildings etc. Our educational policy doesn’t focus on technical education. There are very few technical institutions and less technical trained people in country. The funds allocated for the education are not sufficient the funds are just about 1. 5 % to 2. 0% of total GDP. Although to promote the education the funds must be about 7 percent of total country GDP. With increased education budget the literacy rate in country will surely increased. The provincial and federal Government both need spend a larger portion of their income on promoting education. Author: Rizwan Ghani Posted On: Tuesday, August 02, 2011 Source/Reference: www. pakobserver. net Total Views :1320| After 18th Amendment, improvement of education in Pakistan to international standards can be done with help of international frameworks including Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) and boards like National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). Federal and provincial governments have to address the issue of teaching language (English, Urdu or regional languages), standardization of curriculum, and dealing with two-track education system- Urdu and English medium to take local and international exams. These tested frameworks can bring the progress of decades in Pakistan while saving billions of dollars. Thus, Pakistan needs to adopt appropriate policies to raise education standards, sustain economy and earn foreign exchange. The political, social and education complexities of teaching language can be controlled with help of international frameworks. PISA does not require the member states to change curriculums, teaching languages and teaching methodologies. It allows governments to periodically monitor outcomes of national education systems within internationally agreed framework. It provides a basis for international collaboration in defining and implementing educational goals and skills that are relevant to adult life (professional and social). PISA reading, mathematics and general science frameworks help bring national education at par with international standards. Around half a million 15-year-olds from 75 countries representing 28 million students, participated in PISA 2009 assessments and surveys. Pakistan can use PISA to improving national education standards in all provincial languages (www. pisa. oecd. org). Teaching in local languages can improve Pakistan’s education standards internationally. According to the 2011 Writing Framework for National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) of America, good writing instruction empowers students to acquire new knowledge and to develop critical thinking skills. This is true of writing in all subject areas, not just English language http //www. state. nj. us/education/assessment/naep/results/writing/2011naep. PISA and NAEP framework rubrics allow student evaluations irrespective of language. Learning and teaching in mother tongue is a universal human right recognized by UN. China, was a top scorers in 2009 PISA testing http //www. nytimes. com/2010/12/07/education/07education. html. It shows education in mother tongue does not affect nation’s international competitiveness and national education standards. Since education is a provincial subject, therefore provinces should be free to impart education in local languages, make English and Urdu as optional languages. Provinces can issue degrees with pass/fail with English/Urdu or both to free the country from politics of language. It will allow students to continue higher education without passing compulsory languages, which is a major contributor to school and college dropouts. It will allow the students to join job market who do not wish to continue with further education. The employer can omit or consider language(s) pass/fail status of candidate at the time of employment. On the other hand, the higher education institutions can keep compulsory languages as part of admission criteria. In line with many American universities, a six months period can be given to first year university students to clear compulsory languages. In terms of syllabus, international frameworks and boards can help Pakistan’s policy makers develop required syllabuses, fulfill demands of local market, and meet national education objectives to bring national and international education at par. They allow improving exam testing and incorporating modern technology in reading and writing. In addition, they facilitate linking of national boards to international boards like NBME (www. nbme. org). NBME model allows state medical qualified doctors to take national level exams, upgrade national education and examination standards and link them to rest of the world. It allows tens of thousands of international medical graduates to take United States Medical Licensing Exam without actually studying in American medical colleges. It is equally true for British, Australian and New Zealand medical boards. This model can help cut cost of professional education and fight poverty in Pakistan. Based on these frameworks and models, federal and provincial governments of Pakistan should collaborate to standardize local education and bring it equal to international standards. Islamabad should hold annual summits with China and western countries in line with reports of annual Indo-US higher education summits planning collaboration of universities in both countries. In addition, Pakistan needs to allow private publishers to print books according to the contents of given courses. It will improve concepts of students, standard of books and education. The existing control of federal government on higher education needs to be changed by allowing provinces complete control of universities, scholarships, hiring, training etc. Federal government needs to become a regulatory body instead of controlling authority and facilitates provinces to standardize higher education, provincial education and bring it equal to international levels. Federal education setup should work with ministry of labor and manpower to identify and develop human resource for interprovincial and overseas market, work with foreign missions to issue annual forecast of overseas jobs and train foreign workers and students. Pakistan needs to organize education to cater to local and international needs, attract foreign investors and earn foreign revenue. Reportedly, America and Britain earned $31bn and ? 8 bn in 2010 from foreign students respectively. China is charging $5333 boarding lodging fee annually for a five-year MBBS and one-year internship. It is also offering seven-year specialization degree programs (5 years MBBS and 2 years specialization) in most medical fields. Beijing has gained international recognition through standardized tuition fees, transparency, qualified staff and allowing foreign students and teachers in local universities (http //www.4icu. org/cn/). The Chinese model can help Pakistan cut prices of professional education by 50 percent and train surplus number of local and foreign students to sustain domestic and international needs. In line with China, Pakistan should also take necessary steps to attract flocks of foreign students, interns and investors. Finally, a debate is going on in China on two-track system- one for national college entrance exam (the gaokao) and other for international exams. Imran Khan’s PTI is deliberating about single education system. Pakistan can overcome challenge of teaching language, two-track system (English and Urdu medium) and bringing local education at par with international with help of international frameworks, NBME and more freedom to provinces. | Pakistan’s Education System and Links to Extremism Author: Jayshree Bajoria October 7, 2009 * Introduction * A ‘Dysfunctional’ System * Government Reform Plans * The ‘Madrassa Myth? ‘ * Reforming Madrassas * U. S. Policy Implications. Pakistan’s poor education system has increasingly become a matter of international concern. Lack of access to quality education, which in turn limits economic opportunity, makes young Pakistanis targets for extremist groups, some experts say. The World Bank says nearly half the adult population of Pakistan can’t read, and net primary enrollment rates remain thelowest in South Asia. Experts say the system suffers from inadequate government investment, corruption, lack of institutional capacity, and a poor curriculum that often incites intolerance. In August 2009, chief counterterrorism adviser to the White House John Brennan, summing up a concern held by many U. S. terrorism experts, said extremist groups in Pakistan have exploited this weakness. â€Å"It is why they offer free education to impoverished Pakistani children, where they can recruit and indoctrinate the next generation,† he said. There have been some efforts by the Pakistani government, Western governments, and the World Bank to reform the system, but serious challenges remain. A ‘Dysfunctional’ System According to the Pakistani government’s National Education Policy 2009 (PDF), three parallel streams in education–public schools, private schools, and Islamic religious schools, or madrassas–have â€Å"created unequal opportunities for students. † Of the total number of students going to primary school (grades 1 to 5), 73 percent go to public or government schools, 26 percent to private schools, and less than 1 percent to madrassas, according to the Karachi-based policy research institute Social Policy and Development Center. Within the public and the private sector, there are elite schools catering to a small minority of students. The majority of students attend low-quality private and public schools with poor curriculum, limited teaching materials, and inadequate number of properly trained teachers, or in many cases absent teachers. â€Å"[N]o Pakistani leader has had the courage to implement serious [education] reforms†- Pervez Hoodbhoy The government-mandated curriculum is a major concern for Western observers who say it encourages intolerance and a narrow worldview. Except in some elite private schools, which do not follow the government-prescribed curriculum, all public schools and registered private schools have been required to teach Islamiyat, or Islamic studies, for nearly thirty years. In addition to Islamiyat, â€Å"many scholars have noted that the government curriculum uses Islam for a wide array of controversial ideological objectives,† writes C. Christine Fair in the 2008 book The Madrassah Challenge. A 2003 report on the state of curriculum and textbooks by the Islamabad-based independent Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) said that for over two decades.

A Knights Tale

The film achieves this by examining the themes of Destiny, Friendship, Classes and Film techniques. Film also plays a significant role in the movie as they allow the audience to determine hierarchy. One of the most important themes is destiny. The main theme in ‘A Knight’s Tale’ would be destiny. Destiny is what pushes William to believe. When William was a young boy, his father, John Thatcher, sent him away to do another Knight’s bidding, Sir Ector. Through luck, William stumbled upon Sir Ector’s body deceased under a tree and William then gathered his armour and began the journey to fulfil his destiny, also changing his name to Sir Ulrich Von Lichtenstein. â€Å"What’s your name William? I’m asking you William Thatcher, to answer me with your name. It’s not Sir William. It’s not count, or duke or earl William. It’s certainly not King William. † John Thatcher sent William away and said, â€Å"This is the best thing I can give to you. Change the stars and live a better life than I have. † William proves that even though he was born into a low social status, he is able to change his stars. William could not fulfil his destiny without friendship. William was not the only one serving Sir Ector. Wat and Roland were also helping, Wat, Roland and William had a very strong friendship. Friendship is what helped William on his destiny to become a Knight. Without his friends, he would not accomplish his goal. â€Å"Your men love you, if I knew nothing else about you that would be enough. † Prince Edward said this because of friendship. His friends were peasants and from the same class. Friendship helps William to fulfil his destiny and to change his stars. During the medieval era, people had classes. There would be peasants, knights, nobles, kings and queens. In the medieval times, everyone wanted power. William needed power to change his stars. Each class had a certain amount of power. Kings and Queens would have a lot of power over the other class. Nobles such as Jocelyn were on seats, they would have an average amount of power but would not have as much power as kings and queens. Knights are used for entertainment. William and Count Adhemar were applying for Jousting and the nobles enjoy their company. They compete in tournaments such as Jousting and Melee. Peasants would only have little power and would have the least amount of power. Peasants would have to stand up during the tournaments. Women were always doing something that men would not appreciate their work such as Kate who is a blacksmith. William changed his stars by changing his class from peasant to knight. Film techniques was a very important role in ‘A Knight’s Tale’. During the movie, film techniques showed hierarchy. People with high power were looked up upon and people with low power would be looked down upon. During the start of the movie, William was always looked down upon however gradually through the movie. William would sometimes be looked up upon speaking to his servants. William was looked up upon when he became a knight, when he was at the stocks. â€Å"I now knight you Sir William† Prince Edward ‘A Knight’s Tale’ shows the viewer that love has no bounds, you can always change the stars no matter the circumstances. ’ William changed his stars, â€Å"With hard work one can do better himself despite his class

Textual Analysis of Los Vendidos Research Paper

Textual Analysis of Los Vendidos - Research Paper Example The drama revolves around stereotype and prejudice towards the Mexicans in America. The writer of the play, Valdez has used humor and entertainment most probably to shun affronting any race. Racism is a big issue and no one would like to be stigmatized or treated differently because of their race, color, religion or gender (Vogelmann 1-4). This play has served the purpose of making light with intention of making people understand racism and prejudice without intending to hurt anyone at the end (Mc Parland's 3). This is helped by the fact that it is a comedy play. There are several themes evident in this play and they are prejudice, racism, social injustice, social identity, Marxism and Hispanophobia. The Mexicans-Americans in this play faced challenges as they were discriminated against. The play humbled the audience instead of inciting confidence in those that were not victims in the play. As a representation of the American society at the time, theatre as a weapon is a term that co mes in several parts of the play. This play has been used to enlighten people on the various issues that encompass prejudice towards the Latin Americans. And it was and is not a small issue because it has been recognized over the years as a vice against the Mexican Americans that had taken toll over the years (Carl et al 13-16). Even the Mexican government mentioned it at one time and said that, â€Å" the government of Mexico, opposes any form of discrimination institutionalization or otherwise, as well as the new forms of discrimination, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance that emerged in several parts of the world , particularly in the developed countries†. The fact the play has one of the major themes as racism among the ethnic groups of American society is a clear indication that it is a vice that existed for a long time basing on the fact that it was written a very long time ago. The characters in the play have brought out this main theme. At the end of the play t he revolucionario states that robot Sancho â€Å"is the best model we got†. This indicates that the Mexicans are fed up of being discriminated and stereotyped against. The secretary in her description wants an American who is black and fits in all her other descriptions of being ‘hardworking’, ‘debonair’, ‘sophisticated’ and ‘American-made’. After just a short while of sampling the models she disregards them at says they do not meet her requirements. She refuses each of the models presented to her by finding flaws in each one of them. This points out how people are always so quick to judge and have objections so easily when they are prejudiced against someone. It is a common thing for people to form some sort of attitude when they hear an accent or see a skin color that is different from theirs giving them an impression that they do not belong., Most of the Mexicans who live in America are discriminated and become treated as second class citizens. An example in the play is by the farm worker who comes to America once a year. He is a migrant worker. â€Å"One plate of beans and tortillas will keep him going all day†. Pachuco is a Mexican gangster who is feared a great deal by the Americans. It is normal for any human to fear a harmful person but in Pachuco’s case this fear has been heightened because of his being a Mexican. Revoluncionario is the typical man in western movies that women want to be with, he is always drinking, rides over the plains

Gamal Abdel Nasser Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

Gamal Abdel Nasser - Essay Example The nationalist revival during the period of British occupation revealed a public awareness among a segment of Cairo's population, but this seldom was transacted into positive achievements. Instead, the Egypt of 1952 was a stagnant country. Beset by political strife, successive national governments did little to foster the country's development. An archaic structure of land ownership, abysmal living conditions among the great majority of the population, an economy geared to benefit a privileged few, and political instability--this was the legacy after thirty years of independence (Frederick, 268). The existing political parties abdicated their right to govern. In their struggle with the King and their quest for power and office, they treaded ruthlessly on the welfare of their country. Egypt's political structure blocked progress, rooted as it was in the status quo. No parliament controlled by wealthy landowners and Cairo's privileged social elite would support sweeping reform programs to the detriment of the vested interests. Few groups were untainted by the corruption which permeated Cairo. Many ranking civil servants owed their positions to partisan politics; landowners gained protection from the Wafd; businessmen were dependent upon the government for favors; and high ranking military officers often owed their posts to the King's personal support. Only the middle-class military--the captains, majors, and colonels, and, perhaps, a few generals--had the moral credentials for a bona fide movement of reform. And, after the sordid manipulation of the Alexandria cotton market and the collapse of national government in 1952, only the military was prepared to take action in the name of the people. Humiliated in the 1948 Palestine War, the Egyptian army generally had done little to distinguish itself. In its ranks, however, was a cadre of sincere and talented, though inexperienced, officers, and it was they who toppled the government in 1952. Initially, a junta sought to establish a nonpartisan civilian government, but this body proved unwilling to initiate the reforms desired by the young officers. Thus, the job of governing fell to the Free Officers by default. Governing had not been their initial purpose, and they were ill prepared for the task; but they alone were in a position to raze the "old order." And the destruction of the "old order" was a prerequisite for the implementation of profound reforms (Frederick 269). Role in Modernizing Egypt Rapid development in Egypt required an authoritarian government, and it became increasingly obvious that the Revolutionary Command Council could not measure up to the task. Instead, a single leader, a man with dictatorial powers, was needed. Gamal Abdel Nasser became dictator of Egypt in April, 1954. His was a difficult task. The country had not rallied to the military movement. Moreover, there was no panacea for Egypt's problems, and his every move drew the sniping attacks of those without the responsibilities for government. To his credit, he approached his mission boldly. Easy as it was to be irresolute, he determined what was best for

Case Analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 13

Case Analysis - Essay Example While exact documents are rare due to the private status of Fresh Direct as a company, there have been rumors that the company posted over $250,000,000 in revenue throughout 2009, making them a rare profitable ecommerce grocer. This distinction attracted the attention of British grocery giants Morrison Supermarkets PLC, who injected the company with an investment worth nearly $50,000,000 US in 2011 that gave them a 10% share. The company will face increased competition from large food retailers as they try to benefit from the growing market. Consumer attitudes about freshness will still be an issue, but it will also be faced by potential competitors. Fresh Direct should continue their progressive expansion into restaurants and new delivery territories as a means of continuing customer growth. Similarly, it would be advantageous to remain aware and adaptive to concerns about freshness and website limitations. This was a thorough and structured case study that provides a significant amount of information about the history of Fresh Direct and the various opportunities and challenges they continue to face in the online grocery

What are mitigating factors in learning math in saudi arabia Assignment

What are mitigating factors in learning math in saudi arabia - Assignment Example The discussion of the results basically focused on elaboration of the behavioral patterns of students in relation to motivation in undertaking math as a subject. MRP6: This was the last section of the paper; it focused on a discussion of the purpose of the research followed by the conclusion section that basically provided summarized information of the entire research. Adler, N. E., & Stewart, J. 2009: Recommended reading for the research; provides pertinent information regarding motivation among human beings. This reference has noted that many human beings have a natural tendency of avoiding work. The DOS Based VBPro: This is the content analysis software that was used to facilitate the analysis of the data collected in this research. The rational for selecting this software for the research is based on the fact that it is easily applicable in analyzing qualitative data. Manipulative in learning: This is one factor that arised in the course of data analysis; manipulative method as a form of learning entails a scenario whereby student utilizes certain items i.e. calculators, toothpicks and markers to support hand-in learning. In my research, this is one factor that appeared to among the motivating factors used among students to learn math. School Quiz Logic Puzzles: This is another issue that emerged as I analyzed my data. It is a tool that was applied in most Saudi Schools to improve the performance of students in mathematics. Logic puzzles are basically brain games where a student is subjected to a scenario where he has to apply logic in order to solve a problem. Qualitative Techniques: This is the procedures that were used to collect and analyze data that guided my research. The rationale for selecting qualitative technique as my research designed was based on the fact that it facilitated asking and answering questions such as: Why? Where? How?

Case Analysis Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Analysis - Case Study Example He suffered from low self esteem. Therefore, he was looking to get back to working in accordance to his competence. The person came across the advertisements in the paper given by Carbon Manufacturing Company as the company was looking for new employees in all of their departments as there was strike going on in the plant. The strike was called by the union at Carbon Manufacturing. This meant the work at the plant was disturbed. The person in the case is eligible for the job. The job will pay him a similar salary as he was getting at the earlier plant. The management of Carbon was fed up with the union there. So, they decided to include a clause in the new employees contract which required them to agree to not to join a union ever during the stay at the company. The job was a permanent job as the company assured that even if the striking workers return, the new recruits will stay in the company. The non-union clause in the contract was a matter of concern for the person as he analyze d that other prospect of joining the company was good. Father of the person was strong union person. Therefore, he had background which suggested him to be in favor of unions. But the present job crisis and his family where he had wife and kids favored his mind to look for the option of appearing for the job interview. The ethical issue regarding the unions also came up in his mind as his neighbors and community received undue benefits from the presence of unions in the plants. His father also told him the scenario that the Americans had to face in the past when there was no presence of union. Long working hours, low payments, very few benefits, and also no security of job were the scenario that engulfed the country in the absence of the unions. The person though believed that such working conditions and scenarios were a thing of the past and in present day, the management of the companies was much more vigilant of the employee welfare. So,

Toyota vs GM( situation during the crisis 2008) Research Paper

Toyota vs GM( situation during the crisis 2008) - Research Paper Example The motor vehicle industry in the US was particularly hard hit by the economic meltdown to an extent that some automobile giants had to be bailed out financially to rescue them. Even if Toyota’s performance was also affected by the economic crunch, the relative better performance against General Motors’s was contributed by Toyota’s manufacturing policy adopted at the company level. Popularly known as the Toyota Production System (TPS), the workforce is motivated to work and contribute actively to the maximization of output and innovation. There is a good tradition at the Toyota production plants concerning industrial elations characterized by the harmonious management of the same. Toyota has been able to successfully handle the pressure of exerted by radical unions and facilitated favorable enterprise unions. According to Bunkley and Vlasic (1), the motor vehicle industry’s performance in 2008 was the worst since 1993 as under a million units only were sold in the US alone. Perhaps, this explains why the General Motors’s performance declined. Toyotas’ performance went down by twenty four per cent while General Motors’s sales decline was by about sixteen percent in 2008. General Motors’s flop translated to losses amounting to over fifteen billion US$ while Toyota’s loss was about a third of General Motors’s failure. The performance dwindling at Toyota was the worst drop in the last two decades, and losses the worst in its entire 72 years of existence, even if it was relatively a better performance than that achieved by General Motors The differential performance by the two motor vehicle companies can be said to be largely as a result of forces beyond management control. Global economic performance was the major factor that poor sales in the motor industry can be attributed to (Wad, 9). At the corporation management level, there was little intervention that could have been adopted

Bending Stresses in a T-Beam Experiment Essay Example for Free

Bending Stresses in a T-Beam Experiment Essay Realistic and verifiable experiment results †¢ Optional TecQuipment’s Structures Software package for extra ‘virtual’ experiments that simulate and confirm the results from your hardware and allow extended experiments †¢ Optional STR2000 unit including TecQuipment’s Structures Software package for automatic data acquisition and virtual experiments †¢ One of many interchangeable experiment modules from TecQuipment’s modern, flexible and costeffective Structures teaching system †¢ Ideal for classroom demonstrations, or students working in pairs or small groups. The experiment hardware is a T-beam that fits onto a Structures Test Frame (STR1, available separately). Students adjust a load cell that bends the beam and, when connected to the optional Digital Force Display (STR1a, available separately), it measures the bending force (load). Strain gauges and a digital strain bridge measure the strains in the beam. Dummy strain gauges compensate for temperature variation and balance the strain bridges. The equipment includes a lead for connection to the Digital Force Display (STR1a, available separately). The lecturer guide provides details of the equipment including sample experiment results. The student guide describes how to use the equipment and gives experiment procedures. For extra ‘virtual’ experiments, TecQuipment can supply the optional TecQuipment Structures Software (STRS), for use on a suitable computer. The virtual experiments simulate the tests that you do with the hardware. They also extend the choice of tests than that available using only the hardware, for example: higher loads, uniform loads or different test specimens. This extends the student’s learning experience. For automatic data acquisition of your experiment results, TecQuipment can supply the optional Automatic Data Acquisition Unit (STR2000). Supplied as standard with the STR2000 is TecQuipment’s Structures Software that displays and logs your experiment results and gives the extra virtual experiments. Bending Stress in a Beam Essential Ancillaries †¢ Structures Test Frame (STR1) †¢ Digital Force Display (STR1a) Recommended Ancillaries †¢ Structures Software (STRS) for virtual experiments or †¢ Automatic Data Acquisition Unit (STR2000) for automatic data acquisition and virtual experiments Operating Conditions Operating environment: Laboratory environment Storage temperature range: –25? C to +55? C (when packed for transport) Operating temperature range: +5? C to +40? C Operating relative humidity range: 80% at temperatures 31? C decreasing linearly to 50% at 40? C Specification Nett dimensions and weight: 880 x 210 x 100 mm, 6. 5 kg Packed dimensions and weight: Approximately 0. 75 m3, 8 kg Load.

Behavior and Individual Success

Behavior and Individual Success Title of Assignment: â€Å"How Behavior Impacts Individual Success† Everyone seeks to be successful, but not everyone accomplishes this goal. There are those of us who understand that success stems from our individual behavior and there are those that refuse to understand this concept. Behavior drastically affects ones individual success and there are several factors to point out when speaking of this. Successful individuals know that the foundation of personal and professional success lies in understanding yourself, understanding others, and realizing the impact of personal behavior on others. The first thing to understand when speaking of behavior and individual success is that how you behave stems from your childhood or how you were raised. It comes from understanding where you are from and then transforming that into where you want to go. For some of us, this is easy, because we come from very successful families and have been taught nothing but success, since we can remember. For others, this can be extremely difficult, because you come from a very unsuccessful family and lived in an unsuccessful community. Therefore, you have to train your mind to think differently then how you were raised. Never the less, regardless of where you came from, there are far too many successful individuals that have conquered all types of backgrounds. Everyone has a different definition of success, but the key to being successful is understanding what you define as success. For some of us, success is being a stay-at-home housewife, successfully raising your children. For others, success may be teaching or counseling. To others, success may be defined by the amount of education you achieved. You may feel that you have to get your doctorate degree, because everyone else in your family has done the same. No one can determine what success is to you, but you. There are far too many of us living unhappy lives, because we are successfully doing something to make someone else happy, which means that you are unsuccessful to yourself. â€Å"We talk frequently about the critical few behaviors that individuals need to change, but we should talk even more about our belief in the rights of those individuals to be free from others defining the keys to their success for them† (Lattal, 2003). One of my favorite sayings that my grandmother taught me is to â€Å"watch the company you keep.† Individual success can be greatly affected by the people we associate ourselves with. If you are hanging around negative people, you will be seen to be negative. It is very important to pay close attention to the company you keep. When it comes to being successful, you should want to associate yourself with successful people. This all stems from what you define as success and most of us define success as making above and beyond what is needed to care for our loved ones. Goldsmith claims that groups are a characteristic of all social situations and almost everyone in an organization will be a member of one or more groups (2003). Once you land a job with any company, it is very important to pay attention to informal groups. As mentioned by Gibson, Ivancevich, Donnelly Konopaske (2009), informal groups are formed as a consequence of employees actions and develop around common interests and friendships. These types of groups can be dangerous when trying to obtain success. Because the people within these groups are normally friends, its sometimes challenging to see how one person within the group is negatively affecting the group overall (p. 10). At my current job, Ive seen several people that were qualified for a promotion, but did not receive it due to the informal group they were a part of. The main point of this is to understand that there is always a leader watching what everyone is doing, and these leaders are the ones that make the decisions for promotions. When it comes to individual success, we sometimes have to monitor these type of behaviors. In most cases, we all want to have the highest role within our current position, which normally leads to management, but managers have to understand formal and informal groups to obtain and retain their position. This is where mentoring comes in to play with becoming successful. No matter what your definition of success is, there is someone that has already become very successful at that skill. Those that have challenges at becoming successful seek to find a good mentor that can help guide them into learning the skills needed for success. Even those that are already successful sometimes seek to have a mentor, because one can always become more successful. â€Å"In work organizations, a mentor can provide coaching, friendship, sponsorship, and role modeling to a younger, less experienced protà ©gà ©. In working with younger or new employees, a mentor can satisfy his or her need to have an influence on another employees career† (Gibson, Ivancevich, Donnelly Konopaske, 2009, p. 45). Using myself as an example, my career tremendously grew once I was advised by a mentor. There were things about myself that I didnt even realize could affect my career, the main thing being that of the involvement within informal groups. After being mentored, Ive mentored several new and younger employees, helping to prevent them from making the same types of mistakes. As with any other relationship, one has to be careful when mentoring, but it can provide a sense of being a part of the community; because youre helping someone else to be as successful, if not more successful than you. There are those that have mastered obtaining a specific behavior to become successful, but that behavior is not a part of them. This can be easily related to people in the sales industry. There are several people within my family that are extremely successful at selling, but that does not define who they are. They have learned how to portray a certain behavior to reach the goals they want. When they leave work, they are back to their normal selves, but how they behave at work defines their definition of success. If behaving a certain way brings in the funds, then this is how they will continue to behave. This can assist several of us in becoming successful, but trying to behave in a manner that is not yourself, can be very difficult for most. â€Å"The more we believe that our behavior is a result of our own choices and commitments, the less likely we are to want to change our behavior. One of the best-researched principles in psychology is called cognitive dissonance† (Goldsmith, 2003). This simply means that the more we genuinely believe that something is true, the less likely we will be willing to change that belief. My family members believe that behaving a specific way to obtain sales has made them successful, so they cant see behaving any other way. Goldsmith mentioned that their commitment encourages them to â€Å"stay the course† and to not â€Å"give up† when â€Å"the going gets tough†. This same principle can work against successful people when they should â€Å"change course† (2003). There are several things to pay attention to when trying to become successful. We are normally our own worst enemy, because we overlook the behaviors that may be negative to constantly see ourselves in a positive manner. â€Å"Some of the personal individual attributes that we need to observe and control include our achievement attitude, emotional temperament, energy level, intellectual factors, material traits, maturity level, philosophical attitudes, physical features, risks actions, and task performance† (Taylor, 2006). All of these attributes work together to define ones version of success. Even if youre a stay-at-home mother, you have to learn these attributes before you can be fully successful at that job. The last thing to focus on when speaking of how behavior can impact success is to mention job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is an attitude that individuals have about their job. It results from their perceptions of their jobs, based on factors of the work environment, such as supervisors style, policies, and procedures, work group affiliation, working conditions, and fringe benefits† (Gibson, Ivancevich, Donnelly Konopaske, 2009, p. 106). It is extremely difficult to be successful if you dont like the job youre doing. A great example of this would be teachers. We are all aware that most teachers are underpaid for the job they do. At the same time, they teach, because they enjoy helping people learn. Therefore, success is defined by their students growing up to be successful and not by the amount of money they make. There are several of us that work in jobs that we arent satisfied with. When one understands how behavior impacts success, they understand the importance of learning all they can within that current job. At the same time, they take the necessary steps to land a new and even better job. But by not allowing that negative situation to overcome them, they normally become even more successful in the new job. In conclusion, there are several factors that play into behavior and how it impacts success. The main thing is to define what success is to you. Once you have mastered that definition, you have to figure out the steps and attributes needed for you to become successful. We sometimes need help with this and that cant be overlooked. If a mentor will help you, take the help. There is always someone that has succeeded in what you want to do. It is important to study what they did to become successful and try to make the necessary adjustments. You cant be just like them, but you can learn how to be as successful as them. References Gibson, James L., Ivancevich, John M., Donelly, James H., Jr., Konopaske, Robert. (2009). Organizations Behavior, Structure, Processes. Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin. Goldsmith, Marshall. (2003). Helping Successful People Get Even Better. Business Strategy Review London Business School. Lattal, Darnell, Ph.D. (2003). PMezine The Performance Management Magazine. The Science of Success: Creating Great Places to Work. Retrieved October 11, 2009, from http://www.pmezine.com/?q=node/8. Okolo, Sidney. Ezine Success Articles. Success Depends on Individual Attributes. Retrieved October 11, 2009, from http://ezinearticles.com/?Success-Depends-on-Individual-Attributesid=1062550. Taylor, Michael. (2006). Associated Content Lifestyle. How Your Personality Affects the Success in Your Life. Retrieved October 11, 2009, from http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/90301/how_your_personality_affects_the_success.html.

Existentialism :: Philosophy Sartre Existentialist Essays

Existentialism 'Existence precedes essence'. These are the few words that many people live by. These words describe a philosophy called Existentialism. The philosophical term, Existentialism, came from Jean Paul Sartre, a French philosopher. Jean Paul Sartre wrote 'No Exit', where he portrayed his philosophy negatively. On the other hand, Albert Camus, who wrote The Stranger, portrayed Existentialism positively through his characters. Each author uses the characteristics of Existentialism positively or negatively to define their own story as well as their characters as true Existentialists or not   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Existentialism has been described as a philosophical movement especially of the 20th century that stresses the individual position as self determining agent responsible for his or her own choices. Basically a true Existentialist will create their own beliefs, take responsibility for his of her own actions, and is very honest. If they were to do something wrong, they would take responsibility for their actions and not make excuses or put the blame on someone else. Furthermore, a true existentialist believes there is no God and thus man becomes alone with only ourselves as a guide to making the decisions that define our existence. They also believe that Life has no meaning and that everything happens by chance.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Jean-Paul Sartre examines the basic themes of existentialism through his three characters Garcin, Inez, and Estelle. Garcin seems to appear an existentialist, but upon a closer look, he violates the rules time and again. Next, Inez seems to fully understand ideas deemed existential. Estelle is the third person, and does not seem to understand these ideas well, nor does she accept them when they are first presented to her. One similarity amongst the three is that they all at some point seem to accept that they are in "hell" for a reason.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Garcin is "hell" because he beat his wife and cheated on her. However, he doesn?t wish he had acted differently. He shows and proves this when he says: ?I tell you I regret nothing (p. 24).? By saying this, Garcin is taking responsibility for his own actions; hence he is following the laws of Existentialism. However, he sometimes violates these laws. For example, he is so preoccupied with the idea that he is a coward that he makes the women tell him that he wasn?t a coward and makes her tell him that he was right in doing so. He is so dependent upon this that he wouldn?

Causes of the Easter Uprising Essays -- Essays Papers

Causes of the Easter Uprising In the mid 1800s the course of Irish history was changed forever. The Irish were devastated by The Great Potato Famine of the mid to late 1800s. Population declined from over eight million people in 1840 to under 4.5 million in 1900 due to death and immigration (O’Rourke 2). The poorer Irish people, unlike many British citizens, relied almost entirely on agriculture. The Irish immigration not only affected Ireland and Britain, but its affects were felt over much of the world, including the United States. The famine had a significant effect on the future of Irish history including Home Rule legislation, The Easter Uprising of 1916, and the eventual creation of an Irish free state in the early twentieth century. In the early 1900s, Irish nationalists were fed up with the British rule that had dominated Ireland since its existence. The Irish in this situation closely resemble the American Colonists prior to the American Revolution. The Irish felt as if the British did not represent them well and they wanted to run their own country and govern themselves. There were many small rebellions and confrontations between some Irish citizens and the British army all throughout Ireland’s history with the purpose of lowering the morale of British troops that occupied Ireland, or in rebellion to specific actions by the British. However, there never was any organized uprising with a goal of completely eliminating the British like the Easter Uprising in 1916. Irish nationalists planned to take Dublin and all of Ireland by force and rid themselves of the British. On the morning of Monday April 24, 1916, the day after Easter, a force between 1,000 and 1,500 men and women began a rebellion that they hope... ...e uprising had on the young Irish nationalists. Both Connolly and Pearse were strong leaders that were well respected and influenced many of the men that they worked with in the uprising. Though Eamon de Valera was an extremely powerful speaker and tremendous leader, he still received all of his early guidance from the leaders of the uprising. The Easter Uprising is one event that can be attributed to Ireland starting down the path of independence and self-government. The efforts and deaths of those involved seemed to show the defeat of the rebellion, but the ensuing support for the revolution that followed showed that the uprising was an overwhelming success. Today those men and women who gave their lives in the Easter Uprising as well as all the other efforts and rebellions that led to the formation of the Irish Free State are regarded to as national heroes.

Macbeths Ambition :: essays research papers

Macbeth’s Ambition Political ambition undermines man’s loyalty. In the play, Macbeth decides to kill his king because of his ambition for position. At the beginning of the play, he portrays himself as a noble person. He fights in the battle against Norway and proves his loyalty; however, as soon as the witches prophesize that Macbeth “shall be king hereafter'; (1.3.53), he is not longer trustworthy. Ambition for power starts creeping into his head. After Macbeth’s internal conflict over whether or not to kill Duncan, he decides to do it quickly (1.7.3) in order to hasten the predictions. He decides to kill the king because he wants to extend his power all over the country by becoming the new monarch. He desires to be more wealthy and respected by the nobility as well as by the common people. Becoming king represents the highest rang in the political pyramid. The act of murdering is the only way to make his dreams come true because Duncan’s fair and prosperous rule over Scotland experience the support of the whole population. As Malcom and Donalbain fly to England, he automatically takes possession of the throne. Macbeth displays political ambition first of all because of his wife. After she reads her husband’s letter about his meeting with the witches, she suggests for Macbeth to kill Duncan so she could be queen. At the beginning Macbeth hesitates to talk about such a thing and even lists the reason not to kill: he is his king, his uncle and his guest. Not completely sure about it and victim of his own desires for power he finally accepts Lady Macbeth’s plan for murdering the ruler of Scotland. This decision portrays Macbeth’s dirty morality and easily manageable personality. Macbeth’s character is a clear example of how ambition corrupts man’s personality. After a brief period of hesitation, he finally decides to take the infamous way of murder in order to make his political desires come true. His ambition, stronger than the moral and social condemnation of killing, becomes his sole motive. The American philosopher David Young goes further in this analysis and sees in Macbeth how “the act of regicide is a ready means of illustrating the genesis of tragic structure in struggles for power'; (Young 318).

Response to “Internationalized Civil War” Essay

Karen Rasler’s essay â€Å"Internationalized Civil War: A Dynamic Analysis of the Syrian Intervention in Lebanon† is a highly scientific exploration of what exactly happened when the Syrian military stepped in amidst the internal conflict between the Lebanese Front and the Palestinian Resistance Movement (many other groups were involved at different points, but for simplicity’s sake I will just use these groups as a right vs. left catch-all for the bulk of the conflict). Rasler begins by addressing the idea that, as much rhetoric as has been given to external intervention in the case of internal conflict, much of the studies done and articles published have failed to address the larger issue of not only what the immediate effects of external intervention are, but also what are the long-term reverberating effects on the country that has either sought external aid or had it forced upon them. Rasler cites several questions regarding the effects of external intervention, including whether or not the external aid escalates violence and ultimately prolongs the conflict. What Rasler sets out to do in her essay is create a longitudinal examination of the Lebanese Civil War (1975-1977). Rasler contends that this particular example, being so well-covered in the media and, at the point in time which Rasler wrote the piece, having had enough time pass to study its residual effects, is a solid example to begin with, even if it is not representative of all cases of external involvement in civil wars. She is seeking the extent to which the Syrian military occupation in Lebanon either decreased or increased internal conflict, as well as the long-term ramifications intervention had for Lebanese politics. Rasler begins with four basic hypotheses which she sets to measure against the Lebanese Civil War. These hypotheses are as follows: (1) External military intervention will increase the level and duration of domestic conflict; (2) Military intervention will occur during periods in which the level of internal conflict escalates beyond previously established levels; (3) Military intervention will occur during periods of extreme polarization between domestic political groups; and (4) Military intervention will occur during periods in which cooperation between domestic political groups and the intervening external nation-state are escalating beyond previous levels. After stating her hypothesis, Rasler then begins to collect â€Å"empirical evidence† complete with line graphs stating what her â€Å"findings† were. From here the essay becomes a muddled mess of pseudo-scientific jargon that the reader has no choice other than to believe it because the values and empirical methods used are inadequately introduced or explained and therefore difficult to refute. The problem is, even at the end of the essay, it is unclear whether or not Rasler has succeeded in proving or completing undermining her own hypothesis. Certainly she has revealed some interesting findings, but largely it seems to be not exactly what she thought she was going to unveil. There are several problems with the way this essay presents Rasler’s â€Å"findings† and with the source material in general. First of all, I will address more of what I have previously mentioned: the equations Rasler uses to find her â€Å"empirical evidence† measure such things as social polarization, domestic cooperation, impact of military intervention, and totals of domestic conflict, just to name a few. But never at any point in time does Rasler dedicate any extensive analysis in her essay to an explanation of where exactly these initial figures and statistics (which then got plugged into strange, little-explained equations) came from. It seems as if she pulls these numbers out of thin air, which automatically discredits any of her â€Å"research† because there is no standard for where these numbers came from, how they were initially reported and gathered, what they are measuring to determine things like â€Å"conflicts,† etc. For example, Rasler spends a great deal of time discussing how conflicts were on the decline before Syrian military occupation, and then the amount of conflicts spiked up again immediately following the occupation, only to decrease again to levels lower than before. My question is: how is the idea of â€Å"conflict† being qualified? Is â€Å"conflict† the number of reported incidents of violence in the area? Does it deal with casualties? How exactly is the quantifiable â€Å"amount† of â€Å"conflict† being measured, exactly? But this is never discussed, which means these numbers could just as easily be fabricated and completely arbitrary for all the weight they carry with them. Not only that, but the pages and pages of jargon that follow an otherwise engaging introduction to the study and the greater questions at hand make it impenetrable for the common non-career-scientist reader. It is off-putting and kind of come across almost as if Rasler is saying, â€Å"If it sounds smart enough, no one will question it. † Another problem I see with this, and Rasler herself even addresses it, is that this one solitary conflict cannot possibly account for or be representative of all other conflicts similar to it in which external intervention is sought to ease internal conflict. And even though Rasler does indeed point this out, I feel it is necessary to reiterate because of the framework of the essay. Rasler speaks in terms of generalizations about external military occupations and what their long-term effects are on the country and government, speaking of the importance of a longitudinal study to really dig deeper into those issues. And I agree, wholeheartedly, especially after the way she presented all of it. Which is exactly why this study needed to go so much further than just delving into the details of this one isolated conflict in order to really carry with it any weight or credibility. As far as I’m concerned, this â€Å"study† is really only the beginning of what needs to be a large-scale study to really effectively address the questions being raised. Another issue I took with this particular case study is the idea that 6 years’ time, especially when the conflict is still continuing (in southern Lebanon where Syrian forces cannot invade without threat of Israeli invasion), might not be enough time for an appropriate longitudinal study to be conducted. To really study the long-term reverberating effects on the people and the government, my guess would be that more time would have to pass first. Overall, I believe Rasler’s essay made some interesting points and observations, and was written in an engaging way (when not swallowed up by scientific jargon). However, I think there are some severe errors in her empirical methods that render much of her â€Å"findings† meaningless, and in order for this to be an effective study on the issue of external intervention in civil war conflicts, it needs to be much more all-encompassing and at least provide a series of examples to cross-reference.

Working in partnership with others in education

Mary Warnock emphasized on the importance of placing the assorted forms of disablements frequently leads to different sorts of particular educational demands. She points out that autistic spectrum differs from other childhood conditions and affect an unusual manner of sing the societal universe and the form of development ( Cigman, 2007 ) . The Particular Educational Needs codification of Practice devotes a chapter to parents saying â€Å" working in partnership with parents which portray how LEAs and schools should back up parents during statutory appraisal. † Parents must be allowed to take portion in the determination devising procedure when bespeaking a statutory appraisal ( DfES, 2001 ) .The Education Act ( 1996 ) suggests that LEAs have the duties in run intoing the particular educational demands of kids. This procedure begins when a referral is issued to the LEA bespeaking a statutory appraisal in order to find how to run into the demands of kids with particular demands . This procedure takes about 26 hebdomads to be carried out and completed. However, if the Local Authorities disagrees with the referral or petition, parents have the legal right to appeal to the Particular Educational Needs Tribunal ( SENT ) , ( Farrell, 1997 ) . There are assorted jobs and issues that parents experience when seeking educational aid for their kids with particular demands. First, the clip frame for an entreaty to be accepted and acknowledged by the courts takes about six hebdomads. As a consequence of the long waiting period, parents frequently become stressed and defeated. Sometimes the procedure period is excessively long therefore giving rise to other terrible jobs, such as diagnosing and intervention for illustration if a kid is diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ( ADHD ) at a certain age ( 0-16 ) but at 17 old ages the diagnosing will be classified as something else. Conduct upset is an illustration. Applying independently for a statutory appraisal can be really nerve-racking for parents ; a long ‘waiting game ‘ and parents may get down to miss assurance in the system ( Cowne, 1996 ) .A In most instances parents find it hard to acquire the procedure started, holding to ‘fight ‘ to acquire their kid assessed ( Taylor, 2003 ) .A The Education Act ( 1996 ) states that it is the LEA ‘s duty to organize the demands to run into a kid ‘s demands as have been identified by the statutory appraisal and underlined in the statement.A In treatments held by the Audit Commission with parents, the bulk agreed that whenever the school failed to mention their kid for an appraisal, they found it thwarting and nerve-racking. A parent in peculiar commented â€Å" I found it hard to get down the procedure † . I had to implore†¦ ‘ ( Taylor, 2003 ) . Some parents felt there is a immense hold in get downing the procedure whereas others experience clip troubles whilst the procedure begins.A The House of Commons ( 2006 ) reports that there is a great concern in the length of clip it takes to measure and treat a statement ; this in its ain right can hold terrible effects on a kid ‘s instruction. Lack of parental partnership besides seemed to hold posed jobs for parents while seeking educational support for their SEN kids. Throughout appraisal of particular demands proviso, parents have a right to take part to the full, nevertheless they can merely make so if appropriate information about the system and procedure they are prosecuting in are given to them.It besides helps if the professionals genuinely listen to the parents. Whitaker ‘s research ( 2007 ) ascertain issues for parents of kids with Autistic Spectrum Disorders ( ASD ) in mainstream schools and found that parental partnerships were the beginning of many dissatisfaction. He states that â€Å" Parents placed a high value on the willingness of school staff to listen and take earnestly any concerns that they may hold about their kid ‘s experiences and advancement. Conversely aˆÂ ¦failure to take parental concerns earnestly was a powerful cause of dissatisfaction peculiarly where parents felt they were seen as needlessly crabbed. † ( Wall, 2003 ) Parents do go vulnerable and stressed if they are sing troubles in obtaining adequate information and support from schools and Local Authorities. ( Robson, 1989 ) declared that â€Å" a successful partnership is based on equality, whereby each spouse recognises and benefits from the endowments, accomplishments expertness and cognition of the other. At times one spouse may follow a comparatively inactive function, in other state of affairss a more active function. † The Lamb Inquiry ( DCSF, 2009 ) besides highlighted that parents preponderantly wanted a system that worked for them and their kids: Parents have told us that good, honest and unfastened communicating is the most indispensable component for constructing assurance and good relationships. Face to confront communicating with parents and handling them as equal spouses with expertness is critical to set uping and prolonging assurance ( Wall, 2003 ) . This clearly shows how hapless communicating between schools and Local governments can be strenuous for parents. In an article a parent shared her ambitious experiences in having appropriate educational support for her 11yr old boy. Christine Grainger, a female parent from Surrey, says voyaging the system on behalf of kids with particular demands is hard and time-consuming. Christine ‘s 11-year-old boy Dean, has dyslexia, dyspraxia and attention-deficit hyperactivity upset ( ADHD ) and she had a conflict to acquire the specializer learning he needed. Christine says she is disillusioned with the system. At the terminal of his response twelvemonth, she was told Dean had jobs and was being put on the SEN registry. When he was finally given a statement stating he needed 20 hours of support, Christine was told the school did non hold the specialist staff required to back up him and was asked to happen a different school â€Å" First of all Dean did n't desire to go forth his school because he ‘d do some particular friends and it was besides hard seeking to happen a school that would run into all of Dean ‘s demands â€Å" We found we could n't merely take him to any school, I had to seek and happen a school that would accept him with all the jobs that he ‘s got † ( Tomlinson, 1981 ) . Inclusion has been identified as one of the cardinal issues that parents find unsatisfactory. It is of import because it affects kids with and without disablements. Harmonizing to Taylor ( 2003 ) the issue debated in 1970 ‘s, was whether handicapped kids learn best in incorporate or unintegrated categories. Conversely some parents felt that they were given excessively much information and non adequate clip to understand. Most parent ‘did n't understand what the information meant in English†¦ ‘ experiencing ‘bombarded ‘ ( Taylor, 2003 ) . It is said that it is the Local Authority ( LA ) responsibilities to guarantee that a proposed statement is sent out to parents no subsequently than 12 hebdomads after the statutory appraisal Begin. The statement consists of six subdivisions in which parents find it difficult to understand what it all entails ( Cigman, 2007 ) . Problems persist even once the statement has been issued. Most parents found out that their kids had received a statement but failed to understand what each subdivision was approximately. One parent stated that † she will be maintaining an oculus on the school to guarantee that the kid ‘s statement is followed through † ( Taylor, 2003 ) . The most hard job that parents come across is ; acquiring their kid assessed, particularly if the kid was referred by the school. When a parent realizes that their kid seems to be sing troubles whilst acquisition, parents should first reach the school.A If the school agrees that there might be jobs, with the parents consent they will register the kid on the school action /school action plus docket. These are intercession plans that assist kids with educational demands to make the set marks in class.A If parents find these plan unsuitable for their kids ‘s demands referral for a statutory appraisal is otherwise available.A Merely a parent, the school, wellness authorization or societal services section is allowed to bespeak statutory assessment.A It is ever advisable that parents should advise the school foremost. However, some parents have problem speaking to their kid ‘s school because ‘the school wo n't accept that kid has particular educational demands ‘ ( Moore, 2004 ) . There is a procedure that parents has to follow when seeking appraisal for their kid. Wolfendale introduced a instance survey scenario, where the parents approached the educational psychologist when they came to the school for a everyday visit, they found that the school had ne'er informed the psychologist about their kid ( Bell, 2003 ) In fortunes where parents and school do non hold, a parent may near the Local Authorities ( LA ) independently. However, the LA may be loath to get down the procedure for fiscal grounds. The Audit Commission wrote a study ‘Statutory appraisal and statements of SEN: in demand of reappraisal? ‘ the Audit Commission looks at public money and the best manner to utilize it.A It writes that the demands for statements are lifting and ‘statements are intended for kids with higher degrees of demand†¦ based on a statutory appraisal ‘ ( IPSEA, 2001 ) . Geting a statutory appraisal is cost effectual and may non help the kid ‘s demand, this is why it is difficult to acquire LA to hold to the referral, ‘ if you do n't measure the demand how can you find what is required to run into it ‘ ( IPSEA, 2001 ) .A The lone path to acquiring a statement is through an appraisal ; the statement guarantees that the kid ‘s particular educational demands will be met.A There is besides the issue of the kid ‘s part ; they excessively have a part to do in their appraisal and the type of intercession programme that will profit them. The kids act ( 1989 ) and the Child Care Act ( 2006 ) supports the importance of listening to the kid which is besides echoed in the codification of pattern ( DfES ) , 2001. ) This is an of import consideration as it is frequently presumed that really immature kids and particularly those with particular demands are incapable of lending to discussion sing their instruction and acquisition, when in world they have valid sentiments and part to do which can inform parents, practicians and pattern. If kids are capable of lending to the procedure of appraisal so their positions should be valued and respected. Inequality is another facet that generates troubles for parents. It might be the instance that particular educational demands parents do non have the same intervention in comparing with the parents of normal mainstream pupils. One of the statements put frontward by those in favor of educational inclusion for all SEN kids is that such kids benefit from the societal life in a mainstream school and from the function theoretical accounts provided by typically developing kids ( Cigman, 2007 ) .There are more concerns about SEN kids than those who are considered normal, because of their forte, greater accent is placed on their educational development, as such parents with SEN kids are faced with more challenges than parents who have normal kids. Inclusion is besides a challenge faced by parents with particular kids. This is due to the fact that, particular kids do non work as the normal kids in the same schoolroom scene. There is the job of puting suited acquisition challenges, reacting to pupils ‘ diverse acquisition demands and get the better ofing possible barriers to larning and appraisal for persons and groups of students ( Farrell, 1997 ) .. In decision, it is apparent that the jobs and issues that parents encounter in determining educational support for their kids with SEN are many and continues to blossom as new diagnosing are made. It is really clear that the statutory appraisal which is of paramount importance is the really hard and disputing for parents. Many times parents are non given a opportunity to hold an input or do a positive part towards their kid.

Benefits to Running Bleachers

Athletes, along with others trying to get into shape usually incorporate running bleachers into their exercise routines. This activity has a variety of health and physical fitness benefit. One obvious benefit is the ability for body to develop more efficiently than running on a flat surface. Another benefit is the increase of the heart rate. The heart rate increases because the activity is much more intense than running regularly or jogging.Jogging bleachers requires the exercise to be performed at a higher intensity. This type of workout helps to teach an individual’s cardiovascular system to recovery quickly. This is because after going up the bleachers and resting for a few seconds, the body needs to be ready to be able to work hard again once it is time to run back up. This workout is known as a cardiovascular exercise which is effective in burning calories.This helps to increase the body fat loss and allows the heart rate to elevate for at least 30 minutes. A big reason w hy most athletes run bleachers is because of its ability to increase leg power. In certain sports, such as basketball, soccer, football and track, leg power is necessary to better the performance of the player. Climbing up the bleacher requires the quadriceps and glute muscles in the legs to push off each step with force. Running bleachers also puts more of a variety into an average person’s workout.This prevents muscles from adapting and allows them to continue development. For runners, finding a set of bleachers to run can be considered a break from their same daily route, which will keep them from becoming tired. For those who are not runners, bleachers will most certainly help to work out the muscles throughout the legs. Although running bleachers can be considered cruel punishment in gym classes, it is an effective exercise that keeps the heart healthy and the legs muscular.

A Cultural Criticism Of Kite Runner by Khaled Hoesseini Essay

How high could a kite fly?: a cultural criticism of Kite Runner by Khaled Hoesseini   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There is a saying that cultural contacts sometimes bring the worst of two cultures. It could be true but it also an illusion because of unchanging thinking on the relationship between people.   And culture is all about relationship of people. What happens when people from different ethnic background and religions are caught up in cascading events in a changing world? What if the culture which binds or more accurate divides people is essentially ancient and has remain unchanged through the years, generation after, generation.   And what happens if the â€Å"now’s† world politics suddenly has suddenly broken the spell and subjected people to reality. This is the basic motif or thematic thread of the Kite Runner. See more: Foot Binding In China essay A novel set in Afghanistan, an ancient land, of ancient culture in the the 1960s up the 1980s when the Taliban came into power in Afghanistan, the Kite Runner chronicles a strange friendship between two people from different ethnicity, religion and socio-economic status. It is a study of contrasts as told by the main character Amir. To understand Amir and the characters set in a mosaic of contrasting and sometimes sharp contrast is to understand the cultural milieu of the ancient culture of Afghanistan based on Islam. This is no easy thing to do because of the matter of point of view. In the case of the Kite Runner or perhaps in any narrative, there are two point of views.   The point of view of the author and the point of â€Å"culture† as to the events and characters being described by the author. In the Kite Runner, the point of view is definitely modern – the narrative is excellent as shown by the superb weaving of the textual logic and the plot contemporary. The plot and characters As told by Amir, the story revolves around his friendship with Hassan the son of Amir’s father’s servant. It tells a story of betrayal, redemption and finally escape to freedom. Amir is Pashtoon and Hassan is Hazara. Pashtoon and Hazara are two of the ethnic groups in Afghanistan. From the novel, it appeared that the Hazara is discriminated upon or looked down on as revealed in the the following passage when Amir and Hassan are growing up:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   One day, we were walking from my father’s house to Cinema Zainab for a new Iranian  movie, taking the shortcut through the military barracks near Istiqlal Middle School-Baba  had forbidden us to take that shortcut, but he was in Pakistan with Rahim Khan at the time.  We hopped the fence that surrounded the barracks, skipped over a little creek, and broke into  the open dirt field where old, abandoned tanks collected dust. A group of soldiers huddled  in the shade of one of those tanks, smoking cigarettes and playing cards. One of them saw  us, elbowed the guy next to him, and called Hassan.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Hey, you!† he said. â€Å"I know you.†Ã‚  We had never seen him before. He was a squatty man with a shaved head and black stubble  on his face. The way he grinned at us, leered, scared me. â€Å"Just keep walking,† I muttered to Hassan. (Kite Runner, p 6-7)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"You! The Hazara! Look at me when I’m talking to you!† the soldier barked He handed  his cigarette to the guy next to him, made a circle with the thumb and index finger of one  hand. Poked the middle finger of his other hand through the circle. Poked it in and out.  In and out. â€Å"I knew your mother, did you know that? I knew her real good. I took her from behind by that creek over there.†Ã‚  The soldiers laughed. One of them made a squealing sound. I told Hassan to keep walking,  keep walking.  Ã¢â‚¬Å"What a tight little sugary cunt she had!† (Kite Runner, p 6-7) This passage revealed a lot on the circumstances surrounding the two friends. Hassan was called by a soldier, â€Å"Hazara† and specifically pointed at Hassan just to taunt him, telling him that his mother is prostitute. From this passage, the two lads are simply out to watch an Iranian movie partaking of what little leisure their culture has to offer when they are confronted by the soldiers.   It is understandable that Amir could not defend his friend and hence he took evasive action.   It also showed the meek character of Hassan. The characterization of Amir and Hassan is set early in the novel. The circumstances of their births are telling of the subjugation and desperation of an ethnic group. The contrast is revealed in this passage:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It was in that small shack that Hassan’s mother, Sanaubar, gave birth to him one cold winter day in 1964. While his mother hemorrhaged to death during childbirth, Hassan lost his less than a week after he was born. Lost her to a fate most Afghans considered far worse than death. She ran off with a clan of traveling singers and dancer. (Kite Runner, p 6-7)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both Amir and Hassan lost their mothers upon birth with Amir’s mother dying of hemorrhage giving birth while Hassan was born with not much problem as implied by the quick recovery of his mother. But she ran away apparently not wanting the responsibility of raising a child. This passage is revealing of the harsh reality of Hazara woman and how harsh her reaction could be as depicted in the novel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"the moment Sanaubar had given birth to Hassan. It had been a simple enough affair. No obstetricians, no anesthesiologists, no fancy monitoring devices. Just Sanaubar lying on a stained, naked mattress with Ali and a midwife helping her. She hadn’t needed much help at all, because, even in birth, Hassan was true to his nature: He was incapable of hurting anyone. A few grunts, a couple of pushes, and out came Hassan. Out he came smiling. As confided to a neighbor’s servant by the garrulous midwife, who had then in turn told anyone who would listen, Sanaubar had taken one glance at the baby in Ali’s arms, seen the cleft lip, and barked a bitter laughter. â€Å"There,† she had said. â€Å"Now you have your own idiot child to do all your smiling for you!† She had refused to even hold Hassan, and just five days later, she was gone.† (Kite Runner, p 9-10)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This early in the novel, how the characters would develop has already been foretold. The novel’s author, included the phrase â€Å"true his nature, incapable of hurting anyone† in referring to Hassan. A gentle soul, helpless and innocent amid the torrid racial, economic and political cauldron that is Afghanistan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ethnic intolerance is a pervading theme in Kite Runner and there are many scenes showing this. In another passage, Hassan was taunted and called him â€Å"flat-nosed† referring to the physical features of Hassan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is interesting to point out, that this tale is in the point of view of Amir, a Pashtoon, an ethnic group which Amir found out later that his people have subjugated the Hazaras. This is the turning point of Amir’s understanding of Hassan and critical to the development of the novel and Amir’s actions much later in the book. The passage reflects the contrast between Amir and Hassan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Then one  day, I was in Baba’s study, looking through his stuff, when I found one of my mother’s old  history books. It was written by an Iranian named Khorami. I blew the dust off it, sneaked it  into bed with me that night, and was stunned to find an entire chapter on Hazara history. An  entire chapter dedicated to Hassan’s people! In it, I read that my people, the Pashtoons, had  persecuted and oppressed the Hazaras. It said the Hazaras had tried to rise against the  Pashtoons in the nineteenth century, but the Pashtoons had â€Å"quelled them with unspeakable  violence.  (Kite Runner, p 9) This is no easy revelation to a child. Difficult to grasp the extent of racial tension and subjugation, of a horrendous history separating him from a childhood friend, almost a bond brother if not a loyal servant. This as mentioned earlier is the difficult part. Is Amir, undergoing a change as a benevolent master or into egalitarian person? The climactic culmination of the this relationship is portrayed in the kite contest wherein Hassan is the kite runner of Amir. Take note that the relationship of master-servant did not change so are the dreams of children. Winning contests or making a name to make someone happy. In this case, Amir wants to impress his father so he joined the contest. In one part of the novel is this passage showing that the relationship is still is master and servant. This is important in the understanding the construct of the Kite Runner. Finally, I had my kite in hand. I wrapped the loose string that had collected at my feet around the spool, shook a few more hands, and trotted home. When I reached the wroughtiron gates, Ali was waiting on the other side. He stuck his hand through the bars. â€Å"Congratulations,† he said. 1 gave him my kite and spool, shook his hand. â€Å"Tashakor, Ali jan.† â€Å"I was praying for you the whole time.† â€Å"Then keep praying. We’re not done yet.† (Kite Runner, p 67)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ali, here is the father of Hassan, note Amir’s dialogue: â€Å"I gave him my kite and spool, shook his hand.† It is plainly, a lad in confidence talking to a servant, as if saying, here take care of this will you? Like what Batman would have done with Alfred after a caper. â€Å"Here Alfred, take care of my boomerang will you?† The following passage shows the blissful innocence in triumph.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   I hurried back to the street. I didn’t ask Ali about Baba. I didn’t want to see him yet. In my head, I had it all planned: I’d make a grand entrance, a hero, prized trophy in my bloodied hands. Heads would turn and eyes would lock†¦ Then the old warrior would walk to the young one, embrace   him, acknowledge his Worthiness. (Kite Runner, p 67)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The prize trophy being referred here is a blue kit which Amir won. Hassan is tasked to recover the prize in a kite war. But succeeding events in an otherwise happy occasion of winning which Amir wanted to share with Hassan is not allowed by the author and the illusion of a champion in kiting as clashed with reality is painted squarely by Hosseini when Hassan was violated by Assef, the nemesis of Amir who would figure as the dark symbol of the grim world of Afghanistan at the rise of the Talibans in the 80’s. The sexual violation or rape of Hassan, perhaps symbolizes the subjugation by use of powerful force over another. In one scene, perhaps to zero in on a contradiction in Afghan culture, Hosseini weaved this passage describing Amir as he looks for Hassan shortly after the kite contest and shortly before witnessing the violation of Hassan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   By the time I reached the marketplace a few blocks away, from the Haji Yaghoub Mosque, the mullahbellowed azan, calling for the faithful to unroll their rugs and bow their heads west in prayer. Hassan never missed any of the five daily prayers. Even when we were out playing, he’d excuse himself, draw water from the well in the yard, wash up, and disappear into the hut. He’d come out a few minutes later, smiling, find me sitting against the wall or perched on a tree. He was going to miss prayer tonight, though, because of me. (Kite Runner, p 68)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Here in this passage, Hassan is picture as a devotee of Haj Yaghoub Mosque, religious, true to his faith innocent. A simple child devoted to a friend performing for him the task of a kite runner. He performed his task and recovered the blue kite of Amir but was intercepted by Assef.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Amir saw the whole episode but did nothing.   Here is a symbolic twist in the novel.   The incapacity of Amir to act to protect not only Hassan but himself. As we noted earlier, Amir is both a master and a friend of Hassan in terms of relationships, cultural and personal. As a master, he backed down to the superior force of Assef and friends, he knows he could not win so he whimpers just watching. As a friend, he suffered internally at the sight of the violation.   The illusion of triumph in the kite contest shattered. When kites are let loose The resolution of the tale of ethnic strife Kite Runner is framed by the author in the succeeding generation. It would be the redemption of Amir, when he rescued Hassan’s child who was taken captive by Assef who became a Taliban official. Amir was able to escape to California with his wife and Hassan’s child. Hassan was revealed to have been killed by the Taliban. As far as handling the themes of conflict and its resolution, the Kite Runner showed us symbolically, how change is almost impossible in an ancient setting.   It would take perhaps generation after generation to a society more tolerant of each other’s differences.   The novel is rich in symbols. The kite is highly symbolic, there is a thread that keeps it afloat, there is the wind. Cutting loose has significant meaning as when Amir decides to escape to California. The kite of Amir has crossed the continents, from the ancient to the modern or post modern California. We are then left with one question, authenticity. It is not the objective of this paper to analyze what is Afghan culture and conflicts which tearing the country apart in flare ups of violence, we could only view the novel as woven by the author. Though in many ways, ethnic or racial discrimination has been a plague of mankind, and even stable techno-scientific economies has their share of racial disharmony and bigotry. Apartheid was just recently abolished in South Africa and there are racial and ethnic strifes in Eastern Europe. What Kite Runner did is to open our eyes to such problems and maybe in the future, youthful dreams would come true. Reference Hosseini, Khaled,   Kite Runner http://rahapen.org/RAHA_Literary_criticism_safar_hanifi2.htm (1 of 8)5/6/2006 1:30:29 PM RAHA PEN: A quick glance on Novel† The Kite Runnner† WIKEPEDIA.com