Native Americans vs. African Americans Essay

In today’s society there are many people living in poverty. All across America there are different projects and reservations where the less fortunate reside. Statistics show that mostly minorities live in these different locations. Native Americans and African Americans are two of the more popular races living in these places. The group suffering the most in these situations is the youth. Although both Native American and African American children living on a reservation or in the projects experience a terrible community, have little to no faith, and a broken family structure, African American youth living in the projects have it worse than Native American children living on a reservation. First, one of the most common living situations for less fortunate African Americans is in the projects. A project is a public living environment that is government owned. Although these buildings are government owned they are far from nice looking. Most of the buildings have no windows, are run down, dirty, and old. The government’s main goal is to maintain affordable housing not to make them the best looking homes in town. The projects aren’t a good environment for a child to be raised. Throughout these neighborhoods different gangs can be found. These gangs are built to defend the different areas in the projects. The gangs bring major violence to the area and are one of the main causes of death. At a young age children join these gangs and are raised to be violent. Many of them decorate the buildings they are living in with graffiti expressing their gang colors, symbols, or motto. In contrast, while Native American youth also live in poor housing, the environment is safer than the projects. A reservation is an area set aside for a specific type of land use or activity, or for use by a particular group of people, mostly Native Americans. Similar to the projects, houses on a reservation are old, beat down, and dirty. The houses on a reservation are government owned as well. Although these two locations are very similar they also differ. The reservation is a safer place then the projects. On the reservation there is a couple cases of mild violence but they aren’t as severe as the violence in the projects. Therefore, the reservations environment is a better environment than the projects. Secondly, many of the young people have no faith growing up in the projects. A lot of them believe their only way out of the projects is to become a basketball or football player or to become a top selling rap artist. At as young as sixteen years of age most African American males end up in jail, deceased, or selling drugs. A lot of them are also lead to believe that if they don’t do what every other man on the streets is doing, then they won’t make it anywhere in life. On the reservation the kids believe their only way out is to become NBA players or â€Å"powwowers†. Powwower’s are traditional Native American cheerleaders or dancers. Much like the African Americans growing up in the projects, the life expectancy rate for those living on a reservation is in the mid forties. Considering that both of these locations are in the United States mid forties is very young of age. Many of these people don’t live very long because they don’t have enough money to take care of themselves as well as their families. They also aren’t able to live a healthy lifestyle which shortens their days. Death is common in the two locations which leaves these two young groups wondering what’s beyond the age forty. Lastly, family structure is very important in a household. In the projects many of the homes lack a very strong family structure. Children growing up in the projects nine times out of ten don’t have both parents in the home. Most of them are drug dealers, alcoholics, prostitutes, or doing any and everything to try and provide for the child. Although these parents are trying to provide for their children a lot of the time they are also on welfare. Moreover, these children’s parents aren’t ever around, they sometimes go days without having anything to eat. Many of the young men follow after the footsteps of their father, older brother, or uncles which is why this cycle has continued for so long. Native Americans typically stick together as a unit. According to Sherman Alexie, an award winning author who grew up on a reservation, â€Å"Native American children are taught to be suspicious of Caucasian people. † Native Americans teach this to their children because there are many people in America that are against minorities and believe that just because they are the majority they’re better. A lot of the parents on a reservation go from job to job not being able to keep one job for a long period of time. Many of these parents are also alcoholics. On the other hand, some of these families on these reservations are very family oriented unlike the African American families in the projects. These Native American families have up to seventeen family members living in one house. They keep their families very close and are very supportive of one another rather then being against each other like African Americans. The parents watch over their children to make sure they don’t go down the wrong path in life. Although these families are experiencing hard times they cheer each other up and manage to smile every once in a while. Therefore, the Native Americans family structure is stronger then African Americans. In conclusion, Native American youth living on a reservation have it better then African American youth living in the projects. Both of these minorities are going through some hardships. From alcoholic parents to not having anything to eat they both are suffering as young children. Native American families provide a safer living environment, work harder, and look after one another, where as African Americans are against one another, on the streets all day, and are strongly associated with violence. As the years go on these families are hoping that the government will separate people in the projects and those living on reservations and provide them both with a better living situation. If these environments are separated the United States will be one step closer to eliminating violence in America.

Only the second part of the assignment needs to be done which is the final individual share portfolio review. The company is Tesco.

Introduction This report will conclude on the performance of Tesco Plc. over the previous 5-months. Performance will be based on the share-price performance, company reports as well as a comparison between J Sainsbury Plc, Morrison Plc and U.S rival Wal-mart. Major Headwinds RemainPrice CompetitionGiven the current environment, aggressive competition in the UK grocery market is the greatest headwind to continued growth. According to Kantar Worldpanel (2014) Tesco continues to lose market-share as aggressive competition from discount brands Aldi and Lidl pushes greater emphasis on Tesco’s marketing and price strategy to retain custom as both competitors plans major expansion plans in the coming years. To add, major price competition from the likes of ASDA and now Morrison’s is gaining momentum once again, (BBC Business, 2014) [Online]. Morrison’s’ aggressive plan to spend GBP1bn on cutting prices over three years will put pressure on Tesco and other supermarket operators to respond in order to protect market share. This could accelerate margin erosion across the sector in 2014 Morrison’s price cuts are likely to be funded by planned cost savings and potentially by accepting a lower margin, (Fitch Rating, 2014). They are more aggressive than the GBP1bn initiative Asda announced in November, which at the time was to be spread over five years. To limit the impact on margins, retailers will probably respond by accelerating cost cutting initiatives and investment in product ranges and store formats. Tesco has the strongest margin, but this has been shrinking for several years, (Financial Times, 2014) [Online]. It may now be pushed to rethink its pricing in order to defend market share, which has come under pressure as evidenced by weak 2013 Christmas trading. Furthermore, the above could dampen CAPEX plans for the coming years.Rise of DiscountersAs mentioned, the recent Kantar Worlpanel (2014) report cemented the rise of Aldi and Lidl; however recent reports from Tesco have attempted to downplay the threat, with little success. The CEO referred to them a s ‘niche’ players, (Tesco, 2013). However, these players control 45% of the affluent German market and are market leaders in several other large countries. We would not compare the effectiveness and the threat posed by Aldi in 2014 with that posed by Kwik Safe (disappeared) in the 1990s. It is not an informative chart in our view. CAPEX remains strongCAPEX guidance was cut to a maximum of ?2.5bn per annum, in line with market expectations. Tesco plans to cut new space additions in the UK to 700,000 sq ft in 2014/15 from 1.4mn in 2013/14. CAPEX is shifting from new space to maintenance. Having invested ?400mn in the UK Refresh programme in 2013/14, the company plans to invest ?500mn per annum in each of the next three years. This is close to ?2bn in total to complete the programme. The priority for next year is re-modelling the Extra format where the sales performance is the weakest, (Tesco, 2013).Online growth MixedA lot of focus, as expected, has been put on the increa sing movement online. With Morrison’s considering and online platform, while Waitrose moves in with more products and free delivery. Tesco announced it will reduce the fee it charges for home delivery and click & collect. While it is good that the company aims to be competitive, excessive cuts in the delivery charge would reduce margins and also incentivise the customer to order smaller quantities more frequently, making the economics a lot less attractive. The delivery charge is a tool used to distribute demand among the different time slots and days of the week. Tesco unveiled ?127Million of trading profit from online grocery (?2.5bn sales), (Tesco, 2013), suggesting a 5% margin. According to the company, all direct costs are fully charged, that is the cost of the pickers and the delivery, (Tesco, 2013). This would not include things such as store depreciation, store energy costs, rates etc. Given this, on estimated 25Million annual orders of ?100 each, the delivery fee (?4-5 per order) would account for the great majority of profit. If this delivery fee is substantially cut, so will the profit obtained. Share Performance Graph – Share Price Performance of Selected Companies – 6-Month. Data obtained from Bloomberg (2014) [Online]. Focusing on share performance (Graph 1), over the previous 6-months, Tesco Plc is down by 18.3%, however performance is still between than W.M. Morrison and J Sainsbury, whose shares have fell by 24.2% and 19.9% respectively. Given this; the grocery sector has been a weak performer on the market, given that the FTSE 100 has risen by 2% over the same period. Weakness in the sector was seen on the 12th March (circled), after the market release from Kantar Worldpanel (2014). According to Kantar Worldpanel (2014), Tesco’s market share dropped to 28.7% in the 12 weeks ended March 2. That compares to 29.6% a year ago and is the lowest level since late 2004. Adding to the company’s woes, Tesco’s sales were down 0.6 percent in the three-month period. The main issue for investors was the movement of these sales to discounters Aldi and Lidl, plus upmarket grocer Waitrose. Morrison’s also loosened further to a share of 11.1% from 11.8% a year earlier, while ASDA, a subsidiary of Wal-Mart Stores eased to 17.5%, a 0.3 point fall Y-O-Y. Sainsbury’s was the only grocer among Britain’s ‘big four’ to hold on to its market share in the period, reaming at 17%, (Kantar Worldpanel, 2014). The report noted that the big-four where competing more for a shrinking ‘middle-ground’ as consumers move to either discounters or upmarket retailers – over the past 3-years, Waitrose, Aldi and Lidl have taken a combined 3.5 points from competition, equating to ?4.4Billion in sales per year, (Kantar Worldpanel, 2014). Taking an international look, while Wal-Mart did record a small drop on the 12th March, over the 6-month period its shares are up 3%, given its exposure to the U.S economy, which has been performing strongly, supported by consumer spending.SummaryWhile the recovery in the UK economy will present opportunities for Tesco Plc, given its exposure to consumer spending through an extensive product offering, major headwinds remain as the continued expansion of discounters pose a real threat, contrary to the thoughts of Tesco management. Furthermore the price-wars between major retailers commence once again for the shrinking middle-ground of the market, margins are expected to be hit. This has the potential to derail Tesco’s expansion plans, which will impact on future performance given aggressive competition. References BBC Business (2014) [Online]: Morrison’s restructuring sparks fears of new price war, UK, BBC News. Bloomberg (2014) [Online]: Share Price Data, Available at http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/, Accessed 27/03/2014. Financial Times (2014) [Online]: Tesco Plc, Available at http://markets.ft.com/research/Markets/Tearsheets/Summary?s=TSCO:LSE, Accessed 27/03/2014. Fitch Rating (2014): Morrison’s price cuts to pressure Tesco; margins at risk, UK, Fitch Ratings Agency. Kantar Worldpanel (2014): Unprecedented change in grocery retailing, UK, Kantar Worldpanel. Tesco (2013): Annual Review 2013, UK, Tesco Plc.

Outline and Evaluate One Theory of Attachment

Outline and evaluate one theory of attachment (12 marks) Bowlby’s theory is an evolutionary theory because, in his view attachment is a behavioural system that has evolved because of its survival value and, ultimately, its reproductive value. According to Bowlby, children have an innate drive to become attached to a caregiver because attachment has long-term benefits. Both attachment and imprinting ensure that a young animal stays close to a caregiver who will feed and protect the young animal.Thus attachment and imprinting are adaptive behaviours. Infants who do not become attached are less likely to survive and reproduce. Attachment ‘genes’ are perpetuated, and infants are born with an innate drive to become attached. Since attachment is innate, there is likely to be a limited window for its development i. e. a critical or sensitive period. Development of all biological systems takes place most rapidly and easily during a critical period. Bowlby applied the conc ept of a sensitive period to attachment.He suggested that the second quarter of the first year is when infants are most sensitive to the development of attachments. The drive to provide caregiving is also innate because it is adaptive (i. e. enhances survival of one’s offspring). Infants are born with certain characteristics, called social releasers, which elicit caregiving. The social releasers include smiling and crying. Another social releaser is a baby’s face. Attachment is the innate behavioural system in babies; caregiving is the response in adults. Both provide protection and thereby enhance survival.The formation of attachments depends on the interaction of these systems. Attachment is important for protection, and thus acts as a secure base from which a child can explore the world and a safe haven to return to when threatened. Thus attachment fosters independence. Bowlby also believed that infants form a number of attachments but one of these has special impor tance. The bias towards on individual, the primary attachment, is called monotropy. Infants also have other secondary attachment figures that form a hierarchy of attachments.The one special attachment is most usually an infant’s mother. Bowlby believe that sensitive responsiveness was the key – an infant become most strongly attached to the person who responds most sensitively to the infant’s social releasers (the ‘sensitivity’ hypothesis). This person become the infants primary attachment figure, providing the main foundation for emotional development, self-esteem and later relationships with peers, lovers and one’s own children. Attachment starts as the relationship between a caregiver and infant.This relationship may be one of trust or of uncertainty and inconsistency, and creates expectations about what all relationships will be like. Gradually the infant develops a model about emotional relationships: Bowlby called this an internal worki ng model. This model is a cluster of concepts about relationships and what to expect from others – about whether relationships involve consistent or inconsistent love, whether others make you feel good or anxious, and so on. The internal working model means there is consistency between early emotional experiences and later relationships.This leads to the continuity hypothesis – the view that there is a link between the early attachment relationship and later emotional behaviour; individuals who are securely attached in infancy continue to be socially and emotionally competent, whereas insecurely attached children have more social and emotional difficulties late in childhood and adulthood. The research by Lorenz supports the view that imprinting is innate because the goslings imprinted on the first moving object they saw. A similar process is likely to have evolved in many species as a mechanism to protect young animals and enhance the likelihood of their survival.If at tachments fail to develop, the conclusion from research appears to be that once the sensitive period has passed it is difficult to form attachments. For example, Hodges and Tizard found that children who had formed no attachments had later difficulties with peers. If attachment did evolve, as Bowlby suggests, to provide an important biological function, then we would expect attachment and care giving behaviours to be universal i. e. found in all cultures. Tronick et al. (1992) studied an African tribe, the Efe, from Zaire, who live in extended family groups.The infants are looked after and even breastfed by different women but usually sleep with their own mother at night. Despite such differences in childrearing practices the infants, at six months, still showed one primary attachment. This supports the view that attachment and caregiving are universal and not influenced by different cultural practices. Many psychologists have criticised Bowlby’s ideas regarding montropy and argued that the babies’ attachment to the first attachment figure is not necessarily special or unique.Schaffer and Emerson’s longitudinal study of 60 Glasgow babies found that multiple attachments seemed to be the norm for babies rather than the exception – at the age of 18 months 87% of babies had multiple attachments. Schaffer and Emerson also found that the strongest bond was not necessarily to the mother as Bowlby had implied. At 18 moths, only half of the samples were strongly attached to their mothers and about a third were strongly attached to their fathers.Bowlby’s ideas about the importance of attachments have produced substantial amount of research. Most evidence suggests that early attachment experiences can have an influenced on later adult relationships. However, it is important not to overestimate this influence and to consider other factors such as later life events, which influence adult relationships. Bowlby’s idea regarding monot ropy has been challenged and evidence supports the view that multiple attachments may be the rule rather than single and unique attachments.

Assessment Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Assessment - Assignment Example This theory postulates that early stages of human development through the adolescent stage are highly determined by nurture and nature aspects in relation to the socialization process. The cognitive theory, on the other hand, focuses on an individual’s thoughts and behaviours. This is what marks it as a personality theory. This is because thoughts determine individual’s emotions and behaviours. Most cognitive theorists explain this philosophy metaphysically that individuals who lack emotions and behaviours could not function (Thomas, 2001). This is a value laden assumption of the theory, which can easily be explained rather philosophically than scientifically. In conclusion, cognitive theory is much more inclined towards the Christian perceptive of human development explanations. This is because it postulates that thoughts often come first before any actions or feelings. This could only be in the spiritual world, which is a more appropriate environment for a Christian believer. Christians strongly believe in the existence of the supernatural forces behind an individual’s social actions through his or her beliefs. After discussion about these theories, I conclude by postulating a question that is the belief that a leader’s rate of success depends on the way different people

My experience in the English 105 class Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

My experience in the English 105 class - Essay Example Discovering what I like writing about has significantly influenced my attitude towards writing. I now engage in the skill as an enjoyable activity instead of viewing it as a task. A major part of writing that has contributed to my progress is research. Studying my environment and researching on previous works have been the main tools of my writing processes. A good example of my experience with my environment is the study of how the manufacturing community functions and how each individual is a participant in the manufacturing community. I discovered that all people have a role to play in the community growth. I recognize that, to become a better writer, I must be able to consult with establish authors as mentors and for inspiration. Consulting with my tutor and instructor is also a significant part of my progress. The process has led me to recognize the various areas where my writing skills are lacking and to make appropriate revision. Due to these consultation sessions, I have lear nt to ask the appropriate questions in writing, to critically analyze ideas while integrating them with the ideas of others as well as how to make logical and strong arguments of my own. The use of various references in my all my written composition depicts my use of existing ideas to develop my own arguments. These three main aspects of writing have evolved through my interactions with my tutor, thus making me more dependent on my own ideas than on already existing ideas. Furthermore, my writing has become more critical and analytical. I am no longer simply writing stories but integrating ideas to formulate a composition that contributes to a certain field of knowledge. My writing has also changed my use of language through the continuous revision of my previous works. My grammar and proper use of vocabulary has improved and my use of language varies depending on the intended reader.

Ig E deficiency Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Ig E deficiency - Case Study Example The immunoglobulin E (IgE) binds the environmental antigens or the parasitic infection agents, and then causes the release of substances from the mast cells, which causes inflammations. It is following the binding of the immunoglobulin E (IgE) to the mast cells that a cascade of the allergic reactions then occurs (Kim, Bouchard & Renzix, 2008). The surface of the mast cells is designed such that it contains special receptors that bind the IgE cells. Therefore, when two adjacent mast-cells that are already bound with the IgE antibodies come closer, they attract allergens and attach the allergens to both of them, thus cross-linking the IgE antibodies together (Scadding & Kariyawasam, 2009). After a critical mass of the IgEs have become cross linked, they release histamine and other related substances, thus beginning the cascading allergic reactions. The pathophysiology that results in the symptoms of sneezing, mucous production and airway constriction begins after a repeated exposure of the IgE to a particular allergen, for example a dust mite (Bourdin, Gras, Vachier & Chanez, 2009). The exposure to such allergens first produces an initial immune system reaction referred to as the early phase reaction, which is followed by another phase referred to as the late phase reaction, which is a more severe reaction (Scadding & Kariyawasam, 2009). Therefore, the pathophysiology of IgE reaction starts with the sensitization phase, where the IgE are exposed to an allergen for the first time. The sensitization phase where the IgE gets exposed to the allergen for the first time may occur through different forms such as inhalation, for example of dust mites, pollen or molds, or through ingestion of a certain type of parasite, food or medication (Kim, Bouchard & Renzix, 2008). The sensitization can also occur through touch, for example coming into contact with a poison ivy or latex, or through injection, for example under medication or through being stung by an

Kelly's Contract Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Kelly's Contract - Essay Example l contain a definitive promise providing the other party with an unambiguous option to accept or decline the offer.1 An offer constitutes the starting point of a contract and must be stated with clarity. In other words the person receiving the offer must be able to determine from the offer exactly what it is that is being offered as well as the terms of the offer.2 Kelly’s offer is for the sale of two black limousines for the 15,000 pounds. Kelly’s offer is in the form of an advertisement and typically an advertisement is treated as an â€Å"invitation to treat†particularly since it usually lacks specificity. This is usually the case in advertisements for the sale of goods.3 In Carlill v Carbolic Smoke Ball Co Ltd (1893) 1 QB 256 however, it was held that if an advertisement was presented with sufficient clarity it could constitute a valid offer.4 Once an offer with sufficient specificity to purchase the advertised goods is made and that offer is accepted by the vendor it is possible for a legally binding contract to be formed.5 Based on these rulings Kelly’s advertisement constitutes a valid offer, acceptance of which is capable of forming a legally binding contract. The offer made to Sarah via email for the sale of the two limousines is also a valid offer. However, Sarah’s response is problematic for Sarah since it did not mirror the actual offer and by implication represented a counter-offer. Sarah’s insistence that the limousines be sprayed white functions as a rejection of Kelly’s offer. A counter-offer is made when new terms are injected and are required to be accepted.6 Sarah’s counter-offer was made via email. In circumstances where communication of an acceptance is made via an instantaneous method such as an email, the offer is effective at the time of remittance.7 It is not certain that Kelly received the email, but even if she did not receive the email it will not negate communication of the counter-offer. Kelly is deemed to have

Treament for the elderly alcoholic Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Treament for the elderly alcoholic - Assignment Example The focus was on the goals and purposes of treatment of elderly alcoholics and how the services he offered could be accessed. We also discussed a variety of crisis situations followed by a question answer session. The outcome of an hour long interview is enumerated as under in detail. Dr. Cowan emphasized that the problem with alcoholism among the elderly is that it plays into a number of other conditions that a patient has. Alcoholism tends to weaken the immune system of an elderly at such a rapid pace that he gets less time to recover. Assessment is a serious problem, he noted, in part because of the ways in which prescription medication can mask it. This is backed up by the literature (Miller, 2010, p. 318). He described the purpose of treating elderly alcoholics is to get them into a treatment program. â€Å"Often times these kinds of patients don't come in to see me. Mostly one of the children decides that enough is enough and it is time for this person to seek treatment. Bigge st thing that one should have to fight alcoholism is the will. If you don't want to get better, you never will.† He emphasized that another goal of treatment is to involve family members as they provide the key support network for elderly people. He identified this as the main way that the services would be accessed: the patients would be brought in by relatives. Media both print and electronic are also being used by people to curtail alcoholism. Family physicians also guide elderly alcoholic patients to visit a classified health professional. Nevertheless, he said, as with all addiction, there is a great deal of resistance. As a doctor, I have to recognize that and do my best to make the process easier. The goal is to leave the person better off than before. He spent some time talking about the importance of the subject. â€Å"There are studies that show alcoholism among the elderly is very prevalent. It is hidden from view in part because elderly people are hidden from view . Part of the problem is that alcoholism can be confused with any number of other health issues. That is not a reason to step away from the study of this disease. If anything, it is a reason to renew our interest. Any time we see a group in society that is falling through the tracks we need to do everything we can to help them. The elderly are more sensitive to the effects of alcohol for a lot of different reasons and their biochemistry has changed with age. That is an interesting issue which I devote a fair amount of study to. The whole ageing process is fascinating. We're all going to end up there one day, so we should know as much as we can.† Looking at alcohol treatment is important, he said, because there is an indication that the amount of abuse is increasing. Some studies indicate that this is the case (Sirvin and Malamut, 2008, p. 515). Finally, we talked about crisis situations that are compelling people to seek help. Deteriorating health because of alcoholism is a ma jor reason that finally makes a patient to seek treatment. Physiatrists, when consulted by individuals also led them to sea a doctor. Self determination to get rid of the abuses and live a better life also made few people to visit a professional. Relatives also motivated to habitual elderly patients to fight the alcoholism. I found Dr. Cowan to be a very knowledgeable and sincere practitioner. The process and the goals that he described made sense to me. It was fascinating to hear

Pearl Harbor Film Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Pearl Harbor Film - Essay Example The researcher states that the film follows the quintessential fly jocks Rafe and Daniel who were boyhood friends and are now the cocky show-offs of the U.S. Army Air Corps.   While their antics get them into trouble with their superiors, they also make them heroes among their friends, instantly establishing their stereotype for the audience within the opening scenes.   The third main character, Evelyn, enters the story on her way to a dance as she tells her friends about how she first met Rafe, their budding romance and a particular disability, dyslexia, that would have kept him on the ground had she not helped him to cheat his way through the vision test.   However, Rafe has already volunteered to serve with a volunteer force of American pilots serving with the British Royal Air Force and is scheduled to leave the next morning, forcing him to part from Evelyn.   While he’s on his way to England, Evelyn and Danny with many other officers and nurses, are transferred to Pearl Harbor.   While Rafe faces immediate death all the time in England, Evelyn and Danny enjoy Hawaii’s tropical paradise and General Yamamoto plans the Pearl Harbor attack.   Then Rafe gets in an air battle accident and is presumed dead.   Danny and Evelyn go through a three-month grieving period before they begin to date each other.   On the morning that Evelyn discovers she’s pregnant, both she and Danny learn that Rafe is alive as he shows up in Hawaii.   However, at the same time, Rafe realizes that Danny and Evelyn have been dating and the two friends end up in a fight at a bar.  

Asthma. Pathologic basis of disease Research Paper

Asthma. Pathologic basis of disease - Research Paper Example Asthma can be divided into different groups on the basis of severity of attacks that are mild intermittent, mild, moderate and severe persistent asthma. But typically the asthma is classified into extrincsic asthma and intrinsic asthma. Extrinsic asthma is set off by type 1 hypersensitivity reaction caused by an extrinsic antigen. Intrinsic asthma is initiated by various mechanisms including pulmonary infections caused by viruses especially, cold, stress, exercise and inhaled irritants. Some categories classify asthma in accordance to the agent that causes the constriction of air passages for example seasonal asthma, exercise asthma, occupational asthma, drug induced asthma and asthmatus bronchitis. The genetic susceptibility to type 1 hypersensitivity, chronic inflammation and bronchial hypersensitivity are the major factors that cause asthma. Our immune system contains Type 2 helper T cells (Th2) which is type of CD4+ helper T cell secretes interleukins. The interleukins then promote allergic inflammations and stimulate B cells to produce IgE and different antibodies. Type 1 helper T cells (Th1) are also a type of CD4+ helper T cell which secretes interferon-ÃŽ ³ (gamma) and intereukin-2. The interferon-ÃŽ ³ (gamma) and interleukin-2 activates the macrophages and cytotoxic T cells which kills the viruses and other invading organisms. These two types of helper T cells form an immunoregulatory loop that is the cytokines from type 1 helper T cells inhibit type 2 helper T cells and cytokines from type 2 helper T cells inhibit type 1 helper T cells. These two types of helper T cells respond to different immunogenic stimuli and try to destroy them. Any imbalance in the regulatory loop of these two types of helper T cells makes it easier for the viruses and agents to attack the bronchopulmonary tree and cause inflammation which leads to asthma. In patient suffering from hypersensitivity as occur in asthma, when an antigen is presented to the skin, a wheal and flare reaction occurs. This wheal and flare reaction is clear example of hypersensitivity type 1. In air passages when the allergen reaches the epithelial lining it stimulates the induction of type 2 helper T cells (Th2). The type 2 helper T cells secrete various cytokines such as interleukin 4 (IL-4) and interleukin 5 (IL-5). The interleukin 4 (IL-4) then triggers the production of immunoglobulin IgE by the B cells and promotes the growth of mast cells. The interleukin 5 promotes the growth and activation of eosinophills. The reaction mediated by IgE to the allergens elicit an acute response and late phase reaction. The acute response to the allergens consist of bronchoconstriction, edema, mucous secret ion and in rare cases the decrease of blood pressure. The acute response occurs by this mechanism; the contact of antigens to the mast cells stimulates the secretion of mediators which mediate the reaction. In the case of air passage diseases when the allergens reach the mucosal surface, the reaction of allergens first occurs with the mucosal mast cells. In this reaction mediators are secreted which opens the tight junction in between the mucosal cells and improve the entrance of the antigens to the submucosal mast cells. This reaction causes the broncoconstriction, edema and mucous secretion which is acute response. Vagal stimulation in lungs also called bronchoconstrictio

Ballads Case Essay Example for Free

Ballads Case Essay Ballads are poems that tell a story. These ballads are distinguished by such features as few characters, dramatic plots, and may include dialogue, as well as action because it tells a story. They are considered to be a form of narrative poetry. They are often used in songs and have a very musical quality to them. According to the dictionary, Ballad is a narrative poem, often of folk origin and intended to be sung, consisting of simple stanzas and usually having a refrain. It is the music for such a poem. It is also defined as a popular song especially of a romantic or sentimental nature. Here is an example: (Ballad of a Mother’s Heart) Origin There have been many theories about the originators of the ballads all of which have some validity when applied to the different types of ballad, the main ones are as follows:  · Minstrels: A minstrel is a musician or a poet. Originally, the minstrels were paid entertainers who worked for the Court and influential personages. They wrote songs about current events and historical victories of their patron and they included rewritings of old songs, legends and ballads in their theatre. The theory that the minstrels were the originators of the ballads was held for quite a long time. They are certainly a factor in the spreading of the ballads into the community; ballads were a stock item in the theatre of the minstrels even when their status had declined to that of street singers.  · Dance: Certainly some of the ballads were tied to dances. The word ballad probably comes from medieval French dance songs or ballet (â€Å"ballares† dance).  · Ceremonial dance and songs. Some ballad refrains contain ceremonial chants and responses  · Monks: The monks were the amongst the few who could read and write in the early times of the ballad history and that it follows that they must have had a hand in the composition and writing of the ballads.  · Communal composition: It has been suggested that ballads may have developed as a communal effort; particularly those that contain refrains and rhythms that are connected with work such as weaving and spinning. Example is the walking songs of the Hebrides.  · Cante-fable. This is a story, which is classified with verses that are sung or chanted. Some ballads are distinctively English or Scottish in origin but the older ballads are more likely to have a European source as their beginnings, deriving from earlier poems and old folk tales brought into Britain by its many invaders, immigrants and soldiers returning from foreign wars. Composition Scholars of ballads are often divided into two: The ‘communalists’ who argue that ballads arose by a combined communal effort and did not have a single author. They tend to lead to the view that more recent, particularly printed broadside ballads are a debased form of the genre. The ‘individualists’ who assert that there was a single original author. They tended to lead to the view that later changes in the words of ballads are corruptions of an original text. More recently scholars have pointed to the interchange of oral and written forms of the ballad. Classification European Ballads have been generally classified into three major groups: traditional, broadside and literary. * Traditional ballads Traditional folk ballads exhibit certain characteristics which help to identify them as being genuine in origin. Traditional ballads or folk ballads were universal songs meant to be understood by everyone, so writers would choose words that even the uneducated might understand. Traditional ballads follow a standard format and tell lengthy stories that call on imagery. * Broadsides Broadside ballads are descriptive or narrative verses or songs sung or recited in public places or printed on broadsides for sale in the streets. It is commonly in a simple ballad form. Broadside ballads appeared shortly after the invention of printing in the 15th century and were hawked in streets, fairs, and marketplaces of Europe into the 19th century. Among the topics were love, religion, drinking-songs, legends, and early journalism, which included disasters, political events and signs, wonders and prodigies. * Literary ballads A literary ballad (also known as art ballad) is a narrative poem written in imitation of the old anonymous folk ballad; the author is most often a known professional poet. Usually the literary ballad is more elaborate and complex. Literary ballads were quite popular in England during the 19th cent. The literary ballad, unlike the traditional ballad and the broadside ballad, is a sophisticated rather than a popular form. Importance of Ballads Ballads are important to look at because they show how the form has developed over time. A ballad is not simply a romantic song, although that definition will still apply in the field of music. Romance can be infused into ballads, especially if they are a narrative tale of love (or hate) as seen in the ballad by the anonymous Spanish poet. However, they are so much more as well. Anyone who knows the ballad knows how complex the story is in terms of theme, imagery, characters, symbolism, and many other literary devices and significations.

Middle Range Theory Essay Example for Free

Middle Range Theory Essay Cohens article (2010) addresses the fact that the transition from adolescence to adulthood no longer occurs at age 21. Starting in the 1970s the U.S. economy changed from a manufacturing economy to a service-based economy. The results are evident today. This economically driven shift changed how people prepared for careers and life. The traditional timing of becoming an adult, marriage, career, children, and financial independence now occurs almost 10 years later than before. Erickson’s would research and create a new sequence of eight stages including of development from 10 years up until now. For each specific conflict at each stage, which allows an individual to develop successfully. Each conflict would have to be extended as a result of the change in the economy today. The effect of resolved conflicts are more appropriate as the result the change of adolescent to adulthood no longer occurring to prevent the transition to the next stage of development. Erickson The most profound life crisis occurs at the fifth stage of development, which can be characterized by rapid physical growth, sexual maturing, concern about the perception of us by others and search of professional calling. The final stage is also crucial, as people asses their life and their achievements. If a man looks back at his life with few regrets, and feels that it was worth living, it leads to a feeling of satisfaction. If, on the contrary, the person feels hopeless, reflects on his mistakes, it leads to a feeling of despair. According to Erickson, if a person achieves a sense of wholeness and self-identity, he will not be afraid of death, and this means that this person has reached the highest form of achievements. References: Cohen, P. (2010). Long road to adulthood is growing even longer. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/13/us/13generations.html?scp=1sq=Long%20road%20to%20adulthoodst=cse_r=0 on September 13, 2014. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/13/us/13generations.html?scp=1sq=Long%20road%20to%20adulthoodst=cse

The Social Practice Of Untouchability Sociology Essay

The Social Practice Of Untouchability Sociology Essay Untouchability is the social practice of casting out a minority group by regarding them as ritually polluted and segregating them from the mainstream. The excluded group could be one that did not accept the norms of the excluding group and historically included foreigners, nomadic tribes, law-breakers and criminals. This exclusion was a method of punishing law-breakers and also protected against contagion from strangers. A member of the excluded group is known as an untouchable. The people who are said untouchable are from that section of society which is not only held in the lowest esteem, but which is behaved by the other castes as unclean. Who are found to be the sweepers, cleaner, and leather tanners are considered as unfit for human society or co-mingling. They are not permitted to take their water from the public wells. The word caste was loosely used by the Portuguese to denote the Indian social classification as they thought that the system was intended to preserver purity of blood. The system is such a peculiar and complex thing that no satisfactory definition is possible. Hence we find no unanimity among scholars on the subject. Senart states that a caste is a close corporation, exclusive and in theory at any rate rigorously hereditary. It is equipped with ascertain traditional and independent organization, including a chief and a council, meeting on occasion in assemblies endowed with less full authority. According to sir H. Risley, a caste may be defined as a collection of families or groups of families bearing a common name, claiming common descent from a mythical ancestor, human or divine, professing to follow the same hereditary calling, and regarded by those who are competent to give opinion as forming a single homogeneous community .the name generally denotes or is associated with a specific occupation. A caste is almost invariably endogamous in the sense that a member of the large circle denoted by the common name may not marry outside that circle, but within the circle there are usually a number of smaller circles each which is also endogamous. The untouchables have been referred to as Schedule Castes and Schedule Tribes. Local names for the untouchables are in different parts of India and known by different names: Bhangi, Pakhi, Chandal, etc. Mahatma Gandhi called them Harijans, which means children of God. It is still in wide use especially in Gandhis home state of Gujarat. Harijans are now Dalits, which means broken people. Historical background: Hindu culture was made of four castes according to work of people. There are the brahmins, the highest or scholarly people, kshatriya, the caste of the ancient kings or warriors; the vaisya, the farmers and traders; and the sudras, laborers. The people, who come under the sudras caste, are treated with disdain, but not as outcasts. Today, the caste system is become more complicated and having many subdivisions, each forming a social organization whose function is to protect caste members. In Manu Smriti there is written that the first part of a Brahmins name should denote something auspicious, a Kshatriyas name should be connected with power, and that a Vaishyas name should reminds wealth. The first part of a Sudras name should express something contemptible and the second part should describe the service, because of the Sudras low origin. According to Hindu practice, only the upper castes are given right to study the Vedas. If the Sudra intentionally listens for committing to memory the Veda, then his ears should be filled with molten lead and lac; if he utters the Veda, then his tongue should be cut off, if he has mastered the Veda his body should be cut to pieces says the Manu Smriti. In the epic Ramayana, after Lord Ramas return from exile, a Brahmin accuses him of causing the death of his son by his toleration of Shambuka, a Sudra who recited the Vedas. In order to control the situation, Rama finds Shambuka and killed him. The Brahmin boy got life again. In Manu Smriti different punishments are given for the same crime, depending on the culprits caste. If this much punishments were for the Sudras, what was the treatment reserved for the untouchables who were outside the caste system, and placed even lower than the Sudras in society. In the 1500s, during the rule of the Marathas and the Peshwas untouchables were not allowed within the gates of the Poona between 3.00 pm and 9.00 am. The reason was that during this time their bodies were casting long shadows, with the reason that the shadow of an untouchable might fall on a Brahmin and pollute him. An untouchable used to carry an earthen pot around his neck so his spittle might not pollute the earth by the shadow. In Maharashtra an untouchable wore a black thread either in his neck or on his wrist for ready identification of upper caste people, while in Gujarat a horn was being worn for identification. It must be remembered that Dalit does not mean Caste or low-Caste  or poor; it refers to the deplorable state or condition to which a large group of people has been reduced by social convention and in which they are now living. Protection under constitution: Indias government and legal system when dealing with dalits or untouchables is fraught with contradiction. This is evident in the disparities between upper and lower castes, in terms of economic and political power, and is a consequence of the States differential treatment of these sections. The Indian Constitution the writing of which was chaired by the most powerful dalit advocate for dalit rights, Dr. Ambedkar embodies civil and legal rights providing for non-discrimination. However, secular legal and constitutional structures are contradictory to the prevalent ancient Hindu law: religious, social and economic practices that involve a discriminative hierarchy based on hereditary social status, occupation and ritual duties. Stratification of society benefits the upper classes as it secures positions of economic and social power, and allows the exploitation of the lower castes; Hindu beliefs and law sanction this. It is therefore not in their interest to remove discrimination by th e implementation of the constitutional principles and laws in favors of the dalits. The Indian state hasnt, to date, taken a serious approach to the betterment of the dalit situation because it is essentially aligned with the upper castes. The provision of reservations for government seats, employment and higher education has improved the living standard of some dalits, yet most remain in poverty. Reservations provide positive discrimination; ironically this also stereotypes dalits, resulting in their continual segregation in society. The state has not successfully provided due access to education, equitable employment, ownership of land and legal protection to break the cycle of caste based oppression. Dalit political parties and movements for the assertion of rights and self determination have been numerous and varied, but have been successfully quelled by the state and upper castes through the use of political power, violence, and police intimidation, all contrary to the constitu tion. Hindus maintain the caste system because their religion requires them to do so, and caste is a characteristic of Brahmanism, the Brahmans being at the top of the system.1 Dalits, as they will be referred to here, are a sub caste of people at the bottom of the Hindu social and religious hierarchy called Varna Dharma; due to polluting nature of their occupations which include handling dead animals, cleaning, and jobs to do with human excrement. They are forced to behave in de-humanizing ways such the eating of excrement. The interaction of the castes and 1 L.G. Havanur, Backward Classes, Judicial Meaning, Socio-legal Services and Research Centre, Bangalore, 1991, p.55 jatis, or endogamous sub divisions relating to occupation, is known as the jajmani system. Hindus have relied on this system to divide labour, social and commensally relations and ensure economic and social co-operation.2 On every level the dalits have been discriminated against, and subordinated into servitude.3 Ambedkar in his leadership role in the Indian constituent assembly sought to erase the oppressive caste system by raising dalit awareness and empowerment through provisions in the constitution. Article 15 and 17 prohibits the practice of untouchability and discrimination based on caste.4 In hindsight, these basic aims seem too lofty to be realized, given that dalits still remain disenfranchised in relation to the implementation of these articles. Forty years later, writing in 1994, Dr. B.D Sharma describes the Indian micro-universe as separated into the first world, where people exercise their rights and have access to courts and police for protection under the law and the o ther world where people do not.5 The first world comprises of only 15-20% of the population and the other world makes up the majority of disinherited and exploited people.6 In addition, The Civil Rights Protection Act, 1955, intended to abolish disabilities associated with backward classes including dalits. While creating an atmosphere where the inequalities suffered by the dalits have been publicly condemned, the constitutional measures have been rendered ineffective as they are mostly ignored in practice.7 Dalits make up 77% of agricultural labour which is classified as unskilled and unorganised. In the urban setting, they are labourers in construction, scavengers and sanitation workers, also falling into the unorganized category. Wages in the organized sector are regulated by the State so that they rise with increased prices, and are adequate enough for one wage earner to sustain a family. Labourers bear the brunt of the disparity between organized and unorganized sections. Viola tions of minimum wage, set very low in the first place, and payment in kind are common, and go unchecked.8 Consequently, one wage cannot support a family and children and the elderly are forced to work, children dont go to school and are trapped by poverty.9 The State allows illegal labour practices because exploitation results in economic benefits for landowners and employers who are mostly upper caste, if it should interfere, more 2 Sumit Ganguly Neil DeVotta eds, Understanding Contemporary India, Lynne Rienner Publishers, Boulder, London, 2003, p.233 -234 3 Robert.W.Stern, Changing India, 2nd edit, Cambridge university press, Cambridge, 2003. p.60-61 4 Sumit Ganguly Neil DeVotta eds, Understanding Contemporary India, p.243 5 Dr. B.D. Sharma, Dalits Betrayed, Har-Anand Publications, New Delhi, 1994, p.13 6 Ibid. 7Robert.W.Stern, Changing India, 2nd edit, p. 242 8 Prem.K.Shinde ed, Dalits and Human Rights, volume 1, (Dalits and Racial Justice) Isha Books, Delhi, p.84 9 Dr. B.D. Sharma, Dalits Betrayed, p.47 dalits may be able to enter the organised sector, and thus this exploitable labour resource would be drained. Although this massive failure of participation in the organised economy could be corrected by affirmative action policies, these have also been insufficient. Article 330 and 332 of the constitution call for affirmative action in the form of special reservations in government representation, government employment and higher education, intended to raise the dalit position in society. Reserved seats are allocated in the Lok Sabha, and the legislative assemblies of the states, effectively giving dalits representation. The scheduled castes and scheduled tribes (The Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 was designed to better punish offences such as injury or harassment directed at dalits. In addition, Article 14 of the constitution states that no citizen be denied equality before the law. Ghandi believed that the superior/inferior relations between dalits and upper castes could not be remedied by the state, but needed to be addressed by the upper castes themselves who were responsible for the system.10 10 Lelah Dushkin, Scheduled Caste Policy in India, p.632 Untoucability, A social Evil: Untouchability is basically not from India. It was practiced in parts of Europe until a few centuries ago, and Japan still has a large number of Untouchables, called the Burakumin. But it is in the Indian Sub-continent that this system survives, closely bound with culture, religion, history and politics. Today over 170 million people in India are considered Untouchable, and their development has been slow despite the Legal safeguards and the Government programs. According to the Manu Smriti there are four castes in Hindu society and each caste has assigned duties, responsibilities and privileges. The Brahmins are the learned, the Kshatriyas are the warriors, the Vaishyas are the traders, and the Sudras perform menial tasks and physical labour, and are considered as the lowest. And only uppers castes have the right to study the Vedas. The upper castes alone have the right to the thread ceremony which is performed as a rite of passage, allowing them to be termed twice-born. What is a Dharma? A study reveals that he who has the knowledge of Brahmagnan is called the Brahmana, and not by caste or not by the birth. Each one of us is an untouchable, because who among us is free from disobedience to Natures laws, from impurity of heart and mind, from fears of a thousand kinds, from selfishness and greed. Let us remove the untouchability in us. Anyone is not perfect, but through right dharma, by eliminating our differences and by strengthening our virtues, we move towards perfection. Let us develop the virtue of efficiency and skill to become Shudras; the virtue of charity and become Vaishyas; the courage and become Kshatriyas; the sacrifice and become Brahman, and make ourselves in the copy of the Great Purusha, the Radiant. According to the Bhagwadgeetha or The Bible or any other, written, or said, is the same, that all humans are equal. The Air we breathe, the Water we drink, the Fire, the Sky, the Earth are same. These days Indian students and citizens are being attacked in some countries, and we are discussing and talking about the RACISM and craving for justice. We should condemn these at any cost, but it would be fair if we stop those things in here. What is Untouchability? Untouchability in India is a practice where a particular community considers even touching another community person as polluting one.   A person who touches the untouchables is usually made to undergo cleansing process, like bathing, or spraying of water, depending on the regional practice. Who practices untouchability? There is an intense propaganda that untouchability is practiced by higher caste people over lower caste people.   But that is no right.   Untouchability is practiced by almost all castes, right from brahmin caste to the dalit caste. Even the dalit castes practice untouchability over others.  One dalit caste will not even drink water from another dalit caste. Does Untouchability mean segregation? Segregation in western sense, means, classification and isolating a certain groups of people, for varied reasons.   Segregation is mostly associated with authority based society like the western one.   Normally, the criminals, rebels, and other anti-social elements only are segregated from the mainstream society, and deported to far off lands or put in jail.   This is what happened in the western societies. In general, segregation  means, separation of different groups of people from one another, and no relationship exists among these groups.   For example, in Europe, the protestants and the catholics are segregated, and there is no healthy relationship b/w them, except for that both worship jesus.   Similarly, shias and sunnis are segregated people, without any interdependence. But, untouchability does not mean segregating. Because, untouchability was mutually practiced by all groups.  In caste system, even though people practiced untouchability, the different castes are interdependent on one another, thus always having some kind of interaction and relationship. Does Untouchability mean isolation? Definitely not,  there may be segregation of houses of castes in some villages.   But there is never isolation in any villages.   Almost all castes interact with each other, because, all castes depend on one another for some needs. The level of interaction differs from caste to caste.   For example, the dalits will strictly not mingle with other dalit caste, eg. Sakkiliars will never drink water from parayars.   But, they will get food and water from the dominant caste of that region.   Similarly, the dominant castes like chettiyars, devars, nayakkars, etc may have interactions on equal footing.   But still, they do not mingle with one another. There are few communities, who have to closely interact with one another.   Particularly in kongu region, the naavithars, vannan community, kosavar community, etc have close interaction with the dominant gounder community.   The naavithars (barbers) usually conduct most of the rituals, right from birth to death in the gounders family.   It is they who used to sing mangazha vaazhthu during gounders marriage. Why does a caste practice untouchability? There is no definite answer to this, as the reason may vary from place to place.   But based on my understanding, untouchability is practices because of extreme cultural contradictions.   Let me list out the possible reasons for untouchability, as i perceive. Life style: We all know India is a land of cultural diversity, and that the life style of one community largely differs from others.   For eg, a brahmin community follows strict hygiene, and are strict vegetarians.   On the other hand, the farmers and farm laborer castes usually work in fields; do not have hygienic life practices.   The dalit community works on cow skins, which is a sin to brahmin community. So its natural that the brahmins could not mingle with other castes. Commune Living: Most of the castes live a strong commune life, with a common profession.   So, the life styles of all the community members are aligned towards that lifestyle.   And there are strong inter dependencies among the community member.   In such commune living, people used to live as large families, with common interest.   In such cases, when a member of the family or community, elopes with the other community girl or boy, it creates a confusion in the large family.   The incoming girl/boy may not adapt to the family life style, and may not adapt to the community profession.   For example, a brahmin girl will not be able to work in fields if she marries a farmer.   Or a farming girl may not be able to work in leather products if she marries a dalit.   So, the society has evolved itself to an inbuilt arrangement, not to mingle with each other. Prisoners of war: On those days (before Muslim invasion), when a king was defeated in a war, he captures the prisoners of war, and deports to his kingdom to work as laborers   or current empire may be ruled by the enemy for few years, and recaptured by the original king. In such case, the people settled there by the former temporary ruler, may lose their status, and become laborers.   In such cases, the victorious king may take steps to suppress the settled external people, so that they dont again attempt to overthrow him.   Religious Differences: I need not mention about Hindu Muslim differences.   That is entirely a different subject.   However, there are many sub sects within Hinduism, which had opposed each other.   Particularly the influence of Buddhism had profound impact on suppressing those people who work on leather products, as Buddhist believed in ahimsa.   The vegetarian character of India is believed to have acquired during Buddhist rule.  Ã‚   Also, since anyone who left the caste is usually abandoned by the community, those who had converted to Buddhism might have been left out after Buddhism waned way. Today, for many of the dalit people, their kula deivam is Vishnu. Cultural Differences: Apart from life style, the cultural values of the castes also an important reason for untouchability.   For example, the ruling castes had stricter cultural values, which they have followed for generations.   For example, widow remarriage is not allowed in dominant castes.   But its normal in dalit castes.   The widow in dominant caste often follows sati, whereas it is not required in the dalit castes. Lineages: The common culture and profession resulted in a common lineage over centuries, which evolved the respective castes in to distinctive identities, which had made them not to mingle with others. Exceptions from Untouchability: The saints and rishis are mostly exempted from untouchability.   It means, almost all communities welcomed rishis and saints, and the saints also embraced all communities. Also, the saints are placed outside the caste system, as they have raised one level above in their life, towards the god. Most of the kings never practiced untouchability, and they were mostly secular.   Moreover, they did not have the situation or the time to do that. Good and Bad in this world are highly relative term rather than a universally defined one.  In the society of barbarians, murderers and rapists, a thief could be the best person among others. However, in a society of saints and nobles, the same thief would be the worst person.   Thus when we are judging anything as good/bad, we need to consider the environment and prevailing situation. There was heavy propaganda of dalit oppression and suppression by the Marxists, for around a century here.   But even assuming their propaganda to be true, lets see how the dalit people were treated here. The dalits lived in a separate colony in the same village. The dalits are not slaves.   They were mere laborers to the land owners.   They have the right to move to other village, if they feel, the current village is discriminatory or not able to live in. A typical dalit community is allowed to have their own commune life, simply because, untouchability prevented the dominant caste from abusing or exploiting them. The dalits had their own temple, their own festivals. The dalits had similar type of caste structure, with gothrams and kula deivams.   A dalit married from a different gothram of his caste from another village.   These ensured that the dalit people also had relations among multiple villages and have their own social structure to follow with. Since the dalit people were allowed to live as a community, their women had the inherent protection from exploitation.   In the case of American slave system each African women is an individual slave, which the owner can do whatever he want.   Other slaves cannot come to rescue if the owner rapes the slave women.   However, in our caste system, the women were part of the dalit community, and they could not be exploited.   Also, since the dominant caste practiced untouchability over the dalits, their youths refrained from mingling with dalit girls; as such an act would excommunication from his caste.   It is same for the dalit people too. The dalit people had their own panchayat for issue resolution.   This is the highest point of freedom that any community might have.  Ã‚   The elders in the dalit caste usually try to solve the problem.   If that fails, they take the case to the village panchayat head. To quote a recent history of India, the entire Kashmir valley had been ethnically cleansed of Hindus, just because the Muslims could not tolerate the presence of Hindus.   So when they became majority they persecuted the Hindus. However, it has to be noted that the Hindus, even though invaded by Muslims were able to tolerate them for thousands of years, by simply practicing untouchability. There are many other instances in the history where I find that untouchability would have prevented genocides, persecution and other horrors of the history. Comparing those incidents with our caste system, we find that untouchability is a practical system evolved as a solution to peaceful existence of conflicting communities. We all know that the urban people are classified as higher class, middle class and lower class.   But its a fact that these class peoples mostly lived isolated from others. For example, the higher class people live in posh areas, with neat roads, electricity water facility and spacious homes, public parks etc.   The middle class usually lives in comfortable homes, but in congested areas. The lower class people often were the slum dwellers who live in unhygienic and horrific conditions. Let me ask the following questions: How many upper class people live along with slum dwellers? Suppose a slum dweller roams in front of a posh bungalow, what will the security of the bungalow will do?   We often find that the rich people drive away the slum people through their securities. How many of the higher class people allow their children to play with middle class people? How many of the middle class people allow their children to play with the slum boys girls? In villages, even though castes follow untouchability, each caste knows the members of the other caste.   When the dalit caste had any needs, they always approach the dominant caste.   The dominant caste provides food to the dalit people, when they come to the home.   The dalit women often share their problems with the dominant caste women and seek solution.   Thus there is a mutually supporting life in villages, inspire of untouchability.   Let me ask, how many people in rich posh areas, know the people of the nearby slum.   Or how many rich people help the slum people in needy times? Lets take the case of gang wars in colleges.   Students belonging to one group wont interact with the other.   Its the norm in many colleges.   Its natural because, when there are differences, people chose to live away.

Education in a Sociological Sense: Article Summaries Essay -- Sociolog

I have chosen two articles in relation to education. The first article determines whether education plays a vital role in religion in Scotland, whereas the second article attempts to present a connection between educational attainment and cultural capital. This assignment will summarise the articles I have chosen to read, which will provide me with a wider understanding of education in a sociological sense as opposed to my original common sense. The first article I will examine concerns educations role in religion within Scotland. ‘The relationship among religion, education and opportunity has been a recurrent theme in debates about Scottish social policy since the 1920’s’ (Paterson 2006). The article commences by addressing a certain aspect of this frequent debate, if and to what extent certain religious groups have experienced social mobility and educations role within this experience. Paterson goes onto explain that to back up this theory she will analyse the results of the Scottish Household Survey conducted in 2001 to ascertain if ‘social mobility differs between the three largest groups in Scotland, and what, if any the role of education might be in that’. The three largest groups to which she refers are, ‘no religion’, ‘Church of Scotland’ and ‘Roman Catholic’. She attempts to uncover religious differences in mobility patterns, the role of educat ion and if these conclusions are somehow varied by gender. Paterson moves on to outline the surveys process and to illustrate the questions asked within the survey. She attempts to point out minor faults within the survey that may alter the reliance of specific results, ‘the survey asked all respondents only about their current religion, not about their religion of upbringing’. ... ... GCSE attainment’. In conclusion, from reading the two articles my knowledge on education when looking at it in a sociological sense has deepened and I am now more aware of the role that education plays in topics I never paired it with. For example, prior to reading the article involving religion and education, I had never thought of religion aiding my educational credentials. I had also never looked at cultural capital and how that the lack of awareness of certain aspects of culture may hinder my educational credentials and therefore my occupational desires. Works Cited Paterson, L & Iannelli, C (2006) Religion, social mobility and education in Scotland. The British Journal of Sociology. Vol 57, No.1, pp353-375 Sullivan, A (2001) Cultural Capital and Educational Attainment. The Journal of The British Sociological Association. Vol 35, No.4, pp893-911

War of 1812 Essay -- essays research papers

The War of 1812 American frigates won a series of single-ship engagements with British frigates, and American privateers continually hurried British shipping. The captains and crew of the frigates constitution and United States became renowned throughout America. Meanwhile, the British gradually tightened a blockade around America's coasts, ruining American trade, threatening American finances, and exposing the entire coastline to British attack. U.S. forces were not ready for war, and American hopes of conquering Canada collapsed in the campaigns of 1812 and 1813. The initial plan called for a three-pronged offensive: from Lake Champlain to Montreal; across the Niagara frontier: and into Upper Canada from Detroit. The attacks were uncoordinated, however, and all failed. In the West, General William Hull surrendered Detroit to the British in August 1812 and on the Niagara front, American troops lost the Battle of Queenston Heights in October. Also along Lake Champlain, the American forces withdrew in late November without seriously engaging the enemy. There was a standoff at Niagara, and an elaborate attempt to attack Montreal by a combined operation involving one force advancing along Lake Champlain and another sailing down the Saint Lawrence River from Lake Ontario. That operation failed at the end of the year. The only success was in the West. The Americans won control of the Detroit frontier region when Oliver Hazard Perry’s ships destroyed the British fleet on Lake Er...

Edgar Allan Poe Essay -- essays research papers

Edgar Allan Poe   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Edgar Allan Poe, the first master of the short story, had written many short stories from mysteries to morbidity. Edgar was born on January 19,1809 in Boston, Massachussettes. Edgars Parents, David and Eliza, were both in the acting business. Poe also had a sister, who is rarely spoken of. When Edgar was young his father fleed from the family, leaving Edgar, his mother, and sister alone. At the age of two Edgar's mother died of tuberculosis. Edgar was then placed in a foster home with John and Fanny Allan.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  When Edgar was fifteen he had enough stories written to publish a book, but his foster father would not allow it. In 1826 Edgar enrolled into the University of Virginia. He wanted to become a translator. The life at the University of Virginia was very disturbing, there were many accounts of violence such as; riots, fighting, and murders. By the end of the year Edgar was in debt from gambling, exceeding two-thousand five-hundred dollars. When Poe went back to Richmond, Virginia, where John lived for the summer, he expected his father to pay his debts, but his father made him work to pay his debts.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In 1827 Edgar moved out of the Allan house to Boston, Massachussettes. Edgar then published his first book Tamerline and Other Poems . In 1827 Edgar joined the U.S. Army where he stayed for two years. In 1829 Edgar wrote his second book Aarat, Tamberline, and Other Poems by...

Compare and Contrast Economic and Political Effects of the Mongol Rule in the Middle East and China Essay

The Mongols were a nomadic group from Central Asia who joined together under the rule of Ghengis Khan to conquer territory. The Mongols had an enormous affect on the territories it conquered. They generally took on the culture of the peoples they conquered. In China, the Mongols modeled the government similar to China’s but did not allow Chinese members to become a part of the government. They also outlawed the civil service exam. In contrast in the Middle East, Il-Khan allowed local government officials to stay in power and keep their rule as long as they continued to pay taxes. However in both regions the Mongol’s encouraged trade and eliminated tariffs through their empire. In that way they boosted their economies. Politically the Mongols changed the system significantly in China. Although Kublei Khan, the ruler of China during the Mongol ruler tried to model the government after the Chinese bureaucracy as exemplified by his naming the dynasty, the Yuan dynasty and keeping a strong centralized government with regular tax payment. He also outlawed the civil service exam because the Mongols were not well educated. In Addition he only allowed Mongols to be a part of the government. In contrast, in the Middle East Il-Khan kept the government very similar to how it had always been. The leaders of the mongols converted to Islam unlike the Mongols in China who didn’t take on Confucianism, the Chinese tradition. The Mongols in the Middle East also allowed the current leader to remain intact as long as they continued to pay the taxes. Economically, the mongols were very similar in China and the Middle East. In China the Mongols encouraged trade. They protected the Silk Roads from invaders. An example of how the Mongol’s encouraged and welcomed trade is with Marco Polo, a merchant who traveled all around Eurasia and wrote about his journey and travels to the Yuan dynasty. Similarly in the Middle East the Mongols encouraged trade and specifically discouraged agriculture. The Mongols also eliminated tariffs throughout their empire. Because of this trade flourished in the Middle East as it did in China. The Mongol rule in China and the Middle East was very different politically in that the Mongols allowed the leaders in the Middle East to remain while  in China they did not. In addition they took on the Middle Eastern culture more by converting to Islam while in China, they did not take on Confucianism. However the Mongols attempted to take on parts of the culture in both regions. Economically both the mongols in China and the Middle East were similar. In both regions the Mongols encouraged trade and eliminated tariffs. Because of this trade flourished in this time period.

Research Proposal Larvae Therapy

Natalie Merrier Student nurse yr Declaration of interest: I have chosen to investigate this topic as I have only worked with one patient using lave therapy treatment (contained) and was often designated the task of redressing and watering the lave, this particular gentleman did not mind the therapy and referred to the lave as â€Å"his little friends† I could not help but wonder f he wound have been so compliant if they were loose in his wound and if this would have made any difference to the healing process.Abstract: This article plans to compare the use of contained or caged maggots to those placed directly onto the wound bed itself (referred to in this research proposal as free range). All care has been taken to ensure that patient safety comes first and if at any point a healthcare professional feels that the treatment is not affective for the patient they will be excluded from the research and commenced on a more suitable or preferred treatment.I expect to find in my resu lts that free range maggots are more effective, however patient tolerance will be better with contained lave due to fear of lave escaping the dressing and sensation if overlapped onto healthy skin. Introduction Maggots, many recent articles comparing debasement versus maggot therapy. Less information available on the application of maggots and how that effects the treatment and effectiveness of the maggots ability to debris, disinfect and stimulate healing. Rotational method of free range maggots Vs.. Contained maggots in gauze or muslin bags. Validity and reliability Lit review/background â€Å"Accounts of maggots used on open wounds date back to the Old Testament. † (Bare 1931; Peachtree and Sherman 1983) Bear 1931, treated a WWW soldier on a battlefield using maggots for a femur fracture and abdominal wound. Observed that the wounds were covered in maggots, after cleaning the wounds noticed that the wound bed consisted of healthy granulating tissue. U to this he began stud ying maggots and there effect on open wounds in detail and pioneered the international treatment of skin infections with childhood fly rave in 1931 it was deemed safe, effective and economical at this time and was widely used until 1950 when antibiotics and surgical debarment therapy became more popular treatment option as suggested by; (Apothecaries Education & Research Foundation [BETTER], 2003; Fleischmann, Grabbers, & Sherman, 2004; Maggots on wounds have been used for Debarment, disinfection, stimulation of healing and billion inhabitation and eradication.Although these benefits have use particularly useful in pressure ulcer treatment and diabetic foot ulcers. As suggested y Bear (1931), Horn Cob and Gates (1976) Sherman (2002), Stevedore (2004) and -rampant (2007) Research has been conducted into the sub-species of maggots that is most effective by: REFERENCE And also research has been conducted into patient tolerance of the treatment by: REFERENCE However, less research has b een done to see if patient tolerance and containment are directly related, and the extent that containment hinders the debarment process.Sample Inclusion and exclusion: No participant's with services sepsis or gangrene and need amputation (due to the risk of patient) one of the sample group shall be diabetic as this will affect the rate of healing and cause results to be skewed. For the same reason the wounds on each patient must be about the same size and depth with equal quality of tissue (ox. CM 70% slough, for example). To keep my research fair and ethical I intend to select clients of similar age and health for a fair opportunity for contained and free ranged maggots.Due to the nature of this research in intend to select 6 patients and use 3 for each option as long as they consent and tolerate the treatment. Hypothesis/predicted results: I predict that although â€Å"free range† maggots will be more effective at debarring the wound quickly, suggested to be more effective in previous research articles Stevedore P, Jacobin CE, Osama a study conducted in the Netherlands.Wimp Fleischmann, Martin Grabbers (2004) patient preference will lie with contained or caged lava, in addition suggested that the staff applying the dressing would generally prefer the contained lava to free ranged ones. METHOD: (quantitative) statistical numerical data, comparing contained to free range goats on open wounds and infected skin tissue. (Quantitative) survey of the experience for the patient using contained or free range maggots, the combination of both meaner that I will use a triangulation method.To determine the patients feelings towards the treatment I will provide a simple questionnaire. To determine the effectiveness of the treatment itself the wounds will be measured every 2 days when the dressings are removed to give water to the maggots with a photo at start and finish helping distinguish the improvement of quality of tissue in the wound bed. Analysis Evaluation Results Ethics Patient aware of research? Know they are able to opt out of experiment at any time? F maggot treatment no longer suitable MET will recommend stopping the maggot treatment and using alternative therapy such as surgical debasement. References Bare, W. S. (1931). The treatment of chronic storytelling with the maggot (larvae of the blowfly). Journal of Bone and Joint surgery, 13, 438-475. 8. Bare WAS. Sacra-iliac Joint?arthritis deformations?viable antiseptic in chronic storytelling.

In what ways did World War II end the problems of World War I Essay

In the days prior to World War Two, the First World War was referred to as â€Å"the War to end all Wars†. (Devine, 14) Despite this name, only twenty-odd years had passed before the nations of the world once again engaged in armed conflict. The treaty of Versailles and the conditions in Europe precipitated a second large-scale conflict in Europe. (Devine, 16) The conclusion of WWII ended the problems that derived from WWI by ending the Fascist dictatorships of Europe, ending European and Asian imperialism, and shifting military power out of Europe. The Treaty of Versailles created tremendous pressure on Germany, Austria-Hungary, and other nations who bore the blame for the conflict. (Morgan, 18) The economic depression in these nations that resulted from their attempts to pay reparations led to a political climate ripe for the rise of Fascism. (Morgan, 27) The people of nations such as Italy, Germany and Spain were willing to embrace this hyper-nationalist form of government, giving up their freedoms in exchange for the promise of better economic conditions and a return of their respective nations to international prominence. Morgan, 30) The rise of hyper-nationalism in Fascist Germany and Italy was one of the precipitating causes of the Second World War in Europe. Hitler’s Germany began to militarize and â€Å"reclaim† areas of Europe that Hitler declared to be part of the rightful German empire. (Morgan, 108) These regions included all of Austria, and part of the nation of Czechoslovakia, referred to by Hitler a s the Sudetenland (southland). When Germany invaded Poland to return the land to Germany, France and Britain declared war. The results of WWII ended the reign of fascism in Europe. ( Morgan, 117) The personalities around whom the fascist governments were built, Hitler in Germany, and Mussolini in Italy, were killed in the war effort, and their philosophies discredited when the atrocities they committed became public knowledge. (Morgan, 197) Of the Fascists of Europe, only Francisco Franco of Spain, which had remained neutral in the war, survived. (Morgan, 201) After WWII, Germany was divided into a Soviet-controlled Eastern half, and a Republican western half. Nationalist efforts were turned to reunification, rather than conquest. (Morgan, 203) The destruction of the German War machine was absolute, eliminating them as a future threat to stability in Europe. (Morgan, 205) Italy and Japan were similarly disarmed at the conclusion of WWII, making future threats to world stability from these powers unlikely in the extreme. (Morgan, 206) The end of WWII also marked the end of the naked Imperialism that characterized all the major European nations since WWI. Betts, 113) Britain, France, Germany, Japan and other nations granted independence, or protectorate status to their imperial holdings, making self-sovereignty the â€Å"new† goal of international foreign policy. (Betts, 127) Japan was forced to give up the Pacific Islands they had occupied, and withdraw their invasion of China. (Betts, 128) Germany similarly ceded their occupied territories and permitted free choice for the subsequent governments. Betts, 133) One of the world powers that emerged from WWII, the United States, embraced self-determination as the ideal for nations of the world, and began to fight against efforts to engage in imperialist activities on the parts of other nations. (Betts, 144) The conclusion of WWII marked a shift in the dynamic of world conflict. (Levering, 18) During WWI and WWII, dominance on the seas determined a large part of military control. After WWII, nations who had access to weapons of mass destruction became the powers of the World. Levering, 22) For the first time in modern history, the central conflict of the world was not between Britain and Germany or France, but between the United States and the Soviet Union. European powers became pawns in a worldwide power struggle between opposing ideologies. (Levering, 27) The United States used war reconstruction money as a lure to the nations of Europe to shun Communism in favor of republican government. (Levering, 34) After WWII, armed conflict was limited to third-party wars w here one side or the other effectively acted as a proxy for one of the Superpowers. Levering, 46) This was managed to avoid direct conflict between the Superpowers, which could have led to destruction of the entire world through nuclear annihilation. (Levering, 55) As a result, dozens of minor conflicts and a handful of major wars were fought after WWII by indigenous people with military and economic support from the USSR and the United States. (Levering, 58) This scenario played out in countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Nicaragua, Cuba, Afghanistan, and many others. (Levering, 75) It is clear that the effects of WWII resolved many of the issues that resulted from WWI. WWII ended European Fascism, eliminated European and Asian imperialism, and permanently shifted the balance of World Power away from Europe. The Treaty of Versailles produced conditions in Europe that made Fascism an attractive and popular option, which played a great role in precipitating WWII. As a result of the unresolved issues of WWI, WWII became the latest â€Å"war to end all wars†. It is hoped by the nations of the world that conflict on the scale of WWII never be repeated in the history of mankind.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: an Ecological Interpretation

A Midsummer Night’s Dream: An Ecocritical Interpretation Lieutenant Asit Biswas Bio-Notes: Lieut. Asit Biswas is an Assistant Professor, Dept. of English, and Associate NCC Officer, Acharya B. N. Seal (Govt. ) College, Cooch Behar, W. B. ABSTRACT: Shakespeare studies in India started as early as in the early decades of the 19th century when the Indians seldom engaged in Shakespeare interpretation and so the term ‘ecocriticism’ was unheard of.What we mean by the phrase ‘Critical studies of Shakespeare’ started in India in 1917 when Hindu College (later on Presidency College and now Presidency University) was founded. Then Shakespeare began to be evaluated from an oriental point of view. Some of those interpretations may be considered ecocriticism. The same thing was done by Purna Chandra Basu (in his article â€Å"Sahitye Khoon†, D. L. Roy (in his book, Kalidas O Bhababhuti) etc. Eco-criticism as a literary movement, as Yogesh K.Tiwari and N. D. R. Chandra say, began in the 1990s. But ecocritical evaluation of Shakespeare’s plays from Indian point of view is yet to flourish well. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream one can find plethora of materials relevant not only for the students of literature but of environmental studies also. The aim of the present play is to reinterpret Shakespeare’ play A Midsummer Night’s Dream from ecocritical point of view and thereby justify the contemporaneity of the Bard.Now-a-days many in many universities in India the students have to read English and Environmental Studies as compulsory subjects, Shakespeare being a part of the former. As the students of literature they would be keen to trace out the aesthetic aspects of the dramas of Shakespeare while belonging to various disciplines they would naturally seek for the relevance of Shakespeare in the present context. So the paper is an attempt to bring out Shakespeare’s anticipation of the environmental problems a nd thereby prove Shakespeare as a topic of both literature and environmental studies.Modern environmentalism began with ‘A Fable for Tomorrow’, in Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962). Mrs. Frederick Boas edited the Cambridge collection of Tempest Essays; Richard Kerridge N. Shammells published Writing the Environment, Eco-criticism and Literature (Zed Books-1998); J. Bate & L. Coupe published The Green Studies Reader from Romanticism to Eco-Criticism (by New York, Routeledge-2000);but the most outstanding book in this field is Green Shakespeare by Gabriel Egan who says, Crossing he boundaries of literary and cultural studies to draw in politics, philosophy and ecology, this volume not only introduces one of the most lively areas of contemporary Shakespeare studies, but also  puts forward  a convincing case for Shakespeare's continuing relevance to contemporary theory. There is a significant school named as the Association for the study of Literature and Envi ronment which was started in America and now has its branches in Japan and UK. It is mainly an association of the eco-critics. The Role of Literature in Placing a Value on the Environment: As Daniel B.Botkin and Edward A. Keller say in their book Environmental Science (5th edition, Page No. 11) the value of the environment is based on the following justifications: aesthetic, creative, recreational, inspirational, moral, cultural and utilitarian (materialistic). Aesthetic justification has to do with our appreciation of beauty of nature. Many people prefer living in the world of wilderness to one without it. Rabindranath Tagore created an instance by leaving the clutter of Calcutta settling down in the lap of Nature in Santiniketan.In Shakespeare the Forest of Arden minimizes the bereavement of the Duke in As You Like It. But in the Duke’s bemoaning for the subordination of the forest we hear the voice of an ecologist. It would not be a digression to say that Tagore’s e cocentrism is again found in Siksha: Tapoban in his comment on Shakespeare’s plays. While ecology is a mother branch of science, ecocriticism is comparatively a new branch which attempts to establish a relationship between literature and the physical environment.As Greg Garrard quotes in his book Eco-criticism from Glotfelty’s book The Eco-criticism Reader: Landmark in Literary Ecology: Simply put, eco-criticism is the study of the relationship between literature and physical environment. Just as feminist criticism examines language and literature from a gender conscious perspective, and Marxist criticism brings an awareness of modes of production and economic class to its reading of texts, eco-criticism takes an earth-centred approach to literary study.Garrard also adds that eco-criticism is closely related to environmentally oriented developments in philosophy and political theory. So eco-criticism may be interpreted as the analysis of a literary text from the point of view of an ecologist. Another epoch making writing that has relevance in our interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is Simon C. Estok’s research paper titled Shakespeare and Ecocriticism: An Analysis of â€Å"Home† and â€Å"Power† in King Lear in which the author explains the key terms â€Å"Anthropocentrism†, â€Å"Biocentrism/ Ecocentrism† and â€Å"Ecophobia†.Agreeing with Greg Garrard, Estok says that ecocriticism is not simply the study of nature or natural things in literature; rather it is any theory that is committed to effecting change by analysing the function – thematic, artistic, social, historical, ideological, theoretical, or otherwise— the natural environment, or aspects of it, represents in documents that contribute to material practices in material world. The explanation of the term ‘ecophobia’ is also very much necessary in our revaluation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Estok thinks that â€Å"ecophobia is the fear of loss of agency and control to Nature†.This ecophobia, found in both Oberon and Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, gives birth to various conflicts, both inner and outer, or, to say more explicitly, psychological and social (which includes ecological aspects also) and this sociological aspects of the play justify the contemporaneity of the bard. Some minor research works have been done on this particular topic on national and international levels. Some research papers have been published on eco-criticism in Shakespeare’s dramas in some journals; mention may be made of the one written by Dr.Subh Brat Sarkar, Rishi Bankim Chandra College, Naihati, W. B. The paper already written by the present researcher and published in the Research Spectrum (August-2012 Issue) contains some hints of the Eco-criticism in Shakespeare’s plays as seen by Rabindranath Tagore. Tagore considered it to be a kind of colonialism. Accord ing to him colonialism is not only the subordination of a weaker nation by a powerful one but the subordination of nature by human beings. Tagore also probably finds the ‘ecologist Shakespeare’ as in As You Like It, The Tempest etc.According to Nirmal Selvamony, the humans have introduced a hierarchy in nature. In that the humans have placed the domesticated animals higher than the wild animals. â€Å"Even animals were ranged in hierarchic order, the domestic and the wild† (Selvamony 4). But in A Midsummer Night’s Dream the role of the dominating power is taken by the fairies and the inferior race is the human beings. The fairies have occupied the topmost position in the hierarchy of Nature and they subordinate man and they quarrel in order to decide who will ‘domesticate’ the Indian boy who is the representative of the colonized people.This kind of colonialism found in Nature may be termed ‘Ecocolonialism’ or ‘Eco-imperiali sm’. In a supernatural drama like the present one the imperialists are the fairies but in reality they are the mighty people and the colonized ones may be the flora and fauna or even linguistically, culturally, racially, socially, politically, religiously or financially weaker section of the people. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream an ecologist easily finds plenty of materials relevant not only to the students of literature but of science, especially ecology also.The human beings in the person of the Indian boy or the European lovers are merely playthings to the mighty fairies. The fairies play with the humans for their own pleasure and showing their might and not for the amusement of the humans and they do it from anthropocentric point of view. In his Master’s Degree dissertation paper, (University of South Florida) Roy Patricia points out the environmental issues in MND by referring to â€Å"Folk Medicine and the Four Fairies of A Midsummer Night’s Dream,à ¢â‚¬  by Lou Agnes Reynolds and Paul Sawyer who have recovered the fairies from evil associations by casting them as herbal doctors.The article points to the strong early modern interest in the medicinal use of plants and finds that, by the use of this imagery, Shakespeare imbues his fairy characters and their natural remedies with beneficial, medicinal properties. Reynolds and Sawyer’s points are well taken, but we can develop them even further. Not only do the four attendant fairies – Cobweb, Mustardseed, Peascod and Mote – represent fairy medicine but all the actions in the forest also act therapeutically upon the lovers. The inversion of love-roles and the dreams of the lovers depend upon Oberon’s extensive knowledge of the herbal lore of his world.As Oberon himself states: â€Å"Fare thee well, nymph [Helena]. Ere he do leave this grove / Thou shalt fly him, and he shall seek thy love. (2. 1. 245-6). In Act-1I, scene-i of from the speech of Puck we come to know that the king, Oberon is angry with the queen, Titania as she has seized away a boy from India and made him her servant. â€Å"For Oberon is passing fell and wrath, / Because she as her attendant hath / A lovely boy, stolen from an Indian king†. But the king wants to roam about the forests (Nature), along with the boy. As a result whenever they meet, they quarrel.Titania also alleges him of emptying of the venom of jealousy. She says that whenever they meet they quarrel and as a result the wind cannot sing the song of peace and is sucking the fog from the surface of the seas and the water level of the seas has been raised up; the natural system has been disrupted, resulting in untimely flood and thereby destruction of vast area of crops and extinct of a number of species. The ever smiling spring, the scorching summer, the frowning autumn and the cruel winter have changed their plight and so people cannot identify them.Titania confesses that they are responsible for this unholy variation of the cycle of seasons. The people cannot endure the change of the cycle of seasons; suffer from untimely winter and also various kinds of diseases due to the change and endangered bio-diversity. In reply to the allegation of the queen, the king urges her to correct the ecological imbalance as she has the power to remedy. The reason of their quarrel is also clear to the readers—possession of the boy kidnapped from India.Here the quarrel is between a power that has deprived the creature of his natural habitat and made him her servant and the eco-friendly power that is keen to roam about the forests, along with the innocent creature. But none is ready to provide the boy with absolute freedom and so their quarrel does not come to an end here. The king requests the queen to hand the boy over to him but she is too obstinate to nod. She frankly declares that she cannot lose her control over the boy even if she is given the whole fairy land. So Oberon deci des to use tricks.He advises Puck to extract the juice of a certain flower which would act like black magic and leave its evil influence on Titania’s eyes, if administered properly. It would also be able to invert the usual behaviour and natural instinct of a person as in the modern age we see the evil influence of narcotics especially in the third world countries. The harmful effect of the use of drugs on eco system is mainly felt in the developing countries. Again Titania, admits that their quarrel has destroyed the usual course of the natural phenomena and nature has undergone vast changes, creating ocean of troubles for human beings.In Act-1, Scene-ii (Lines 81-117) Titania, the Queen of the fairies alleges that their quarrel has destroyed the usual habits of the natural phenomena and Nature has undergone vast changes, creating ocean of troubles for human beings. It may be considered Shakespeare’s anticipation of what McKibben says in his book The End of Nature (19 90): We have changed the atmosphere, and thus we are changing the weather. By changing the weather we make every spot on earth man-made or artificial. We have deprived nature of its independence, and that is fatal to its meaning. Nature’s independence is its meaning; ithout it there is nothing but us. (McKibben 1990: 54) In this connection it may be recalled that India was a favourite commercial place to the Western countries form the time of ancient history. And for the sole possession of India several wars were for between the English and the French and others. The Indian boy in the play is symbolically a colony, an ideal place for business. Now-a-day it may be a typical Indian plant for whose patent the economic colonialists are ever fighting among themselves and in order to supersede one another destroying the eco system of the whole globe.Recently we witnessed the war between Iraq and U. S. A. Various reasons may be found out but the naked truth is that the sole reason o f the notorious war is nothing but the shameless effort of control over the petroleum mines of the Arabian countries. When the two â€Å"do square, that all their elves for fear/ Creep into acorn cups and hide them there†. The peaceful people whenever get frightened, seek refuge in nature and it may be kept in mind that the best remedy of various pollutions including noise pollution is plantation.Nature is the man’s ultimate refuge because only nature can provide the human beings with eternal pleasure, both physical and mental. Puck also confesses that he, in order to make a fun and to show his prowess, perturbs the natural habits of an object both animate and inanimate. In modern age the modern Pucks very often destroy the Nature and subordinate the creatures of Nature very often out of fun. Examples may be given of the tortured animals in the circus shows, poachers’ activities etc; moreover, we torture the animals in the zoo.Keeping bird cages is a favourite b ut cruel hobby of a kind of people even after the passage of law against it. It is not only inhuman and unlawful but harmful to bio-diversity also. Recently a television channel telecast a live show of beating thousands of innocent seals to death in Antarctica by a community as it is the annual festival of the community. The pain of the poor seals, especially the half dead ones, the fear of the eco system to be disturbed, the melting of the glaciers and thereby upheaval of the sea level cannot render them anxious of the future of the earth.In this post-Modern age MND is quite relevant and significant since we witness the ecological imbalance, extinction of a large number of species, climatic change, global warming, uprising of the sea level, earth quake, tsunami, El Nino etc. The reason behind such troubles may be, along with the others, the wars (Gulf war, the long war between Iran and Iraq and of course the two World Wars), nuclear bomb testing and above all merciless deforestatio n. Here in the speech of Titania we seem to hear the voice of an environment scientist or of an ecologist.It may be noted that the more mighty the power, the more strong a destroyer is he in this post-Modern Age. Probably Shakespeare anticipated the natural problems created by the super-human power. The Titanias now-a-days are the war-mongers greedy of absolute power, who seldom think of the future of the globe. So in this age of science and technology the revaluation of the plays of Shakespeare is very much significant. In the same Act and scene the speech of Oberon (L-176–185) is also significant.He speaks of the juice of a flower that is able to hypnotize any man or woman and make him/her fall in love with any creature seen first. But the remedy is known to Oberon only. So it may be supposed that he wants to administer the cunning trick only to destroy the natural habit of a creature and to apply his remedy and thereby to prove his power. In the post-Modern age of economic colonialism this cunning theory is felt to have come back, but with a new dimension. For example the parthenium plant has allegedly come from U. S. A. As found in an e-article (http://www. streetdirectory. om) It appears that Parthenium is not native to India, but it came with the imported wheat as a mixture, when the US sent wheat to India under PL 480 (Public Law 480 passed in 1954 to give food grains to developing countries) in 1956. However this concept was contradicted by some as not the real story because Parthenium was present in India even in 1951 itself. Some people allege that this plant causes asthma whose medicine would be made in USA and so in order to sell the medicine and to prevail over the subcontinent, the Americans sent the parthenium seeds as adulteration with wheat seeds.So the purpose is to make the Indians asthma patients and then to sell to them asthma medicine. But we should not engage ourselves in this controversy, since we are not talking of international politics but of literary criticism. Here, in the drama the role of Oberon is like that of a modern capitalist who uses his cunning method in order to prove his supremacy and thereby dominate over the comparatively weaker sections and he is doing this out of ecophobia. Ultimately Oberon, the king realizes the harmful effect of his sports and then he feels sorry and takes the responsibility and so urges his assistant to correct the mistakes.He also pacifies his quarrel with Titania, once again with the help of the same narcotics. Here we see the constructive use of the herbs. Thus the play ends with an optimistic note and indirectly upholds the banner of Nature which is the best remedy for the revival of the impaired eco system. It also opines that man cannot remain happy by subordinating nature. Now in the age of global warming the plays of Shakespeare deserve a re-reading. One may recall the peaceful atmosphere in the Forest of Arden (As You Like It) and realize that subordination of nature cannot bring us mental peace as Tagore realized.He establishes his opinion by citing examples from As You Like It, Sakuntala etc. In the concluding song Puck urges the audience to consider the play to be a dream. We may do but it would not be an overstatement to consider it to be a dream of an ecologist because in the play we see what an ecologist would think of the vast change taken place in environment due to the modern leaders of the planet. Reference 1. Arumugam, E. (2008) Principles of Environmental Ethics, Sarup Book Publishers Pvt. Ltd. , New Delhi-2, India. 2. Bookchin, Murray, Anthropocentrism versus biocentrism – a false dichotomy http://climateandcapitalism. om. 3. Botkin, Daniel B. ; Keller , Edward A. , (2005), Environmental Science, John Wiley ; Sons, Inc, U. S. A. 4. Estok, Simon C. , Shakespeare and Ecocriticism: An Analysis of â€Å"Home† and â€Å"Power† in King Lear, http://simonestok. com. 5. Garrard, G. (2007) Ecocriticism, Routled ge, London and New York. 6. Gifford, Terry: (1999) Pastoral, Routeledge, London and New York. 7. Glotfelty, C. and Fromm, H. (ed) (1996) The Eco-criticism Reader: Landmark in Literary Ecology, University of Georgia Press, London. 8. McKibben, B. (1990), The End of Nature, Penguin, London, 9.Patricia, Roy, (2004), â€Å"Shakespeare’s Midsummer Fairies: Shadows and Shamen of the Forest†, http://scholarcommons. usf. edu/etd/1226 10. Purohit , S. S. ; Ranjan, Rajiv (2003), Ecology, Environment and Pollution, Agrobios (India), Jodhpur, India. 11. Sarkar, Subh Brat, (2005), â€Å"Ecological Theatre: Performance and Ecological Issues† (in Prakashkal) Unique; Panshila, Sodepur, W. B. , India. 12. Selvamony, Nirmal, (2001): â€Å"Persons for Alternative Social Order†, Chennai, India. 13. Shakespeare, William, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, New Delhi: Oxford ; IBH Publishing Co.Pvt Ltd. , 1980. 14. Tagore, R. , (1932) The Religion of Man, George Allen and Unwin, London. 15. Thompson, Jr. , E. , (1926), Rabindranath Tagore: Poet and Dramatist, Read, p. 12, http://en. wikipedia. org. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 1. Dr. Amit Bhattacharya, Associate Professor ; Head, Dept. of English, University of Gour Banga, Malda, W. B. , India. 2. UGC (India) for MRP (No: F. PHW-131/09-10 (ERO) Date: Sept. 07, 2009) 3. The Essay was published in the International Journal of Innovative Research and Development (ISSN 2278-0211), Vol-1, Issue-6 September, 2012. www. ijird. com.