Night World : Huntress Chapter 18

Jez heard herself scream, but only faintly. There was a roaring in her ears as if the BART train was coming at her again. And a pain that engulfed her whole body, sending agonized spasms through her limbs. It centered in her chest, though, where something white-hot was lodged inside her, crushing her lung and dislodging her internal organs and burning right beside her heart. She'd been staked. What she had done so often to others had been done to her. She hadn't realized anything could hurt like this. She was glad none of her victims had lived long to keep suffering. The wood of the stake was poisoning her heart, she knew. Even if it were removed, she would die. No vampire could survive contact between living wood and its undead heart. Still, she would live for a little while-in unimaginable agony as the poison ate through her. A voice was screaming in her mind. Jez-JezJezJez†¦ Over and over, incoherently. Morgead, she thought. And she hoped he wasn't feeling any of what she was feeling through the silver cord that connected them. Hugh and Claire were sobbing. Jez wished they wouldn't. They had to stay calm; to think of a way to save themselves. Because she couldn't help them anymore. Over the sobbing she heard a shrill and angry voice. Lily. â€Å"What is wrong with you?† Lily was saying. â€Å"Don't you see what's happening to her? Don't you want to save her?† Through the red haze that filled Jez's vision, she felt dim approval. They were doing what she'd told them. Whichever of them was the Wild Power was suppressing it Good. That was what mattered. Although she couldn't really remember why any longer†¦. Suddenly a face broke through the red haze. It was Lily, bending over her. â€Å"Don't you understand?† Lily yelled. â€Å"You can stop this right now. Ill have him kill you cleanly-all the pain will be over. All you have to do is tell me who it is.† Jez smiled at her faintly. She couldn't breathe to answer, and she didn't want to try. Would you believe that I don't know? she thought. No, I don't think you would. †¦ The pain was getting less by itself. It was as if Jez was moving farther and farther away from it. â€Å"How can you be so stupid?† Lily was screaming. Her face was twisted, and to Jez's vision, floating in a scarlet mist. She looked like a monster. Then she turned and seemed to be screaming at someone else. â€Å"All right. Get the other vampire down here, too. Morgead.† She was looking at Jez again. â€Å"We'll just have to stake your friends one after another until the Wild Power decides to reveal itself.† No. No†¦ Suddenly everything was much clearer around Jez. She could see the room again, and she could feel her own body. There was still the roaring in her ears, but she could hear Claire's sobs over it. No. Lily couldn't mean it. This couldn't be happening†¦. But it was. They were shoving Morgead down on the floor beside her, and Claire and Hugh beyond him. The thugs with spears were getting into position. No. No. This can't happen. Jez wanted to scream at them, to tell the Wild Power to do something, because everything was lost now anyway. But she didn't have air to scream. And she felt so adrift and confused anyway†¦. Her universe had become disjointed. Her thoughts seemed to be unraveling at all once, past memories combining with flashing sensory impressions from the present, and with strange new ideas†¦. If it was involuntary, why didn't the Wild Power work magic more often? Unless there was some other requirement†¦. I can't let this happen. The dampness of blood spreading around her heart. †¦ Claire's nails digging into her arms. â€Å"When there's no physical way to escape †¦Ã¢â‚¬  Power in the blood. Claire on the floor there. Screaming and screaming†¦ Something building inside her, hotter than the stake. Morgead beside her whispering, â€Å"Jez, I love you.† Pierce with the stake over him. Morgead looking up unafraid†¦. Hotter than the heart of a star. Hugh in the distance saying almost quietly, â€Å"Goddess of Life, receive us; guide us to the other world. . . .† Hotter than the sun and colder and bluer than the moon, like fire that burned and froze and crackled like lightning all at once. Something that filled her with an energy that was past rage and past love and past all controlling and that she recognized in her soul even though she'd never consciously felt it before. It was swelling Jez to bursting, a pure and terrible flame that was never meant to be unleashed like this†¦. â€Å"Do it!† Lily shouted. And Jez let it free. It came roaring out from her in a silent explosion. Blue fire that streamed from her body and blasted in all directions, but especially up. It came out and out and out, engulfing everything, flowing from her in a never ending torrent. Like a solar flare that didn't stop. It was all she could see. Blue flames, streaked with blue-white lightning that crackled almost soundlessly. Just like the fire that had cocooned her on the BART tracks. Except that now she could tell where it was coming from, even if she couldn't direct it. She knew how to let it out, now, but once out it did what it wanted. And it wasn't meant to be used this way. That was the only thing she knew clearly about it. She'd been letting it slip out when she was desperately upset-when she was worried for someone's life, and she knew that she couldn't do anything else to save them. That was forgivable, because it had been unconscious. This wasn't. She was probably violating some law of the universe or something. The blue fire was only meant to be used in the last battle, when the darkness came and the Four were called to stand against it. I suppose that means I should try to stop now, Jez thought. She wasn't sure how to do it. She guessed that she needed to call it back, somehow, to draw it down into her body again. Maybe if I sort of tug†¦. She did-something. A gathering-up with her mind. It was harder than letting the fire go had been, but it worked. She could feel it returning, flooding back inside her, as if she were sucking it in. †¦ And then it was gone, and Jez could see the world again. Could see what it had done. The house had disappeared. Or most of it, anyway. There was about a foot and a half of ragged wall left all around, with charred insulation spilling out. Blue energy like electricity ran along the edges here and there, fizzing. Other than that, no house. Not even chunks of wreckage lying around. There were fine bits of debris floating down, making the sunlight hazy, but that was all. It got†¦ vaporized, Jez thought, searching for the right word. No Lily. No Azarius. No Pierce. And none of the ugly thugs. Goddess, Jez thought. I didn't mean to do that. I only wanted to stop them from hurting Morgead and Claire and Hugh. †¦ What about them? she thought in a sudden panic. She turned her head, painfully. They were there. And alive. They were even stirring. The cords they'd been tied with were lying on the carpet, sizzling with that same blue energy. It's so weird to have a carpet without a house to go with it, Jez thought fuzzily. She was going away again. And that was too bad, but at least it didn't hurt anymore. The pain was gone completely, replaced by a warm and sleepy feeling-and the sensation of gently floating outward. Her eyelids felt heavy. â€Å"Jez? Jez!† It was a husky whisper. Jez opened her eyes to see Morgead's face. He was crying. Oh, dear, that was bad. Jez hadn't seen him cry since†¦ when was it? Sometime when they'd been little kids†¦. Jez, can you hear me? Now he was talking in her mind. Jez blinked again, and tried to think of something comforting to say to him. â€Å"I feel warm,† she whispered. â€Å"No, you don't!† He said it almost in a growl. Then he looked behind him, and Jez saw Hugh and Claire crawling up. They were all shining with golden light. â€Å"You're so pretty,† she told them. â€Å"Like angels.† â€Å"This isn't the time for your weird humor!† Morgead shouted. â€Å"Stop it! Don't yell at her!† That was Claire. Claire was crying, too, lovely tears that shone as they fell. She reached out and took Jez's hand, and that was nice, although Jez couldn't exactly feel it. She could see it. â€Å"She's going to be all right,† Morgead was snarling. â€Å"She's lost blood, but she'll be okay.† Someone was stroking Jez's hair off her face. She felt that; it was pleasant. She frowned slowly at Morgead, because there was something important to tell him, and talking was difficult. â€Å"Tell Hugh†¦Ã¢â‚¬  she whispered. â€Å"Tell Hugh your freaking self! He's right here! And you're not going anywhere.† Jez blinked with the difficulty changing focus. Yes, there was Hugh. He was the one stroking her hair. â€Å"Hugh†¦ the prophecy. I figured out what the two eyes watching were. They're the sun and the moon-get it? Two eyes†¦ for somebody who belongs to both worlds.† â€Å"The Day World and the Night World,† Hugh said softly. â€Å"You got it, Jez. That was so smart.† â€Å"And blood,† Jez whispered. ‘†Power in the blood'-that's why I couldn't do it anytime I wanted. Blood has to flow before you can let out the power. The first two times Claire was scratching me. And this time . . .† Her voice died off, but it wasn't important. Everybody could see the blood this time, she knew. Hugh's voice was thick. â€Å"That was smart, too, Jez. You figured it out. And you saved us. You did everything just right.† â€Å"No†¦ because there's only going to be three Wild Powers now†¦.† â€Å"No, there aren't,† Morgead raged. â€Å"Listen to me, Jez. There's no reason for you to die-â€Å" Jez couldn't manage a smile anymore, or a sentence. But she whispered gently, â€Å"Wood†¦ poison.† â€Å"No, it isn't! Not to humans. And you're half human, Jez. You're vampire enough to survive something that would kill a human, but you're human enough not to be poisoned by wood.† Jez knew better. She couldn't see much anymore. Only Morgead, and he was getting indistinct. It wasn't that the world was dimming, though-it was getting brighter. Everything was golden and shining. Four less one and darkness triumphs, Jez thought I'm so sorry about that. I hope they can manage it somehow. It would be so sad for everything human to be lost. There's so much good in the world, and so much to love†¦. She couldn't even see Morgead now. Only gold. But she could hear. She could hear Claire whispering to her in a voice broken by tears, and feel wetness dropping on her face. â€Å"I love you, Jez. You're the best cousin anybody could ever have.† And Hugh. He was crying, too. â€Å"Jez, I'm so proud to be your friend†¦.† And then, through the mist and the gold and the warmth and peace, came a voice that wasn't gentle at all. That was roaring in sheer outrage and fury. â€Å"DONT YOU DARE DIE ON ME, JEZEBEL! DON'T YOU DARE! Or I'll follow you to the next world and KILL you.† Suddenly, in the pretty gold mist, she could see something else. The only thing in the universe that wasn't golden. It was a silver cord. â€Å"You come back and you do it right now,† Morgead bellowed in her ears and in her mind. â€Å"Right now! Do you hear me?† The peace was shattered. Nothing seemed quite so warm and wonderful anymore, and she knew that once Morgead got into one of his Excited States, he wouldn't stop yelling until he got what he wanted. And there was the cord right in front of her. It was strong, and she could feel that the other end was somewhere in. Morgead's heart, and that he was trying to drag her back to him. All right. Maybe if I just grab on†¦. Somehow, she was holding on to it, and bit by bit, pulling herself back. And then the golden light was fading and she was inside a body that hurt and Morgead was holding her and kissing her and crying all at the same time. Claire's voice came from beyond him. â€Å"She's breathing again! She's breathing!† â€Å"I love you, you stupid human,† Morgead gasped against Jez's cheek. â€Å"I can't live without you. Don't you know that?† Jez whispered, â€Å"I told you never to call me Jezebel.† Then she fainted. â€Å"Time for a nice bath,† the nurse said. â€Å"And then we can have a visitor.† Jez eyed her narrowly. The woman was kind, but she had some mania for sponge baths, and she was always putting strange-smelling ingredients in the water. Which was actually not that surprising since she was a witch. â€Å"Skip the bath,† Jez said. â€Å"Let the visitor in.† â€Å"Now, now,† the witch said, shaking a finger and advancing with the sponge. Jez sighed. Being a Wild Power in a Circle Daybreak sanctuary meant that she could have pretty much anything she wanted-except that everyone was still treating her like a little kid. Especially the nurses, who spoiled her and flattered her, but talked to her as if she were about three. Still, she was glad to let the Circle take care of some things. Keeping her relatives safe, for instance. Although she was almost fully recovered, thanks to a strong constitution and a lot of healing spells from the witches, she wasn't up to that yet. Uncle Bracken and the entire Goddard family needed constant protection, since Hunter Redfern and the Night World Council were all undoubtedly after them by now. The Circle had imported some experts from back East to take care of it. A rival vampire hunter, of all things, named Rashel something. Plus her soulmate, a vampire-turned-Daybreaker called Quinn. At least they were competent. They'd gotten Jez's uncle Bracken, as well as the remnants of the gang out of San Francisco, a city that was going to be bad for their health for a while. Morgead was trying to get the gang to join Circle Daybreak for their own good, and he said that Raven, at least, was showing some interest. Val and Thistle were being stubborn, but that was hardly surprising. What was important was that they were alive. Pierce, on the other hand, was simply gone. No one had seen a trace of him or Lily or any of her people since Jez blasted them. Apparently they had truly been vaporized, and Jez couldn't bring herself to feel too badly. â€Å"All done!† the nurse said brightly, straightening Jez's pajama top. Which was just as well because at that moment a black head came poking in the door. â€Å"What is going on in here? You getting ready to go to the opera or something?† Jez raised her eyebrows at Morgead. â€Å"Maybe. Are you telling me I can't?† He snorted and came in as the nurse went out â€Å"I wouldn't dare tell you that. You're the princess, right? You can have anything.† â€Å"Right,† Jez said, with huge satisfaction. â€Å"So how*re Hugh and Claire?† â€Å"Claire's fine; she fits right in with the witches here. I think she's trying to get them to put up a Web page. And Hugh's just his same stupid self. He's off saving chipmunks from toxic waste or something.† â€Å"And how about the kid?† â€Å"The kid,† Morgead said, â€Å"is living it up. The Day-breakers are crazy about her; something about one of the oldest Old Souls ever found:-I dunno. Anyway, they're trying to talk her mom into letting her live here. She says thanks for saving her life and she's drawing you a picture.† Jez nodded, pleased. It would be nice if Iona came to live at the sanctuary; it meant Jez could see her a lot. Not that Jez planned to live here all the time herself-she and Morgead needed their freedom. They couldn't be penned in; they had to be able to come and go. She just hadn't gotten around to telling the Daybreakers that yet. With the people she loved taken care of, she could turn her attention to other matters. â€Å"Is that chocolate?† â€Å"It's the only reason you like to see me, isn't it?† Morgead said, allowing her to take the box. He sat beside her, looking tragic. â€Å"Nah,† Jez said with her mouth full. She swallowed. â€Å"Everybody brings 'em.† Then she grinned. â€Å"I like to see you for a different reason.† He grinned wickedly back. â€Å"I can't think what that could be.† â€Å"Hmm†¦ you're right†¦ maybe there is no other reason.† â€Å"Watch it, Jezebel,† he growled and leaned forward menacingly. â€Å"Don't call me that, idiot.† â€Å"You're the idiot, idiot.† â€Å"And you're-† But Jez never got to finish, because he stopped her mouth with a kiss. And then his arms were around her-so gently- and the silver cord was humming and everything was warm and there were only the two of them in the world. One from the land of kings long forgotten; One from the hearth which still holds the spark; One from the Day World where two eyes are watching; One from the twilight to be one with the dark. [The End]

The Time I Went to Cabo San Lucas Mexico

The time I went to cabo San Lucas Mexico There once was a time that I went to cabo San Lucas Mexico with my family. The reason that this trip was so special too was because I got to spend a whole week with my grandparents, aunts and uncles and most importantly my parents. When we first got we went to are rooms and put are thing down then went right down to the pool. I can still remember the way the pool look and felt because I got cut on one of the tiles in the pool. One there reasons I liked the pool so much is you could just sit there and watch the sun set.Then the next day I went fishing on the beach that was so cool casting out a fishing line and sitting there waiting with family there beaches are so beautiful and nice like the ones you see in TV commercials. I haven’t even got to the best part they have a little cruise called sunset cruise. You rode on a pirate ship and watch people fight and watch the sun go down. I was a lot like the movie call peter pan. This little cr uise was so special because in a hurry and I got locked out of my room I forgot to wear shoes so I was without shoes that whole night.There is one restraints that you have to go to when you are there I mean they have unreal food. They have huge tacos filled with anything you want with beans, rice and a side salad. I can taste it now. I also remember the time I went with my grandparents to the beach after the sun went down with one of my uncles. You have experienced nothing until that happened I mean the sand nice and cold between your toes swimming in the ocean you feel so free and wild. That is why cabo San Lucas Mexico is so special to me. I have a lot of good memories there with my family.

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IT management Practices in Organisations - Essay Example The underdeveloped system saps the managers’ ability to make informed decisions while planning for the IT, and the plans most turn out to be impracticable. â€Å"Deficiency in executing the plan formulated has led to a disjoint mode of implementation of technology† (Misra, 2006, p. 49). The system and organizational culture in SMEs is in the nascent stage and is not strong enough to address the loopholes in the organization and integration of IT in the work setup. Organizations take time to develop. In the start, one individual may represent one whole department because of human resource constraints imposed to minimize the expenditures and make the business profitable. Strategies entrepreneurs commonly adopt to limit the expenditure include but are not limited to increased manual work to save the expenditure of purchasing machines, overloading of work on the employees, more working hours, and reduced benefits for the organizational personnel. SMEs that do invest in mach ines do not have an efficient repair and maintenance system in place to ensure that the machines are fully functional all the time. A small dysfunction may take days to be fixed, which not only distorts the process of communication and drawing of information using technology, but also serves as a disincentive for the organizational personnel to rely on the use of technology to accomplish their daily tasks. As a result, there occurs a shift from machine work to the manual work, that in effect lowers the efficiency of the system as well as increases the work-load upon the employees further. Like all employees down the line, leaders are no less affected by the lack of planning and organization. Although leaders are primarily responsible for decision making as well as the planning and organization of IT, yet they are not able to achieve their optimal potential in leadership because of the resource constraints imposed by the owners of SMEs. Involvement of the CEO and the external IT expe rtise has a major influence on the success of IT management in SMEs (Thong et al., 1997). Unfortunately, most of the entrepreneurs/owners of SMEs are just rich enough to establish a new firm, and may not necessarily be qualified enough to lead the companies themselves. Like all other areas of IT management, controlling of IT is no less complicated in SMEs because of the aforementioned reasons. However, it is not appropriate to conclude that IT management in SMEs is absolutely inexistent. Although management of IT in SMEs is not comparable to that in large enterprises, yet various studies have concluded that there has occurred immense improvement in management of human resources as well as IT over the years (Suraweera, Cragg, & Mills, 2010, p. 1). Q. 2: Answer Before identifying the important practices in each of the four areas of IT management, it is customary to briefly discuss the concept of IT management as it helps in understanding the role of different departments in addition t o the IT department in the IT management. IT management is a very broad topic that covers activities that include but are not limited to the management of IT resource as a weapon of attaining competitive advantage, management of the resources of IT like the technical infrastructure and the organizational personnel, and establishment and accurate functioning of the information systems (Luftman, 2004). In the

Luckier Than Stars Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Luckier Than Stars - Essay Example They hope that teaching a wide array of literary genre will do the trick, simply willing that students will find for what it is they’re looking. But what a joke! It is not this which tickles the inner pendulum. There is something powerful about language. It battles that fear. Pick a book up that speaks about theory and one effaces that internal environment battle of not being able to use the pen. Here one’s spirit can move forth freely. Whittier’s (n.d., p. 151) The Wife of Manoah To Her Husband portrays a mental breakthrough of the internal critic: â€Å"I bowed my face, in awe and fear . . . On the dear child . . . Oh God! I said, THY WILL BE DONE!† Undoubtedly the author attains a conclusion about theory. Because writers of creativity are continually using an attractive mix of an ingenuous dance, a dance between â€Å"the rational and intuitive† (Hanlon n.d.) right and left hemispheres of the mind. Whittier’s theory in the poem is of a sup reme being’s dominance. Humans have all kinds of theories, all of them spiked with a bit of creativity’s work. There is one for washing, â€Å"I’ve never washed my shadow out . . . And stuck it in the washtub . . . I put it in soap and bleach and stuff. . . † (Silverstein 1974, p. 113). All of writing merely serves as a process of transmission. In a similar way that neurotransmitters in the human mind play across the lines of a back and forth running practice, the conscious mind constantly seeks out old connections, so as to spawn new ones to grow. Metaphorically, the mind builds an incredible structure, more powerful and awe-inspiring than architects could ever dream of designing. Schema theory marks the ways in which schools struggle to accommodate this unique oddity of the human mind. Yet the concept maps, the chalkboard discussions in which all students bring together their personal emotions and background knowledge about a particular subject matter, has a greater purpose at work than simply informational storage. The absence of this purpose generates most educational detriment. Rosenblatt verifies: â€Å"The text has the potential to evoke meaning but has no meaning itself; meaning is not a characteristic of texts† (cited in the University of California n.d.). A relationship is at work between the material and the reader. A reader needs to breathe, needs to believe. Schema theory represents units of connection in the way the mind works, but those who truly understand it know that it is a more an expression of self, like adding wildflowers to a growing vase: ~ ’Magine ’Dat ~ I used to call my uncle ‘Jet,’ For he was Jeff, my aunt said. The door to his room ‘locked,’ Inviting me to ‘bang,’ ‘bang,’ it. Walking up on Sesame Street. Ernie was telling me stories, But I confused them with reality. This pretty orange person knew Cookie Monster caused cookie crumbl es, Since his blue form was related, As I saw him with those yummies. So I saw myself with my nickname. For Jet called me ‘Cookie.’ Growing up didn’t seem difficult, Even though adults told woes, Because life was so exciting. ’Magine ’dat, said I with candor, So many wonderful things I Couldn’t stop my puzzlement, From questioning my mom’

Smoking and how to quit it Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Smoking and how to quit it - Essay Example Part of quitting smoking successfully is to make the right preparations so you don’t have a relapse. The first action to quitting smoking is to set a quit date. This date should be long enough to give yourself time to mentally prepare yourself about quitting smoking, but should also be within a short period of time so you don’t keep procrastinating. The next thing you can do is change the environment that you live in. This is a big part of quitting smoking because our surroundings can remind us about when we used to smoke. Another thing to do is to remember previous times when you tried to quit and thing about what worked well and what did not (â€Å"5 Easy Steps to Quitting†). The final thing you can do in preparing to quit smoking can be not feel tempted to take another puff ever again, because this will bring back memories. The next step to quitting smoking is to find friends and family who will encourage you in your decision to quit. Studies have shown that y ou have a higher chance of success if you receive help (â€Å"5 Easy Steps to Quitting†).

Informational interview Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Informational interview - Article Example She had worked as an academic counsellor at the career centre before she was promoted to the post of associate director. Briana has a professional work experience of ten years. She majored in Psychology in her undergraduate level and later acquired Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Counselling. She had also worked in a bagel shop while in high school. I was motivated to request Briana Randall for an interview because of my interest in the field of academic counselling. Following the interview session, I was able to learn a number of issues that are quite crucial to individual who wants to venture into the field. Although an undergraduate degree is an essential foundation for individuals who want to venture into the career of counselling, it is not adequate. The least educational qualification for an academic counsellor is a Master’s degree in any field. In addition to this, work experience in the field is vital for one to be able to effectively deliver in this field. Because of this reason one should explore available options such as volunteer opportunities and internships so as to gain experience before seeking full-time employment. These opportunities may include counselling children, high school students or even working in a crisis clinic. This will also help one to determine if such a job gives him/her career satisfact ion. Moreover, a number of skills are required to be able to succeed in the field including ability to multitask, supervision skills, management skills and delegation skills. Being a very involving career, one needs to be ambitious so as to be able to handle all the tasks. Duties of a counsellor that probably is the starting post for an upcoming academic counsellor include and are not limited to; appointments with students, answering students emails, preparing for workshops and reading extensively about career and job options. The responsibilities of the high-ranking associate director include leading

Is There One Best Way to Structure an Organisation Essay Example for Free

Is There One Best Way to Structure an Organisation Essay Organisation is an entity in which people work together to accomplish a set of goals. Organisations have certain pattern of activities, that is, structures. There is no best way to structure an organisation, since the structure is always adapted to best serve the functions of the organisation. The optimal organisational structure is contingent upon both internal (such as strategy, size, and technology) and external situations (such as external environment) – this is referred to as ‘Contingency Theory’. Based on the academic articles as well as the empirical evidence provided, four contingency factors are covered to justify my position, including strategy, technology and innovation, environmental uncertainty, and size. Firstly, strategy is an important contingency of organisational structure. One of the most important features of an organisation is the goal. Organisations utilise different strategies to accomplish their goals, and a variety of organisation structures are adopted to best serve the strategies since an appropriate structure is critical to the effective strategy implementation. In the early 1960s, Chandler developed the contingency model which research on the strategy-structure relationship within companies (Qiu Donaldson 2010), he suggested that the optimal organisational structure is contingent on various factors, including the strategies (Pertusa-Ortega, Molina-AzorÄ ±n Claver-Cortes 2010). In the 1970s, the structural contingency model was extended to multinational corporations (MNCs) (Qiu Donaldson 2010). Based on the research since then, Qiu and Donaldson (2010) constructed the Cubic Contingency Model which incorporates the previous models to propose the structure-strategy fits for nine MNC structures. The nine structures fit for different levels of contingent strategies which mean that the design of the structure of an organisation is highly contingent on the organisation’s strategies. Since the organisation’s strategies are never stagnant and are always adapt to accomplish its goal, there can never be a best structure for an organisation. Pertusa-Ortega, Molina-AzorÄ ±n and Claver-Cortes (2010) approached the relationship between strategy and structure from a different angle – resource-based view (RBV). They argued that organisational structures should be considered as a resource for the development of strategies and a source of competitive advantage. Although this approach differs from Chandler’s, it reinforces the strong connection between strategy and structure that organisational structure influences the competitive strategies. As competitive strategy is constantly adapted to the latest goals of the organisation, the structure needs to be varied accordingly, thus there is not a best structure. Technologies and innovations are important to the organisational process of converting inputs into outputs, thus it is also an important contingency of the organisational structure. Firms adapt their structures to the technology or innovation activity they utilise. Leiponen and Helfat (2011) conducted studies to examine the relationship between the innovation activity and the organisational structure of a company, namely, RD. They examined the two conflicting perspectives on the best structure (centralisation or decentralisation) under which RD was able to achieve greater innovation output. According to knowledge-based view, decentralisation is more effective for updating existing technology as well as acquiring new sources of knowledge. On the other hand, organisational economics argues that centralisation reduces the cost of communication and coordination, thus improves the innovation output. Leiponen and Helfat (2011) incorporated both literatures and concluded that decentralisation served imitative innovation better, whereas centralisation led to greater new-to-market innovation output. Leiponen and Helfat’s research effectively proves that the organisational structures are contingent on technology and innovation; since organisations’ technology and innovation activities differ by their degree of standardisation, there is no best way to structure an organisation. Another contingent factor of organisational structures is the environment. â€Å"Contingency theory holds that individual organisations need to adapt to their internal and external environments in order to survive and thrive† (Qiu and Donaldson 2010, p. 81). Managerial discretion is highly dependent on the organisation’s environment and its level of uncertainty (Ferner et al. 2011). The uncertainty of environment requires high level of flexibility within an organisation. Ferner et al. (2011) examined the relationship between span of control and the organisation’s external and internal environment. Based on the empirical data collected, they made several observations. One of the observation stated that variables such as nationality (external environment) and product standardisation (internal environment) affect the degree of central control in multinational companies. US ownership features with relative centralised control of HR in subsidiaries and standardisation of product tend to cause less subsidiary discretion. These studies reflect the close relationship between external and internal environment and the organisational structure. Furthermore, a research conducted by Nandakumar, Ghobadian and O’Regan (2010) indicated the relationships between the environmental dynamism and the business strategy as well as the organisational structure. They observed that highly dynamic environment favoured the cost-leadership strategy with organic structure whereas lower dynamism favoured the differentiation strategy with mechanistic structure. Thus the structure of an organisation is always adapted to the environment, and there is no best structure. Moreover, the size is another contingency variable influencing the design of organisational structure. Organisations with smaller size tend to be more organic and flexible whereas those with large size have more bureaucracy involved (Bradshaw 2009); larger organisations usually have mechanistic structure with more specialisation, centralisation and departmentalisation. Bradshaw (2009) examined several contingency factors of non-profit organisational structure, including age, size, strategy, environmental stability and so on. Based on the empirical data collected, the size along with organisational age is identified as factors to determine the organisation lifecycle (from founding to mature). Generally, the greater age means greater formalisation and the larger size means a more elaborate organisation structure. Thus, it can be concluded that the organisational structure is also contingent on the organisational size. As size varies according to the companies’ type and strategy, there is no best way to structure an organisation. In conclusion, there is no best way to structure an organisation. The optimal organisational structure is contingent upon various factors including strategy, innovation, environment and size. Due to the variance among organisations in terms of these contingency factors, the structures of different organisations vary. Furthermore, the dynamic nature of the internal and external environment of organisations means that the structure of any organisation is always adapted to best serve its goals. Bibliography Bradshaw, P. 2009, ‘A Contingency Approach to Nonprofit Governance’, Nonprofit Management Leadership, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 61-81, viewed 18 March 2012, [EBSCO host / Business Source Premier]. Ferner, A., Tregaskis, O., Edwards, P., Edwards, T., Marginson, P., Adam, D., Meyer, M. 2011, ‘HRM structures and subsidiary discretion in foreign multinationals in the UK’, International Journal of Human Resource Management, vol. 22, no. 3, pp. 483-509. Leiponen, A., Helfat, C.E. 2011, ‘Location, decentralization, and knowledge sources for innovation’, Organization Science, vol. 22, no. 3, pp. 641-658. Nandakumar, M.K., Ghobadian, A., O’Regan, N. 2010, ‘Business-level strategy and performance: The moderating effects of environment and structure’, Management Decision, vol. 48, no. 6, pp. 907- 939, viewed 18 March 2012, [ProQuest Central / Business Source Premier]. Pertusa-Ortega, E.M., Molina-Azorin, J.F.; Claver-Cortes, E. 2010, ‘Competitive strategy, structure and firm performance. A comparison of the resource-based view and the contingency approach’, Management Decision, vol. 48, no. 8, pp. 1282-1303. Qiu, J. Donaldson, L. 2010, ‘The Cubic Contingency Model: Towards a more comprehensive international strategy-structure model’, Journal of General Management, vol. 36, no. 1, pp. 81-100.

K-Pop Research Essay Example for Free

K-Pop Research Essay K-Pop ê °â‚¬Ã¬Å¡â€ (an abbreviation of Korean pop or Korean popular music): is a musical genre consisting of dance, electronic, electropop, hip hop,[2] and RB music originating in South Korea.[1] In addition to music, K-pop has grown into a popular subculture among teenagers and young adults around the world.[3] Although in a bigger scope K-pop may include other genres of popular music within South Korea, outside of the country the term is more commonly used for songs sung by Korean teen idols, which covers mostly dance, electronic, rap, hip-hop, and RB genres. [4] Starting in 1992, dance and rap music became popular due to Seo Tai-ji Boys, which is seen by many as the beginning of modern K-pop.[4] Genres such as ballad and rock are still popular today; however, the term can be debatable. With the rise of social media networks during the mid 2000s, the ability of K-pop to reach a previously inaccessible audience via the Internet is driving a shift in the exposure and popularity of the genre.[5] The Korean Wave has spread K-Pop to the Pacific Rim, the Americas, Eurasia, and North Africa. As an important part of the Korean Wave, K-pop has come from humble beginnings to gain a huge fan base not just in Asia but also other parts of the world. As South Korea continues to develop its IT infrastructure, K-Pop music is being shared over the internet and through mobile devices more rapidly than ever.[6] According to The New York Times, attempts by K-pop stars to break into Western markets had largely failed prior to the proliferation of global social networks. However, K-pop artists are now gaining more international exposure through social media networks such as YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, making it easier for K-pop artists to reach a wider audience.[7] Fans come from all around the world[8] and K-Pop is considered by some to be South Korea’s greatest export because of its popularity and growing influence.[9] Kpop bands as highly produced, sugary boy- and girl-bands with slick dance routines and catchy tunes.[10] Many K-Pop music videos have colourful visuals and a catchy beat.[11] K-Pop multiple vocal genres, especially hip-hop and rap, emphasize performances and strong visuals.[12] Dance is an integral part of K-pop. When combining multiple singers, the singers often switch their positions while singing and dancing by making prompt movements in synchrony. K-Pop is also recognized for pretty-boys and girl groups[13] that are young and considered attractive. I couldn’t stop humming the beat; it had been cemented in my head. At first it was just a mere song that I would play to make fun of, but I couldn’t help it. Over and over again, I played it. There was something intriguing about, something different. It pulled me in and drew my brain. My ears craved the tune again. I did my best to resist the urges, afraid that I’d be swept into its trance and be associated with those who would listen to it. I eventually went back to listen to it, disgusted with myself for enjoying listening to the repetitive track. The chorus was ridiculous, the Engrish was unbearable, yet I was still called for by it. It was different than most of the type of music I had indulged in. K-Pop. I was herded into the world of delusional fandoms that couldn’t bear insults towards their oppas. The world where Engrish is a normal thing you would sing along with. Besides the occasional fan wars and drama (not the K-Dramas, but actual drama), I felt like I had a family within my own fandoms. It was simple; we were all interested in that particular group, and we all respected each for that. It gave us common grounds. But it’s even more than that, we all still shared the general idea: We all liked K-Pop. Most people who are used to western music made fun of this genre. This is probably the biggest thing that binds us together. Most of us non-Korean listeners have probably dealt with being made fun of for liking K-Pop, and this makes us even closer.

Lobbying Practices Of The Coca Cola Company

Lobbying Practices Of The Coca Cola Company Lobbying is a practice of influence the decision made by the government (in group or individual). Lobbyist is the people who work for the company to influence or convince the legislator or the law makers to make the decision in favor of the company. Currently 38 lobbyists at 7 different firms lobbying on behalf of Coca Cola Coca Cola being one of the top brand in the beverage industry was not one of the ethical companies in the industry. Coca Cola and its products have been criticized for various reasons such as health effects , unfair labor practices , high levels of pesticides in its products , environmental destruction and monopolistic business practices . There were many cases on Coca Cola for its unethical practices :- 1.The Bigio family The Bigio family who were currently living in Canada filed a law suit against Coca Cola on April 27 ,1997 in the United States . They claimed that Coke had purchased Bigio family property in Egypt which was illegally seized by the Egyptian Government in 1960s because they were Jewish. The Case was filed in US federal Court under the Alien Tort Statute which gives non US citizens the right to sue in US courts for alleged violations of international law. In 1994 the Bigios had warned coke not to go ahead with the acquisition of the Bigios property without compensating them but Coca Cola didnt listen to their warnings and went ahead with the deal and purchased the property without compensating the Bigios . Coke argued that the case should be dismissed as the court lacked jurisdiction and that the case had become old and that the claims made by the Bigios were baseless and that they had been removed from the property some 25years before. (Wikipedia ,2010) 2. Monopolistic Competition Pepsi Co had filed a case in the US accusing Coca Cola of monopolizing the market of fountain dispensed soft drinks in the US. In June 2005 , Coca Cola agreed to end all its deals with shops and bars in Europe to stock only Coca Cola products after the EU interfered and found Coke business practices to be stifled competition. In Nov 2005 Coca Colas Mexican unit and a number of cokes distributors and bottlers had been fined around $68 million for unfair commercial practices . 3. Trade Practices in Mexico Coca Cola had its second largest market in Mexico where they had a 70% stake in the market. At the time only Pepsi was their biggest rival but then a new brand name Big Cola entered the market with a cheaper price than Coke. By 2004 Big cola had acquired a 5% share in the market and was still growing. Big Cola grew and became popular because half of the Mexicans were poor and they preferred the cheaper Big Cola than Coca Cola so Coke had to lower its prices and change its pricing strategies in Mexico . On July 04 , 2005 Coca Cola and its bottlers were charged of violating the monopoly and anti competitive business practices as they were accused of threatening the small business owners to stop selling Big Cola. (Knol,2010) 4. Philippine unfair competition case Coca cola was accused of unfair competition and on Jan 21,2008 the Philippines National Bureau of Investigation raided three of cokes warehouses for illegally possessing imported bottles of a competitor RC cola . The makers of RC cola filed a complaint for unfair competition and Coca Cola released a statement saying that they respect competition and always have maintained a fair play policy . (Absolute Astronomy ,2010) 5. Channel Stuffing settlement On July 27,2008 , Coca cola had to pay $137.5 million to settle a shareholder lawsuit. Coca cola was accused of channel stuffing or artificial inflation of their results to give investors a false picture of the companies health in the market . They were forcing some bottlers to purchase unnecessary beverage concentrate to boost its sales and show higher sales to the investors. 6. Pesticide use in India Coca Colas products that were produced and distributed in the Indian market contained pesticides such as DDT , lindane ,malathion and chlorpyrifos which all contribute to cancer and a weaken the immune system of the human body. The centre of Science and Environment found that the drink produced in India by Coca cola contained 30 times the level of pesticide residues that were permitted by the EU. The Indian government formed a committee which was given the task of developing worlds first pesticide standards for soft drinks. Both the soft drink giants Pepsi and Coca Cola opposed the move and stated that the lab tests werent reliable enough to prove or detect traces of pesticide particles in the drinks. Coca cola responded to the acquisitions by stating that their plants filter water helps to remove all the contaminants and that all their products meet the minimum health standards before they are distributed in the market. During this period Coca Cola had a drop of 11% in their sales . 7. Water Use Coke was accused of draining the underground water table in India and releasing industrial wastes . It was estimated that Coke used 15 million liters of ground water everyday for product and bottling operations and using 65 wells thus depleting the underground water levels. Studies found out that the contaminated water contained heavy metals such as lead and cadmium. When farmers refused to accept the wastes coke allegedly dumped the wastes in their farms in the middle of the night. Coca cola was also accused of consuming so many gallons of water that it created sever water shortages and destroying the soil of the neighboring farms . The Coca Cola plant used 9,00,000 liters of water last year and the water which was to be used by all users was being used up by Coca cola alone. (Knol,2010) 8. Columbia Controversy In 2001 Coca colas bottling companies had been linked to many controversies. These included the murder of eight union leaders. Violence, abductions and torturing of the union members were a common practice in Colombia. It is said that these practices took place under the knowledge and directions of the bottling companies who had hired paramilitary forces. In order to remove the permanent union workers the union offices were burned down and the union workers and their family were threatened. This was done so that cheap contract workers could me brought in place of the permanent union workers. In 2004 a fact-finding delegation from New York was sent to Columbia to inquire about the above controversies. The delegation found that there were 179 major human rights violations. The companys managers did not take any interest in investigating the complaints of the workers that led to the conclusion that human rights were overlooked and that their labors were under threat by the company. 9. Guatemala Controversy As the Columbia bottling franchises even in Guatemala there were controversies with the bottling plant. Union members were murdered which done under the knowledge of the bottling plants managers. These murders led to the cancellation of the bottling plants license in 1981. Many complaints were lodged against the company. The court case against the company is still going on Guatemala. 10. Israel and the Middle East Controversy Coca cola has had its bit of bad times in the Middle East. The company first came into news when the company tried to open up a franchise in Israel in 1949 but they were not given the permission to do so. Coca cola was tensed that it would not be allowed to sell its product in the Middle East so they decided not to sell its products in Israel. Coca cola was accused of doing business with Israel in 1961. An Egyptian civil servant made these accusations. He did so because he mistakenly took the Amharic writing as Hebrew, which was written, on the coca cola bottle. After the accusations the manager of the company said to the press that coca cola would never do business with Israel. According to coca cola Israel was a very small market for coca colas operation. Five years later coca cola again came into the lime light for the wrong reasons. In 1966 a Tel Aviv businessman criticized the company of boycotting Israel from its operational market just to sell its products in the Arab market. The anti defamation league which is situated in the United States took up the matter. Coca cola was questioned for not operating in Israel. It was also said that if Israel was a small market to operate then why was coca cola operating in Cyprus, which was one-tenth the size of Israel. This created some serious pressure on coca cola to open a franchise in Israel or else facing a boycott of their products in the American market. These questions forced the company to open a bottling plant in Tel Aviv. This move hampered its growth in the Middle East as coca cola was boycotted from 1968 to 1991 due to the economic boycott of Israel. In 2000 the coca cola label created controversies, which was created in 1886. According to reports the label contained hidden anti-Islamic phrases in the mirror image in Arabic. Worst hit by the rumors was Egypt. Sales in the Egypt market fell to 10 to 15 % since 2000. The rumor was so widespread that the grand mufti of Egypt said that the label does not show anything against the Muslims or Islam and he also stated that he himself haves a coca cola drink almost daily. In 2002 Mecca cola was launched in order to avoid the usage of American goods. Mecca cola was introduced by a French Tunisian as a substitute for coca cola.(Wikipedia,2010) Boycotts and Other Allegations In Support of the allegations against coca-cola, they faced numerous boycotts. From 2005 Over 23 American universities including NYU and University of Michigan banned the sale of coca cola products on their campus and this boycott still continues. Other universities in Canada and Britain are following the footsteps of the American universities by switching over to Pepsi in all their social functions. Not majorly for health reasons but in response to the bottling plant deaths. Coca cola still did not respond to these boycotts and continued refuse investigation into the bottling plant death case. A few other major boycotts that coca-cola faced were such as its products being banned from the 2006 Winter Olympics. In 2004 Its products were also boycotted by various trade unions in the EU, such as UNISON (the largest), ECSOY (European young socialists) and so on. From 1998 another major allegation faced by coca-cola was racial discrimination in America and Africa. Coca-cola was first accused of racial discrimination against the African-American in matters such unequal pay, representation in the company and even promotion within the company. To add to this in Africa Coca-cola was also charged of having a policy of Whites only management staff. To all this Coca-cola first denied all allegations but later on in 2000 they agreed to pay $192 million to settle their case in America. They also agreed to promote a fairness policy in all aspects of their business but in 2003, it was found that no such policy had been implemented. But later in 2004 they did and were forced to put up management practices and be one of the 10 most diverse companies. As mentioned above In 2005 the EU found Coca-cola for carrying out monopolistic acts such as having exclusive deals with Bars and restaurants to exclusively sell only Coca-cola products for which these places got a fixed amount of money every year and fringe benefits such as fridges to store these products. Coca-cola was then fined and had to end all such deals and act in a competitive manner. A similar case in America in 2000 was dropped against coca-cola. Coca Colas Response To address major allegations against Coca-cola which had yet to be solved such as the bottling plant deaths in Columbia or the Pesticide/Water use in India. Coca cola came up with a response by launching a website WWW.COKEFACTS.ORG . On this website Coca-Cola claimed that all allegations against them in Columbia were false and that they did not engage in such activities. They urged a further investigation into the matter by the Columbian Attorney General, a respected independent third party investigation and their own internal investigation and the Columbian Vice President.   None of the above found Coca-Cola guilty of any wrongdoing. They rather claimed the firm did more good for the country, its economy and its community by creating jobs, generating income and overall improving the standard of living. In regards to India, Coca-cola claims that an official study showed that they did not deplete the water level. They also accused the investigators of having an unreliable report on pesticide use, They claim that all their raw materials are tested before the final product being produced. Conclusion Therefore to conclude this report on ethical business culture and trade practices of Coca Cola, some basic elements that can be adopted by Coca Cola are like Develop worldwide code of ethics, by these we mean that the statement given by the companys business culture is not true and the company should come up with a proper solution to this problems and should not tolerate any human rights infractions in any of its plants, or by any of its subsidiaries. Consider ethical issues in strategic development, while making the strategic the company should consider ethical issue and develop its strategy according to it. Develop periodical ethical impact statements, when they are promoting any of its product they should make an ethical statement with it as it will help them to improve the companys image in the minds of consumer.

Female Circumcision Essay -- Female Genital Mutilation

It's the year 423 BCE, and the orders have just been sent out -- Every female is to be circumcised. Rumor has it that the newest Pharaoh is not very well-endowed and wants the females in his land to be circumcised to enhance his sexual pleasure (qtd. in Gruenbaum 43). Although such an account seems amusing, female circumcision and its effects are real. It is thought that female circumcision has been around for at least twenty centuries (Gruenbaum 193). Despite its age, female circumcision is only recently being discussed and debated in the United States. In fact, the matter itself had not really been looked at nationally until 1975, "when the Australian delegation at the first U.N. conference on woman in Mexico City proposed a motion condemning it" (Greer 64). Since that time, opposition to female circumcision has been included as a part of American Human Rights Policy (Mackie 999). The U.S. agency for International Development is also assisting the "African organizations working to eradicate it" (qtd. in Mackie 999). Now the world knows about female circumcision and wants to do something about it, but change will not come suddenly due to its long tradition. Female Circumcision is the cutting or removing of female genitalia. According to msn.com, female circumcision is "the practice of circumcision of adolescent women in some cultures that generally involves the surgical removal of the clitoris or the sewing up of the vaginal opening." There are many different names for this practice. Some refer to it as "female genital mutilation," and others call it "female genital cutting." Often times, the women who practice female circumcision are extremely offended by such terms; therefore the simplest, least offensive way to refer t... ...on: Caring for patients and child protection." BMA. 2001. 3 Nov 2003. Greer, Germaine. "Why Genital Cutting Goes On." Newsweek International. (1999): 64. Gruenbaum, Ellen. The Female Circumcision Controversy. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001. Mackie, Gerry. "Ending Footbinding and Infibulation: A Convention Account." American Sociological Review. 61 (1996): 999-1017. Nour, Nawal. "Female Circumcision and Genital Mutilation: A Practical and Sensitive Approach." Contemporary OB/GYN. 45 (2001): 50-55. Pulsipher, Abigail. Interview. Personal Interview. 1 Nov 2001. Walker, Alice, Pratibha Parmar. Warrior Marks: Female Genital Mutilation and the Sexual Blinding of Woman. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1993. Female Circumcision Essay -- Female Genital Mutilation It's the year 423 BCE, and the orders have just been sent out -- Every female is to be circumcised. Rumor has it that the newest Pharaoh is not very well-endowed and wants the females in his land to be circumcised to enhance his sexual pleasure (qtd. in Gruenbaum 43). Although such an account seems amusing, female circumcision and its effects are real. It is thought that female circumcision has been around for at least twenty centuries (Gruenbaum 193). Despite its age, female circumcision is only recently being discussed and debated in the United States. In fact, the matter itself had not really been looked at nationally until 1975, "when the Australian delegation at the first U.N. conference on woman in Mexico City proposed a motion condemning it" (Greer 64). Since that time, opposition to female circumcision has been included as a part of American Human Rights Policy (Mackie 999). The U.S. agency for International Development is also assisting the "African organizations working to eradicate it" (qtd. in Mackie 999). Now the world knows about female circumcision and wants to do something about it, but change will not come suddenly due to its long tradition. Female Circumcision is the cutting or removing of female genitalia. According to msn.com, female circumcision is "the practice of circumcision of adolescent women in some cultures that generally involves the surgical removal of the clitoris or the sewing up of the vaginal opening." There are many different names for this practice. Some refer to it as "female genital mutilation," and others call it "female genital cutting." Often times, the women who practice female circumcision are extremely offended by such terms; therefore the simplest, least offensive way to refer t... ...on: Caring for patients and child protection." BMA. 2001. 3 Nov 2003. Greer, Germaine. "Why Genital Cutting Goes On." Newsweek International. (1999): 64. Gruenbaum, Ellen. The Female Circumcision Controversy. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001. Mackie, Gerry. "Ending Footbinding and Infibulation: A Convention Account." American Sociological Review. 61 (1996): 999-1017. Nour, Nawal. "Female Circumcision and Genital Mutilation: A Practical and Sensitive Approach." Contemporary OB/GYN. 45 (2001): 50-55. Pulsipher, Abigail. Interview. Personal Interview. 1 Nov 2001. Walker, Alice, Pratibha Parmar. Warrior Marks: Female Genital Mutilation and the Sexual Blinding of Woman. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1993.

The Age of Innocence Essay -- essays research papers

The truth that lies behind fantasies The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton is a book that gave the word â€Å"love† many other meanings, such as impossible, meaningless and incomplete. There were many unbearable obstacles that Countess Ellen Olenska, one of the main characters, had to face because of love. She was treated badly by many people and always longed for love but never obtained it. With everyone cursing her, betraying her and hurting her, there was one person who was always there for her. Newland Archer wasn’t only sympathetic towards her; he also began to fall in love with her. The love she always wanted. He was the man who truly cared for her and always helped her make decisions. Out of all the selfish people in New York who degraded her, including her very close relatives, Newland Archer was one person who was there to listen to her problems and helped her solve them. Countess Olenska had to face many difficulties in her life. After having problems with her husband, Count Olenski, she left her home in Europe and lived with her grandmother, Mrs. Mingott. When she came to New York, Newland Archer was the only one who was there for her and listened to her problems. Furthermore, when she wanted to get a divorce Newland Archer, being a lawyer, talked to her about it and made her change her mind. He fell in love with her, knowing he was engaged to her cousin, and supported her. If he wanted, he could have forced her into getting a divorce and get married to her with...

Comparing or Contrasting Two Items :: Compare Contrast Comparison

Comparing or Contrasting Two Items There are two basic formats to Comparing or Contrasting two items. If one were to compare apples and oranges, for example, we would consider the fruits the items, and qualities such as flavor, color, texture, "juicability" and the like as the aspects. Both are designed to evaluate the relative merits of two items so that the reader may come to some sort of conclusion. The writer's goal is to be as complete and fair as necessary; in other words, no important information should be omitted, especially any that would be likely to skew the overall picture from one side to another. Also, the writer must compare the same or similar aspects of the two items. One cannot fairly compare apples to oranges by merely comparing the oranges in juice form to the apples in sauce form. It would be fair, however, to include a discussion of the superior nutritive value of orange juice over that of apple juice. One could also discuss the "unsaucability" of oranges and compare it to the popularity of apple sauce. The purpose is to appear as unbiased as possible; if your favorite item is superior, then let it stand on its own merits. The first style is side by side. The two items are compared aspect to aspect. Paragraphs focus on an individual aspect and explain how both items compare in that aspect. INTRO Background Thesis Body Introduce Aspect 1 Item A Item B Summarize comparison Aspect 1 Introduce Aspect 2 Item A Item B Summarize comparison Aspect 2 Introduce Aspect 3 Item A Item B Summarize comparison Aspect 3 Overall Summary of Comparison Explain which is superior Explain what factors lead to that conclusion Explain what detracting factors are overlooked or ignored Conclusion Summary-reiterate which item is better (one sentence) Projection or Call to Action Notice that organizationally the item that goes first in the first paragraph of the body then always goes first in every paragraph. Also , the writer needs to summarize each paragraph and determine the overall impact or result of that particular comparison. Next is what I call A, then B. Examine all the aspects of Item A, then discuss those same aspects of Item B in the same order. INTRO Background Thesis Body Item A Aspect 1 Aspect 2 Aspect 3 Item B Aspect 1 Aspect 2

Romanticism in American Literature

Tennyson, in â€Å"The Princess† describes, under the diagnosis of catalepsy, probable temporal lobe epileptic dreamy states with deterioration which serve as a adaptor of sexual and moral ambivalence, the poem's central theme. It seems that Tennyson knew such seizures from his own father who had been given a diagnosis of catalepsy. Poe gave his Bernice in the novella of the same title a diagnosis of epilepsy as a reason for a premature burial.However, there was a good deal of unlikelihood in this, and when he came to this theme in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† and in â€Å"The Premature Burial† he chose instead a diagnosis of catalepsy which fitted better with the plot. The fits of the title character in George Elite's Sills Manner, ignored as catalepsy, would today rather be seen as epileptic twilight states. It would seem that this author drew from contemporary dictionary descriptions which described conditions similar to Manner's fits under the headin g of catalepsy.In Elite's â€Å"legend with a realistic treatment†, the twilight states are a central factor in the plot and explain Manner's reclusion and passivity. In Poor Miss Finch by English realist Willie Collins, the postgraduates seizures of Oscar, one of the main characters, their cause, their treatment with silver nitrate, and the subsequent disconsolation of his kin are central supporting elements of a perfectly constructed plot. Collins gives an exact description of a right aversive seizure with secondary generalization, and how to deal with it.In none of these works seizures are seen in a negative light. They rather evoke reactions of sympathy and support. Keywords: Anglo-American literature, disease in fiction, romanticism, realism, Tennyson, Poe, George Eliot, Willie Collins. INTRODUCTION The romantics were fascinated by unusual behavior and exceptional psychic phenomena. Psychiatric illness was threatening and unexplored UT also had the attraction of the morb id and was a poetic treasure chest.For the literature in the realistic period, illness remained an important theme in general because the dark sides of life were not to be neglected, and we can thank the great English realists for sometimes being the first to give us De- tailed descriptions of pathological conditions, such as developmental dyslexia in Dickens' Bleak House Jacob, 1992). For this reason it is not surprising to find epilepsy represented in literature written in the middle of the nineteenth century. Here we also meet the term catalepsy and a relationship between the two diagnoses warrants our examination.Address correspondence to: Peter Wolf, Plenipotentiary Bethel, Kline Mar l, Marriage 21, D – 33617 Believed, Germany. Tell: +49-521-1443686. Fax: +49-521-1444637. E-mail: panorama. De. EPILEPSY & CATALEPSY IN ANGLO-AMERICAN LITERATURE 287 ALFRED TENNYSON: â€Å"THE PRINCESS† Alfred Tennyson (1808-1892) was one of the main literary figures in the middle of the last century in England. The pair of terms seizures and catalepsy in his â€Å"Princess† (1847-1851), a long narrative poem, has gently been pursued by an American philologist, Barbara Herb Wright (1987), who is married to a neurologist. The Princess† first appeared in 1847, and in a reworked second edition in 1848. In the third edition in 1850, six songs were added between each of the chapters and in the fourth edition Weird seizures' are mentioned for the first time but then as an essential element of the composition. The literary studies' dispute about this element's artistic value and function, as well as the author's refusal to comment on the question, has been depicted in detail by Ms Wright. Tennyson called his work a ‘medley.The structure is multifaceted, and it has allegorical, discursive and ironic elements. The story uses the story-in-story technique. On the first level, the story narrator and a group of fellow students visit the castle of one of th e students. The student comes from a very old family and has found an ancestor in his family tree, a lady who, ‘miracle of noble womanhood' (p. 154), has defended the fortress in full armor and weapons against its foes. At a garden party Lila, his friend's sister appears, ‘half child, half woman' (p. 55; the half ND half motif, the ‘inebriate' is a basic motif of this work), and decorates the statue of a warlike ancestor with her head scarf and silk stole while talking about women's oppression and the founding of a radical Amazon state. In the next seven chapters the seven students tell the story of such a community: The prince and princess of two neighboring kingdoms have been engaged to marry since their childhood. When the father of the prince sends for the bride-to-be with pomp and presents, her father writes a letter saying she wants to live alone with her women, and not wed.When the elderly king, father of the prince, hears this, he wants to declare war but t he prince sets off to clear up the situation himself. Two friends accompany him, also to help him in the event that he should have seizures. The seizures are the result of a curse on his family, laid on them long ago by a man who a former ancestor had burned as a sorcerer because he cast no shadow: none of their blood should know the shadow from the substance, image from reality, and one ‘should come to fight with shadows and to fall' (p. 1 57).For this reason Waking dreams were an old and strange affection of the house' (p. 57), and the curse manifests itself in the prince as Weird seizures' (p. 157) which are marked with deterioration experiences. The prince hears from the princess' gentle, peace-loving father that she has withdrawn to their summer castle, founded a women's university and now holds a purely female court: no male being may enter the area under penalty of death. But the prince and his friends dress up as girls and go there. They are discovered and have to flee .The fact that the prince has saved the princess from drowning does not help. During this time period the prince has two seizures without the princess noticing. The first happens at their second meeting when he is overwhelmed by her royal appearance, her foot on a tame leopard, before they ride out together. During their excursion his love, previously unnoticed, blossoms. The second seizure happens when he lets himself be despicably thrown out by her, even though he not only saved her life, but is also convinced by and willing to accept the equal rights of women.Both times the princess appears to him as a shadow in his seizures, whereas otherwise he admires her for her uncompromising consistency and loves her because she sticks to her cause in a more straightforward manner than others. War is declared, the prince and one of the princess' brothers defending the princess fight against each other along with 50 of the best knights on both sides. The prince remembers the prophecy that on e of his family will fight against shadows, gets a seizure, and goes into battle although he is still in a dreamy state. He and his group of men lose the battle.He is seriously injured, and experiences his long recuperation period as a continuation of the seizure. After clearly winning the war, the princess becomes less rigorous in her attitude and takes care of the 288 PETER WOLF prince and all of the other injured on both sides. The prince and princess forgive each other and the question of dream or reality, shadow or substance, becomes a question about who the princess really is, what her essence is. Is it the masculine unwillingness to compromise with which she tries to demonstrate her rationality or rather the other side, which allows for feelings of pity, gratitude, love, and duty?As this is decided, the prince's seizures cease and he changes into a stronger, more masculine person. He can convince the princess that her holding a purely female court was not right for her, not g enuine, only a copy of the male world. The prince and princess, until then both a cross between male and female, discover one another. They also both find their own selves in the recognition that man and woman remain incomplete, only half of a whole, as long as each attempts to be whole alone, or as long as one sees the other as the dominate or superior one.The court physician diagnosed the prince's seizures as ‘catalepsy (p. 1 57). We now know that Tennyson used, or at least owned, Quinsy's medical dictionary of 1804 (Wright, 1987)), which defined catalepsy as ‘a sudden suppression of movement and perception where the DOD is immobilizers (freezes') in its present position'. This comes in seizures, lasts a few minutes, seldom up to a few hours, and at the end the patients do not remember anything that has happened during the seizure. It is as if they awake from sleep (Wright, 1987).Interestingly enough, the prince's seizures are described completely differently: Others n otice nothing, he even fights in a battle during a seizure. Only his perception is altered. This change in perception usually only lasts for a short time. It seems to him as if he is surrounded by ghosts and he himself only a shadow of a dream. The princess appears to him as an incomplete sketch, her leopards as a fantastic painting, other people as empty masks. Things are present and not present at the same time, a scene Just experienced happened and at the same time did not happen.He is unable to tell the difference between reality and illusion. Ms. Wright (1987) was the first to suggest that epileptic seizures were being described here and she is without doubt correct: These are focal seizures of the temporal lobe with illusionary experiences of De-realization and diversification – a type of seizure that was underscored in medicine at Tennyson time. How did Tennyson know about them? There were several cases of epilepsy in his immediate family, for example his father, as ca n be seen by a letter describing his situation which fits the diagnosis of temporal lobe epilepsy.We also know that doctors told the family that his seizures were ‘catalepsy rather than epilepsy (Wright, 1987). This could have been intended to calm the family or make the diagnosis sound less threatening. On the other hand, it is also unknown how clearly a distinction between the terms catalepsy and epilepsy was made in the early nineteenth century (Teeming, 1971)1. Trances also play a securing role in the rest of Tennyson work, and it is well known that he often set himself into trances by repeating his own name.But the description of the subjective seizure experiences in the â€Å"Princess†, whose origin and terminology seem to be explained by Wright, stands alone, and the seizures have their special literary sense as metaphor for the indecision and insecurity that leads to the main theme of the story. EDGAR ALLAN POE: â€Å"BERNICE†, â€Å"THE FALL OF THE HOUS E OF USHER† AND â€Å"THE PREMATURE BURIAL† The possibility that Poe was also a model for Tennyson and the use of catalepsy as a motif in his writings cannot be excluded.Tennyson was deeply affected by Poe, admired him, and contributed substantially to the literary acceptance of the American in England – in nineteenth century something not to be taken for granted. (The 1 . Something similar may have been true, in the public mind, for the terms epilepsy and apoplexy. Thacker in Inanity Fair† seems once to have mixed them up (Wolf, 1995), and simple-minded Joe Gagger, in Dickens' â€Å"Great Expectations† says his father went off in a purple elliptic fit, obviously meaning apoplectic. † 289 other way around, Pope's lyric was influenced by Tennyson. Poe created a figure with he diagnosis of epilepsy, Bernice, in the story carrying her name in 1835. The story belongs to a group of dismal fatalistic novellas, and he needs a progressive physical and mental illness for Bernice, which would also make it plausible for her to appear dead. The story is told in the first person from the point of view of Usages. Usages lives in a lonely mansion with his beautiful cousin Bernice. Bernice has ‘a species of epilepsy not infrequently terminating in trance itself – trance very nearly resembling positive dissolution' (p. 172).In a reversal and projection that is not typical for Poe, Usages does not explain these trances but rather his own, which are trances or daydreams induced by concentrating on coincidental objects or meditation on trivial words. Bernice and Usages become engaged. In the progression of her disease Bernice loses her beauty. One day in her altered condition she silently stands in front of him. In an unexpected smile of peculiar meaning her splendid white teeth which have remained perfect are exposed and their overleaf image becomes the focus of a monomania, a daydream of his lasting several days.During this ti me he is vaguely aware that she has seizures one ironing. In the evening she appears to be dead and so is buried. His state of trance continues. Finally, he awakens out of his trance with a bad feeling, a vague recollection of a deed, of the shrill cry of a woman's voice. He learns from a menial who is wild with terror that Prince's grave has been violated, and that she has been found in her grave still alive: There is a spade leaning on the wall next to him.As he opens a little box that he finds on his table without knowing how it got there, dental surgery instruments fall out together with thirty-two small, white, and ivory-looking substances' (p. 77). Behind the similarity of Usages' and Tennyson self-induced daydreams and trances no hidden allusions should be suspected. These things are a part of the type of psychic experiments that the romantics were enthusiastic about. Nevertheless, the affinity in motif and the relationship to epilepsy that both authors created are worthy of being mentioned.Poe must have noticed that it was unlikely for someone known to have epilepsy to have seizures in a familiar environment in the morning and on the same evening to be declared dead and buried. He prepares the reader by mentioning some pages fore that Bernice, in most cases, recovered from her seizures surprisingly rapidly, but the construction remains dubious. Perhaps this is the reason he gives Madeline of Usher another diagnosis to allow her to be mistakenly buried alive a few years later in â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† . She has transient affections of a partially cataleptic character' (p. 82), and this leaves more room for the unlikely. Madeline appears only once before her apparent death. The narrator, a friend of her brother Redbrick, talks about her appearance: she ‘passed through a remote portion of the apartment, and, without having noticed my presence, disappeared' (p. 182). She is not described in more detail (unusual for Poe); foremos t is the feeling her appearance leaves in the narrator and her brother observing her: ‘A sensation of stupor oppressed me as my eyes followed her retreating steps' (p. 182). Her appearance causes her brother to sorrowfully bury his face in his hands.Later they lay her in her coffin although there still is ‘a faint blush upon the bosom and the face, as usual in all maladies of strictly cataleptic character' (p. 186). In spite of the improbability, Madeline manages to fight her way out of the coffin, and presents herself in silent reproach to her brother who must have suspected she had not really been dead. Poe must have been virtually obsessed with the idea of being buried alive: It plays an important role, for example, in the early tale â€Å"Algeria†, and later became a theme in a own story with the title â€Å"The Premature Burial†.This begins with reports about actual live burials and leads to describing the fear associated with waking up in a coffin aft er being buried. The narrator, who believes that such things happen more often Han people suspect, tells his own story of being ill with increasingly frequent and long cataleptic seizures, trances, semi-syncope, and 290 his growing fear that he will be buried in such a state. He takes extensive organizational precautions to prevent such an incident, but it does not calm him in the least.He talks about a further symptom, a disassociated awakening with very slow reorientation, preparing the scene for a cathartic experience ending the entire terrible episode: He awakens one day in a tight wooden chamber in total darkness with the smell of damp earth around him, and experiences the real horror of being ride alive. He remembers that he had been on a hunting excursion when a storm arose and that he fled to a barge laden with garden McCollum and went to sleep in a very tight berth.Now he can shake away his fear – and he also loses the catalepsy which had perhaps been less the cause than the consequence of his fears (p. 271). Here the construction of the disease history – especially with the final considerations – is really convincing. Nevertheless, this tale is one of Pope's less familiar stories and literally not fully satisfying due to the approximate balance between reported facts ND fiction being only loosely connected.Poe apparently did not use Quince for his catalepsy motif, but another source, since his descriptions are completely different. They seem to be based on a tradition that Could and Pyle (1896) summarize: ‘Catalepsy, trance and lethargy, lasting for days or weeks, are really examples of spontaneously developed mesmeric sleep in hysteric patients or subjects of incipient insanity. It is in this condition that the lay Journals find argument for their stories of premature burial'.GEORGE ELIOT: â€Å"SILLS MANNER† In contrast, it seems that George Eliot (pseudonym or Mary Ann Evans, 1819-1880) also used Quinsy's Medical Dictionary or a similar source to describe the seizures of the title figure in Sills Manner (1861), because her description corresponds much more exactly to Quinsy's definition than Tennyson. In Sills Manner the seizures of the title figure, a poor linen weaver, are an important structural element of the story. They are conditions that can last from a few minutes to an hour or more, and which are described in the book as trance or cataleptic seizures.When Manner has such a seizure he falls into an unconscious and snootiness stiffness with an empty look in his eyes. The seizures leave him with amnesia and Manner is not even aware of having had a seizure. At first, his community, a ‘narrow religious sect', the middle point and content of Manner's life, where he is respected for his faith and exemplary life style, interpret the seizures as a mark of his being specially chosen by God, as visitations of divine origin.But as the man who Manner thinks of as his best friend becomes hi s rival, he uses Manner's seizures to discredit him in the community by indicating his seizures might also have satanic origins (p. 0). Furthermore, he deals a devastating blow by blaming Manner for a theft that occurs during a death wake when Manner is in a trance. Manner is exiled and emigrates to a faraway region where he sets up his weaving loom in a hut at the edge of the village (up. 11-15). There he lives a secluded hermit-like existence for 15 years.Despairing of God and his fellow man, he only thinks of his work and of his treasure of gold, sovereigns, that he has managed to scrape together by living so frugally. In this village he is also known for having fits and this contributes to his role as an outsider. When Manner leaves his hut on an errand one stormy evening, someone steals his treasure, leaving him empty-handed for the second time. But in contrast to the first time, he becomes integrated into the community because the members have pity on him (p. 03). Then a third event happens, when he is in a twilight state which falls over him while standing in the open door of his hut: When he awakens from the trance he perceives a vague, golden shimmer in his hut that he at first believes must be the expected return of his gold coins; but it is the golden hair of a little orphan girl who has sought shelter in 91 the hut (p. 1 51). He accepts the child and raises her with the help of a neighbor and a happy time starts now and lasts into his old gage.The treasure is also found again. It is discovered – and the reader is told this early in the story – that the father of the child and the thief are the same person. All these motifs are woven together in a very complex manner and build into an artful design interwoven with the golden threads that make a legend. In a letter to her publisher, John Blackfoot, George Eliot characterized the work as ‘a sort of legendary tale' which she ‘became inclined to give] a more realistic treatment ' (Karl, 1995).The disease is of utmost importance in explaining the necessary static and passivity of the title figure which would normally be unnatural. It also allows for unexplainable events to happen which contribute to the story's legendary quality. Sills Manner is one of the most perfect of the literary works in which an epileptic disease is an essential stylistic element. Today we use the term catalepsy to describe a condition of motionless rigidity which can occasionally be observed over a longer period of time with androgenic psychosis or with severe life-threatening brain diseases.The seizures with impairment of consciousness from which Sills Manner suffered would today no longer be classified as catalepsy but as twilight states, and epilepsy would primarily be considered the cause. A recent biographer of Eliot (Karl, 1995) talks about Manner's epileptic fits as a matter of course. It seems as though Eliot did not use direct observation in describing catalepsy but relied on the lexicographic definition. This included certain epileptic phenomena and catalepsy and epilepsy were probably not strictly separated at that time.Earlier, catalepsy had even been considered a variant of epilepsy (Teeming, 1971). AS we have seen in the case of Tennyson, catalepsy may sometimes have been used as a euphemism for epilepsy (see above). WILLIE COLLINS: â€Å"POOR MISS FINCH† Willie colitis (1824-1889), a mend of Charles Dickens, is considered together with Dickens and George Eliot to be one of the great English realists of the nineteenth century. His Poor Miss Finch (1872) is one of the books in which epilepsy plays a key role in the construction of the plot. Oscar loves the beautiful, capricious, and blind Lucille who also loves him.His twin brother, the ruthless Nugent tries to be his rival. Their voices are indistinguishable and they have he same features to someone who looks at them or touches them. An eye specialist appears on the scene who is able to ma ke Lucille see by operating on her. Like some blind people, Lucille can imagine colors, loves everything light and hates everything dark. This almost leads the bad Nugent to succeed because he argues that when Lucille will see Oscar she is sure to despise him: His skin is disclosure to a blackish blue as a result of the treatment of his epilepsy with silver nitrate (p. 3). Oscar fears the day she will be able to see him but argues nevertheless unselfishly and generously for the controversial operation. Lucille then reacts completely different than expected and there is a happy end. In this novel Collins was particularly interested in the discoveries that had been made throughout the 18th and 19th century about what people born blind or who became blind in early childhood could sense or experience and how, after successful operation on their eyes, they reacted and learned to create a visual environment.These reports deal extensively with theories about the conception of space and the construction of visual space, and with Molybdenum's problem, whether a congenitally blind person who had learned to extinguish and name forms like a sphere and a cube by touch would be able to distinguish and identify these forms visually if the faculty of sight was recovered (v. Sender, 1960). Collins was more interested in the sys- 2.The village doctor who has been called to the scene is mildly made fun of by the author: the sages of the village urge Manner strongly to smoke a pipe â€Å"as a practice ‘good for the fits'; and this advice was sanctioned by Dry. Kimball, on the ground that it was as well to try what could do no harm – a principle which was made to answer for a great deal of work in that gentleman's medical practice† (p. 91). Manner follows this advice faithfully even though he actually dislikes tobacco and it doesn't really help. 92 ecological and moral responses of his characters to such an event. His description of the tests and tasks that are given his heroine by her doctor shows that he conducted thorough research for the story. Likewise, the epilepsy is not Just there but the result of a brain trauma (p. 68) from a robbery which has its own function in the carefully constructed story. In order to make the blackening of the skin more credible people with the same coloring appear marginally twice in the story (up. 3,269). Is that exaggerated? Apparently not.The treatment of epilepsy with silver nitrate was very common until the middle of the nineteenth century. One of the affected in Collins' book says there are hundreds of people disclosure as I am, in the various parts of the civilized world' (p. 84), and the English neurologist Todd complained that so many patients showed in the disconsolation of their faces the indelible marks of the ineffective treatment they had undergone (Teeming, 1971). Collins thinks better of Oscar and allows the treatment to be successful: His epilepsy is cured (p. 0). CONCLUSIONS Four author s from two consecutive epochs of literature in the English language gave four completely different pictures of illness: In Poe, the romanticist, the epileptic and cataleptic conditions are more conjured up than described, whereas not the seizures themselves but the motif of a slow physical and mental deterioration are a point of focus. The epileptic and cataleptic states are essential elements to the gloomy mood that seem to drive these stories into inevitable fatalistic catastrophes.Tennyson depicts subjective perception of seizures and has resalable found an authentic source so that we can correct the diagnosis of catalepsy. Eliot probably followed a lexicographic definition for her description of ‘cataleptic' semi-conscious or trance states fairly exactly, but this definition subsumes symptoms of a condition which would nowadays be classified as epilepsy. Collins is furthest away from Poe. He virtually gives us a clinical case study with a matter-of- fact description of a s eizure which begins with a wrenching aversive movement towards the right and the calm attitude of the doctor mastering the situation at hand.The diagnosis is given n a short and concise sentence, the etiology and therapy are a part of the case history in this realistic novel. Whereas with the earlier authors the distinction between epilepsy and catalepsy appears somewhat blurred, which may be typical for the time, Collins' description of (post-traumatic) epilepsy and a focal seizure is fully correct. These four significant authors from the middle of the nineteenth century also handle the function of the seizures in the structure of their works very differently. Poe uses seizures as a reason for the supposed death and subsequent live burial.Tennyson uses De-realization during seizures as a metaphor for his basic motif of half and half, and for the indecision in the main characters. Once these are overcome, the seizures disappear. In Elite's work, the occurrence of recurring seizures is necessary for the plot of the story, they are an important element for the legendary aspect and a reason for Sills Manner's timidity and resolution to fate. For Collins, who like Dickens laid special value on clean construction in his books, Scar's epilepsy is a central supporting element which combines many associations in a perfectly structured story.In none of the authors' works are the seizures indifferent, a mere curiosity or spectacle. Nor are they seen in a negative light. They rather evoke reactions of support, and sympathy with 3. A frightful contortion fastened itself on Scar's face. His eyes turned up hideously. From his head to foot his whole body was wrenched round, as if giant hands had twisted it, towards the right. Before I could speak, he was in convulsions on the floor at his doctor's feet. ‘Good God, what is this! ‘ I cried out. The doctor loosened his cravat, and moved away the furniture that was near him.