Saturday, October 5, 2019
Morality and Immorality and Holy Willie's Prayer and Tam O Shanter Research Paper
Morality and Immorality and Holy Willie's Prayer and Tam O Shanter - Research Paper Example There are two particular poems that he wrote which clearly exemplify the sarcastic and humorous tone of his style. These are Holy Willie’s Prayer and Tom O’ Shanter. What makes this poem important though is not just that these are prime examples of Burns’ humor-laden writing style. The said poems also provide proof of Burns’ personal perspectives on morality and immorality, as well as the role of religion these matters. The background of Holy Willie’s Prayer alone would already provide a glimpse of how Burns despised hypocrisy, especially if this is committed by men who belong to the church or the ‘kirk’ in 18th century Scotland. The poem is about a real character named William Fisher, a leader of the local church in Mauchline where Burns had stayed. Fisher, with whom Burns shared mutual hate, is described as a â€Å"bigoted elder of the Kirk, who with considerable eloquence and the conceit of the humorless, exposes himself as a cantin g hypocrite†(Head 527). The title of the poem dedicated to him by Burns is already one that actually reeks of sarcasm. The emphasis on the word ‘holy’ comes as a paradox because at the end of the poem, Fisher is portrayed to be asking God to punish his detractors with the lines that disregards the basic Christian concepts of mercy and forgiveness. Lord, in Thy day o’ vengeance try him, Lord, visit them wha did employ him, And pass not in Thy mercy by them, Nor hear them their pray’r, But for Thy people's sake destroy them, An’ dinna spare. Holy Willie’s Prayer actually paints a picture of a man, who is expected by many to set the example of how Christians should treat each other, turn out to be just as sinful and immoral as those he may have despised. It is clear that Burns disliked so much how Fisher had behaved as a churchman, whom the parishioners consider to be near infallible and holy when he is actually committing the same immora lities that he preaches against. There are lines in the poem that actually described Fisher’s own improprieties. O Lord! yestreen, Thou kens, wi’ Meg -- Thy pardon I sincerely beg -- O, may’t ne’er be a living plague To my dishonour! An’ I'll ne’er lift a lawless leg Again upon her. Burns, however, does not criticize Fisher for committing these human frailties. In a very sarcastic tone, he highlights the fact that despite these shortcomings, Fisher still managed to pray that he be forgiven for these ‘minor’ infractions. While he asks mercy, Fisher instead prays to God that his detractors are spared from it and are punished for persecuting him. As it turns out, Willie Fisher’s prayer is basically a portrayal of how a man of the church treats God as a superior that would listen to his pleas more because he is part of the church hierarchy and not for its merits or demerits. The poem provides a picture of Fisher â€Å"down on his knees, praying to his God, whom he addresses familiarly as if God were a senior official in the church†(Gerrard 384). Without putting it into words, Burns depicts a situation where the church is actually isolated from the rest of the people, including its laity. The isolation stems from the notion that those who are part of the church hierarchy are not equal with those outside of it, even if they are Christians too. The concept presented in the poem is that God is prone to be more
Friday, October 4, 2019
Research Methods for Business Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words
Methods for Business - Research Proposal Example There are three different organizations and types of trade unions, namely industrial unionism, general unionism, and craft unionism. Craft Unionism refers to a trade union that seeks to protect a particular group of skilled works. General Unionism on the other hand refers to an organization of trade unions that comprise of a variety of skilled workers (Somers, 2013). Industry Unionism on the other hand comprises of all workers within a particular industry, joined together in one organization. To successfully carry out their mission and objectives, Trade Unions have a constitution that governs the conduct of their leaders, and the actions of its members. This research proposal identifies the manner in which the researcher will gather information and carry out a research on the importance of trade unions and non-union employee representation bodies. Most employers do not encourage their employees to join trade unions. This is because trade unions are always accused of creating a negative relationship between employees and their employers. However trade unions play an important role in protecting the interests and welfare of employees. On this note, this research takes the position that; Non-Union Representation bodies and Trade Unions play an important role in improving the working conditions of its members. In supporting this thesis, this research will answer the following six questions; Trade Unionism is an example of an organized movement that began during the 19th century in the United States, Great Britain, and continental Europe. In most of these countries of the world, Trade Unionism is used to define the term labor movement. During the 18th century, a number of small associations began to appear in Britain, however, most of these organizations were sporadic, and did not last for a period of time. This is because these small associations of workers got resentment
Thursday, October 3, 2019
“Three Cups of Tea†by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin Essay Example for Free
â€Å"Three Cups of Tea†by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin Essay The number one New York bestseller â€Å"Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peaceâ€â€One school at a Time†had received much acclaim from critics worldwide, not because it was beautifully written but simply because the story itself is uniquely remarkable. If we set aside the positive criticisms about this book, only a handful of negative criticisms will be surfaced. These negative criticisms would only include minor remarks on the writing style that concerns the over-dramatization of the story of Greg Mortenson. The critics call this flaw of the book â€Å"too much of milking the moment.†But then again, these negative comments about the book don’t have much bearing to the credibility of the book. â€Å"Three Cups of Tea†is nevertheless one of the most remarkable non-fictional stories of our time.            The book was basically about an admirable journey of a man from being just an ordinary man towards being a humanitarian giving the word â€Å"altruism†a contextualized contemporary meaning. The name of the man is Greg Mortenson , the author of the book alongside co-author David Oliver Relin. The negative criticisms were primarily focused to Relin, acussing his writing as not being top-caliber, while everybody is admiring Greg Mortenson’s story.            The content of the book is extraordinary, but that also applies to the title of the book â€Å"Three Cups of Tea.†Greg Mortenson and co-author David Oliver Relin have encountered this Balti proverb â€Å"the very first time you share tea with a Balti you are a stranger the second time you are the honored guest. For the third time you become family†(Mortenson Relin, 2007, p. 150) The authors of the book made the right choice of title for the book. That Balti proverb had given the reader an idea of the culture of those in the Central Asia. The Balti proverb doesn’t only talks about the Balti people’s admirable hospitality, but also presents an ideal of how people should treat each other. If taken in literal terms, the Balti proverb also alludes to Greg Mortenson’s back and forth travel from the U.S. to the village of Korphe and vice-versa. The book had started with an introductory part about the author and protagonist, Greg Mortenson, which was entitled â€Å"In Mr. Mortenson’s Orbit.†The introductory part serves to make the readers relate more to the author/protagonist. After all, it would be much easier for the audience to relate to the protagonist if the readers have at least an idea of whom they will be spending their whole journey throughout a one-inch or more book. This part also establishes a sense of credibility on the part of Greg Mortenson. After all, there is a saying that says the fruit doesn’t fall far from the tree. The same analogy applies for the relationship of the book and the author.            The introductory part will be followed by all the chapters of the book. The whole book is comprised by twenty-three chapters. It is very noticeable that the book started out with the first chapter entitled â€Å"Failure.†Here are the chapters according to their order: Failure, The Wrong Side Of The River, Progress And Perfection, Self-Storage, 580 Letters, One Check, Rawaldipindi’s Rooftops At Dusk, Hard Way Home, beaten by the Braldu, the people have spoken, building bridges, six days, Haji’s lesson, a smile should be more than a memory, equilibrium, Mortenson in motion, red velvet box, cherry trees in the sand, shrouded figure, a village called New York, tea with the Taliban, Rumsfeld’s shoes, stones into schools. All of the chapters narrate Greg Mortenson’s amazong journey from being an ordinary man towards becoming a man that became extraordinary by selflessly helping others. The book will end wi th an acknowledgement part that extends gratitude to the people and institutions that had helped Greg Mortenson and his noble cause. Summary            For us to know better the book and the author of the book himself, here is a summary that includes an introduction of the author. However, it must be noted that this summary may contain spoilers that may ruin the experience of reading one of our time’s most inspiring book. All information cited in this paper came solely from the book â€Å"Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peaceâ€â€One School at a time†by the authors Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, Pubnlished by Penguin in 2007.            The year was 1993 when the climbing enthusiast had decided that he will climb K2, the second highest peak in the world, to honor her deceased sister by scattering her beads on the top of the mountain. Greg Mortenson was then an emergency room nurse back then. During the course of their mountain climb, his fellow climber had to be rescued due to a life-threatening accident. The rescue itself became more tiring than the whole climb itself. Being exhausted from the rescue, Greg Mortenson became disoriented and dehydrated. Consequently, he became lost on his way down. It was such profound irony that after Greg Mortenson was helping his fellow climber, after that he was in need of help. The two local porters led Greg Mortenson to small village, the village of Korphe. The village was small and poor, deprived of anything that can be associated with the comforts available in the western world. The villagers there took good care of Greg Mortenson, especially the leader of the village Haji Ali. In exchange for the warm hospitality of Haji Ali and the rest of the villagers, Greg Mortenson had donated almost all his climbing equipments for the villagers to utilize. He also used his nursing background to treat some minor injuries of the villagers with the use of his first aid kit.            After a little while, Greg Mortenson developed an interest for the community that had taken good care and had accepted him. He then asked Haji Aji to show him around, and then he asked the leader of the village to show him the village school. What he saw was an open ledge that admits eighty-two of the village children. The children were standing in the bare ground, without slippers or shoes, holding a stick so that they could scratch multiplication tables on the ground. The image of the eagerness of the village children to learn pierced right through Greg Mortenson’s heart. The village children had reminded him much of his sister. He felt that by establishing a school in Korphe, he will not just honor his deceased sister, he will also make a profound change in the lives of the people of Korphe. Before he had set for home, he promised Haji Ali and the rest of the villagers that he will do everything in his power to build Korphe a more adequate school.            When he got back to the U.S., he went back to his job as an emergency room nurse. But he didn’t forget about the promise that he made to Haji Ali and the people of Korphe. While working shifts, Greg Mortenson wrote five-hundred-eighty letters for sponsorships to well-off and known personalities. The rough approximate amount needed to build the school in Korphe was a whopping twelve thousand dollars. All his letters were rejected, almost all. Fortunately, a retired Swiss physicist and also a climbing enthusiast Dr. Jean Hoerni (also a pioneer in Silicon Valley) sent a pleasant reply. The doctor was impressed by the altruism of Greg Mortenson, and she wrote in a check the amount that is needed to build the school. So he went back to the village of Korphe. He was then told by Haji Ali that the village needed first a bridge to connect them to key urban areas. Greg Mortenson asked again Dr. Jean Hoerni for the amount needed to build the bridge. The very generous Dr. Jean Hoerni had granted him the amount but she said to Greg Mortenson â€Å"Don’t screw up†(Mortenson Relin, 2007, p. 55). He did his best not to screw up and he didn’t. He bought all the necessary equipments to build the bridge and the school then went back to Korphe. His altruism didn’t end there; Greg Mortenson then created the Central Asia Institute. The Mortenson along with the institute and some friends their time, money and efforts to build schools for areas in Pakistan just like Korphe. Significant change in the lives of the village children            Like most of us, Greg Mortenson also believes that education can save the world from poverty and terrorism. But for Greg Mortenson, education of young girls is of more importance to than the education of the boys. This may touch a little bit the sensitive issue of sexism, but Greg Mortenson has an interesting and convincing reason for leaning towards the education of young girls. He had said that educated young males tend to leave their villages to seek employment in the cities. On the other hand, the young girls just stay at home. In a sense they become leaders of the community by upbringing the new generation. They pass on what they have learned to their children but the problem there is that their knowledge is inadequate. Greg Mortenson believes that the education of young girls is really the key towards profound change. (Mortenson Relin, 2007, p. 209) What led Greg Mortenson to help these people? What led to Greg Mortenson’s actions can be skimmed into a generalization that it is not his direct actions, but rather his failures. The book’s first chapter is not entitled â€Å"Failures†for no significant reason. Gred Mortenson had failed in his attempt to honor his deceased sister by scattering her beads on the peak of K2, one of the highest mountain peaks in the world. This failure had led him to the small mountain village named â€Å"Korphe,†where he had an epiphany that he should help these people that had willingly helped him. In the course of the book, he will send hundreds of letters to personalities who can afford granting him the amount he needs to subsidize his goal of helping the people of Korphe. Only one of these letters for sponsorship will be replied. A well-off retired Swiss physicist by the name of Dr. Jean Hoerni was touched by Mortenson’s altruistic desire to help others. The physicist had granted him twelve thousand dollars to fund his mission. Failures were prevalent in the whole book, interspersed in every chapter. The story of Greg Mortenson tells us that failures shouldn’t mean that it is the end of the climb. The book implies to us that failures may shun us away from our initial goals, but they are also the chance for us to do something more special. Being a climber, Greg Mortenson may have not reached the peak of the mountain, but he had made significant changes in the lives of many people in need enabling these people to reach new heights. Greg Mortenson’s altruism had put him on top of these people’s gratitude list. What help did he received?            The story of Greg Mortenson had shown us the irony that a person who want’s to help others also needs help from others. Greg Mortenson is just an ordinary man with an ordinary job, what makes him special is his altruismâ€â€but altruism alone wouldn’t build a bridge and school. Fortunately, there are still generous people like Dr. Jean Hoerni who is willing to give some to the needy. Friends and families also gave the strength to Greg Mortenson. The memory of her sister really gave him a push. As the village children reminded him of her sister, the load of helping others seemed to be lightened because he was like just helping family.            Aside from those assists, Greg Mortenson also received much needed help from the mediaâ€â€particularly from the reporter named Kevin Fedarko. The reporter wrote a story about Greg Mortenson and his mission in a magazine called â€Å"Parade.†After the story was read by the public, Greg Mortenson and the Central Asia Institute had received many donations and words of admiration and encouragement.            But out of these people who had helped Greg Mortenson in his mission, the beneficiaries of this mission were of the greatest help Greg Mortenson had received, especially the village leader Haji Ali. After all, if it weren’t for the people of Korphe, he might have been lost in the mountains, or something worse. Haji Ali also gave him an important advice regarding his mission of building schools,. Haji Ali told Greg Mortenson that he should have a good relationship with the village people. By having a good relationship with the locals, including the Taliban leaders, Greg Mortenson gained access to areas only a few Westerners are able to reach. Did he accomplish his goals?            â€Å"Yes†is the only answer to this inquiry. The education that the village children had received from the new schools will definitely have a positive impact in their community. The education that the children have received will be passed on to generations after generations. Greg Mortenson’s mission may have only reached a small part of the whole world, but he had become an inspiration worldwide. Greg Mortenson had shown the world that there are still people like him that can make a profound change in the world. He is just as ordinary as everyone, with an ordinary life and ordinary job. He had shown to the whole world that even ordinary individuals can achieve extraordinary and significant feats. Work Cited Mortenson, Greg. Relin, David Oliver. Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote
Information Systems Capstone
Information Systems Capstone Richard Lecator Background information of the Company The company is known for its dominant role in the collection and analysis of data. The firm has been operational for a duration almost equaling two years and has a total of approximate 20 employees, where four have been delegated to the IT department. Due to the rampant growth that has been exhibited by the firm, pundits predict that it is going to experience a staggering 60% growth for the next one and a half year. The organization collects data by the help of the Web analytics and then combines it with the data obtained from the operation systems. Web analytics hold a significant role in the majority of the marketing plans for the business, and it involves measuring, collecting, analyzing and then reporting the data collected from the website for the sake of development and optimization of usage of the web. The firm is a very young one and hence is struggling to adapt to the limited technological infrastructure it has to keep it running. However, regardless of this, the firm still anticipates having the business expanded in the next half a year by having its operational activities moved from its current one floor to a spacious three floors. The company has all the information regarding its operations kept in the form of both hardware and software and stored on-site. Details regarding the Type of Business that the Company is Engaged In. The firm works on web analytics and effective qualitative reportage. The software used by the firm enables it to have high quality, data collection that is very effective that starts in minutes without any necessity of additional programming (Aalst, 2009). Therefore, whether it is a huge document, review or digital sets of data, the organization will be able to provide you with analytical services, which will be of great help for you in acquiring answers that are simpler to ambiguous business queries. Types of Data that the Company Collects The firm is further able to collect native and email data from almost all the electronic sources, with the inclusion of the individual computers, storage devices for mobile media, backup tapes, networks belonging to the companies, and the mobile devices for personal use (Aalst, 2009). This shows that the company is well equipped to manage almost all of the devices. The Current Outsourcing and offshoring activities. Globalization and an increase in the competition on the global standards have pushed the organization to incorporate a wider range of economical transfers and the process of exchanging goods and services, technical know-how, personnel, and numerous other related intermediate activities that are part of the value chains for the global markets. When it comes outsourcing and offshoring, there is always a very close relationship amid the locations, motivational standards and the organizational strategy for the company (Warranty Data Collection and Analysis, 2011). Technological advancements will ultimately play great roles in reshaping this subject more in the organization. The main reason behind the organization resolving to the activities related to outsourcing and offshoring when it comes to knowledge is because the firm has an objective of cementing its competitive advantage. This will only be achieved through exploitation of the locally available talent and proficiency in the host economies. The skilled information personnel in position and their responsibilities The following are the duties and the responsibilities of the team that will ensure the fulfillment of the project. The Senior Project Director  The individual will be in charge of ensuring that the project is planned, directed and ensures a smooth running of the project. The individual will also be in charge of ensuring that the project deliverables and their functions are achieved as stated in the Charter of the project (Ward, 2006). He will also be in charge of ensuring that accountability is maintained when it comes to managing the resources for the project. The Quality Manager and the Technical Lead Will ensure that both the proposed product and that the qualities of the process for the project are maintained. Will manage every days activities for the project and that there is a good liaison with the projects technical management. Will ensure that the technical disciples regarding the project are maintained. Will partner with the IT department to ensure that adequate technical assistance is accorded to the project handlers. Will be in charge of advising on the insight regarding the health of the project. Will be available to offer leadership assistance to the technical staff throughout the life cycle of the project. Will provide necessary assistance to the Senior Project Director in establishing the best technical policies, procedures, and processes for the project. Implementation and test lead Will be in-charge of: Managing the implementation phase of the project. Providing leadership when it comes to implementation management by forming, synchronizing, scheduling, and closely overseeing the activities during the implementation phase. Directing the testing process of the newly created structure. Will work with the state and the federal departments to ensure that the test is carried out as provided for by the law. Operation Lead Will be in charge of: Coordinating and supervising how the new system works The particular data collected by the company The information systems that is currently being used by the company: Operational Systems and Databases Below are some of the operating systems and Databases that the organization has been using to help with its day to day activities. Operating System They include: Microsoft.NET 2.0 Framework ASP.NET 2.0 master pages, the gratified pages, and Web Parts. Windows Workflow Foundation. Databases Business Request Data Site custom data InfoPath Forms Services Analytics and Interfaces The most used analytic interface being used by the organization is the graphic interface. Infrastructure and Security To ensure the security of the collected data, the firm has resolved to the use of the combination of both the technologies of the cloud computing and Software-as-as-a-Service (SaaS). Therefore, when the organization thoroughly implements the above-outlined structure, then the structures it will have initiated in place will be able to assist with holding the demand for the expansion that the business requires. References Aalst, W., Joseph, M., Mylopoulos, J., Sadeh, N. M., Shaw, M. J., Szyperski, C., Gotel, O., Meyer-Stabley, B. (2009). Software Engineering Approaches for Offshore and Outsourced Development: Third International Conference, SEAFOOD 2009, Zurich, Switzerland, July 2-3, 2009. Proceedings. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Ward, P., Dafoulas, G. (2006). Database management systems. London: Thomson. Warranty Data Collection and Analysis. (2011). London: Springer-Verlag London Limited. Information Systems Capstone Information Systems Capstone Richard Lecator The organization is proud to be able to review and enter into a partnership with its customers in the goal of overhauling the company visibility. This visibility will be done in hopes to increase brand awareness while increasing the residential customer base and the industrial IT services. Through the improved visual appearance of the company assets the brand will become known for its appearance and with the known presence will make changes within the organization. The graphics will provide information in regards to the company as well as local contacts and the company website. With that, the organization will strive to increase its quality of field service as well as improve the quality of the customer service through face to face interactions as well as online and telephone interactions. To ensure maximum satisfaction of the organizations customers, the following Project Implementation plan has been drafted to assist with ensuring that the project is smoothly and comprehensively carried out. The refurnishing process of the organizations IT department is a huge project that the organization would like to capitalize on greatly. The IT Plan The IT department holds a vital role in the process of realization of the project. The organization understands this with a very strong implication. This is why the firm has taken necessary steps to ensure that the IT plan developed has a close association with its Business Plan. This Organizations IT plan will help in achieving the successes of the project by making sure that the best IT personnel that bear recommended qualifications are brought on board. If put to use according to plan, the plan will prove to be a great tool in assisting with controlling the activities of the IT department throughout the whole process. Roles and Responsibilities of Team Members of the Project The list provided below outlines the duties and the obligations of the Organizations project team. The Senior Project Director In charge of planning directing and overseeing the project, and making that the project deliverables and its functionality are realized. Ensures that there is maintenance of accountability when it comes to managing all of the resources being used in the project. Acts an intermediary with between the project and its sponsors. The Quality Manager In charge of managing the quality of the product and the process involved in the project. Ensures that the traceability matrix of the requirements is maintained. In charge of providing insight into the health of the project. The Roles and the duties of: The Technical Lead have been clearly outlined. The Implementation Lead. The Application Support Lead. The Test Lead have been properly and thoroughly outlined. The Configuration Lead and, The Operations Lead have all been clearly outlined in the Human Resource Plan. Project Organizational Charts The graphic structure below, derived from DMOZ Regional: North America: United States: Tennessee: Guides and Directories. (2016), is a representation of the reporting hierarchy for the project. The chart below, shows the existing association of the tasks for the project and the members of the team. All of the changes that are proposed to the responsibilities of the project must receive a direct approval from the Office of the Project Manager. Proposal of change will only occur with a basis to the control process of change for the project. When the change is made, all of the documents for the project will be updated and then redeployed by the procedures. Roles Infrastructure Preparation Requirements Gathering Design Configuration Development Implementation Software Testing Conduct Training Senior Project Director A A R R C C Quality Manager A R C C Technical Lead A R Implementation Lead I A R C I Application Support Lead A C R I Test Lead A C R C C Configuration Lead R A R C Operation Lead C Key: R Responsible for completing the work A Accountable for ensuring task completion/sign off C Consulted before any decisions are made I Informed of when an action/decision has been made Gantt Chart Staffing Management Plan   The Staffing Management Plan helps with the formalization of the processes that are used in managing the project. This plan positions itself with the available processes like refurbishment, cultural and people policies, the policies for the supply chain, and the collective agreements that have been continuously applied by organization for its staffing. During the resources planning, there is significance in considering the resources that are commonly used in the project and the ones from the external environment. The Staffing Management Plan will aim to provide a solution to the required resources to offer support to the program through the life cycle of the project. However, it is of significance to note that the details contained in the plan will only be for the foreseeable future and will be updated with a continuation of realization of the process. When it comes to the staffing of the project and the resources, the requirements will vary with time as the project progresses. This document will be subjected to continuous updates as deemed necessary for the phases that are to come. Finally, purchased services contracts from the external that includes Amplified Staff, particular, and accomplished task contracts will help greatly in bringing in new staff in the course of realizing the project (Project Management Institute, 2004). When it comes to the management of the organization, the focus has been solemnly put on ensuring that the goals of the process are achieved so that the mission and vision of the organization are achieved. The quality program is inclusive of the team members who have basic duties of making the processes, ensuring that their effectiveness, and overseeing the actions that will make an improvement in the manner in which the organization manages quality during and after the project. References  Project Management Institute. (2004). A guide to the project management body of knowledge (PMBOK guide). Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute. DMOZ Regional: North America: United States: Tennessee: Guides and Directories. (2016).
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
Comparing Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse Now Essay -- Movie Film com
Parallels in Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse Now      In the interpretation and comparison of Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse Now there begins to unfold a list of similarities that can be linked to Arturian legend, particularly the quest of the grail. Marlow, or Willard can be viewed as the knight who has been sent on a mythic quest, the specific task being the recovery or assassination of Kurtz, the mythic god-man linked to the Fisher King in Arthurian romance. Conrad specifically modeled his novel on these legends, while Coppola expanded on the concept, using Conrad as a stepping off point and drawing from J.G. Frazer's The Golden Bough and J. Weston's From Ritual to Romance. I will examine the questers purpose for traveling into the heart of darkness, a void in the midst of a burgeoning jungle that has become a fecund waste land. View the quester as he comes in contact with a mysterious god-man or divine king whose own demise has contributed to the demise of the surrounding atmosphere, and how Marlow, and in turn Willar d, deal with this figure, known as Kurtz. Finally I will discuss why Apocalypse Now fails as a recreation of Conrad's Heart of Darkness. top The Task of the Hero In Arthurian legend a certain task is placed, or rather imposed upon the grail hero, whether that hero be Gawain, Perceval, or Galahad. He sets out on a journey with no clear idea of the task before him, except that he, at the bidding of King Arthur, must find the grail, and that he is taking the place of a mysterious knight that set out before him but was killed. The quest of the grail eventually gives way, as the story unfolds, to the knights healing of the Fisher King (the watcher of the grail), who has fallen gravely ill and w... ... sun beats, And the dead tree gives us no shelter, the cricket no relief, And the dry stone no sound of water. Only There is shadow under this red rock, (Come in under the shadow of this red rock), And I will show you something different from either Your shadow at morning striding behind you Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you; I will show you fear in a handful of dust. (Eliot)  Works Cited Conrad, Joseph Heart of Darkness, New York, Penguin Books 1983 Weston, Jessie L. From Ritual to Romance, New Jersey, Princeton Press 1993 Frazer, James G. The Golden Bough(abridged version), New York, Macmillian Publishing Company, 1950 Malory, Sir Thomas. Le Morte d'Arthur, Oxford Press, 1967 Eliot, T.S. The Waste Land and Other Poems, New York, London, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publishers, 1988  Â
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
SPORT Essay -- essays research papers
Professional Athletes Salaries: Are they paid too much? What should athletes deserve to be paid? Many players have risen to stardom by becoming a professional athlete. Athletes have come from many different backgrounds; some from wealthy and some from poverty raised backgrounds. Salaries are continuing to rise, and money doesn’t seem to be an issue. Athletes are getting what they want from the owners by negotiating through their agents. Athletes’ salaries aren’t just from their owners, but they come from other sources also. Athletes get paid an enormously high salary for the work they do. Really all they do is entertain us. We should consider the value of their work and pay them accordingly. They do not deserve the extreme amount they get paid and something should be done about it. Wouldn't it be great to make twenty million dollars a year and an additional ninety million dollars in endorsements simply to play a game that you are supposed to love to play? Lebron James, who has no college degree and hasn’t worked a day in his life, along with many other professional athletes thinks so. Lebron makes close to 100 million a year and probably will soon make much more. Yes, he is one of the best basketball players in the world, but paying somebody that much money for a game is ridiculous. All he had to do was just put a little round ball in a hoop. He didn’t save nobody’s life or make something that would benefit society. He entertained us for eighty two games and now has more money than he can spend. In today's society, one is supposed to be paid more if their job is more economically important. Doctors make more than factory workers; teachers make more than people who work at Wendy’s and so on. Still, professional athletes make more than what a teacher makes. Some professional athletes will make more money in one year than a teacher will make if he/she teaches all of their life. Is entertaining people more important than teaching them? The future of our society relies on the education of its youth and still teachers are paid less than these professional athletes. Even President Bush gets paid less than what most professional athletes are making. Here is a guy who makes decisions that affects everybody in our society everyday and we are saying entertainment is more important because we pay these athletes more. These games are supposed to be played for fun, not... ...plays a sport that they say they love is getting paid ten times as much as a doctor, police officer, or a fire fighter. Police officers and fire fighters protect our lives and save them, but they do not get close to the amount of money a player who plays professional sports. I am not just talking about the superstars in professional sports, but also about the players who never get to play and just sit on the bench. They still get hundred of thousands a dollars a year. I know to make it to the professional ranks in any sport is very difficult and these athletes train all of the time, but so do other professions. In other professions it might not be as physically demanding as sports, but they still have to train and stay on top of their game. I really find it hard to believe that in our society, we value entertainment more than almost anything else. There are people right now in this world dying because they do not have enough money to eat and we give athletes more money than they can spend because they are good at their sport. Professional athletes are extremely good at what they do, but do they really deserve millions of dollars because they can throw, kick, hit, or shoot a ball.
The Return: Nightfall Chapter 31
Let us at least have the dignity of walking out of your trap on our own feet – or should I say, using your own key?Damon thought to Shinichi. To Elena, he said, â€Å"Yes, we're looking for what's-his-face. But you took a bad fall. I wish – I would like to ask you – that you stay here and recuperate whileI go look for him.†â€Å"You think you know where Matt is?†That was the entire sentence distilled for her. That was all she heard. â€Å"Yes.†â€Å"Can we gonow ?†â€Å"Won't you let me go alone?†â€Å"No,†Elena said simply. â€Å"I have to find him. I wouldn't sleep at all if you went out alone. Please, can't we go now?†Damon sighed. â€Å"All right. There were some†– (there will be now) – â€Å"clothes that will fit you in the closet. Jeans and things. I'll get them,†he said. â€Å"As long as I really, really can't convince you to lie down and rest while I look for him.†â€Å"I can make it,†Elena promised. â€Å"And if you go without me, I'll just jump out a window and follow you.†She was serious. He went and got the promised pile of clothes and then turned his back while Elena put on an identical version of the jeans and Pendleton shirt she had been wearing, whole and un-bloodstained. Then they left the house, Elena brushing her hair vigorously, but glancing back every step or so. â€Å"What are you doing?†Damon asked, just when he had decided to carry her. â€Å"Waiting for the house to disappear.†And when he gave her his bestwhat're you talking about? look, she said, â€Å"Armani jeans, just my size? La Perla camisoles, same? Pendleton shirts, two sizes too big, just like the one I was wearing? That place is either a warehouse or it's magic. My bet's on magic.†Damon picked her up as a way to shut her up, and walked to the passenger's door of the Ferrari. He wondered if they were in the real world now or in another of Shinichi's globes. â€Å"Did it disappear?†he asked. â€Å"Yup.†What a pity, he thought. He'd have liked to keep it. He could try to renegotiate the bargain with Shinichi, but there were other, more important things to think of. He gave Elena a slight squeeze, thinking, other,much, much more important things. In the car he made sure of three small facts. First, that click which his brain automatically registered as passenger buckled up really did mean that Elena had her seat buckle properly fastened. Second, that the doors were locked – fromhis master control. And third, that he drove quite slowly. He didn't think that anyone in Elena's shape would be throwing themselves out of cars again in the near future, but he wasn't taking any chances. He had no idea how long this spell was going to work. Elena must eventually come out of her amnesia. It was only logical, since he seemed to be, and he'd been awake much longer than she had. Pretty soon she would remember†¦what? That he'd taken her in the Ferrari against her will (bad but forgivable – he couldn't know she'd launch herself out)? That he'd been teasing Mike or Mitch or whoever and her in the clearing? He himself had a vague picture of this – or was it another dream. He wished he knew what the truth was. When wouldhe remember everything? He'd be in a much stronger bargaining position once he did. And it was hardly possible that Mac was getting hypothermia in a midsummer snowstorm even if he were still in that clearing right now. It was a chilly night, but the worst the boy could expect was a twinge of rheumatism when he was around eighty. The vital thing was that theydidn't find him. He might have some unpleasant truths to tell. Damon noticed Elena making the same gesture again. A touch to her throat, a grimace, a deep breath. â€Å"Are you carsick?†â€Å"No, I'm†¦Ã¢â‚¬ In the moonlight he could see her blush come and go; could sense her heat with detectors in his face. She flushed deeply. â€Å"I explained,†she said, â€Å"about feeling†¦too full. That's what it is now.†What was a vampire to do? Say,I'm sorry – I've given it up for Moonspire ? Say, I'm sorry – you'll hate me in the morning? Say,To hell with the morning; this seat reclines two inches ? But what if they got to the clearing and found that something really had happened to Mutt – Gnat – the boy? Damon would regret it for the rest of the remaining twenty seconds of his life. Elena would call battalions of sky spirits down on his head. Even if no one else believed in her, Damon did. He found himself saying, as smoothly as ever he'd spoken to a Page or a Damaris, â€Å"Will you trust me?†â€Å"What?†â€Å"Will you trust me for another fifteen or twenty minutes, to go to a certain place I think what's his name might be?†If he is – my bet is that you remember everything and you never want to see me again in your life – then you'll be spared a long search. If he isn't – and the car isn't either; it's my lucky day and Mutt wins the prize of a lifetime – and then we go on looking. Elena was watching him intently. â€Å"Damon, do youknow where Matt is?†â€Å"No.†Well, that was true enough. But she was a bright little trinket, a pretty little pink, and more than all that, she was clever†¦. Damon broke off his polyrhythmic contemplations on Elena's intelligence. Why was he thinking in poetry? Was he really going crazy? He'd wondered that before – hadn't he? Didn't it prove you weren't crazy if you wondered if you were? The truly insane never doubted their sanity, right? Right. Or did they? And surely all this talking to himself couldn't be good foranyone . Merda. â€Å"All right, then. I'll trust you.†Damon let out a breath he didn't need and headed the car toward the clearing. It was one of the more exciting gambles of his life. On one hand, therewas his life – Elena would find some way or other of killing him if he'd killed Mark, he was certain. And on the other hand†¦a taste of paradise. With a willing Elena, an eager Elena, an open Elena†¦he swallowed. He found himself doing the thing closest to praying that he'd done in half a millennium. As they rounded the corner on the road to the little lane, he kept himself in hyper-alertness, the engine a bare hum, the night air bringing all kinds of information to vampire senses. He was thoroughly aware that an ambush could have been set up for him. But the lane was deserted. And as he suddenly hit the accelerator to reveal the little clearing, he found it blessedly, bleakly, blankly empty of either cars or of college-aged young men whose names started with â€Å"M.†He relaxed against the seatback. Elena had been watching him. â€Å"You thought he might be here.†â€Å"Yes.†And now was the time for the real question. Without asking her this, the whole thing was a sham, a fraud. â€Å"Doyou remember this place?†She glanced around. â€Å"No. Should I?†Damon smiled. But he took the precaution of driving on up another three hundred yards, into a different clearing, just in case she should have a sudden attack of memory. â€Å"There were malach in the other clearing,†he explained easily. â€Å"This one is guaranteed monster-free.†Oh, what a liar, I am, I am, he rejoiced. Have I still got it or what? He'd been†¦disturbed ever since Elena had come back from the Other Side. But if that first night it had discomfited him into literally giving her the shirt off his back – well, there were still no words for how he'd felt when she'd stood before him newly returned from the afterlife, her skin glowing in the dark clearing, naked without shame or the concept of shame. And during her massage, where veins traced out lines of blue comet fire against an inverse sky. Damon was feeling something he hadn't felt for five hundred years. He was feeling desire. Human desire. Vampires didn't feel that. It was all sublimated into the need for the blood, always the blood†¦. But he was feeling it. He knew why, too. Elena's aura. Elena's blood. She'd brought back with her something more substantial than wings. And while the wings had faded, this new talent seemed to be permanent. He realized that it was a very long time since he'd felt this, and that therefore he might be quite wrong. But he didn't think so. He thought that Elena's aura would make the most fossilized of vampires stand up and blossom into virile young men once again. He leaned away as far as the crowded confines of the Ferrari would allow. â€Å"Elena, there's something I should tell you.†â€Å"About Matt?†She gave him a straightforward, intelligent glance. â€Å"Nat? No, no. It's about you. I know you were surprised that Stefan would leave you in the care of somebody likeme .†There was no room for privacy in the Ferrari and he was sharing her body warmth already. â€Å"Yes, I was,†she said simply. â€Å"Well, it may have something to do with – â€Å" â€Å"It may have had something to do with how we decided that my aura would give even old vampires the jigsies. From now on, I'll need strong protection because of that, Stefan said.†Damon didn't know what the jigsies were, but he was prepared to bless them for getting a delicate point across to a lady. â€Å"I think,†he said carefully, â€Å"that of all things, Stefan would want you to have protection from the evil folk drawn here from all over the globe, and above all other things that you not be forced to – to, um, jigsy – if it was not your wish.†â€Å"And now he'sleft me – like a selfish, stupid, idealistic idiot, considering all the people in the world who might want to jigsy me.†â€Å"I agree,†Damon said, careful of keeping the lie of Stefan's willing departure intact. â€Å"And I've already promised what protection I can offer. I really will do my best, Elena, to see that no one gets near you.†â€Å"Yes,†said Elena, â€Å"but then something like this†– she made a little gesture probably to indicate Shinichi and all the problems brought about by his arrival – â€Å"comes up and nobody knows how to deal with it.†â€Å"True,†said Damon. He had to keep shaking himself and reminding himself of his real purpose here. He was here to†¦well, he wasn't on St. Stefan's side. And the thing was, it was easy enough†¦. There she was, brushing her hair out†¦a fair pretty maiden sat brushing her hair out†¦the sun in the sky was nonesuch so gold†¦. Damon shook himselfhard . Since when had he gotten into ye Olde English folksongs? What waswrong with him? To have something to say, he asked, â€Å"How are you feeling?†– just, as it happened, as she lifted her hand to her throat. She grimaced. â€Å"Not bad.†And that made them look at each other. And then Elena smiled and he had to smile back, at first just a quirk of the lip, and then a full smile. She was†¦damn it, she waseverything . Witty, enchanting, brave, smart†¦and beautiful. And he knew that his eyes were saying all that and that she wasn't turning away. â€Å"We might – take a little walk,†he said, and bells rang and trumpets played fanfares, and confetti came raining down and there was a release of doves†¦. In other words, she said, â€Å"All right.†They picked a little path off the clearing that looked easy to Damon's night-acquainted vampire eyes. Damon didn't want her on her feet too much. He knew that she still hurt and that she didn't want him to know it or to pamper her. Something inside him said, â€Å"Well, then, wait until she says she's tired and help her to sit down.†And something else beyond his control, sprang out at the first little hesitation of her foot, and he picked her up, apologizing in a dozen different languages, and generally acting the fool until he had her seated on a comfortably carved wooden bench with a back to it and a very light traveling blanket over her knees. He kept adding, â€Å"You'll tell me if there's something – anything – else you want?†He accidentally sent to her a snippet of his thoughts of possible contenders, which were, a glass of water, him sitting beside her, and a baby elephant, which he had earlier seen in her mind that she admired very much. â€Å"I'm very sorry, but I don't think I do elephants,†he said, on his knees, making the footstool more comfortable for her, when he caught a random thought of hers: that he was not so different from Stefan as he seemed. No other name could have caused him to do what he did then. No other word, or concept, could have such effect on him. In an instant the blanket was off, the footstool had disappeared, and he was holding Elena bent backward with the slender column of her neck fully exposed to him. The difference,he told her,between me and my brother is that he is still hoping somehow to slip in through some side door into heaven. I'm not such a moaning ninny about my fate. I know where I'm going.And I don't – he gave her a smile with all canines fully extended – give a damn about it. Her eyes were wide – he'd startled her. And startled her into an unintentional, thoroughly honest response. Her thoughts were projected toward him, easy to read.I know – and, I'm like that, too. I want what I want. I'm not as good as Stefan. And I don't know – He was enthralled.What don't you know, sweetheart? She just shook her head, eyes shut. To break the deadlock, he whispered into her ear, â€Å"What about this, then: Say I'm bold And say I'm bad Say – you vanities – I'm vainer. But you Erinyes, just add I kissed Elena.†Her eyes flew open. â€Å"Oh, no! Please, Damon.†She was whispering. â€Å"Please! Please not now!†And she swallowed miserably. â€Å"Besides, you asked me if I'd like a drink, and then suddenly it's no drink. I wouldn't mindbeing a drink if you'd like, but first, I'mso thirsty – as thirsty as you are, maybe?†She did the little tap-tap-tap under her chin again. Damon's insides melted. He held out his hand and it closed around the stem of a delicate crystal glass. He swirled the splash of liquid in it expertly, tested it for bouquet – ah, exquisite – then gently rolled it on his tongue. It was the real thing.Black Magic wine,grown from Clarion Loess Black Magic grapes. It was the only wine most vampires would drink – and there were apocryphal stories of how it had kept them on their feet when their other thirst could not be assuaged. Elena was drinking hers, her blue eyes wide above the deep violet of the wine as he told her some of its story. He loved to watch her when she was like this – investigating with all her senses fully aroused. He shut his eyes and remembered some choice moments from the past. Then he opened them again to find Elena, looking very much the thirsty child, eagerly gulping down – â€Å"Yoursecond glass†¦?†He'd discovered the first goblet at her feet. â€Å"Elena, where did you get another one?†â€Å"I just did what you did. Held out my hand. It's not as if it were hard liquor, is it? It tastes like grape juice, and I was dying for a drink.†Could she really be that naive? True, Black Magic wine didn't have the sharp odor or taste of most alcohol. It was subtle, created for the fastidious vampire palate. Damon knew that the grapes were grown in the soil, loess, that a grinding glacier leaves behind. Of course, that process was only for the long-lived vampires, as it took ages to build up enough loess. And when the soil was ready, the grapes were grown and processed, from graft to foot-stomped pulp in ironwood vats, without ever seeing the sun. That was what gave it its black velvet, dark, delicate taste. And now†¦ Elena had a â€Å"grape juice†mustache. Damon wanted very much to kiss it away. â€Å"Well, someday you can tell people you drank two glasses of Black Magic in under a minute, and impress them,†he said. But she was doing the tap-tap-tapping again under her chin. â€Å"Elena, do you want to have some of your blood drawn?†â€Å"Yes!†She said it in the ringing-bell tones of someone who has finally been asked the right question. She was drunk. She flung both arms backward, draping them against the bench, which conformed to accept her body's every new motion. It had become a black suede couch with a high back: a divan, and just now, Elena's slender neck was resting on the highest point of that back, her throat exposed to the air. Damon turned away with a little moan. He wanted to get Elena to civilization. He was worried about her health, mildly concerned about†¦Mutt's; and now†¦he couldn't haveanything he wanted. He could hardly bleed her when she was drunk. Elena made a different sort of sound that might have been his name. â€Å"D'm'n?†she mumbled. Her eyes had filled with tears. Just about anything that a nurse might have to do for a patient, Damon had done for Elena. But it seemed she didn't want to unswallow two glasses of Black Magic in front of him. â€Å" ¡Ã‚ ®M'shick,†Elena got out, with a dangerous hiccup at the end. She gripped Damon's wrist. â€Å"Yes, this is not the kind of wine to guzzle. Wait, just sit up straight and let me try†¦Ã¢â‚¬ And maybe because he said the words without thinking, without thinking of being rude, without thinking of manipulating her one way or another, it was all right. Elena obeyed him and he put two fingers on either side of her temples and pressed slightly. For a split second there was a near disaster, and then Elena was breathing slowly and calmly. She was still affected by the wine, but she wasn't drunk any longer. And the time was now. He had to tell her the truth at last. But first, he needed to wake up. â€Å"A triple espresso, please,†he said, holding out his hand. It appeared instantly, aromatic and black as his soul. â€Å"Shinichi says espresso alone is an excuse for the human race.†â€Å"Whoever Shinichi is, I agree with him or her. A triple espresso, please,†Elena said to the magic that was this forest, this snowflake globe, this universe. Nothing happened. â€Å"Maybe it's only attuned to my voice right now,†Damon said, flashing her a reassuring smile, and then he fetched her espresso with a wave. To his surprise, Elena was frowning. â€Å"You said  ¡Ã‚ ®Shinichi.' Who's that? Damon wanted nothing less than for Elena to get involved with the kitsune, but if he was really going to tell all she was going to have to. â€Å"He's akitsune , a fox spirit,†he said. â€Å"And the person who gave me that Web address that sent Stefan running.†Elena's expression froze over. â€Å"Actually,†Damon said, â€Å"I find that I would rather get you home before taking the next step.†Elena lifted exasperated eyes to the sky, but let him pick her up and carry her back to the car. He had just realized where the best place to tell her was. It was just as well that they didn't urgently need to get to any place that was out of the Old Wood right now. They didn't find any road that did not lead to dead ends, little clearings, or trees. Elena seemed so unsurprised at finding the little lane that led to their small but perfectly appointed house that he said nothing as they entered and he took new inventory of what they had. They had one bedroom with one large, luxurious bed. They had a kitchen. And a living area. But any of these rooms could become any kind of room you chose simply by thinking of it before opening the door. Moreover, there were the keys – left behind by what Damon was realizing was a seriously shaken Shinichi – that allowed the doors to do more. Insert a key in a door and announce what you wanted and there you were – even, it seemed, if it should be outside Shinichi's territory in spacetime. In other words, theyseemed to link to the real outside world, but Damon wasn't entirely sure about that.Was it the real world or just another of Shinichi's play-traps? What they had right now was a long spiraling stairway to an open-air observatory with a widow's walk around it, just like the roof of the boardinghouse. There was even a room just like Stefan's, Damon noted as he carried Elena up the stairs. â€Å"We're going all the way up?†Elena sounded bewildered. â€Å"All the way.†â€Å"And what are wedoing up here?†Elena asked, when he had her settled in a chair with a footstool and a light blanket on the roof. Damon sat down on a rocker, rocking a little, his arms wrapped around one knee, his face tilted to the clouded sky. He rocked once more, stopped, and turned to face her. â€Å"I suppose we're here,†he said, in the light self-mocking tone that meant he was very serious, â€Å"so that I can tell you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.â€
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