Zora Neale Hurston and Her Contributions Essay Example for Free

Zora Neale Hurston and Her Contributions Essay As stated earlier, among the many prominent African American writers that proliferated during the Harlem Renaissance is Zora Neale Hurtson. Her autobiography tells us that it was her mother that urges her to â€Å"jump at de sun, we might not land on the sun but at least we could get off the ground†. On one hand, her father would brainwash her that it won’t do any good for a Negro to have a high spirit for the whites can’t just stand it. Her father even anticipated that Zora’s going to get hanged before she grows old. Her father maybe depicted as passive participant in the Black’s struggle for social liberation. However, it is claimed that he was just inculcating the idea of Southern Survival in his children (Hemenway 14). As a child, she lived a comfortable life at least when her mother was still alive. Her childhood was a relatively peaceful, calm, and wealthy life in a non-racist black community of Eatonville. It was the first all-black American community that was self-governed. It is a community where traditional black American culture survived and flourished. See more: Mark Twains humorous satire in running for governor essay It was said that Eatonville did not prepare Hurtson of the racist America and it was only when she transferred to Jacksonville that she realized there was a thing called racism (Witcover 27). Upon the death of her mother she was sent to Florida to go to school with a brother and a sister, Jacksonville is the very place that she learned that she was â€Å"colored. † When she was no longer supported by her father, she resorted in accepting different jobs such as a maid for the whites and a receptionist among others. Moreover, she worked as a waitress and attended school at Morgan Academy. Later on, she attended Howard Prep to prepare herself for the best university for the blacks in the United States. She continued to read voraciously during these times of her life. Finally, she published her first story in the literary magazine of the school entitled â€Å"John Redding Goes to Sea†. She was discovered by Charles Spurgeon Johnson to write in the Opportunity Magazine. She agreed and submitted her short stories namely â€Å"Drenched in Light†, â€Å"Spunk†, and a play entitled â€Å"Color Struck†. Johnson saw the potential and power in her works that he invited her to go to come to New York and â€Å"make a name for herself (Campbell 2-3). † Opportunity was a major voice in the Harlem Renaissance and her contributions were highly sought by the publishers (Witcover 16). Upon arriving in New York, the Harlem Renaissance is its full swing. in Harlem, there were a number of promising writers, painters, sculptors, musicians, and politicians that are engaged in activities that aimed for the liberation of African Americans against the white supremacy. These activities have been considered as â€Å"unrivaled† in the history of the United States. Among these writers are Hurston, Hughes, Cullen, Mckay. While they are not the first Black American writers that made its way to American literature, they were the first ones â€Å"to be conscious of themselves as black writers who believed that the bridge between the white and the black races depended upon the arts†. Because of their great pride in their black heritage, they established traditions that were followed by other prominent subsequent African American writers in the United States such as Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, and James Baldwin (Campbell 3). Her writings are obviously chronicles of the black life, most specifically the lives of the working and the lower-class people in the rural South in the United States. Her works stand along the vast and rich documentary sources of the black experiences from labor to culture. However, what’s unique with Hurtson’s literary contributions is that unlike her detractor’s way of portraying the blacks which view them vis-a-vis the whites, Hurtson’s style involves the portrayal of the blacks â€Å"in their own terms. † While oppression against the black is palpable during that era and is one of the favorite themes written by most African American writers, Hurtson chose to do away from oppression. She chose to represent and portray what and the blacks are doing and not what is done to them by their oppressors and tormentors. Her style zoomed in to the very nature of black life and examined them as black people that are capable of asserting their identities. Furthermore, her style allowed her to dissect every bit and parcel of the inner world of the African American life which aimed for one and only important thing: self-determination among the blacks (Plant 43). Hurtson depicted the beauty of the black culture by incorporating the experiences of the black people that were considered the underbelly of the black life. She manipulated the white patronage of Harlem Renaissance to her advantage. She is being criticized by her male contemporaries as being primitive in her portrayal of the American life for she has adhered to the stereotypes of black people that the Whites propagated. However, Hurtson also highlighted her criticism towards these perceived conception of the Whites towards the Blacks for she believed that they are incapable of becoming a custodian of the black culture. Moreover, apart from being a place of racial discrimination, Hurtson regarded the South as a place of â€Å"cultural creativity, family, and religion, where everyday life was lived with integrity in the midst of struggle against racial oppression (Patterson 10). † She believes in the experiences of the Southern Blacks as a rich subject in the arts and literature. Each Negro has the right to self-identity despite racist ideologies. This can be done by exploring the complex culture of Southern black towns, and discuss the every day life of black workers, black wives, and black children. Her emphasis on the experiences of the Southern blacks makes her portrayal of the African-American life even more real (Patterson 12-13). Eatonville is the most important geographic landmark in most of her short stories and novels. It was the town where she grew up and her father serving as a mayor. As a child, she grew up hearing stories in the porch of Joe Clarke’s, both the porch and the stories are retold by Hurtson in her fiction (Campbell 15). When it comes to the characters of her short stories and novels, they â€Å"are not only heroic, often fighting great odds, but they also demonstrate growth. [†¦] Hurtson’s protagonists are always in a state of becoming. They became capable of looking inside themselves in order to discover thei place in the world around them. Often they struggle against what they should become (Campbell 14). † For instance, â€Å"Sweat† is a story of a typical Negro life in Eatonville as many of her stories setting. It chronicles the experiences of Delia and her marriage to her husband Sykes. Their married life has always been in a downhill. At the onset, Delia has always been tortured and abused by Sykes. Secondly, Sykes has been seeing other women and has been maintaining a concubine. While it was Delia who sweated and earned for their survival, Sykes was still very ungrateful. He even plotted to kill her and get rid of her so he can live in her house with her concubine. In the end, he failed and Delia was able to take avenged against his abuses and tortures. On a deeper level, it romanticizes the theme of male domination over women and the feminine power that transcends all kinds of struggles. It highlights the strength of a woman through Delia’s ability to support herself and her husband despite his infidelity and brutality against her. This is just a mundane story of the Negros in a black community. It doesn’t in any way talk about oppression done by the whites. It just talks about two characters that are authentic in themselves that can stand as an embodiment of a typical Negro life. This is Hurtson’s way of asserting the African-American identity beyond any comparison and approximation of the superiority of the Whites. This is Hurtson’s way inculcating self-determination among the African-Americans who for a long time thought of themselves as subordinate to the Whites and the Europeans. By celebrating their experiences as unique, the blacks were able to believe in the beauty of their heritage and to find joy in their identities. Apart from being a black writer that is obviously aware of the African American’s sensibilities regarding black oppression and subordination, she is also an anthropologist. As Hemenway noted, Anthropology is an advantage for Zora for her to understand her deeper cultural roots. Her experiences of African American life plus her great understanding of the nature of their traditions and practices made her portrayal of the black experiences more poignant and authentic. In a particular instance, she understood the â€Å"richness and mutilayered meanings of the oral tradition† and â€Å"the creativity and imagination of black language and story telling (Campbell 4). † As a student of Franz Boa, Hurtson learned to appreciate and see the cultural wealth and legacy of her community more fully. By her skill, knowledge, and understanding of the nuances of African American, she strived to prove that the native Black Americans experiences and arts has both genius and authenticity that is traceable to the Africans and not the Westerns. Her fieldworks armed her with all the needed knowledge to prove to the Whites and the elitist Black Americans that their deeply-rooted culture is beyond to what the Whites has imposed on the Blacks (Plant 41). Her writings are best known as folklorism. In this style of writing, one exhibits the peculiarities of their cultures and traditions (Grinker 390). In her stories, Hurtson incorporates myths, legends, customs, practices and allegories that are uniquely and authentically African-Americans regardless of the Western’s criticism of their practices as backward. It is Hurston’s way of asserting Black’s way of life in its purest form. Apart from being a brilliant writer and chronicler of the Black’s experiences, Hurtson’s writings are also concern with the struggle of women in their search for emancipation against the issues of gender and race. She acknowledged the violence that is present among the lives of African American women but at the same time she criticizes the male domination that caused this violence. This was a â€Å"bold position† during those times where only a few writers like Hurtson can do among many other African – American writers (Patterson 8). She obstructed the perceived notion of women as oppressed and helpless as commonly portrayed in American Literature. She is known for her depiction of nonstereotypical black women such as rendering them as strong and courageous. As seen in the abovementioned example, Delia was the victor from the beginning up to the end. While she is being tortured and beaten up by her husband, she survived. While she is being emotionally battered by her husband, she endured. While she is being threatened to death by her husband, she avenged herself. Another example would be Janie in Their Eyes Are Watching God is one of the earliest American women â€Å"to develop cultural and personal identity (Champion 166). † However, this feminist stance of Hurtson was not immediately recognized during the period. Her intellectual ideologies have been given little attention at the time for the reason that there was still a palpable exclusion of Black women’s thoughts in the intellectual discourse of that era (Plant 2). She has been criticized by Richard Wright as having no interest in serious fiction. He said that Hurtson just continued to propagate the tradition that was forced upon the Negroes in her stories and novels which makes the Whites laugh. Wright wrote about blacks that resist the supremacy of the Whites but then Hurtson is the opposite. She wrote about the nakedness of the Blacks in such a beautiful manner and in such a colourful manner. The Black people’s nakedness, according to her, is not something that should be suppressed and forgotten. She believes that it should be accepted as part of the frontier spirit that defines each African American in a black community (Patterson 33-34). Her â€Å"ultimate moral stance is not only to absolve whites, past and present, of any wrong doing, but also to claim some value in the experience of enslavement†. She emphasized the fact that despite â€Å"the cruelty and moral wrong of slavery†, the Blacks still maintain a materially, intellectually, morally, and religiously strong and hopeful condition. Her writings do not dwell in the cruelties of the past and the cruelties of slavery and enslavement among the Blacks, she focused in the present, and celebrated the character that the Blacks developed and adopt in the course of the oppression. She wrote on how their lives have become after the enslavement and how they have maintained their culture in tact and unique among any other nation. She created some distance in the past that made a room in the understanding of the present. Too much contemplation in the past is a hindrance to the Black’s Present endeavours. The idea is to â€Å"settle for from now on (Plant 41). † Hurtson was able to â€Å"resist and subvert cultural hegemony because of a powerful worldview†. This is traceable to her individualistic worldview Washington’s theory of self-help, industry, and personal responsibility; her anthropological study under Franz Boas and Ruth Benedict among many others. All these contribute to an unwavering philosophy of individualism that help her survive the palpable racism bombarded towards the Blacks. These are also the contributing factors that developed her strength and will to resist negative controlling images and overcome Anglo-American hegemony. Her individualistic stance enabled her to engender an autonomous self that is necessary in the negotiation of hostilities in the community that she lived in along with all other African-Americans in the United States (Plant 4) Her philosophy of individualism is deeply rooted from the African-American folk ethos as a â€Å"fundamental site of resistance. † She understood the importance of the African American culture’s role in the emancipation of the African American people as an individual and as a community. She emphasized the idea of cultural survival as an important ingredient liberation and cultural appreciation as an important process in decolonization among the African Americans. She believed that the answer towards liberation lies in the African American culture and traditions themselves. To reclaim the Black life is to resist the Anglo-American domination and this can only be done by romanticizing the importance self-definition and self-emancipation among the Blacks (Plant 4).

Sugar Trade Essay Example for Free

Sugar Trade Essay â€Å"Give me some sugar!† When most people hear that phrase, it usually means someone wants a kiss. But in the late 1600s and early 1700s, people want to plant sugar. True, it started some 9000 years ago in New Guinea, but it took a while before the rest of the world caught on. During this time, there was a movement called the sugar trade. Although there were many forces driving the sugar trade, what mainly drove it were the ideal land masses for sugar production, the amount of slaves needed, and the demand for it. The first driving force behind the sugar trade was finding the perfect land to grow the plant. Jamaica and Barbados were under British rule in 1750 (Doc. 1), and they were the ones who discovered that the islands were well within the ideal climates for producing sugar because they were in the correct temperature climate, and had the perfect soil; the only off thing was the amount of rainfall they had was less than perfect amount. (Doc. 2) The encyclopedia tells us that the land that the British conquered than its own land and/or even England’s own land. Once a man had found the model land, he would state everything that he needs for his plantation, such as windmills, a boiling-house, the amount of slaves and animals, and all the other houses and shops. (Doc. 6) Belgrove demonstrated that owning a plantation was a big deal and one had to be absolutely sure on everything that was needed in order to have a fully-functioning plantation. Most plantations were owned by wealthy English families, instead of numerous people buying the land together. (Do. 7) It can be interpreted that Mintz said that the better was to get money was to own the whole thing by yourself. Men like Charles Long and John Gladstone owned large amounts of land and therefore became richer because of the amount of land they owned, amount of sugar they produced and the amount of slaves they had. (Doc. 7) Williams shows us that rich Englishmen liked getting richer and they used their plantations to attain this goal. The second driving force behind the sugar trade was the amount of slaves that were needed in order to produce these mass amounts of sugar. Men, and  women, and possibly children, were forced into the field to work or into the boiling-house. (Doc. 8) Clark and Bridgens illustrated that the British didn’t care what age or gender you were, you still went out and made sugar each and every day. Slaves didn’t come cheap though, at least not in British Caribbean. In 1748, slaves cost â‚ ¬32 in the British Caribbean whereas they only cost â‚ ¬14 on the West African coast. (Doc. 9) This indicates that the British Caribbean wanted to give the buyers a run for their money, whereas the African coast didn’t know better, this was all new to them. As the amount of slaves someone owned went up, so did the amount of sugar that was produced, unless you were the French in 1789, where they somehow actually lost tons. (Doc. 10) The British were probably more efficient in producing crops than the French and it resulted in them being the biggest sugar trader in the Caribbean. The need for slaves was so imperative that the British would trade thing that weren’t even theirs in order to make sure they had slaves. (Doc. 11) Campbell displays the variety of thing that the Brits would trade, such as powder, bullets, tobacco-pipes, certain toys, and some East India goods, but in the end, nothing was their own. The third force behind the sugar trade was the demand. Everywhere you looked, there were people using sugar for something. Whether it be tea, or rum, people had to have sugar. They would have a large barrel that weighed between 700 and 1200 pounds filled with sugar and people would go insane trying to get it. (Doc. 3) Parris illustrates this to us and Moseley says that the increasing demand for sugar exceeded all comparison with other articles, meaning sugar was the number one thing that Brits of the 1600s and 1700s wanted more than life itself. The UK, and most of the rest of the world, has used sugar to put in tea, which has made tea the most important nonalcoholic drink ever. (Doc. 4) Sugar was and is still a big deal, not only in England, but also in the US; ask ten people and see how many of them drink tea or coffee with sugar in it. By 1770, the population was well above eight million, and the consumption was up to 16.2 pounds. (Doc. 5) That basically says that all the Brits were drinking two pounds of sugar a year! They even set up a parliament that set up a trading system that said Brits made materials into finished goods, such as pots and pans, and then merchants would go and sell it at high prices in England and other  countries, which meant more money came in than went out. (Doc. 12) This meant that they could use the money that came in to buy more sugar or slaves to make sugar. Although there were many forces driving the sugar trade, what mainly drove it were the ideal land masses for sugar production, the amount of slaves needed, and the demand for it. One beneficial factor to this DBQ would have been more information on the French because it’s know that they were also planting and growing sugar, but we don’t hear their success story, as they did pass Britain in the top sugar producer in 1740.

The World Tourism Organization

The World Tourism Organization World Tourism Organization defined tourism as the activities of persons travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business, and other purposes. Tourism Industry is well developed from an insignificant activity to the current worlds largest industry since World War Two. In developed countries, people travelling domestically as well as travelling to less developed countries had increased. Since tourism industry had increased tremendously, as a result, tourism industry had become one of the industries which strongly influence an economy of a country. Therefore, individual countries had to develop more attractions to sustain tourism. Hence, key concepts of sustainable development and sustainable tourism, values and ethics of sustainable tourism and the needs of sustainability shall be discussed in this essay. Sustainable Development is an industry that aims to meet the needs of the people while protecting the environment, meeting the needs not only for the present, but also the ability to meet future generations needs. As mentioned, tourism industry has been increasing over the years as more people are interested to spend their time in nature. As a result, ecotourism has become the one of the fastest growing sector in the tourism industry. Greater numbers of tourist make it more likely that natural attractions and wilderness habitats will be at risk. Therefore, officials in charge for these areas will have to shoulder a huge responsibility for handling challenges and to decide how tourism development can be sustained over long term. Proper Planning is very important for sustainable development as planners must know the importance that consumers resources will creates waste and require certain kinds of infrastructure. It creates an issue over consumption of resources. Private investments take this opportunity to maximize its profits. This multi-faceted nature makes control tough. The challenge of sustainable development faced is to balance these facts and it can only be done only through integrated, cooperative approaches involving all directors and related activities in the area. Ecotourism create opportunities for villages, remote areas and natural resources as long as government aims to increase the numbers of tourist in these attractions and locals do participate in the process. Values There are values in Tourism which may allow to sustaining tourism and locals to lead a better future. Therefore, locals and tourist playing a part to sustain tourism are crucial. Economic sustainability Economic sustainability is focusing on improving the living standard of the locals and activities is properly maintained in the long term, creating opportunities in tourism, leisure and regeneration. Ecotourism is usually calculated as the economic value added in relation to its aggregated ecological impact. This idea has been popularized by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) under the following definition: Eco-efficiency is achieved by the delivery of competitively-priced goods and services that satisfy human needs and bring quality of life, while progressively reducing ecological impacts and resource intensity throughout the life-cycle to a level at least in line with the earths carrying capacity. (Desimone and Popoff, 1997: 47) Ecotourism and social sustainability are working closely together to achieve an increase economic sustainability. In the process, both natural and social capitals were used to aim to benefit from a win-win situation. Social Sustainability Social sustainability has a focus on understanding human rights and provides equal opportunities in the society, recognizing and respecting individual cultures and avoids exploitation. Social sustainability shows the relation between a companys value added and its social impact. These can be either positive or negative. Corporate giving and creation of employment are examples of positive relations and accidents in workplace, mobbing of employees, abusing human rights are negative examples. The types of impact on socio-efficiency either try to minimize negative social impacts or maximize positive social impacts. Environment Sustainability Environmental sustainability is the process on conserving and managing resources, especially resources that are non renewable, making sure current processes of interaction with the environment are pursued with the idea of keeping the environment as naturally as possible based on ideal-seeking behavior. Unsustainable situation occurs when natural resources are used up faster than it replenished. Sustainability requires humans activities only uses natural resources necessary, at a rate that natural resources can be replenished naturally. Sustainable Tourism Sustainable Tourism is an industry which committed to obtain a low impact on the local culture and environment, while helping to boost the economy and decrease the unemployment rate for the locals. Sustainable Tourism is a continual process of improvement, ensuring a positive experience for Travel Agencies, tourists and even locals themselves and also applies in cities, resorts, rural and protected areas. Sustainable Tourism aims to conserve the environment while boosting economy, obtaining environmental benefits and socio-cultural. Sustainable Tourism not only allows tourist to have a better knowledge about the country they are visiting but also helps locals to learn about tourists culture. Sustainable Tourism expects the participations from the locals, which also provide locals an opportunity to improve their living standard. Above all, Sustainable Tourism stresses pointedly upon integrity of the tourist places. Tourism sector must be planned and managed suitably with the current and increasing numbers of tourist. Sustainable development of tourism is only possible when its follows its guidelines and principles. Principles of Sustainable Tourism Minimizing Environmental Impacts Tourism should know the importance of both local and global environmental issues. Tourism should preserve the visual quality of landscapes and prevent having an impact on the environment by minimizing water, land, pollution of air and generation of waste. Tourism should also seek attention to matters like greenhouse gas emissions and usage of non-renewable resources. Achieving Conservation Outcomes Tourism should preserve natural resources like natural areas, habitats, wildlife and even using the profits from these resources to enhance the qualities to attract more tourists visiting the country. Such achievements not just attracting more tourists, but it also an instrument in telling a story and invoke an emotional response from tourists. Tourism and Conservation can be achieved from a mutually beneficial alliance. Being One of a Kind One of the keys factor to be a successful and sustainable tourism is to achieve a difference from other competing destinations. It can be obtained by developing and marketing on the strengths and attributes of the Country. Attractions that relevant to the culture, history, lifestyle and natural resources of the Country are most likely to be successful. As it can tell a story about the features of the attraction, as a result, providing a more rewarding experience to tourists while conserving natural resources of the destinations. Community Values Tourism is able to reflect community values which means, representing the present, past and future aspirations of the Country community in a living and dynamic way which preserve the past. In order to obtain a richer tourism experience, adding values to current strengths is crucial, which include sales outlets or dining accommodation, in association with established industries. Understanding and targeting the market Understanding the needs, the broad market trends and expectations of specific segments is crucial which involves the development of specialized products based on the inherent attributes of an area. Ethics Platform towards Tourism Ethics which also know as moral philosophy is a philosophy which questions about morality, concepts such as good and bad, right and wrong and justice. Ethical are often to be subjective. World Tourism Organization has published a global code for tourism but we are unable to view ethics on the basis of individual as we all have to understand, every individual have their own perspective. Pro and Cons Certainly, we are unable to correct people whom does not practice codes of ethics as they have their own believe, and people hates a third party to correct their believe. There are certain guidelines to allow people to practice good codes of ethics and people who practices good codes of ethics are definitely a role model to follow. Below are some examples of good code ethics and bad code of ethics. Good codes Gain commitment of leader in organization and front line workers. Offer clear statement of objectives, expectations, obligation and rules, a continuous flow of information and a resolution system which is transparent. Outline meaningful benefits for participation. State negative repercussions if principles are not complied with. Bad codes Not backed by action, lead to deceptive or misleading advertising, bring bad publicity, leading to a loss of consumer trust, discourage competition and encourage collusion, create an uneven playing field and attracts negative attention. These are cases that people exploiting tourist just because they are unfamiliar with the area, taking advantage of the situation and aim to have an easy income; charging more than the market rate. Implications Tourism is one of huge industries that influence the global economy. Above, this essay had shown the importance to achieve sustainability in tourism with good codes of ethics. But in a global context, can it be accomplish? Is achieving sustainability in tourism for the benefits for everyone? Government in individual country definitely will not allow other governments to take advantage of their own land and every government wants the best out of it. Therefore, if every government tends to have such mindset, it will only bring harm to their people and the economy. The Horns of the Dilemma the Dilemma that one cannot solve both crises at once (Sachss 1999) In Burma, Burmese are forced to make way for huge new tourism development from their home. In India, locals have to walk miles to get water just because of hotels build nearby siphon it off from the groundwater for their own excessive uses. Achieving sustainability may be unethical because it benefits some while the costs are born by others, usually the lower income groups or poorer nations (Stabler 1997) Adaptive paradigm Sustainable tourism must be regarded as an adaptive paradigm that accommodates both weak and strong interpretations of the sustainable development idea. (Hunter 1997) Weak sustainable tourism strategies which also know as anthropocentric approach, apply to environments like town areas where protection of natural habitat become irrelevant. Hotels, Resorts and Theme parks are modes of tourism which stresses on the word development in Sustainable development and it can be influenced by the Advocacy Platform. Strong sustainable tourism strategies which also known as biocentric approach, is when even a small movement in tourism-related activity could cause an unacceptable environmental costs. According to Adaptancy platform, any form of action that consequences are unknown, should be avoided. This approach stresses on the word sustainable in Sustainable development and it can be influence by both, Advocacy Platform and Adaptancy Platform. Conclusion Tourism industry has now become one of an influential industry to the global economy and it is also the creator of jobs across the globe. To sustain tourism, sustainable developments and sustainable tourism are crucial and have to be well planned and managed, as these two elements play a big role to sustain tourism. Everybody do also have a part to play to sustain tourism, they must all share a same vision to preserve the natural resources to meets the current and future generation needs. Government should host more programs to allow locals to understand the importance of protecting the resources that they have and not taking them for granted. Inconsiderate behavior should be minimize and practice good ethic behaviors. Developers should consider for the locals, respecting their human rights when they are planning an investments and not purely ignore them. Locals should invite tourist with a smile in their country, giving them a good experience upon leaving the country, and not having the idea of making easy income. As this will only leaves a bad impression in tourist when leaving, making them thinking twice visiting into the country again. With all people playing a part to this tourism industry, locals will only improve their living standards and people having a wider knowledge for individual culture and enjoying themselves without any worries even they are at an unfamiliar environment and last but not least, boosting the global economy.

Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ Essay -- Movie Film Essays

Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ Despite the rebuke of Jewish and Christian communities in our culture today, Jews and Christians have faced a thickening wall of inter-faith tension for quite a while; it is an issue our society does not often bring to the forefront among popular current events.   However, the release of Mel Gibson’s film, The Passion of the Christ, not only drew out the results of this tension among Jewish and Christian communities, but also reinforced those age-old tensions in our society.   Various Christian denominations have responded by bringing attention to their respective condemnations of anti-Semitism, and stressing the importance of inter-faith tranquility between Jews and Christians, bringing to light the common elements of the two faiths while respectfully acknowledging the differences.   These concerns, addressed hitherto, do not just come from biased faith communities 4, but from objective sources as well, concerned merely with the preservation of peaceful relations among several groups, such as the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).   While the ADL has admitted it cannot and will likely never have any evidence by which to accuse Mr. Gibson of being an anti-Semite, it does fear effects of the film on strengthening current waves of anti-Semitism, as well as creating an inaccurate image among impressionable observers unfamiliar with Jewish or Christian theological teachings 1.   Mr. Gibson has, wittingly or unwittingly, reinforced these tensions by following the film up with a harsh branding of all non-Christians as followers of Satan, a message that Jewish and Christian leaders alike fear could become the demise of inter-faith relations among Jews and Christians around the globe, as Dr. David Elco... ... 12 Feb. 2004.   Obtained from http://www.ajc.org/InTheMedia/OpinionsDetail.asp?did=202&pid=2091.   7) Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.   ?Declaration of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to the Jewish Community.?   18 Apr. 1994.   Obtained from http://www.elca.org/ecumenical/interfaithrelations/jewish/declaration.html.   8) Fisher, Eugene.   ?National Workshop on Christian-Jewish Relations.?   23 Sep. 1996.   Obtained from http://www.ibiblio.org/bgreek/archives/96-08/1004.html.   9) The Pontifical Biblical Commission.   ?The Jewish People and their Sacred Scriptures in the Christian Bible.?   Vatican Press; 2002.   Obtained at http://www.bigbrother.net/~mugwump/jcrelations/. 10) Sandmel, David Fox.   ?The Passion of the Christ ? Jewish Reaction and Commentary.?   Obtained from http://www.elca.org/ecumenical/interfaithrelations/thepassion/jewish_reaction.html.  

Soft Corals :: Ecology Great Barrier Reef Essays

Soft Corals Organisms of the order Alcyonacea, more commonly referred to as soft corals, are fascinating and poorly-understood animals. Although they are Cnidarians, and thus among the simplest of all animals, they have developed remarkable ways of thriving in the Great Barrier Reef and all over the world. They possess symbiotic relationships, special toxins, and several different methods of reproduction, each helping to ensure the survival of the various soft coral species. The purpose of this paper is to investigate physiological and ecological aspects of soft corals, especially the purposes and benefits behind their many reproductive strategies. Taxonomy: What is a soft coral? Soft corals are members of the phylum Cnidaria, meaning they have stinging cells, a gastrovascular cavity, and are radially symmetrical. They belong to the class Anthozoa, which also includes hard corals, sea fans, and anemones. Soft corals, sea fans, and sea pens are sometimes referred to as octocorals, as they have eight tentacles on each polyp. All soft corals belong to the order Alcyonacea, which is composed of several families (Order Alcyonacea 1995-2005.) The most common families on the Great Barrier Reef are Alcyoniidae, Nephtheidae, and Xeniidae. Corals in the family Alcyoniidae are often large and fleshy with medium-sized polyps, but can have many different forms. Xeniid corals have large polyps, usually in pale colors, and some of them pulsate. Corals that belong to Nephtheidae have small polyps, and are often branched and tree-like. Less common families on the Great Barrier Reef include Nidaliidae and Astrospiculariidae (Fabricius and De’ath 2002. ) Life Cycle Soft corals begin their lives as small, featureless free-swimming larvae called planulae (Alderslade and Fabricius 2002.) Planulae generally drift in a planktonic state for several days before finding an acceptable substrate. This allows soft corals to spread throughout large reefs like the GBR (Bastidas et al. 2001,) and also lets them colonize reefs around the world if the planulae are picked up by large ocean currents. The main element that qualifies a substrate as acceptable for a soft coral is the amount of light it receives, although water temperature and the strength of the current are also important factors. Soft Corals :: Ecology Great Barrier Reef Essays Soft Corals Organisms of the order Alcyonacea, more commonly referred to as soft corals, are fascinating and poorly-understood animals. Although they are Cnidarians, and thus among the simplest of all animals, they have developed remarkable ways of thriving in the Great Barrier Reef and all over the world. They possess symbiotic relationships, special toxins, and several different methods of reproduction, each helping to ensure the survival of the various soft coral species. The purpose of this paper is to investigate physiological and ecological aspects of soft corals, especially the purposes and benefits behind their many reproductive strategies. Taxonomy: What is a soft coral? Soft corals are members of the phylum Cnidaria, meaning they have stinging cells, a gastrovascular cavity, and are radially symmetrical. They belong to the class Anthozoa, which also includes hard corals, sea fans, and anemones. Soft corals, sea fans, and sea pens are sometimes referred to as octocorals, as they have eight tentacles on each polyp. All soft corals belong to the order Alcyonacea, which is composed of several families (Order Alcyonacea 1995-2005.) The most common families on the Great Barrier Reef are Alcyoniidae, Nephtheidae, and Xeniidae. Corals in the family Alcyoniidae are often large and fleshy with medium-sized polyps, but can have many different forms. Xeniid corals have large polyps, usually in pale colors, and some of them pulsate. Corals that belong to Nephtheidae have small polyps, and are often branched and tree-like. Less common families on the Great Barrier Reef include Nidaliidae and Astrospiculariidae (Fabricius and De’ath 2002. ) Life Cycle Soft corals begin their lives as small, featureless free-swimming larvae called planulae (Alderslade and Fabricius 2002.) Planulae generally drift in a planktonic state for several days before finding an acceptable substrate. This allows soft corals to spread throughout large reefs like the GBR (Bastidas et al. 2001,) and also lets them colonize reefs around the world if the planulae are picked up by large ocean currents. The main element that qualifies a substrate as acceptable for a soft coral is the amount of light it receives, although water temperature and the strength of the current are also important factors.

General Henry Arnold and The United States Airforce Essay -- Military,

It can be argued that General Henry â€Å"Hap† Arnold is the father of the United States Air Force. His experiences, wisdom, and foresight are what made him, in every way, a visionary leader. Due to his efforts developing air mindedness during the first part of the 20th century, he shaped what is today the greatest Air Force on the planet. I will begin by explaining his effective use of transformational leadership and the impact it has on the development of airpower. Then I will explain how his acceptance of diversity impacted the war effort during WWII and the future of the United States Air Force. First, we must know what shaped him into the leader he eventually became. Hap Arnold started out his military career somewhat average. He attended the United States Military Academy graduating in 1907. While at the academy he was not a stand out student. Hap was so average he received an assignment to the infantry, instead of the cavalry, which was highly coveted at that time, similarly to getting accepted to pilot training out of the U.S. Air Force Academy today. In 1911 he became one of the first Army aviators and even won the Mackay trophy for taking a biplane to an altitude of 6,540 feet, a record at the time (Glines, 2006). The early days of military aviation was not without danger. Hap almost died when his plane when into an uncontrolled spin. After that experience he gave up flying, stating, â€Å"I cannot even look at a machine in the air without feeling that some accident is going to happen to it (Glines, 2006).† Billy Mitchell brought him back to the flying world in 1916. While stationed in San Diego he was able to get over his f ears and return to flying. He filled several positions during his career; supply officer, Sq... ...emier airpower in the world shows this. He moved the Air Corps from a small fighting force to, at the time of his retirement, the cusp of its own service. His actions were truly transformational. He also embraced diversity. By championing women pilots he showed the aspects of an inclusive environment. If it wasn’t for this average cadet we would not be discussing to aspects of what makes a visionary today. Bibliography Daso, M. D. (1994, January 25). DTIC. Retrieved from DTIC: http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a282164.pdf Glines, C. (2006, June 12). General Henry H. 'Hap' Arnold: Architect of America's Air Force. Retrieved from Historynet.com: http://www.historynet.com/general-henry-h-hap-arnold-architect-of-americas-air-force.htm Parrish, D. B. (2008). Hap Arnold Biography. Retrieved from National WASP Museum: http://waspmuseum.org/hap-arnold-biography/

Part I Root Attitudes and Beliefs

Global settings create specific requirements for personal, organizational, cultural values. In general, there are no limits to the attitudes people hold.Attitudes are learned throughout life and are embodied within our socialization process. In the global setting, some atti ­tudes may be central to us – a core construct – which may be highly resistant to any change (perhaps a religious belief); whereas other, more peripheral atti ­tudes, may change with new information or personal experiences.A person should be a proactive, which means to be response to change creating new knowledge and finding methods of problem-solving. Reactive person cannot be creative which limits its opportunities and prevents from personal growth (Oden, 1997).In the workplace, there should be full and genuine participation of staff concerned as early as possible, preferably well before the actual introduction of new equipment or systems.A person should concentrate on the roots of the problem in order to remove doubt and indecision. It involves having an objec ­tive to achieve and the tests of whether that objective is being achieved or not form the control criteria. Decisions involve the future and involve choice therefore they can be wrong (Cowen, 2002).2. Achieving personal significance is another factor which ensures personal development and growth. Every person is unique personality (Hill, Levenhagen, 1995).For instance, from early years many entrepreneurs and creative people, artists and musicians reveal creative skills in different aspects of life. On the other hand, researchers underline that these skills can be trained and developed in many people in spite of their sets of genes and nature. If a person understands his uniqueness, it creates new opportunities for companies. In global settings, it is crucial to find the essence and meaning of life.Most people not only believe that worrying about difficulties becomes a way not to worry (or even think about) other pressing issues; people also believe that many common Amer ­ican concerns about stress are misplaced. If a person understands his â€Å"divine role† and accepts his destiny, he becomes patient to other people trying to apply universal wisdom to life (Fitzsimmons, 1997).3. To discard the negatives, every person should develop unique interpretation of â€Å"a self† and â€Å"the essence of life† based universal values and laws. All actions of people are aimed toward the positive, and purpose is in nature. This life philosophy frees people from worries (Gesteland, 1999).The conditions of possibility, in which such a life can be attempted to be lived, take the view that the institutions of the modern state, as these are developing in the advanced societies, do have the potential for accommodating a range of spheres of life such as private morality and economic activity within which individualism could flour ­ish, but which at the same time are held within a set of political institutions capable of securing.