An Analysis of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

â€Å"Everyone suspects himself at least one of the cardinal virtues and this is mine: I am one of the few honest people that I have ever known. †-Nick Carraway. Nick is an impartial, honest, and loyal character. He gives readers a detailed, accurate account of the events pertaining to Gatsby’s life. Nick spends time with Gatsby and Tom even though they do not like each other. In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the color gray is continually used to show Nick’s impartiality to the characters and conflicts. Throughout the whole book, there is tension between Tom and Gatsby since they both want Daisy to love them.Nick acts as a friend to both characters; he spends time with Tom going out on the town, and with Gatsby attending parties every weekend. â€Å"Gray cars, ash gray men,† is a phrase used on page 23 as a color reference to Nick’s neutrality between the two opposing characters. Nick comes off as a very honest character to readers and o ther characters in the book. On page 19 Daisy says to Nick, â€Å"You remind me of a-of a rose, an absolute rose. † The red color of the rose represents his passion and care for other people.He looks out for all of the other characters throughout the book even while he struggles with his own personal concerns and struggles. When Gatsby offers to let Nick join in his gambling, Nick refuses; he wants to make an honest living. Nick remains loyal to Gatsby after his death when all of his other friends do not. Out of all of the people that Gatsby knew, Nick was one of three that attended his funeral. Other people pretended to be Gatsby’s friend just to get to attend parties or take advantage of him, but Nick actually cared for Gatsby and remained loyal to him throughout the entire story.On page 188 the phrase â€Å"on the white steps,† represents peace. Nick valued peace and friendship which went along with his loyalty to Gatsby. Though Nick, like the other character s in the book, has some faults, he remains impartial, honest, and loyal. Nick’s demeanor allowed him to provide an honest, accurate account of the events of Gatsby’s life. He told us the story to the best of his ability and through that story we can learn more about Nick and ourselves.

Unexpected Benefits

In the fourteenth century, the face of Europe was forever changed by a devastating event known as the Black Plague. This plague would rear its ugly head time and again throughout Europe in lesser outbreaks right up through the eighteenth century, when it finally disappeared from the continent for good. However, its initial appearance happened in the fourteenth century, and this debut performance was its most dramatic and destructive.Called the â€Å"great mortality† by contemporary writers1, for the great number of people killed in the outbreak, the term â€Å"black plague† or â€Å"black death† became more commonly used later on as more outbreaks hit the European continent. Carried by fleas on rats, the Black Plague is now commonly thought to be bubonic plague, a disease characterized by sub-dermal hemorrhages that blacken the skin; it is highly contagious and has a high mortality rate. It is thought that Black Plague first entered Europe from Asia, along the si lk roads that merchants used to travel between the continents for the purposes of trade. 4 1Boccaccio, Giovani.The Decameron. Signet Classics: New York. 2002 (reissue). 4Kelly, John. The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of All Time. Harper Collins: New York. 2005. When the Black Plague first hit Europe, the conditions in Europe were ripe for a devastating outbreak. Warfare and a widespread famine that lasted nearly a century had weakened the population of Europe to the point that the people were extremely vulnerable to disease. Famine also hurt productivity by weakening workers, thus further reducing the output of food and other necessary goods; it was an ugly, self-perpetuating cycle.In a population already suffering and on the brink of disaster, the Black Plague, which first made its European appearance in 1347, was a final push toward a dramatic re-alignment of society. Over one-third of the population of Europe was killed by th e Black Plague (and over half the population in Britain). It wiped out entire families, and even entire communities. When it was over, the stunned and decimated population had to face a virtual rebuilding of their entire society from scratch.However, as devastating as the Black Plague was on the inhabitants of Europe, and as hard as things were on the survivors, the Black Plague did have some unexpected benefits for the survivors and their descendants, benefits that would improve the overall quality of life for everyone in Europe, peasants included, for generations to come. One of the most immediate benefits to survivors of the Black Plague was an increase in wages. Before the population was decimated by the Black Plague, Europe had been drastically overpopulated for its resources, resulting in widespread poverty, especially among the peasants.After the Black Plague, however, labor came at a premium, due to the reduction in the population. There were not nearly as many people availa ble to do much-needed work, and therefore those who were available to do it were more sought-after. As a result, wages increased, because employers were now competing for the smaller pool of workers, rather than workers competing for a smaller pool of jobs, as had been the case before. With higher wages, survivors were better able to provide for their families, and the standard of living for many families dramatically increased.In fact, some families fortunes increased so dramatically that they began to live as the nobility did, dressing in fine clothes, living in fine houses, and even employing servants of their own. In some European countries, the nobility were so threatened by the new upward mobility of the peasants that laws were enacted that regulated just what the peasant class could wear and where they could live, so as to prevent the peasant class from mingling with the nobility or trying to become part of the nobility2.In fact, increased opportunities for social advancement were another unexpected benefit of the Black Plague for survivors. Before the Black Plague, Europe was fairly 2Cantor, Norman. In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death and the World it Made. Harper Perennial: New York. 2002. entrenched in the feudal system, whereby peasants worked the land for wealthy nobles, being allowed to take only a small portion of the harvest they worked to bring in for their own use, and being pretty much tied to the land of their patron for life.After the Black Plague, the surviving population realized it now had options. With so few peasants available to work the land, landlords began competing to attract tenants to their estates, a phenomenon that was new in Europe. Previous to the Black Plague, landlords had a self-propagating population of peasants on their land, generation upon generation of families that stayed on the same land, on the same estate, and worked under whatever conditions the landlord set, as there was nowhere else for them to go.Howev er, after the Black Plague, landlords offered incentives for peasants to come work their land, incentives ranging from actual wages to improved living conditions to increased freedoms. In fact, some historians believe that the conditions in Europe just after the end of the initial Black Plague laid the roots of what was to become capitalism centuries later. A reduction in the population also meant that there was an increase in the amount of fertile land available to the population.With entire families wiped out, sometimes noble or land-owning families, their land became available, land that had often been in the same family for centuries. This opening up of new land created opportunities not only for landlords to increase their holdings and attract new peasants to work for them, but also created opportunities for upwardly mobile peasants to become landowners in their own right. With land available for those who could afford to purchase it, many peasants found that their newfound inc rease in wages also bought them the opportunity to become settled on their own land, and, in effect, their own masters.The Black Plague also, in effect, put an end to the century-long famine in Europe. With fewer people to feed, there was more food available for those who were left. The opening up of new, tillable land on which to grow food, the demand for labor that produced more food, and the increase in wages that allowed a family to buy more food, all led to an increase in consumable food available for everyone. As a result of the Black Plague, the survivors became better nourished and healthier, and thus better able to work to produce more food, as well as better able to fight off new outbreaks of disease as they came.Even with an increase in wages and other benefits attracting most of the available workers after the Black Plague, there were still too few people around to work to do everything that needed to be done in the time in which it needed to be done. Therefore, out of n eed, a plethora of labor-saving devices began to be invented following the Black Plague. These devices helped to speed along necessary work, and reduced the number of people necessary to complete certain jobs. The spinning wheel is an excellent example of this.The spinning wheel was a post-Black Plague invention that dramatically reduced the time and effort involved in turning wool into thread. 3 With more thread able to be produced more quickly than by traditional methods, cloth was able to be weaved quicker and in greater quantities, thus creating an abundance of fabric available for sale and for personal use. Springs and gears were invented to control the hands of clocks. Horseshoes and spring carriages were invented that eased the burden of travel and increased its efficiency.Three-crop field rotation was invented, which increased farming efficiency by dropping the old idea of individual farming plots and introducing the idea of open-field communal farming. In addition, heavier plows with wheels and horizontal plowshares were invented, which saved much time and labor in the process of farming. Finally, the ultimate of all medieval inventions, the printing press, was invented post-Black Plague, an invention that saved an enormous amount of time and energy by ending the need of copying books by hand, thus making the written word more widely available to the general public.3 3Herlihy, David. The Black Death and the Transformation of the West. Harvard University Press: Cambridge. 1997. The effects of the Black Plague were felt in every facet of life, not just social and economic. The Black Plague utterly changed the face of life in Europe forever. The plague even affected the art of the times. Whereas before the Black Plague, religious themes were the most common topic of art, after the Black Plague, a more pessimistic feeling pervaded a society that was terrified of the plague returning.As a result, themes of death became dominant in the artwork for more than a century after the plague. The prestige and authority of the Church were also negatively affected by the Black Plague. Because the church was not able to cure victims of the plague, or even explain what was causing the plague, cynicism of the church grew among the populace. As a result, many sought out alternatives to the traditional church, particularly through smaller religious cults such as self-flagellants (who flogged themselves in atonement for the sins that supposedly brought on the plague).Others sought out secular solutions to ending the plague. Further, because so many monks died in the plague (from living in close quarters and from generously tending the sick), the church experienced an influx of new, less dedicated clergy, who were more opportunistic than the old guard, and contributed to an upcoming period of severe corruption within the Catholic church that eventually led to the Protestant Reformation. 2While the Black Plague was a devastating event for all of Europe , killing millions, it left behind conditions that lead to some positive changes in European society. While wiping out entire families and towns, the Black Plague nonetheless created a fertile ground for economic improvement and upward social mobility for the underclass in its wake. The Black Plague led to the downfall of the feudal system and created the conditions that later ushered in the Age of Enlightenment.It ushered in a new age of labor-saving inventions that changed the face of production in the world. Because it was such a powerful force on both society and the psyche, the Black Plague also ushered in an era of change in both art and religion, changes that eventually led to the Protestant Reformation, which in turn led to the founding of America by the Puritans. The Black Plague, though it destroyed, also provided the seeds of sowing something new and good. 2Cantor, Norman. In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death and the World it Made.Harper Perennial: New York. 2002. B ibliography Boccaccio, Giovani. The Decameron. Signet Classics: New York. 2002 (reissue). Cantor, Norman. In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death and the World it Made. Harper Perennial: New York. 2002. Herlihy, David. The Black Death and the Transformation of the West. Harvard University Press: Cambridge. 1997. Kelly, John. The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of All Time. Harper Collins: New York. 2005.

Show how foil characters behavior and values contrast the protagonist Essay

Show how foil characters behavior and values contrast the protagonist in the modern drama play Death of a Salesman by Miller and A Doll House by Ibsen - Essay Example In a â€Å"Death of a Salesman† Charley and Biff can be considered as foil for the main protagonist Willy. The aim of this paper is to explore and show the personality differences between the foil characters and protagonists. Firstly, it will be argued that Henrik Ibsen’s â€Å"A Doll House† wise and serious Mrs. Linde contrasted childish and lively character Nora. Moreover, Mrs. Linde helps Nora to embark on a new journey of finding herself by pushing her to face the reality and reveal herself. Secondly, it will be shown that in Arthur Miller’s play â€Å"Death of a Salesman† down to earth and realistic Charley and Biff are highlighted the dreamer and somewhat crazy side of Willy. However, while Mrs. Linde, as her foil, helps Nora to face the reality and to begin a new life, Biff’s challenges are not sufficient make Willy, the tragic hero whose mental faculties seem to be damaged, to embrace the reality. In Henrik Ibsen’s â€Å"A Doll House†, Mrs. Linde and Krogstad serve as foils for Nora and Torval, since their differences provides a contrast. Henrik Ibsen portrays Nora as a lively young woman, and her lighthearted attitude is highlighted by Mrs. Linde’s serious, calm and somber behavior. Their very first conversation marks the differences between the characters. In contrast to Nora’s fast and rhythmic conversation, which is full with lively expressions and exclamation marks, Mrs. Linde’s answers are rather short and precise, if not blunt. Nora’s seriousness is further emphasized in the text by referring to her as â€Å"Mrs. Linde†. The following quotation shows the mercurial and talkative nature of Nora in contrast to the pale and dull Mrs. Linde: â€Å"Nora: To enjoy yourself over Christmas, of course. Oh, how lovely! Yes, enjoy yourselves, we’ll do that. But take your coat off. You are not still cold? (Helping her). There now, let’s get cozy here by the stove. No, the easy chair there! I’ll take the rocker here. (Seizing

Managing Innovation Technology Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Managing Innovation Technology - Essay Example This could range from solving a major technological problem through a significant research programme, to simply making some minor improvements to an existing product (IPENZ 2). One example of this type of innovation is the portable MP3 player. This is basically an improvement on the compact disc player. This was market-led as there was an increasing need by the market to have this device, due to the increasing availability of downloadable files, coupled with the relatively low cost. The second is technology-led innovation. This is where a technological breakthrough, often arising from market-led innovation in another sector, creates an opportunity for a new product or service, but one that the market itself has not yet recognised. A market then needs to be developed for this innovation (IPENZ 2). An example of this type of innovation would include the in-house stereo system that is being introduced on the new housing estates in the UK. This involves speakers built into ceilings in al l rooms of house, with the main radio control centre in a central location. This means the occupants of the household, can listen to their favourite radio station, music or television programme without having to take the radio or television with them. In terms of the service sector, innovation would include applications such as the Pay Pal payment system, which is an online payment system or even online banking.For innovation to be successful it has to fulfil a number of factors. It has to have market value and to achieve this there needs to be a close link with the marketing process. There is no point in producing products if the market does not value the innovation. The innovation must be unique and protected in order to prevent competitors making any gains on it. Successful businesses rely on processes that ensure regular and constant innovation as failure is bound to happen when reliance is placed on random innovations. More and more organisations are recognising the importance of managing their innovation technology, as there are massive gains to be made in terms of copyrights and intellectual property. More importantly, they stand to attract other market segments and recognition of their efforts. The processes being employed are also relatively simple, as they entail areas such as knowledge management, and instilling a culture of openness and innovation in the organisation. Good innovation systems also focus on recruiting and retaining highly skilled and trained staff, giving them access to knowledge and then encouraging and enabling them to think and act innovatively. An effective innovation system consists of a variety of factors. The organisation must have a culture that values innovation and where staff are encouraged to think differently and take calculated risks. This requires a change in the organisational culture, as innovation cannot flourish in a static organisation or one which is heavily centralised. For innovation to work, the organisation needs to adopt a learning culture. This is essential in the current environment as the markets are relatively more unstable than they have

Lab report peer review Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Lab report peer review - Assignment Example In figure 2 the COSY and H NMR data for unknown 2 shows a structural representation known as 4-heptanone. FEEDBACK: Yes, there is a good transition between the paragraphs. The information flow from one paragraph leads to the analysis of the next one. Together, the paragraphs sustain an argument, for example, paragraph 1 that introduces the thesis statement is followed logically with paragraph 2 that analyzes unknown 1 to completion before introducing analysis of unknown 2 in paragraph 3. FEEDBACK: There is a remarkably smooth integration of examples by the author into the argument. The connections between the evidence cited and the ideas supported are also quite clear. For instance, in each of the three cases of unknowns, the author illustrates the number of carbon/proton chains that produce the structure of the peaks that help in identifying the figures. The author supports the findings with appropriate figures. FEEDBACK: The other problems are not spotted. Only clichà ©s are used in the paper. Examples are â€Å"†¦in conjunction with†¦Ã¢â‚¬  in paragraph 1 and â€Å"†¦pentane chain which mirrors each side†¦Ã¢â‚¬  in paragraph 5 (Pavia, Pg

Reflective commentary Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Reflective commentary - Assignment Example Defining the substance of the study made it possible to undertake a focused study without going off-topic ‘(Hartley, 2010)’. The definition was followed by a further inquiry into the components of the council, with a focus on the parties that make up the council, how they are selected and the powers they wield. These components were better explained by the book titled The Foundations of EU Law by T. Hartley. This was an important step, since it broadens the study in a systematic manner. This is because, the study advances from the mere definition to understanding the components of the body and the powers held by the parties. Having understood the components of the EU council as a decision making body of the EU, it was relevant to understand how the decision making process is undertaken. This required some inquiry into the procedures of undertaking meetings, their venues and what the meetings entail. At this stage, the broad topic was narrowed down to engage in understand ing the specific details of the EU council meetings, who arranges them and how the agendas are raised ‘(Hartley, 2010)’. This is when the book titled Unlocking EU Law by T. Storey and C. Turner, became relevant, since it explained all the procedures of the meetings and the changes in venues at different times ‘(Storey & Turner, 2011)’. ... In studying the role of the EU council as a decision making body of the EU, I visited the Law Teacher website to obtain credible information. Additionally, reliable and relevant sources, which particularly address the EU council and its roles were consulted. Here, the second edition of the book by A. Kaczorowska, titled European Union Law proved worth, since it comprehensively addressed the EU council and its functions ‘(Kaczorowska, 2011)’. Therefore, the resources used were the ones directly addressing the decision making process of the EU, since they would discuss this topic widely and venture into finer details, compared to other sources which generally address the EU holistically. I used The Foundations of EU Law by T. Hartley, to gain the basis the EU council decision-making mandate ‘(Hartley, 2010)’. The process of selecting the resources for use entailed consulting both the old and the new version of such resources, since a combination of the old and the new resources could be more informing than dwelling on either version. I used the third edition of Unlocking EU Law by T. Storey and C. Turner to gain an insight on how the decision making mandate of the EU council has changed over time ‘(Storey & Turner, 2011)’. Additionally, sources of information that addressed the decision making role of the council both before and after the EU enlargement were consulted, since they could give systematic information regarding the changes in the roles of the council. Here, the book, EU Law by J. Steiner, became relevant for this purpose ‘(Steiner, 2012)’. Therefore, a range of resources were consulted, to compare and contrast the information obtained, and settle on the most promising details. The

Understanding Culture Identity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Understanding Culture Identity - Essay Example Understanding Culture Identity In understanding culture identity, we may need to define the terms culture and identity separately. Many sociologists have defined culture and identity in variant ways. Different societies manifest different cultures and pass it to future generations through social interactions. Elders and schools teach culture to the young ones. However, cultural disconnect can occur when different cultures interact. In a situation where teachers and students manifest different cultures, a culture disconnect is inevitable. Additionally, there are different types of cultures with others being dominant. A dominant culture enjoys free acceptance and sharing by the majority in a given society. We also have Global culture refers to similar ways of life in different countries and the undermining of cultures via globalization. Additionally, there is mass culture that refers to the simple, entertaining and easy to understand everyday culture. Culture serves the purpose of uniting the society members, unitin g different societies, defining the uniqueness and identity of a society. An identity defines how individuals or groups see and vice versa in a given society. Socialization, mass media, family, and education form an identity. Cultural identity is thus the association of a group or individual to a given set of defined cultures. Its fundamentals include the society’s history, sociological, and socioeconomic factors. Cultural identity defines a society and the way it relates to others. Young people strive and are equally at liberty to change unpleasant cultural identities as applied by their parents. In the story, â€Å"How it feels to be colored Me† by Zora Neale Hurston  (1891 - 1960), the factor of race, individualism, discrimination, self realization, education in culture disconnect, and color comes out clearly in ascertaining culture identity (Hurston 1-3). The story reveals Zora’s discovery of her identity and pride. When I went to Indeed Zora was a Negro i n the United States who had no blood relations with the Indians. This was different from other black Americans who had Indian blood relations. Hence, her individuality and uniqueness comes to being. In the same way my individuality in high college was so unique in our family as I was the first born and the first to join college. In her childhood days, Zora greeted, sang, and danced in the streets to the Negros culture with all the loyalty. As a result, all loved her as she identified with their culture. This manifests the unity that culture identity brings in a society. However, when her mother died while she was only 13, she went to a boarding school. When I joined high school, I enrolled and actively participated in the College Bound. Zora’s culture identity manifests when she immediately becomes â€Å"colored† on joining boarding school. This brings a culture disconnect which Zora appreciates and indentifies with. The College Bound in my high school also changed my attitude on life and created many opportunities for me. Hence, the effect of education interactions with the teachers and other students plays an individual yet significant role in our culture identities. However, Zora is aware of how her new culture identity will subject her to discrimination. Indeed, her racial difference made her experience discrimination at the Jazz club (Hurston 3). I also witnessed some discrimination in my high school where some whites would not play or dine with me because I was African American. This proves the fact that some cultures discriminate over others. Nevertheless, she is ready to soldier on in

The main dangers of using mergers or acquisitions as a form of market Essay

The main dangers of using mergers or acquisitions as a form of market entry - Essay Example Mergers or acquisitions may be defined as an aspect of corporate finance or strategy and management that involves buying, selling and combination of various companies.The objective of combining is to finance or assist a company that is growing to grow fast without forming another business entity. The two terms have a slight difference, on one hand, acquisition may refer to a company taking over another and establishing itself as a new owner. On the other hand, merger occurs when two companies agree to operate as one new company. As suggested by Turner and Johnson (2010), in both cases, that is merger and acquisition the outcome is that one company swallows another and operates as one. For instance in 1999, Glaxo Wellcome merged with SmithKline Beecham creating GlaxoSmithKline as a new company. Practically, equal mergers do not often happen, in most cases a company purchases another and allows it claim that it was equal merger, despite the fact of it being technically acquisition. How ever merges or acquisitions are said to have several risks when used as the entry to the market. Mergers and acquisitions have the tendency of destroying continuity of leadership in the particular company’s management. This might happen for even over a decade since the starting of the deal. Studies have shown that the targeted companies may lose about twenty percent of their executives prior the acquisition. Mergers and acquisitions in most cases create problems in the brand. ... The issue different consumer preferences may also be endangered by M&A. This occurs when upcoming company chooses to change the products. Changes may also occur in terms of price of product. One of the motives of M&A is to make the prices higher hence maximizing profits. The risk involved is that the consumer may change their attitude and fall to consume the products. This in turn endangers the growth of the company. The resulting company is faced with the risk of operation after the transaction as suggested by Segal-Horn and Faulkner (2010). For instance the personnel management may become slow because it is either new employees are incorporated or the existing ones become overloaded. The personnel department usually takes long to adapt to the changes thus proofing a slow growth in the progress of the new business. The effect on personnel therefore makes market entry not to be effective. The management of information and risks is also dangerous factor in M&A. The previous ways of tr ansferring information may seem difficulty as a result of new workers or overload. The resulting company may become exposed to many risks due to the merger whilst the method of managing them may take long to devise. The cost of risk management may also be high at the time of market entry. This is dangerous because at this time the company is still trying to cope with the current situation. According to Deresky (2003), cultural differences and barriers proof to be dangerous to M&A in market entry. For instance, the lack of knowledge about the resulting market may be a danger to the resulting company or firm. The market may respond negatively to the merger thus result to poor sales. This will cost a lot to the new company as one of the merger

American Politics in the Context of Obama’s Election and First 100 Days Essay Example for Free

American Politics in the Context of Obama’s Election and First 100 Days Essay The election of Barack Hussein Obama as the 44th President of the United States is a watershed in the history of American politics. In a country were blacks were once prohibited from voting just because of the color of their skin, his ascent into the White House is indeed a milestone. Obama’s victory is often attributed to several factors, including changes in voting behavior and public opinion and constant media exposure. Popular support of his regime did not end with the election hype – a 2009 Associated Press-GfK poll revealed that about 48% of Americans were satisfied with the economic outcomes of the Obama presidency’s first 100 days (Philstar. com n. pag. ). The rise of the Obama regime had a tremendous impact on American politics. It brought about the prospect of women and minorities gaining a greater voice in political institutions. But Obama’s first 100 days in office told a different story. His first 100 days revealed that the substance of his regime remained largely the same as that of George W. Bush’s. This just goes to show that in the context of Obama’s election and first 100 days, American politics changed its style but retained its hegemonic and elitist nature. Winning the nomination proved to be a greater challenge for Obama than winning the general elections. Because of a national political machine attached to her and her husband, Hillary Clinton was initially chosen by the Democrat Party to become its presidential candidate (Ceaser, Busch and Pitney 15). Although Obama was young, charismatic, cerebral and self-assured, the Democrats were apprehensive about his lack of experience in the political scene (Ceaser, Busch and Pitney 16). This weakness would probably not sit well with the American electorate, who were desperate for a leader who could rectify the damaging mistakes of the Republican administration (Ceaser, Busch and Pitney 15). But shifts in the economic and demographic profile of American voters rendered Obama a more suitable presidential candidate than Clinton. As of 2004, about 56. 6% of American voters were below 30 years old (Dahl n. pag. ). Majority of these individuals grew up using the Internet as an indispensable tool for work, study and leisure. When the Clintons staged their last national campaign in 1996, the Internet was just a fledgling industry. Obama’s youth and tech savvy (he kept a Blackberry with him at all times), therefore, would make him more appealing to the aforementioned voter’s age group than Clinton (Ceaser, Busch and Pitney 106). Obama must have been aware of these advantages of his – his election campaign involved mainly the utilization of the Internet. By April 2007, he already had 1,543,000 â€Å"friends† in his account in the social-networking website MySpace. com. In sharp contrast, Clinton only had 41,500 people in her network (Dupuis and Boeckelman 123). In the spring of 2008, Obama had at least 1 million â€Å"friends† in Twitter, while Clinton only had 330,000. Although they had the same number of Facebook â€Å"friends† during this period, the website’s largest pro-Obama group had over 500,000 members, while the largest Facebook group that supported Clinton only had 30,000 members (Tapscott 252). Furthermore, Obama’s rhetoric reflected the American public’s disillusionment with traditional political ideologies. His slogan, â€Å"Change You Can Believe In,† appealed to voters because it did not bombard them with highfaluting dogmas. Rather, it showed them that â€Å"change† meant exploring for new solutions to problems. The American people did not have to make do with traditional solutions which Obama believed have already failed them in the past. For instance, he is constantly criticized for his relative youth and limited high-level government inexperience. Obama downplayed this attack by claiming that â€Å"Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld have an awful lot of experience, and yet have engineered what I think is one of the biggest foreign policy failures in our recent history† (Dupuis and Boeckelman 123). Through this argument, he pointed out that adherence to convention is not always the best for the nation. There are instances when the government and the people must work together and come up with new solutions. In addition, Obama created a firm connection between himself and the people by letting them know that he also underwent their plights. In his campaign speeches, he often used his experience as the son of a working woman and as the husband of a working woman in order to show to the people that he knew how it felt to be in their shoes (Leanne 52). He knew how it was to be poor, marginalized and to work hard just to keep ends meet. Thus, his cynicism towards conventional ideologies – he and so many other Americans remained impoverished despite their application. Given such a populist and down-to-earth campaign strategy, it was no longer surprising if Obama won a landslide victory in the 2008 national elections. But his first 100 days in office revealed that his regime was essentially the same as that of George W. Bush’s. Obama’s first 100 days revealed the â€Å"right-wing character of his administration and the class interests that it serves† (Eley n. pag. ). If there was any difference at all, it was the approach – Bush assumed a warmonger-like stance to obtain the presidency, while Obama adopted a populist one. Obama continued the Bush administration’s militarist and aggressive foreign policy. Although he promised that he will all American troops out of Iraq, troop levels in Iraq remained virtually unchanged. Furthermore, Obama expanded the war in Afghanistan and even extended it to Pakistan. Worse, he proposed a defense budget worth $664 billion – believed to be the largest appropriation for military spending in American history (Eley n. pag. ). The prison camp at Guantanamo Bay remains open, despite Obama’s pledge to eventually close it down. As a result, its inmates are at risk of being shipped to US military prisons such as those in Iraq and Afghanistan, where they can be tortured and or killed in secret. Under the guise of â€Å"moving on,† he blocked all investigations and or criminal prosecution of parties that were responsible for the torture of detainees in US military prisons across the world. Obama’s government also intervened in the procedures of several court cases in order to deny habeas corpus to detainees in US military prisons in Afghanistan (Eley n. pag. ). While Obama was busy perpetuating Bush’s foreign policy, the American economy further deteriorated. Mounting layoffs took place, along with wage cuts, home foreclosures and depreciation of real estate value and retirement savings. These developments, in turn, resulted in escalating hunger and homelessness. But instead of creating concrete solutions to put an end to these calamities, the Obama administration used billions of dollars in public funds to bail financial institutions such as AIG, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch out of bankruptcy. Worsening the situation was that these banks were discovered to have been doling out huge portions of the bailout money to their executives as â€Å"bonuses† (Eley n. pag. ). It is very ironic that Obama, a black man who experienced growing up poor and marginalized, would end up perpetuating the repressive and anti-poor policies of his predecessor. But what Obama did reflected the recourse that the US most probably resorted to in order to steer itself from the economic crisis – tighten its grip over the Third World. It is during the current economic crisis that the US needs unlimited access to the natural resources of the Third World more than ever before. Thus, the Obama administration’s promise of â€Å"change† was replaced with the de facto continuation of the Bush regime. Works Cited â€Å"AP Poll: After Obama’s 100 Days, US on Right Track. † 24 April 2009. Philstar. com. 4 May 2009 http://www. philstar. com/Article. aspx? articleId=460799 publicationSubCategoryId=200. Ceaser, James W. , Andrew E. Busch, and John J. Pitney. Epic Journey: The 2008 Elections and American Politics. New York: Rowman Littlefield, 2009. Dahl, Melissa. â€Å"Youth Vote May have been Key in Obama’s Win. † 5 November 2008. MSNBC. 4 May 2009 http://www. msnbc. com/id/27525497. Dupuis, Martin, and Keith Boeckelman. Barack Obama: The New Face of American Politics. Santa Barbara: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2008. Eley, Tom. â€Å"Obama’s 100 Days. † 29 April 2009. GlobalResearch. ca. 4 May 2009 http://www. globalresearch. ca/index. php? context=vaaid=13419. Leanne, Shel. Say It Like Obama: The Power of Speaking with Purpose and Vision. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional, 2008. Tapscott, Don. Grown Up Digital: How the Net Generation is changing Your World. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional, 2008.

Promote communication in health, social care or children s and young peoples settings Essay Example for Free

Promote communication in health, social care or children s and young peoples settings Essay 051.1.1 Communication is an essenial part of our lifes which we start from birth, this is why i believe it is important that there is effective communication in a work setting with children and young people. We communicate to exchange thoughts, express feelings and to learn new things. How we transfer this information can be by speech, crying, using our body language or/and expressions, our main goal is to be understood. We communicate to a variety of people in our work setting, not only the children we care for but we speak with their parents and family members on a regular basis to disguss their childs individual needs as well as update them on their childs progress. This is where we can share ideas and gather information on a child such as their mannerisum and types of reasurrance techniques they use to help them feel comfortable in our setting. Most importantly we communicate to others to build relationships and at our setting we aim to maintain them. 051.1.2 Read more:Â  Essay About Promote Communication Communication and relationships go hand in hand. To create a relationship we must communicate and with communication we are creating relationships. We all need reasurrance and support, children and adults, we do this by listening about others concerns or worrys they may have and acting on them, by acting on them we are gaining trust. Having a good relationship with a childs parents and other family members makes the transition from them to us easier. It is vital that we build relationships with the children and young people that we work with to ensure comfort and to feel secure enough to be without their parents. We aim to work in partnership with adults that are involved in the childrens lives. Communication is highly important between colleagues for us to work well together and to ensure that we have a childs best intrest at heart we exchange information on a their routines, feelings and their interests.To be an efficitive team we must support each other and remain professional. A strong relationship with work colleagues rubs off on the children creating a happy enviroment.