The beginning of the seventeenth century

The beginning of the seventeenth century was the time when the arguments between naturalism and classicism were to preoccupy much of the Baroque age. Perhaps the most successful integration of these ideas came in the work of the sculptor-architect Gianlorenzo Bernini. No other artist during the Baroque era so completely dominated his discipline as did this virtuoso, whose sculpted figure works came to personify the very spirit of the Counter-Reformation. Born in Naples, from an early age he possessed tremendous technical skill in modeling.His David (Fig. 1), of 1623-24, sculpted between ages of twenty-five and twenty-six, evokes comparison with the Davids of Donatello and Michelangelo. Each work encapsulates the ideal and aspirations of its days. The sinuous body and graceful gesture of Donatello’s bronze speak of the break with the stiffness and grim determinism of the medieval age. Michelangelo’s David is quintessentially heroic, his gigantic body and sensuous muscula ture the very idiom of human self-confidence in the High Renaissance.By comparison, Bernini’s sculpture, neither complacent nor particularly grand, takes on combativeness and an offensive posture; here the body appears to attack and defeat. Christopher Baker argues that Bernini revolutionized sculpture by â€Å"Contorting facial expressions and bodies, endowing skin and drapery with tactile sensuousness, making hair and features seem to move, and differentiating textures for colorist effects† (21) Indeed, the agitation of the area around the figure was in fact very new to sculpture, and its provocative engagement of the space amplified the viewer’s relationship to the art.This was the very essence of the Baroque. Bernini’s technical skill is also worthy of consideration, for here we can see the influence of Caravaggio (Loh). Bernini’s captivating use of light and shade through the technique of undercutting gave his cold marble figure an emotional v itality on a par with the very best chiaroscuro in painting. And to appreciate fully such an advance in sculpture, it is necessary to consider in greater depth stone carving as it was practiced in the seventeenth century.Michelangelo likened carving to liberating a figure from its stone captivity. If this was indeed a feeling shared by sculptors of the day, then perhaps, as Varriano suggests, Bernini’s figures â€Å"leapt from their prisons† (73). The emotional gestures and agitated surfaces give one the impression that the figures are indeed flesh and blood. The drama of the scene is caught entirely by the convincing portrayal of movement, produced by a series of deep cuts into the marble surface that catch and reflect light.These deep spaces of shadow are produced by a technique called â€Å"undercutting† – a method of manipulating the descriptive character of light on stone. Undercutting is a technique of creating deep cuts in stone which produce shado w; (Rothschild, 72) the result suggests movement and dynamism, as the surface is transformed by light and shade capable of expressing the most dramatic of gestures. In Bernini’s remarkable The Ecstasy of St. Teresa (Fig. 2) we are witness to the dramatic potential of such a development.Noteworthy is the way the draperies of the enraptured saint take on the lightness of cloth and the way scene itself is wrapped within a turmoil of lines created through the intensive use of shadow. Bernini was also well aware of coloristic possibilities afforded by marble and used striking variation of the pink, white, green, and black varieties to produce spectacular results. One such example is his execution of the Tomb of Alexander VII (Fig.3) of 1671-8, where traditional white marble figures are juxtaposed against colored marble drapery, striking black pedestals and the every present symbol of death – the skeleton. This is the Baroque sensibility in all its glory. Considering Bernini ’s rather formidable skill in engaging space and working materials, it was perhaps inevitable that he would embrace architecture as well. The most notable of his achievements was his design for the piazza of St. Peter’s in Rome. Relying on many of the techniques and innovations of Renaissance architects, Bernini nevertheless allowed his engaging sense of novelty to guide him.As a result, the unorthodox combination of Doric and Ionic orders and the dramatic sweep of the colonnade, which psychologically heightens the pilgrim’s anticipation of the Church (Marder, 112), appear very much in keeping with his quintessentially Baroque sensibility. Here, space is arranged for what can be described only as kinesthetic ends; Bernini’s deliberate manipulation of the viewer’s sense of rhythm and motion as they progress towards the steps of St. Peter’s is thus a logical extension of his sculptural strategy – space as a psychological tool.It is this notable departure in the construction of space from the relative stasis of Renaissance that perhaps epitomizes the rise of specifically Baroque architecture. Figure 1 Gianlorenzo Bernini David 1623-24 White marble 170 cm Galleria Borghese, Rome Figure 2 Gianlorenzo Bernini Ecstasy of St. Teresa, 1642-52 Marble Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome Figure 3 Gianlorenzo Bernini Tomb of Pope Alexander (Chigi) VII 1671-78 Marble and gilded bronze, over life-size Basilica di San Pietro, Vatican Bibliography: Baker, Christopher.Absolutism and the Scientific Revolution, 1600-1720: A Biographical Dictionary. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2002 Loh, Maria H. â€Å"New and Improved: Repetition as Originality in Italian Baroque Practice and Theory. † The Art Bulletin. 86. 3. (2004): 477+ Marder, T. A. Bernini and the Art of Architecture. New York, London and Paris: Abbeville Press, 1998. Rothschild, Lincoln. Sculpture through the Ages. New York: Whittlesey House, 1942 Varriano, John. Italia n Baroque and Rococo Architecture. New York: Oxford University Press, 1986

A View from the Bridge: the Opening Scene Essay

The opening scene of Act Two marks the dramatic turning point of the play. In this scene, Catherine confronts Rodolfo over Eddie’s allegation that Rodolfo only wants to marry Catherine to be an American. However it is soon revealed that Rodolfo truly loves her. The two characters sleep together for the first time, a fact that Eddie finds out when he returns home drunk, which results in a devastating confrontation between the central characters. The seriousness and the intense emotions displayed in this scene, plus Arthur Miller’s use of dramatic devices, make this scene very dramatically effective. It is a turning point in the play because it is the first time Catherine and Rodolfo sleep together, symbolising Catherine’s transformation from a â€Å"little girl† to a grown woman; and Catherine’s ties with Eddie have finally cut as she chooses Rodolfo over Eddie. In this scene, Eddie also confronts his feelings towards Catherine as he kisses her in a fit of rage, passion and desire. This scene opens up with Alfieri’s narration. He tells the audience that Catherine and Rodolfo are â€Å"alone† in the apartment for the first time. The fact that they are alone suggests something is going to happen and sets the scene and create tension because the two characters are alone in a cramped flat without anyone to interfere and no other witnesses except the audience. The cramped apartment is dramatic device which is more obvious on stage ? the dining room is the focus of the actions, the small, claustrophobic space increases tension between the characters. The character of Alfieri serves two functions. In the play, Alfieri is the narrator, who tells the audience the story of Eddie Carbone in flashbacks, and therefore constantly reminds the readers of the tragedy that is yet to come. However he also acts as an actual character in the play ? the role of the wise lawyer, whom Eddie seeks advice from. A narrator is a typical dramatic device used often in plays, dating back to Greek tragedy, which is the style this play is written in. Catherine asks Rodolfo is he is hungry, instead he replies â€Å"not for anything to eat†. This suggests Rodolfo’s desire for Catherine and further emphasis what might happen now they are alone together. This makes the audience wonder and curious, about Rodolfo and Catherine, and also about Eddie’s reaction when he finds out. Catherine starts to ask Rodolfo a series of questions about the options of the two of them living in Italy. At first Rodolfo thinks Catherine is joking as he is smiling, as he does not know the real question Catherine is asking him. However, we as the audience understand she is testing him to see if he only wants to marry her to be an American. This is an example of dramatic irony which Miller uses to create tension and suspense as the audience wonder how Rodolfo is going to react and whether he will figure out Catherine’s true intention. We are also kept in suspense as we wait to see if Rodolfo really loves Catherine. As Rodolfo realises Catherine’s seriousness, stage directions describes that his smile â€Å"vanishes† and he is â€Å"astonished† at Catherine’s request and he walks to her â€Å"slowly†. From here, it is clear that Rodolfo recognizes something is wrong and the tension is heightened as his previous joking mood has gone and is moving onto a more unpleasant topic. Rodolfo tries to persuade Catherine by commenting Italy as having â€Å"no money†, â€Å"no business † and â€Å"nothing† and though Italy is beautiful, â€Å"you can’t cook the view†. This quote shows Rodolfo’s maturity and his understanding of reality and that he is not blinded by a mere pretty surface. As Catherine continues to pursue the idea of living in Italy, Rodolfo becomes increasingly frustrated: â€Å"There’s nothing! Nothing, nothing, nothing. † We see the characters are more emotionally charged as the argument continues; Rodolfo becomes more angry and irritable as the tension builds up, and the audience tense up as the calmer atmosphere is now disturbed by something more exciting. Finally, Catherine confesses she is â€Å"afraid of Eddie† here. This is the first time she admits her fear of Eddie and his actions to the audience, which marks another turning point of the play ? she no longer sees Eddie as a non-threatening, kind man she thought he is. There is a slight pause after Catherine’s admission. This creates tension and allows time for Catherine’s confession and is a hint to the impending tragedy sink in. However, even after this, Catherine persists with her questioning, which eventually leads to Rodolfo’s realisation: â€Å"This is your question or his question? † Therefore the penny drops as the truth comes out. From this point on, the characters confront their true feelings and give the audience further insight into the characters’ inner emotions. This quote also shows that Rodolfo is not the naive, innocent boy portrayed and seen by other earlier in the play? He is quite witty and intelligent and knows when something is going on. Rodolfo is â€Å"furious† at Eddie’s accusation of him and explains that the only reason he wants to â€Å"be an American so I can work†. This shows Rodolfo is realistic and is not just an impressionable, young, starry-eyed boy who loves America so much. This corresponds with earlier in the play with his â€Å"you can’t cook the view† speech. From here, we see another more mature, responsible side of him. This also touches on the theme of family and responsibility?  two of the things that are significant in the Italian traditions. These are shown through the way Rodolfo says that he cannot bring Catherine from a rich country to a poor one; otherwise he would be a â€Å"criminal† â€Å"stealing† her face when he cannot afford enough food for her as he would be responsible for her well-being. Catherine is â€Å"near tears† and Rodolfo is â€Å"furious† as the argument progresses. This makes the scene more dramatic as we see the characters’ emotions are displayed so raw and vividly in this scene, as indicated in the stage directions. Catherine describes Eddie as â€Å"mad all the time and nasty†, which contrasts with her earlier comments of â€Å"the sweetest guy† and â€Å"good†. This reveals that Catherine loves Eddie very much but at the same time is afraid of him as she admits herself. This paradox illustrates Catherine’s emotional turmoil and complex feelings. It also suggests that she too, knows something is wrong with Eddie’s over-the-top rage and fury about the idea of her and Rodolfo together, further emphasised by Rodolfo’s suggestion that Eddie will â€Å"spank† Catherine if she disobeys him ? that there is something dark and primal in Eddie’s feelings for Catherine. Catherine denies she is a naive â€Å"baby† like everyone thinks, which reminds us that Catherine is caught in the crossfire and has to do what everyone else’s expectation of her. However, she continues to defend Eddie as she criticises Beatrice of not being a good wife and woman to Eddie, unlike the way she can because she can â€Å"tell† and â€Å"know† what Eddie wants and needs. This almost peculiar comment deepens the audiences’ sense of unease as we suspect that something inappropriate is going on between Eddie and Catherine and that Eddie’s feeling may possibly be reciprocated. Rodolfo does not seem to realise this as he persuades Catherine to leave Eddie. Catherine then tries to change the topic and instead tells Rodolfo to â€Å"hold† and â€Å"teach† her. This shows Catherine is inexperienced. However alternatively, it can mean that she is manipulative ? when the conversation is not turning out the way she wants to, she cunningly changes the topic using her sexuality. This contrasts with the previous impression the audience have of her and suggests that she is not the saint that we think she is. She cries â€Å"softly† as Rodolfo gently leads her to the bedroom ? thus completes Catherine’s transformation from a â€Å"little girl† to a woman. It signifies Catherine’s choice of Rodolfo over Eddie as she loses her virginity to Rodolfo ? something she can never claim back, parallel to the fact she can not go back to Eddie anymore. Her ties have finally been cut. This significant event also means tragedy is inevitable as the audience know all hell will break loose when Eddie finds out. There is a little pause between the part when Rodolfo leads Catherine to the  bedroom and Eddie’s confrontation with them. During this part, no speech is spoken; it only shows Eddie’s return. This gives the audience some breathing space as tension slows down a little and to give time for the audience to prepare for the revelation Eddie is about to find out. Eddie returns home â€Å"drunk†, which creates tension as the audience anticipate trouble, and the fact that he is drunken means his behaviour would be even more aggressive and unpredictable and then making his confrontation with Rodolfo and Catherine more dramatic. Eddie sees Catherine first; the situation appears to be calm, though awkward and uneasy because the audience know that a huge thing has just happened and the calmness is just the calmness before the storm and we wait anxiously for the dreadful truth to dawn on Eddie. According to the stage direction, Rodolfo comes out of the bedroom second. Eddie sees him and his arm â€Å"jerks slightly in shock†. Rodolfo nods to him â€Å"testingly†. Eddie jerks his arm in shock implies he realises what has happened. He is in astonishment and disbelief. Rodolfo reminds the audience that Beatrice is out, which means there is no one to act as the peace-maker?  there are only three of them alone in the small, claustrophobic apartment where the atmosphere is tense and uncomfortable. There is a pause as Eddie let the revelation to sink in. the pause creates suspense as the audience wait for his catastrophic reaction. Instead, however, Eddie just tells Rodolfo to â€Å"get outa here†. A simple, short command without any explanation or discussion. This amplify the uneasiness in the atmosphere as his reaction seems strangely still to the awful knowledge he just learned, the audience are surprised by this and wonder what will happen next. Eddie grabs her arm as Catherine starts to go. This is the start and a hint to the conflict that is yet to come. Catherine starts to go. Catherine is â€Å"trembling with fright†, shows that she is really scared. She â€Å"frees her arm†, suggests that she is standing up to Eddie finally. She speaks in short sentences, creating a fast pace and urgency atmosphere Eddie tries to regain the control of the situation by commanding Catherine: â€Å"You ain’t going anywheres. â€Å" He desperately tries to make Catherine stay by use the last bit of his power to control her. When Catherine disobeys, he â€Å"draws her to him† and â€Å"kisses her on the mouth† as Eddie finally confronts his desire and feeling for Catherine. The kiss suggests there is something of a sexual desire in Eddie’s feelings, not just the simple possessiveness some fathers have of their daughters. Eddie asks Rodolfo what he is â€Å"gonna be†, thus challenging him, with Catherine as the winner’s price. Rodolfo squares up to Eddie and accept the challenge â€Å"with tears of rage†, suggesting his ego has been bruised badly. He â€Å"flies at him in attack†, which shows Rodolfo’s extreme rage at the fact Eddie has just kissed Catherine and his challenge of his manliness. However, Eddie humiliates him further as he â€Å"pins his arms, laughing, and suddenly kisses him†. This kiss is very sudden and unpredicted, so it is very shocking for the audience and we are incredulous at Eddie’s actions. This kiss is a very extreme action and we slowly realise that it is used to humiliate Rodolfo, questioning his manliness and an attempt Eddie makes to confirm his suspicion of Rodolfo’s sexuality. Catherine â€Å"tears â€Å"at Eddie’s face, while Eddie stands there with â€Å"tears rolling†. This is the point where Eddie realises he has lost and this is the point where he realises Catherine is gone from him. The audience sympathises with him because we know he truly loves Catherine and he has just lost everything he holds dear. However, he still tries to gain the control of the situation and he and Rodolfo are almost frozen with anger: â€Å"They are like animals that have torn at one another and broken up without a decision, each other waiting for other’s mood† This description compare Rodolfo and Eddie as â€Å"animals†, suggest something dark, terrifying and primal in the situation, which makes the audience feel uneasy and uncomfortable. When Eddie breaks the silence, he tells Rodolfo to get out and tells him to â€Å"watch your step, submarine. † â€Å"Submarine† is slang for an illegal immigrant. This is a warning to Rodolfo and a hint to what is going to happen. From this point on, it is clear to the audience that tragedy is inevitable because it seems that Eddie will go as far as to betray his family and report the brothers to the Immigration Bureau. We also know that if Eddie does do that, the consequence will be devastating, as foreshadowed by the Vinny Bolzano story from the very earlier on of the play. Eddie ends this act with a dreadful warning, which create suspense as to what he is going to do and grabs the audience’s attention as we wait to see his next actions even though we already suspect what he is going to do. In conclusion, the opening scene of Act Two is one of the most important and dramatic points of the play. Throughout the first act, Arthur Miller tells us of Rodolfo and Marco’s arrival and sets up the steps leading to the play’s climax ending. In Act One, the audience see the growth of Eddie’s paranoia and jealousy, slowly accumulating to his final outburst. The incident in this scene: Rodolfo and Catherine sleeping together is the final push that sends Eddie over the edge and promote him to report the cousin to the Immigration Bureau. It is in this scene Eddie’s patience runs out and in this scene he realises he has lost Catherine to Rodolfo. He confronts his feelings by kissing Catherine and humiliates Rodolfo with the shocking kiss. This scene is full of emotions which are displayed vividly to the audience through the characters’ actions and speech. The emotions grab the audience attention because we care about the characters and curious about what is going to happen.

Brachytherapy in Treating Cervical Cancer-Free-Samples for Students

Brachytherapy is a form of cancer treatment where radioactive pounds sealed in a wire, pellet or capsule is introduced into the body with the help of a catheter in order to damage the DNA of the cancer cells. It has a wide spread of application in the treatment of prostate cancer and cervical cancer. The benefits of brachytherapy are that it allows an augmented dose of radiation in a limited area unlike the other types of the radiation treatments. It actually helps to lessen the damage to the surrounding tissues due to radiation. The last two papers are about improving the image guided brachytherapy techniques in the treatment of cervical cancers. Two of my chosen papers are related to the same, as IGBT helps in a more accurate treatment and lesions that are too large for applying the other treatment techniques.   Significant improvements have occurred in the last three decades due to the use of the 3-D image guided procedures. Incorporation of the transrectal US in the image guide d brachytherapy have been found to be effective in centers that have do not access to MRI. The monly used method in the treatment of the cervical cancer is the Manchester Point A system. But the 2-D X ray image shows no contract of the soft tissues. Image guided brachytherapy helps to target the desired tissue.   There had been increasing evidence of the benefits of the image guided brachytherapy in cervical cancer, which is the main rationale behind the chosen papers. The objective of this paper is to give an overview of the gynecologic brachytherapy, with a focus on the recent advancements and their implications on the cervical cancer in women. The paper describes about the evaluation and the staging of the patient, According to this paper the initial stages of evaluation includes the cervical biopsy of the hystopathological diagnosis. According to the FIGO r mendations, patients with who would be receiving the radiation treatment should have a planning of the CT stimulation before the initiation of the EBRT. The paper also brings about a parison between the high dose rate brachytherapy and low dose rate brachytherapy. Previously LDR was used exclusively for treating the cancer by using a cesium -137 isotope. Since 2000s, the utilization of the HDR has increased considerably. The HDR employs a remote after loading technology allowing a small iridium source connected to the end of a cable that is robotically driven via the multiple channels ceasing at the dwell positions for different span of time.   The article also refers to a third type of treatment that is monly not used in the US known as the pulse dose rate (PDR) brachtherapy. The paper also gives an account of the choices, by which cervical brachytherapy can be performed, namely the intracavitary, interstitial, or a binatory approach. A cohort study was done in order to measure the clinical ou es of the image guided brachytherapy. The study pared the 2D versus the 3D IGBT . In the patients treated with both the EBRT plus chemother apy followed by a brachytherapy could show a local relapse free survival 74 % of the selected patients. Similar improvement was found in another study containing patients from Vienna. It can be understood from the paper that brachytherapy can improve the local control, reduce the toxicity and improve the overall survival rate of cervical cancer in women. The study of the paper also enables one to understand that the disadvantage of brachytherapy is that, it is invasive. The randomized control study involving 2D planning and 3D planning in selected patients showed better results in patients being treated with image guided brachtherapy. The paper also gave an account of the appropriate treatment target volume, the appropriate dose and the fractionation scheme. Although the progression from the 2D- 3D based imaging and the treatment planning for the cervical cancer has increased the overall survival of the women. Further data from the 3-D based treatment is required associated with the decrease in the toxicity of the technique. The previous paper focused on the effectiveness of overall brachytherapy in cervical cancer, but this article will aim to focus on the advantages of using imaging brachytherapy over conventional methods of brachytherapy.   The paper involves a retrospective analysis of the ou es in patient suffering from stage IB-IVA cervical cancer treated with primary radiation therapy. The ou e measures were the relapse free survival of the patient, distant metastasis, pelvic control and other adverse events related to the treatment. 126 patients have been analyzed out of which 43 patients have been treated with CBT between the years 2000-2007, and 83 patients have been treated with IGBT between the years 2007- 2012. The conventional bracgytherapy involved the application of the low dose brachytherapy and high dose rate brachytherapy was used after 2005. The standard brachytherapy applicators used were intracavatary ovoids and tandem.   From 2011, interstitial needles can be introduced in to t he ovoids for optimizing the dose distribution around the neoplasia. All the records of the adverse events were recorded if prompted by the signs and the symptoms.   The results concluded that cervical cancer survival rates have increased with the introduction of IGBT. The application of the MRI based adaptive IGBT technique was found to be useful for the patients with stage IB-IVA cervical cancer. The overall survival rate was found to improve from 51% to 83% with the shift from conventional brachytherapy to imaging brachytherapy. The study confirmed that there had been a significant decrease in the distant metastasis in the group treated with IGBT. The pelvic control rates were also found to be improved in the IGBT group. Data obtained from the patient’s record found that the IGBT patients were more likely to plete the chemotherapy faster than the patients’ receiving the conventional brachytherapy. The use of IGBT in the primary chemo radiation of the cervical cancer is superior to the CBT and should be considered as the new standard of care. It can be known from the paper that there is a requirement of improvement of the nodal and the PAN tumor control, using the PET-CT and the lessening of the adverse events in both the standard and the adaptive IMRT. A 3D MRI based image guided brachytherapy have been found to reduce the toxicity as discussed in the previous paper. The objectives of the paper were realistic. One of the limitations of the paper is that the sample population of the cohort was not large. Although there are several studies that have actually provided the evidences of imaging brachytherapy. Brachytherapy is an essential ponent for the treatment of the cervical cancers that have progressed locally. It allows the dose of the tumor to be amplified sparing the nearby tissues. Image guided brachytherapy have found to lessen the local recurrence. The article focuses on how the 3D conformal brachytherapy can be used in a hospital setting and how the brachytherapy services can be improved. The radiological studies operative parameters and patient workflow and intensive therapy planning can pose challenge to the clinical resources. The paper also discuses about the translational research opportunities in the field of brachytherapy. One of the concerns is that some proportion of the tumor will display biological resistance to the radiations and even to brachytherapy. The objective of the paper was to find new advancement in the field of imaging-brachytherapy. Hence the paper had been appropriate in stating the recent advancements in the radiotherapy techniques like the intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) and the stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT). This research paper also enables one to understand the demerits of the therapy, such as IMRT had been unsuccessful in achieving the target volume doses unlike that of the image guided brachytherapy. The paper informs that IGBT is more time consuming and requires individual planning and contouring. Additional resources such as MRI/CT scans and the patible applicators are required. The cost of setting up an IGBT is about 10-15 % more than that of the conventional procedures of brachytherapy. In a clinical setting with IGBT facilities there should be provisions for an intrauterine brachytherapy applicator as most of the patients will be having an intact uterus, which will require the placement of an intrauterine tube. It can be understood from all the three papers that image guided brachytherapy makes 3D models by using the cross sectional image. It should be mentioned that the points of similarities between the three papers were much more than the differences as all the three papers focused on the advancements in the field of brachytherapy in treating cervical cancers and the advantage of using image dependant brachytherapy over the conventional treatment of the brachytherapy. The difference between the three papers is that the last two papers focused more on the improvements in the image guided brachytherapy. The last papers exclusively mentioned the advancements rather than just paring with the conventional standards. Various retrospective studies and the cohort studies described in the three papers have showed better survival rates in patients with cervical cancer. Among the three papers my choice of paper was the first one as it had elaborately stated the difference between the new techniques and the old ones such as the difference between the HDR brachytherapy and the LDR brachytherapy, the selection of the applicator. It further gives information about the intracavity brachytherapy, interstitial brachytherapy. An appropriate treatment planning was mentioned. This assignment has not only aided us to know about the different image guided brachytherapy techniques but have also informed us with the procedures undertaken in brachytherapy Banerjee, R., & Kamrava, M. (2014). Brachytherapy in the treatment of cervical cancer: a review. International journal of women's health, 6, 555.   Otter, S., Franklin, A., Ajaz, M., & Stewart, A. (2016). Improving the efficiency of image guided brachytherapy in cervical cancer. Journal of Contemporary Brachytherapy, 8(6), 557–565. https://doi.org/10.5114/jcb.2016.64452 Rijkmans, E. C., Nout, R. A., Rutten, I. H. H. M., Ketelaars, M., Neelis, K. J., Laman, M. S., ... & Creutzberg, C. L. (2014). Improved survival of patients with cervical cancer treated with image-guided brachytherapy pared with conventional brachytherapy. Gynecologic oncology, 135(2), 231-238

Pizza Hut Franchise Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4000 words

Pizza Hut Franchise - Essay Example 2002 Tricon Global becomes YUM! Brands Inc. The Quad Pizza is launched in the UK. Pizza Hut opens its 500th restaurant. A & W and Long John Silver’s join the Yum brand. 2001 Pizza Hut begins a franchising programme with its delivery stores 2000 Pizza Hut introduces The Edge, a thin pizza with toppings all the way round the edge 1999 Pizza Hut has over 400 restaurants, employing 14000 people. The Italian Pizza is launched in the UK 1998 Pan Pizza is relaunched as Grand Pan in the UK 1997 PepsiCo decided to focus on their (sic) drinks business. As a result, Tricon Global Restaurants is born, creating the largest restaurant brand in the World. Tricon became the partner company with Whitbread. The Sicilian Pizza is launched in the UK. There are 277 restaurants and 100 delivery stores in the UK 1995 Stuffed Crust is launched in the UK 1994 10,000 Pizza Huts are open world-wide 1993 There are 300 restaurants and delivery stores in the UK 1992 There are 9000 restaurants in 84 countri es 1990 Pizza Hut reaches Russia. In the UK there are now 200 restaurants 1989 The first restaurant is converted into a Restaurant Based Delivery store 1988 The UK’s first delivery unit opens in Kingsbury, London 1987 An average of one restaurant opened each week in the UK 1986 100 restaurants in the UK and 5000 world wide 1984 50 restaurants so far in the UK 1982 UK joint venture commences between PepsiCo and Whitbread 1980 Pan Pizza Introduced 1977 PepsiCo buys Pizza Hut 1973 Pizza Hut goes international with restaurants in Japan, Canada & England. The first UK Pizza Hut opens in Islington, London 1972 1000 restaurants are open throughout the USA 1958 Frank and Dan Carney open the first Pizza Hut in Wichita, Kansas.†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (www.pizzahut.co.uk). As part of a consortium, Yum! Brands,... In recent years, the economic downturn in the world has impacted the restaurant industry. Thus, quick and cheap service restaurants like Pizza Hut cater to the needs of pocket tight consumers by offering quality food with a wonderful dining experience. As a national and international brand name, Pizza Hut maintains its position as the leader in the pizza industry, providing great food at reasonable prices. Moreover, it offers new tactics to retain and enlarge on its market share among its customers. In addition, through effective advertising and marketing strategies, it maintains a reputation of brand recognition (www.pizzahutfranchise.com). At Yum! They have developed a growing international dominance by emphasizing four major business strategies: 1). promote industry-leading, long-term franchise and shareholder value; 2). design dominant brands in China of every major classification; 3). encourage forceful global development and establish powerful brands; 4). significantly enhance U.S. brands in returns, consistency, and positions. Its focuses on four principal strategies as pictured below: In addition, Yum maintains reliable figures of achievement in 2010 with 17% Earnings Per Share (EPS) growth. This commercial success underscores the fact that Yum has obtained at least a 13% percent growth for nine consecutive years, which surpassed its 10% EPS growth expectations. Moreover, for that year alone, it established almost 1,400 new restaurants on the international scene. Significantly, Yum has retained its Return on Investment Capital (ROIC) of 20%+ and still is the market leader in the industry.

Leadership Trends Project Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Leadership Trends Project - Essay Example With due regard to power and significance of reframe, the authors have provided a set of effective learning factors that are primary aspects leading to compel organizations to reframe their managing, controlling and leading functions. In the context of structural frame, the authors have explored the key situations and causes that drive an organization to emphasize reframing decisions. Additionally, the strategy that helps organizations to reframe the increased ability of both leaders and the organizations, have also clearly illustrated in this book. Correspondingly, the authors have also provided a major emphasis regarding the pervasive role of human resource frame while an organization intends towards reframing of its strategic and operational segments. In this context, the discussion encompasses a broad area of research by considering key human resources practices in monitoring and redesigning relationship among the individuals in the organization. Additionally, empowerment is also a major consideration of the book, which have substantially portrayed about the changing roles and responsibilities of the HR personnel in organizations with an increasing focus on reframing. From a political structure perspective, the empirical and evidence based claims of Bolman and Deal (2008) have enabled to understand the impact of power, conflict, competition as well as organizational politics while intending reframing of the processes. And from a symbolic structure perspective, both the authors have illustrated the role of various organizational and environmental metaphors that have major significance on reframing leadership roles as well as strategic performance of the organization while reframing. In this regard, fostering inspiration and creating faith on the defined goals and objectives have also found to a major symbolic aspects that often garner the

Technology in My Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Technology in My Life - Essay Example Similarly, I use kitchen appliances for cooking and baking. I also make use of mobile phone to communicate with my friends and relatives. I get information about new technologies through internet research and buy the products, which I consider useful for me. For example, a couple of weeks ago, I planned to buy some new television technology to enjoy good pixel quality. I explored internet sources and came to know about light emitting diode (LED) sets, which provide excellent picture quality and enhanced view of dark scenes. Therefore, I bought a LED set, which proved to be a good choice for me to view movies and other programs. In my professional life, I make use of a range of technologies, which include laptop, iPad, fax machine, scanner, printer, and mobile phone. My company has provided all of these products to me to make me show improved productivity and efficiency. I believe that in the present age, use of technology has become critical for the success of a person in his/her professional life. Therefore, I try to make a great use of all of available technologies to show improvement in my job efficiency and

Summary and response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Summary and response - Essay Example In her own words she notes, â€Å"I am strongly opposed to young children playing tackle football.† In another instance, she notes that, by children taking part in competitive sports, they will be deprived of their ability to develop competitive aspects. In conclusion, Statsky affirms her position by noting that competitive sports only stresses on the aspects of competition and winning. By only using such credible information, she is able to relay the intended message which is plainly illustrated in her statement in which she strongly develops the image that competitive sports may be harmful to children. In her opinion, children should just be allowed to play sports that are appropriate to them and suits their abilities and needs. By these statements, it is clearly and strongly evident how Statsky has developed her arguments against such plays among children, and the recommendations she gives as alternatives for such children. Looking at the arguments set forth in the essay, I would categorically state that I agree with Statsky’s position regarding competitive sports for young children, although to a partial degree. This is because; I also value the essence of competitive theory, which forms the basis of competitive growth even in sports. However, I am mesmerized by the manner in which the author organizes and presents her arguments on the topic. In this response, I would specifically concentrate on the points that seemingly make her essay to be very effective and how she manages to build on such credibility. Particularly, she appears to be consistent in her reasoning considering that her opinions are well-supported in the essay thus, allowing readers to be convinced by it. I think that the success achieved in conveying the message across is one main achievement that is made possible and feasible by the engagement of various kinds of

The Securities and Exchange Commission Assignment

The Securities and Exchange Commission - Assignment Example The role of the division of investment management is to regulate investment companies. The SEC protects investors by providing a regulatory framework that oversees the activity of public corporations. The SEC creates laws that are geared towards ensuring public corporations report accurate information in a timely manner. An example of a law enforced by the SEC that raised investor confidence in 21st century after a series of corporate scandals is the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The work performed by the SEC enforcement division ensures corrupt companies face penalties for their actions. A fair, orderly, and efficient market means that investors have access to a reliable marketplace that is able to handle all the consumer orders during trading hours. The trading and markets division accomplishes this task by regulating the major securities market participants which includes the brokers, dealers, transfer agents, and self-regulatory organizations. The superb electronic information system of the SEC is essential to run the market in a fair, orderly, and efficient manner. Capital formation occurs when the money saved by the government and the individuals of a society is transferred to the business sector. The SEC is an institution whose objective and mission is to promote capital formation. The SEC promotes capital formation by ensuring corporation disclose all financial information through mechanisms such as the Annual Report. The investigations performed by the SEC help stop illegal activities such as insider trading that are detrimental to

Write 2 page essay Bring Your Own Technology(BYOT) Educational

Write 2 page Bring Your Own Technology(BYOT) Educational Technology - Essay Example Thus personalized learning tools, empower students and teachers for better learning environment and better understanding. At one hand the technology displays positive aspects encompassing- better indulgence of 21st Century learning skills, fostering a greater commitment with learning as it seems to be more environment friendly and tasks could be accomplished at faster pace. Educationalists believe that augmentation in education technology should empower students to make use of high tech gazettes and therefore they advocate for the implementation â€Å"Bring Your Own Technology† or â€Å"Device† initiatives (popularly known as BYOT, or BYOD). Under this program students are encouraged to fetch their own portable gadgets, tablets, and laptops to make their use in the classroom. Students should be accustomed to use the technology to successfully accomplish the targets and for better understanding. The technology displays disparity as there is a difference in equity and status, for some students it is not possible to afford personal devices for learning. Uniformity of devices- All the students as well as teachers must possess similar kind of equipments- Smart Phones, Pads, Tablets, Laptops, or Nintendo DS. Moreover infrastructure of the school must also support the devices. In some schools, mobile devices are banned as they intensify behaviour issues, distraction from studies and it becomes troublesome for the teachers also to design the lessons appropriately to teach through the portable devices. Students on the other hand must be sincere and dedicated to use portable devices for studies only in school and not for amusement or entertainment. Security reasons also a point of concern what sites students are accessing, is it permissible to their age or not? Thus the goals and motives of the BYOT technology should have a vision and outlook to cover-up

Please detail the five-year plan for your career, including the jobs Essay

Please detail the five-year plan for your career, including the jobs you would like to have, how you would leverage your education, and how you would otherwise - Essay Example My background has given me adequate tools to grasp the fundamentals of international business, but I am strong believer that learning must never stop. Hence, in the first two years after completing my MBA, I fully intend to apply in a corporation where I will be exposed to the challenges of surviving in a global environment, and more importantly, learn to overcome those challenges. The goal, after all, is to thrive and not merely to survive. With my educational background and my work experiences, I see myself rising up the corporate ladder and finding myself in a position where I will be required to make judgment calls, and where I have discretion over business policies and strategies. After having â€Å"learned from the masters† so to speak, I intend to set up my own Korean trade company, marketing Korean raw materials or products to global markets. I believe that a company is only as good as its product and its people, so I intend to make sure that I have a viable product and a team of efficient, talented and committed individuals as passionate about global trade as I am, to manufacture and market those products under my leadership. A business is not merely about numbers and profits, it is also about human resource and I am intent on harnessing the best human resources available and making sure that my employees are amply rewarded, not only in the form of a competitive income package but also in terms of training and skills development. I am also committed to the concept of corporate responsibility, and I believe in setting up an international company that has a conscience and is aware of the role it plays in society. I believe in raising the bar when it comes to environmental-conscious practices, or labor practices, for instance. Lastly, as a way of giving back, my five-year-plan includes teaching young minds, and guiding those who want to embark on a similar journey. I have a

Government Capital Punishment Essay Example for Free

Government Capital Punishment Essay Theories of punishment have significant role to play in the ongoing debate on capital punishment, especially for murder. Some retributivists appeal to the lex talionis, the law of retaliation, to determine the appropriate amount of punishment . This principle specifies that the punishment should inflict on offenders what they have done to their victims; â€Å"an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth†, and â€Å"a life for a life†. Capital punishment is therefore the only appropriate punishment for murder. But the lex talionis is deeply flawed. It focuses on the harm done by offenders without regard to their mental states. A life may be taken intentionally or accidentally; a person may be killed for personal gain or in order to relieve him or her of the agony of a terminal illness. Even if we restrict the scope of the lex talionis to cases in which the wrongdoing is fully intentional, there is still the problem about the level at which the punishment should imitate the crime (Singer, 1993). Should murderers be killed in exactly the manner that they killed their victims? In any case, it is impossible to apply the lex talionis to many offenders; the penniless thief, the tooth assailant who knocks out his victim’s teeth, the tax evader, etc. If conscious of the defects of the lex talionis, retributivists merely insist that the punishment should be appropriate to the moral gravity of the offence, then this requirement can be satisfied so long as the murderer is punished more severely than less serious offenders. There is no need for capital punishment. From the utilitarian point of view, capital punishment can only be justified if it produces better consequences than less severe forms of punishment. This condition would be satisfied if capital punishment is a superior deterrent to alternative forms of punishment such as long periods of imprisonment. So a utilitarian will try to settle the issue on the basis of the evidence about the effects of capital punishment. The statistical evidence is based on comparisons of murder rates in countries where there is capital punishment with those in socially similar countries where there is no capital punishment, and no comparisons of the murder rates in one and the same country at different times when it had capital punishment and when it later abolished it, or when it restored capital punishment after a period of abolition. The evidence does not show that capital punishment is a superior deterrent. However, the utilitarian approach is rejected by those who wish to place greater value on the lives of the innocent victims of murder than on the lives of convicted murderers. It is suggested that the evidence does not conclusively rule out the superior deterrence of capital punishment, and in the presence of such uncertainty, it is better to have capital punishment. If there is capital punishment, and it turns out that capital punishment is not a superior deterrent, then convicted murderers have been unnecessarily executed. If, on the other hand, we abolish capital punishment, and it turns out that it is a superior deterrent, then there would be additional victims of murder. But this argument is unacceptable because where there is capital punishment, it is certain that convicted murderers will die, but in the absence of capital punishment and in the light of available evidence there is only a remote probability that there would be more innocent victims of murder (Conway, 1974). In any case, there is a risk of a few innocent people being wrongly convicted of murder and executed if there is capital punishment. This has to put on the scales against capital punishment.

My Future Goals Essay Example for Free

My Future Goals Essay The purpose of this assignment is to look into my future and come up with achievable goals to be successful in my career, personal and academic endeavors. Napoleon Hill states, â€Å"The starting point of all achievement is desire. (Think and Grow Rich, 2005). So, your first step in goal setting and achieving your dreams is that youve got to really want to achieve the goal. My personal goal is to use my time management skills to keep organized in my class assignments. As a matter of fact, keeping organized will make my leisure time much more enjoyable. To achieve this goal I will use time management to make a schedule of all my classes. I have a very busy life and setting this goal will work in all areas of my life. Read more: My future plan essay In addition, my academic goals are to finish college with an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Information Technology. My future career depends on the completion of this degree. In as little as 2 years I will complete my online degree and be able to confront my ultimate challenges and have a successful career. Equally as important writing down the goal, the plan and a timeline sets events in motion that may not have happened otherwise. Furthermore, my career goal goes hand in hand with my academic goal. I have to finish my degree in order for my professional and career goal to be achievable. I want to work in the IT field. I would like to find a company that offers internship programs for students while attending college. This will be a long road but will be worth it in the end. I do have the support of my family, friends, and academic advisors. With all this support I can achieve my future goals.

Ansoff Product Market Growth Matrix Marketing Essay

Ansoff Product Market Growth Matrix Marketing Essay A useful planning tool in respect of markets and products is the matrix developed by Igor Ansoff (H Igor Ansoff, 1918-2002), who is regarded by some as the Father of Strategic Management. Fully titled the Ansoff Product-Market Growth Matrix, the tool was first published in Harvard Business Review, 1957, in Ansoffs paper Strategies for Diversification. The Ansoff product-market matrix helps to understand and assess marketing or business development strategy. Any business, or part of a business can choose which strategy to employ, or which mix of strategic options to use. This is a fundamentally simple and effective way of looking at strategic development options. existing products new products existing markets market penetration product development new markets market development diversification Each of these strategic options holds different opportunities and downsides for different organizations, so what is right for one business wont necessarily be right for another. Think about what option offers the best potential for your own business and market. Think about the strengths of your business and what type of growth strategy your strengths will enable most naturally. Generally beware of diversification this is, by its nature, unknown territory, and carries the highest risk of failure. Here are the Ansoff strategies in summary: Market penetration   Developing your sales of existing products to your existing market(s). This is fine if there is plenty of market share to be had at the expense of your competitors, or if the market is growing fast and large enough for the growth you need. If you already have large market share you need to consider whether investing for further growth in this area would produce diminishing returns from your development activity. It could be that you will increase the profit from this activity more by reducing costs than by actively seeking more market share. Strong market share suggests there are likely to be better returns from extending the range of products/services that you can offer to the market, as in the next option. Product development   Developing or finding new products to take to your existing market(s). This is an attractive strategy if you have strong market share in a particular market. Such a strategy can be a suitable reason for acquiring another company or product/service capability provided it is relevant to your market and your distribution route. Developing new products does not mean that you have to do this yourself (which is normally very expensive and frequently results in simply re-inventing someone elses wheel) often there are potential manufacturing partners out there who are looking for their own distribution partner with the sort of market presence that you already have. However if you already have good market share across a wide range of products for your market, this option may be one that produces diminishing returns on your growth investment and activities, and instead you may do better to seek to develop new markets, as in the next strategic option. Market development   Developing new markets for your existing products. New markets can also mean new sub-sectors within your market it helps to stay reasonably close to the markets you know and which know you. Moving into completely different markets, even if the product/service fit looks good, holds risks because this will be unknown territory for you, and almost certainly will involve working through new distribution channels, routes or partners. If you have good market share and good product/service range then moving into associated markets or segments is likely to be an attractive strategy. Diversification   taking new products into new markets. This is high risk not only do you not know the products, but neither do you know the new market(s), and again this strategic option is likely to entail working through new distribution channels and routes to market. This sort of activity should generally be regarded as additional and supplementary to the core business activity, and should be rolled out carefully through rigorous testing and piloting. Consider also your existing products and services themselves in terms of their market development opportunity and profit potential. Some will offer very high margins because they are relatively new, or specialised in some way, perhaps because of special distribution arrangements. Other products and services may be more mature, with little or no competitive advantage, in which case they will produce lower margins. The Boston Matrix is a useful way to understand and assess your different existing product and service opportunities: boston matrix model  Ã‚  product/service develeopment The Boston Matrix model is a tool for assessing existing and development products in terms of their market potential, and thereby implying strategic action for products and services in each category. low market share high market share growing market problem child (rising) star mature market dog cash cow Cash cow   The rather crude metaphor is based on the idea of milking the returns from previous investments which established good distribution and market share for the product. Products in this quadrant need maintenance and protection activity, together with good cost management, not growth effort, because there is little or no additional growth available. Dog   This is any product or service of yours which has low market presence in a mature or stagnant market. There is no point in developing products or services in this quadrant. Many organizations discontinue products/services that they consider fall into this category, in which case consider potential impact on overhead cost recovery. Businesses that have been starved or denied development find themselves with a high or entire proportion of their products or services in this quadrant, which is obviously not very funny at all, except to the competitors. Problem child   These are products which have a big and growing market potential, but existing low market share, normally because they are new products, or the application has not been spotted and acted upon yet. New business development and  project management principles  are required here to ensure that these products potential can be realised and disasters avoided. This is likely to be an area of business that is quite competitive, where the pioneers take the risks in the hope of securing good early distribution arrangements, image, reputation and market share. Gross profit margins are likely to be high, but overheads, in the form of costs of research, development, advertising, market education, and low economies of scale, are normally high, and can cause initial business development in this area to be loss-making until the product moves into the rising star category, which is by no means assured many problem children products remain as such. rising star   Or star products, are those which have good market share in a strong and growing market. As a product moves into this category it is commonly known as a rising star. When a market is strong and still growing, competition is not yet fully established. Demand is strong; saturation or over-supply do not exists, and so pricing is relatively unhindered. This all means that these products produce very good returns and profitability. The market is receptive and educated, which optimises selling efficiencies and margins. Production and manufacturing overheads are established and costs minimised due to high volumes and good economies of scale. These are great products and worthy of continuing investment provided good growth potential continues to exist. When it does not these products are likely to move down to cash cow status, and the company needs to have the next rising stars developing from its problem children. After considering your business in terms of the Ansoff matrix and Boston matrix (which are thinking aids as much as anything else, not a magic solution in themselves), on a more detailed level, and for many businesses just as significant as the Ansoff-type-options, what is the significance of your major accounts do they offer better opportunity for growth and development than your ordinary business? Do you have a high quality, specialised offering that delivers better business benefit on a large scale as opposed to small scale? Are your selling costs and investment similar for large and small contracts? If so you might do better concentrating on developing large major accounts business, rather than taking a sophisticated product or service solution to smaller companies which do not appreciate or require it, and cost you just as much to sell to as a large organization. Customer Matrix:- This customer matrix model is used by many companies to understand and determine strategies according to customer types. good products not so good products good customers develop and find more customers like these allocate your best resources to these existing customers and to prospective customers matching this profile educate and convert these customers to good products if beneficial to them, failing which, maintain customers via account management not so good customers invest cautiously to develop and improve relationship, failing which, maintain customers via account management assess feasibility of moving these customers left or up, failing which, withdraw from supplying sensitively Assessing product type is helped by reference to the Boston matrix model. There is a lot of flexibility as to what constitutes good and not so good customers use your own criteria. A good way to do this is to devise your own grading system using criteria that mean something to your own situation. Typical criteria are: size, location, relationship, credit-rating and payment terms, is the customer growing (or not), the security of the supply contract, the service and support overhead required, etc. This kind of customer profiling tool and exercise is often overlooked, but it is a critical aspect of marketing and sales development, and of optimising sales effectiveness and business development performance and profitability. Each quadrant requires a different sales approach. The type of customer also implies the type of sales person who should be responsible for managing the relationship. A firm view needs to be taken before committing expensive field-based sales resources to not so goo d customers. Focus prospect development (identifying and contacting new prospective customers) on the profile which appears in the top left quadrant. Identify prospective new customers who fit this profile, and allocate your business development resources (people and advertising) to this audience. Consider also What are your competitor weaknesses in terms of sectors, geographical territory and products or services, and how might these factors affect your options? Use for assessing each competitor as well as your own organization or department. Many organizations issue a marketing budget from the top down (a budget issued by the Centre/HQ/Finance Director), so to speak, in which case, what is your marketing budget and how can you use it to produce the best return on investment, and to help the company best to meet its overall business aims? Use the models described here to assess your best likely returns on marketing investment. The best way to begin to model and plan your marketing is to have a record of your historical (say last years) sales results (including selling and advertising costs if appropriate and available) on a spreadsheet.  The level of detail is up to you; modern spreadsheets can organize massive amounts of data and make very complex analysis quick easy. Data is vital and will enable you to do most of the analysis you need for marketing planning. In simple terms you can use last years results as a basis for planning and modelling the next years sales, and the marketing expenditure and activities required to achieve them. Simple business plan or sales plan tools examples:- These templates examples help the planning process. Split and analyse your business or sales according to your main products/services (or revenue streams) according to the profit drivers or levers (variables that you can change which affect profit), eg., quantity or volume, average sales value or price, % gross margin or profit. Add different columns which reflect your own business profit drivers or levers, and to provide the most relevant measures. quantity total sales value average value % gross margin total sales or gross margin product 1 product 2 product 3 product 4 totals Do the same for each important aspect of your business, for example, split by market sector (or segment): quantity total sales value average value % gross margin total sales or gross margin sector 1 sector 2 sector 3 sector 4 totals And, for example, split by distributor (or route to market): quantity total sales value average value % gross margin total sales or gross margin distributor 1 distributor 2 distributor 3 distributor 4 totals These simple split analysis tools are an extremely effective way to plan your sales and business. Construct a working spreadsheet so that the bottom-right cell shows the total sales or gross margin, or profit, whatever you need to measure, and by changing the figures within the split (altering the mix, average prices, quantities, etc) you can carry out what if? analysis to develop the best plans. If you are a competent working with spreadsheets it is normally possible to assemble all of this data onto a single spreadsheet and then show different analyses by sorting and graphing according to different fields. When you are happy with the overall totals for the year, convert this into a phased monthly plan, with as many lines and columns as you need and are appropriate for the business. Develop this spreadsheet by showing inputs as well as sales outputs the quantifiable activity (for example, the numbers of enquiries necessary to produce the planned sales levels) required to produce the planned performance. Large businesses need extensive and multiple page spreadsheets. A business plan needs costs as well as sales, and will show profit as well as revenue and gross margin, but the principle is the same: plan the detailed numbers and values of what the business performance will be, and what inputs are required for incorporating these factors and financials into a more formal phased business trading plan, which also serves as a business forecasting and reporting tool too. Adapt it to suit your purposes. This plan example is also available as a PDF, see The numbers could be anything: ten times less, ten times more, a hundred times more the principle is the same. Consider also indirect activities that affect sales and business levels, such as customer service. Identify key performance indicators here too, such as customer complaints response and resolution levels and timescales. Internal lead referral schemes, strategic partnership activity; the performance of other direct sales activities such as sales agencies, distributorships, export activities, licensing, etc. These performance factors wont normally appear on a business plan spreadsheet, but a separate plan should be made for them, otherwise they wont happen.

Oliver Twist Essay -- Essays Papers

Oliver Twist Have you ever thought about how it would be to live in a time of poverty? How would life be if you were poor and did not know from where you would be getting your next meal? What would it be like to be forced to live in a workhouse? These are some of the questions you might ask yourself if you were living in early nineteenth century England. Dickens addresses these issues in his timeless masterpiece Oliver Twist. In the story of Oliver Twist, Dickens uses past experiences from his childhood and targets the Poor Law of 1834 which renewed the importance of the workhouse as a means of relief for the poor. Dickens' age was a period of industrial development marked by the rise of the middle class (Wagenknecht 219). In the elections brought about by the accession of William IV in 1830, the Tories lost control of the government. Assumption of power by the Whigs opened the way to an era of accelerated progress (Kaste 8). In this time period children worked just as much, if not more, than some of the adults. After 1833, an increased amount of legislation was enacted to control the hours of labor and working conditions for children and women in manufacturing plants. The Poor Law of 1834 provided that all able bodied paupers must reside in a workhouse (8). Widespread hostility was felt to the new law; many believed that life was harder in a workhouse than in prison (Rooke 22). The plan was successful from one standpoint, for within three years the cost of poor relief was reduced by more than one-third. However, this system was sharply censured. The increased prevalence of crime was attributed towards it. Inmates of the workhouses became objects of public stigma, and to further heighten the unpopularity of the institutions, living conditions were deliberately made harsh (Kaste 8). Poverty was at it's peak around this time in England. Houses were overcrowded, packed together in narrow streets and courts which were often piled deep in rotting refuse (Rooke 33). New problems of food and public health were faced by a parliamentary and economic system which was better suited to the eighteenth century. On June 20, 1837, Queen Victoria came to the throne of England as the long period of middle class ascendancy was gaining momentum (Kaste 8). The Victorian age, which this time period is often referred, comes from "Queen Victor... ...cked full of suspense and action. This piece of literature will never be forgotten. In Conclusion, Dickens had a rough childhood which helped prompt him to write many classic novels. Dickens wrote to make people think about how the government was being run. He wrote Oliver Twist to almost protest the Poor Law of 1834 and the use of the workhouses. Since Dickens was such an original writer his presence in literature will be forever appreciated. Bibliography: Blount, Trevor. Dickens: The Early Novels. London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1968. â€Å"Dickens, Charles† Discovering Authors. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1993. â€Å"Dickens.† Encyclopedia Brittanica. 1998 ed. Hardy, Barbara. â€Å"Charles Dickens.† British Writers. Ian Scott-Kilvert. vol. 5. 12 vols. New York: Charles Scribner’s Son’s, 1982. Kaste, Harry, M.A. Cliff’s Notes on Oliver Twist. Lincoln: Cliffs Notes Inc., 1997. â€Å"landow.stg.brown.edu† Price, Martin. Dickens. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1967. Rooke, Patrick. The Age of Dickens. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1978. Wagenknecht, Edward. Cavalcade of the English Novel. Chicago: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston Inc., 1967. "www.sparknotes.com"

How to Deal with Moral Differences :: Papers Ethics Morality

How to Deal with Moral Differences The first way is to believe there are no morally right or wrong viewpoints. The moral issue is just a cultural game and neither your opinions or mine matters. Therefore there is no right or wrong. This view is called moral nihilism. Related to this idea is moral skepticism, which holds that we can’t know any moral truths, and moral subjectivism, which holds that moral views are merely inner states in a person and that they can’t be compared to the inner states of another person. However believing in the above solves no problems, if nobody is right and nobody is wrong. The second way is to believe that there is no universal truth, that each culture has its own set of rules that are valid and apply to that culture, they don’t interfere with our rules and we don’t interfere with theirs, this is called ethical relativism. This belief is viewed as an attitude of tolerance. This belief solves conflicts in the idea that whatever the majority deems to be the moral rule is the rule to follow. The third belief is that deep down in spite of all the cultures differences we call all still agree on a certain moral basics, that people everywhere have basically the same human nature but that we just adapt it into our environment, this idea is called Soft Universalism. Universalism because it perceives that there are some universal moral rules; soft because it is not as radical as hard universalism. This belief can solve problems because its main goal is to seek common ground beneath the variety of opinions and mores. The fourth belief is called hard universalism, this is the absolute opposite of moral nihilism stating that there is only one universal moral code. This belief solves problems with hard evidence and reason. Problems with Ethical Relativism: (1) No Criticism or Praise of Other Cultures, we need to criticize or praise other cultures morals to maintain our own moral integrity. (2) Majority Rule, the idea of the majority always being right is just not rational. (3) Professed or Actual Morality? this is the idea that a certain kind of behavior is normal, but what is â€Å"normal†? for example when a group was asked about infidelity the majority was against it but when the same group was asked if they had committed it, the majority had. (4) What is a Majority? In the instance of euthanasia if a law is passed tomorrow

Developmental Psychology Journal Articles Essay -- Papers

Developmental Psychology Journal Articles The five journal articles I examined were all from a journal titled Developmental Psychology, May 2000. The first journal article that I observed was "Sleep Patterns and Sleep Disruptions in School-Aged Children." This study assessed the sleep patterns, sleep disruptions, and sleepiness of school-age children. Sleep patterns of 140 children (72 boys and 68 girls; 2nd-, 4th-, and 6th-grade students) were evaluated with activity monitors (actigraphs). In addition, the children and their parents completed complementary sleep questionnaires and daily reports. The findings reflected significant age differences, indicating that older children have more delayed sleep onset times and increased reported daytime sleepiness. Girls were found to spend more time in sleep and to have an increased percentage of motionless sleep. Fragmented sleep was found in 18% of the children. No age differences were found in any of the sleep quality measures. Scores on objective sleep measures were associated with subjective reports of sleepiness. Family stress, parental age, and parental education were related to the child's sleep-wake measures. The next article I observed was "Shared Caregiving: Comparisons Between Home and Child-Care Settings." The experiences of 84 German toddlers (12-24 months old) who were either enrolled or not enrolled in child care were described with observational checklists from the time they woke up until they went to bed. The total amount of care experienced over the course of a weekday by 35 pairs of toddlers (1 member of each pair in child care, 1 member not) did not differ according to whether the toddlers spent time in child care. Although the child... ...h their mothers and their fathers on separate occasions in their families' homes. Parent-child pairs played for 8 minutes each with a feminine-stereotyped toy set (foods and plates) and a masculine-stereotyped toy set (track and cars). Levels of affiliation (engaging vs. distancing) and assertion (direct vs. non-direct) were rated on 7-point scales every 5 seconds from the videotapes for both parent and child. Overall, the play activity accounted for a large proportion of the variance in parents' and children's mean affiliation and assertion ratings. Some hypothesized gender-related differences in behavior were also observed. In addition, exploratory analyses revealed some differences between the different ethnic groups. The results highlight the importance of role modeling and activity settings in the socialization and social construction of gender.

Defining Honor

If I were to ask half a dozen people at random to tell me what they meant by the word â€Å"honor,† I think that I would probably receive very different answers. One of the reasons for this is that it often means different things in the minds of different people. For instance, we say that it was a great honor for Jim Smith to be elected captain of the football team; and then, on the other hand, we talk about a code of honor, — or the laws of honor. What does Jim Smith’s being captain of the eleven have to do with the laws of honor? What we mean, in the case of Jim, is that his election as captain shows that the other boys have confidence in his play, and therefore this position gives him a local reputation as a comparatively good player and leader. Now many people in the world have only this idea of honor; and, when they speak of holding their honor sacred above all else, they mean keeping their reputation good in the eyes of men. For this reason, they value any office or reward that adds to their reputation; and the more their reputation grows and the more distinction they earn, the more honorable they feels themselves to be. This was the idea of honor existing among the ancient heathen people before the Christian era. You know that, after the fall of the great Roman Empire, there was a period of about a thousand years, when the light of civilization went out in Europe, and the darkness of ignorance and barbarism took its place. During these dark days, there was much going on that was not better and sometimes even worse from a moral point of view than in the days of the Roman Empire; but, when the minds of men began to wake up again, their standards really had advanced further than the old heathen standards of life. A seed Christian principle had been germinating for all these years and finally blossomed out in the Age of Chivalry. This, as you know, was an assertion first of all that the notion that â€Å"Might makes Right† is false, although it had been almost universally believed to be true, in practice, before the coming of Christ. The orders of knighthood which arose in various parts of Europe were composed of men who made it their business to bring order out of confusion, — to kill the wild beasts that interfered with flocks and herds and made farming difficult, — to overpower and abolish the highwaymen and robbers who made traveling unsafe, — and to protect women and children in respect and security. These men bound themselves by solemn vows to keep certain laws which were necessary for carrying out their work, and their obligation or sense of responsibility to keep these laws they called their â€Å"Honor. † Hence a new conception of honor came into being, and their code of honor was the law according to which their conduct was judged among themselves. This is, of course, a very different idea of honor from that which consists of thinking that distinction before men is better worth having than anything else, and which therefore puts reputation above character. Anybody who compares these two ideas of honor can see that the one is only a counterfeit imitation of the other, and that there is not necessary connection between them at all; for a man may have character without reputation, and he may have reputation without character, for reputation may be either true or false; and, when true, it is in many cases because of the character underlying it. But many fine reputations of all sorts are the result of clever self-advertising, and this practice is one of the most destructive and degrading to character and true manliness. This is so because, when we seek reputation for its own sake, we are yielding to the temptation of vanity; and vanity is a weakness and disease of the soul. Everybody has temptations to overcome, and it is everybody’s business to know and work against his weaknesses; but, when our chief ambition in life fosters our weakness, and we deceive ourselves by giving the name of â€Å"honor† to that which weakens us, we can hardly expect to grow stronger as the years go by. The old knights had the right idea of honor, and there have been a great variety of orders of chivalry in different countries, such as those mentioned in the Boy Scout Manual; and the main idea in all of them was to hold up a standard of public service which would raise men above the habits and customs of selfish brutes and merely worldly men. There is another great distinction between these two conceptions of honor: when we think of our reputation as our honor we require spectators, for our reputation is what we are in the minds of other men; but the honor of character, which is our sacred obligation to keep the law of our code and to do our duty in God’s sight, is just as binding upon us when we are all alone, and therefore it must control our most private acts and secret thoughts. A little newsboy boarded a crowded car the other night with a very large bundle of papers, and the conductor, with coarse good-nature, tried to favor him by declining to take his fare, although of course he could not do this without cheating the railway. The boy looked at him with indignation and could not believe that he was the conductor. He went all through the car hunting for the real conductor to whom he could pay his fair. This little boy was richer than if he had had millions in bank in place of this high-minded feeling of honorable independence and of determination to fulfil all his obligations; and, if he remains true to this principle in all the phases of his life, he will accomplish far more than if he amassed millions, or became President of the United States. He will add to the joy and dignity of many other lives as well as his own; for, sooner or later, every human being finds out that without this loyalty to honor life cannot be happy, is — indeed, not worth living. But we must be careful to remember that, although this is such an important and central truth, we cannot expect every one to know about it; and therefore we cannot expect them to act accordingly. In this, as in all other such matters, we must be on our guard against feeling superior to those who have not had our advantages. Next to keeping our own obligations of honor is the duty of protecting the honor of all those with whom we have contact; — and especially of the weak and ignorant. The weak must be protected by whatever means is necessary and appropriate, and the ignorant may be taught if we go about it quietly and in a friendly spirit, without â€Å"laying down the law. † Of course, it is the duty of patrol leaders to see that all their boys understand as thoroughly as possible the nature of the obligations which they have taken upon themselves. It is also the duty of scouts to hand along whatever helpful knowledge they have to other scouts within reach of their friendship. But this holds good not only for boy scouts and their officers but for all men; and it cannot be done unless, in the first place, we ourselves try to practice what we teach and then teach it with a humble appreciation of the beauty or use of the subject, and without any vanity or conceit. There is no merit, but only privilege, — so great that it is difficult to estimate, — in teaching and being taught to understand and live by the deep and tested truths of life; and the more we learn, from obeying them, the more humbly grateful we shall be.

Macbeth †Character assessment Essay

The 3 witches have told Macbeth that he will become king. He tells this news to his wife, Lady Macbeth . She starts plotting the murder of Duncan, the king of Scotland. A messenger then arrives at Dunsinane telling her that Duncan will be visiting them that evening. In this scene Macbeth kills Duncan. Setting This play takes place on stage. The play is set in 1600’s in the Scottish Highlands. The stage is bare apart from a bench, a bucket and well, there is a backdrop of the castle at the rear of the stage. Character Profiles Macbeth Stunned at what he has just done Angry – with both himself and Lady Macbeth Becomes quite hysterical Pure shock Lady Macbeth Evil voice Devious Cunning Calm throughout 4th witch very clever & Very evil A soft blue light falls onto the stage with a white spot light on Lady Macbeth, the light including spot light turns green during Lady Macbeth’s speech. Lady Macbeth sits on bench at stage rear holding a pure black cat. (A black cat is connected with witches, Lady Macbeth is the 4th witch). Lady Macbeth starts to say her speech in an evil, cold, powerful, crackle of a voice. Here she will be talking to her cat rather than herself. Here she talks of the fatal bellman, this signifies death. An organ is playing in the background (organs are played at funerals, and signify death, a murder has just taken place). Macbeth backs onto the stage very slowly almost in a trance. He turns to face Lady Macbeth â€Å"I have done the deed.† – saying this like in complete shock but realisation as much to himself as to Lady Macbeth. Macbeth: â€Å"Did though not hear a noise?† Lady Macbeth: â€Å"The owl scream and the crickets cry† (Elizabethans would know These things represented Death) Lady Macbeth: Did thou not speak? Quick, Macbeth: When? Panicky, Lady Macbeth: Now. Shows Macbeth: As I descended? Nerves, Lady Macbeth: Ay. and. Macbeth: Hark! tension Who lies in the 2nd chamber? Lady Macbeth: Donalbain Macbeth: This is a sorry sight! (angry, shouting, he sees the blood). Lady Macbeth: A foolish thought to say (trying to calm him whilst putting her cat Down). Macbeth is now slumped on the floor with his head in his hands saying lines 21-25. Remaining slumped he says lines 26-30, but this time in a whisper. In these lines Macbeth talks about sleep. Only innocence is allowed to sleep, Macbeth cannot sleep anymore, for he is now evil. â€Å"Macbeth shall sleep no more!† Macbeth also talks about not being able to say amen, this is because he is no longer holy. Lady Macbeth stands to his right looking down on him, this shows her power over him. She says â€Å"Consider it not so deeply.† In an impatient, and almost dismissive voice. Macbeth: â€Å"Sleep no more Macbeth does murder sleep!† Lady Macbeth: â€Å"Why have you got these daggers? They must rest by Duncan.† Lady Macbeth grabs the daggers. Macbeth is afraid to go back to Duncan’s chamber, for he cannot bear to look at what he has done. â€Å"If Duncan do bleed then I shall place the daggers in the arms of the guards, for it will seem their guilt!† she says this in an evil yet excited whisper. Exits stage left, running. Her evil and cunning nature has now been fully exposed to the audience. (A loud knocking is heard, the knocking comes from speakers all around the theatre, so the audience is surrounded by the knocking). Macbeth: Is in complete hysteria cries line 59-60. The blood is represented by long red ribbons attached to his finger tips and his clothes. He walks over to the well and tries to wash the blood from his hands. â€Å"All Neptune’s great oceans could not wash these hands clean.† Neptune is God of water, so here Macbeth is saying all the water in the world could not wash the blood away. I think he was trying to wash away his crime and his guilt by getting rid of the blood, as this was just a visual reminder of the wrong he had done. He pretends to throw the blood stained water over the floor. A watery red light appears on the stage floor rippling with waves. Lady Macbeth appears back on stage with her hands out in front of her, her hands and clothing are soaked with blood (red ribbons). She holds her hands up to Macbeth’s face, he turns away from her. She starts to speak in an evil, cold, and angry voice â€Å"my hands are of your colour , but I shame to wear a heart so white.† The knocking starts again. Lady Mabeth spins around in a sudden panic, â€Å"I hear knocking!† Lady Macbeth says the rest of her speech in the same quick startled tone. This is the only time in the scene where LM shows her nerves. Macbeth in complete hysteria with tears running down his cheeks â€Å"Wake Duncan with your knocking, I would thou couldst!† At this point M’s weakness is most apparent, at this point I feel that he would be ready to confess all. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth exit stage right. Lady Macbeth now calm again, strides off confidently. Macbeth crawls off on his hands and knees. This shows the difference between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, Macbeth is remorseful, guilt ridden and hysterical with disbelief. Lady Macbeth on the other hand is confident, calm, excited, and seems completely unfazed by the fact that she has helped murder her king. Her power over him is enormous, and makes you wonder whether Macbeth was in a trance to even be able to comprehend killing his king let alone actually doing it. At the end of the scene the lights suddenly go out the theatre is pitch black.

Come Out the Wilderness: Character Analysis

â€Å"Come Out the Wilderness† James Baldwin’s â€Å"Come out the Wilderness,† presents the mentally isolated Ruth Bowman’s thoughts about men and her unwillingness to forget past relations. Growing up as a child, Ruth is sexually harassed by a guy whom her parents and brother think she is voluntarily sexually involved with. The events that happen in a previous era was a stepping stone into a life of low-self esteem and much insecurity that follows. The uncontrollable event causes her to be dependent on men and to have uncertainty in relationships. Ruth is educated in school, and she uses her skills on her job as a secretary, which she is promoted to.Ruth is a complicated woman in her thoughts as well as her actions. The feeling of not being wanted circulates Ruth’s mind. The memories of changed perceptions on her part by her family, devastates her. She has had past relationships but to no prevail in finding true happiness. Life in her eyes is chara cterized by being with a man who rarely acknowledges her features as a woman. He merely acknowledges when his urges have arisen and are in need of satisfying. Marriage to her seems as if a man is living with her whom she wants to love her and make her feel special ; though that is not the case. The relationship she has is inexplicable.Life may seem barren to a woman of Ruth’s nature. She goes to bars every night in hopes of time passing as she waits for her husband to get home. Ruth believes her husband has another woman, but does not obsess with the thought. She simply lives with his decisions whatever they may be, because she is dependent on him. Ruth is comparable to old-time wives in the way she allows her husband to do whatever he wants maybe because of masculinity or perhaps the doubt of him coming home. That signifies defeat, on her part, in the game of life. Ruth does not have any stability in her relationship with Paul, and it is filled with disbelief.She is unsure i f he loves her still, or wants her around, and what he thinks of her appearance. â€Å"She could not help feeling that he treated her this way because of her color, because she was a colored girl† (378). Ruth has many doubts towards Paul and his actions. She does not truly know why he gets home late. Paul proclaims he is working at those times, but Ruth suspects wrong conjectures. Ruth is dominated by Paul in her yielding persona towards him. Ruth is unsure if she even wants to take the secretary job her boss gives her. She reluctantly accepts in order to better her career. She is also victim to gossip she proclaims to her boss.The situation when her boss walks with her during lunch evidently means he has an obsession with Ruth. Though he likes Ruth, she cannot bring herself to commit adultery typed deeds. Even though her self-esteem is low she does not accept his flattery genuinely because of her own moral code. Flattery does not even help with her self-esteem issues. She is committed to her job and takes it seriously even though she awaits a call from Paul when she is at work. Ruth gets her work done and does not pay attention to the other women at her job because she is not focused on the idle topics of their gossip filled conversations.She is filled with information on their subjects. Ruth is the type of woman who is there for her husband even if he is not there for her and her endeavors. The relationship they have is lazy and needs reconstruction if there are hopes for it to persist. Ruth does her best to please Paul as far as cleaning and cooking. She tries to look good for him but no acknowledgment leads her to believe her actions are in vein. She often day dreams about past relationships compared to her relationship with Paul. She is always reminded of her dirty past, â€Å"She bawled at last: ‘Goddamit, I wish I had, I wish I had.I might as well of done it! ‘ Her father slapped her. Her brother gave her a look and said: ‘You dirty†¦ you dirty†¦ you black and dirty' † (382). Ruth hates her husband for not ending the tiring relationship and wishes them both dead. She smokes cigarettes because of her depression. The cigarettes may also symbolize her attempt to join her husband in a similar trait, to have something in common. Insecurities in Ruth’s life prevent her from being happy although she is married. Marriage does not hide the fact that two people are not happy; though she does attract attention from her boss Mr.Davis. She walks and has a conversation with him about life. She and Paul have tension between each other in an environmental way. Ruth thinks her relationship with Paul is heading to an end. | â€Å"She knew that he was going to leave her. It was in his walk, his talk, and his eyes. He wanted to go. He had already moved back, crouching to leap. And she had no rival. He was not going to another woman. He simply wanted to go. It would happen today, tomorrow, three weeks from today; it was over she could do nothing about it; neither could she save herself by umping first, She had no place to go, she only wanted him. She tried hard to want other men, and she was still young, only twenty-six, and there was no real lack of opportunity. But all she knew about other men was that they were not Paul. † (Baldwin 378) Ruth has many realizations in her life that include her past mistakes that she continues to make relationship wise; she picks the wrong guys In her own mind. The cycle stated with musician named Arthur, he is twenty years older than Ruth. She did not love him; she just couldn’t escape his domination.She also knew a merchant seaman who whored around a lot. She liked him but loneliness in him was like a cancer, which was unfit for intercourse. The difference or main difference between the two, Arthur and the seaman is the fact that Arthur offered more as in life and education. Paul is the only one she loves but does not know if he lo ves her anymore. She does not even know if she loves him. She cannot leave because he is her husband and she just cannot go through with the action. Ruth gives up so much in her life to please her man that characteristic prevents her from living in happiness. She was in a reckless, desperate state, like flight. She knew that she could not possibly go home to cook supper and wait in an empty apartment until Paul's key turned apartment door's lock (388). †Ã‚  Ã‚   Happiness does not follow Ruth though she has the chance to find it; she passes on it every time Ruth cannot function without a man ; that is why she is so dependent on them. She will never be at peace in life with her mind set and the way she carries herself. Self-esteem is important in a relationship but Ruth has non-to-little of that trait. Even when Mr.Davis her boss treats her with great respect in order to please and woo her; his attempts are flaunted by her dependent attitude towards Paul. The obvious assumption that Mr. Davis is better for her is evident. Her misfortunes are to continue if her dependent thoughts continue. Those actions will lead her nowhere in life and in her relationship. Ruth is a strange minded person who needs help to get over the man who shows no care for her which is Paul. | | Ruth is dependent on her husband Paul physically and mentally, which prevents her from moving on even though there is no love in the past relationship; seemingly. She did not want to be friends with him nor desire their friendship become anything more (Baldwin 387). † All of Ruth’s failures result from her family and their perception of her. She shows all the symptoms of depression in her house and life. Marriage is the step she takes to not be alone. Sexual Harassment can change a person’s thoughts on life and the struggles in it drastically. That can also influence what is in her life and the people she has in it. Ruth has had a rough life and there may not be any turning back from disaster. Ruth is alone as she sees in her mind.Ruth Bowman is a woman with much insecurity from past events that prevents her from moving on in life. She is a woman with many skills and talents. She has no love shown towards her by the person she wants to see it shown from. Ruth is mistakenly accused by her family and leaves out of despair. She is taken care of by an aspiring musician by the name of Arthur. Arthur provides her with education and flattery. She leaves Arthur and gets in a relationship with Paul whose love for her gets weak and eventually is not shown towards her. Mr. Davis, her boss, shows an obsession towards her as they walk and talk together.She wonders why Paul will not leave because it is evident that he shows no love towards her. Ruth wishes to profess her love, but acts as if everything is ok with she and Paul. Ruth acknowledges her role as a wife and succumbs to the domination of Paul, as well as, the other gentlemen that showed interest in her. Ru th is in a time period where men are the dominant humans while women’s ideals mean nothing. Ruth’s despair is what causes her depression other than her bad luck with men. She is the prime example of a woman guided by a man. Ruth has a kind heart, but that is not enough to keep her pleased.

Beijing’s Transformation

From a walled city to a modern metropolitan, from a closed culture to globalization and from ancient teashops to modern cafeterias and from birdcages to subways; the road to modernity has been a very long one for Beijing. There is a plethora of driving forces for the drastic changes that Beijing has undergone.There are huge contradictions about the way common people react to these changes and about how the new Beijing measures up to their vision of their city. This dilemma of choosing between tradition and modernity, between old values and new ethics and between age old culture and the world order, is not unique to Beijing.Developing countries, particularly oriental ones, are often faced with these difficult choices on the road to progress. The choice has to be made and made judiciously. Beijing’s cultural ethos is very closely related to the walls which were symbolic of so many things in Beijing’s culture, such as social status, direction, space, class, privacy and eve n prejudices. The changes that took place in the mindsets of people who were at helm, and the changes that were responsible for Beijing’s new look, can be tracked through the treatment meted out to these walls in different eras.The city was earlier enclosed within walls and the courtyards were separated from each other by walls. The walls contributed to Beijing’s mystery and charm that was part and parcel of its magnificence. But the first step towards modernization of Beijing was the flattening of these walls which had stood for so long as a symbol of Chinese culture in vogue in Beijing at that time. Right after the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1911, the onslaught of modernization was brought on and the walls were the first to feel the brunt of this modernization.The walls were pulled down to make way for fast tracks and western style buildings. This was the beginning of the end of old Beijing with its aura, cultural heritage and glorious history. Mao, in association w ith Soviet communists who had money, technical know-how and a vision, laid out extensive plans for the modernization and industrialization of Beijing. Though the Soviet Union and China fell apart in 1960, the foundation of the plans had already been laid and the modernization proceeded on similar lines. Factories were built in and around Beijing in large numbers.Rural agricultural faced a setback because the peasants abandoned the villages in order to join the urban work force. Worker’s settlements sprang up like mushrooms and Beijing became a modern industrial city of the world. The air which was earlier pure and healthy, now became smoky and has till now not been able to regain its earlier freshness. The walls now symbolized feudalistic attitudes to the new generation who were more for rapid industrialization. Hence the remaining walls, temples, courtyards, teahouses and pleasure houses, were sheared down.Their place was taken by dull and drab official buildings, standardiz ed stores, apartment buildings and so on. Even holiday rituals were not left untouched. From folk fairs, the generation graduated to parades and rallies. Beijing was changing and changing rapidly. The walls were later sacrificed for the need of materials for civil defense and subway lines. Mao’s obsessive fear about Soviet invasion, caused tunnel digging to become the national occupation, in the 1970’s. The tunnels dug during that period still lie under the city.In a way, the walls that were once the awe inspiring feature of Beijing’s architecture now lie forgotten under the city. Historical reasons were at the forefront in the causes of Beijing’s makeover from a conservative, mysterious and culturally rich society to a modern, global village with loads of modern architecture and almost no historical heritage to speak of. Elitist Chinese architect Liang Sicheng wanted Beijing to grow to modernism but still remain in a delightful sync with its rich culture by concentrating the modernization outside the walled city.The plan was a beautiful orchestration of the divergent forces of tradition and modernity but the plan was laughed off for being too idealistic and impractical. Had it been implemented, Beijing would have had a different look altogether. The Chinese population, by and large, is divided into two major sectors- one segment consists of people who are all for modernization even if it comes at the cost of culture. The other genre is of people who believe that old cultural traditions must not be shed off like extra baggage in the long journey to progress.They must be preserved, nurtured and slowly evolved into what may be a great culture in the times to come. This conflict is foremost when we come to understand the psychology of people in developing countries about what they feel is the right way to attain development of economies and nation building. Beijing’s Urban Planning Commission member Hou, with his respectable cre dentials, firmly believes that architecture of any city should reflect the theme of the era.Chinese architecture, for centuries, was only reproducing itself and had made little progress. It had become stagnant and modernization calls for modern architecture as well. There are a lot of people who conform with the above views, people who believe that modernization is the new mantra and no country should be weighed down by its past. For many, the destruction of old values and ethics and old architecture does not amount to cultural vandalism simply because they believe they no longer serve any purpose in the modern world.All the things, artifacts, architectural wonders, rituals and values that are obsolete and impractical and unsuited to modern life styles, must die a natural death and people must not pine for them or be nostalgic. In the opinions of this new brigade of people, change is always for the better and we must learn to accept it in order to be in sync with the times. The old timers, conservationists, intellectuals and even some students, on the other hand, are less than happy about Beijing’s changing skyline. They are the cult who believes that modernization need not come at the destruction of old values and traditions.They still believe that Chinese architecture is still contemporary and practical, Chinese rituals are still relevant and Chinese values are still capable of illuminating the correct moral path to any individual. They believe that modernization of Beijing could have proceeded on different lines, tracks that would have ensured that the old traditions would have blended beautifully with the new traditions that came in with globalization. Chinese culture would then have been a colorful melange of values old and new, would have shed it weaknesses and evolved into a great culture.Development often brings with it loads of difficult choices which have to be made and made correctly by the people who hold the reins. If these choices are not made judiciously and the common people are not comfortable with them, we will get to see a divided society on the question of how good the progress is. Beijing is undergoing that phase today, where its citizens are into an intense conflict about whether the development is the need of the hour or is it just a burden on the culture and tradition which have worked for so long.The development has taken place so fast that people did not get the time to come to terms with it and were left wondering and gaping at what was happening to their system and to their ethnicity. By the time people realized that new values had infiltrated their society, it was already too late and they were left to adjust to the surroundings as far as they could for their own good. However, increasingly large numbers of people believe that development had to happen and the way it happened is of no consequence.New traditions and cultures are all part and parcel of this package and should be accepted as such. In all, this genre has no regrets about anything except the few minor mistakes like the deterioration of Beijing’s skyline which even they regret. By and large, the conflict is immense, the debate is still on and the result is eagerly awaited so that the road for future can be chartered insightfully. Such discords are common and all countries have either faced it at some point of time in history or are still into it like China.At the essence of such conflict is the vast difference in public opinions and their mindsets. Some are more akin to changes and take to them positively; others are averse to them and look at everything new with raised eyebrows and in suspicion. Hence the divided opinion about the sweeping changes accompanying the progress is somewhat expected. The people in power have to create an environment which is conducive of changes and take most of the people with them in the long voyage to progress.Public opinion will always be conflicting as such a vast number of indi viduals cannot think alike. But the operative word is ‘majority’ of the people. It is possible to create a favorable opinion in the minds of most of the people about what is happening around them and they have to be convinced that some good will come out of it. The development should be paced in such a way that the changes are not too drastic too fast and the people are allowed to adjust slowly to the changes. There are not two views about the fact that the cultural heritage of the countries is to be preserved.The rituals need to change a little bit to be more relevant and practical in the fast paced world. But the required changes in the ritualistic part to culture have to evolve and not coerced on the people. Only if the changes take place slowly will they be incorporated into the existing structure without creating ripples upon the surface of the calm water. It needs to be understood that what has been going on for a long time will take a bit of time to be mummified and we cannot and must not expect it to disappear as soon as we wish it to or as soon as something new comes up.On the road to progress, a fine balance and harmony needs to be struck between tradition and modernity. Beautiful old architecture, artifacts, and some delightful customs need to be remembered if only for the sake of tourism. The developing countries need to uphold their culture for posterity. It may sound cliched that the coming generations need to know their forefathers and their ancestral traditions; but in truth it is very important for the future that the progeny know, respect and appreciate their past.In the fast road to progress, we need to know about the values that made life livable, the customs that called for celebration and the traditions that created compassion and insight. The question Beijing is facing now is of great importance and needs to be dealt with properly by the people who have the power in Beijing. The city is in the throngs of a cultural crisis an d in order to stop another Cultural Revolution from taking place, something needs to be done and done fast. What has been destroyed cannot be replenished but whatever still remains can be preserved.Beijing has too great a culture to be left to the elements of modernity. It needs to be preserved carefully so that it can be a legacy to the coming generations. No doubt, modernity is the need of the hour but the overlooked fact is that even cultural preservation is a requirement. If this fact is realized in time, maybe Beijing can be a utopia, with the desired blend of culture and globalization; like a beautiful modern city where relics of golden past have been carefully and passionately preserved.