Natural environment Essay Example for Free

Natural environment Essay History depicts that in the past, apartheid and Christian national education policies meant that races and cultures were segregated in schools and resources were unevenly distributed, making the role and the task of the teacher extra difficult in terms of balancing between the workload and catering for all learners needs. Education is inherently political as it involves values and goals in relation to such fundamental questions as what kind of individual and society are we trying to shape? These questions cannot be answered in a factual or technical way because they are questions of opinions, values and ideology and they are inevitably disagreements and conflicts (Carter, Harber Serfi, 2003). The nature and reality of educators is that, it places so much importance on the teacher to ensure that learners succeed at the end of the day, although there are some factors external such as the environment, socio-economic and resources issues and resources which disturbs or defeats the purpose of education. The teacher can either make or break the progress of the learner, meaning the teacher should cater equally for all the needs of the learners, as learners themselves are different in terms of race, gender and class. This means that the teacher should not be bias or discriminate towards a certain gender, race or class, as this will have a negative impact on the success or progress of the learners. In this essay I will discuss my experiences with the teachers who made a difference, the role they played in terms of perceiving gender, race and class in my life, and the reasons why they were significant and finally I will discuss the role I will play as a future teacher regardless of gender, race and class of the learners. The most features in class or school environment, is for the teacher to understand his or her learners and mostly interact with them on continuous basis, as problems learners encounter arise from time to time. These problems tend to distract learners and need the intervention of the teacher themselves. Sometimes learners struggle with the content required, a problem at home or moreover a personal problem. A good teacher must anticipate and have insight of foretelling and differenti ate amongst learners that are showing signs of encountering problem

Wal-Mart Current Market Conditions Essay Example for Free

Wal-Mart Current Market Conditions Essay Market trends in the retail market are not difficult to track. â€Å"Any major initiative Wal-Mart undertakes has enormous supply chain implications worldwide† (ThomasNet News, 2010). The analysis for this paper is to look at the approach of Wal-Mart in a very competitive industry and examine how Wal-Mart is so successful. Some of the areas that will be examined are the Market Structure, the impact of new companies entering the market, prices, productivity, and cost structure, price elasticity of demand, competitors, supply and demand analysis, and impact of government regulations. When locating new stores, Wal-Mart tends to first look at more rural areas where there is less population, a higher income and where consumers are less likely to travel to larger cities. This may be due to the economics of the region or the size of city in which they propose to occupy. The company’s market is the same market as Target and K-Mart. The company’s growth will in all likelihood cause other smaller retail businesses to fail. New firms entering the market will continue to drive Wal-Mart’s prices lower. The impact of new companies entering this market would affect pricing indifference between companies. â€Å"Wal-Mart is the worlds largest retailer and second largest corporation. It is the largest private employer in the United States and Mexico. Wal-Mart is the largest grocery retailer in the United States, with an estimated 20% of the retail grocery and consumables business, and the largest toy seller in the United States, with an estimated 45% of the retail toy business, having surpassed Toys R Us in the late 1990s. Wal-Mart has 1,929 stores which as of 2005 sales figures totaled about $155 bilion in sales. Wal-Mart’s revenue as of 2006 was an estimated $315 billion USD, net income $11. 231billion USD, and employs more than 1. 8 million employees† (Information Food Source, 2006). Wal-Mart’s major competitors in the grocery market are the Kroger co. #2 in annual sales, Albertsons Inc. #3, Safeway, Inc. #4, and Costco Wholesale Group #5. Now even though Wal-Mart is leading the way in total sales the #2 and #3 businesses lead the way with total # of stores. The Kroger Co. has 3,302 with Albertsons at 2,476 stores nationwide. Wal-Mart’s total sales for that year alone were beating its 2nd place competition alone by more than 80 billion dollars. Wal-Mart’s major competitors in low-end general merchandise department would include Sears Holding Corporation, the slowly diminishing K-Mart chain, and Target whose trying different approaches including building Super Target stores to compete with the Super Wal-Mart. With Wal-Mart moving into the grocery business it has put a strain on grocery retailers also including: H-E-B, Kroger, Albertsons, Publix, Giant Eagle, Safeway, Winn Dixie, Food Lion and Save-A-Lot. Wal-Mart’s CEO Lee Scott in 2005 embarked on an energetic campaign to revive the company’s image. He installed Eduardo Castro-Wright to overhaul operations in America. Who remodeled 1,300 shops, modified merchandise and cut prices. Wal-Mart has had a number of suits filed against if for unfairly paying the female employee’s, not promoting the female employee’s fairly, placing them into positions where they can not advance, and paying them less than their male counterparts. Wal-Mart, Wally World or what ever the public wants to call wants to call it does not change what it is: A corporate machine that has made a major and horrific impact on the global economy. Wal-Mart has been accused of denying benefits, working employees off the clock, and denying them rightly earned over time pay. They also have exploited suppliers and been associated with monopolies. These are reasons that Wal-Mart, the corporate machine, the menace to the global community, must be stopped. Wal-Mart capitalizes on the use of the good value strategy when pricing their products. If Wal-Mart were to increase the price of their products then the demand for them would likely decrease and the demand for the competitor’s merchandise would likely increase, where if the price of the products drops at Wal-Mart then the demand will likely increase at Wal-Mart and decrease at the competitor’s stores. If Wal-Mart increased to match the prices then the demand would be perfectly elastic. Competition for Wal-Mart encompasses many different areas such as retail, electronics, club stores, and gasoline sales to name a few. In the US, Wal-Mart’s main competitors are department stores such as Target, K-Mart, nd ShopKo. When considering Wal-Mart’s Club store competitors one must look at Costco and BJ’s Wholesale Club in the eastern part of the US. Wal-Mart’s main US retail competitor is Target and seems to be doing very well considering the current market conditions. With Wal-Mart’s push to add greater sustainability and eco-friendly techniques to its repertoire, it becomes that much more difficult for the competition to stay with the industry leader. In 2009 Target’s EBIT (Earnings before Interest and Taxes) were 4. 74 Billion with a net income of 2. 49 Billion (Daily Finance an AOL Money and Finance Site, 2010). Target Inc. operates in the United States exclusively which keeps the Wal-Mart competitor in a distant second place. Although economic conditions in recent months have been difficult overall, firms operating in the consumer staples sector, and especially the food and staples retailing industry, have enjoyed a certain amount of stability, and even growth, which exceeded performance in other sectors of the market. This is especially true for those firms that have diversified into international markets. Access to a range of markets stabilizes earnings by reducing risk across a range of differing economic cycles. Although demand in the United States, Wal-Mart’s primary market, has been modest, it has continued on a general growth trend over the years. There have been months where demand fell; however, the overall trend has continued to rise. There are two major economic conditions that have worked in concert to contribute to moderate, but continued growth. First, income has generally suffered in Wal-Mart’s home market. Stagnant and declining wages, combined with rising unemployment have reduced the buying power of retail consumers. The sales of many consumer goods declined, and have only recently begun to recover (U.  S. Census Bureau, 2009; U. S. Census Bureau, 2010). This reduction in demand would cause a shift to the left in the demand curve for many of the products sold by Wal-Mart. On a global scale, Wal-Mart experienced a range of economic growth rates affecting demand in the markets where it has operations (United Nations Statistics Division, 2010). Overall, demand on a global scale was influenced by two primary mechanisms. Of greatest importance is an increasing customer base. As the firm reaches more consumers through new outlets and new markets, generally demand would increase across all products. Since many of Wal-Mart’s international markets are growth markets, incomes are increasing alongside the expanded consumer base. Although the company strives to bring value to all of its customers, since many of its products in growth markets are new to the market, income increases result in the reduction of demand for existing inferior goods in the market. In many ways, the items sold by Wal-Mart in growth markets are considered normal goods. Thus, increasing incomes actually increase for most of Wal-Mart’s products in these markets (Colander, 2008). Wal-Mart’s expansion into international growth markets may have helped the firm’s bottom line, but not without some upfront costs to overcome barriers to entry. At home, the firm must adhere to a range of labor, product safety, and reporting and audit requirements to do business. Similar regulations will likely be encountered in each of the markets where business is done. Some markets may actually have more rigid requirements than what the company has to deal with at home. The most important types of regulation the company will need to be responsive to deal with corruption and foreign direct investment. To combat corruption in both business dealings and interaction with governments, the United States requires its businesses to adhere to the Foreign Corruption Practices Act (FCPA). Along with other unscrupulous practices, the law aims to prevent bribery as a business practice while improving transparency in business dealings. There may be similar regulation in some of the markets where Wal-Mart does business. In terms of Foreign Direct Investment, Wal-Mart must deal with a complex patchwork of laws that differ from each of the other countries in which it has operations. Some countries, such as Canada and Mexico, allow Wal-Mart to directly operate its stores as long as it maintains certain capital and operational conditions. Other countries, however, require the company to undertake operations through or in collaboration with a native firm. Likewise, regulation may restrict the types of business operations a firm may undertake or the area of the market in which it may operate. Both China and India have restrictions along these lines, requiring Wal-Mart to partner with existing retailers to do business (U.  S. Commercial Service, 2008). Trends in the world’s retail markets may not be difficult to track, but due to the complexity of handling such a wide variety of goods and the wide range of competitors they can be difficult to understand and successfully do business in. To be successful in understanding the retail marketplace an entity must be dedicated to comprehensive research of the landscape. Additionally, an understanding of economic principles is critical to putting the extensive amount of available information into context.

Human resource development

Human resource development INTRODUCTON Human resource development is defined by Heathfield (2010) as the framework for helping employees develops their personal and organizational skills, knowledge and abilities. Human resource development involves using a range of learning and training techniques and strategies to change the work related behavior and attitudes of an employee (Megginson et al 1999) and it also engages in performance management in other to ensure that people can do things well or do new and better things (Gibbs 2008). This study is aimed to analyze the purpose of Human resource development and also using this aims to analyze how it helps organizations achieve sustained competitive advantage by using organization example. AIM OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT Human resource development according to Philbeam and Corbridge (2002:285) is concerned with enhancing organizational performance through effective development and deployment of organizational members. To enhance performance, a human resource developer has to ensure that the individuals in the organization has the knowledge, expertise and the right attitudes to execute their work (Swanson and Arnold 1996), also, human resource development aims at ensuring that the organization has the skilled, committed and well-motivated employee it needs to sustain competitive advantage by focusing on processes that develop skills, knowledge and the attitude of the employee (Swanson Arnold 1996), such as training, developing, learning, educating and mentoring the employee (Stewart and McGoldrick 1996), and also by identifying and improving the skills and motivation of employees (Philbeam and Corbridge 2002:284). In other to ensure that the organization as the right people to sustain competitive advantage, Human resource development engage in the following training, learning, development of the individual and mentoring but before the Human resource developer makes a decision on how to train, develop, teach or mentor the employee they need to have a concept on performance management in other to see how training and development will improve the effectiveness of the employee and to know what aspect in the performance of the employee needs to be trained in other to meet the goals and values of the organization (Megginson et al 1999). Performance management Performance involves what an employee does in carrying out their duty (Mathis and Jackson 2003). Before performance is managed the performance needed by the organization should be identified in other to achieve their goals which in most organization is linked to the mission statement of the organization so that the performance can be managed in line with the organizational values and some organization will manage the performance in line with the business strategy of the organization that are required in the business context to be competitive (Torrington et al 2005). Performance management is defined by Armstrong (2009:618) as a systematic process for improving organization by developing the performance of individuals and teams. Torrington et al (2005) cited Mabey and Salaman (1995) who defined performance management as establishing a frame work in which the performance by individual can be directed, monitored, motivated and rewarded and whereby the links in the cycle can be audited. Human resource development is a means to an end. That end is usually acknowledged to be getting better results from the organization, teams and individuals by understanding and managing performance within an agreed framework of planned goals, objectives and standards(Gibb 2008). Every organization wants an employee that performs well in their duty it is believed that an effective performance management scheme can make the likely of good performance to occur (Mathis and Jackson 2003). Performance management goes beyond the ability and motivation of the individual it involves how goals are clearly identified in enabling the employee to understand what is expected of them in the area of their job and to set their priorities (Torrington et al 2005). Performance management scheme involves processes that can be used to encourage, motivate, evaluate, reward and identify the performance of the employee (Mathis and Jackson 2003). Performance management develops the capacity of the employee to meet, exceed and to achieve their full potential for the benefit of the organization as well as themselves, it can also serve as the basis for self development and ensure that the support and the guidance need by the employee to develop and improve is available (Armstrong 2009). Megginson et al (1999) discuss the work of Ulrich (1998) who was of the view that performance management is what employees and managers do at work, that the way they act and interact is crucial to the success of the organization and in doing this it will raise the profile and value of training as a strategy for achieving competitive advantage. Training Staffs are important resources to an organization in other to achieve economic and effective performance, in other to ensure that an organization has staffs that are capable of career advancement into the role of a specialist or a manager an organization needs to engage in adequate training (Mullins 2002). Training is defined as learning and development undertaken for the purpose of supporting development and maintenance of operational capability in employment: skills for work and in work, on-job or off-job, to enable effective performance in a job or role (Gibb 2008:5). Training involves modifying skills, knowledge and abilities through learning to achieve effective performance (Wilson 2005). It is believed that training makes an individual become effective managers as a result of their techniques having impact on inherent abilities, competence and skills (Hunt and Baruch 2003). Training makes the employees believe that the organization is committed to them and in securing their future in the organization which motivates the employees to Work harder and better (CIPD 2008), and it also develops the expertise of the individual in other to increase their performance in the organization (Swanson). Training and development is equipping the employee with the right skills, knowledge and competence to maximize performance (Philbeam and Corbridge 2002).Also, training improves the level of the organization as well as the individual competence and its also a key element in improving organizational performance (Mullins 2002). Competence is defined by Stensgaard (2004) as the combination of awareness, skills, knowledge and abilities that enables an individual to perform a job to the standards required for successful job performance. Competence is more than learned knowledge, skills and abilities but involves motives, traits, values and self concept of the individual (Clardy 2008). Clardy (2008) discuss the work of Spencer and Spencer (1993) who claim that training competence however expanded the focus on skills and knowledge which includes personality traits, increasing the number of variables that could explain and promote job performance as well as shifting emphasis from enabling adequate performance to producing superior ones. However, competence is based on skills rather than knowledge, in other word; competence training will convince employees of the need to give time and commitment to learning new skill in other to increase their performance and to see their role as accepting these challenges for change (Bramham). Having a well designed and structured competence based training and development program; the organization can work towards ensuring that they have the right skills and the right people to achieve their organizational goals and sustain competitive advantage which can only be achieved by having employees that can effectively and efficiently perform their job (Stensgaard 2004). Training is believed to improve the knowledge and the skills of the employee as well as change their attitudes toward work which can lead to benefits such as the increase in the confidence, motivation and the commitment of staffs, broaden the opportunity for career progression, give a feeling of personal achievement and satisfaction and help to improve the availability and quality of staffs (Mullins 2002). Training can be a source of motivation development for the employee if it is carried out as a form of support for the employee and in the process of training the employees learns what is expected of them in doing their job and what they need to do better (Thomason 1988). Learning One of the functions of Human Resource development is to assist the organization by creating an environment suitable for learning which is required to help develop staffs to meet agreed objectives (Wilson 2005). Learning is defined as a change in an individuals level of knowledge, skills or attitudes (Gibb 2008). Learning is believed to be the individuals ability to cope with change which can be acquired either through formal education or training or through informal experiences (Wilson 2005). As much as organizations are interested in ensuring they utilize the knowledge and skills of all their employees it is believed that little is gained through training provided at work but it is believed that most learning acquired by the individual is through their interaction with colleagues, clients which is said to be learning acquired through experience (Mullins 2002). It is believed that learning and development has helped develop employees skills in organizations which have prompted employees performance and lead to organizational success (CIPD 2008). Learning is believed to be linked to behavioral outcomes in other words learning does not only involve what is being taught but making sense of experiences and by doing that learning new skills (Stewart and McGoldrick 1996). Learning at work can be said to be learning for work and it is believed that what people learn will be applied to work in other to support current and future work requirement, also, as learning at work increases the ability of the individual at work so does learning outside work increase the individuals work performance (Megginson et al 1999). Learning can be beneficial to an organization as well as the individual in the organization by increasing the capacity and the ability of everyone to contribute to the growth of the organization, by developing the individuals skills and potentials and enabling them to be able to meet the demand of change, also, it provides a solution to organizational issues, enables the organization to meet its goals and produce a wider range of solutions to organizational issues (Mullins 2002). Development Development is believed to be a form of learning and training which changes the individual intellectually and not just changing their work skill or knowledge but the individual as a whole and it also helps the individual to grow in their career and also in all aspect of life (Gibb 2008). Development is said to involve preparing the individual in the organization for expected changes in their job or for a future job or a role (Mullins 2002). Development involves the growth of an individuals ability through learning which can be conscious or unconscious (Wilson 2005). Wilson (2005:6) cited the work of Bolton (1995) who points out that development occurs when a gain in experience is effectively combined with the conceptual understanding that can illuminate it, giving increased confidence both to act and to perceive how such actions relates to its context. Employee development involves attitude which includes concepts like growth, expansion, improvement, and education (Maund 2001), and also gives the employee opportunity to develop their skills, abilities, realize their potential and to advance their career in or outside the organization (Armstrong 2009), and to change their attitude as a result of going through the process of motivational development (Thomason 1988). Development involves the acquisition of skills which is derived from learning (Thomason 1988).Employee development as wide impact on the individual and not just on the individual but also on the organization and the community in which the organization works (Maund 2001). Mentoring Mentoring is a relationship in which experienced managers aid individuals in the earlier stage of their career and such relationship provides an environment for convening technical, interpersonal and organizational skills from the more experienced to the less experienced (Mathis and Jackson 2003). Mentoring is seen as a variable in the achievement of success for both the individual and the organization who seek to manage the development of their employees who are the future leaders to engage in order to grow and to develop to senior managers (Gibb 2008). It is believed that mentoring is a form of support in enabling women to progress up the career ladder particular in the area of professions and management (Gibb 2008). Effective mentors will not only encourage individuals to reflect upon their career goals, thereby promoting a sense of purpose and control they will also help individuals acquire the skills necessary to operate within a less hierarchical structure (CIPD 2008). The skills, approaches and the general behavior of the mentor have an important effect on the employees willingness to learn and also on the commitment shown by the employees towards the learning process (Megginson et al 1999). Also, mentors can serve as a source of motivation for the individual in a way of support in the early stage of their career (Mathis and Jackson 2003). Motivation can be used to aid the employee to give their best to their job or increase their performance in the area of their job or work according to set standards, also, it is believed that people tend to work better if they understand the nature of their job and how they are suppose to carry it out and why they are suppose to carry it out in that particular way (Thomason 1988). SUSTAINING COMPETITVE ADVANTAGE THROUGH THE WORK OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (ORGANIZATION EXAMPLE) Human resource development is viewed as an important necessity to Walt Disney because to them training is seen as an important investment in the success of their company, while some organizations see training as necessary but expensive, Walt Disney make it top priority (Handout). Walt Disney believe so strongly in a companys responsibility for training its employees (handout), and they believe that it is the talent, enthusiasm and the dedication of their employee that has sustained them over the years (Disneyland paris.com). they believe that in other for their employees to perform excellently and not embarrass themselves they need to go through a training program and also need to practice whatever they have been trained on (Handout). Before starting in their new job their employees go through training program that is based on their profession and what their job entails, in other to develop their skills (Marie). They believe that everyone that works with them from the senior to the junior employer has a right to learn, develop and to grow (Marie). According to them, training, learning and practicing has important roles to play in the in the development of their employees talent and in other for them to perform well they need to be thoroughly trained and also they need to rehearse their roles which lead to the establishment of the Disney university (Hand out). Disney University is believed to be a training process and Walt Disney makes sure that every new employee goes through a training process before starting in their new job and the training process is directed towards imparting knowledge about specific job skills, competencies and also ensures that the employee has a good understanding of the companys culture and tradition (Handout). Their training is based on developing the professional ability and the performance of their employee and they believe that the employees should be able to develop themselves and in turn develop others in the process (Marie). At the Disney University student receive complete orientation called Traditions, which includes an explanation of the companys values and traditions, on-the-job training, and procedures for advancement (Handout). Their employees are also provided with teachers who serve as mentors who has more experience and who can show the employees what should be done and what not to do (handout). The implementation of training in Walt Disney was to train their employees in other to develop their skills, knowledge and their ability and as a result, get the performance needed to be competitive and to sustain a competitive advantage by having the right employees (handout). Walt Disney sees training as the bases for Human resource and as a way of developing their business, their workers and also themselves (Marie). CONCLUSION Human resource development has an important role to play in the development of an employee and in the growth of an organization, by providing an organization with the proper employees who have undergone training and learning new skills in other to develop their skills, knowledge, abilities and their competencies Reference Armstrong, M. (2009) Armstrongs Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice, 9th edn, Kogan Page, London. Brumback, G.H (2003) Blending we/me in performance management [Electronic copy], Team performance management, Volume 8, Issue 7/8, Pg 167-173. Clardy, A. (2008) Human resource development and the resource based model of core competencies: Methods for diagnosis and assessment [Electronic copy], Human resource development review, Volume 7, Issue 4, Pg 387-407. Disneyland Paris (2010) Corporate responsibility Disneylandparis.com corporate.disneylandparis.com/corporate-responsibility/our-people/diverse-and-multicultural/cast-member-interviews.xhtml [Accessed 05/04/2010]. Gibb, S. (2008) Human resource development: Processes, Practices and Perspectives, 2nd edn, Palgrave, New York. Heathfield, S.M. (2010) What is human resource development (HRD) About.com humanresources.about.com/od/glossaryh/f/hr_development.htm [Accessed 27/03/2010]. Hunt, J.W, Baruch, Y. (2003) Developing top managers: the impact of interpersonal skills training, [Electronic copy]. Journal of Management Development, Volume 22, Issue 8, Page 729-752. Lasbleis, J.M. (2010) Training Disneylandparis-casting.com http://disneylandparis-casting.com/en/our-hr-philosophy/training [Accessed 03/04/2010]. Mathis, R.L., Jackson, J.H (2003) Human resource management, 10th edn, Thomson, Ohio. Megginson, D., Banfield, P., Joy-Mathews, J. (1999) Human Resource development, 2nd edn, Kogan page, London. Mullins, L.J (2002) Management and organizational behaviour, 6th edn, Pearson education, Harlow. Philbeam, S., Corbridge, M. (2002) People resourcing: HRM in practice, 2nd edn, Pearson education, Harlow. Stensgaard, A.B (2007) Competence based training and Development, Ameinfo.com, www.ameinfo.com/43457.html [Accessed 29/03/2010]. Stewart, J., McGoldrick, J. (1996) Human resource development: Perspectives, strategies and practice, Pearson education, Harlow Swanson, A.R, Arnold, D.E (1996) The purpose of human resource development is to improve organizational performance, Richardswanson.com www.richardswanson.com/publications/Swanson(1996)ThePurpose.pdf [Accessed 27/03/2010]. Swanson, R.A. () Human resource development: performance is the key cmapspublic.ihmc.us/rid=1217113903859_1440042561_12670/Overview%20of%20HRD%20-%20Swanson.pdf [Accessed 27/03/2010]. Thomason, G. (2003) A text book of human resource management, institute of personal management, London. Torrington, D., Hall, L., Taylor, S (2005) Human resource management, 6th edn, Pearson education, Harlow. Willson, J.P. (2005) Human resource development: Learning and training for individuals and organizations, 2nd edn, Kogan page, London.

the most dangerous game Essay -- essays research papers

Richard Connell's "The Most Dangerous Game" is a very exciting story of a manhunt. This story made me think about the morality of hunting: Humans are the cleverest creatures on earth, but does it give them a license to kill the other animals and even human beings weaker than themselves? I give below a short summary of the story to set the scene and then I will explore the ethics involved in hunting as a sport. "The Most Dangerous Game" presents the story of a hunter, General Zaroff, who finds hunting human beings as the most dangerous and fascinating sport. He likes hunting humans because human beings, unlike the other animals, can reason better and so provide a richer thrill for the hunter. He does not think hunting human beings is an immoral act because he believes in the theory of might is right and that the strong have the right to kill the weak. However in the story General Zaroff fails to hunt down Rainsford, who had the ill fortune to accidentally slip overboard a yacht and swim to the shore, seek shelter in the General's chateau in the midst of a jungle, and become General Zaroff's quarry for three days. Nevertheless, Rainsford, who believes it is immoral to hunt human beings, was clever and desperate--he gave General Zaroff the slip in the manhunt and killed the General. So The hunter who craved to pit his wits against the victim's wits for the Sake of excitement met his end. In my opinion Rainsford, who was also a great hunter, learnt ...

Euthanasia Essay - Dr. Quill and Dr. Kevorkian :: Euthanasia, Physician Assisted Suicide

There are many different methods of approaching patients facing the end of their lives. Since technology has increased the ability to sustain life longer, patient assisted suicide has become an increasingly more popular avenue for doctors to explore. This topic, since it deals with the power over life and death, touches on some of the deepest of human feelings. The argument over whose or which approach is most viable can become a heated one and could never be solved with one broad stroke since it deals with individuals on such an intimate level. Both Dr. Jack Kevorkian and Dr. Timothy Quill have there own views on which methods are correct, some of their views are similar and some are quite different. Both doctors agree that certain people at the end of their lives shouldn't have to suffer any more than they have to, but they differ in the methods in which lead up to the decision process of choosing euthanasia or not. The belief that individuals facing terminal illnesses and or certain death in a short period of time should have the "right to die with as much control and dignity as possible" is shared by both Kevorkian and Quill (Quill 434). There are many cases in which people become sick and life becomes an endless episode phasing between unconsciousness and severe pain. There are also cases in which an individual becomes diagnosed with a disease with no definite cure and faces a road of painful treatment and emotional heartache . One example of this was Diane's case. Diane was one of Dr. Quills patients who was diagnosed with "acute myelomonocytic leukemia", a disease with a 25% survival rate with treatment and certain death in at most a few months without treatment (Quill 434). This disease is very painful to say the least. She was faced with the decision between a painful treatment process or death. Diane chose to let the disease run its course, this way she would be able to say her final good-byes to her family. Her only worry was that in the final stages of her death, would she be able to control herself, or would she slip away in agony. To avoid this she asked Dr. Quill if he would give her a prescription for barbiturates so that when the end was near she would be able to control her

Sophocles Antigone - The Real Tragedy :: Antigone essays

Tragedy of Antigone The play â€Å"Antigone† by Sophocles displays many qualities that make it a great tragedy.   A tragedy is defined as a dramatic or literary work in which the principal character engages in a morally significant struggle ending in ruin or profound disappointment. In creating his tragedy â€Å"Antigone†, Sophocles uses many techniques to create the feelings of fear and pity in his readers. This in turn creates an excellent tragedy.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In order for a play to be considered a tragedy it must achieve the purgation of fear and pity.   In the play â€Å"Antigone†, Sophocles does a great job of bringing out these two emotions in a reader. At the beginning of the play there is a conversation between Antigone and her sister Ismene. During the conversation the reader learns the two girls lost their father in battle and both of their brothers at the hands of one another. Then the reader learns that one of the brothers, Polynices, has been left out to die without a proper burial. At this time the reader begins to feel pity for the two sisters. They have lost their father and their two brothers all at the same time.     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Later in the conversation the reader learns that Antigone has a plan to bury here brother Polynices and that she wants Ismene to help her. Ismene is scared to do this because the new king, Creon, has issued a decree that says that any person that attempts to bury the body will be sentenced to death.   The fact that Antigone is going to attempt to bury the body creates fear in the reader. They are fearful as to what will happen to   Antigone if she is caught.   As the play moves on there is a building of this fear and pity that is felt for many of the characters that finally is resolved at the catastrophe. At that point the reader learns that Creon, the king, has lost his wife, his son, and his niece Antigone, all because he was too stubborn to give in as well as to afraid that if he did give in that he would be judged as an easy king. In a way this ending brings the two emotions together. The reader feels pity for Creon because of his great loss, but at the same time he feels a bit of fear because he wouldn’t want this type of tragedy to ever occur in his life.

Black Humor, Gallows Humor and Identity Crisis

Evensong's Mother Night, and then analyze the identity crises of certain characters of the story. As I have written, there are many similarities between black humor and gallows humor, and in order to make a distinction between them, first I would like to point out those features that are shared and typical of both of them. To create such humor, the writer always confronts rationality with the chaos of the universe and the notion of death.Both black humor and gallows humor function as a counterbalance which mitigates the seriousness of death, or a situation which eventually ends with death. In both cases the constraint of laughter Is rooted In the sense of Inertia, and In the acknowledgement of the Insensitivity of the universe to human reasoning. They are both based on a sense of defeat, because of which they cannot be triumphant satires, still they are comical for they reveal nonsense. Now that I have examined the common features of these two types of humor, I will proceed with the most salient difference between the two.In the case of black humor, the object of laughter applies to the laughing subject as well, while it is quite different with gallows humor, as the deader cannot identify with a condemned character who is waiting for his own death. Obviously, the reader hasn't experienced anything like that before, so the notion of impending death is unknown to them, that's why they cannot put themselves In the place of that character, they feel like an outside observer Instead. In Kurt Evensong's Mother Night there are many examples for both elements. The frame of the story takes place In an Israeli prison with the mall character, Howard W.Campbell Jar. Writing his memoirs In It. At the very beginning of the story, the reader Is Informed by the narrator, – who is Campbell himself – that Campbell is waiting for his trial for war crimes sixteen years after the end of the Second World War. His crimes which are as â€Å"ancient† as some stones in the prison wall, later turn out to be justified as Campbell was only serving the US as a spy, providing information for them during the war. Depicting him defenseless and miserable in his prison cell could provide a good foundation for gallows humor however, his death at the very end of the story has thing to do with it.It Is more like a serious and fatal result of his identity crisis, which I will touch upon later. But there are other parts of the story which actually contain black humor, for example the death of Sauerkraut who was a racist old man, â€Å"former Vice-Fundraiser of the German-American Bund,† The representation of his death Is quite factual and emotionless at the same time, and even his close friends and comrades react rather indifferently. After he drops dead they call for a more humorous. Epstein was Jewish, and I thought Jones or Kelley might say meeting to him about the way he was punching and poking Sauerkraut. But the two antique fascists were childi shly respectful and dependent. † The culmination of the comical events happens when the Black Fuehrer of Harlem arrives, who is the racist black chauffeur of Skyscraper's company. â€Å"Everything all right up here? † he said to Jones. Muff was up here so long. † â€Å"Not quite,' said Jones. â€Å"August Sauerkraut died. † The Black Fuehrer of Harlem took the news in stride. â€Å"All dying, all dying,† he said. â€Å"Who's goanna pick up the torch when everybody's dead?As I have said, Campbell story is a story about identity crisis Just like the whole novel, and the previously analyzed elements are there to soften the depressing effects of it. The term â€Å"identity crisis† was invented by Erik Erikson, a German psychologist who dealt with the development of the ego and that of the personality. According to him, identity crisis is the failure to achieve ego identity during adolescence however, we also use the term when we speak about the psychosocial state or condition of disorientation and role infusion caused by conflicting internal and external experiences, pressures, and expectations.In Mother Night the external effects are obviously caused by the Second World War, and for me, the representation of Campbell guards and their conversations are the most expressive parts of the story, and the best examples of identity crisis. When the narrator characterizes them, and when they tell how they took part and what their roles were in the war, it turns out that they should also be behind bars with Campbell. These people turned their backs on their fellow Monterrey, their fellow sufferers and what is more repellent, they betrayed their own being.There is a man, who tells us nostalgically about how he volunteered to be a member of the so called Condemnations. There is another one, who – despite the fact that he is Jewish – even became an AS member, and when Campbell shows him the transcript of one of his broad casts, he criticizes it for not being passionate and fervent enough. In the case of the second guard, he did what he did to avoid death, but the first guard cannot Justify his decision. When Campbell asks him why he joined the Condemnations, he simply cannot give an answer and tells the main character that there were other volunteers as well.The other guard, who Joined the AS says that he made his decision to avoid death, but at some points it seems that he even enjoyed his Job. â€Å"What an Aryan I made! † – says he. The Second World War and the survival instinct of these people compelled them to put on masks and do things which normally they would never do. And they did it for so long, that eventually they loud identify with their role, and this identification confused them and distorted their original identity.This is exactly what happens to the main character, Campbell as well. His ordeals start in Germany, where he is commissioned by an American soldier to spy fo r the U. S. As a Nazi playwright and from that point on, he is regarded as a Nazi by the whole world. Even though he is only acting, nobody knows who he really is and as a result, he becomes unsure about his own identity by the end of the story. There is a scene which takes place after the war ended, in which Campbell inverses with the agent, called Warrantee, who commissioned him. How else could I have survived? † as you did. † â€Å"You think I was a Nazi? † I said. â€Å"Certainly you were,† he said. â€Å"How else could a responsible historian classify you? † All in all, the moral of the story which is an admonition as well is worded by Bonnet at the beginning of the novel. It goes like this: â€Å"We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be. † For me, it means that we should always be true to ourselves and stick to those values which we consider the best.