A midsummer night dream

A Midsummer Night's Dream Shakespeare is one of the most well-known playwright and poet that the world has ever produced. He's known for his ability to recapitulate the array of human emotions in simple yet Intensely expressive verse. One of Shakespearean most popular plays, A Midsummer Night's Dream Is full of Intense feelings, tragic events and a happy ending. Literature can be defined as a comedy, romance, or a tragedy. A Midsummer Night's Dream can best be defined as a comedy.In literary sense, a comedy is a work which is principally designed to amuse and entertain, and where, despite problems during the narrative, all ends well for the characters (English Literature Dictionary). The play can be proven to be a comedy because of its humorous tone. The play features fairy magic, pranks and the performance of a play within the play by a group of fairies. The play even has trickery and disguise in it as well. Hernia and Alexander try to sneak away from Athens to wed behind Geese's ba ck.Also, Titanic and the nouns lovers have no Idea they've been dazed by Oberon by the love-in-idleness flowers Juice. These examples given are what put A Midsummer Night's Dream under the literature category of a comedy. A romance Is traditionally, a long fictional prose narrative about unlikely events Involving characters that are very different from ordinary people. Nowadays the modern romance novel Is a prescribed love story, where boy meets girl, obstacles get in the way, they are then overcome and the couple live happily ever after (English Literature Dictionary).A Midsummer Night's Dream could also fit into this category because of the fairies that are in it. In the play the fairies experience unlikely events, like Titanic falling in love with Bottom as he as the head of an ass. Another way the play could fit into this category would be how Hernia and Alexander are in love and are forbidden to be married. At the end of the play the obstacle of them not being able to marry is overcome when they are invited by the fairies to go back and marry with the duke.The last category is tragedy. Tragedy Is defined as a serious play where the protagonist experiences a succession of misfortunes leading to a concluding, disturbing catastrophe usually for the protagonist (English Literature Dictionary). The way love Is defined In the beginning of the play is a tragic view. Segues goes to Theses demanding that he make Hernia marry Demerits, and not Alexander. Segues says, â€Å"As she is mine, I may dispose of her. Which shall be either to this gentleman, or to her death. Even though this makes the play come off as a tragedy, the characters and situations do not allow for tragedy to aka over or take form in the plot. As a conclusion, A Midsummer Night's Dream best fits into the literary definition of comedy. It has some aspects of romance in it but comedy smothers the majority of the play. The beginning of the play can make A Midsummer Night's Dream seem that it will t urn out to be a tragedy but again comedy takes over. A Midsummer Night's Dream Is a classic example of Shakespeare comedy. â€Å"English Literature Dictionary'. Education. Asia. Education Asia. ND. Web. 14 June 2014

Final Descriptive Writing

Anton Meriwether When you are trying to write a descriptive piece then it is best to describe everything in a very visual way to that would make the reader use it's five senses. Using the five senses in a descriptive writing really elevates your piece and makes it stand out. I'm from a small city in northern Indiana where not many people visit even actually hardly at all. The city is off the coast of Lake Michigan which creates a slight cold breeze in middle of December and all of January. The city is called Michigan City, Indiana.Have you ever heard of The Blue Chip Casino? Of course you have I mean who haven't. The Blue Chip Casino is like a boat casino and it is also the tallest building in the whole city. The Casino sits at one end Of Michigan Blvd which is one of the main roads in the city and also one of the longest. Another thing about the city is a place called The Dunes. The Dunes is a big sand hill that depending on the weather will burn your feet. The Dunes is a great plac e to go if you're looking to have some fun walking n sand and also going to the beach.Hearing the beach at night just calms you down no matter what is going on because, hearing the breeze flow over the lake creates a sound that can't be mimicked by technology which is very rare nowadays. Michigan City is a good place to visit but of course every city has its down falls I mean Atlanta is too big like huge for no reason at all, no seriously, really dumb big and parking is expensive and can't even drive yet and I'm saying, it's just ridiculous, but back to the task at hand. One problem aboutMichigan City is the weather, if you are not used to cold weather or don't like it then it's not your place because it gets freezing, iceman, Antarctica, I'm staying inside the house cold. That is a descriptive writing that includes all five senses. When you use all the senses then you are truly writing a descriptive writing, because how can you describe something without using the senses, I mean, y ou not even describing anything all you are doing is just talking about it and that won't get my attention. I hope this helps you become a better descriptive writer.

Monitoring Individual Accounts Receivable Accounting Essay

The name that looms largest in early accounting history is Luca Pacioli, who in 1494 first described the system of double-entry clerking used by Venetian merchandisers. Of class, concerns and authoritiess had been entering concern information long before the Venetians. But it was Pacioli who was the first to depict the system ofA debitsA andA creditsA inA journalsA andA ledgersA that is still the footing of today ‘s accounting systems. The dual entry system was foremost used in Genoa, Italy around the thirteenth century and was farther polished in Venice. Luca Pacioli wrote about the â€Å" Method of Venice † in his 1494 book, The Summa and this caused him to be called â€Å" the male parent of accounting † . This method called for three books to be used when entering minutess ; a memoranda book, a diary and a leger. Entries where posted from the memoranda book to the diary with debits on the left and credits on the right. A test balance was required at the terminal of a fiscal period. TheA industrial revolutionA spurred the demand for more advancedA cost accountingA systems, and the development of corporations created much larger categories of external capital suppliers -A shareownersA and bondholders – who were non portion of the house ‘s direction but had a critical involvement in its consequences. The lifting public position of comptrollers helped to transform accounting into a profession, foremost in the United Kingdom and so in the United States. In 1887, 31 comptrollers joined together to make the American Association of Public Accountants. The first standardised trial for comptrollers was given a decennary subsequently, and theA foremost CPAs were licensed in 1896. With the Industrial revolution concerns expanded to great size, both in footings of gross revenues, purchases and staff. These larger concern required capital and capital required investors who in bend required proper coverage of financess. They were besides capable to increased authorities ordinance and revenue enhancement. Accounting kept on progressing to the present twenty-four hours and involves the standardisation of reportingA and the development of international accounting criterions. The cognition economic system along with the on-going information engineering alterations is impacting the manner we are making concern. We are going clients of each other, and the economic value concatenation is incorporating our concerns with our providers, clients, and authoritiess. As accounting is concerned, these peculiar alterations are being reflected in the present tendencies of switching our attending from an disused quantitative attack to a qualitative compulsion where quality, client satisfaction, and invention become the most of import constituents. What is Accounting? Accounting is by and large considered to be the procedure of maintaining path of a concern ‘ fundss by logging itsA histories collectible, A histories receivableA and other fiscal minutess – frequently with accounting. Accounting is besides a profession consisting of persons holding the formal instruction to transport out these undertakings One portion of accounting focal points on showing the information in the signifier of all-purpose fiscal statements ( balance sheet, income statement, etc. ) to people outside of the company. These external studies must be prepared in conformity with by and large accepted accounting rules frequently referred to as GAAP or US GAAP. This portion of accounting is referred to as fiscal accounting. Accounting besides entails supplying a company ‘s direction with the information it needs to maintain the concern financially healthy. These analyses and studies are non distributed outside of the company. Some of the information will arise from the recorded minutess but some of the information will be estimations and projections based on assorted premises. Three illustrations of internal analyses and studies are budgets, criterions for commanding operations, and gauging selling monetary values for citing new occupations. This country of accounting is known as direction accounting. Another portion of accounting involves conformity with authorities ordinances refering to income revenue enhancement coverage. Today much of the recording, storing, and screening facets of accounting have been automated as a consequence of the progresss in computing machine engineering. What is bookkeeping? Bookkeeping involves the recording, hive awaying and retrieving of fiscal minutess for a company, non-profit-making organisation, single, etc. Common fiscal minutess and undertakings that are involved in bookkeeping include: Charging for goods sold or services provided to clients. Recording grosss from clients. Verifying and entering bills from providers. Paying providers. Processing employees ‘ wage and the related governmental studies. Monitoring single histories receivable. Recording depreciation and other seting entries. During the clerking procedure the bookkeeper must pay attending to inside informations on papers that is base for recording ( for illustration, amount, kernel of dealing, spouse of the company ) . In some legal systems there are prescribed demands sing information that must be included in papers. If all necessary information is non included, so papers may be invalid and can non be used for clerking. There are two bookkeeping systems: single-entry clerking system and double-entry clerking system. Single-entry system normally is used by persons and double-entry system is used by companies. A individual that does clerking is called bookkeeper, while a individual that does accounting ( uses informations provided by bookkeeper to fix revenue enhancement studies ) is called an comptroller. Bookkeeping requires cognition of debits and credits and a basic apprehension of fiscal accounting, which includes the balance sheet and income statement. The relationship between accounting and clerking. The footings accountant and bookkeeper are frequently used interchangeably, but they are non the same business. Bookkeepers are the line employees of the accounting map, executing invoicing, paysheet, hard currency aggregation and other everyday undertakings. Accountants supervise bookkeepers and have many other duties. Accountants and bookkeepers are responsible for entering the day-to-day activities of a company in the accounting records. These minutess are normally recorded by concern rhythm, and in larger companies a separate employee may be in charge of each rhythm. Everyday minutess are normally recorded by the bookkeepers, and more complex minutess are recorded by comptrollers. In fact, bookkeepers in organisations may be referred to as accounting clerks. Accountants vs. bookkeepers Book maintaining is merely record of dealing, but accounting is immense scientific discipline of recording, categorization, analyze and summarizing of concern dealing and reading of different consequence. 2. A book keeper ever works under caput comptroller and book keeper is frequently said history helper. 3. Calculation of revenue enhancement and filling of revenue enhancement return is the portion of responsibilities of comptroller. But, he can take aid from book keeper for tracking the sum of the incomes of concern. 4. Book maintaining is merely similar machine work in which book keeper passes the verifiers into books but accounting work is to the full professional and need high experience for analysis and reading of fiscal statements. 5. Most hard portion of book maintaining work is to rapprochement of bank history with base on balls book, hard currency balance with physical hard currency in manus, stock in books with physical stock in Go down. Most hard work of comptroller is to do concluding history and analysis of fiscal statements. Both bookkeepers and comptrollers play a cardinal function in your concern. The chief users of accounting information Accounting is frequently called the linguistic communication of concern because all organisations set up an accounting information system to pass on informations to assist people make better determinations. The accounting information system serves many sorts of users who can be divided into two ( 2 ) groups: External and Internal users. External information users External users of accounting information are non straight involved in running the organisation. Yet many of their of import determinations depend on specially information that is dependable, relevant and comparable. They include: Stockholders ( investors ) Lenders Customers Directors Suppliers The media Lawyers Each external user has particular information demands depending on the types of determination to be made. Lenders ( Creditors ) They loan money or other resources to an organisation. Lenders look for information to assist them assess whether an organisation it likely to refund

The Tarvydas Integrative Decision-Making Model of Ethical Behavior Case Study

The Tarvydas Integrative Decision-Making Model of Ethical Behavior - Case Study Example The paper considers the steps of the model and offer a basis for evaluating the officer’s actions.The first instance involves the dilemma of either pursuing the suspect or not. Awareness of the situation identifies a residential area and potential risk of accidents during pursuit, possibility that the suspect is armed, busy vicinity because of existence of a college in the neighborhood. A review of these factors and consideration of codes of ethical practice and utilitarian and rule ethics identifies the interest of the residents, people in the college environment as well as the officer’s safety. The suspect’s intention was not yet known but defiance indicates potential threat to the officers and other people in the environment. A pursuit of containing the suspect was necessary, though consultation with pursuit supervisor was required. Selecting appropriate pursuit strategy, planning, and execution of pursuit would then follow. The second instance involved the su spect running through an intersection, disregarding a stop sign and almost hitting another vehicle and the ethical decision is whether to continue pursuit or to stop. Awareness and sensitivity of the environment shows the suspect’s risk to the immediate society because he could cause accidents by hitting vehicles and people. His state of mind is not ascertained and he could be a threat to other people even while outside the car. While pursuing the suspect would be dangerous, the officers’ care and effectiveness in containing the suspect could minimize these risks

Using examples taken from at least two emerging markets critically Essay

Using examples taken from at least two emerging markets critically analyse the view that the only successful entry strategy into emerging markets for European a - Essay Example local collaborators, the company can create good relationships with different organisations which are located in other parts of the world or even within the same geographic region. In the age of globalisation, a Company can have a head office in London while the production work is carried out in a factory near Beijing and the research and development of the product itself is conducted in Oslo. Companies have moved out of the nationalist image which was the mainstay of their identity of the past (Martin, 1999). Of course, it is still possible to say that BMW is a German company and Toyota is a Japanese company or GE is an American firm, but the nature of the multinational enterprise means that companies may be based in one country while the problems and issues they face could be of a global nature. To counter these problems, companies simply need to have relationships with local collaborators if they wish to enter emerging markets. These relationships will bring an easy understanding and efficient information transfer as well as create an open exchange for ideas between various cultures followed in other countries (Levy and Powell, 1998). Expansion itself is a useful pursuit for a company and there are several reasons why a company may wish to expand its business to global levels. However, the evidence provided in research materials as well as the practical examples of expanding companies show us that expansion without local collaboration might be a futile effort. To fully understand and critically appraise the question we must first understand why a policy of expansion is necessary and why collaborators are important for an expanding company. The first part of the question is rather easy to answer but the second part comes with two primary markets that are analysed for entry. The two markets selected for this are Hungary and China. These were selected because they both represent very different cases for analysis and are quite representative of the surrounding

Management Information Systems Research and its Impact on Sustainable Paper

Management Information Systems and its Impact on Sustainable Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) - Research Paper Example In response, businesses have established information systems, which help keeping track of all their activities right from the planning stage to the delivery of value to the final consumer in the product market (Allingham & Oconnor 160). The highly competitive entrepreneurial atmosphere demands that managers should be clear concerning aspects of the business, should plan effectively, and should be in position to make fast smart business decisions at each stage of the operation chain in order to succeed (Leidner & Elam 139). This has gradually led to the evolution of the Management Information System (MIS), as a tool for supporting the decision making function of the organization; many studies have highlighted the multiple benefits of the MIS as a decision making tool of the organization. However, it is an undeniable fact that the continued deterioration of natural environments in the modern global business era poses greater risks as well as opportunities for the present businesses, which further underpins the need to fine tune the organizational thought processes towards sustainability (Thongpoon, Ahmad, & Yahya 5). In that respect, modern organizations are facing yet another crucial challenge of generating decisions that focus on sustainability and innovative environmental strategies, thereby leading to the evolution of the modern Sustainable SMEs that are fine-tuned towards social responsibility as well as sustainable development. The SSMEs research is still growing, thereby increasingly highlighting the modern SSMEs focus on environmental responsibility as well as technology up-gradation for strategic business advantages. Generally, environmental responsibility encompasses the measures to reduce, recycle material, while technology up-gradation entails the use of computer based systems such as the MISs among other innovative tools. A vast proportion of literature covers the contributions of the MIS to the establishment

Genocide Of either Holocaust or the Rawnda Essay

Genocide Of either Holocaust or the Rawnda - Essay Example (Kagame and his RPF were said to be the ones who ended the genocide) Later on, Kagame is elected as President and has ruled the country since March of 2000. Gourevitch recently wrote that Kagame â€Å"has come to be recognized by his adversaries and his admirers alike, as one of the most formidable political figures of our age† (cjr.org). A detailed report from the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) regarding the events in the run-up and during the April to July of 1994 provided the scale of the genocide in a straightforward lead: â€Å"Between April and June of 1994, an estimated 800,000 Rwandans were killed in the space of 100 days† (news.bbc.co.uk). The genocide all started from the assassination of Habyarimana and other officials when the airplane they had boarded â€Å"was shot down above Kigali airport on 6 April 1994† (new.bbc.co.uk). By Kagame’s account, dissident Hutus were behind the killing of Habyarimana just to give excuse for Hutus and state fo rces to purge the Tutsis out of Rwanda; but a French judge has blamed Kagame. It is clear that several factors had phenomenally laid the groundwork for the horrible genocide to happen. Aside from the shooting down of Habyarimana’s plane, cases of violence–specifically between Hutus and Tutsis which are the two races in Rwanda–replete the torrid history of Rwanda. â€Å"Ethnic tension in Rwanda is nothing new. There have been always disagreements between the majority Hutus and minority Tutsis† (news.bbc.co.uk). Way back in 1916, Belgian colonists considered the Tutsis as superior. Tutsis stood tall and had had â€Å"enjoyed better jobs and educational opportunities† (news.bbc.co.uk) than the Hutus. It is the Hutus’ ethnic hatred towards the Tutsis which added more fuel in burning genocide. In the midst of the Rwandan genocide was Paul Rusesabagina, 56. A hotel manager of the Millie Collines, a luxury hotel in capital Kigali, Rusesabagina has saved many Tutsis from the armed Hutus. His actions transformed him into being an â€Å"unlikely hero† (nationalgeograophic.com). His story was filmed and premiered in Hollywood on the December of 2004 as Hotel Rwanda. Hotel Rwanda has revealed the daily struggles of Rusesabagina just to keep many Tutsis safe in the luxury hotel. It revealed the corrupted and disordered local politics in Rwanda. It has also shown the cowed response of the United Nations’ peacekeeping force in handling the situation. It has also revealed many impoverished families who mired in hunger and poverty. Ultimately, it is a success story on the part of Rusesabagina that despite of all the intimidations he’s been through, he successfully saved his neighbors and loved ones from the genocide. The UN is pretty straightforward in its campaign against genocide. Under the UN Agreements on Human Rights, it is stipulated that the convention bans â€Å"acts committed with the intent to destroy, i n whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group† (hrweb.org). It also declared that â€Å"genocide itself, conspiracy or incitement to commit genocide, attempts to commit or complicity in the commission of genocide all to be illegal† (hrweb.org). It is clear that the true intent of the convention is to straighten the fact that genocide is illegal thus deserves

Ecotourism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Ecotourism - Essay Example uld be considered as culturally significant for the local people, it becomes necessary to take care that tourism does not in any way hurt the well being of such communities. Infact one way of improving the well being of the local communities would be to provide them with direct financial benefits to help them conserve the environment or purchasing goods and services directly from them and empowering them. As can be seen from the above discussion, the main difference, as Beeton (1998) points out, between other types of tourism and eco-tourism is that eco-tourism is more involved in conserving the ecological aspect of the environment; there is greater attention given to the ethical aspect of preserving the environment and improving the well being of the local communities involved. Ecotourism activities can include a whole range of activities from photography, wild life viewing, bird watching, mountaineering and even skiing. These activities can come under different categories of touris m but they become ecotourism activities solely when people become aware of the ethical responsibility they have in preserving and conserving the environment. It is therefore not hard to imagine why ecotourism is given precedence in the study of sociology. Sociology, put simply, is the study of the society. It provides deep insight about the social behavior and activities of humans within a society. Buckley (2004), states that the study of social norms is an inherent part of the discipline of sociology and social norms especially pertinent to outdoor creation, have drawn considerable attention in the past few years. Therefore, ecotourism in sociological terms simply seeks to define social norms which are used in evaluating outdoor behavior and environmental conditions. The growth of... Ecotourism Encouraging ecotourism in developing countries would firstly and fore mostly help the economy diversify. As a result of promoting ecotourism, more businesses will spring up and further business expansion in different fields would help spread the risk over a range of diverse economic activities. This is most important relevant to those developing countries who are highly dependent on a single sector in their economy (oil production or agricultural production). The diversification will also help bring in monetary benefits for the local economy. By bringing people into the area, new money will be injected into the economy. The most important strategy for a sustained ecotourism approach is to increase the participation and involvement of the local people. The whole essence of ecotourism lies in its ability to improve the well being of the local community. The new money circulating in the economy can be used in a variety of forms. It can be used on public expenditure and can be spent on building infrastructure for the country. It can also take the form of greater employment opportunities, and increased production which will attempt to increase the GDP of the country. Production induced phenomenon will work when businesses will buy goods and services from other business and consumption induced phenomenon will work when the final consumers would buy goods and services. However, the promotion of ecotourism must be done with caution because it can also put an additional burden on the financial and economic resources of the country.

Shakespeare Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Shakespeare - Essay Example Two well known film interpretations are Roman Polanski’s 1971 classic and Geoffrey Wright’s 2007 modern version. These two films have been made with contrasting values and attitudes, yet are true to the original text. Wright’s version is however more suitable for a younger audience than Polanski’s classic version as Wright has set it in a contemporary context. The movie’s fast paced narration, its theme of underground Melbourne gang and trendy costumes make it far more appealing to young viewers than Polanski’s seventeenth century approach. Polanski has made one of the grittiest Shakespeare films with some realistic period costuming of Zeffirelli and a cold and clammy castle set for a location. Director Geoffrey Wright in his version attempts to make Macbeth contemporary by setting it in the contemporary Melbourne underworld. Here swords are substituted by guns and royalty by gangsters. Wright’s Macbeth is gritty, violent but critically flawed at times. Roman Polanski has set his play in the middle Ages whereas Geoffrey Wright moves the action into the present with an Australian background. Luxus und Dekadenz sind geradezu spà ¼rbar.Wright’s movie portrays luxury and corruption. The actors are stylish, always fashionable dressed whereas Polanski replicates the Middle Ages with some realistic costuming by Zeffirelli. Fitting a play which was written hundreds of years ago into a modern film with a contemporary setting is difficult, but Wright has done it extremely well. The original play is about Kings, Lo rds and Ladies. Wright modernises this by transforming King Duncan into the Drug Baron and the Lords as members of his gang. The weapons are also replaced by machine guns and the horses and carriages by Audis and dirt-bikes. Technology too is evident in the movie. Macbeth’s house is equipped with security cameras and monitors. This makes the audience feel that the

Gender differences Essay Example for Free

Gender differences Essay It could be said that to some extent the view that processes within schools may lead to gender differences in educational achievement is true. The theory of Interactionist looks at the individual rather than society; therefore it is a bottom up theory. Interactionist argue that the processes within the schools such as the hidden curriculum may lead students in gender differences in educational achievement, as what happens inside the school which is unwritten is what influences the individual in educational achievement, not the formal curriculum or what is written rule such as the subjects which is being studied influences the student to achieve. The sociologist Goffman explains that everyone in society is presenting the self in everyday life. What he means is that everyone is a puppet of society and not in control of what they say or do, but in fact they are attached in strings and act for example in play, such as a female may play the role of a mother at home but play the role of a student at school. Some argue that the structure and settings of schools, generally creates gender differences in educational achievement, for example the socialisation aspect is that the students are socialised into tolerable forms of behaviour pupils are given drill in how to move about the school, sit in desk, raise hands the puritan of hard work, sober living and good manners is continuously urged upon them. This socialisation naturally created gender differences as males are seen or expected to behave in classrooms in the manner of masculine while females are seen or expected to behave in feminine behaviour or otherwise it could be considered odd, and therefore the students who do behave odd are looked at differently or called deviant. The sociologist Postman and Weingartner, studied that the hidden curriculum consisted of discovering that; knowledge is beyond the power of students and is in case none of their business; secondly recall is the highest form of intellectual achievement and therefore the collection of facts is the goal of education; the voice of authority is to be trusted more than independent judgement; feelings are irrelevant in education; passive acceptance is a more desirable response to ideas than active criticism. This study proves that the individual does not play in an important role but rather how to survive the school and just pass the exams was important and therefore not keen on which gender is learning or how but on how they should just pass the time in school and move on as education is not about the self but on facts and memorising, and not understanding. As a result it could be said that the study of classroom interaction is the idea that the reality of the classroom is a negotiated reality. For students and teachers, the hidden curriculum consists of learning how to survive in the classroom.

The Cognitive Models Of Ocd Psychology Essay

The Cognitive Models Of Ocd Psychology Essay The study is aimed to investigate the Quality of Life of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder patients in relation to Severity of the symptoms and Cognitive Appraisal. The study will explore the predictors of Quality of life of OCD patients from variables of Symptom Severity dimensions and Cognitive Appraisal. It is hypothesized that patients having OCD with more Symptom Severity, and Cognitive Appraisal of obsessions will have impaired Quality of life. Correlational research design and purposive sampling will be used. 60 patients with primary diagnosis of Obsessive Compulsive disorder, with age range of 18 years and above will be recruited. For assessment, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Symptom Checklist (OCDSC), Stress Appraisal Measure (SAM), and WHOQOL-BREF will be used. Pearson Product Moment will be employed to find the relationship of Symptom Severity and Cognitive Appraisal with Physical health, Psychological health, Social and Environment related Quality of life. In addition, Multip le Regression Analysis will be used to explore the predictor of Quality of life of patients with Obsessive Compulsive disorder. Introduction The study investigates the Quality of Life (QoL) of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) patients in terms of Symptom Severity and cognitive appraisal. The severity of symptomology and clinically manifested psychological distress exacerbates the functional impairment of OCDs patients. The functional impairment debilitates and gradually leads to poor treatment compliance as psychotherapy include the dysfunction area in treatment plan. The present study is intended to understand the relationship of the associated factors that will help facilitate the better understanding on etiological and therapeutic grounds. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder According to American Psychiatric Association (2000), Obsessive Compulsive Disorder OCD) is an anxiety disorder classified into Obsessions and Compulsions. Obsessions are intrusive, unwanted thoughts, id, images, or impulses that and individual experienced as senseless yet anxiety evoking. Compulsions are desires to engage in behavioral or mental acts according to specified rules or in reaction to obsessions (i.e., to lower down obsessional anxiety). However, individuals are unaware of the trigger and may perform stereotyped acts according to idiosyncratic rules (Wells, 1997). Obsessions are persistent thoughts, impulses, or images that are experienced as intrusive and inappropriate. The most common obsessions concern thought about contamination, doubting, aggressive or horrific impulses and sexual imagery (Wells, 1994; Wells Morrison, 1994 as cited in Wells, 1997). A compulsion is a repetitive behavior that is overt or covert. Overt compulsions include hand washing, checking, ordering, or alignment of objects. Covert compulsions are mental acts such as praying, counting, or repeating words. The goal of these overt and covert compulsions is to reduce or prevent anxiety or distress (Wells, 1997). Symptom Severity Severe OCD is characterized by Substantial frequency of obsessions and compulsions (from 4 hours a day to every minute of the patients waking hours), Substantial impairment from the OCD (usually in all domains of life including social, work, and family), Poor insight into the symptoms (or how realistic the patient thinks their fears are), and/or Substantial co morbidity which complicates the presentation of the symptoms (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder or schizophrenia). Severity of symptoms, as characterized by high frequency of symptoms or significant distress, is often measured through self-report measures such as the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R; Foa et al., 2002). Obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms include both obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions often have themes of fear of contamination or dirt, having things orderly and symmetrical, aggressive or horrific impulses and sexual images or thoughts. However, compulsions typically have themes of washing and cleaning, counting, checking, demanding reassurances, performing the same action repeatedly, and orderliness (Mayo Clinic Staff, 2012). Studies indicate that there are clinically meaningful differences among these symptom-based subtypes. It was reported that OCD patients with compulsive hoarding report higher levels of anxiety and depression, greater impairment in occupational, family, and social functioning and poorer response to pharmacological and cognitive-behavioral treatment (Abramowitz, Franklin, Schwartz, Furr, 2003). Despite the documented detrimental effects of OCD on quality of life, evidence suggests that not all individuals with OCD are uniformly impaired. Masellis, Rector, and Richter (2003) found that severity of obsessions, but not compulsions, was related to lower overall quality of life. Similarly, Eisen et al., (2006) reported that severity of obsessions and comorbid depression predicted impairment across eight domains of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction, whereas compulsion severity was related only to impaired work functioning. In contrast, Stengler-Wenzke, Kroll, Riedel-Heller, Matschinger, and Angermeyer (2007) found obsessions to be unrelated to Quality of life ratings, but that severity of compulsions was associated with reduced physical and psychological well-being, as well as impairment in social and family life and leisure activities. Cognitive Appraisal Grinker and Spiegel (1945, as cited in Sincero, 2012), explained appraisal as a process that requires mental activity involving judgment, discriminating and choice of activity based largely on the past experiences of and individual. According to Lazarus (1984), cognitive appraisal occurs in reaction to stress. One is the threatening tendency of the stress to the individual, and second is the evaluation of the resources that is required to minimize, tolerate or eradicate the stressor and the stress it produces. According to Lazarus, appraisal takes two forms, Primary Appraisal and Secondary Appraisal. Primary appraisal has been distinguished into irrelevant, benign-positive and stressful. Irrelevant implies when experiences not stressful, it falls within the category of irrelevant (Lazarus Folkman, 1984). The appraisal of relevancies is not themselves of great concern, but the cognitive processes by which these events are appraised. Benign-positive appraisal occurs if the outcome of encounter is constructed as positive and enhances well-being. These appraisals are characterized by positive emotions. Stress appraisal includes harm/loss, threat and challenge. In harm/loss, damage to the person is suspected. Threat concerns are the anticipated harms or lose. Challenge appraisal focus on the potential for gain or growth inherent in an encounter and they are characterized by pleasurable emotions such as eagerness, excitement, and exhilaration, whereas threat centers on the potential harms and is characterized by negative emotions such as fear, anxiety, and anger (Lazarus Folkman, 198 4). The aim of secondary appraisal is to provide information about the individuals coping options in a situation. It has three components including problem focused coping, emotion focused coping and future expectancy. When an individual is deciding whether a situation is a threat or challenge, or he must do something to manage the situation, secondary appraisal becomes significant in order to figure out what might and can be done. Secondary appraisal activity is crucial feature of stressful encounter (Lazarus Folkman, 1984). When an individual is faced with adverse situation, something needs to be done to control it and avoid any subsequent consequences. Secondary appraisal follows primary appraisal of a situation. This necessarily includes evaluation of the situation and suitable reaction. The person than evaluate what can be done to cope with a particular situation. The reaction to the situation is decided by carefully analyzing what is at stake and what can be done to reduce negative consequences (Lazarus Folkman, 1984). Cognitive Models of OCD According to OLeary (2005), the number of cognitive models describing OCD phenomenon. These illustrate the rate of dysfunctions in general cognitive processing or dysfunction in cognitive appraisal and beliefs. Salkovskis Model (1985; Wells, 1997) based on cognitive and behavioral concepts in the formulation of obsessional problems. It theorized that the importance of appraisal of intrusion as the major source of distress, rather than the content of the intrusion itself. The appraisal of the significance of intrusions is determined by underlying beliefs. Once negative appraisals of responsibility occur, the second process of initiation of neutralizing responses which may be internal or external begins. When a person neutralized the intrusive thought he attempts to reduce responsibility and discomfort. Thus, the recurrences of intrusions become more likely because responses to them result in such cognitions acquiring greater salience. Studies have found significant correlations between responsibility and obsessive-compulsive behaviors in both clinical (e.g., OCCWG, 2001) and nonclinical participants (Freeston, Ladouceur, Thibodeau, Gagnon, 1992; as cited in OLeary, 2005). According to Rachman (1998; as cited in OLeary, 2005), the catastrophic misinterpretation about the importance of unwanted thoughts made by a person increases the range and seriousness of potentially threatening stimuli. In this way numbers of neutral stimuli that were insignificant are interpreted as threatening. This transfer of the neutral stimuli and situation to potentially threatening ones increases the range of threats and therefore increases the opportunities for the provocation of obsessions. This happens with both internal as well as external cues. In internal cues, the person deduces a threat from the fact of feeling anxious. Moreover, when the patient feel anxious he interpret it as if he is losing control of self and thus there is an increased likelihood that he will act upon the unwanted impulse. Hence, the catastrophic misinterpretation of ones anxiety can interact to increase the misinterpretation of the intrusion. Neutralizing prevents exposure to any disconfirming e vidence regarding the personal significance of the intrusive thoughts. This cycle remains until the catastrophic misinterpretation is changed or reduced and the internal or external stimuli are no longer interpreted as threatening. Quality of life The World Health Organization (1994) defines Quality of Life as an individuals perception of his/her position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which he/she lives, and in relation to his/her goals, expectations, standards and concerns. It is a broad-ranging concept, compromising of the persons physical health, psychological state, social relationships, and their relationship to salient features of their environment (Hollar, 2012, p.74). Obsessive compulsive disorder may significantly affect self-care, social relationships, occupational functioning, family and marital relationships, child-rearing capacities, and use of recreations or spare time (American Psychological Association, 2007). Bobes (2001) revealed that patients with obsessive-compulsive illness had definite impairment in all domains of quality of life other than physical functioning. Similar findings emerged from the studies of Moritz (2005) and Eisen (2006), also showed that as compared to general population, OCD patients have poor health related quality of life in all domains except physical health. Few studies, however, have examined whether OCD symptom dimensions are differentially associated with impairment in functioning and Quality of life. Only one study to date has evaluated the impact of different dimensions of OCD symptoms on Quality of life. Fontenelle et al., (2010) found that whereas depression severity predicted impairment across eight domains of functioning assessed by SF-36, only hoarding and washing, but not other OCD symptom domains, predicted impairment in other areas of functioning social functioning and limitations due to physical health problems, respectively. OCD sufferers generally recognize their obsessions and compulsions as irrational, and may become further distressed by this realization. Cummins (2000) suggest that it is difficult to define Quality of Life because it can be characterized in both objective and subjective terms (as cited in Barofsky, 2012). According to Spranger Schwartz (1999), Quality of life is a multidimensional and dynamic concept: perspective can change with the onset of major illness. With the onset of illness, individuals relevant cognitive or affective processes (e.g. in their health or lives) include making comparisons of ones situation, with others who are better or worse off. People may adjust to deteriorating circumstances because they want to feel as good as possible about themselves (Ayers, et al. 2007). According to Salkovskis (1985) the difference between the obsessive compulsive disorder patient who experience prominent distress and disturbance lies in the meaning they make out of their obsessions. However, normal individual tends to view these intrusions as meaningless and benign whereas OCD patient make catastrophic interpretation out to these cognitive intrusions. These maladaptive interpretations discriminates the OCD patients. Cognitive models of OCD implied that a thought will be distressing and repetitive depending on the meaning assigned to it, not because of the content of obsessional thoughts (Teachman, 2005). The Obsessive Compulsive Cognitions Working Group (OCCWG) has shown that symptom severity correlates with appraisals of intrusive thoughts among individuals with OCD. In comparison with individuals who do not have OCD, those with OCD appraise unwanted intrusive thoughts as more important to control and as conveying more responsibility for preventing harm related to the thought (OCCWG, 2001). Purdon and Clark (1994) suggested that high scores on measures of OCD suggest that the individual is more likely to believe that intrusive and unwanted thought will occur in real life and will experience more guilt in reaction to those thoughts. Appraisals that one could act on the intrusive thought as well as appraisals about control, responsibility and the significance of the thought for ones personality also correlate with the OCD symptoms (as cited in Corcoran and Woody, 2007). Thus, models of Obsessive compulsive disorder showed that cognitive appraisal of unwanted intrusive thoughts will produce significant distress in patients having OCD that in turn will affect quality of life. There is evidence suggesting a relationship between Cognitive Appraisal and Psychological and Physical well-being (Coyne, Aldwin Lazarus, 1981; Harris, Heller Braddock, 1988; Jerusalem, 1993; Nezu, 1986). There is a general Conesus among research that an individual appraisal of the significance of the situation in terms of personal well-being will be a major determinant of affect (Carver et al., 1989; Harris et al., 1988; Lazarus Folkman, 1987; Lazarus, 1991; Smith Ellsworth, 1985). The way a person evaluates the significance of an event for him/her produces different emotional reaction, making some people more vulnerable to adverse effect than other (Kessler et al., 1983; as cited in Kausar, 1994). Perceived control experienced by an individual has an effect on outcome (Partridge Johnston, 1989). Increased levels of perceived personal control are associated with more favorable psychological adjustment (Folkman, 1984) and perceived lack of control on the other hand predicts psyc hological symptoms (Prime-Emberry, 1972; as cited in Kausar, 1994). How an individual appraises and copes with the stress is important to his/her well-being (Antonovsky, 1979; Lazarus 1981). According to Lazarus and Folkman (1984), a fit between cognitive appraisal and coping strategies is postulated to produce a better outcome. Johnson and Kenkel (1991) concluded that appraisals of threat (Appraisal of self, holding self back) and use of coping strategies of detachment and seeking social support were associated with emotional distress. Moreover, Felsten (1991) suggested that appraisals of challenges and expectations of successful coping should be associated with lower distress and better well-being. Rassin et al. (2001; as cited in Yorulmaz, 2007) suggested that unwanted and intrusive thoughts are experienced by everyone and the difference between normal and abnormal lies in the appraisal process, frequency and distress. Therefore, the examination symptom severity and cognitive app raisal as the predictors of quality of life of OCD patients may facilitate the understanding if the distress and impairment faced by them. In OCD, primary appraisal occurs in conjunction with the intrusive thoughts associated with obsessions, and secondary appraisal leads to faulty coping (compulsions and avoidance). According to Carr (1971), patients with OCD typically overestimate the likelihood of an unfavorable outcome in the context of primary appraisal (during obsessions) (as cited in Stein, Hollander, Rothbaum, 2009) and they perform compulsive behaviors in order to reduce perceived threat. In term of cognitive domains, studies of patients with OCD have found an exaggerated sense of responsibility, overestimation of threat, perfectionism, over importance of thoughts, need for control and intolerance of ambiguity (Rachman, 1993; Salkovskis, 1985; as cited in Sten, Hollander, Rothbaum, 2009). Individuals with OCD report markedly reduced Quality of life and general well-being, diminished occupational attainment, impaired family functioning, and higher rates of suicidal thought attempts. According to Koran et al. ( 1996), severity of OCD is inversely correlated with social functioning (as cited in Simpson, Neria, Fernandaz Schneier, 2010). According to Teachman (2007), subjective cognitive complaints exacerbate the effects of obsessional beliefs, and promote maladaptive responses to intrusive thoughts thus increasing the severity of the OCD symptoms. In present study, it is intended to explore mediating role of Cognitive Appraisal on Quality of Life perceived by Obsessive Compulsive Disorder patients with Symptom Severity and Cognitive Appraisal of the disorder are expected to impair the patients functioning. Literature Review This section includes the review of the studies that investigated the studied variables that are Symptom Severity, Cognitive Appraisal and Quality of life. Kumar, Sharma, Kandavel Reddy (2012) examined the contribution of cognitive appraisals to the quality of life (QoL) in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder. In Cross sectional study, it was hypothesized that cognitive appraisals of obsession contribute to poor quality of life in OCD patients. Sample size was 31 consecutive patients from Behavioral Medicine Unit of the NIMHANS and 30 Normal controls. Exclusion criteria were patients having severe co morbid psychiatric, physical and neurological disorder. The assessment was done by using mini Internal Neuropsychiatry Interview (MINI), the YBOCS severity scale, Clinical Global Impression-severity, the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale-21, the Interpretation of Intrusive Inventory-31 and WHOQOL-BREF. Data was analyzed using independent t-test and chi-square test. Relationship between the domains of cognitive appraisal and the QoL after controlling for the duration of symptoms was analyzed by using Partial correlation. The resul ts indicated that all the domains of cognitive appraisal have strong negative relationship with psychological domain of QoL. Thought control and inflated personal responsibility also correlated negatively with the total QoL. Cognitive appraisal specifically contributes to poorer QoL in OCD so modification of beliefs and appraisal may be essential for better QoL. Main limitations were small size, patients were recruited from Behavioral Medicine Unit of major psychiatric hospital, and findings may not be easily generalized. Sample was predominantly male so its important to examine gender difference in cognitive appraisal and its relationship to QoL. Fontelle et al., (2010) in a study compared patients with OCD and normal on severity of different OCD dimensions and levels of QoL of patients with OCD. Further, it was also investigated the socio demographic variables and co occurring depressions and anxiety symptoms have significant contribution in impairment of QoL of OCD patient. They hypothesized that universal pattern of impairment in the physical, mental, and social aspects of quality of life of patient will be associated with more significant hoarding symptoms. The patients with the diagnosis of OCD were included; age between 18-80 years and without any other neurological, endocrinological or systematic disorder. The measures used were Saving inventory revised (SI-R), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Obsessive Compulsive Inventory- Revised (OCI-R), Medical Outcome Study 36-item short form health survey (SF-36). Chi-square and independent student t-test was used for the comparison of categorical a nd continuous variables respectively. The patient who met the inclusion criteria was 135 out of which 65 were patients, and 70 were controls. The result supported the hypothesize only partially, the decline in particular aspects of patients QoL was significantly associated with hoarding and washing symptoms for but co occurring symptoms, the most prominent determinant of the impairment of QoL of subject with OCD were depressive and anxious ones. The study had limitations that sample was taken from specialized institutions, second control group was of nonclinical individuals, rating on depression scale and QoL Instrument may be dependent on state and change during continuity of OCD, they applied generic tool for measuring QoL in OCD. Teachman (2007) studied subjective concerns about cognitive decline partially mediate this relationship between obsessional beliefs and OCD symptoms across young and older adult age group in a large community sample. The sample size was 335 including males and females. Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised, Obsessional Beliefs Questionnaire and Memory Functioning Questionnaire were used. This study attempted to evaluate the modification of cognitive model proposed by Rachman and Salkovskis. The results provide support to cognitive models of obsessions and suggest that obsessional beliefs that have been validated in younger adult samples are also important for older adults. It was shown that the relationship among subjective cognitive concerns, obsessional beliefs and OCD symptoms was consisted but older patients showed greater subjective cognitive concerns, Grant et al. (2006) carried out a study to find out the differences of OCD patients with primary OCD and sexual obsessions and OCD patients without sexual obsession on number of clinical variables. They included co morbidity, symptom severity, insight, quality of life, and social and occupational functioning under the clinical domains. 293 subjects, meting criteria for OCD, aged 19 years or older were included and interviewed. Clinical interview for DSM-IV Axis-I disorder, Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) to assess OCD symptom severity, Subject Clinical Global Improvement scale was used to evaluate the response towards medication. Rating on the degree to which previous treatments have proved to be effective was taken on 7 point scale. Brown assessment of Beliefs Scale (BABS) was used to evaluate the insight and current Depressive symptom and QOL by were assessed by using 17-item Hamilton Rating scale for Depression and Quality of life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionn aire respectively. The findings supported the hypothesize that earlier age of OCD, presiding entry in treatment, increased rate of aggressive and religious obsession onset was related to having OCD with sexual obsessions, and also with increaser depressive symptoms, longer duration of treatment, and higher rates of impulse control disorder. Teachman, Woody and Magee (2006) attempted to evaluate cognitive theories of obsessions and they experimentally manipulated appraisals of the importance of intrusive thoughts. The design contained both experimental and quasi-experimental elements. Implicit Association Test was used to examine the influence of instructions about the importance versus meaninglessness of unwanted thoughts on reaction time. Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised, Beck Depression Inventory, Interpretation of Intrusions Inventory III, Obsessional Beliefs Questionnaire-Short Form, State Self-Esteem Scale, and Personal Significance Scale were the part of study. Results indicated that the manipulation shifted implicit appraisals of unwanted thoughts in the expected direction, but not self-evaluation of morality or dangerousness. Interestingly, explicit self-esteem and beliefs about the significance of unwanted thoughts were associated wit the measure of OCD beliefs, whereas implicit self-evaluations of danger ousness were better predicted by the interaction of pre-existing OCD beliefs with the manipulation. Libby et al., (2004) studied Cognitive Appraisals in young people with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. The study had two aims to investigate whether the same pattern of cognitive appraisal found in studies with adults will be observed in the younger population. A secondary aim of the study was to establish the relationship between cognitive appraisal and the extent these predict obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Three groups of young people aged between 11 and 18 years old were recruited for the study. First group were of patients with OCD, second was patient with anxiety disorder and third one was non clinical group. Leyton Obsessional Inventory-Child Version, Responsibility Attitude Scale, thought-Action Fusion Scale, and Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale was used n the study. The young people with OCD had significantly higher scores on inflated responsibility, thought-action fusion, and one aspect of perfectionism, concern over mistakes, than the other groups. In addition, inflated responsibility independently predicted OCD symptom severity. The results generally supported the cognitive appraisals held by adults with OCD to young people with the disorder. Saxena et al., (2010) conducted a research to compare compulsive hoarding and non compulsive hoarding OCD patients across variety of QoL domains. They hypothesized that hoarders would be older and have lower FAF scores than non hoarding OCD patients. Secondly, hoarding patients would be less satisfied with their living situations, given their amount of clutter, and hoarders would have greater victimization/ safety concerns and finally hoarders would have greater financial problems and receive more social service assistance than non-hoarding OCD patients. To study this171 adult patients were selected (84 males, 87 females) with age aged 18-72. They were diagnosed OCD and treated openly between 1998 and 2005. Out of these patient 34 met criteria of having compulsive hoarding syndrome. 137 patients didnt report any hoarding symptoms. Patient presented with a wide range of co morbid diagnosis. Those with active psychosis, mania, dementia, mental retardation or other cognitive impairment were excluded. Standardized rating scales were used to assess symptom severity and level of functioning. YBOCS was used to measure OCD symptom severity. Severity of depressive and anxiety symptoms were measured by 28 item Hamilton Depression rating scale (HDRS-28) and Hamilton Anxiety Scale (Ham-A) respectively. QoL was assessed with Lehman Quality of Life Interview Short. Obtained scores for QoL between 2 groups were compared using Analysis of Variance procedures. ANCOVA were performed with covariates and also for secondary analysis on individual items. Results showed that compulsive hoarders were significantly older that non hoarding OCD patients. QoL scores on victimization and safety factors differed significant between 2 groups. Hoarder felt less safe in streets and less satisfied with protection. Both groups had significant occupational impairment, unemployment and disability. Discrepancy in sample size between 2 patient groups and intensive patient setting were the limitation s of study. Eisen et al., (2006) conducted a study to assess multiple aspects of QoL in individuals with OCD. It was hypothesized that all aspects of QoL would be affected, and that severity of OCD symptoms and depressive symptoms would be associated with impairment in QoL. 5 years prospective naturalistic study was conducted on 197 participants with an age 18 years or older, primary OCD. An exclusion criterion was having an organic mental disorder. YBOCS, Brown assessment of Belief scale, Modified Hamilton rating scale for Depression, Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire, Social Occupational Functioning assessment scale, Medical outcome survey 36-item short form Health Pearson product moment correlation coefficient was conducted to assess relationship between clinical features of OCD and QoL. Results showed that YBOCS score of 20 appeared to be an inflection point where QoL becomes significantly more impaired, suggesting that functioning and QoL, may be preserved in individu als with OCD until threshold of severity is crossed. Limitations of the study were participants seeking treatment and therefore finding may not apply to those individuals who do not seek treatment. Moreover, subjects were evaluated only once. It was suggested that the role of treatment in improving QoL in OCD should be further investigated along with a need to assess which aspect of QoL and psychological functioning. Guraraj et al., (2008) conducted research in which they hypothesized that patients suffering from severe OCD may have comparable level of global functioning, family burden and QoL and disability with patient suffering from schizophrenia. 70 subjects from National Institute of Mental Health and Neuroscience gave informed consent. Inclusion criteria were (a) a primary diagnosis of DSM IV OCD/schizophrenia (b) continuous illness for the previous 2 year (c) Clinical Global Impression Severity (CGI-S) score of > 4 (d) availability of a primary care giver involved in patient care for 2 years Mini-international Neuropsychiatry Interview was conducted to confirm the diagnosis. Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF), World Health Organization (WHO-Quality of life (QOL)(BREF Version), WHO Disability Assessment Schedule-II (WHO-DAS-II). Family Burden Schedule (FBS) were used to assess global functioning, quality of life and disability. ANCOVA was employed with age of onset and duration of illne ss as covariate for comparison of family burden, QoL and disability between 2 groups. Pearson correlation between socio demographic/ clinical variable, family accommodation and functioning with family burden were performed. The results demonstrated that severe OCD is associated with significant impairment in functioning and severe family burden and disability. QoL was poor and severe OCD and schizophrenia are often associated with comparable disability, family burden and poor QoL. Huppert et al., (2009) compared the QoL of OCD patients with functioning of matched healthy controls. They hypothesized that OCD patients in remission would report similar QoL and functioning matched healthy controls (HCs), while individuals with OCD would report poorer QoL and functional impairment. Additional prediction was that OCD patients and comorbid psychiatric disorder would report the worst QoL and functional impairment. Finally, Individuals with a history of OCD (current or past) increased severity of OCD would be related to decrease in QoL and increased functional impairment, even when controlling for depression. 66 comprised the current sample. 36 HCs were included. They were matched on age, sex and ethnicity. Stru

Basseri and The Nuer :: essays papers

Basseri and The Nuer There are many cultures throughout the world, which may be far apart and yet still have similarities. Two of those such cultures, the Basseri, that live in Iran, and the Nuer, whom live in Sudan, have their differences, but also have some similarities. Many of the differences and similarities come from their subsistence strategies and the social and political organization of their societies. With the regions of the world, both the Basseri and the Nuer live in, they’ve had to adapt to the environment they live in along with the limitations imposed by that environment. Among the differences and similarities of the Basseri and the Nuer, their subsistence strategies are the most diverse in differences and similarities. Both the Basseri and the Nuer rely on their domesticated animals as a source of subsistence. A difference between the Basseri and the Nuer is that the Basseri have goats and sheep to provide the bulk of their subsistence products, while the Nuer use cattle as a source of subsistence. Another subsistence strategy of the Basseri is foraging, which is suited well for their nomadic way of life, by hunting large game and finding plants and mushrooms in the springtime. The Nuer, on the other hand, have a mixed subsistence strategy between pastoralism and horticulture. The Nuer cannot rely solely on either one, so other than the cattle they also cultivate millet, their main crop, and a small amount of maize and beans. The social and political organization of the Basseri and the Nuer are very much different. The Basseri’s social organization is based upon that of nuclear families; they are also neolocal, meaning that upon marriage a couple starts their own nuclear family in a new tent. After marriage, in order for the couple to begin a new household, the husband usually receives part of his father’s herd and at times, if not given any animals, the husband can work and receive animals as a payment. During the spring, the nomadic tribes can be supported in large numbers in a single camp; while during the winter, camps are setup in smaller groups. The Basseri reckon descent patrilineally where inheritance is usually from father to son. A woman bestows membership rights to her own tribe or her offspring. The Basseri consider themselves one unified tribe because they are all subsumed under the authority of a single leader, the chief of all the Basseri.

TECHNOLOGY APPLICATION FOR MUSIC TECHNOLOGY :: essays research papers

The technology learning process can help teachers manage information in their daily work more effectively. Word processing software allows text-based documents to be entered, edited, formatted, and printed. This is a helpful tool for creating recital programs, handouts, and tests. Database software stores and retrieves records for instrument inventories, class lists, and attendance.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Electronic musical instruments may be defined as those that generate sound electronically rather than acoustically. Two examples are synthesizers and digital pianos. These instruments generally have three components: a controller, modifier capabilities, and a sound generator which may be separate units or self-contained like the digital piano.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Music teachers need to know how MIDI connections are made among instruments, how to use MIDI in the classroom, and how to connect MIDI instruments with computers. They need to understand how to create layered and split keyboard sounds for performances. They also need to be able to choose and edit sounds from stored libraries and create using sounds using electronic instrument. Students can use electronic instruments as musical crayons creating simple complex musical pieces while gaining dexterity and technique. They can learn musical processes with keyboards and have fun at the same time. Electronic instruments can also be used in performance to enhance traditional and electronical-acoustics ensembles. A musical performance consists of a series of sounds played in time with appropriate tempo and dynamic changes. MIDI data, however, consists of a stream of information of note events generated by the electronic controller device. This information can be stored in the order played allowing the MIDI sequenced performance to be played at a later time. A device or computer, A hardware sequencer is a device dedicated to MIDI sequencing, and workstation is electronic keyboards that have built-in sequence capabilities.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Today, MIDI sequences are capable of storing large amounts of data. They are designed to emulate a multi-track tape recorder, a familiar metaphor for most musicians. A musician may record different musical parts onto separate tracks of the MIDI sequencer. Each track of the sequence may be assigned compositions. Unlike the tape recorder the MIDI sequencer gives musicians powerful and intuitive editing tools permitting changes and corrections without re-recording.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There are many software applications available to support music education. Those specifically designed to assist instruction are called Computer Assisted Instructional software or CAI. Commercially available CAI software programs are designed to help students learn music theory and music history, develop eat-training skills, and drill and test knowledge in a variety of areas.

Social Norms of State University Students Concerning Alcohol Use Essay

Social Norms of State University Students Concerning Alcohol Use Alcohol use on college campuses has been a hot issue for students and faculty for many years. Yet, there is still no concrete evidence as to the effects of alcohol use on college students. The perceived situation is college students binge drink and their grades are adversely affected. Is this a social norm? The question is whether these perceived social norms towards alcohol use on college campuses are in fact the social norms of college students. The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of the true social norms of State University student’s attitude and practice in regards to alcohol. The sample is significant to Bradley University, using only Bradley students. The study will benefit the Wellness Center in its current social norms campaign. The study’s goal is to better understand the attitudes and practices of Bradley students toward alcohol consumption. METHOD SECTION Before we decided what methods we were going to use to collect the information, a mock focus group was held. The mock focus group consisted of Bradley students ranging in ages from 18 through 22, and was a mixture of on-campus and off-campus students. The purpose of the mock-focus group was to decide what types of questions should be chosen to get the most useful information for the social norms campaign. The mock focus group led the study in the direction of asking students not only their personal alcohol uses, but also how other students’ drinking affects their lives. We were looking for quantitative data; therefore, the idea of a focus group was immediately rejected. Constraints of money, time and manpower prevented the use of any probability sample. Many sampling... .... The questions were not in depth, but did give direction for further study. A larger and more age-diversified study may help correct possible errors in this survey. The fact that ninety percent of students in the study resided on-campus may also have effected the campaign and should be checked for errors. The study was limited to answers provided, in majority, by those students who can not legally drink, which is a factor that could limit the study. The two areas presented above as areas of significance could benefit from further study, as more in-depth research could provide more accurate results. The results of the study indicate the perceived social norms of college students may not be true. College students are perceived as heavy drinkers, yet the results seem to indicate a majority of students consume only a few drinks per week. More in depth study is suggested.

Primary Essay

â€Å"I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation†. This is the first line of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech. Martian Luther King’s speech took place after the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. He delivered the speech on the Lincoln Memorial steps. He voiced this speech to millions of people both blacks and whites. This speech is one of the greatest speeches of the civil rights movement, because it has many rhetorical tropes such as; repetition, assonance and consonance, pathos, logos, metaphors and ethos. Martin Luther King Jr. uses a lot of repetition in his â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech. They are scattered throughout the speech but in very close proximities of each other. One of the repetitions in his â€Å"I Have a dream†. Not only is this the name of the speech of the speech but in today’s world it has become a commo n phrase used in everyday life as people announce their dream to either themselves or loved ones. The phrase is even used by children who dare to dream big. Martian Luther King Jr. uses this phase to show what he sees in the future of America. One of the phrases he uses with it is: â€Å"I have dream the one day this nation will and live out the true meaning of its creed: we hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.† Another is â€Å"I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their nature. I have a dream today.† That part of the speech was very personal and touching. Using his own children as an example helped to touch people where the heart is. Repeating â€Å"I Have a Dream† helped people to start thinking about their own personal dreams that they might have had also. Two other repetitions Martin Luther King Jr. uses is â€Å"Let freedom ring† and â€Å"Free at last†, but I will be using those phrases in another part of this analyzed paper. In Martin Luther King Jr. speech he also uses many assonances and consonances. These are the most occurring and mostly found toward the end of his speech. One of them is â€Å"Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!† This was the last word of the speech. He used this phrase to show all the listeners that African Americans have come so far and fought so hard  to get where we are today. Even though today there are many forms of slavery today, but it is nowhere near as bad as it was when slavery first started. That phrase was a very strong and powerful closing. It more than likely gave African Americas to strength and mind set to believe that the world is not what it used to be. It gave African Americans the mind set to move forward in life and stop dreading on the past. Martin Luther King Jr was trying to get us to open our mind set to see a greater tomorrow. Others are â€Å"molehill of Mississippi†, â€Å"Lookout Mountain†, â€Å"curvaceous peaks of California†, and â€Å"Rockies of Colorado†. They all have a poetic feeling to them. Martin Luther King Jr. uses pathos in his speech as well as many other things. He uses pathos to appeal to all the people who were truly listening to his speech’s emotions. One of the things he says to appeal to their emotions are, â€Å"When will we be satisfied? We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of cities. Martin Luther King Jr. is basically saying that it is time for African American to stop moving and letting the white people take what is ours. Martin Luther King Jr. once again wants us to open our minds and see the foolery that the white people have dragged us through. Martin Luther King Jr. also says, â€Å"I have a dream that my four children will on day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character†. As I stated earlier while speaking on the repetition of â€Å"I have a dream†, that phrased grabbed attention to all those people in the audience who had children and also wished the same things for them. No parent want their child to suffer the way they did. Most parents pray to God that there children have a life that is tenfold of their own. Logos means reason. Martin Luther King Jr. uses logos to show why he is delivering this speech and why he wants things to change. He is delivering this speech to show how many blacks and other races, that weren’t being treated equally, really did not have freedom like they should. â€Å"It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of the Negro†. â€Å"Instead of honoring the sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked ‘insufficient funds’†. These quotes are just a couple of the logos quotes Martin Luther King Jr said in his speech. Metaphors, which is another useful rhetorical trope, are essential to help audiences fully understand an idea as it compares an idea with something the audience is familiar with, which is important to bring out modes such as ethos and pathos. King uses a series of more complicated metaphors in the middle of his essay. He claims that by the Constitution and Declaration of Independence,† the forefathers of America were â€Å"signing a promissory note† that all men, whatever color, would be granted the same rights. However, King then says in the view of the Negroes, the US government have given the Negroes a â€Å"bad check,† a bad check that does not promise them the same results that have been given to the white population. Later on. King says that many equal rights activists have been â€Å"battered by the storms of persecution† and the â€Å"winds of police brutality.† Through this metaphor. King paints the upholders of the Jim Crow laws, the laws suppressing blacks, in a bad light. These two metaphors both relate to ethos as the first metaphor invokes the ethic of keeping your promises while the second metaphor involves torture, something which most of the American population was against. Finally, King uses several last metaphors when he writes that with faith, it is possible to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a â€Å"beautiful symphony of brotherhood.† This metaphor, on the other hand, is related to pathos as the audience immediately feels good due to the king’s choice of words. All of these metaphors are aimed to make the audience realize that continued racial in justice will lead to total chaos while racial equality leads to a beautiful society. Overall, the metaphors King uses are effective to support the ethos and pathos as they make the audience realize that the U.S. has cheated the Negros, that those who uphold the Jim Crow laws are evil and that it is possible to transform the U.S. society. In conclusion, Martin Luther King, Jr’s most famous speech was the I Have a Dream† speech given in 1963 during one of the most famous marches in history, the 200,000-strong â€Å"March on Washington For Jobs and Freedom.† At the time, America was in the grips of racism and segregation, making the lives of many blacks living hell. â€Å"I Have a Dream,† however, played a major step into changing it. It managed to inspire a generation of blacks to never give up and made thousands of white Americans bitterly ashamed of their actions, forging a new start for society. Even now, it continues to make generations of people, not just Americans, to give up their racist beliefs and advocate social  colorblindness. W ithout King, America would be probably still heavily segregated. Other than the speech’s heartwarming and moving content, King’s effective structure along with the usage of all three rhetorical modes and certain rhetorical tropes and schemes has revealed the reason â€Å"I Have a Dream† as a masterpiece of rhetoric and it persuades hundreds of thousands of people support the blacks instead of treating them unfairly. Works Cited â€Å"The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change.† The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change. Web. 13 Feb. 2014. â€Å"Rhetorical Analysis of the â€Å"I Have a Dream† Speech.† Teen Ink. Web. 13 Feb. 2014 â€Å"Free Martin Luther King I Have a Dream Essays and Papers | Martin Luther King I Have a Dream Essays and Papers | Sorted by Rating. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. Laconi, Ally. â€Å"How to Write a Primary Source Analysis | EHow.† EHow. Demand Media, 16 May 2010. Web. 13 Feb. 2014.

Proceedings of Healthy Buildings 2000, Vol 1

Proceedings of Healthy Buildings 2000, Vol 1 629 PRODUCTIVITY AND INDOOR ENVIRONMENT Derek Clements-Croome1 and Li Baizhan2 University of Reading, Department of Construction Management and Engineering, UK Jukes Associates, UK ABSTRACT Surveys in several office buildings have shown that crowded work places, job dissatisfaction and physical environment are the main factors affecting productivity. the data was produced and analyzed using occupational stress indicator in conjunction with the analytical hierarchical process. hermal problems, stuffiness, sick building syndrome factors and crowded work places were most frequent complaints. the results suggest that the productivity could be improved by 4 to 10% by improving the office environmental conditions. KEYWORDS: SBS, productivity, thermal comfort, perceived air quality, stress INTRODUCTION It is much higher cost to employ people then it is to maintain and operate a building, hence spending money on improving the work environment is t he most cost effective way of improving productivity because of small percentage increase in productivity of 0. % to 2% can have dramatic effects on the profitability of the company. The current state of knowledge on this subject is described by Clements-Croome [1]. Practical applications of some of this knowledge is described by Oseland and Barlett [2] METHODS This research focuses on the relationship between productivity and the indoor environment in the offices and takes into account the fact that productivity depends on other factors by using an Occupational Stress Indicator (OSI) which has been developed to include an environmental dimension [3,4].OSI is a job satisfaction scale involving question or statements, asking respondent to state what they think or feel about their job as whole or specific aspects of it. Likeret scaling using five, seven or nine point scales is usually used. The OSI has been demonstrated by Arnold [5]. The occupational stress indicator is designed to g ather information about groups as well as individuals and it attempts to measure the major sources of occupational pressure; occupational stress; coping mechanisms and individual differences which may moderate the impact of stress.An environmental dimension has been built into this indicator covering temperature, ventilation, humidity, indoor air quality, lighting, noise, crowded work space and is referred to as EPOSI which has been used to gather information about the occupants in the buildings that have been surveyed. This method of self assessment provides valuable information on individual as well as group responses. The data from the questionnaire is analyzed using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP) originated by Saaty[6]. AHP uses nine point judgement scales for use with detailed questionnaires aided by semi-structured interviews.The method is based on the theory of 630 Exposure, human responses and building investigations hierarchies and is a way of structuring complex mu lti-dimensional systems, by analyzing the interaction between elements in each stratum of the hierarchy in terms of their impact on elements in the stratum immediately above. It is possible to have several levels of hierarchies, but in this case five have been selected beginning with productivity followed by human factors; system factors; health factors; environmental factors. The questionnaires were answered by occupants across various work grades and tasks and were designed to elicit: background information about the organization and the workplace †¢ how much the environment and the job cause dissatisfaction †¢ the feelings of the subject about their current working situation †¢ the principle causal factors influencing health symptoms of occupants †¢ which factors influence job satisfaction and productivity Semi-structured interviews were carried out to establish more details about attitudes and reasons behind responses. Office survey A detailed environmental s urvey was carried out at an office in Reading in 1996. he questionnaire was in five sections: Section A The Questionnaire asks the occupants to judge the physical factors in the environment covering temperature, stuffiness and draughts, dryness, indoor air quality, sunlight, lightning, noise and vibration, and crowded workplaces. Questions were also asked about personal health; job stress; job satisfaction; an overall opinion about the indoor environment; including questions about five categories of sick building syndrome covering sensory irritation; skin irritations; nervous problems; nasal and odor complaints. Section BThe questionnaire concerned subjects views on how they liked the office layout and decoration as well as questions about their job in relation to productivity. They are also asked to rate how much personal control they felt had over temperature and lighting. Four questions were asked to determine self assessed productivity covering the amount of work accomplished; q uality of work; feeling of creativity; and degree of responsibility. Section C The questionnaire was concerning information which describes the characteristics of the organization, workplace and some personal information.Occupants were then asked about human factors such as well-being; ability to perform; motivation; job satisfaction and technical competence. Finally there was a group of questions concerned with indoor environment; weather; outdoor view; organizational factors; occupational factors; facilities and service; and personal factors. Proceedings of Healthy Buildings 2000, Vol 1 631 Section D The questionnaire was based on information gathered using EPOSI and five major human factors were identified which influence productivity ( well-being, ability to perform, motivation, job satisfaction, technical competence).Six system factors ( indoor environment, weather and outdoor views, organizational aspects, occupational issues, facilities and services, personal aspects) were ex amined to see how they influenced the human factors. Section E The questionnaire covered interactions between sick building sickness symptoms and an array of personal, occupational and environmental factors. RESULTS Analysis of the data shows that the level of productivity by self assessment reduces as the workspace becomes more crowded, as job dissatisfaction increases and as overall dissatisfaction of the indoor environment increases. he results lead to the overall conclusion that an average the self assessed productivity could be improved by about 10% by improving the office environmental conditions. The Spearman rank-correlation coefficient, rs, was used to assess measure of association between any two variables. The statistical analyzes of the results is given in detail by Li [7]. It was shown that a significant rank-correlation exists between self-assessed productivity and environment, job dissatisfaction and job stress, as shown in Table 1. Table 1. The association between se lf assessed productivity, environment and job factors.Factor Associated Factor Spearman RankCorrelation Coefficient Self-assessed productivity Unsatisfactory indoor -0. 49 environment Job dissatisfaction -0. 36 Job stress -0. 21 Unsatisfactory indoor Job stress +0. 31 environment Job dissatisfaction +0. 43 Job stress Job dissatisfaction +0. 36 There is unique relationship between the individual, the environment and the building they inhabit. Satisfaction with the environment. satisfaction with the environment arises from a number of issues apart from personal health (r=0. 34), sick building syndrome symptoms (r=0. 5), visual and aural problems (r=0. 36), thermal problems (r=0. 49), and crowded work space (r=0. 50). The correlation coefficients were statistically significant for p F? = 0,01 [3, 152] = 3. 92 ) (1) This indicates that subjects who suffer from physical environmental factors will suffer an increase in overall unsatisfactory environment which is positively related to ther mal problems, crowded workspace and sick building syndrome symptoms. The multiple regression equation for job satisfaction was found to be: JD = 1. 2055 + 0. 3157* JS + 0. 2572 * En + 0. 1023 * CS r = 0. 5367, F=19. 56> F? = 0,01 [3,149] = 3. 92 ) (2) This shows that high job dissatisfaction results from job stress, crowded workspace and an overall unsatisfactory environment. For self assessed productivity, the regression equation was developed using a step wise regression procedure: P=6. 8510-0. 3625*En-0. 1542*JD-0. 1329*CS (r = 0. 5083, F= 14. 86 > F? = 0,01 [3, 132] = 3. 94 (3) The principal factors which affect self assessed productivity in the offices surveyed were an overall unsatisfactory environment, crowded workspace and job dissatisfaction.A distinction was made between direct effects (i. e. those effects that do not result from any other variable in the model) and – secondary or indirect effects which arise from the interaction between one or more variables in the model. (Cohen 1983). For example an overall unsatisfactory environment has a direct effect on self assessed productivity, but there is also an indirect effect because it also affects job satisfaction which in turn also affects self assessed productivity.The total indirect effect is estimated by the product of the effects of an overall unsatisfactory environment on job satisfaction, and job satisfaction on self assessed productivity. The total effect of environment on self assessed productivity is then the result of combining the direct and indirect effects. Further analyzes showed that the most common complaints about unsatisfactory environments were those connected with high or low temperature variations; stale and stuffy air; dry or humid air. Proceedings of Healthy Buildings 2000, Vol 1 633 CONCLUSIONSThe principal conclusions were: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Individual responses illustrate that the majority of respondents believed that the o ffice environment had a direct influence on their well-being and self assessed productivity. When dissatisfaction with the environment and job were high there was a low level of self assessed productivity. Results showed that there were more occupants suffering from an overall unsatisfactory environment than from job stress and job dissatisfaction. People may be wholly satisfied with their job, but could also be quite unhappy about their work environment.In general however people reporting negative attitudes towards the environment were also the people with high job stress and job dissatisfaction. Crowded workspaces, thermal problems, and sick building symptoms due to whatever cause were the principal complaints about unsatisfactory environments. Nearly two thirds of the occupants thought that a 10% or more increase in their productivity was possible by improving the office environment. Results of the analysis also indicated that self assessed productivity could be improved by about 10%.Further analysis using the AHP model illustrated that the ability to perform, and wellbeing, were the two most important human factors that influenced the productivity of occupants in the offices surveyed. These factors together with job satisfaction and indoor environment form a virtuous cluster which is highly important in designing creative workplaces. In this study there was a small effect of the outdoor environment on productivity but this was insignificant compared to the effect of the indoor environment.Indoor air quality and pollution were the most important environmental factors influencing sick building syndrome. Compared with other personal factors (e. g. gender and type A behavior) and occupational factors, job stress was the next most significant factor which gave rise to sick building syndrome symptoms.. Results showed that the primary factors influencing productivity varied between organizations, and also between buildings or offices within the same building. Thi s research has established a reliable methodology for evaluating self assessed productivity. SymbolsCS En F JD JS p P r rs SBS Th ———— Crowded working space (7 score) An overall unsatisfactory indoor environment (7 score) For statistical F-test Job dissatisfaction (7 score) Job stress (7 score) The level of statistical significance Self assessed productivity (9 score) The correlation coefficient Spearman rank-correlation coefficient Suffer from SBS symptoms (7 score) Suffer from thermal conditions (7 score) 634 Exposure, human responses and building investigations REFERENCES: 1. Clements-Croome, D. J. , 2000, Creating the Productive Workplace, Spon Routledge. 2.Oseland, N. , Bartlett, P. , 1999, Improving Office Productivity, Longman. 3. Cooper, C. L. , 1998, Occupational Stress Indicator Management Guide, NFERNelson, Windsor. 4. Clements-Croome, D. J. , Li B. , 1995, Impact of Indoor Environment on Productivity, Workplace Comfort Forum, Royal Institute o f British Architects, London. 5. Arnold, J. , Cooper, C. L. , Robertson, I. , (1998), Work Psychology: Understanding Human Behaviour in the Workplace, 3ra Edition, Financial Times-Pitman Publishing. 6. Saaty, T. L. , 1972, Analytic Hierarchy Process, McGraw-Hill, New York. 7. Li, B. 1998, Assessing the Influence of Indoor Environment on Self Reported Productivity in Offices, Doctor of Philosophy Thesis, Department of Construction Management and Engineering, University of Reading. 8. Raw, G. J. , et al. , 1989, Further Findings From the Office Environment Survey, Part I: Productivity, Building Research Establishment, Note No. N79/89. 9. Anderson, D. , et al. , 1990, Statistics for Business and Economics, 4th Edition, West Publishing Company, USA. 10. Cohen, J. , Cohen, P. , 1983, Applied Multiple Regression – Correlation Analysis for Behaviourial Sciences, 2†³d Edition, Lawrence Earle Baum Associates, New Jersey/London.

Othello’s character Essay

Shakespeare’s character, Othello, was certainly a believable character. Although he was a man who was a leader, of high military/social standing, he was still just a man. Perhaps when one holds such a high standing within a community or nation, their followers/admirers tend to forget that they are, just as we all are, only human. Othello’s mistake was that he unknowingly allowed himself to be influenced by Iago. Manipulation is a very powerful tool, especially if used by someone who has taken the time to study the human mind. With manipulation comes distrust, doubt, insecurity, and perhaps even fear. Othello was manipulated beyond his ability to recognize what Iago’s ‘plan’ was. His love for Desdemona, jealousy and insecurities most likely clouded his ability to percieve what was really going on and as a result he not only committed the tragic sin of murdering his true love, but also committed the ultimate sin of self-destruction. Although the saga of Othello was written long ago, the similarities of its misadventures are very similar to those of today’s society. How many of us have been truly duped by someone that we have put our complete faith and trust in? How like the people of today to be fueled by jealousy and rage their normally crystal clear outlook could turn to complete and utter despairingly gray? What would it take to turn the complete love and devotion of a husband into a murderous stranger toward the one person that he has pledged to love for all of eternity? How sad that Iago’s extreme jealously could target and destroy something as pure and beautiful as the love Othello had for Desdemona. It is quiet tragic that such jealousy could destroy such a great and powerful military leader. It seemed for as much as Othello loved his wife, she was in fact his Achilles’ heel. I cannot imagine the sickening horror that Desdemona felt when she realized that there was no defending herself from the tiny, poisonous seed planted by Iago. There was no defense in the eyes of Othello as his wife paid the ultimate price. I wonder how many relationships today have fallen victim to tragedy because of a well-placed comment of doubt or shadow on one’s character. In today’s extreme number of murder and divorce, I think that Othello and his terrible story are quite believable.

The Blue Sword CHAPTER TWELVE

The third morning dawned as bright and valiant as the two before; and still slightly bemused but cheerful, Corlath's entourage made itself ready to follow its leader back down the mountain. Harry contrived to be the very last of the file, and she looked around her as the penultimate horse and rider left the clearing before the hall and disappeared down the close-grown trail. She had been standing where she was standing now when Corlath had stepped into the clearing before the hall, Fireheart at his heels, to bid farewell to the man he had come to see. They spoke a few words, too low for her to hear as she skulked in the background, as well as anyone on a tall bright chestnut horse with a hunting-cat at its feet could skulk; and then she saw Corlath hold out one hand, palm down and fingers spread, toward Luthe. They held each other's eyes for a long moment, and then Luthe reached out two fingers to touch the back of Corlath's hand. Corlath turned away and mounted, and the Riders began following him into the mouth of the trail. Narknon was yawning hugely, leaning against one of Sungold's forelegs. She had been grumbling to herself all morning, although she seemed to know they were leaving, since she had at last deigned to climb out of bed and follow Harry as Harry took her saddle and gear and went to fetch Sungold. Harry thought with surprise that in just two days she had grown fond of her surroundings and was sorry to leave. This place felt like home; not her home perhaps, but someone's home, accustomed to shelter and keep and befriend its master. Its emptiness did not have the hollow ring of Corlath's castle, for all that the proud City castle was more richly furnished. She told herself straitly that her affection for this place could too easily be only that she dreaded what the path away from this haven was leading her toward. She found Luthe standing beside her, with a hand gently laid on Sungold's crest – a familiarity Sungold rarely permitted any stranger. â€Å"Harry,† he said, and she blinked; no one had called her by her old nickname since that last day at the Residency, and it gave her a disconcerting flash of homesickness, for the Hillfolk could not say it as a Homelander would: Mathin called her Hari. â€Å"I believe all will go well with you: or at least that you will choose to stay on the best path of those you are offered, and that's the most any mortal can hope for. But I don't see so beautifully that I have no doubts, for you or anyone; and I am afraid for you. The darkness coming to Damar will not temper itself for a stranger. If you should need a place to come to, you may always come here. You will find it quite easily; just ride into these mountains – any Damarian mountains will do, although the nearer here the better – and say my name occasionally. I will hear you, and some guide will make itself known to you.† There was a sparkle of humor in his hooded blue eyes, but she understood that she m ight take his words seriously nonetheless. â€Å"Thank you,† she said, and Sungold walked forward, into the trees. Narknon, with a last stretch and tail-lash, bounded off before. Harry did not look back, but her peripheral vision told her how the sunlight dropped back, and the trees closed in behind her, and Luthe's clearing was only a spot of gold, a long distance away. The road down was much easier than the road up had been, for all the uncertainty of stepping downward and downward, Sungold's hocks collected under him, his hoofs delicately feeling the safety of the footing; but some cloud of foretelling, or chance, had been left behind them in the pleasant vagueness of the three days in Luthe's hall. Whatever doom lay before them now, it was a definite doom of definite shape, and the swifter they rode, the more swiftly they might meet it and have done with it, for whatever result. They camped at the edge of the foothills that night, and the army re-materialized around them; and everyone looked easier, and more relaxed, even obscurely comforted, by their few days' break, loitering in the forested feet of the mountains, listening to the birds, and catching hares and antelope for the cooking-pots. It was not all idleness, however, for Corlath's army on that morning after leaving Luthe had swelled by a few hundreds more. Terim rode up beside her as they set out, and stayed near her all day; they rode at the front, with Corlath and the Riders, and Murfoth, and the few other chieftains who led more than fifty riders to Corlath's standard. Harry saw Senay once, not many horse-lengths distant – for the riding was close – and she caught her eye and began a smile; but suddenly uncertain how the winner of the laprun trials was expected to behave to one of those defeated, and one who besides wore a sash with one's own slash mark in it, dropped her eyes before the other had a chance to respond. In the evening, however, when Harry dismounted, she found herself staring at a bay flank she did not recognize for a moment; its rider dismounted also, and was found to be Senay. This time the two young women looked at each other directly, and both smiled. So several more days passed, and Corlath's little force made a glorious and frightening thunder when it galloped; and even as Harry thought that her Outlanders did not guess there were so many in all the Hills, she thought too of what each of the Hillfolk knew: of the Northerners there were many more. Harry rode now with Terim and Senay on her either side, and the three of them ate together. Harry noticed that while the Riders as a group stayed in the same area, all seemed to have friends or blood kin from the army outside who came closer to stand by them, as Terim and Senay, for whatever reason, had chosen to stand by her. Corlath's small force would fight shoulder to shoulder and friend to friend; it was a little comforting. Mathin found her once, head against Sungold's neck and brush hanging limply in one hand. â€Å"Hari – † he said, and she started and snapped upright, and began to brush Sungold's shoulder. â€Å"Hari,† he said again, â€Å"it is only your old teacher, and there is no shame to your thoughts. We all have them; but it is the worst for you, and for all those riding with us fresh from the trials, but worst of all for you as laprun-minta and bearer of the Blue Sword. Do not be too hard on yourself.† Harry said, â€Å"I am not too hard on myself.† Mathin smiled grimly. â€Å"I don't believe you. Even young Terim, who worships the ground you walk on – † Harry snorted – â€Å"has spent the past three years riding the borders, under his father's wise and watchful eye, that he might strike his first angry blow and draw his first blood with his newly earned sword before the great battle of the Bledfi Gap. You do not have three years. It is not your fault.† â€Å"It does not matter that it is not my fault, does it?† Harry tried to smile, but Mathin's dark face was too worried, and she gave it up. â€Å"Thank you, my old teacher; I will try to remember what you say.† Mathin said softly, â€Å"You are still the keeper of my honor, Harimad-sol, and I have faith in you, whatever happens. If you forget all else, do not forget that.† â€Å"I will not,† Harry said. They had left the slight shelter of the mountains now, and rode northwest across the plain to come to the great gap in the northern range as soon as they might, where the Northern invaders would pour through. They rode quickly but without driving, for the horses and their riders needed to have the strength to engage the other army; and Corlath further hoped to arrive enough in advance of their enemy that he might choose the ground where they would meet. They had ridden over little true desert; soon after they left the foothills' border the scrub fringe of desert began turning green, and they passed the occasional carefully irrigated small holding, now silent and empty. In three days' time they would arrive at the Gate of the North, the Bledfi Gap, and Corlath called a meeting again of his Riders and the chieftains. Terim and Senay waited outside the zotar by a little fire, guarding Harry's saddle and baggage, and Harry went to hear what her king would have to say; and she remembered Luthe's words to her: â€Å"You could do worse than to believe in him.† They counted themselves. There were some foot soldiers who would meet them at the end of their ride, but only a few; there were few of the Hills who did not feel better, more useful, more real, on horseback. Barring them, they were full strength. Few of the Hillfolk came from any farther west, for the taint of the Outlanders was oppressive to them. Harry stared at her hands, burned a cinnamon-brown as dark as any Hillman's. Aerin's hair was red, she thought, and pushed back her hood; and I am a Rider. The muster came to a little shy of two thousand; and there was silence as everyone considered the Hills black with Northerners, and the width of the mountain pass. Corlath, without making any face-saving remarks about its not being as bad as it looked – For Hillfolk, thought Harry, don't seem to like that sort of thing: what would poor Sir Charles do here? – began to describe their options; but Harry, to her horror, found her mind wandering. She yanked it back, pointed it at Corlath, and it promptly ducked out again. Is this the first symptom of failure of nerve? she thought, feeling cold and clammy in spite of the dry heat. Various of the new men had questions or comments; and then the meeting broke up; and while Riders' councils always ended quietly, there was a subdued feeling to the air in the king's tent that was not pleasant. Only a few people were left when Harry stood up and faced Corlath and said, tiredly, as if she couldn't help herself: â€Å"Why do you persist in ignoring the northwest pass? I cannot believe the Northerners may not give us an unwelcome surprise by its use.† â€Å"I ignore it because it does not require my attention,† said Corlath, and while his voice was a low rumble, there was as yet no lash of anger in it. â€Å"But – â€Å" â€Å"You know nothing of it.† The flatness of his tone goaded her and she said: â€Å"The Outlanders make maps none so ill, and I have seen the maps of that area – and I can read maps too! And they tell me that a force, not so small as to be ignored, could slip down the northwest pass very easily, and follow the mountains east, and catch us on the plain from behind, and then your earthworks will be mounts to fall on when we are set on from our backs!† â€Å"Enough!† roared Corlath. â€Å"You I will place in a hollow in the side of the hill, so you may see from all directions, and I advise you to look overhead as well, for eagles that might be carrying rocks!† Harry turned and ran out. She noticed, without registering it, that Innath and Faran and Mathin stood listening; and she did not see the troubled looks they sent after her. The night air was cool with the sudden coolness of the desert when darkness falls, and she took a few deep breaths. Then she went to her fire, and sat down, and tried to make her face calm; and if her mind had been calm, she might have thought it strange that Senay and Terim asked her no questions; but she was relieved at their silence and wrestled as best she could with her own demons. Mathin came and sat near her also, and he too was silent, and she did not notice how he looked at her. The fires burned down, and everyone lay down to sleep. Harry chose not to sleep in the zotar that night; and Mathin stayed by her little fire as well, though he still said nothing. Harry turned on her back and stared at the sky. She let the stars swing above her for a time, and then she stood up quietly, and picked up her bedding and her saddlebag, and made her way to the horses; and she remembered what Mathin had taught her of stealth. Narknon made none of her usual protest at being disturbed, and meekly followed her. Sungold rubbed his head against her but made no sound, for war-horses are trained to silence; and she mounted him and jogged away slowly. She had a terrible headache; it had been building all evening, and now it seemed to stand out around her like a cloud. Perhaps it was a cloud indeed, for no one challenged her as she set Sungold's head west. They covered many miles before morning, for Sungold was of the best of the Hill horses, and the speed the army traveled was to him slow. Harry remembered a little spur of hills running down to the central plain that she should meet before morning broke too clearly for watching eyes to see a lone chestnut horse with a Hillman on his back working his way quickly west. She hoped, because the hills had looked overgrown on the Outlander map, and because Dedham himself had ridden so far and drawn the chart himself, that she would be able to lose herself in them; and she hoped that the stream that flowed through them would be easy to find. She was tired by the time she felt the sun on her back, and she knew Sungold was weary too, although his stride was as long and elastic as it had been hours ago. Narknon loped along beside them, keeping pace. But the hills were at hand: rough outcroppings of grey and rust-red rock, with little but lichen to meet the traveler's first look; but as Sungold picked his way around a tall grey standing stone, suddenly grass appeared before them, and Sungold's feet struck good dark earth, and then they heard the stream. Narknon reached it first; she had none of most cats' aversion to water, and leaped in, sending water in all directions, and splashing Harry playfully when she followed. â€Å"I should not have let you come with me,† Harry said to her; â€Å"but I don't suppose there's any way I could have prevented you. Thank the gods.† Sungold was laying his ears back in mock anger and striking with his forefeet as Narknon splashed him too. â€Å"And besides, I daresay Sungold would miss you, and I had to bring him.† It was after they had all soggily climbed out of the water again that she heard the hoofbeats; and she whirled around to face them. The faces of her four-footed companions remained undisturbed, and Sungold turned his head mildly to look over his shoulder at whoever approached, but this was no comfort, for they did not understand the awfulness of what she had done, or that the friends who had followed her were friends no longer. It was Senay and Terim. Their horses showed the pace they had kept worse than Sungold; but they were well mannered and stood quietly, waiting hopefully for their riders to tell them they might stop and rest, and drink and graze, as their brother was doing already. â€Å"Why did you follow me?† said Harry. â€Å"Did Corlath send you? I – I won't come back. If you take Sungold away from me, I'll go on foot.† Terim laughed. It wasn't a very good laugh, but there was some weary humor in it nonetheless. â€Å"I don't think anyone could take Sungold away from you, unless perhaps by cutting him in pieces; and we are not sent by anyone. We followed you †¦ â€Å" â€Å"We followed you because we chose to follow you,† said Senay. â€Å"And Mathin sat up and watched us go, and said nothing; and you will not send us back, for we shall follow you anyway, like Narknon.† Senay dismounted deliberately, and sent her grateful horse to the water; and Terim followed her. Harry sat down where she stood. â€Å"Do you realize what I've done? What you've done by following me?† â€Å"More or less,† said Terim. â€Å"But my father has other sons; he can afford to disinherit one or two.† Senay was pouring water over her head. â€Å"There are a few who will come to me; we will pass near my village, and I will tell them, and they will follow. There are not many left in the western end of the Horfels; but most of those there are owe allegiance to my father. The best of them, I fear, rode to join Corlath after I left for the trials; but there are some – like my father himself – who chose not to desert the land they've loved for generations.† â€Å"That will not help you when he disowns you, like Terim's father,† said Harry. Senay shook her wet hair back and smiled. â€Å"My father has too few children to lose one; and I am the only child of his first wife, and he raised me to make up my own mind. The way he did this was by yielding to me when I asked, even when I was foolish. I lived through it; and I know my own mind; and he will do what I ask him.† Harry shook her head. â€Å"Do you know where †¦ we're †¦ going?† â€Å"Of course,† said Terim, surprised. â€Å"Besides, Mathin told us, days ago.† Harry was beyond arguing; and, she realized in the back of her mind, she didn't want to argue. She was too warmed and heartened by having two more friends with her in her self-chosen exile; and unlike Sungold and Narknon she could not feel she had compelled this man and woman. â€Å"And we brought provisions,† Terim said matter-of-factly. â€Å"You shouldn't go on desperate missions without food.† â€Å"Narknon would take care of me, I think,† Harry said, trying to smile. â€Å"Even Narknon can't bake bread,† said Terim, unrolling a twist of cloth that held several loaves of the round pot-baked bread the army ate in vast quantities. They unsaddled their horses in companionable silence, and rubbed the sweat marks with grass, and the horses waded into the stream again and splashed their bellies, and then found sandy patches on the shore to roll in, scratching their backs and withers and grunting happily. Horses and riders together rested in the shade of some thin low-branching trees, till the sun was low on the western horizon; and then the riders brushed their horses till they gleamed in the twilight. And they saddled and rode out with the sunset blinding their eyes, with a long lean cat-shadow following behind. Mathin could not sleep after he had silently wished Senay and Terim speed and luck. He lay down again, and his thoughts roved back over the last weeks, and his memories were so vivid that dawn was breaking and other bodies were stirring before he thought to rise himself. Innath joined him at the fire that Senay and Terim and Harry had sat around the night before; and neither of them was surprised when they saw Corlath leave the zotar and come directly to them. They remained seated, and gazed up at him as he towered over them; but when he looked down they found they could not meet his eyes, or did not want to recognize the expression in them, and they stared into the fire again. He turned away, took a few steps, and paused; and bent, and picked something up. It was a long maroon sash, huddled in a curve in the ground, so that it looked like a shadow itself. He held it over his hand, and it hung limp like a dead animal; and the small morning breeze seemed unable to stir it.