Love Is Not the Destructive Force in Romeo and Juliet free essay sample

Love is not the destructive force in Romeo and Juliet Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, is considered one of the greatest love tragedies of all time. It is a play about two young lovers, whose love was destined for destruction from the beginning because of the hatred  between the two families, Montagues and Capulets. The force that leads to this destruction hate and lust, as opposed to love. One of the forces that leads to destruction in Romeo and Juliet is hate. Hate is a destructive force, when it gets stronger that love. Hate killed Romeo and Juliet, and their love. It did this through the feud between the two families. The two teenagers were killed because they kept trying to go around the feuding between their families and go on with their lives. Here they had underestimated hate, which is also a very strong force, when given into it. We will write a custom essay sample on Love Is Not the Destructive Force in Romeo and Juliet or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In this case the Montegues and Capulets gave into their hate for one another. An example of why hate is destructive and not love is a point in act 3, scene one. Romeo refuses to fight Tybalt because they are now cousins. He says: â€Å"I love thee better that thou canst devise, Till thou shalt know the reason of my love, And so, good Capulet, which name I tender As Dearly as mine own, be satisfied†. This is an action out of love. Tybalt is furious and, when challenged by Mercutio, kills him. This revives Romeo’s hate. He says: â€Å"Away to heaven respective lenity, And fire-eyed fury be my conduct now! † This makes him kill Tybalt. These are actions out of hate. Therefore the force that keeps from destroying here is love, and the destructive force is hate. Also, when love turns into lust, this can be destructive. Lust can be a destructive force, because when people are driven by lust, their actions get impulsive and hasty. This causes them to not think properly about what they do. That the actions of Romeo and Juliet are occasionally driven by lust, can be seen for example because Romeo wants Juliet yet when he has only just met her. The very first time that Romeo sees Juliet, he says: â€Å"Oh, she doth teach the torches to burn bright! It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night, Like a rich jewel in an Ethiope’s ear, Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear. So shows a snowy dove trooping with crows, As yonder lady oer her fellows shows. The measure done, I’ll watch her place of stand, And, touching hers, make blessed my rude hand. Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! For I neer saw true beauty till this night. † He does not know her from the inside, but already wants to touch her because she is so beautiful on the outside. Lust destroys because this makes Romeo and Juliet act impulsive. When Romeo hears that Juliet died, he acts impulsive, and goes to her to kill himself. He does not think clearly the fact that he didn’t get news from Friar Lawrence, and also not about his love for his family. So lust is a destructive force when it overrules love. Furthermore, in Romeo and Juliet, love is not a force that destroys. When love overpowers hate, it is a source of happiness and welfare. There are many scenes in the play where love is a source of peace and happiness. Firstly, the love that Romeo and Juliet share lifts Romeo from his sadness over Rosaline. He states to Friar Lawrence I have forgot that name, and that names woe. This love makes Romeo happy instead of destroying him. Love on itself brings good things with it. Love reconciles the two feuding families, the Capulets and Montagues who have been bitter enemies. During the story, love faces harder and harder challenges. At the end of the novel, the love of Romeo and Juliet is destroyed because hate has overpowered love. But at that same moment love overpowers hate because Capulet and Montague make peace with each other after seeing that  their children were so in love with each other that they sacrificed  their lives for one another. This leads to construction, and not destruction, because the families will now work together instead of destroying one another. To conclude, love is a powerful force but not a destructive one. What is destructive is hate and lust. When hate and lust overpower love, this destroys. This is seen when the hate of the two feuding families leads to the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. When love overpowers hate and lust it can create new opportunities, such as the ending of the feud between the families.

Slavery the most controversial themes in the history of the United States The WritePass Journal

Slavery the most controversial themes in the history of the United States Chapter 1   Introduction: Slavery the most controversial themes in the history of the United States Chapter 1   Introduction:Chapter Two â€Å"Set Out to Play an’ Court all Dey Pleased†: Courtship among the enslaved.Chapter 3 â€Å"Jumping the broom†: Weddings and Marriage amongst the enslavedChapter 4: ConclusionRelated Chapter 1   Introduction: Slavery is one of the most controversial themes in the history of the United States; throughout much of the past century historians have debated, sometimes quite heatedly, various interpretations of this area. For the purpose of this dissertation, the personal relationships amongst the enslaved will be the subject being examined. Early research into the area on slave relationship tended to focus on the instability of slave families, The controversial Moynihan report of 1965 argued that the harsh regime of slavery shattered family ties of all that had been bound by it, and as a result the future generations of the ‘Negro Family’ lacked in strength and stability, Moynihan claimed that the majority of slave families â€Å"developed a fatherless matrifocal (mother-centred) pattern†[as men were absent husbands and fathers.    Elkins notorious study on Slavery in 1959 also negatively depicted slave relationships. Elkins compared slavery to the Nazi system of concentration camps, arguing that the enslaved were psychologically infantilized by the regime. Elkins’ argued that the totalitarian environment and â€Å"absolute power† held by the slave owners destroyed slaves capacity to resist the regime and form any sort of positive relationship with one another. Elkins asserted that the slave master was the only significant other in the life of a slave, and believed that significant bonds between slaves were unattainable. However, these views of slavery tended to focus on the perception of the slave owners and neglected the views of the enslaved. In the 1970’s new revisionist historians shifted to examining perspectives of the slave rather than that of the master, moving towards investigating ‘history from below’. The works of Gutman, Blassingame and Levine were of the first historians to look at slavery from this angle[5]; their works focused on the cultural aspects of the lives of the enslaved, a view that had been previously neglected. Similarities between their studies showed that cultural autonomy allowed slaves to distance themselves from the psychological pressures of the slavery regime and made it possible to establish and maintain positive, loving relationships. Gutman criticised the earlier orthodox views of slavery put forward by Elkins, Moynihan and Frazier, arguing that they did not appreciate the extraordinary â€Å"adaptive capacities† of the African American slaves in spite of the rigours imposed under slavery. The revisionist historians tended to focus on what Engerman referred to as â€Å"the positive accomplishments of slaves under slavery.† However more recently historians have criticised this approach, believing that the resilience and autonomy of the slaves have been overstated, shadowing the harsh truths of slavery, Kolchin’s studies claim that revisionist historians have created â€Å"an exaggerated picture of strength and cohesion of the slave community.† However one must note that by accentuating resilience and the desire for independence does not mean that historians are romanticising the whole regime of slavery and that the restrictions and exploitations imposed on slaves by their masters were not significant. Rather as West argues the fact that the enslaved strove for independence under the terrible hardships of the regime is of immense importance, since it â€Å"highlights the desire for freedom within the context of the restraints imposed by slaveholders.† For slaves, spousal love and support was of vital importance in the fight for cultural autonomy and also to provide shelter and support from their bleak lives under bondage.    This research project will further this perspective, in the attempt to show that the relationships between enslaved spouses facilitated the desire for and the development of a social space between the lives of slaves and owners and a means of resistance against oppression. This dissertation will attempt to show the strength slave relationships under and in spite of the harsh restraints of bondage. The chapters within this dissertation will look at enslaved courtship and marriage under the regime of slavery; each assessing the strength of these relationships in spite of the hardships and restrictions placed upon them. Slavery in America was present for almost two decades; it would difficult to adequately cover these issues for this entire period, for this reason this dissertation will focus on the antebellum period (1820-1860) of slavery which took place before the civil war. The significance of this period is that slavery had already been established and legislated for a long time thus providing historians with numerous sources of evidence in which to study. The limit of this period for one looking at cultural issues, is the fact that by this time there would be very few African born slaves; so this dissertation will be unable to look directly at the role played by native African slaves, as Kolchin argues that Antebellum period lacked the â€Å"large-scale infusions from Africa that might have served to foster separate black cultural forms by reinforcing a cultural continuity with the traditions of their ancestors†.[11] The majority of the slaves in the antebellum period would have been bo rn and brought up under the regime of slavery, however, this smaller scope of study should not be looked at negatively, as Levine argues that the slave culture is one of oral tradition, where culture was passed on from generation to generation by stories, songs and folk tales therefore African culture would still be relevant in the lives of Antebellum slaves.[12] As this dissertation is focusing on the antebellum period, it is limited to the Southern States of America as slavery had already been abolished in the Northern States. Although this may seem a broad geographical area, this dissertation will hope to prove that regardless of location the enslaved strove for the same autonomy to shape their own personal lives and relationships. American Slavery has been an area where sources of evidence has been heatedly criticised, the majority of early research into this topic was based primarily on ‘white’ sources which tended to rationalise the exploitation of their black counterparts. Other revisionist historians have focused on ex-slave testimonies which too have been criticised as being unreliable which will be discussed in more detail further on. However this dissertation will draw from sources of oral testimony left behind by former slaves, as Frederick Douglass explains one â€Å"cannot see things in the same light with the slave, because he does not, and cannot, look from the same point from which the slave does†[13] The Works Progress Administration Narratives (which will be referred to as WPA throughout this dissertation) are a collection of other 2,300 interviews of former slaves from the southern states conducted from 1936-38. These interviews are of vital importance when investigating slavery from the perspective of the enslaved and gives historians insight into the personal lives of slaves which is neglected in the majority of ‘white’ sources. There is however many arguments against the reliability of these narratives, the main one is that over two thirds of the respondents were more than eighty when they were interviewed, it has been suggested that their memories of bondage would affected over time, and that they were only young children during the regime of slavery. West explains that even though the respondent memory may have dimmed with age, they still remembered â€Å"a great deal about life under the peculiar institution†Ã‚   Moreover even if slave narratives weren’t perfectly recollected, the nature of the unique source still holds immense value to that of a historian. Another issue that has been noted is that many respondents would have been children at the time of slavery; this could be problematic when assessing courting and marital relationships as the former slaves could have possibly been too young to partake in these types of relationships themselves, however as previously mentioned Levine’s study shows American slave culture was one that rested on folk tales and the passing down of stories through the generations, therefore slave testimony on their parents and grandparents relationships will still be highly significant to this study. To end with Woodward brilliantly sums up that even though the WPA narratives are sometimes confusing and contradictory â€Å"they represent the voices of the normally voiceless, the inarticulate masses whose silence historians are forever lamenting† Chapter Two â€Å"Set Out to Play an’ Court all Dey Pleased†: Courtship among the enslaved. As detailed in the introduction this dissertation will examine the personal relationships in which slaves participated; in the attempt to show the strength of these relationships and also the degree in which slaves strove for the autonomy from their masters to develop and maintain these relations. This chapter will examine the role of courtship amongst the enslaved, although there has been much more recent research into the ‘romantic’ lives of slaves since the wave of revisionist historians in the 1970’s, courtship has been looked at as a ‘mere passage instead of its own social event’; historian’s have either overlooked this area completely or merged it into a broader study of marriage. This chapter will detail early historical views of enslaved courtship before discussing the variety of restrictions which were in place to hinder courtship before finally discussing the ways in which the enslaved managed to create meaningful relationships of the ir own. By the antebellum period slavery had become institutionalised across the American South, slaveholders were increasingly concerned with controlling every aspect of their ‘properties’ lives, especially that of sexual unions. This is due to the abolition of the Transatlantic Slave Trade in 1808, which stopped any more African people being imported as slaves; hence the sexual unions that slaves created became increasingly important to slaveholders to insure that they would have future generations of slaves to perpetuate the southern social order. Oral testimony from the former slave, Hannah Jones showed that there were some plantations who â€Å"just raised niggers†. By examining other slave testimonies it can be seen that many slave owners decided who their slaves would be with, in order to produce the best offspring. Katie Darling, a slave born in Texas in 1849, argued that slaves didn’t court each other under the restraints of Slavery, merely that their mast ers would â€Å"pick out a po’tly and a po’tly gal and jist put ‘em together† to reproduce as he needed more â€Å"stock†. This shows one of main reasons why historians have neglected the topic of enslaved courtship as they viewed the way in which slaves formed relationships to some extent as an insensitive and unemotional process, as the majority of masters’ chose partners for their slaves with little or no considerations of their personal feelings. Genovese acknowledged that in some cases; masters had a paternalistic attitudes towards their slaves and let them choose their own partner yet the process was still not regarded as a ‘romantic’ one as â€Å"if a man saw a girl he liked he would ask his master’s permission to ask the master of the girl for her. If his master consented and her master consented then they came togetherâ€Å" As a result of forced breeding, coerced relationships, and the ‘unemotional’ joining of partner as detailed in ‘white’ sources and also in a few slave narratives, Fraser concluded that â€Å"courtship and the normal relationships preliminary to marriage seldom existed†.   By examining more of the WPA slave narratives, however, it can be seen that this negative image of courtship was not always the case; instead one can see the importance that the enslaved placed on the creation of their personal relationships, as they â€Å"sought to define the nature and shape of their own courtship experiences.†Ã‚   By examining the ‘courtships’ of those who were bound by slavery, historians can gain insight into the cultural and social aspects of their rituals and how the enslaved strove to meet and choose their significant other, free from the influence of their master. Within this dissertation numerous WPA slave narratives will be discussed to show the extent of personal relationships between the enslaved. However when looking into the area of courtship one must note that the majority of former slaves who partook in these testimonies were young children during the years of bondage, hence they may not have participated in courtships themselves until after slavery and historians must acknowledge this issue. However this does not mean that the testimonies are of no value as many recount the stories that have been passed on to them or those they witnessed personally, giving historians insight into how courtship was shaped within the slave community and also how the slaves strove for the autonomy to create strong relationship bonds. A perspective that many traditional historians neglected as can be seen in the previous chapter as they used primarily ‘white’ sources. Many slave owners expected to decide the timing of courtship and coupling among slaves and to constrain their slaves’ choice of partner to suit their own needs; such as keeping their slaves on their plantations at all times and producing ‘quality’ offspring destined to be the master’s future slaves and/or income. To make sure this was the case slave holders placed numerous restrictions in the way of their slaves’ courtships; time was one of the largest constraints faced by the enslaved, as Smith explains â€Å"all time on the plantation, whether work or leisure, was ultimately the master’s to bestow, manipulate and define†. With slaves spending all their time working in the fields or domestically in the masters house, even when their long day at work was over, their master still controlled what they did and even when they had to go to sleep. For example, Ex-slave Matida Mckinney explained the concept of curfews on her plantation, pointi ng out that the â€Å"curfew horn was blown and no lights could be lighted after its warning not had sounded. There was very little visiting to or from the group which dwelt here, as the curfew hour was early† This shows how relatively little freedom slaves had in their day to day lives to socialise or court one another. As well as time, slave owners also restricted their slave’s mobility. The enslaved were restricted to the boundaries of their plantations. The Former slave Austin Steward points out that â€Å"Slaves are never allowed to leave the plantation which they belong, without a written pass. Should anyone venture to disobey this law, he will most likely be caught by the patrol and given thirty-nine lashes.† The enslaved had to gain their masters permission to leave their plantation, they were required to get a written pass, detailing their master’s name, the origin of their trip and their destination, and they were also required to produce this pass at the request of any white person. Not only were their ‘patrollers’ hindering slaves geographical mobility but slave owners also placed physical boundaries, such as high fences, around the perimeter of their plantations to contain and restrict slaves mobility further. Former slave Louisa Adams argues that â€Å"All de plantation wuz fenced in, dat is all de fields, wid rails; de rails wuz ten feet long† It should be noted here that the restrictions imposed on the enslaved were inconsistent throughout the Antebellum South, not just in differing states but â€Å"between slaveholders themselves; urban and rural environments and different police measures in the county†Regardless of these restrictions the enslaved managed to control their personal relationships through working around the restrictions enforced upon them by the regime of slavery. Certain social events were organised by the slave owners and occurred as part of the work regime, for example ‘corn shucking’ and ‘candy pulling’ where numerous slaves from neighbouring plantations would come together to complete a large task. Even though the slaves were working on these occasions by reviewing many of the WPA slave testimonies it can be seen that the enslaved looked forward to these events and the majority described them as ‘fun’. As well as working the slaves had the chance to engage in socialising, flirtation and courtship at these events. For instance, they played numerous courtship games such as ‘kissing for a red ear of corn’ and ‘dropping the handkerchief’ which allowed them to possibly establish a meaningful personal relationships.   The former slave Anna Wright explained how these organised events offered a good place for the enslaved to meet a potential partner but also for existing couples to continue their courtship, she explained that courting couples relished these days as they could â€Å"set out to play an’ court all dey pleased†. Therefore the enslaved managed to manipulate some of the terms of their working lives to their own ends. As well as these occasions, many slave owners also recognised different times of the year as holidays, during these times the usual time and mobility restrictions enforced on the enslaved were temporarily relaxed allowing slaves to move between different plantations and spend time socialising and courting. For instance for Christmas Holiday which could last anything from a couple of days to a couple of weeks, one former slave detailed that on his plantation from Christmas through to new year the slaves â€Å"feast, an’ we dance, an’ we sing.† Another slave explained that at Christmas, slaves â€Å"went up de riber to other plantations ter dances an’ all dem things† However it must be noted that these opportunities were completely dependent on the slave owner, who could withdraw these privileges at any time or choose not to partake in them at all. It can be seen so far that the enslaved had very little opportunity to partake in courtships, and the opportunities they had, if any, to escape being governed by their masters were seldom. Some slaves, however, resisted these restrictions which bound them and sought to have a social world separate to their plantation and thus developed ‘alternative or illicit social spaces, where they socialised, flirted and courted without the presence or consent of the slave owner’. The enslaved would go to unauthorised ‘frolics’ or their significant other’s plantations without obtaining the permission of their master in order to pursue or create a courtship. For example, ex-slave Penny Williams recounted that â€Å"Dar was some nigger men what ud go courtin’ spite de debil, an’ master ain’t gibbin dem no passes dey go widout ‘em† She also detailed how regardless of the punishment bestowed on them when they were caught, they would still continue this behaviour in pursuit of love. This point was furthered by former slave Hugh Berry, who described that he would risk severe punishment to â€Å"go back over there to see that girl†.   By doing this the enslaved defied and resisted the systems of control, such as time and geography. In conclusion, the enslaved in the antebellum south strove to meet and court a significant other of their choosing. Slave utilised the time that their owners allowed them, such as work based event and holidays to extend the limits of their lives, but they also strove to establish romantic bonds with one another in spaces that was separate from their plantation and their master’s authority. This chapter shows the value and importance slaves placed on their courtships, so much so that they would risk a severe beating in order to pursue their love interest. Also by examining slave testimonies, one can see that courtship was a vital stage in the romantic relationships of the enslaved, despite being neglected by early academics. Chapter 3 â€Å"Jumping the broom†: Weddings and Marriage amongst the enslaved The last chapter analysed the opportunities the enslaved had to meet and court a partner of their own choosing, this chapter will look at the next stage in the romantic relationship; marriage. Slave marriages have been one of the most controversial areas of research within the topic of slavery, numerous orthodox historians viewed slave marriages as weak and unstable, Stampp believed that with all the constraints imposed on the enslaved, ‘no deep or enduring affection could develop between husband and wives’.This chapter will examine the extent to which this claim is true, focusing on the difficulties and restrictions that affected slave marriages and how the enslaved managed to overcome them. The first question this chapter will examine is opportunities that the enslaved had to get married; the southern legal system never recognised slave marriages on the grounds that property could not enter into a legal contract, slave holders would not tolerate a legal contract that would interfere with their rights to dispose of their property as they pleased, therefore early scholars concluded that marital relationships could not have existed amongst slaves. However, throughout this chapter it can be seen that this was not the case; although slave marriages were not legislated they were culturally formed and respected by the slave community. As in courtship, marriages between slaves were greatly influenced by the slaveholders; some slave owners forbade their slaves to enter in marriage at all. There were many different reasons for this, one of which being the threat to the master’s authority, for example Harriet Jacob’s master rejected her requests to wed a free black man as he thought that it would displace her loyalties to him, he asserted, â€Å"Well, I’ll soon convince you whether I am your master, or that nigger fellow you honour so highly†. Another reason for master’s forbidding enslaved matrimony, which is suggested by reviewing slave testimonies, is the practice of forced breeding as discussed in the previous chapter. A former slave recalled the application of this in her plantation; â€Å"As a rule negro men were not allowed to marry at all, any attempt to mate with the negro women brought swift, sure horrible punishment and the species were propagated by selected male Negros, who were kept for this purpose, the owners of this privileged negro, charged a fee of one out of every four of his offspring for his services† A former Texas slave, also described a less explicit way of forced breeding, where the women on his plantation were paired and forced to cohabit with a mate that their master deemed as suitable, as effective reproduction was more important to the slave owner than his slave emotions. Franklin believed that this was the case for the majority of slave women, who were forced into ‘relationships’ and pregnancy by the venality of her master, Franklin asserted this made it unlikely that slaves would ever establish a loving and affectionate bond with their significant other. Conversely, even though numerous slaves were coerced into relationships, some managed to manipulate their masters so they could be with the person of their choosing. An example of this can be seen in the testimony of former slave Virgina Yarbrough, who recalled once when her master forced two slaves together even though they were in love with others, they slept in separate beds â€Å"Twas’ bout three months aftah, de marster see thar am no chillums gwine to be bo’n, so he tuks her f’om dat fellow an’ ‘lows her to stay wid de one she laks.† However, it must be noted that this happened in the minority. By examining numerous slave testimonies, however, one can determine that the majority of slave owners did allow slaves to marry the person of their choosing, as Genevese explains most owners understood that if slaves were denied their request to marry the one they loved, they would become sullen workers and would be more likely to run away. Slave owners also allowed informal ceremonies to mark marital unions amongst slaveseven if there were not legitimate. This Chapter will now examine some of the various ceremonial rituals which took place at slave weddings; one of the most common of these rituals was jumping over the broomstick where slave couples literally jumped over a broomstick together and were then married. Historians take different views on the meaning of this ceremony; Blassingame and Gutman believed this ritual originated in Africa and was initiated by the slaves themselves. On the contrary, Stevenson argues that the broomstick ritual derived from pre-Christian Europe and was passed down generations as a quaint and amusing remnant of the past, Stevenson believes this ritual was imposed on slaves by their masters, which suggested the lack of respect and honour slave-owners held for their ‘blacks attempt to create meaningful marital relationships’ By reviewing numerous slave testimonies that describe the broom stick ceremony, they tend to fit in with Stevenson’s analysis of the ceremony, this can be seen by the use of coercive language, that they were required to perform this ceremony. Again reaffirming the master’s control over slave marriages; for example Georgina Giwbs said that, ‘When yer married, yer had to jump over the broom three times. Dat wuz de licence. ’ Another instance of this can be seen by reviewing the testimony of George Womble,   he describes that slaves ‘were commanded to jump over the broom ’. All slave ceremonies were not as basic as jumping over a broomstick, they ranged from extravagant weddings as described in several slave testimonies, for example Tempie Durham recalled her â€Å"big weddin†, where her master arranged for her to have a â€Å"big weddin’ cake†, a massive feast, a bible wedding ceremony with a â€Å"nigger preacher† and a grand white wedding dress.   One may question why masters would arrange elaborate ceremonies for their slaves, Stampp suggests the reason is for the white masters to mock and belittle their black ‘property’, delighting in watching ‘a bride and groom move awkwardly through the wedding ceremony’. Genovese, however, disagree with this notion; instead believing that masters indulged slaves on their wedding days expecting that in return slaves would become more loyal and work harder. Regardless of the ulterior motives of masters, Will’s research shows that slaves preferred the e laborate trappings of the white culture, this signifies how the enslaved wished to have the same opportunities as their white counterparts to celebrate their personal relationships For the enslaved, wedding ceremonies legitimised their personal relationships to the extent possible during their time in bondage. The value and importance of these ceremonies held by slaves; whether extravagant events held in their masters house or the simple act of jumping over the broomstick, reflect the commitment slaves held in marriage and also the importance of the communal validation of their relationships. As with so many issues vital to the enslaved, white laws and planter control inevitably limited the range of marriage options open to slaves, yet working within the range and persistently attempting to widen this range of possibilities as seen also in the previous chapter, slaves forged marriage rituals that they not their masters ultimately determined and guarded. The importance of attaining marriage status alone is not sufficient evidence however to prove that slave marriages were not weak, unstable and unaffectionate as orthodox historians suggested. Another factor which led early scholars to label slave marriages with negative connotations   was the idea that slaves were sexually promiscuous, and could not remain faithful to one another, as one white slave mistress recounted â€Å"Not one in a thousand, I suppose, of these poor creatures have a conception whatever of the sanctity of marriage†. This is reiterated in some slave narratives, for example an former slave from Alabama explained that he couldn’t stay with the same woman instead he â€Å"jes tuck up wid one likely gal ater anoder† Gutman, however, argues that this was not the case and ‘fidelity was expected from slave men and women after marriage’by reviewing numerous slave narratives one can see that the majority of married slaves were loyal to each other regardless of the adverse situations they found themselves in. For example, Susan Snow a former slave, recalled that she â€Å"never hear’d tell o’ wives runnin’ round wid other men in dem days† Another example of the enslaved devotion to their spouse is recalled by Bryant Huff, who father was sold far away yet his mother refused to be unfaithful to him, she â€Å" grieved over his departure and refused, although urged, to marry again†. A serious problem which affected slave marriages was not the loyalty between spouses but the sexual exploitation faced by female slaves at the hands of white men usually their master, former Slave Henry Bibb explained that   Ã¢â‚¬Å"slaves wives cannot be true to their husbands they dare not refuse to be reduced to a state of adultery at the will of her master† This was extremely difficult for female slaves but also their significant others who were often powerless to stop the abuse; Henry Bibb further detailed his experience of when his wife Malinda was being sexually abused by their master, â€Å"I was compelled to stand and see my wife shamefully scourged and abused by her master; and the manner in which it was done, was so violently and inhumanely committed upon the person of a female, that I despair in finding decent language to describe the bloody act of cruelty† Some male slaves attempted to protect their wives from this abuse, former South Carolina slave Philip Evans recalled how his aunt was abused by a white overseer, her husband Dennis then attacked the overseer before fleeing into the woods, he was then caught and jailed before being stripped and flogged, the abuse on his wife still continued. By assessing these two testimonies it shows historians that however difficult it must have been for slave couple to endure sexual exploitation, the fact that they did is further evidence of the strength of slave marriages and the support spouses provided to one another. Another factor which would give a historian insight into determining the strength of slave marriages; is the length of time slaves were married. An example of this can be seen by reviewing the journal of a former slave holder Chaplin who noted that two of his female slaves had been married for over twenty seven years, he found that this was a strange phenomenon but by reviewing numerous slave testimonies one can draw the conclusion that it was common for slave marriages to be lifelong unions, unless broken by separation (which will discussed in more detail further on in this chapter). This is reiterated by the work of Gutman, his study showed that the majority of slaves remained married when possible, as only 9% of slaves in his study had separated due to mutual consent or by desertion Franklin believed that the permanency of a slave marriage would depend on the extent to which the couple could live and work together, based on this he deemed that slave marriages would only work if the couple remained together on the same plantation. However, as aforementioned slave marriages could not be legitimised as it would interfere with the owner’s rights to sell or give away their ‘property’, this meant that slave marriages were under constant threat of separation either through long distance or local sales, being gifted between white family members and also when estates of deceased owners were divided up Crawford estimates that nearly a quarter of all slave families were broken by sale. Slave owners understood the value slaves held in their marriage and used this knowledge as a way to control their slaves; the threat of being separated from their spouses was the most feared punishment, ‘a haunting fear which made all of the slave’s days miserable’ This overwhelming fear of being separated from their spouses shows further evidence of the importance of marital ties between the enslaved. Gutman 1970 study highlighted the strength of marital and family ties, however it has been criticised as his work only focused on large plantations where marital and family bonds would have been stronger, however it must be noted that these large plantations, where hundreds of slave presided were the exception, not the norm, Crawford’s research showed less than 50% of slaves lived on the same plantation as their significant other. The Majority of the enslaved in South were from small plantations with only a few other slaves, this meant much to their master’s dismay that they had to form cross plantation unions. These Cross plantation marriages were said to have constituted for over 33% of slave marriages, whilst these arrangements have been denigrated, work from revisionist historians have used them to exemplify the strength of marital bonds between the enslaved. Another important detail to note is that even slaves from large plantations sometimes married slaves from ot her plantations; the existence of cross plantation marriages amongst these slaves shows historians another example of the enslaved striving for autonomy from their masters. Cross Plantation Marriages were obviously harder than maintaining a relationship with a significant other on the same plantation; but despite the drawbacks, slaves went to incredible lengths to maintain their long distance relationships; for example A slave owner described how one of his slaves walked 40 miles to see his wife, only love explains his willingness to repeat this trip over and over again. Cross plantation unions also took place between free blacks and slaves, in many of these cases the free slave would attempt to purchase their significant other to no avail, however an example of the devotion held in these unions can be seen in the case of Samuel Small, a free black, who became a slave for seven years to pay for his wives freedom. Recently Russell has argued that local as well as long distance sales caused the high rates of family separations, however West believes that even though any type of separation would cause great anguish, the system of cross plantation unions coupled with the strength of relationships between spouses meant in the case of local separations the consequences may have not been so damaging. This chapter will draw attention to one final area, slave marriages once they were free; Gutman emphasised that when slaves were emancipated they went to great efforts to reunite with their families which they had been separated from. Molly Tillman recounted the anguish she felt when her master sold her husband to another state, â€Å"well ma’am, I grieved fo’ dat nigger so dat my heart wuz heavy in my breas’. I know I never would see him no more† after emancipation she still could not get over her husband until one day several years later she found him â€Å"I wuz so happy I shouted all over dat meetin’ house. We jes’ tuck up whar we   lef’ off an’ ‘fo’ long us got married† they lived happily as man and wife until he died 20 years later. The enthusiasm in which slaves registered to be legally married after the emancipation shows how much they valued their marriages. In conclusion, with all the difficulties that affected matrimonial ties between slaves on can understand why many historians deemed slave marriages as weak and unstable. However, when assessing the issues faced by slaves; legitimacy, the control owners had over their slave, forced coupling, sexual exploitation and separation, the fact that the majority of slaves managed to work through these and still managed to create deep and enduring relationships show the truth strength, resilience and value of slave marriages. By reviewing numerous slave testimonies, it is clear that through their words and behaviour slaves repeatedly strove to make their marriages last, the enslaved worked strenuously within and around the power structure which restricted their lives to maintain their marriages. Chapter 4: Conclusion In Conclusion this dissertation has shown that the enslaved of the antebellum South strove for autonomy from their masters and the harsh restraints of slavery; to do this they created strong and loving bonds with a significant other. By creating their own social space to create and maintain these unions, this illustrates that slaves were able to survive and resists the oppression they faced under bondage. Slave owners constantly intruded on the lives of their slaves, believing it was their right to control every aspect of the lives of their slaves, they attempted to decide, sometimes successfully, the opportunities slaves had to meet a potential partner, the partner their slaves should be with, the type of wedding ceremony their slaves received if any, the amount of time they could spend with their significant other and finally to separate romantic unions for sales or if they saw fit. These constant impingements forced slaves to adopt what West depicted as an â€Å"underground† approach to their ‘romantic’ lives . This has been described throughout this research project, entailing secret frolics, socialising with slaves in different plantations, celebrating marriages with appropriate ceremonies, and finally risking severe punishing at the hands of their masters or the patrollers to be able to visit the one they loved. The majority of slave testimonies that have been examined throughout this research project have shown that the majority of slaves strove to marry the person of their choosing and were also prepared to withstand great hardships to maintain their marriages. This is contradictory of the early academic views on slave relationships, especially that of Elkins as aforementioned, who believed that slavery destroyed slave’s capacity to resist the regime in any capacity, and form relationships with anyone other than their master. The research for this dissertation has shown the opposite, that in fact the majority of slaves managed to create and maintain loving and enduring marriages despite the regime of bondage, this strength is further highlighted when examining the sexual exploitation faced by female slaves and how in many cases their significant other either attempted to protect them or provided love and support to shelter them from such adversity. Another noteworthy factor when acc essing the strengths of enslaved romantic bonds is that of cross plantation union, which as previously discussed shows the lengths slaves would go to be with the one they loved, including risking cruel violent punishments to see their loved ones as much as possible. As mentioned in the introduction chapter Kolchin believes that this positive perspective on slavery dismissed the hardships of the regime, believing instead the slaves in fact flourished during their time in bondage, however this is not what this project is attempting to achieve, instead it is the fact that slaves strove for autonomy to form a connection with another, which gave them a separate identity than that of a slave, embodying roles such as companion, confidante and soulmate. Indeed for the enslaved of the antebellum South, falling in love was burdened with extreme emotional and physical difficulties, even former slave Harriet Jacobs asked herself: â€Å"Why does the slave ever love? Why allow the tendrils of the heart to twine around objects which may at any moment be wrenched away by the hand of violence†Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   West explained that despite all the problems ‘romantic’ bonds entailed, the majority of marriages amongst the enslaved sheltered and supported them in face of adversity, these loving, affectionate, and supportive relationships created a mindset of cultural independence. Finally to end with a quote from Rawick; â€Å"While from sunup to sundown the American slave worked for another and was harshly exploited, from sundown to sunup he lived for himself and created the behavioural and institutional basis which prevented him from becoming the absolute victim† Bibliography Primary Sources Berlin, I. Favreau, M. Miller, S. F. (Eds) Remembering Slavery New York: The New Press, 1998. Bibb, H. The Life and Adeventures of Henry Bibb: An American Slave US: University of Wisconsin Press, 1849. Bland, S. L. (Ed) African American Slave Narratives: An Anthology Vol III   US: Greenwood Publishing, 2001. Douglass, F. My Bondage and My Freedom New York: Miller, Orton and Mulligan, 1855. Jacobs, H. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl New York: Dover Publications, 2001. Mellon, J. (Ed) Bullwhip Days: The Slaves Remember An Oral History New York: Weidenfeld Nicholson, 1988. Olmsted, F. L. The Cotton Kingdom: A Traveller’s Observation on Cotton and Slavery in the American Slave States New York: Alfred, A. Knopf, 1953.    Rawick, G. P. (Ed) The American Slave: A Composite Autobiography Vol. 1 From Sundown to Sunup The Making of the Black Community US: Greenwood Publishing, 1972. Rawick, G. P. (Ed) The American Slave: A Composite Autobiography Vol. 18 Unwritten History of Slavery US: Greenwood Publishing, 1972. Rosengarten, T. (Ed) Tombee: Potrait of a Cotton Planter, with the Plantation Journal of Thomas B. Chaplin, 1822-1890. London: William Morrow, 1986. Secondary Sources Blassingame, J. W. The Slave Community: Plantation Life in the Antebellum South. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972. Crawford, S. Quantified Memory: A Study of WPA Slave Narrative Collection US: University of Chicago, 1980. Davies, C. T. Gates, H. L. (Eds) The Slave’s Narrative London: Oxford University Press, 1985. Dusinberre, W. Them Dark Days: Slavery in the American Rice Swamps London: Oxford University Press, 1996. Elkins, S. M. Slavery: A problem in American institution and intellectual life. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1959. Fogel, R. W. Engerman, S. L. Time on the Cross: The Economics of American Negro Slavery. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1974 Franklin, J. H. From Slavery to Freedom: A History of Negro Americans (Third Edition) New York: Alfred. A. Knopf, 1967. Fraser, R. Courtship and Love Among the Enslaved in North Carolina US: University Press of Mississippi, 2007.      Frazier, E. F. ‘The Negro Family in the United States’ The Journal of Negro History, 1930, 15, 2, 198-259. Genovese, E, D. Roll, Jordon, Roll, New York; Random House, 1974. Griffin, R. J. ‘Goin’ Back Over There to See That Girl’ Competing Social Spaces in the Lives of the Enslaved in Antebellum North Carolina’ Slavery and Abolition, 2004, 25, 1, 94-113. Gutman, H. G. The Black Family in Slavery and Freedom, 1750-1925. US: Pantheon Books, 1976. Hudson, L. E. (Ed) Working toward Freedom: Slave Society and Domestic Economy in the American South New York: University of Rochester Press, 1994. Hudson, L. E. To Have and To Hold: Slave Work and Family Life in Antebellum South Carolina. US: University of Georgia Press, 1997. Kolchin, P. ‘Reevaluating the Antebellum Slave Community: A Comparative Perspective’ The Journal of American History 1983, 70, 3, 579-601. Kolchin, P. American Slavery London: Penguin Books, 1993. Lawrence, L. W. Black Culture and Black Consciousness: Afro-American Folk Thought From Slavery to Freedom .London: Oxford University Press, 1977.   Merritt, C. E. Slave Family and Household Arrangements in Piedmont, Georgia US: Emory University, 1986. Moynihan, D. P. The Negro Family: The Case for National Action, Washington DC: US Government Printing Office, 1965. Schwartz, M. J. Born in Bondage: Growing up Enslaved in the Antebellum South US: Harvard University Press, 2001. Smith, M. M. Mastered by the Clock: Time, Slavery and Freedom in the American South US: University of Carolina Press, 1997. Stampp, K. M. The Peculiar Institution: Slavery in the Ante-Bellum South. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1956. Stevenson, B. E. Life in Black and White: Family and Community in the Slave South London: Oxford University Press, 1996. West, E. ‘The debate on the Strength of Slave Families: South Carolina and the importance of Cross Plantation Marriages’ Journal of American Studies 1999, 33, 2, 221-241. West, E. Chain of Love: Slave Couples in the antebellum South Carolina. US: University of Illinois Press, 2004. White, D. G. Ar’n’t I a Woman? Female Slaves in the Plantation South London: Norton Company Ltd, 1985. Will, T. E. ‘Weddings on Contested Grounds: Slave Marriages in the Antebellum South’ The Historian 1999, 62, 1, 99-117.

10 Unconditional Love Quotes

10 Unconditional Love Quotes True love is selfless and unconditional. True love knows no boundaries. It is not judgmental but highly accommodating. Unconditional love only gives but does not take anything in return. You Find Unconditional Love in Places You Wont Even Look The love of a mother  is unconditional. A dog loves its master unconditionally. An infant has unconditional love for its mother. You will see that naive love is unconditional. It is tender, caring, and nurturing. The Bible says that Jesus loved his disciples unconditionally.   Forgiveness Is Unconditional Love Forgiveness is an intrinsic part of unconditional love. When you love someone deeply, you find the heart to forgive. You can overlook the blemishes because your love overcomes the flaws. Martin Luther King Jr. beautifully put it in words when he said, He who is devoid of the power to forgive, is devoid of the power to love. Unconditional love never imposes, never tries to change the other person. Writer Thomas Merton said, The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them. Here are 10 unconditional love quotes to strengthen your heart. Robert Wagner A dog will teach you unconditional love. If you can have that in your life, things wont be too bad. C. JoyBell C. It should be a privilege to be able to say I love you to someone. It shouldnt be something people say just because they feel like it. A privilege that is earned. They say you have to earn the right to be loved; no, love is unconditional, if you love someone, they dont have to earn it. But. The right to tell someone that you love them? That has to be earned. You have to earn the right to be believed. Mitch Albom, For One More Day When you look into your mother’s eyes, you know that is the purest love you can find on this earth. John Perry Barlow But groundless hope, like unconditional love, is the only kind worth having. Markus Zusak, The Book Thief No matter how many times she was told that she was loved, there was no recognition that the proof was in the abandonment. Ann Brashares Parents were the only ones obligated to love you; from the rest of the world you had to earn it. Isabel Allende Accept the children the way we accept trees- with gratitude, because they are a blessing- but do not have expectations or desires. You don’t expect trees to change, you love them as they are. Leo Buscaglia Only when we give joyfully, without hesitation or thought of gain, can we truly know what  love  means. Deb Caletti, The Secret Life of Prince Charming Unconditional love is like a country of two with no laws and no government. Which is all fine if everyone is peaceful and law abiding. In the wrong hands, though, you got looting and crime sprees, and let me tell you, the people who demand unconditional love are usually the ones who will rob and pillage and then blame you because you left your door unlocked. Nicholas Sparks, The Wedding What its like to be a parent: Its one of the hardest things youll ever do but in exchange it teaches you the meaning of unconditional love.

Health Care Finance Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Health Care Finance - Essay Example This act aims at punishing all those who: give false certifications or false information, pretend to be in need of medical necessity or self referrals which allow a physician to gain money through referring a patient to a facility in which he has a monetary interest. All matters like these are presented to the False Claims Act who intervenes through several ways: acting as a plaintiff, allowing the realtor to prosecute on behalf of the US government or dismissing the complaint if it is against government policy. An instance like this date back to 1998 when the Assistant Secretary of Legislation was asked to review the healthcare department as incorrect billing had led to a loss of $6 billion. (Morris) Instances like these can also be presented and placed under the False Claims Act. In 2005 the dramatic deficits made by the government forced the Deficit Reduction Act to allow the Congress to decide that the Centers of Medicaid and its services(CMS) were to establish the Medicaid Integrity Plan. This plan was created to suit two purposes: to use contractors who would identify overpayments and audit claims and to provide support to combat fraud and abuse (HHS.gov). The most efficient manner for eradicating frauds is to deploy precautionary measures to avoid even its initiation.

When should we bring our troops home from Iraq Essay

When should we bring our troops home from Iraq - Essay Example On 19th September 2005, in a joint press conference with then President George Bush, Jalal Talabani, the incumbent and 6th President of Iraq, was quoted saying that, â€Å"We will set no timetable for withdrawal, Mr. President.A timetable will help the terrorists, will encourage them that they could defeat the superpower of the world and the Iraqi people† (GOLIATH, 2005). 6 years, 455 Bn dollars and over 4421 military deaths later (Congressional Research Service, 2010), Mr. Talabani’s words on ‘timetable’ still hold true with the current 50,000 US military boots on the grounds of Iraq. Since its inception, Iraq war has been subjected to debates starting right from the justification of war, official and unofficial causes, foreign and homeland public support, and troops withdrawal. Even though a quasi-withdrawal deadline was set by the status of forces agreement to leave Iraq by 31 December 2011 (Congressional Research Service, 2009), but the realities behind the actual troop withdrawal are still mushy as described by Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates on April 7th 2011 (BBC News, 2011). The issue of troops withdrawal is not just a question of date but is a convoluted situation of geopolitics, business (read oil), foreign and humanitarian policy goals, insurgencies, stabilization and sustainability. It is worthwhile to note or contemplate on whether the troops should return from Iraq today, tomorrow or should have done it yesterday. America & Iraq – Looking back at past 8 years The Republic of Iraq, once a haven to the earliest civilizations (Mesopotamia) in the world, became a troubled shadow of its past with multi-ethnic clashes and violence, barbaric dictatorships, religious intolerances and fanaticism, social and economic divides and a rich reserve of â€Å"black gold†. On 20th March 2003, President Bush declared war against Iraq as American forces attached the middle-east nation from its southern border. Prior to the announcement, US had gathered international support and alliances with UK, Australia, Canada and Netherlands to fight Iraq. Reasons of combat intrusion of US allied forces in this Arab country have been debatable since the war started. The official rationalization of Operation Iraqi Freedom (official name of Iraq war) presented by US to the UN Security Council and by President Bush in his State of Union Address as (1) to destroy Saddam Hussain's (Reigning radical dictator of Iraq) weapons of mass destruction (WMD); (2) to eliminate the threat of international terrorism; and (3) to promote democracy in Iraq and surrounding areas (CNN, 2003). In coming years, these reasons would become the center of fierce debate and a liability for the Bush Administration to defend both to America and the rest of the world. Unofficial reasons why America was dragged into the center stage in Arab world are speculated to be (1) to control the oil reserves of Iraq, Israel-US relations (Perezalonso, 2006 ) and to make an American statement of influence in the Middle east. Whether the war was justified or not, America was in the middle of chaotic and emergency situation. Iraq witnessed Saddam Hussain’s capture in 2003, Evidence of American military personnel’s abuse and torture of prisoners in 2004, First Iraqi election in 2005, Saddam’s execution in 2005, Insurgency in 2007 and Stabilization efforts since 2008. The total cost of war was estimated to be 3 Trillion dollars (Washington Post, 2010). Apart from expected causalities and economic loss, the major consequences of the Iraq war have been (1) Deconstruction of Iraq (2) Possible radical empowerment of in Middle East and (3) US Hegemony at risk (Hinnebusch, 2007). The war was also a major cause of debate in US Elections 2008 and was one of the factors that led to elect of President Barack Obama. Should we bring our troops back home? Since the time, Bush Administration admitted that falsehood of Iraq’s possession of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) argument (Usborne, 2003), public

Plants And Animals Essay Example for Free

Plants And Animals Essay Similarities   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are several similarities between animal and plant cells.   Both have membranes that make compartments which isolate cell functions and processes.   Both cell membranes contain different parts that serve different functions.   Both plant and animal cells need energy to go about its daily functions.   And both species undergo cellular metabolism, which consists of many individual metabolic pathways; each one is a series of sequential chemical reactions that results in the production of something needed by the cell.   Finally, genes dictate the structure and appearance of cells of both plants and animals.    In both species, DNA remains the basic building block of life. Differences   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are also differences between plant and animal cells.   The main difference is how cell membranes react on various environments.   Cell membranes collapse when placed in different environments thus allowing the entrance of proteins, whereas, the environment affects animal cells in a variety of ways.   When animal cells are placed in an istonic solution, there was orderly absorption of protein, when the solution became hypotonic, the movement in the cells were almost halted whereas when it was placed in a hypwertonic solution, the cells were very fast moving.   Another difference is on how plants and animal obtain energy.   Animals obtain energy from eating, such as when man eats his dinner, while plants acquire energy through photosynthesis wherein they convert the sun’s energy for their own use. One more difference between plant and animals cells is on how they produce daughter cells.   In plant cells, membranous vesicles congregate at the equator of the dividing cell. These vesicles contain materials that will give rise to the new cell wall. The vesicles fuse, forming a cell plate.   The vesicles of the cell plate then fuse with the plasma membrane, producing two daughter cells. In animal cells, a cleavage furrow forms around the periphery of the dividing cell. The furrow becomes progressively deeper until it pinches the cell and its contents into two new cells. Internal Structures of Plant and Animal Cells Cell membrane – as earlier stated, cell membranes are the ones responsible for dividing the parts of a cell DNA – these are the ones that tell what the plant or animal should look like. Chromosomes – chromosomes are those responsible for the sex of the animal.   These are also found in plants. Integral proteins are those membrane proteins that are responsible for the transport of energy Lipid–Anchored Proteins    these proteins are the ones responsible fro transmitting signals from the outside to the inside of cells.

James Thurbers The Secret Life of Walter Mitty :: Secret Life Walter Mitty Essays

James Thurber's The Secret Life of Walter Mitty In James Thurber's wonderful short story, "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", I get the feeling that he may be a victim of Attention Deficit Disorder, rather than just being a daydreamer. Throughout the story, Walter changes personae several times. He flips back and forth between reality and fantasy so much he may have a problem with his attention span. Walter needs Mrs. Mitty to keep him on track. By being a daydreamer, his head is in the clouds and this irritates her. She Reminds him to get "those overshoes while I'm having my hair done." (88) She has to nudge and prod him to actually get the pair of overshoes. Normally, this shouldn't be a problem, but with Walter, She has to double check that he bought them. Consider him having been diagnosed with A.D.D., his wife would then be a little better at understanding him when he goes off on one of his "spells." For example, him buying the overshoes, but not wearing them in the slushy weather. Mrs. Mitty should take a little more active role with his condition. She would go with him to the store to pick up his overshoes so that she knows it was taken care of properly. The weekly trips into town are somewhat of a disaster each time. once, he had tried to take the chains of of his tires and they got them "wound around the axle" and had to have a man come from a garage to unwind them. Mrs. Mitty leaves Walter on his own so that he can run errands, while she goes to the beauty parlor to get her hair done. Because of his daydreaming, he ends up loosing himself in a court battle in his head. How can anyone expect to remember to buy puppy biscuits with something like that happening? A.D.D. is not something to be treated lightly. instead of going to the beauty parlor, Mrs. Mitty should go with Walter to help him stay on track with his errands. By running their weekly errands together, Mrs. Mitty would come to better realize the problems that Walter faces on a daily basis. This would also help to alleviate some of the troubles that they have had in the past to make future trips more tolerable. Does Walter have a problem? Yes, he does. Whether it is being a day dreamer or someone afflicted with A.

Reaction Paper Essay

Natural Disasters and the Philippine Stock Exchange Index: A Garch-M Analysis by Adrian P. Gallido, Ph.D. and Martites A. Khanser, D.B.A This study examines the effect of earthquakes, tropical cyclones and volcanic eruptions on the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) over the period of 2 January 1985 to 30 December 2010. In the context of the Philippine Market, the composite index can be seen to support the â€Å"gaining from loss† hypothesis of Shelor et al. (1990), where it was implied that stock prices are positively influenced by disasters. The losses derived from disasters contribute to gains in some business sector. For instance, the 1989 California earthquake can be viewed as unfavorable to real estate firms (Property index) but, in contrast, beneficial on the stock price of insurance firms. The negative response of the stock prices on real estate firms was regarded as indication of the unfavorable location of the properties. In contrast, the positive market response on the stock price of insurance firms was considered likely due to investor expectations of higher demand for property-liability insurance-related products. I’ve also learned that there are criteria of events to be considered a disaster, According to Emergency Events Database (EM-DAT), an event is considered a disaster when it meets at least one of the ff. criteria: i) 10 or more people are killed; ii) 100 or more people are affected; iii) a state of emergency is declared; iv) a call for international assistance was made. A good point on this study that I’ve also learned is that the future work can also consider other events including technological disasters as well as disasters of human origin such as terrorism (man-made disaster). In my own opinion, since investors sell shares at the slightest hint of anything that might impact stocks negatively, and that pushes the stock market down. The reverse is also true— the good news is, the demand for stocks is higher and it motivates shareholders to buy. And as for the effect of natural disaster on the stock market, specifically, I think investors fear, at least in part, that when our country broadcasts or announces some disaster, it will contribute huge sums of money and manpower to disaster aid, and it places a strain on our economy. Overall, Disasters have an insignificant effect on market returns and investors can consider including market movements in measuring the impact of natural disasters, and can come up with disaster-based strategies. This is an interesting study for those who wanted to invest or other stakeholders such as investors to be aware of the extent disasters that can affect market performance for us to make appropriate steps to better manage our portfolio and to be ensured if the market is doing good, resilient or strong. Alissa L. Munez Dr. Trinidad MBA- Colegio de San Juan de Letran Portfolio Management Reaction Paper The Study of Relationship between Asian Stock Exchanges and New York Stock Exchange by Neda Bashiri, Amir Mohammad Zadeh This study investigates the linkages between equity markets of 5 Asian countries, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Japan and Turkey and those in USA employing correlation analysis and Vector Auto Regressive (VAR). The study of relationship between ASE and NYE gives knowledge of the degrees of relationship and co-movement among international financial markets that can help both individual and corporate investors to manage their portfolios for maximizing their risk and return trade-off. Also,  co-movements between two countries can affect the pattern of the economy. It was learned that the time series are correlated and correlation between markets is positive, which tends to indicate that there is common trend/factor that is driving the markets in the same direction. According to the result in one of this study, the US was found to be the most exogenous. These results are achieved for Asian Markets, USA and Indonesia influence Malaysia. USA also influences Turkey. The Philippines are affected by Malaysia, Indonesia, and USA while Indonesia is affected by Malaysia and the Philippines, while Japan is affected by Malaysia and the USA. This study can help investors to look out for the movement or changes in different financial markets all over Asia. It was learned that there is no stock exchange that can affect the USA stock exchange but actually NYSE influences all developed markets. The explanation for the US is the fact that it is the largest and most dominant market in the world. One of the ideas for this study originates from the fact that globalization is an important trend. Substantial involvement of globalization for the financial markets comes form the Modern Portfolio Theory, which allowed all international investors to diversify globally in order to reduce their portfolio’s risk level to a level lower than their home country’s systematic risk level. In this study, Mentalities causes a great factor on the effect of the movement of the stock market, it was characterized by a lack of individuality, causing people to think and act like the general/major population in the world. Because of this mentality, investors become sensitive regarding on the news of financial crisis in USA and they quickly pull out from financial markets. However, this does not necessarily mean developments in other markets should be completely ignored. Though, this is a great study that we learned the relationship between ASE and NYSE. And learned that the USA returns is a dominant market that influences most markets. Alissa L. Munez Have Filipino Households Become Less Prudent? By Akiko Terada-Hagiwara It’s an interesting study to know why the average household saving rate in the Philippines declined by 5.2 percentage points to about a mere 5 percent disposable income from 1996-2006. By presenting the article based on Surveys, Decomposition Analysis and Estimations it shows the declining savings rate has been due to the reduced precautionary motives as partly expected by development such as the expansion of social security system. I agree that the slow moving income growth is magnified by more extensive coverage of the system to the informal sector employees, which appears to have reduced households’ precautionary savings. According to this article, a number of factors are relevant in affecting the precautionary motive of the Filipino households. First, the Philippines’ Social Security System developed significantly during the 1990’s. Existing studies found that the coverage by social programs, such as disability insurance, unemployment insurance and health insurance is negatively associated with savings. In 1988, only less than half of the Filipino workers were covered by the system. The system now covers 3 out of every 4 workers (75%). This expanded coverage of the SSS implies a reduce need for the younger cohorts to accumulate precautionary savings. I agree with the writer that the demographic factors do not fully explain the declining timesaving rate profile because it was more associated with the changing precautionary motives of Filipino households. The precautionary saving was strong in 1990s when the coverage of SSS is still limited. However, the precautionary motive does not seem to be present in the 2000s. The less prudent behaviors are found to be significant with households with informal sector jobs, but only in the 2000s validating the extended SSS being the major factor affecting the Filipino households’ savings behavior.  Moreover, this impact is found particularly strong with lower income households in 2000s. Just to add another reason why Filipino households’ savings rates declined is our poor spending habits; we wanted to have the latest gadgets and anything that is trending. As for our OFW’s, when they go home for vacation, they spend like a one day millionaire and go back to abroad to earn money and just to repeat the cycle. Also, the Lack of Financial Knowledge, we know that Finance is a very complicated subject. I believe that we should start to invest in our knowledge. And if you ask most Filipinos about where their savings are, most of them will tell you that they keep their money in the Bank. Only few of us know about investments on stocks or mutual funds. Alissa L. Munez Reaction Paper Dynamic Correlation between stock prices and exchange rates by Chin-Hao Lee, Shuh-Chyi Doong and Pei-J Chou This article is interesting because it examined the interaction between stock price and exchange rate and explored their dynamic correlation influenced by the stock market volatility.   The correlation between stock market and foreign exchange market is affected by the stock market volatility. The correlations become higher in Asian emerging countries except in the Philippines when their stock market is volatile. I agree with the writers that this study is particularly important for international investors and managers in diversifying their strategies for improving their investment performance because the correlations between stocks and foreign exchange markets become higher while the stock market volatility increases in Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Thailand and Taiwan, but not in the Philippines. Moreover, based on the findings of this article, investors can hedge risk between stock and foreign exchange markets domestically when the domestic stock market is stable. Otherwise, when stock market becomes volatile, investors diversify their portfolios intentionally for hedging risk since the correlation between stock and foreign exchange rates becomes higher. So it was learned that an international company would certainly be directly affected by currency fluctuations. They will often try to mitigate this with a hedge fund, so any losses they take on one-currency balances with gains on another. I guess the stock price of a company is based on perceived value, not necessarily on the predicted value of their assets and relationships. However, as currency exchange rates are merely indications of the general state of an economy, an issue that would affect a product based company, might or might not show up as a fluctuation in the currency exchange. A financial services company is heavily influenced by exchange rates, but still, the perception of their value, would not immediately be affected. 1. Lean Branch Banking Practice: We are now implementing Lean Branch Banking, where we eliminate â€Å"deposit slip, withdrawal slips and bills payment slips† for Over-the-counter transactions (cash and check deposit/bills payment, withdrawals). For Deposit- Each deposit or bills payment shall be supported by a duly validated slip or transaction receipt. The customer, payor or representative shall confirm the completeness and accuracy of the deposit or bills payment  accepted via the issuance of transaction receipt by signing on the transaction receipt. For Withdrawal- a duly validated Withdrawal/Debit slip or transaction receipt shall support each withdrawal. The processing teller shall ensure the completeness and accuracy of the posted withdrawal. Any alteration on the withdrawal/Debit slip shall be signed FULL by the customer. This was implemented to improve customer experience on making deposit, bills payment or withdrawal by shifting to a paperless process. Recommendation: The Lean Branch Model that was implemented in our company was great but unlike other Banking institutions that provide this kind of services, they use a more systematic and enhance technology. Where clients can be more responsible on doing their own banking transactions. I’ve observed that the implementation of the company’s Lean Branch Banking really improves customer experience because clients just wait their numbers to be called and just dictate their account numbers and amount they need to deposit or to withdraw. The only thing that they will do is to wait and to confirm their transaction before they sign the slip. But there are many instances of misposted transactions or wrong transactions that was overlooked by the teller and was signed by the client. The client did not check his/her transaction and just sign the slip. If not properly handled, such error may result to financial and reputational risk of the bank. So I suggest that, since we’re implementing a Lean Branch Model we should update more on the system and provide queuing machines to the branches. Where their clients could update their own passbooks, check their account balances, etc. inside the bank that can give knowledge on their clients and let them feel the Real Banking Experience. The bank should not limit technology just by providing an online banking transaction outside its branches but must also provide online banking transaction inside the branches. Since we are now in the modern era, where technology is more advance. We need to help one another to be familiarized on how to used this technology for faster, innovative and great banking experience. 2. Gold Members VS. Senior Citizens, PWD’s and Regular Clients Practice: Gold Members are clients with VIP treatment who maintains their PHP100, 000 Average Daily Balance in the bank. They are given a priority queuing just like the senior citizens and PWD’s. There are times that the clients with priority queuing get inside the bank all at once. Because they know that they should be prioritized, they don’t get numbers for queuing and just go directly to the counter for their transaction. Recommendation: Sometimes it just happened that your clients with priority queuing gets inside the bank all at once and will be disappointed if you will tell them to just wait for their turn because there’s a client with the same level of priority that transacts first. This kind of situations must be opened to meetings or huddles on the Quality Circle to mitigate the problem and to maintain the quality service the company wants to implement. There should be a certain person/employee to collect or to receive their transactions so that the process will be discreet by delivering the transaction to the processing teller and it will be delivered back to the client, without requiring the clients to get in line to be able to feel their privileges and importance in the organization. 3. Human Resources Practice: In a branch, there’s limited employees that operates the system (4 employees per branch). There are times that the clients became disappointed on Long Lines, Long waits, etc. and they will notice the number of employees should be increased to give faster service. Since we know that management has a way on determining on how many employees that is needed in a branch to operate, it takes time to wait for a new hire employee that will be given on a certain branch. Recommendation: Since the Company is implementing a Lean Branch Model; they will hire more competent persons to be trained, give sufficient workshops and seminars to help their employees to grow and to be ready on their  assigned tasks. The Company must hire Auxiliary personnel to fill up the gap of a branch office and to prevent future complaints. 4. Trainings Practice: To the Loyal employees of the bank who are working for several years in the company, they are sometimes familiarized on the Job they’re doing and since they almost know all about the operations and the systems of the bank, sometimes they’re having a hard time to understand the new system without the updated trainings and workshops. Recommendation: Give employees the trainings and workshops they deserved especially for those who is working for the company for several years. This is the person who remains loyal to the organization and they must be given training on updated systems and operations. 5. Job Rotation/Employee Rotation Practice: Because there are one-man employees inside the branch, employees are not given a chance to be familiarized on another job to be able to learn how the whole branch operates. There are some instances you need to learn to do another job because your co-worker is sick or you need to be assigned to another branch because there’s also a risk on being familiar or attached to our clients. Recommendation: Job rotation can help employees be more productive. Rotation can raise worker morale because they get to try new jobs, so boredom and burnout are less of a problem. Sometimes employees may be less likely to call in sick, show up late or quit. Employees can also learn skills on one job that can be applied to another job, which helps them perform work more efficiently. This is why cross training increases productivity to the employees.

Marshal and Gordon Case Essay

Outsourcing is the contracting out of an organization’s business activities (functions and processes) to an outside service provider where the provider is responsible to carry out the activity that was currently, or could be, undertaken by the organization. Earlier outsourcing was usually carried out for organization’s non-core activities to save money but now outsourcing is omnipresent. Firms are outsourcing a wide range of activities ranging from research and development to marketing, from production to assembly, distribution to after sales service. Today, even activities like security and public relations are outsourced. Predominantly, there are two kind of outsourcing: With manpower – where the service provider’s employees work inside the premises of the organization. For example, company X has outsourced its security department to company ABC, then ABC’s employees operate at the location of company X. Without manpower – the service provider’s employees do not work inside the organization premises. For example, if company X is an electronics company and has outsourced the after sales services of its products then the service The world longest strike, which lasted nearly a decade has come to end by hospitality workers at the Congress Plaza Hotel in Chicago on the night of 29th may 2013. The strike was started on June 15, 2003 and the striking workers had long called for wage and benefit increases and job security. IRound The World provider’s employees work need not work at the parent organization’s location but will extend services at the customer’s location. Why Outsourcing ï‚ · Save Costs: To save the costs associated with defined benefits for permanent employees in labor-union contracts and as guaranteed by various labour laws in the country like ï‚ · Increased Effectiveness: Companies by outsourcing non-core activities can focus their resources on the management of the core activities leading to enhanced organization effectiveness ï‚ · Access to world class experts: Outsourcing to specialized companies gives organization access to experts and the latest technologies for limited time frame for specific project related work leading to improved quality ï‚ · Increased flexibility: Outsourcing business functions to external service providers, the organization doesn’t need to maintain fixed assets and invest on infrastructure. This gives the organization flexibility to meet changing business needs and respond to the dynamic environment. Laws related to outsourcing Outsourcing, as already discussed, is of two types: Outsourcing with manpower, and outsourcing without manpower. Outsourcing without manpower When outsourcing is done without manpower, it is essentially a contract between two parties and only the Indian Contract Act, 1872 (hereinafter referred to as the ICA) becomes applicable. Both the parties are bound by the ICA and the terms of the contract agreed upon by them. Outsourcing with manpower Outsourcing with manpower is also essentially a contract between two parties and hence ICA becomes applicable. However, because the activities are carried out on the premises of the outsourcing party, the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 (hereinafter referred to as CLRA) also becomes applicable, provided twenty or more workmen are employed as contract labour in the establishment. Thus in a nutshell, we can say that ICA becomes applicable in all cases of outsourcing, whereas, CLRA becomes applicable only in case of outsourcing with manpower, provided that the establishment (outsourcing party) employs or had employed in the preceding twelve months, twenty or more workmen as contract labour. Relation between players   In case of outsourcing without manpower, the only relation providing the service is the second party. The outsourcing organisation has no relation with the employees of the second party. However, in cases of outsourcing with manpower where CLRA becomes applicable, there are three players, vis-à  -vis, Principle Employer, Contractor and Contract Labour. The outsourcing organisation is the Principal Employer, the organization providing the service is the Contractor, while the employees of the Contractor working on the premises of the Principal Employer are the Contract Labours. The Contractor is responsible for the health, welfare and payment of wages of the Contract Labour. It is only when the contractor fails to meet those responsibilities does the Principal Employer become liable. However, the Principal Employer, as per section 20 and 21 of CLRA, can recover the costs incurred for meeting such liability from the Contractor. Employer-Employee Relationship Looking at the present scenario, with outsourcing activities increasing exponentially, it can be said that the employer employee relationship is becoming more of a myth. The contract labour, who carry out the activities in the premises of the Principal Employer, are not the ‘employees’ of the Principal Employer. The Principal Employer does not hire, fire, or control the contract labour. Neither is it directly responsible for their health, welfare and wages. Thus, we can say that there is no direct relationship between Principal Employer and Contract Labour. References: 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outsourcing 2. Padhi, P.K., Labour and Industrial Laws, Eastern Econo- Pratham, an NGO based out of Mumbai, working for child development announced that it had reported to the police 1,817 cases of children sweating it out in intensive activity in the Mumbai in June, that it spotted during a two-month study. Clearly shows that even the fundamental rights are just on paper.

Plurals of Proper Names

Plurals of Proper Names Plurals of Proper Names Plurals of Proper Names By Mark Nichol The following question may seem to belong in a math lesson, but it really is about English: If you have a BlackBerry handheld device, and you purchase another one (don’t ask me why you’re the one who bought it), what do you have now? Two BlackBerries, or two BlackBerrys? Many precedents exist that make the latter seem the obvious choice. In the world of entertainment, some names of achievement awards are nicknamed with the same plural ending: the Grammys, the Tonys, the Emmys. (â€Å"The Razzies† is an unfortunate exception; on behalf of the Dailys, I nominate the sponsors of those awards for a statuette featuring an ax embedded in a computer monitor). And when referring to other brand names based on, or resembling, common nouns with irregular plural forms, this sensible approach applies: Plurals for the names of the car models Camry and Leaf are not Camries and Leaves, but Camrys and Leafs. Beyond that, however, is the time-honored convention to follow the default setting for pluralizing words in general: adding -s or -es. This is true for the following categories as well: Names of Nations and Nationalities Refer to â€Å"the two Germanys,† for example, or â€Å"the Greeces of the modern and classical eras†). Words for nationalities that end in -i get an -s (Afghanis, Israelis). Note that although The Chicago Manual of Style recommends this style for American Indian tribal names (Hopis), Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary lists both a plural form identical to the singular form for this tribe and others with names ending in vowels (Hopi, Cherokee) and the -s plural form (Hopis, Cherokees). If you’re writing for publication, to be on the safe side, use -s; if you’re self-publishing, it’s up to you. Personal Names Write, for example, â€Å"three Billys in the same classroom.† Surnames are more complicated, however: The default for names ending in consonants and vowels is the same more than one Smith is Smiths, more than one Corleone is Corleones, and so on but names ending in -es or -ez (for example, Jones and Chavez) get an extra -es tacked on: Joneses and Chavezes. Italicized Names An italicized proper noun, like the title of a periodical, book, or movie, should have a nonitalicized s appended, as in â€Å"three consecutive Washington Posts,† â€Å"a stack of Catcher in the Ryes,† and â€Å"all three Mission Impossibles,† though it looks less awkward to relax the reference: â€Å"three consecutive issues of the Washington Post,† â€Å"a stack of copies of Catcher in the Rye,† or â€Å"all three movies in the Mission Impossible franchise.† Exceptions Nicknamed geographical terms defy this convention, as when the Rocky Mountains are referred to as the Rockies and the Great Smoky Mountains are called the Great Smokies. The plural forms of names ending in unpronounced -s or -x are identical to the singular form: â€Å"The era between the third and seventh Louis,† â€Å"The two Lacroix could not have been any different,† though â€Å". . . Louis III and Louis VII† and â€Å"The two Lacroix brothers . . .† would be better. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Words for Facial ExpressionsFlier vs. FlyerCharles's Pen and Jesus' Name

Hermeneutics Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Hermeneutics Paper - Essay Example When Jesus introduces the New Covenant in the New Testament teachings, some aspects of the Torah as modified with so that grace and mercy are introduced as additional pillars to the law. Justification by law is transformed to justification by faith. The author of the Torah, of which Deuteronomy 6: 1-9 is a part, is usually taken to be Moses. Moses was the prophet that led God’s people, Israel, out of bondage in Egypt. Moses was born at a time when a decree had been issued by Pharaoh of Egypt that all males children born of Israelites to be killed. For this reason, he was hidden in a basket and left afloat on River Nile. The Kings daughter found him and adopted him as her son. However, when he grew up and he realized that he was a Hebrew, he got concerned with the oppression of the Israelites in Egypt. One day he killed an Egyptian and fled to Median when it became apparent. While tending to Jethro’s sheep, God appeared to him and sent him to liberate His people from Egypt. That marked his journey as the Lord’s servant. The author wrote this text (Deuteronomy 6: 1-9) as part of the decrees the Lord wanted His chosen people to follow. He wrote this text because he was instructed to do so by the Lord God Almighty. The themes of the book include, obedience, true worship, trust in the Lord, keeping oaths, consecration and blessings. The book is believed to have been written around 1406 BC. During this time, the Israelites were preparing to enter the promised land. The passage (Deuteronomy 6: 1-9) fits into the overall purpose of the author which was to guide the people of Israel on how to live in a Godly way, as it gives guidelines on how to serve the Lord God. It outlines in details how the Israelites were to show that they respected and loved their one and only God, Yahweh. The immediate context was the issuing of the Ten Commandments. Therefore, this passage fits into the immediate context by amplifying

Putting on a Rock n Reggae Concert Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Putting on a Rock n Reggae Concert - Essay Example The event will be staged at Marley Memorial Field, Florida, USA. The concept is to attract interest from students, local residents and music fans throughout the region to these types of music. The specific objectives of the concert include promotion of cultural activities in the town, attract tourists, and increase awareness about the town and Marley Memorial Field as an events destination. It also hopes to engage music enthusiast as well as the general public to watch and rock with the bands. The objective is achievable and attainable with the support of local officials of Florida. Through the help of all involved, it can be realistically achieved with the limited resources. There is sufficient time to plan, market and execute the rock and reggae concert. Rock and reggae is a common combination in the production of albums and concerts. In fact, there are many rock-reggae bands or rock bands that perform ska and reggae. Ska is a faster version of reggae. Reggae is known to have origi nated from African beat as popularized in Jamaica by blacks also of African origin. The music is characterized by bass hook and the emphasized drum or percussion beats (Barrow and Dalton, 1997). Rock is a very popular and major music genre. It is so wide the label is considered an umbrella label for many sub-genres from punk, metal, blues, rock’n roll, to alternative, and many considered popular and middle of the road music. It is one of the most consistently supported genre of music with its own loyal audience, listeners, and fans. Some of rock music’s followers were so drawn to the genre and the musicians they emulate their images such as way of clothing, hairstyle and even lifestyle. RHCP is one of the more enduring bands that emerged from the early 1990s whose music continues evolving. Their music is sometimes labeled funk-rock for its sexy undertone, and many of their singles are considered radio-friendly, and they provide stunts during stage performances, making them one of the more sought-after live rock band performers until more recently (Prato, 2007). Section 2 – Work Breakdown Structure Booking of Performers The priority for this event is to invite and convince the Red Hot Chili Pepper rock band and Sly & Robbiereggae duo to perform in this event with minimal/lower than their usual talent fees. The concert management may convince the talent performers that this event is one way of promoting the said music because not everyone appreciatesthem.That through live performance, the people may appreciate the creativeness of these music genres. After being able to book the major talents or celebrities, the next work to be done is to recruit local music groups to perform for free. Same approach as above shall be employed. In addition, they will also be given a rare chance to perform with the famous music artist of these genres, and be promoted in various multi-media as well. These will eventually make their group more popular in the stat e. Once the performers are lined-up, the rest shall follow and much easier to handle. Booking of Venue and Other Event Needs Once performers are confirmed, the venue must be found. The appropriate one will be the Marley Memorial Field, a high school football stadium with a capacity of 8000. Since the concert will be held on summer, an open space such as a stadium is applicable.Permits and licenses must also be secured in order to coordinate security and police force within the locality. Sound system, lighting, and