Saturday, August 31, 2019

Negotiation Strategy Article Analysist Paper

Negotiation is a process by which two or more parties, each with its own goals and perspective, coordinate areas of interest through concession and comprise to reach an agreement and take joint decisions about areas of common concern in a situation in which neither side has nor wants to use complete power. â€Å"we know that lawyers and car salespeople spend lots of time negotiating, but so do managers. Managers have to negotiate salaries for incoming employees, cut deals with superiors, bargain over budget, work out differences with associates, and resolve conflicts with subordinates.Negotiating is something that every one engages in almost every day and most of the time without even realizing it. . Negotiation occurs when two or more conflicting parties attempt to resolve their divergent goals by redefining the terms of their interdependence (Pruit and Carnevale 1993) Some researchers have suggested that in negotiations, collaborative style is the most effective, but the truth is that it may be too overbearing for the negotiations (Brett, 1984). While collaborating, one is most often to share all the information to arrive at a satisfactory solution.However, information is rarely shared until trust is established. As a result, negotiators adopt a cautiously collaborative style in the beginning, slowly trying to find out whether the other party will share the information that it knows. This also helps build trust (Fells, 1993). If trust is not established, negotiators shift to the win-lose style of negotiation from the win-win style, there by trying to maximize their returns. The success for negotiation depends on the bargaining technique used by both the parties involved. There are basically two major types of strategies.The first one is the distributive bargaining. The most distinctive feature of distributive bargaining is that it operates under a zero-sum game, that is, the gain made by one person is the loss incurred by other person. Each person involved i n the negotiation defines the ultimate point where the settlement will be made, Then there is a resistance point that marks the least settlement that is acceptable. The negotiator generally settles in the area between these resistance points, which tends to overlap. The second strategy is integrative bargaining.The characteristics feature of integrative bargaining is that it relies on a win-win and therefore, uses a collaborative model of conflict resolution. Both the parties involved in the negotiation process jointly look at the problem, try to search for alternatives and try to evaluate them and arrive at a mutually acceptable decision or solution. If the process is successful, it results in satisfaction and positive-long relationship. In this paper we have analyzed the case of United Parcel services. United Parcel Service is one of the messagengerial companies in USA.The company was founded the year the world’s largest global provider of package delivery. It has created i ts good name so far as logistic and the transportation services are concerned. So far as the workforce of the company is concerned, their work forces are young. It is because the company employs the part time activities. The young people generally prefer to join in the company as stop gap arrangement. The workforce of the company is also very large. The company part time workers constitute one of the major constituent of the total.There are around 2, 00,000 part workers in the company working all over the country day and night. They generally work for 27-28 hours in a week. These part time workers had number of problems. Their working condition was not satisfactory. The remuneration was not adequate they will not get the facility which the permanent workers were getting. So, all these factors lead to the dissatisfaction among the employees. The labor union wanted to take this problem to their hand. So the union decided to fight for this issue. The union decided there will be strike in the company.There were a public support from outside the union, who decided to go for it. This was intimated to every one through e-mail. The union demanded full hiring and also demanded other benefits what the full employees are getting from the company. The union came with list of demands. The reasons were mentioned why they are going on strike. Both parties agreed for the negotiation. In the beginning, the company studied the present status of the part time workers. The data was collected to know the disparities between the full time workers and the part time workers.They went for comparison between the part time workers and the full time workers. All the issues were discussed in detail regarding salaries, retirement benefits and the opportunities for full employment. The demand was basically for full time job and the job security in future. Finally the agreement was made. Many of the demand were accepted by the company for the benefits of the company as well as the benefit of the employee. More than ten thousand jobs were regularized. The part time jobs were converted to full time occupation at UPS. Ten thousand job positions are now available to non union members.The part salary increased. The disparities between the part worker wage rate and the full time workers got reduced. Measures were taken to improve the working condition of the employees. There was replacement of the older car fleets with power steering features and additional ventilations. The incentives were also given to the workers who went for extra time. The leave system liberalized. There was relaxation of leaves. The expansion of maternity and the paternity leaves were extended for the employees. The company made huge amount of losses for this strike.If we compare the situation with the strategy we have the combination of both the strategy. In case of distributive bargaining strategy the negotiator tries to be both helpful and rude to the other party alternatively. In this case the nego tiator may initially be abusive and threaten to walk out, and suddenly, later, takes, on an affectionate and helpful behavior, thus affecting the attitude of the other party until the other party decides to give in and lose. In case of integrative bargaining while negotiating, individual personalities with his or her egis should not take precedence over the objectives or the interest involved.The dynamics of interpersonal relationship between the people involved in the negotiation process should not take priority over the main issues. Negotiators should try to work on mutually acceptable solutions rather than trying to let each other down while negotiating. The negotiating parties should focus on some standards evolved at the negotiation table in the form of some rule and law. This will help the parties to focus on objectivity rather than the desires of the parties involved. By using objective criteria, neither party has to give in to the other, not must both the parties defer to a fair solution (Fisher and Ury, 1991 )

Why One Should Never Make An Important Decision Alone

There are many things that can be done by people who make an important decision in group. However, some people like to make an important decision alone. This condition may lead to some undesirable results. I agree that an important decision should never be made alone. Therefore, this essay shall explore some reasons why a person should never make an important decision alone. First of all, it is essential to make an important decision with others. As we all know, people need to consider about others’ opinion to make a right decision. For example, owner of a big company usually holds a meeting to discuss the problem of their company.This circumstances can help the owner to make a right decision how to tackle the problem of the company. The other reason is that making an important decision alone can sometimes be done without calculation. As a result, this may lead to a catastrophic result. For instance, there are some companies went bankrupt because the owner did not take othersà ¢â‚¬â„¢ opinion about their decision. For this reason, other people can help us not to make a reckless decision that may lead to our own miscarriage. Finally, making an important decision with others can help to minimize the risk of making mistakes.Furthermore, it can help to lighten the burden of the people who are in charge of making an important decision. For example, there are always more than one judge in a court to ensure that there would not be an error in making a decision. In a nutshell, it is clear that a person should never make an important decision alone. In my opinion, an important decision should be made with a full consideration as it is extremely risky. For this reason, we need to discuss our decision with others. By doing it right, one can take an important decision without a full risk.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Lord of the Flies Book Report Essay

Lord of the Flies is a book by William Golding and was written during WWII. His choice to join the navy changed the way he viewed the world. A group of students were being evacuated from an airplane that is in a lonesome island. Once the group is settled in, they elect a boy of the name Ralph to be leader. A dispute is started on how their will be rules and who governs who. Problems have risen and the group is torn apart. Lord of the Flies theme is that being hungry for power is natural in humans and examples are given when the band chooses a leader, decision making of the boys, and uncivilized acts among themselves. The theme in Lord of The Flies is seen throughout the novel. For example, they voted on a leader to help have order and act in an organized manner. Jack was a nominee who ran against Ralph. JAck really wants to be the leader, but of course Ralph ends up being the popular vote. â€Å"We’ve got to have rules and obey them. After all, we’re not savages. We’re English, and the English are best at everything. ‘† (Golding 40). Golding states that the group must be organized, they are not animals. They know that without order, everything they are could collapse and be their downfall. Plus they call themselves the best at everything so they could have some faith of getting by. â€Å"They obeyed the summons of the conch, partly because Ralph blew it, and he was big enough to be a link with the adult world of authority†¦. † (Golding 50). Here it shows the Ralph had what it takes to be a leader, everyone listens and takes his orders without question. Towards the end of chapter four, a character by the name of Piggy wines about some rude hunters, Jack hits the poor character breaking the glasses they were wearing. In the story, being power hungry is a pretty common thing and many examples are portrayed such as the group being split, so there is not one main leader. These islanders act in such a way now that they have obtained power. There will be groups. Jack doesn’t like the idea of Ralph being a leader, but is satisfied with his numbers in his own group. â€Å"The world, that understandable and lawful world, was slipping away. † (Golding 82). It says that they everything they know about society is going downhill, they have started their own world. Everyone wanted power, no one liked the idea of being a follower. â€Å"‘Shut up,’ said Ralph absently. He lifted the conch. ‘Seems to me we ought to have a chief to decide things. ’† Which very blatantly shows how much Ralph thinks he has total authority over all the boys. â€Å"I ought to be chief,† said Jack with simple arrogance, â€Å"because I’m chapter chorister and head boy. I can sing C sharp. † (Golding 229-231). As of reading it is clear that Jack’s thirst for power was most utterly real and has been going on from the beginning of the book. He saw himself as the big-shot. Evidence is given that Jack might want to be the antagonist of this novel, Lord of the Flies. All Jack really wants is to show he is the true leader nothing much, yeah he wants order, but all in the wrong ways. Finally, is the uncivilized way the boys have acted among the groups that have done more damage than good. They all go through this face to behave well and have order with each other trying there best to ignore all the negative and chaos of a bad government. Biggest bust of the novel was when Piggy got demolished by a giant boulder that had flattened him. Who was to blame? Jack as everyone pointed fingers to him along with a so called Roger. Roger was a savage man, who knew that such evil could be brought out from a human being. â€Å"As he did so, he heard Jack’s voice from the top. ‘Heave! Heave! Heave! † (Golding 193). Jack was most likely behind this diabolical plan that murdered the poor innocent Piggy. The great rock that had killed Piggy had bounded into this thicket and bounced there, right in the center, making a smashed space a few feet in extent each way. †(Golding 192). It is obvious that these two men were the evil masterminds behind the death of Piggy. In the beginning of the book, the group came across a pig while hunting and without a doubt kill the poor creature. Jack’s true side came out, this was the part where he would become the bad guy in the story, stabbing the pig had been enough p roof to show he is a killer. In Lord of the Flies, a group who had been left on an island due to their plane coming on a crashing course evacuating their homes because of treacherous war, are now left to make there own decisions creating new order around them. While waiting for help to arrive, all sorts of issues are created with the main problem being leadership. Lord of the Flies theme is that being hungry for power is natural in humans and examples are given when the band chooses a leader, decision making of the boys, and uncivilized acts among themselves.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Brunello Cucinelli brand Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Brunello Cucinelli brand - Essay Example The paper "Brunello Cucinelli brand" concerns the brand of Brunello Cucinelli. Taking into consideration the scope and the specification of the brand, it is essential to assess the constituents of the business and to examine their direct interaction and interference. In this case, the research will take a glance at the brief history of the brand, underlining the key moments that contributed to growth and maturity of the company and its performance. SWOT analysis will be conducted to outline the positive and negative factors of Brunello Cucinelli brand, its present state as well as prospects in terms of the nearest future. The study will present the summary of the strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities of the brand in order to underline the perspectives as well as the cornerstones of Brunello Cucinelli company. For the thorough brand analysis to be accomplished, it is important to investigate the directions, views and goals of the company; in this respect the study will focu s on the target customer and draw the pen portrait of an average brand client. In addition, primary research will be conducted to provide the most accurate and faithful data. Due to the fact, that there are certain constraints in the context of the time and personal interviews with the leaders of the company, the secondary information will be taken into account and analyzed to get the full picture. The retail industry has its marketing peculiarities; thus, retail environment, place and promotion components.

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

Research a current issue in relation to the topic Assignment

Research a current issue in relation to the topic - Assignment Example this reason, the paper will dwell on the solution and the effects of the lack of legal privilege towards the male and female along with recognizing the prevailing stereotype of the issue on hand. It has been proven that college students who encountered abuse are more comfortable in dealing with their experience with their peers rather than with professionals. In this manner, it is more acceptable to these students to deal with their experience with an informal conversation with their peers (Balk 179). According to the report written by Caroline Kitchener, she cited that it has been reported that most of the universities in the United States are already offering â€Å"peer-to-peer sexual assault counselling programme.† This programme is beneficial for students, as well as for the institution. However, most of these undergraduate peer counsellors receive at most 24 hours training. This is supported by the study of Salovey and D’Andrea (264) that shows most of the peer counsellors receive inadequate training materials and programs prior to being peer counsellors. The interview of the peer counsellors suggested that there was inappropriate and synchronized training model for the peer counsellors. The problem with this inadequate training is that the peer counsellors do not have the legal privilege to make their conversations with the involved individuals confidential. Therefore, the university peer counsellors must undergo trainings which are approved by the state in order for them to practice legal privilege in terms of confidentiality. Legal privilege is given to them in order to protect the involved individuals when forced to disclose their conversations (Anderson). The lack of assurance that the conversation between the peer counsellor and the involved individual often times restricts the involved individual in being honest with the counsellor. For both men and women, they will be hesitant in sharing their vulnerable and fragile moments and feelings towards the

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Employment Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Employment - Research Paper Example Unemployment has various effects on the economy and on people, which has caused substantial problems to wellbeing of the nation. According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment has serious effects on an individual’s emotional and sociological condition. Employment is a shunned upon the issue in today society. Therefore, those that are unemployed undergo past several societal changes that may affect their sociological state of mind. The U.S society views those that are unemployed as slackers and hardly empathizes with the jobless people. The unemployed persons go through the pain of knowing that, they have no job themselves, while on the same time, having to face the lack of ability to protect this fact, from the environment surrounding them (Strand, Novo and Hammarstrom 1). When one falls deeply in this situation the entire state of mind can be damaged. Some even consider the unemployed as a burden to the country. However, the unemployed people work as harder as the employed people to upkeep themselves only that they do not have a recognized job. The eventual effects of being unemployed beco me so detrimental that the unemployed face-losing essential parts of their lives. Some lose their cars, home, and even families. Unemployment has an impact on society as a whole. The unemployed people are capable of making a significant contribution to the public, but they are incapable of doing so because of their unfortunate circumstances. This has mandated the U.S government to disburse unemployment settlement to the unemployment leading to the straining of the government budget. The government is in turn forced to borrow from organizations such as the World Bank to have enough budget funds to make such payments, as currently unemployment is on the increase (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). The experience of unemployment causes long-term consequences; both amplified probability of potential unemployment and lesser

Monday, August 26, 2019

Chemical engineering distillation column Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Chemical engineering distillation column - Essay Example The required task is therefore to determine if the column has potential to efficiently distillate within economic operation costs. While a five-step procedure is recommended for testing the facility, time is scarce and not all the steps can be implemented. The steps are; calculation of the theoretical capabilities of the distillation column in the lab, preparation of an accurate vapor liquid equilibrium diagram of water and ethanol, accounting for the energy usage of the distillation process, accounting for the final products ethanol concentration, and analysis of the costs and benefits of obtaining higher yields against higher purities. The time scarcity however dictates that only two of the steps are adopted in order to determine the column’s capacity. My team would choose to prepare an accurate vapor liquid equilibrium diagram for water and ethanol, and to account for the final product’s ethanol concentration. The vapor liquid equilibrium would be preferred because of its theoretical basis that can be used in an experiment to test the facility’s efficiency and freedom from errors. This is because for any mixture of two fluids and across varying temperatures or pressures, there is an equation that determines corresponding mole ratios of mixture components in the vapor state given a temperature or pressure. A given volume of water and ethanol can then be used in the column and measurements taken at a given temperature and mole ratio determined. If the experimental values correspond to theoretical values, as determined by Raoult’s theory, then the column is approved to be operationally efficient. It is therefore an accurate measure of efficiency (Theodore, Ricci and Vanvliet, p. 233). Accounting for the final et hanol concentration is another efficient process for determining the operational efficiency of the distillation column. This is because of the

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Community Event Assignments Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Community Event Assignments - Essay Example The speaker also explained the deep meaning embedded behind this sacrificial ritual. The story of prophet Ibrahim was narrated really well. Since the event was spread over a long span of time, the members arranged for a time to read the Dhuhr (noon-prayer), Asr (after-noon prayer) and Maghrib prayers (evening prayer). These prayers are 3 of the 5 prayers that every Muslim is expected to read every single day. There was also a Henna session for the female students. During this session, intricate designs using henna was drawn on the palms of the willing female students. The henna designs are known as mehendi in the Muslim culture. Food was served up along with some dessert. A Muslim trivia was also arranged for during which questionnaires revolving Muslim traditions, history and culture were asked through which we gained a lot of more information and facts about Islam. The day ended with a cleaning up session after which we all returned home feeling much satisfied that we had the chanc e to come so close to such a rich yet misunderstood culture. I am glad that I had the opportunity to attend the community event. ... In fact, I believe that young Muslims Americans, like those who organized the event, can decrease the negativity between their culture and the West. American Islam dates back when slaves were brought from around the world to America but since they were freed the American Islam population was completely forgotten. We all are aware that immigrant Muslim population and American Muslim population are fast increasing in numbers and since Muslim students need to keep their cultural background intact as well as merge into the secular Western culture, this community event was an endeavor to accomplish just that1. The event was a nice platform for Muslim as well as Non-Muslim interaction. While the Muslim students had the chance of understanding the cultural and communal strength and the real meaning of Islam, the non-Muslim visitors gained an unforgettable experience. Since American Islam has to thrive among hostile population there are times when American Muslims are not valued, which leads to a feeling of dejection and abandonment. However this community event brought together so many like-minds to discuss about their feelings. I feel that I learnt a lot about cultural pluralism. An African-American poet had said-â€Å"Diversity makes for a rich tapestry and we should understand that all threads have the same value.† Somehow, in present day America, the American Muslims and the immigrant population are on the verge of losing their identity and I was not sure if they are recognized that well. Some studies even suggest that Muslim children often try to hide their real identity among fellow American students, but when I first came to this community event I immediately realized that the work the ASSOC was up to was incredible because they strived to keep their

Saturday, August 24, 2019

Strategic Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 9

Strategic Management - Essay Example The fundamental question that the author is addressing, how does strategic HRM promote thinking about the public workforce? This is about the role of human resource and the best practice that circumvent effective management of the human resource in the postindustrial society. Such a question helps the authors showcase the myriad changes the resource itself as well as the practices to manage it has undergone along the lucrative packages attached to effective HRM in modern strategic management. The most important information of the article is that strategic significance of the human resource and its origin, particularly the alteration of the goods and services production services. The article compares that pre-industrial and post-industrial periods against the significance attached to people in the final goods and services with respect to tactical and operational importance. In the pre-modern world, the article notes how individual were operationally significance when they served as common labor that culminated in the production of physical products or services. Indeed, the pre-manufacturing and office operations saw people assigned to the certain position based on the industrial-based organizations in which organizational bundles of responsibilities, duties and tasks determined how human resources were utilized. However, in the post-industrial era people are tactical and undergoes massive training, varied and not easily interchangeable with a more complex organizational f rameworks when contrasted to the early industrial system. Thus, the deployment of human resource is currently determined by supervisory styles., morale and human connections, human learning as well as organization design. Moreover, there is a myriad change in the post-industrial system with respect to the relationships between productivity and people. This validates the significance of HRM as productivity surpasses a mere definition of

Friday, August 23, 2019

BUSINESS LAW Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

BUSINESS LAW - Assignment Example It was studied that many critics strictly protested against the Civil Justice System of the United Kingdom. According to them the civil justice system was inefficient, slow, unwelcoming and outdated. Many attempts were made to resolve these issues and failed until Lord Woolf came up with his report in 1996. The report had recommendations based on ADR and it was assured by Woolf that if these recommendations were implemented, a new landscape for English Civil Justice would be created. Some of the recommendations that were put forward in the report were as follows: The litigation should be less complex Litigation should be done in a shorter time with effective results The cost of litigation should be affordable to the parties who do not have much financial resources. Judges should be supported so that they can manage litigation according to the new rules. The reason why ADR was recommended in the report was to make the Justice system more efficient and reliable. ADR played a vital role in bringing a revolution in the English Civil Justice System and it now also implemented in many other countries. Give three types of ADR and say why they are likely to be used. There are generally three types of Alternative Dispute Resolution techniques that are commonly practiced in the United Kingdom. ... s of the respective parties put fewer efforts into resolving the disputes through legal processes than they do in negotiating and come to an agreement (Bazerman & Neale, 1992). This is basically done by the negotiators who concentrate more on problem solving and trying to satisfy both the parties rather than identifying who is right and who is wrong. In the process of negotiation both the parties have total control on the situation throughout. They are free to talk and present their points and can even back off if they are not able to satisfy each other. There is no involvement of the third party (Dukes, 1993). It is not important for the parties to hire skillful and trained attorneys to implement the process if they have the ability to negotiate themselves. It is likely to be used when the two parties expect to have an interaction in the future since it is less confrontational than litigation. Mediation In the process of mediation, an independent mediator gets involved and works wit h the two parties to resolve the dispute. Mediators are highly trained professionals who have the ability to help the parties communicate and come to a mutually satisfied agreement (Acland, 1990). However, mediators neither have any right to impose a rule on any of the two parties nor to make decisions for them. They are just a source of communication between them. Mediation is successful if two parties satisfy each other and sign a legal agreement in which they agree to abide. In case of unsuccessful mediation no agreement takes place and the parties are likely to take the dispute to the court. In mediation the parties are found to resolve the dispute in a shorter period of time. The parties can start the process of mediation even if they have filed the case in the court which is much

Memo- soaps Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Memo- soaps - Essay Example According to the article the study has shown that some customers are not aware of existence of some brands. Some brand soaps like Lux, Dettol and Lifebouy have a high demand and on the other hand, there is less demand for brands such as Dyna, Camay and Sach. The research involved administration of questionnaires. These articles have gone further to give projections on the sale of liquid soaps and antibacterial soap. Soap marketers are trying to come up with new brands to try and heighten the current slow growth soap sales (Berger and Arthur 78). In Europe, tablet and liquid detergents account for the huge soap market. However, in US this is not the case as put by Kumra. The high cost of Raw materials has made the cost of the soaps to shoot. Cross-category branding has is a global strategy that has been used Dove and this has made its products to become competitive at global level. This memo has advised soap makers have to embrace efforts made on global branding and pay attention to established and new products so as to meet consumer’s expectations. I would love to discuss this with you at your earliest

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Community policing and Traditional policing Essay Example for Free

Community policing and Traditional policing Essay History reveals that crime an awful act that people would not like to be a victim of. Police, therefore, play a significant role in ensuring that crime rates are reduced. Community policing and traditional policing are important aspects when it comes to issues of security and dealing with criminals (Kappeler Gaines, 201, p. 89). Community policing requires that approaches to serious crimes be done in creative and innovative ways to ensure that there is long-term improvement in terms of security. In community policing, all crimes are treated as serious social problems and are dealt with accordingly. This kind of policing is not concerned about eradicating crime. Furthermore, the number of arrests or the crime rates is not the measure of success (Kappeler Gaines, 201, p. 89). Community policing is concerned about ensuring that society provides opportunities for people to engage in meaningful business. Young people are often targeted because they are prone to becoming victims. Therefore, this is aimed at ensuring that future crimes rates reduce. On the other hand, traditional policing dictates rules and law to the public but are not on the ground to work with the community. They ensure that they respond quickly in case of a crime and this is a measure of their success. They also focus on identification of criminals, apprehending and prosecuting them. Traditional policing apprehends the criminals using the evidence that is collected at the crime scene. Both community and traditional policing complement each other. Community policing is aimed at ensuring that crimes rates are reduced through engaging the society to enter into gainful employment. Their work is to ensure that people live well with one another, while traditional policing is able to come in and assist in areas where crimes have been done by gathering evidence to assist them to apprehend criminals and take them to court to answer charges. The strategy of community policing is a design that may displace traditional policing. The role of the community policing is to ensure that there is law  and order and to deter any criminal activities from happening. Further, community policing is aimed at ensuring that people engage in constructive work. This strategy is aimed at reducing the rates of crimes hence slowly doing away with the traditional policing. Once the rate of crime reduces, traditional policing will have no role to play. Community policing strategy is constructed to help in creating organizational ethical behaviors. Ethics helps an organization to engage in activities that are in tandem with the moral obligation and the expectations of the society (Ortmeier Meese, 2009, p. 254). Community policing is a force that does not cause anxiety in the community, but perform their duties diligently by relating well with the members of the community. Therefore, they assist the community members especially the youths with ideas and this makes them shun away from involvement in criminal activities. The major role of community policing is to ensure that society upholds to positive behaviors and moral standards. It helps to foster moral behaviors among the people. People should be able to live well with others and also show respect. Community policing is not concerned about the number of arrests they make but the magnitude at which they are able to change and transform the society into a better society. Therefore, this policing organization is built and performs its functions based on ethical standards. References: Gaines, L.. Kappeler, V. (2001). Policing in America (p. 640). Anderson Publishing. Ortmeier, PJ and Edwin Meese (2010). Leadership, Ethics and Policing; 2nd edition. Prentice Hall, New Jersey.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Role of Interstimulus Delay in Iconic Memory

Role of Interstimulus Delay in Iconic Memory Sensory memory is the initial structure in the Atkinson and Shiffrin’s modal model of memory. This memory structure temporarily stores information from sensory stimulation for processing and transferring to short-term memory. Within fractions of seconds, this memory will degenerate if remain unattended (Shiffrin Atkinson, 1969). There are two kinds of sensory memory which is iconic memory and echoic memory. Iconic memory is crucial as it stabilizes vision despite the presence of saccadic movements which disturbs visual adaptation to stimulus (Ciccarelli White, 2012). Hence, any delay in between the sensory stimulation and the recollection will cause an effect to the iconic memory. The question is; how much are we able to recall from our iconic memory after a period of delay? In 1967, Neisser coined the term iconic memory and assumed that all visual information are initially held there before being transported to longer lasting memory upon cue (Gegenfurtner Sperling, 1993). Iconic memory involves vision persistence where trails of light retained for fragments of second in memory (Goldstein, 2011). Haber (1983) described iconic memory as the availability to perceive the information briefly after terminating visual stimuli. The persistence and decay of the visual information in iconic memory is first presented in Sperling’s partial report (Sperling, 1960). In partial report paradigm, there is a brief delay prior to the selection cue in reporting the stimuli. The brief delay or known as the interstimulus interval (ISI) which is a time period in between two stimuli (Reed, 2013). ISI is the interval between the end of the visual stimulus and the onset of the cue tone before reporting the displayed information in the partial report technique (Chow, 1985). The effect of ISI on iconic memory in partial report can be explained by Sperling’s theory of iconic memory. Sperling stated that observers have the ability to temporarily store a large capacity of visual information, however as the information decayed rapidly due to the delay, the subjects were only able to report an average of 4.5 items (Sperling, 1960). Hence, as the interval prolonged, the effectiveness of iconic memory decreases despite the large capacity in storage. Besides that, another theory that can explain the cue delay in partial report is the Bundesen’s theory of visual attention. This quantitative model assumed that the sum of perceptual processing resources which determines the rate of processing is inadequate for the information displayed. Processing resources are used to filter information as distractor and target using selective attention. After the allocation of the processing resources, the information races for encoding in the limited capacity visua l short-term memory (Petersen and Andersen, 2012). As the encoding process is time consuming, the information decays as the selection cue delay prolongs thus affecting the items recollection. The partial report paradigm was pioneered by Sperling’s (1960) dissertation in Harvard University. Due to the subjects’ immediate-memory capacity in whole report, he devised a technique called partial report which was to only report a particular array of items arrangement according to different cue tones for each rows projected after the stimulus was displayed. Three to four items per row were used due to limited perceptual span. Higher tone was for upper row, medium tone for middle row and lower tone for lower row. In his study, he aimed to investigate on information decay by measuring the accuracy of the report. This study was conducted on 5 trained subjects who were scheduled for 3 sessions weekly for a total of 12 sessions. Before the subjects report the information, he delayed the instructional tone for 0.0s, 0.15s, 0.30s and 1s after the stimulus display. The results indicated steep decline in accuracy of report as the delay was longer. 91% of the subjects were ab le to accurately report the stimulus but as the delay increased to 1s, the accuracy declined to 69%. He concluded most visual information were registered in the sensory memory but decayed rapidly within fractions of a second (Sperling, 1960). Through his research, he was able to show that in testing immediate-memory, not just knowing the limit of the perceptual span actually is but the ability to recall the items seen needed to be measured. With his findings that perceptual span is actually larger than the ability to recall them, his pioneering study pointed to the discovery of sensory storage. Another study conducted by Merikle (1980) in University of Waterloo, Canada supports the findings by Sperling (1960) in terms of cue delay effect in partial report. This experiment aimed to test on partial report superiority as the cue delay increased for both categories (letters or numbers) and spatial cues (top or bottom). The partial report and whole report were tested on 18 subjects where they were shown 90 sets of stimulus displays from both types of stimulus and the cue were delayed for -250ms, 0ms and +250ms and. The results indicated that spatial cues are more effective than category cues. Both types of partial report condition performed better than whole report, but the decline in performance was greater than whole report when cue were more delayed (Merikle, 1980). This study illustrated that the advantage of partial report is compromised as the cue delay increased. Perhaps, the advantage is due to instruction to report according to rows enhances the accuracy as it involves spatial processing of the stimulus compared to whole report. On the contrary, Darwin, Turvey and Crowder (1972) findings did not show any significant change in partial report over time. This study was conducted on 12 Yale University undergraduate. In contrast to previous studies by Sperling (1960) and Merikle (1980), auditory stimulus was presented and the indicating cue was in the form of slide projection. A set of 20 stimuli with combinations of monosyllable letters and numbers were given over headphones and the ISIs was 0s, 1s, 2s and 4s. They were asked to report the item and the location as indicated in the stimuli. The findings showed that there are no significant differences of performance between each interval (Darwin et al., 1972). One might argue that perhaps this is due to the echoic memory and not iconic memory. However, Sperling’s (1960) assumption on sensory storage decay across time in partial report should apply to auditory memory. Thus, the result should indicate significant rapid decrease of accuracy in partial report. The insignificant finding could be due to the complex instruction that also tests on their spatial processing apart from recalling the items. Furthermore, Kuhbandner, Spitzer and Pekrun (2011) investigated on the consequences of emotion-inducing stimuli on the iconic memory decay. 45 with 32 females and 13 male students from University of Munich took part in this study. Emotion-inducing stimuli which were threatening, neutral and positive stimuli consisted of objects and animal pictures. The indicator was shown in a form of arrow after the ISIs of 14ms, 71ms, 229ms, 500ms and 1000ms. 8 trials were conducted for each stimuli conditions and delays. The subjects reported 4 chosen items out of 12 verbally. As expected, the iconic memory degenerated rapidly as the delay time increased however, for threatening stimuli; the results indicated slow decay of information (Kuhbandner et al., 2011). From this study, we can observe that emotion encourages persistence in iconic memory regardless of the delay period. Perhaps, due to the higher number of females in this study affected the results as emotional perception are different acros s genders. This study suggested that emotional processing occurred faster than selective attention in iconic memory processing. As we can see from previous studies discussed, various adaptations of Sperling’s (1960) partial report paradigm ware used. However, most studies on partial report that supported Sperling’s findings were conducted at least thirty years ago. A current study on the interstimulus delay effect using neutral stimulus on iconic memory needs to be conducted in order to observe whether Sperling’s assumption are still applicable to this date. Past researches have conducted partial report experiments using traditional tachistoscopes (Sperling, 1960; Merikle, 1980) however for this present study, CogLab 2.0 computer application were used for better and more comprehensive material in data collection. For this research we aimed to observe the effect interstimulus intervals on the iconic memory. Iconic memory was measured by the percentage of the recalled items. We hypothesized that the increase in interstimulus interval decreases the percentage of recalled items. Methods Study design In testing out the hypothesis, we conducted an experiment with repeated measure design. Data was gathered through convenient sampling. For this study, the independent variable was the interstimulus interval (ISI) whereas the dependent variable was percentage of the recalled items. Participants Participants in this study consist of 28 (10 males and 18 females) undergraduate Sunway University psychology students who are enrolled in Cognition and Perception course with the age range of 18 to 35 years old. As a part of the coursework, students were rewarded with 1% credit for participating. In selection of participants, the inclusion criterion was those who are wearing visual and hearing aids whereas the exclusion criterion was non-psychology students. Measurement In conducting this experiment, we have used Wadsworth CogLab online laboratory 2.0 (Goldstein, 2011) computer program. Specifically, under the sensory memory section, we have selected partial report experiment. Interstimulus interval. The interstimulus interval was between the end of the stimulus matrix display and cue tone onset. Each interval was varied at 20milisecond (ms), 100ms, 300ms, and 1000ms. Percentage of recalled items. The numbers of correct letters reported for each delay trials are recorded and totaled regardless of the order of the letters. The percentages of the scores are then calculated according to each interstimulus interval conditions. Procedure Ahead of the tutorial class, every student was informed to bring their own headphones to reduce distractions during the experiment. All students who were present on the day of the experiment gathered in the computer lab with one computer for each student. This experiment was only conducted in one session with all participants at once with estimated time of completion at about 20 minutes. All participants were assigned to complete every condition of the interstimulus intervals. As the class started under the supervision of a lecturer, the students were allowed to read the instructions and start the experiment at their own pace. They were required to fill in their student ID and put on their headphones before beginning the experiment. As they started, they were exposed to 3 different cue tones to familiarize them with indicator tone on which row to report. Low-pitched tone was for bottom row, medium-pitched sound for middle row and lastly high-pitched tone for the upper row. For a tota l of 60 trials, each trial started as they pressed the space bar and they had to fixate their vision on a small asterisk at the screen center. After one second and a half, 33 matrix of alphabets appeared on the screen for a duration of 150ms. The interstimulus interval started after the matrix flashed and at the offset of the tone. A tone was played as the indicator and the letters of the indicated row were typed. These procedures were repeated for each trial and the students were asked to keep their eyes fixated on the center throughout the experiment. The results were immediately displayed for each participant on their performance and submitted to e-Learn for pooled data collection. Results To test the decrease of percentage of recalled items as the interstimulus interval increases, the results were analyzed using repeated measure ANOVA due to the nature of the experiment where all conditions were tested on within the same subjects. Interstimulus interval was classified as categorical variable with four conditions (20ms, 100ms, 300ms, and 1000ms) whereas the dependent variable, the percentage recalled was a continuous variable. The results illustrated significant decrease from the 20ms to 100ms interval on the percentage recalled, Wilk’s Lambda = .011, F (3, 25) = 4.56, p = .011. To observe the informational decay pattern, further test of pairwise comparison demonstrated that there was there was a significant decline between the 100ms interval and 1000ms interval (mean difference= 8.730; p = .02). Furthermore, between 300ms interval and the 1000ms, there was a significant decrease (mean difference = 8.10; p = .009). However, no significant decrease was found from 20ms interval to 100ms interval (mean difference = 1.99; p = 1.00) to 300ms interval (mean difference = 1.35; p = 1.00), and to 1000ms interval (mean difference = 6.75; p = .136). In addition, there was no significant decrease found between the 100ms interval and 300ms interval (mean difference = .635; p = 1.00) but. Generally, since there are greater decrease from 100ms and 300ms interval to 1000ms interval, there were overall decrease across the increasing interstimulus intervals. The mean scores for each interstimulus interval are shown in table 1. Table 1 Mean and standard deviation of percentage of recalled items after interstimulus delay Discussion This research was carried out to examine the effect of interstimulus delay on the effectiveness of iconic memory. Our hypothesis was testing on whether longer interstimulus delay causes lower performance in the percentage of the test items recalled. The statistical analysis on our data showed that there was indeed a significant decrease in percentage of recalled items across the increasing length of interstimulus interval thus supporting our hypothesis. Our result was found to be consistent with the findings from previous studies (Sperling, 1960; Merikle, 1980) which showed that the information decayed as the time delay increased. On the contrary, our outcome did not support the findings from the studies conducted by Darwin et al. (1972) which indicated no significant difference between the interstimulus intervals and study by Kuhbandner et al. (2011) which indicated persistence of iconic memory despite 1000s of delay. A possible reasoning for this finding is the iconic memory decayed over time due to the use of neutral stimulus items where 12 random letters were briefly displayed. These random letters were non-relatable to one another to make sense of the information. According to the Atkinson and Shiffrin’s (1969) modal model of memory, the sensory memory acted as the pathway to the short-term memory and the information decayed rapidly if remained unrehearsed before further processing of the information. Thus, as the stimulus displayed provided no significance for participants to further process in short-term store and stimulates the information decay. This justification can be supported by the finding by Kuhbandner et al., (2011) as the usage of the emotion-inducing stimulus, particularly threatening stimulus caused longer visual persistence due to the human survival instinct. Hence, the type of visual stimulus used explains why iconic memory is short-lived. Besides that, another possible rationalization on decreasing percentage of recalled items over time was due to blinking. The blinking action momentarily disrupts our vision as we are receiving the visual stimuli. Thomas and Irwin (2006) claimed that blinking restrained cognitive processing from their findings in conducting partial report experiment. Their findings showed that more errors were found under blinking condition. As blinking hinders cognitive processing, it is aligned to the Bundesen’s theory of visual attention where limited processing resources is available hence it requires more time to process more information (Petersen and Andersen, 2012). Blinking puts further setback in the information processing thus leading to the decay of unattended information. Strengths and Limitations As we conducted this experiment in one session where all participants were tested in one sitting, all participants experienced similar external conditions including lighting and temperature that may affect the attention. The similar extraneous conditions contributed to the strength of this study. Besides that, a relatively large number of samples for experimental design research also helped to strengthen this study. For limitations, the convenience sampling method of only conducting the research on a class of psychology students is not representative of the population in Sunway University. Thus, it is difficult to generalize our findings as psychology students are more familiar with the CogLab experiments and the theoretical assumption of partial report. Furthermore, this test was conducted early in the morning as soon as the class begins. The students were not in full-alert state during that hour as they rushed to get to class hence may affect their cognitive processing. Future studies and implications To improve the present study, one of the ways that future researcher can apply is to conduct the experiment on subject from different courses in this university. To remove any biasness in sampling, psychology students should be an excluded as they have basic knowledge on cognitive processing. Besides that, another way to improve this study is by using other types of visual stimulus such as combination of letters and numbers per row to see whether it has an effect on their iconic memory. The current finding suggests that there should be very short intervals in between visual aid presentation especially in videos and movies for visual persistence. Besides that, the finding implies that rehearsals from longer duration of visual display help in retaining the iconic memory. Conclusion In conclusion, this study focuses on iconic memory where we assumed that the percentage of recalled items decreases as there is increase in interstimulus interval. The statistical data analysis indicated that there is a significant decrease in percentage of recalled items as the interval period prolonged. The iconic memory theory (Sperling, 1960) and theory of visual attention (Petersen Andersen, 2012) explained on how the delay affects the iconic memory performance. Iconic memory performance decreases over time due to the decay of information. The finding from this study has implication on filming industries to edit their video materials to reduce the iconic memory effect as cut-scene changes.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Terrorism Prevention Program for Homeland Security

Terrorism Prevention Program for Homeland Security Jacob Malone The Department of Homeland Securitys vision is a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards, where American interests, aspirations, and way of life can thrive. In order to accomplish this, according to Chip Fulghum (2016), DHS employs over 225,000 people in jobs from border security to cybersecurity analysis and must work together to combat a wide range of threats. With a wide array of job duties it is clear that their main goal is to keep America safe. According to Roger Kemp (2012), The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) formally came into being as a standalone, Gabinet-level, department to further coordinate the unify national homeland security efforts, opening its doors on March 1,2003 (p. 28). DHS primary mission is to prevent terrorism and enhance security. Stopping and preventing terrorism is the keystone of DHS. The threat of terrorism to the nation has advanced over the years since the last quadrennial review in 2010. It remains real and even harder to detect. An example of this evolution is the Boston Marathon bombing. We are facing more lone wolf attackers that are inspired and encouraged by fanatical ideologies to radicalize to violence and commit deadly terrorist acts towards Americans. These independent acts are the hardest to detect and DHS will remain vigilant in identifying and countering these threats. DHS Priorities to Secure Against the Evolving Terrorism Threat Identify, Investigate, and Interdict Threats as Early as Possible Shrink the Haystack: Expand Risk Based Security Focus on Countering Violent Extremism and Helping to Prevent Complex Mass Casualty Attacks Reduce Vulnerabilities: Deny Resources, Deny Targets Uncover Patterns and Faint Signals: Enhance Data Integration and Analysis Table 1 Identify, Investigate, and Interdict Threats as Early as Possible Due to the present and development of potential attacks and threats, a prime concern is that these vicious fanatical can move undetected across boarders within conflict zones. An example would be the conflicts in Syria and Yemen where they can train other like-minded people in tactics, skills, and weapons for the use of terrorism. In addition to, many other nations are incapable of securing their own borders and prevent illegitimate movement of people and goods and the inability to collect customs revenues to support governance. As a result, they are on the verge of state failure. DHS and the Departments of State, Defense, and Justice will address the vulnerabilities and improve the safe and protected movement of people and goods by prioritizing support to foreign partners to increase their border supervision, customs integrity, and the capacities and capabilities of their law enforcement. In addition, it is vital to use the information we receive in advance to screen abroad based on risk instead of waiting to screen upon the arrival of the United States. Shrink the Haystack: Expand Risk-Based Security Due to the decentralized nature of the present threat makes it important that we migrate away from a one-size-fits-all type of security approach and move in the direction of risk informed and intelligence-driven. With this new mindset, DHS will focus more on identifying lower risk travelers and cargo in order to spend more time and resources on the people we know less about or pose a higher threat. According to DHS, Trusted traveler and shipper programs such as Global Entry, TSA Preà ¢Ã…“â€Å"à ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢, and the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism advance these objectives and show that effective security and the expedited flow of goods and people can be achieved together (DHS, 2017). They will use several ways to identify lower risk travelers. For example, they will use background check and recognize foreign partner trusted traveler programs. Focus On Countering Violent Extremism and Helping to Prevent Complex Mass Casualty Attacks DHS does not focus on just one form of one particular ideology or protected First Amendment activities, but rather all forms all forms of fanaticism when it comes to countering violent extremism within the U.S. Their efforts to opposing vicious extremism highlight the power of local communities and the premise that well-informed and well-equipped families and communities represent the best defense against these violent acts. DHS supports community based problem solving and local law enforcement programs in order to disrupt and deter recruitment to radicalized violence. According to DHS, DHS jointly develops with federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial partners training for frontline law enforcement officers on behaviors that may be indicative of violent extremist activity (DHS, 2017). Comparable research into non-ideologically motivated violence provides enhanced understanding into pre-incident behavioral indicators that are linked to mass violence. This give DHS the ability to equip partners with the best tools to identify and mitigate an array of violent attacks. Reduce Vulnerabilities: Deny Resources, Deny Targets Violent extremists will tend to seek out and attack symbolic venues, mass gathering, and critical infrastructure. The best way to protect against these targets is to adopt approaches that are intelligence-led, analytical driven, and pursued in close collaboration with federal, state, local, and private sector partners in addition to the public. The DHS Security Strategy for Mass Transit and Passenger Rail dives further into detail into how they have employed this approach to improve the security of our infrastructure. According to DHS, They will continue to increase an emphasis on deterrence, including enhancing efforts to publicly communicate tailored descriptions of homeland security capabilities to influence the perception, risk calculations, and behaviors of adversaries (DHS, 2017). Uncover Patterns and Faint Signals: Enhance Data Integration and Analysis DHS and its partners must continue and constantly maintain situational awareness. In addition, DHS is dedicated to integrating its data sources, including federating vetting operations. Homeland Security will adopt big data management solutions that will give the investigators and analysts the ability to identify relationships that were once difficult to distinguish. It allows them to identify harmful activity earlier and to intervene or stop these attacks from ever happening. A vital source of data is the Suspicious Activity Reporting from stat, local, and private sector partners that are members of the Nationwide Suspicious Activity Reporting Initiative. Another source with a critical role is the If You See Something, Say Something campaign. This campaign encourages citizens to report any suspicious activity to local law enforcement. These efforts will help protect our privacy, civil liberties, and civil rights and allow the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force to quickly view information and share with other FBI Field Intelligence Groups for further analysis. DHS will prioritize and swiftly distribute local or regional joint products through the National Network of Fusion Center and other mechanisms. According to DHS, These joint products, produced collaboratively by federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial partners, support operations and provide detailed insight on emerging community or region-specific threats (DHS, 2017). In conclusion, DHS has an enormous responsibility in keeping our nation safe, secure, and resilient against all enemies and other hazards. In order to accomplish this DHS employs over 240,000 people in jobs from border security to cybersecurity analysis. In order to protect us they came up with five priorities in order to secure against the evolving terrorism threat: identify, investigate, and interdict threats as early as possible, shrink the haystack: expand risk based security, focus on countering violent extremism and helping to prevent complex mass casualty attacks, reduce vulnerabilities: deny resources, deny targets, and uncover patterns and faint signals by enhancing data integration and analysis. References DHS. (2014). Fiscal Years 2014-2018 Strategic Plan . Retrieved March 21, 2017, from https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/FY14-18%20Strategic%20Plan_0_0.PDF DHS. (2014). The 2014 Quadrennial Homeland Security Review. Retrieved March 21, 2017, from https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/2014-qhsr-final-508.pdf Fulghum, C. (2016). Securing the resources that secure the homeland. Armed Forces Comptroller, 61(3), 6-9. Kahan, J. H. (2013). Whats in a name? the meaning of homeland security. Journal of Homeland Security Education, 2(1), 18. Kemp, R. L. (2012). Homeland security in america past, present, and future. World Future Review, 4(1), 28-33.

Monday, August 19, 2019

Supply Chain Management Essay -- business processes, SCOR model

Supply Chain Management (SCM) is the integration of information, technologies and management of key business functions which is linked directly or indirectly and provides services to the same customer. It promotes the flow of products downstream from raw materials to the end consumer and the flow of information upstream from consumer to supplier [1]. In above figure it explains that raw materials is procured and then it goes to the supplier for processing of raw material, suppliers supplies the processed raw materials to the manufactures, producers transform these raw material into finished goods, distributors delivers finished goods, packed materials to customers or retailers and retailers sell that product to consumers. Supply chain management was introduced due to inability of the organizations to understand the entire string of activities that governed the delivery of the product to the final customer. Previously companies were too restricted in their outlook and were concerned only with activities within their own boundaries. In essence, supply chain management integrates supply and demand management within and across companies. SCM ensures higher efficiency of modern businesses, by coordinating and synchronizing various organizations in the supply chain [2]. There are a variety of supply chain models, which address both the upstream and downstream sides. The SCOR (Supply-Chain Operations Reference) model. This literature review gives a brief description of the SCOR model. 2. BACKGROUND 2.1. THE SUPPLY CHAIN COUNCIL Supply Chain Council (SCC) is a global nonprofit organization (NGO) whose framework, improvement methodology, training, certification and benchmarking tools help member organizations make dramatic,... ...espread use of SCOR model. 10. REFERENCES [1] SASCM Student association of supply chain management, Weber State University. [2] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supply_chain [3] Supply Chain Council (2010), Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model, Version 10, Supply-Chain Council, Inc, 2010 [4] Supply Chain Council (2008), Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model, Version 9 Overview, Supply-Chain Council, Inc, 2008. [5] Peter Bolstorff and Robert Rosenbaum. Supply Chain Excellence: A Handbook for Dramatic Improvement Using the SCOR Model. Broadway, NY: American Management Association, 2003. [6] https://supply-chain.org/f/SCOR-Overview-Web.pdf [7] Samuel H. Huan, Sunil K. Sheoran, Ge Wang, (2004) "A review and analysis of supply chain operations reference (SCOR) model", Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, Vol. 9 Iss: 1, pp.23 - 29

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Her Family Seed :: Short Story Stories Farming Essays

Her Family Seed It is the dawn of summer; in a large open corn field, a tiny girl with skinny legs stands at the edge. Far from her, a giant tractor ravishes and cracks the earth. The sharp deadly blades cut deep. With each cut, a fresh color of the earth appears, much darker than the layer before. With each slash, the air fills with fresh earthy scents of dead-decayed corn plants. In another gash, another grasshopper flies into the air, away from danger. With each catastrophic advance, the tractor makes, a seed of corn is planted. In a similar way the tiny girl’s family seed is planted within her. Within the seed’s embryo lies her family history and individuality. At this tender age, community and family values are continually deposited on her without her realizing it. The seed is buried into a graveyard of corn plants; where she can’t see it, just as she does not feel her family seed being planted. Even worse, it was planted into a field of innocence, constantly haunted by desires to run around half-naked in the rain when the rains finally came and a ride on the tractor. She does not realize that her family depends on these corn fields for food. At nights, she sits by the open fire roasting corn with her many brothers. The tiny girl does not know that her many brothers are actually her cousins and sons of her mother’s friends. As there is plenty of corn, her mother provides a home for all her sons. The corn fields also provide food for her neighbors that do not have enough. Her neighbors, the Bulunga family, live in three beautiful stick and mud huts, with thatched roofs. Like a centripetal force, the corn fields pull together her sense of family. Her innocence nurtures the seed until it slowly crawls out and bursts into green. And grows. This is the story about the 'seedling hood' within her, a part of her childhood unearthed. Right now, standing here by the old thatched hut, she looks up and sees a carpet of green. Their corn plants. Like broken pieces of glass on a side walk, the droplets of dew on the leaves reflect early morning light. She picks up her hoe. With a single hand she places it on her tiny fragile shoulders.

Saturday, August 17, 2019

Black Nationalism Essay

Critically discuss the contributions of both Booker T. Washington and W. E. B DuBois to the idea of Black nationalism in the United States. What were the major obstacles they faced in their articulation of the black Nationalist ideology? Booker T. Washington â€Å"was an American political leader, educator and author† who proved to be one of the most dominate figures in African American history in the United States (Booker, par. 1). William Edward Burghardt Du Bois â€Å"was a noted scholar, editor, and African American activist†¦[who] sought to eliminate discrimination and racism† (.. During the late 19th and early 20th century Booker T. Washington and W. E. B. DuBois were two great men who significantly influenced the idea of Black Nationalism in the United States. Though they both wanted to see an America where the Negro was treated with proper respect and equality, their views on how to obtain these noble goals contrasted one another. The ideology of DuBois and Washington were so completely different that people became subjected to following the doctrine of one or the other. With the knowledge that only one could be the â€Å"spokesman† for the race the two began a bitter battle to control the Black Nationalism ideology. Amid the competition against one another, both men still had to face other obstacles such as racism in order to further the goals of blacks of the period. Even though the two men had differing opinions on the ideology of Black Nationalism, both would greatly contribute to the idea of Black Nationalism. However, their differing positions on Black Nationalism portrayed a divide amongst African Americans of the time. To understand why Washington and DuBois had such differing opinions it is necessary to look back into the environments that both men came from. Born into slavery in 1856, Washington was the son of a white man and his slave mother Jane. While growing up in Virginia, Washington worked in both a coal mine and as a salt packer. In 1872 Washington left his work to go the Hampton Institute. The major educational doctrine of the school was that former slaves should receive a practical education that centered on skills instead of a liberal arts education. At the institute Washington worked to pay his way through school. After leaving the school, Washington worked for several years before he received an appointment to establish the Tuskegee Institute in 1881. At Tuskegee, Washington used many aspects of the education he received from the Hampton Institute. One of the central ideas that he brought from the institute was the belief that blacks should learn a trade or skill. (Hine 369) William Edward Burghardt DuBois’ background shaped his paralleling views to those of Washington. In contrast to Washington, who was born on a plantation, DuBois was born in a small North Eastern town where he was subject to little overt racism and acquired a much higher education. He was once quoted as saying, â€Å"I was born free. Washington was born a slave. He felt the lash of an overseer across his back. I was born in Massachusetts, he on a slave plantation in the South. My great-grandfather fought with the Colonial Army in New England in the American Revolution. I had a happy childhood and acceptance in the community. Washington’s childhood was hard. I had many more advantages: Fisk University, Harvard, and graduate years in Europe. Washington had little formal schooling (Hine 400). † This quote exemplifies his opposing foundation compared to that of Washington. DuBois’ background made him more comfortable with confrontation with whites, while Washington’s created a deep subconscious feeling of fear and submission. While DuBois enjoyed the benefits that the upper class life had to offer, Washington was faced with scorn, dehumanization, neglect, and prejudice, all of which he had to overcome. It is apparent for the quote that DuBois sympathizes and understands the demeaning nature in which Washington was treated which is the ultimate result of Washington’s pessimistic attitude toward society. Everyone has a different life experience. What one experiences early in their life shapes the way they think and how they view society later in their life. Typically an early life of tranquility, less hardships, and opportunity to succeed lends itself to one having a more optimistic view of society where as an early life of great hardships and little to no opportunity results in an individual having a more judgmental and disparaging view of society. This was the case with Booker T. Washington. Growing up as a slave, Washington was presented with many emotional and physical hardships which were the causes of his critical view of society. However, Washington manipulated the lessons that his early life experience had taught him to shape his view on society. He utilized these teachings to provide insight on how he wanted to bring about change within society in order to initiate progress and advancement. Booker T. Washington was particularly interested in the advancement of Blacks in a predominantly white society. Growing up as a slave he had little opportunity to achieve anything, however, because he was a slave he learned to value old-fashioned hard work which transposed over to him greatly valuing agricultural education as a major aspect of Tuskegee. With hard work being one of his fundamental values, he was convinced â€Å"that the surest way for black people to advance [in society] was by learning skill and demonstrating a willingness to do manual labor (Hine 369). † In a speech at the Cotton States Exposition in Atlanta in 1895, Washington stated that â€Å"no race can prosper till it learns that there is as much dignity in tilling a field as in as in writing a poem. It is at the bottom of life we must begin, and not at the top (Hine 370). † This statement asserted that Washington believed people, mainly black people, could gain the respect and acceptance of white Americans through acquiring skills and becoming prosperous small farmers, artisans, and shopkeepers. If Blacks were to continuously demonstrate this humility then it will eventually result in the eradication of the race problem of the time. Booker T. Washington’s belief in living a simplistic life in order to progress not only stemmed from the idea of hard work but also carried on to other beliefs such as the importance of liberal arts education and especially the foundation of industrial growth. He was very committed to promoting industrial education. He stresses that many positive things will branch from such a foundation including the growth in black people’s social life, the growth in black people’s educational life, and the growth in black people’s religious life (Hine 371). This statement shows that Washington felt that men and women who acquired these skills would be recognized as productive contributors to the southern economy thereby, once again, deteriorating the color boundary that was separating society at the time. The purpose of Booker T. Washington’s ideas for trying to assimilate Blacks in this manner was simply to avoid protesting and upheaval that could result in people getting harmed. His goal was to assimilate the black people into white America in a civilized manner, however, in order to achieve it he believed that black people should merely understand there place in society. One positive aspect of Washington’s beliefs was that it promoted steady labor. Washington believed in educating blacks in particular skills in order to maintain steady jobs and make a living. It was important that blacks were able to hold a job in order to function healthily as families, provide for themselves, and help develop their economic independence. At the time, there was increased competition between poor whites and blacks. In order for a black worker to get a job, they must not only deal with learning a particular trade but also overcoming racism. Being educated in common manual labor provided the basis for blacks to work up from. Although blacks were commonly restricted to the lower paying jobs, having a formal training in a skill made their value as a laborer rise. This labor also provided another positive aspect in that it transferred money from the white economy to the black economy. By being able to work for whites, blacks were able to use their income as they pleased. No longer did they have the restrictions placed upon them in slavery. Washington advocated a diverse labor field for blacks. Rather than only advocating farmers, he believed that blacks could be educated in other manual labor such as masonry, mining, and smith work. Another positive aspect of Washington’s beliefs is that it was the beginning in raising blacks out of their lower class position. For the first time blacks were not simply working on farms or plantations, they were acquiring skills. These skills provided the foundation for blacks to work up to gaining an education, earning money, and providing for the future of the next generations. This not only benefits oneself, but also the black community. The ideas of Washington did not inspire conflict or fear in whites because whites viewed that Washington was promoting keeping blacks in menial jobs rather than the higher paying work or typically white jobs such as doctors, lawyers, or politicians. The ideas of Washington enabled educational institutions such as the Tuskegee Institute and other black colleges and universities to exist that encouraged agricultural, mechanical, or technical skills. Since these institutions encouraged blacks to only strive for technical careers rather than offering a liberal arts education it did not inspire fear in whites. Whites were willing to allow black schools to exist that encouraged these skills because in turn these skills would offer a cheap labor but effective labor source. Also these institutions were non-threatening to whites because they offered skills and trades versus an education that would allow for black minds to grow and develop. Even though the education that blacks received from these institutions did not compare to those of liberal art universities, it still did offer blacks a chance at some sort of education. Although not encouraging the deeper growth of the black mind, schools like Tuskegee offered its students an education that would allow them to become proficient at a skill and earn an income. Washington believed that by working and hard, increasing their economic holding and becoming masters of many trades that they could eventually end racism and be accepted by whites. He believed that blacks should not let racism deter one from working. Washington once said, â€Å"Nor should we permit our grievances to overshadow our opportunities (Hines 397). † This shows that he believed that blacks must use their opportunities to better themselves rather than focusing on the negative aspects of life. Washington also said, â€Å"In our humble way, we shall stand by you with a devotion that no foreigner can approach, ready to lay down our lives, if need be, in defense of yours, interlacing our industrial, commercial, civil, and religious life with yours in a way that shall make the interests of both races one (Hines 397). † Washington believed that by blacks staying in their positions and working diligently, blacks would eventually be accepted by whites. He believed in blacks about remaining devoted to the white race rather than rising against it. By advocating working within the confines of white society rather than rising in opposition against it, Washington promoted the safety of blacks during this time period. Washington pushed for gradual and deliberate social acceptance of blacks as they began assimilating to white culture. By gradually working towards being accepted, this kept the opposition of whites to a minimum. As long as whites viewed blacks as harmless, blacks were able to continue growing and improving themselves. â€Å"The wisest among my race understand that the agitation of questions of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all the privileges that will come to us must be the result of severe and constant struggle rather than of artificial forcing,† said Washington (Hines 398). Washington believed that it is impossible to force someone to accept one another; rather one must make people want to accept them. Washington’s goal was not to force blacks into the upper class society, but to gradually encourage their acceptance and possibly an eventual rise in social stature. Despite the many positive and beneficial aspects of Washington’s view of Black Nationalism, there were many drawbacks that hindered the widespread acceptance of his ideology. He believed in maintaining the lower class position of blacks. By saying that all blacks should work in menial labor, he limited the opportunities for black people to strive for anything more. Rather than encouraging and uplifting blacks in believing that they could do anything they wanted to, Washington believed that blacks should remain content in their lower class state. Considering that Washington, a part white and black man, was the spokesperson for the race, he was stating to whites that he was the exception rather than the rule. Whites were able to justify his leadership and politics by attributing his success to his white ancestry. Whites were pleased with Washington’s stance that blacks should stay with basic tasks for a number of reasons. Typically, these jobs were usually lower paying and had terrible working conditions. These jobs were considered lower class labor, and the majority of whites, with the exception of poor whites, were not interested in pursuing these jobs. The lack of competition made it acceptable to the majority of whites. If these jobs were considered â€Å"black jobs† then it was fine for blacks to work in these fields. During this time period, the category of â€Å"black jobs† became redefined to these positions. Whites were moving out of these fields at the same point that blacks were striving to move up in their job status, therefore it was okay for blacks to replace these whites since it did not adversely affect them. Also Washington constantly advocated the point that blacks should work long and hard to â€Å"prove† their worth to whites. He offers a reconsideration of what it means to be black (Owens, par. 2). However, whites were never accepting of blacks. It was almost impossible for blacks to gain acceptance by simply showing their hard work during a time period where they were consistently looked down upon. Washington also believed that blacks must remain passive in their attempts to improve life. While whites used methods such as brute force and intimidation to keep blacks down, Washington believed in turning the other cheek rather than encouraging conflict. At this time period, it would have been almost impossible for blacks to gain any amount of social standing by continuing this passive ideal. As the spokesperson for the black race, Booker T. Washington presented various and influential ideas about Black Nationalism in America. Many of his ideas were beneficial to the black race at the time, such as the advocating of skills and trades, however, other ideas, such as his advocacy for maintaining the social position of blacks and non-confrontation, were not effective in improving Black Nationalism. Washington principles revolved around blacks working as shopkeepers, farmers, and other low-skilled professions. He believed, â€Å"On such a foundation as this will grow habits of thrift, a love of work, economy, ownership of property, bank accounts. Out of it in the future will grow practical education, professional education, and positions of public responsibility. Out of it will grow moral and religious strength. Out of it will grow wealth from which alone can come leisure and the opportunity for the enjoyment of literature and the fine arts (Hine 371). † In stark contrast to this, DuBois believed, â€Å"If my own city of Atlanta had offered it to-day the choice between 500 Negro college graduates – forceful, busy, ambitious men of property and self respect – and 500 black cringing vagrants and criminals, the popular vote in the favor of the criminals would be simply overwhelming. Why? Because they want Negro crime? No, not that they fear Negro crime less, but that they fear Negro ambition and success more. They can deal crime by chain gang and lynch law, or at least they think they can, but the South can conceive neither machinery nor place for the educated, self-reliant, self-assertive black man (Hine 371). † W. E. B. DuBois believed in the opposite of what Washington believed. Instead of believing that the way for blacks to succeed was within industry, DuBois believed it lied not within training but within educating. DuBois believed that the learning that blacks received should go beyond training for work or learning a skill. He believed that it was necessary for blacks to gain an education that would allow them to develop and grow mentally. He mentioned that â€Å"the function of the Negro college, then, is clear, it must maintain standards of popular education, it must seek the social regeneration of the Negro, and it must help in the solution of problems of race contact and cooperation. And finally, beyond all this, it must develop men (Hine 370-71). † By receiving an education, blacks would then become better men and could be able to lead the black race. By having large numbers of educated blacks leading the race, DuBois felt that this was the best way to end racism. In his ideology DuBois felt that there would be a group of blacks that would lead blacks to prosperity, social acceptance and bring about the end of slavery. He characterized this group of people as the â€Å"talented tenth† (Hine 401). In other words, the most educated and best suited 10 percent of the black population would be used to lead the black race as a whole. He affirms to that â€Å"work alone will not do it unless inspired by the right ideals and guided by intelligence. Education must not simply teach work – it must teach Life. The talented Tenth of the Negro race must be made leaders of thought and missionaries of culture among people. No others can do this work, and Negro colleges must train men for it. The Negro race, like all other races, is going to be saved by its exceptional men† (Hine 401). This statement exemplifies DuBois’ strong belief in an elite group of back men how will arise to lead a deprived race into a society that will accept and acknowledge their talents, skills, and wisdom. While advocating for the best of the black race to lead the rest of the black race, DuBois also had different opinions on how to confront racism. Instead of trying to circumvent racism DuBois wanted to attack it, becoming somewhat of a militant leader (Maddox, par.3). He did not promote settling for meager jobs, he wanted to attack discrimination in all forms including disenfranchisement and Jim Crow laws. DuBois was not willing to wait for whites to give blacks their rights. Also DuBois was not tolerant toward blacks who were not willing to fight for their rights. With the ideology that DuBois adopted, there were many positive aspects that he brought to the idea of Black Nationalism. Education is one of the most important aspects that DuBois stressed in his ideology. DuBois believed that blacks could not hope to eclipse their position in life without an education. With this belief he encouraged blacks to go to numerous colleges and universities in order to receive an education. Another positive aspect that DuBois came to push with Black Nationalism was the view that white racism should be confronted. Throughout this time period, white racism was overt and abundantly clear for what it was, however, blacks were not in a position to confront this. Du Bois believed in encouraging blacks to stand up for their rights and for the elite â€Å"talented tenth† to show whites that they were not to be viewed as unrefined barbarians. DuBois believed that whites were more than happy to have blacks working for them. With whites perfectly content to allow blacks to work under them in a neo-form of slavery the same social position that blacks were in would continue to exist without change. With the knowledge that racism would not change unless it was directly confronted, DuBois began to believe in this ideology of confrontation. One of the greatest contributions that DuBois presented was his idea of higher education. He believed that it was essential for blacks to gain a deeper theological education, rather than the basic skilled education. DuBois believed it was important to gain this education in order to gain status of the â€Å"talented tenth. † In his ideals, DuBois believed that it was important that blacks did not need to be lead by one spokesperson such as Washington, but instead could be led by intelligent, resourceful, educated black Americans. Although he had an idea of a more talented group of people, these lines were flexible and able to be changed with new faces of black America. He understood the need to have different and multiple representations, rather than one blanketed statement about black Americans that would encourage misrepresentation and stereotypes. While there were many positive aspects of the ideology that DuBois put forth, there were also some problems. Dubois’ idea of a select group of black intellectuals whose purpose would be to â€Å"set out to organize an aggressive effort to secure the rights of black citizens† is a very potent idea, however, it becomes problematic when one places this enormous responsibility in the hands of such a small group of individuals (Hine 401). The fact that he felt that merely ten percent of the black population would be qualified to lead the struggle for black equality, explained earlier, has its importance. Nevertheless, this idea has some absurdness to it. To put the burden of trying to correct the discriminative situation that was accruing at the time on purely ten percent of the black population could be strenuous on that particular group. Therefore, instead of progression within the movement it would possibly cause a regression within the movement and deter any success that could accrue. This ten percent of black intellectual leaders should not focus on wrestling the task of establishing equal civil liberties for blacks on there own. Instead, they should focus on teaching the remaining ninety percent of the black population to lead as well. By accomplishing this task the black race would not have to rely merely on a few group of individual to fight the struggle for their liberation into a society of equality. Alternatively, many black people will have the ability to lead their own struggle in their particular area of the nation. In contrast to Booker T. Washington’s passive attitude to accomplish black equality, W. E. B. DuBois, on the other hand, had a more aggressive attitude. DuBois felt that to achieve the black community’s goal of eliminating racism the black community should attack it head on. Unlike Washington’s idea of simply sitting back and let the White community slowly accept the black people and recognize them for their hard work, DuBois wanted to actively assert the black community into society swiftly and without prejudice. This tactic could pose to be over aggressive which would ultimately retract from what he wants to get accomplished. Some states, mostly northern states, would be able to tolerate this aggressive tactic and possibly even acknowledge the efforts of DuBois. However other states, particularly the southern states would find his aggressive method as offensive thereby diminishing the popularity of DuBois’ goal viewed by the white community. Another problem with Dubois’ idea on how to confront racism was that it did not take into consideration everybody’s economic standpoint. He believed that with the acquisition of a higher theological education rather than simple basic skills education, the black community will be able analyze the society in which they live and make informed decisions on how they would like to live instead of simply accepting their position in which society had prepared for them. However, for many black to acquire that theological education in that time was quite challenging because not every black person or family could afford to pay for that higher education. To remedy these situation free educational institutions could be established, but somewhere down the line the expense to run the school would become overwhelming without financial support from the state. The black institutions would have extreme difficulty obtaining financial support from a predominantly white state who felt that they had already made a place for the black race. Although both Booker T. Washington and W. E. B Dubois made great contributions to the idea of Black Nationalism, their strategies would be questioned and would also be met with much objection. The major obstacle they faced in their articulation of a Black Nationalist ideology was opposition from each other. Their contrasting up-bringing allowed them to have different views and opinions of society. It also helped in forming their attitude of how to go about expressing their Black Nationalistic ideology. Washington experience as a child made him more passive. â€Å"His childhood was one of privation, poverty, slavery and back-breaking work† (Yankowitz par. 1). Growing up as a slave he learned to be more submissive and accepting of things presented to him and therefore he felt that the opportunity for black people to succeed will come slowly with obedience and serenity. DuBois, however, up-bringing made him have a more forward outlook on society and life in general. Unlike most blacks living in the United States, â€Å"Du Bois had grown up with more privileges and advantages†¦He had suffered neither severe economic hardship nor repeated encounters with blatant racism† (â€Å"W.E. B Dubois†, par 4). Because he grew up in a well-to-do setting he learned to have a more assertive personality resulting in his aggressive approach to confront racism. In a statement made at the Atlanta Cotton States and International Exposition in 1895, Booker T. Washington alludes to his opposition of the tactics utilized by W. E. B DuBois by mentioning that â€Å"the wisest among [his] race understand that the agitation of questions of social equality is the extremist folly†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Hine 396). This statement affirms that if one is to be aggressive in their manner to acquire equality in the society in which they live, then it would surly lead to the demise of their efforts. The statement can greatly be associated with DuBois’ methods of articulating Black Nationalism ideology. More opposition to Washington’s conciliatory stance on racial matters stemmed from William Monroe Trotter, an educated Harvard editor of the Boston Guardian, who became the most â€Å"vociferous† critic of Washington (Hine 399). Trotter referred to Washington as â€Å"the Great Traitor, the Benedict Arnold of the Negro Race, and Pope Washington† which hardly bothered Washington. However the nicknames did, along with many argumentative articles that he wrote, cause unsettling skeptics about Washington’s techniques Similarly, Booker T. Washington’s method of articulating Black Nationalism ideology contradicted W. E. B Dubois. In his book entitled The Souls of Black Folk, Dubois remarks that â€Å"Mr. Washington distinctly asks that black people give up, at least for the present three things, – First, political power, Second, insistence on civil rights, Third, higher education of Negro youth, – and concentrate all their energies on industrial education, the accumulation of wealth, and the conciliation of the South† (Hine 396). It revealed that Washington did not want black people to expect too much but should greet menial labor as a step in the struggle for progress. DuBois greatly detested this notion and preferred the assertive strategy which he felt to be the most effective way to ensure progress. Though Booker T. Washington and W. E. B DuBois had conflicting ideas of Black Nationalism ideology, the two presented ideas that lasted and effect the ideas of future black nationalist. Works Cited America’s Story from America’s Libraries. 2006. The Library of Congress. 3 Oct. 2006 . â€Å"Booker T. Washington. † Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 21 Nov 2006, 07:24 UTC. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 21 Nov 2006 . Hine, Darlene Clark, William C. Hine, & Stanley Harrold. The American Odyssey: Volume Two. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey; Prentice-Hall, 3rd edition 2005. Maddox, Alton H. , â€Å"The untold story of the Civil Rights Movement – Part I. † New York Amsterdam News 96. 44 (2005): 12-14. â€Å"W. E. B Dubois. † MSN Encarta, The Online Encyclopedia. 2006. 6 Oct. 2006 . Owen, Williams R. â€Å"Old Negro, New Negro. † Rev. of The Education of Booker T. Washington: American Democracy & the Idea of Race Relations, by Michael Rudolph West. Black Issues Book Review May 2006: 45 Yankowitz, Donna. â€Å"Booker T. Washington. † 2006. 6 Oct. 2006 .

Pyramus and Thisbe Summary Essays and Term Papers Essay

Characters: Baldo – He was one of the main characters in the short story. He was Leon’s younger brother. Baldo was unperturbed man, and he was quiet. He was the narrator of the story. Leon – He was the oldest brother of Baldo. He was the husband of Maria. Maria called him Noel. Maria – She was a beautiful and lovely. Her forehead was on a level with his mouth, her nails were long, but they were not painted, and have a small dimple appeared momentarily high up on her right cheek. She was tall and very still. Her fragrance was like a morning when papayas are in bloom. Labang – The bull of Leon and Baldo. Father – He was mildest – tempered, gentlest man. He was the father of Baldo and Leon. Mother – He was the mother of Baldo and Leon. Aurelia – She was the sister of Baldo and Leon. Summary / Synopsis: Maria was a wife of Leon. She was lovely and beautiful. Her fragrant like a morning when papayas are in bloom. Leon was lived in far place of Nagrebcan. Leon brought Maria to Nagrebcan to introduce to his father. The couple enjoys talking while in traveled riding in the cart hitch to Labang. Baldo who is quiet and observing his brother and spouse. When they arrived home, Baldo went to the room of his father. The room is quiet and dark. His father was smoking while sat in the big armchair by the western window. And they talk about Maria. Afterwards the door opened, and Leon and Maria came in. Baldo looked to Maria and went out to watered Labang which his father told to him. Characterization: Baldo is the narrator of the story because he is the one who relates us what happened to the story. Were Baldo is the younger brother of Leon. Baldo is a quiet person. It is very detectable that Baldo is observing his brother Leon and spouse how is Maria. When his father asks him â€Å"Was she afraid of Labang?† Baldo lied and says â€Å"No, Father, she was not afraid.† Even though Maria afraid. It means that Baldo like Maria as a wife of Leon but inside, he also admires the beauty of Maria. In here, the main characters were the couple Leon and Maria. Leon has a strong personality because he did not afraid to present Maria to his father as her wife. He was very proud of Maria as her wife. Maria truly love Leon because she fight for what she  believe was right, it doesn’t matter if the world told her that it’s wrong. I could say that Maria and the mother of Leon plays and represent the Filipino women. The father of Baldo has a deep personality. He was a responsibly father because he use his righteous way as a head of the family. It only means that the father or the man is the authority. He doesn’t want Leon to go to the wrong way. So, he makes some trials to Maria trying to test Maria’s characteristic, her attitude, her looks, how she talks and the way she handle the situation. His mother was a responsibly mother. She does the light of the family and represents the Filipino women. Settings: The setting of the story was in Nagrebcan, Leon’s hometown. This story takes place in a farm where people would usually ride in carabao. The place was in the local province. In the story, Maria who was Leon’s wife described physically and with her posture as a conservative and traditionalist which would probably described as a Filipino woman. As an alternative, they took a shortcut in a field. In my opinion, one can visualize that there is some kind of a test for the two of them. Maria must surpass that trial. It was as there family of Leon is trying to test Maria’s characteristic, her attitude, her looks, how she talks and the way she handle the situation. Plot: The plot is compose of inciting action, rising action, climax, falling action, and conclusion. The inciting action was when â€Å"She stepped down to the Carretela of Ca Celin with a quick, delicate grace. She look lovely, she was tall. She looked up to my brother with a smile, and her forehead was on level with his mouth.† The rising action was when they took the dry bed of Waig as a substitute of passing the Camino Real and it was the wish of there father to go by Waig. The climax of the story was when Maria told Leon that she was afraid of his father in law maybe his father thinking of not liking her. The falling action came when Leon was searching for their father and her mother told them that his leg is bothering him again. The conclusion was when Baldo cross the threshold of his father and ask him about Maria. Afterwards the door opened and Leon and Maria came in. Baldo looked to Maria so lovely and went out to watered Labang which his father told him. Themes: The theme of the story is Love makes Maria and Leon go straight whatever  struggles come will be ignore to them. I don’t know if there relationship will last long because Maria is a city girl while Leon is a barrio boy. Reactions of the story: My reaction of the story is the story is good and it reflects to the modern youth even if the story is very old. I describe Maria as an example of Filipino women and also her attitude as a â€Å"mahinhin†. The couple Leon and Maria faces many trials while in traveled to Nagrebcan. Even though, Maria passed those trials. So, therefore Maria is very understanding kind of girl. The story talks about the characteristic of Maria, her attitude, her looks, how she talks and the way she handle the situation that riding a bull and passed through Waig. Therefore, basically a woman creates for men.