The Australian Tourism Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

The Australian Tourism Policy - Essay Example The first tourism policy in Australia was formulated. The policy was geared towards addressing issues of mismanaged tourism attraction sites, destinations, and resources. The policies that followed throughout the years until 2003, had notable words like development which could be broken down into development, sustain which could be fragmented into sustainable and sustainability. These issues were vividly explained and strategic plans were written down on how the issues of mismanagement and development of tourist attraction sites and destinations were not sustaining the ever rising demand for tourist satisfaction. In general, as described by Lin & Suzanne (2009) ‘the policies aim at improving international marketing strategies and effectiveness through a greater focus on regional dispersal and by refreshing and enhancing’. The recent policies as recorded by Grace (2007), ‘concentrate on the improvement of the existing attractions sites in order to match the internat ional tourism expectation’. The policies would aim at making Australia a world-class tourism destination. The policies would also be geared towards the development of tourism destinations that would that would fully meet the tourists’ demand for better infrastructure so as to increase the national revenue acquired from the tourism industry. The policies noted the tourism industry was suffering from a shortage of world-class service for the tourist hence the policy also included the strategies to combat this anomaly.... The recent policies as recorded by Grace (2007), ‘concentrate on the improvement of the existing attractions sites in order to match the international tourism expectation’. Furthermore, the policies would aim at making Australia a world class tourism destination. The policies would also be geared towards the development of tourism destinations that would that would fully meet the tourists’ demand for better infrastructure so as to increase the national revenue acquired from the tourism industry (Katrina & Andrew, 2000). The policies noted the tourism industry was suffering from a shortage of world class service for the tourist hence the policy also included the strategies to combat this anomaly. Inclusion of public education and educational programs on how to deal with different kinds of people from different languages regions was one of the major boosts to the tourism industry in Australia. Further report by Philip (1994), ‘By addressing the major policy ch allenges in the medium to long term, the strategy will provide a framework that will assist the Australian tourism industry, in partnership with government, to achieve specific outcomes that enable it to achieve international competitiveness, and economic, social and environmental sustainability’. This would be done by first coordinating the three levels of government. That is, the federal government which would aim to create an optimum policy environment for tourism development, particularly in respect to the international marketing of Australia, product quality and development, industry sustainability and profitability, air services arrangements, tourism infrastructure, visitor visa

Control of Nature Essay Example for Free

Control of Nature Essay The earth, with its vast structure of land masses is expected to experience different forms of worldly phenomena. World-renowned Writer John McPhee saw it all. The massive destruction caused by inevitable earthly chaos made by humanity’s ignorance and intentional or unintentional disregard of natural processes struck him. For the reason that of McPhee’s benevolent concern for nature and earth’s creatures, he came up with a book narrating human struggle against nature and elaborated certain reasons why such unfortunate fate took place. His primary endeavor is to give the world an interest on Geology and Environmental Science, and provide reasons why Nature, cannot be controlled but can be at least be avoided. Control of Nature is a book catering a series of earth’s revenge against man-made discrepancies aimed to make the contemporary society of today realize that any struggle against natural forces must be taken with great responsibility so as to prevent any form of chaos caused by such disregard. He cited one incident which happened in Iceland during the year 1973, tackled in Chapter Two of the book, where an island gashed open without warning and massive volumes of lava from an assumed â€Å"sleeping† Volcano spitted elements colored with red and gold, flaming with fire, began moving in a nearby harbor half a mile away. Worse, the harbor was along the nation’s southern coast, considered as the only harbor along its vicinity, the root of life for them. It had accounted a huge percentage of Iceland’s economy export, took away a large number of lives and horrified each living creature inhabiting the specified vicinity. It made the Icelanders establish nature, as an enemy of the State. Such raging earthly phenomena of hot molten lava flowing from the unpredicted component of the planet came too hard to impede with. It came like a bolt of lightning which suddenly electrified a roof of hope and serenity. Not even the strongest man alive could dare to stop, a superhero was needed, a miracle perhaps. But human rationality and sense of initiative came not out of order. The people of Vestmannaeyjar had to do something. Or else, it shall take what they have sown, the evil attack of nature must die out or it shall take their lives, and the life they long to live in the future. Then one man found a way to help his community, he was then the hero. Analysis Volcanic eruptions are the surface expression of processes that occur deep within the Earth. Many of theses processes take place juts below the Earth’s outer rigid shell, whereas some volcanic eruptions owe their origin to very deep disturbances, even at the boundary between the core and the Earth’s mantle at 2890 km below the surface (Encyclopedia on Volcanoes, p. 39). Certain volcanic activities can endanger a large mass of people and property on the spot where the land mass is situated given the fact that it’s high volume of lava flows, streams of molten rock are emitted by an erupting vent. It’s level of destruction to any form is high since that its temperature falls from 700  °C to 1,200  °C (1,300  °F to 2,200  °F), capable enough to eat anything which shall bar along its way. In the case of the Icelanders, Mt. Lakagigar (Laki) in the year 1973 took a number of 9,340 lives. But the impeccable thing is that the occurrence of the aforementioned chaos in Iceland was not like all the other typical situations experienced by places having such reprisal from nature; take for example the eruptions in Italy and Indonesia, exterminating more or less than 4,000 people in one single incident due to Pyroclastic Flow. Another is the terrifying Lahar in Mt. Nueva del Ruiz in Colombia taking over 23,000 lives. On the other hand, the Icelanders had gone eradicated in their hometown due to Post-eruption starvation. One cause of death which perhaps never yet crossed in their minds during their century making them too confident of their supply of food and water, after having assumed the fact that they already got their salvation from the wickedness of the flaming mountain. The ingenious way of the Icelandic Engineer may have had given great hope to its community, but what they less anticipated was that volcanic eruptions leave an unbeneficial form of dramatic and violent changes in nature leading its people to face the horrors of hunger. It drove many Icelanders leave their homes, look for a better place to live in, earn a job and raise their families in another state. It was not easy for them to leave the place they called home, but they held no choice, or else, they’ll starve and rot to death in the molten rock which once gave them an adrenalin rush. Although the initiative done by the Engineer, being a fan of geology and geophysics at that, if not so much to use, helped in saving quite a number of lives; still has not completely reached what it wanted to fulfill. If the advancement of technology and the level of perseverance could have had been instilled to those living in that point of time, then much could have had enjoyed what the present contemporary masses is enjoying now. Furthermore methods for determining the controls on magma composition had been closely studied nowadays. Earth scientists have developed several techniques for understanding and interpreting the compositional variation so as to alert the individuals inhabiting such volcano-close place are now being studied, which is good news. Volcanologists continuously observe and investigate the rise and expansion of an initially bubbly mixture in a conduit (signs of decompression of a bubbly magma), an important fact to be taken consideration to name the level warning they are to send the residents. International Agencies at present seek to slay aftermath predicaments assassinating entities which rise after phenomenal destructions, volcanic eruptions specifically; such as Starvation (caused by molten magma covering the entire agricultural region), displacement of residence (which most likely will cause emotional crisis) and unanticipated Volcanic Eruptions. Conceivably, the only beneficial point of the incident as narrated in John McPhee’s case study and the heroic act done by the outstanding engineer is the actuality that nature, unconsciously takes what it wants to take. Pressuring people to constantly seek for answers, ways and means, to save what must be saved. Conclusion At present, U. S. Army Corps of Engineers considered building a dam high up the crease between the huge volcanoes, which serves as a barrier of the immediate flow of volcanic emission from the land mass. The awfulness sought by the Icelanders is now taken like a cold magma to the families which were left orphaned. The nightmare is now three thousand feet below the present level of the ocean. All of that and then some is Iceland. It gave them a crack in the head trying to restore what they have lost. Still carrying the burden of nature’s tragedy, eating them up whole, but then, as John McPhee has heard their sentiments and has written an inspirational book narrating their stories; it shall give them hope that not all that kills them will forever torment them in an agony of despair. Their stories helped people, not only in their place but all over the globe. It was a signal to the Government to cooperate with them in building back their Nation. They never wanted to leave their home. They never wanted to experience such. Nobody wanted it. But natural phenomenon is but unstoppable. It just comes. But then, modern science tells the world that the 21st Century can avoid such. With the use of facilities and technology to detect a visiting retribution of nature, rationality shall save one. Reading the book and internalizing the Icelander’s unfortunate fate shall at least awaken the sleeping sense of sympathy and munificence of a person. There are people seeking for help. Seeking for a family. Seeking for a hand. It was Nature who held Control. It was a story of real people, of real hopes. Reference: McPhee J. 1990. The Control of Nature Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Simkin T, Siebert L. 1999. Earths Volcanoes and Eruptions: An Overview. Encyclopedia of Volcanoes. San Diego: Academic Press. p 39.

City of God Analysis

City of God Analysis The films studied for this essay City of God (2002) and Favela Rising (2006) have taken favelas from the marginality of Brazilian society and transported them into the consciousness of the international public. Favelas have become a cultural icon of Rio de Janeiro, as famous as the postcard images of Copacabana beach and the statue of Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado mountain. Since 1992 tourists have been able to sign up for â€Å"favelatourâ€Å" and see first hand the favela of Rocinha via one of the multiple tourism agencies competing for business in what has become one of Rios most popular tours. [1] City of God Fernando Meirelles film City of God (2002) is based on the Brazilian novel of the same name by Paulo Lins (1996). City of God (Cidade de Deus) is the name of the favela where Lins grew up, and the novel is based on a true story taken from interviews and research conducted by Lins in the favela over a period of 8 years regarding the state of drug trafficking and gang warfare. The film has attracted much critical acclaim due to its confrontation of the issues within the favela as well as the gritty realism with which it was shot and unabashed depiction of violence within the favela. The film is narrated by one of two central characters, Rocket, and tells the story of the lives of himself and Lil Ze, children who grew up in the Cidade de Deus in similar circumstances yet who chose separate pathways in life. In the film the character Rocket symbolises hope, as he dreams of becoming a photographer, and this is used as a vehicle within the film to portray imagery of the favela to both the media in Rio de Janeiro within the story, and to the viewer. Lil Ze is a child with the taste for crime that grows up to be the favelas most powerful and notorious drug dealer. The lives of the two are intertwined and ironically Rockets dreams of becoming a photographer are realised through his access to life in the favela and his depiction of the crimes perpetrated by Lil Ze and his gang. The films opening and closing sequence include a 360 degree rotational shot of Rocket in the centre of a face off between the gangsters and the police, unsure of where to turn. This is symbolic of the story of the film in that his life can take one of either direction. The narrative is then broken down into a series of vignettes which tell the story of the favela and the central characters, and ultimately which path Rocket decides to take. I argue that this film was imperative in raising awareness of both the existence of as well as the issues within the favelas in Rio de Janeiro, and was one of the first cultural representations to emerge from Brazil to show the darker side of the city and an alternate reality to what is commonly perceived about Rio, that is postcard images of beaches, sunsets and samba. Via this cultural vehicle I argue that it was possible to begin to conduct businesses in the city such as favela tour and favela party due to interest from foreigners in seeing and experiencing a slice of life in the favelas. Which raises the question: Did this film glorify life in the favelas, or did it depict a realistic perspective of reality? How has consciousness raising of the foreign public since affected the inhabitants of these urban spaces and has this effect been positive or negative? I argue that one of the key strengths of the film is realism. The actors are amateurs recruited from the favelas, and the central character Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues) is from the Cidade de Deus favela itself, which lends authenticity and personal perspective to the characters. The film was shot inside a real favela rather than a film set, taking the viewer directly into the urban space of favela inhabitants. There are several key themes in the film which I will outline below and which raise points of discussion related to the reality of life for favela inhabitants. Alongside the theme of choice, the film raises the questions of what options children who grow up in this environment have for survival. One of the most shocking and criticised features of the film is its portrayal of violence executed by young children in the favela. The characters The Runts are a group of children in the favela aged younger than 8 who view crime and becoming part of a drugs ring the only option for their future. Their youth is emphasised in a scene where they are discussing wanting to take over the most powerful drugs ring in the favela whilst sat in a fenced off cubicle which could be likened to a childrens playpen. This scene culminates in possibly the most memorable and shocking scene in the film, where a child wishing to be initiated into Lil Zes gang is forced to decide between which two children from t he Runts he wants to shoot and kill. We are faced with his indecision coupled with his detachment from the situation he is placed in. One of the children whose life is being decided bursts into tears, and with a close-up shot of his face we are immediately drawn to his extreme fear of the situation he is in, as well as his age, which could not be more than 5 years old. The child character who pulls the trigger. Steak and Frites, is later depicted in the house of the rival gang being questioned as to why he wants to be involved in the gang warfare, and says: â€Å"I smoke, I snort. I have killed and robbed. Im a manâ€Å". At the termination of the film when the Runts have murdered Ze and are discussing how they will take over his business and become the leaders of the favela, their lack of education is highlighted when one of the group asks for the purposes of creating a hit list of those they intend to murder who here knows how to write? and one of them responds a little. Either these children have had no access to education, or more concerned with their survival in the favela consider schooling to be an unnecessary part of life. An important aspect of the manner in which the film is shot, and a characteristic for which the film has received much criticism, is that of detachment. How the viewer feels towards the acts of violence and the characters they are enacted upon is a metaphor for how society in Rio de Janeiro feels towards the favelas- unemotional, detached, separate. That what happens inside the favela is their own business and does not affect those who live outside. The majority of characters in the film are presented in a one dimensional manner and are not depicted displaying emotion. Thus when they are murdered they become another number of the large headcount in the film. Characters are filmed from a distance and the lack of facial close-ups imbues the viewer with this sense of emotional detachment. The one exception to this is portrayal of the gangster Benny, Lil Zes best friend, who decides he wants a life outside of crime and the favela. We view him preventing Ze from shooting those who owe him money, his kindness in letting people out of debts owed to him, his desire to give Rocket a camera to pursue his dreams, and intimate scenes with his girlfriend. When Benny is killed by an addict and thus prevented from leaving the favela we are confronted with the only moment of remorse in the film; this is the only moment where Ze shows emotion, where the camera shots linger at the scene of the death, and where the viewer is in a sense instructed to feel grief for his loss. His death is also paramount in depicting the difficulty of trying to be a good character within or trying to leave the life of the favela. The final key theme of the film I would like to discuss is that of police corruption in Rio, which is clearly depicted in the film as integral to the survival of drug rings and proliferation of access to weapons. At the climax of the film when the two rival druglords Lil Ze and Carrot are captured by police, we witness two important events: Carrot is kept in custody by the police who say he will be a present for the media, whereas Ze is let go and through Rockets camera lens we see that police have been providing him with weapons and drugs in return for money. Favela Rising On August 30th 1993, a group of approximately 30 masked officers from Brazils Policia Militar entered the favela Vigario Geral and using machine guns and hand grenades killed 21 residents, including 8 members of an evangelical Christian family inside their home (NYT 1993). Henceforth known as the Vigario Geral Massacre, this was said to be in revenge for the murder of four policemen at the hands of the Comando Vermelho drug faction several days earlier. Day to day life within favelas is often referred to as wartime in a country officially at peace. Residents are accustomed to daily gun battles and being under the control of the armed drug factions. Police corruption is viewed by many as the prime reason this war is able to take place. As depicted in City of God and Favela Rising, and as told by favela residents under interview, Brazils military police provide the weapons to drug factions, and facilitate the trafficking of drugs in and out of the favelas. A 1993 robbery of an armoured van in Sao Paolo perpetrated by members of Comando Vermelho was found to have been possible using metal piercing bullets from automatic weapons legally available only to the Policia Militar. (NYT 1993). The documentary XXXX shows film footage of police transporting weapons into the favela. Violence within a Political Democracy Brazils military dictatorship ended in 1985 after 20 years of rule, however under the democracy many Brazilians feel less safe. (Caldeira) Since democratic rule, police violence has reached critical levels and events indicate serious degradation of democracy, with high levels of violent crime, police crimes against citizens, and human rights abuses a regular occurrence. Public space in Rio de Janeiro is often characterised by assaults of different types, muggings, and general lawlessness, creating a culture of fear and suspicion (Caldeira). Policies attempting to bring violence under control, such as Operaà §Ãƒ £o Rio in 1994 where military police were sent into the city on a mass scale, are replacing democratic initiatives at state level with assertion of civil order in an episodic manner. Public opinion polls found general support for the operation, with a general attitude that suspected criminals should not be subject to the same human rights conventions as normal citizens (Calde ira). Violence against civilians in favelas should also be considered a failure of democracy to protect their rights. Violence towards favela inhabitants can be seen as the result of a mixture of public attitudes towards criminal activity and middle and upper class attitudes towards favela inhabitants coupled with a police system which effectively serves only the elite. Public attitude plays a large role in the politics of policing and providing assistance (or lack thereof) to favelas. Volunteer worker XXXX in the film Bus 174 spoke of the public opinion polls in relation to the police shooting of 8 street children at Candelaria, where people said the shootings were a positive event, and that â€Å"society needs to be cleaned of this dirtâ€Å". **QUOTE CALDEIRA HOLSTON P699 CRIMINALISATION OF THE POOR*** ***ALSO ALTERNATIVE JUSTICE IN FAVELAS P713*** Development of Brazils Urban Spaces Industrialisation in Brazil began in the early 20th century and has always had significant links with urbanisation, directly influencing the composition and evolvement of the urban network. The primary urban centres of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo received the largest amounts of investment during the course of Brazils economic development, resulting in mass amounts of migration from rural areas. The National Census in the year 2000 (IGBE) documented 82% of Brazils 174 million residents live in cities. Furthermore, 80% of the total population live in 25% of the municipalities, indicating strong spatial concentration. (Xavier). Despite being one of the more important economic centres of Brazil (together with Sao Paolo constituting 20% of Brazils GDP (Acioly) ) the metropolitan region of Rio De Janeiro is marked by discernible social and wealth disparities between inhabitants. The needs of low income families unable to afford rent and living in favelas and cheap land on the periphery of the city mean continuous large volumes of transit of inhabitants between the periphery and the centre, where they have access to employment and services, creating severe socio-spatial stratification at the metropolitan level. In the 1990s, confronted with increasing social tensions and the recession of the entire country, favelas and low rent land became the focus of violence, with drug trafficking establishing a power parallel to official local controls, to the detriment of municipal regulations and law. The residents associations (AMs) which were very active in the 1980s fell under continuous intimidation and fear, and were often physically in the centre of shoot-outs between gangs and police. History of Favelas in Rio The Portuguese founded Rio de Janeiro in 1565 and by the end of the 16th century the hilled regions of the city were already substantially populated. Swamplands surrounding the hills were drained and soon also attracted settlers. Until the late 18th century the primary crop of the economy was sugarcane grown on the peripheries of Rio, which greatly influenced the spatial structure of the city. (Xavier). Following the relocation of the Portuguese Royal family to Rio in 1808 and the naming of Rio as the capital of Brazil, the population increased 25%, 50% of whom were slaves. (Xavier). There was a need for construction of housing for the higher income migrants and Portuguese nobility, with houses built closer to the periphery of the city, shaping the beginning of the patterns of segregation in Rio as rich and poor lived separately and in greatly different standards of housing yet within the same city centre. In 1888 slavery was abolished and freed workers from the coffee plantations migrated in large numbers to Rio. The word favela originated in the first low income residence to be constructed in the city centre, named Morro da Providà ªncia and later â€Å"Morro da Favelaâ€Å" by residents who were primarily ex soldiers and ex-slaves whom were not capable of integration into the citys economy. (Xavier). Government initiatives to modernise Rio led to large low income residential areas including those on hillsides being demolished, displacing predominantly the citys poor and forcing them further to the peripheries to resettle. By definition a favela is a squatter settlement, usually self-built by its inhabitants illegally on land lacking any infrastructure and without any urban plan for its development. The last official estimate for the number of favelas in Rio de Janeiro was 605 (PCRJ, IPP) but unofficial estimates read that 100 more have arisen since then. The typical location of favela construction is hillside areas, though in the 21st century they have increasingly been built in swampy land areas such as near the higher income Barra de Tijuca expansion zone. (Xavier 8) Rios first urban plan was developed in the late 1920s, named Plan Agache, following a segregated functionalist principle to organise the city (Xavier). In this plan the southern beachside areas of Ipanema, Leblon and Gavea were reserved for the upper classes, while the working classes were relegated to the suburbs, and the first plans for total eradication of the favelas were made. This was the first official document to describe favelas as a problem which must be eradicated; they were viewed as an epidemic which was blighting the most expensive land in Rio. As a result of this first urban plan dividing lower, middle and upper classes into distinct sections of the city, the only option left for the poor who did not fit these categories was to move into squatter settlements, either on the city outskirts or in dangerous and therefore undesirable locations such as steep hillsides. Alongside the explosive population growth and industrialisation of the following decades, Rios transport an d housing systems were unable to cope with the rise in migrants to the city, leading to the increasing spread of favelas into the city centre into environmentally fragile areas such as the hillsides separating the upper class suburbs. Living conditions in Rio display exceptionally poor distribution, demonstrated by the discrepancies in living conditions between the rich and the poor. There is a high level of socio-spatial inequality, with income being concentrated in a miniscule proportion of the population; the poorest 50% of Rios population earn only 13% of its income, while 12% of income is earned by the richest 1%. (IPEA). The social inequality prevalent in Rio de Janeiro is not applicable only to the physical make-up of the city but in the social configuration. Those located in the periphery in a physical sense are not only spatially remote; even when located in the centre of the city nest to a high income suburb, the favelas are in contrast with the â€Å"formal cityâ€Å". (Xavier). This inequality resonates in the difficult quotidianity of life for favela residents, who constitute 17% of Rios 5.8 million residents according to the 2000 census (IGBE). Segregation Telles (1995) in his study of the structural sources of socioeconomic segregation in Brazilian metropolitan areas concludes that the extent of urbanisation and predominantly population size is the key to understanding socioeconomic spatial inequalities in Brazil, and explains the majority of variations in segregation between different metropolitan areas. In dividing up income and race groups in Rio de Janeiro based on data from the 1980 census of Brazil it can be clearly seen that there is the smallest proportion of non-white households in the largest income group, and this percentage grows proportionately as the income levels are lowered. Due to issues of race and class being strongly correlated in Brazil, segregation (found to be largest between Rios lower and middle classes) becomes racialised. Thus racial segregation is partially ascertained by the higher numbers of non-whites in poorer socio-economic groups. However in the specific case of Rio, Telles finds class identities to b e stronger than racial identities, and this is explained by Rios particular spatial factors, for example the idiosyncratic mountainous landscape which played a part in the formation of Rios favelas. Bibliography Xavier, Helia Nacif Magalhaes, Fernanda (2003) Urban Slums Report: The Case of Rio de Janeiro Understanding Slums: Case Studies for the Global Report on Human Settlements UN IPEA/PCRJ/PNUD (2000), Relatà ³rio de Desenvolvimento Urbano A distribuià §Ãƒ £o de renda na cidade do Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, RJ Prefeitura da Cidade do Rio de Janeiro PCRJ, IPP (2000) Anuà ¡rio Estatà ­stico da Cidade do Rio de Janeiro 1998, Instituto Pereira Passos, Rio de Janeiro, RJ Website: http://www.armazemdedados.rio.rj.gov.br News Articles Brooke, James: 21 Shot dead in Rio Slum; Policemen are Suspected New York Times Section A p3 Column 1 August 30 1993 www.favelatour.com.br

The Boston Massacre and Other Contributing Factors of the Revolutionary

The Boston Massacre and Other Contributing Factors of the Revolutionary War The Boston Massacre was not the only cause of the Revolutionary War. There were many events before and after that also contributed to the start of this war. They were the Sugar Act, Stamp Act, Declaratory Act, Townshend Act, Quartering Act, Tea Act, the Boston Tea Party, and Coercive Acts. One of the first taxes put on the colonies by Britain was the Sugar Act. The Sugar Act of 1764 was to raise money to help Parliament run the colonies. This act put a tax on goods such as molasses, coffee, and sugar. It also required shippers to have a detailed outline of their cargoes. Smugglers could also be tried in admiralty courts. If convicted, the offenders lost both the cargo and the ship that carried it. Most colonists believed they should only be taxed by a government they had elected. They did not like this taxation without representation. The Stamp Act was then passed to help raise money to run the colonies. The Stamp Act was passed by Parliament in March 1765. This Act taxed the use of printed materials such as deeds, marriage licenses, advertisements, newspapers, diplomas, customs documents and even playing cards. Many colonial assemblies were against this taxation and wrote petitions demanding the repeal of this act. The first open resistance were riots caused by the Sons of Liberty who believed in action rather than talk. So, Parliament repealed this Act and then passed the Declaratory Act The Declaratory Act was a statement of power. It said the colonists were under the control of Parliament and they could pass any law they wanted. This Act did not settle the issue of taxation without representation. When the Stamp Act was repealed, the colo... ...s Preston's Account of the Boston Massacre: http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/D/1751-1775/bostonmassacre/pres.htm Anonymous. The Boston Massacre: http://www.tiac.net/users/amerins/mass.htm Cameron, F. Boston Massacre: http://hana.asij.ac.jp/elementary/links/currlink/5-m/cameronf.htm Francis, Russell. Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill. Mahaw, NJ: Troll Associates, 1963. Garraty, John. American History. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1982. Garraty, John. American History. New York, NY: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1982. Garraty, John. The Story Of America. Austin, TX: Rinehart and Winston, 1994. McDowell, Bart. The Revolutionary War. Washington,DC: National Geographics Society, 1967. Muzzey, David. The american People. Boston, MA: Ginn and Company, 1927. Morrison, Alex. The Cause of the Revolutionary War: http://www.ctbw.com/amorris.htm

A Worn Path: Dementia Essay

Dementia is a loss of brain function that occurs with certain diseases. It affects memory, thinking, language, judgment, and behavior. This disease usually affects the old generation. As the human body ages, some aspects of life may not be as easy as they were before. In this paper, I will talk about the causes, symptoms, medications, diagnosis, complications, and preventions of Dementia. The causes of Dementia can be heightened. Most types of dementia are nonreversible. Nonreversible means the changes in the brain that are causing the dementia cannot be stopped or turned back. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common type of dementia. Lewy body disease is a leading cause of dementia in elderly adults. People with this condition have abnormal protein structures in certain areas of the brain. Dementia also can be due to many small strokes. This is called vascular dementia. Some other medical conditions that can lead to Dementia are Huntingson’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease. Some causes of dementia may be stopped or reversed if they are found soon enough. Some more causes are brain injury, brain tumor, chronic alcohol abuse, changes in sodium and calcium levels. Dementia usually occurs in older age. It is rare in people under age 60. The risk for dementia increases as a person gets older. Dementia symptoms include difficulty with many areas of mental function. Some symptoms are language, memory, perception, emotional behavior or personality, and cognitive skills such as such as critical thinking, calculation, and judgment. Dementia usually first appears as forgetfulness. Mild cognitive impairment is the stage between normal forgetfulness due to aging and the development of dementia. People with MCI have mild problems with thinking and memory that do not interfere with everyday activities. They are often aware of the forgetfulness. Not everyone with MCI develops dementia. Some symptoms of MCI are: Difficulty performing more than one task at a time, difficulty solving problems or making decisions, forgetting recent events or conversations, taking longer to perform more difficult mental activities. The early symptoms of dementia can include: Difficulty performing tasks that take some thought, but that used to come easily, such as balancing a checkbook, playing games, and learning new information or routines. Getting lost on familiar routes can also be an early sign of Dementia. Language problems, such as trouble finding the name of familiar objects, losing interest in things you previously enjoyed, flat mood, misplacing items, and personality changes and loss of social skills, which can lead to inappropriate behaviors.

Marriage Proposal

A Marriage Proposal (sometimes translated as simply The Proposal, Russian: ) is a one-act farce by Anton Chekhov, written in 1888-1889 and first performed in 1890. It is a fast-paced play of dialogue-based action and situational humour. Characters Stepan Stepanovitch Tschubokov, 70 years old, a landowner †¢Natalia Stepanovna, his daughter, 25 years old Ivan Vassiliyitch Lomov, 35 years old, a neighbour of Tschubukov, a large and hearty, but very suspicious landowner Plot synopsis Ivan Vassiliyitch Lomov, a long-time neighbor of Stepan Stepanovitch Chubukov, has come to propose marriage to Chubukov's 25-year-old daughter, Natalia. After he has asked and received joyful permission to marry Natalia, she is invited into the room, and he tries to convey to her the proposal.Lomov is a hypochondriac, and, while trying to make clear his reasons for being there, he gets into an argument with Natalia about The Oxen Meadows, a disputed piece of land between their respective properties, whi ch results in him having â€Å"palpitations† and numbness in his leg. After her father notices they are arguing, he joins in, and then sends Ivan out of the house. While Stepan rants about Lomov, he expresses his shock that â€Å"this fool dares to make you (Natalia) a proposal of marriage! † This news she immediately starts into hysterics, begging for her father to bring him back.He does, and Natalia and Ivan get into a second big argument, this time about the superiority of their respective hunting dogs, Otkatai and Ugadi. Ivan collapses from his exhaustion over arguing, and father and daughter fear he's died. However, after a few minutes he regains consciousness, and Tschubukov all but forces him and his daughter to accept the proposal with a kiss. Immediately following the kiss, the couple get into another argument. Themes The farce explores the process of getting married and could be read as a satire on the upper middle class and courtship.The play points out the struggle to balance the economic necessities of marriage and what the characters themselves actually want. It shows the characters' desperation for marriage as comical. In Chekhov's Russia, marriage was a mean of economic stability for most people. They married to gain wealth and possessions or to satisfy social pressure. The satire is conveyed successfully by emphasizing the couple's foolish arguments over small things. The main arguments in the play revolve around The Oxen Meadows and two dogs called Ugadi and Otkatai. Performance history The Proposal was successful in its first runs in St.Petersburg and Moscow, and quickly became popular in small towns across Russia. [1] Tsar Alexander III liked the play when he had it performed for him. [2] Chekhov himself thought farces were not really worth much as literature; before its success, he called The Proposal a â€Å"wretched, boring, vulgar little skit. â€Å"[3] He advised its director, Leontiev, to â€Å"roll cigarettes out of it for all I care. â€Å"[3] When Vassar College staged The Proposal in the 1920s, they performed it three times in one evening, each with a very different staging: â€Å"as realism, expressionism, and constructivism. [2] In the second version, played closer to tragedy, the actors were masked, and in the third the actors were all dressed in work suits in a playground, tossing a ball between them. [2] In 1935 in the Soviet Union, the seminal Russian theatre practitioner Vsevolod Meyerhold combined The Proposal with Chekhov's other short plays The Bear and The Anniversary to form a three-act play called 33 Swoons that demonstrated the weakness of the pre-revolutionary intelligentsia. [4] [hide]v †¢ d †¢ eWorks by Anton Chekhov Biography †¢ Bibliography PlaysPlatonov (1881) †¢ On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco (1886, 1902) †¢ Swansong (1887) †¢ Ivanov (1887) †¢ The Bear (1888) †¢ A Reluctant Tragic Hero (1889) †¢ The Wedding (1889) †¢ The Wood Demon (1889) †¢ A Marriage Proposal (1890) †¢ The Festivities (1891) †¢ The Seagull (1896) †¢ Uncle Vanya (1897) †¢ Three Sisters (1901) †¢ The Cherry Orchard (1904) NovellasThe Shooting Party (1884) †¢ The Steppe (1888) †¢ The Duel (1891) †¢ The Story of an Unknown Man (1893) †¢ Three Years (1895) †¢ My Life (1896) Related articlesChekhov's gun †¢Analysis of Anton Chechov's play.Plot of courtship of Lomov and neighbor's daughter Natalya. Importance of land and money to the characters. Reasons for their constant fighting. Depiction of the rual social system and its relationship to the characters. The play as a metaphor for marriage as a continuing battle ground. †¢From the Paper: †¢Ã¢â‚¬ In the short play â€Å"A Marriage Proposal,† Anton Chekhov describes the odd courtship of Lomov, who seeks a marriage with his neighbor's daughter. Lomov and the woman he wants to marry fight before he can make his proposal, fight while he proposes, and fight after she agrees to marry him.They tend to fight every time they speak to one another, and while this alarms her father at first, he decides that the two just like to fight with each other. In the end, the father calls this last fight the â€Å"beginning of family happiness,† though it is doubtful that a couple can fight all the time and achieve anything like bliss. The meeting between Lomov and Tchubukov suggests one sort of neighborhood arrangement, for Tchubukov could not be friendlier and more delighted to see Lomov, happier being asked about the marriage, and more positive about Lomov's prospects. †¢A Marriage Proposal is a text play written by Russian writer, Anton Chekhov, and then it is translated into English version by Hilmar Baukhage and Barrett H. Clark. The story is initiated by the explanation of setting in the text play which takes place in the reception room at Tschubukov’s country home, in Russia. T here are merely three characters involved in this text play namely: Stepan Stepanovitch Tschubukov (Natalia’s father), Natalia Stepanovna (Stepan’s daughter, 25 years old)), and Ivan Vassiliyitch Lomov (Stepan’s neighbor who falls for Natalia).The plot of the text play has been so hilarious and entertaining. It simply enlightens readers that two people who fall in love each other can never be entirely united if they cannot take the edge off their own selfishness. †¢Each character actually holds different identifying features but in general we can conclude that they share the same attitude, i. e. egoistic, stubborn, and high self-esteem. They stick to their belief that the meadows—thing which is being tightly debated belong to their own family.Tschubukov, in fact, agrees to the marriage proposal proposed by his neighbor toward his daughter. But gradually he changes his mind when Lomov starts the debate that the meadows belong to his family. Indeed, Na talia and her father get mad. They simply yet totally debate and argue trivial matters such as dogs and meadows. The ultimate goal, the marriage proposal, should have been achieved earlier if Lomov doesn’t start the debate and Natalia doesn’t respond to every trivial matter in which Lomov states, for they both are fully aware that they love each other. The segmentation of this text play only consists of a single scene. It most likely leads the readers to come up with the idea that it is easily-to-read text play. In this text play, dialogue, as the most prominent primary text, plays a very significant role, for it provides the readers with funny and entertaining dialogue among the three characters. These kinds of dialogue will simply make the readers understand the text comprehensively because readers seems to enjoy a lot a text play with witty and amusing dialogue rather than serious and complicated ones.Comedy is the generic convention of this text play, for the indic ation says so—the humor mostly comes from the three characters’ arguments about the meadows and the dogs. The story also employs a tone of irony. Those three characters wish the marriage to be held and done but their insensitivity almost postpones the marriage. As a whole, the story is ended by an open ending. It remains blur to where the story will go but at least, the dispute is resolved. †¢ Anton Chekhov has a unique writing style. He goes to the extreme to prove a point, in this story capital punishment.In true life, I doubt that a person who would stay imprisoned for fifteen years voluntarily. Also, a bet like this one would have been considered as not authentic, because these gentlemen were having a heated discussion where violence could have possibly taken place. Also both men were young and hot tempered, they made their decisions irrationally without much thought of the consequences this bet does. The banker underestimates his fortune, and is too proud to rethink his offer. The lawyer is also a senseless young man who is a zealot and does not value life as much as his cause.Another style Chekhov’s writing’s have is the intense physiological transformations each character †¢ †¢was going through. One moment, which was very apparent, was the banker thinking of the ways of killing the lawyer. He debates in his mind whether to kill him. Slowly he agrees to kill the lawyer and premeditates the murder. The banker believes that the murder would be blamed on the watch and that the lawyer had become so weak that he could easily killed him without struggle. Chekhov was able to weave the thoughts of a character into something dark and evil. He discovers the human personality at its worst.Another issue Chekhov approaches is greed. Perhaps, the lawyer had taken the bet partially because of the money was worth; the whole story revolves around greed. Also another scene where greed was present was when the banker was speculati ng how to pay off the lawyer. â€Å"Why didn’t t †¢ Genre denotes a systematic way to categorize literature. The term might be considered academic jargon; however, it produces up a set of expectations that allow us to judge literature. These expectations or criteria also allow us to compare with other literature in the same as well as different genres.In spite of these expectations, genre does not dictate a set of rigid rules; in fact, genre is more descriptive than prescriptive. Problems in defining genre often arise because there are frequently sub-genres: romantic comedy might be considered a sub-genre of comedy, revenge tragedy of tragedy and gothic horror of horror. It becomes increasingly difficult to see where one sub-genre ends and another begins. Also these categories are seldom pure. For example, Hamlet, a revenge tragedy, includes aspects of romance and even a comic scene or two.Our popular culture makes defining genre challenging because what is vital one da y might disappear the next. An example of this is the current insistence upon a happy ending. Since tragedy is often characterized by an unhappy or â€Å"right† ending, according to Aristotle, popular culture no longer welcomes the tragedy with the relish it did at other times in history. Our Town being the exception that comes to mind, as well as the one-man shows. Poetry makes frequent use of this voice. In Daddy by Sylvia Plath, the author address â€Å"Daddy† throughout the poem.Shannon Chamberlain's use of Aesop's fable The Parrot and his Cage was another example of this single voice narrative. A second voice option is the drama or dialogue that involves talking between two characters with no narration. All of the plays we are reading in class fit this category as well as Stacy Burleson's example of Merlin as a legend in film. Finally, the combination of the narrator plus dialogue is just as it seems, a narrator talks to the audience (or reader) but the characters talk to each other. The TV shows The Fugitive, Dragnet, and Twilight Zone come to mind as examples of this.Narrative genre, by contrast, focuses on the storyline or plot. Tragedy frequently introduces a problem, there is struggle for control, finally a realistic and often unhappy ending that resolves the problem. Examples of this include: Romeo and Juliet (Sylvia Duncan's presentation), the recent Academy Award winner American Beauty and Moby Dick (Doris Herrmann's presentation). Comedy is another plot or storyline that usually deals with a less significant problem, there is an attempt to solve it, but the ending often brings people together.Examples of comedy are: Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Ernest, A Marriage Proposal by Anton Chekhov, and the movie Sixteen Candles shown in class by Laura Peterson. Romance may center [or conclude] on a transcendence where the problem often includes separation, a journey or adventure might be included. [The plot of romance would be the s truggle to achieve this transcendence or goal. ] Characters are more predictable and are frequently good or bad with very little complexity. The excerpt of Sleepy Hollow shown by Cara Skinner is an example of this. true] Pygmalion and Shakespeare in Love might fit her; however, these characters do show considerably more depth than the norm. [This is a good reminder of how good any genre can be. ] Satire pokes fun at a social situation or institution and assumes the audience is familiar with what is being satirized. There is usually a less serious tone than with the original. Examples are seen in the play within a play in MidSummer Night's Dream. [good] Political cartoons and Moliere's The Misanthrope also display elements of a satire.ThePlay, â€Å"A Marriage Proposal†, shows how consideration of property and even our pride in property override other feelings and emotions like those generally associated with love and marriage. Even marriage is prompted by economic considerati ons, not by emotions. ;nbs p; Stepan Stepanovitch Tschubukov and Ivan Vassiliyitch Lomov were neighbours in a village. Natalia Stepanovna was the daughter of Tschubukov. Lomov a man of thirty five wanted to marry. He thought Natalia was good at farm work and she was not bad looking. So he came to the house of Tschubukov one evening to propose to Natalia.Naturally he was in his best clothes befitting the occasion of a marriage proposal. Tschubukov received him cordially in his reception room. Like every young man going to make a marriage proposal Lomov was also excited and nervous. After some nervous stammering, he told Tschubokov that he wanted Natalia’s hand in marriage. Tschubokov was very excited and happy at the proposal. He went out and sent Natalia into the room to meet the suitor. Natalia was not told of the purpose of Lomov. Natalia and Lomov began to talk. ;nbs p; Lomov was more nervous as he was facing the bride. He made a strong preface before coming to the proposa l.He told Natalia about how the Lomovs and the Tschubukovs had been good neighbours on good terms for many years. In this context, he mentioned that his meadow touched the birch woods of Tschubukov. Natalia was surprised to hear that the meadows belonged to Lomov. She claimed that the plot of land belonged to them, the Tschubukovs. A bitter quarrel ensued. Lomov claimed it belonged to him and Natalia too claimed it to be theirs. Lomov forgot his original purpose. They called each other names, even though a little while ago they were full of good neighbourly feelings. Tschubukov came in and heard their quarrel.He too claimed that the meadow belonged to him. The quarrel grew even bitterer. They called each other names and began to expose the scandals of each others’ families. Lomov had a weak heart. He used to have palpitation in the heart. He was excited and he fainted. He rose and left the house. At this juncture, Tschubukov remarked that such a fool had dared to come seeking the hand of Natalia. ;nbs p; The moment she heard that he had come to propose to her, Natalia changed her tone. She asked her father to bring back Lomov. Her self interest overruled all other considerations like her loyalty to her family.Lomov came back. Natalia was all politeness. She even conceded that the meadow belonged to Lomov. After all, if they were married, the meadow would come to be hers only. Lomov informed that he would go hunting after the harvest. He was sorry that his dog Ugadi limped and he began to praise his dog. He thought that a hundred and twenty five roubles that he had paid for it was very cheap for such a good dog. Natalia, however, thought that it was a very high price because her father had paid only eighty-five roubles for their dog Otkatai, which was a better dog than Ugadi. nbs p; Lomov disagreed and asserted that Otkatai had a lower jaw and Ugadi was a far better dog than Otkatai. Once again their pride in their dogs led to another quarrel. Tschubukov came in and joined the quarrel. Lomov once again got excited and he fainted. Tschubukov who knew the importance of getting his daughter married, at once joined the hands of Natalia and Lomov and declared that Natalia agreed to the match. Natalia too, declared that she was willing and Lomov declared that he too, was happy. Tschubukov shouted for champagne to celebrate the intended marriage.