Scarlet Letter And Puritan Society Essays - English-language Films

Scarlet Letter And Puritan Society The Scarlet Letter - Puritan Society In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, life is centered around a rigid Puritan society in which one is unable to divulge his or her innermost thoughts and secrets. Every human being needs the opportunity to express how he or she truly feels, otherwise the emotions are bottled up until they become volatile. Unfortunately, Puritan society did not permit this kind of expression, thus characters had to seek alternate means to relieve their personal anguishes and desires. Luckily, at least for the four main characters, Hawthorne provides such a sanctuary in the form of the mysterious forest. Hawthorne uses the forest to provide a kind of shelter for members of society in need of a refuge from daily Puritan life. In the deep, dark portions of the forest, many of the pivotal characters bring forth hidden thoughts and emotions. The forest track leads away from the settlement out into the wilderness where all signs of civilization vanish. This is precisely the escape route from strict mandates of law and religion, to a refuge where men, as well as women, can open up and be themselves. It is here that Dimmesdale openly acknowledges Hester and his undying love for her. It is also here that Hester can do the same for Dimmesdale. Finally, it is here that the two of them can openly engage in conversation without being preoccupied with the constraints that Puritan society places on them. The forest itself is the very embodiment of freedom. Nobody watches in the woods to report misbehavior, thus it is here that people may do as they wish. To independent spirits such as Hester Prynne's, the wilderness beckons her: Throw off the shackles of law and religion. What good have they done you anyway? Look at you, a young and vibrant woman, grown old before your time. And no wonder, hemmed in, as you are, on every side by prohibitions. Why, you can hardly walk without tripping over one commandment or another. Come to me, and be masterless. (p.186) Truly, Hester takes advantage of this, when Arthur Dimmesdale appears. She openly talks with Dimmesdale about subjects which would never be mentioned in any place other than the forest. What we did... she reminds him, had a consecration of its own. We felt it so! We said to each other! This statement shocks Dimmesdale and he tells Hester to hush, but he eventually realizes that he is in an environment where he can openly express his emotions. The thought of Hester and Dimmesdale having an intimate conversation in the confines of the society in which they live is incomprehensible. Yet here, in the forest, they can throw away all reluctance and finally be themselves under the umbrella of security which exists. In Puritan society, self reliance is stressed among many other things. However, self reliance is more than stressed- it is assumed. It is assumed that you need only yourself, and therefore should have no emotional necessity for a shoulder to cry on. Once again, for people in the stations of life which Hester and Dimmesdale hold, it would be unthinkable for them to comfort each other. Yet, in the forest, these cares are tossed away. Be thou strong for me, Dimmesdale pleads. Advise me what to do. (p. 187) This is a cry for help from Dimmesdale, finally admitting he cannot go through this ordeal by himself. With this plea comes an interesting sort of role-reversal. When Dimmesdale asks for help, he is no longer sustaining the belief that he is above Hester. He is finally admitting that she is an equal, or even that she is above him. This is possibly one of the reasons that Puritans won't accept these emotional displays- because the society is so socially oriented. Hester, assuming a new position of power, gives a heartfelt, moving speech. The eloquence of her words cannot be overemphasized, and a more powerful statement had yet to be made in the book. Hester's speech turns out to bear a remarkable resemblance to one of Dimmesdale's sermons. Begin all anew! ... Preach! Write! Act!(p. 188) The questions she asks are also like the articulate questions which Dimmesdale would pose during his

Explore the methods Shakespeare uses during Richard’s opening soliloquy to reveal his true character

Explore the methods Shakespeare uses during Richard’s opening soliloquy to reveal his true character Explore the methods Shakespeare uses during Richard's opening soliloquy to reveal his true characterShakespeare wrote Richard's opening soliloquy when ElizabeththeFirst was on the throne.She was the great grand-daughter of Henry of Richmond. The soliloquy was set in 1845, during the War of the Roses which was between the families of York and Lancaster. Shakespeare varies the techniques he uses to describe Richard as he uses groups of three, alliteration and metaphors to create a monstrous image of Richard in the minds of the audience.Initially, in the opening section of the soliloquy, Shakespeare presents Richard as a proud man because he is celebrating his family's victory over Lancaster. This is evident in the opening section of the soliloquy when it says 'Now are our brows bound with victorious wreaths, our bruised arms hung up for monuments'. This shows how pleased Richard is for the victory. Also Shakespeare uses alliteration in 'brows bound' to create extra effect.Earlier in th e soliloquy, Richard the Third seemed more joyful as he was still celebrating the victory. This is apparent when it is said that 'Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious by this sun of York'. Shakespeareusesa metaphorhere to highlight Richards view on Edward (brother of Richard), the metaphor used is 'sun', which is what Richard refers his brother to. Shakespeare implies that Richard is referring his brother as 'sun' because he wants to emphasize how bright his brother possibly is. In addition, also within 'Now is the summer of our discontent', could mean that the time of unhappiness is past therefore Richard initially comes across as a proud man. At this stage in the soliloquy, the audience would view Richard as a pleased man.As we go through the soliloquy, the audience has a different reaction...

Acting on a Strategic Mission Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Acting on a Strategic Mission - Case Study Example EA should have utilized this human resource advantage to grow its market share by providing the developers with attractive incentives that would help to retain them and prevent them from switching to competitors such as Activision Blizzard (Griffin, 37). One of the weaknesses that a SWOT analysis would have revealed is the disparity between objectives of the management and those of developers. Management focused on maximizing productivity and profit whereas developers were motivated by imagination and creativity. EA could have easily eliminated this weakness by allowing developers more autonomy and, therefore, harmonized objectives of management and developers. The major opportunity and threat include a growing market and strong competitors respectively. EA should have realized early on that the video game industry market was on a steady growth pattern and sought new ways of tapping into this market. For example, EA should have developed games tailored for new market segments such as adults. EA could minimize the threat of strong competition by producing high quality games that would improve its brand name (Griffin, 36 – 41). ... Although this strategy resulted in high asset turnover and lower costs than its rivals, it killed developer autonomy and motivation (Eldring, 56). Activision Blizzard identified this niche and set on gaining competitive advantage over EA by focusing on promoting developer autonomy and providing them with financial and distribution muscle that enabled them to benefit more than previously from their innovations. This approach basically meant that Activision Blizzard now focused on the product differentiation strategy. Developer autonomy promoted product differentiation by facilitating the creation of very popular games with a high level of uniqueness that drastically increased Activision’s market share. Furthermore, it helped Activision to attract the industry’s best developers, including those working for EA. Consequently, EA lost the most important resource in the gaming industry to EA, creative talent (Eldring, 62). Q3 The Miles-Snow typology is a classification of bus iness strategies into four main categories: prospector, defender, analyzer, and reactor strategies. The strategy that Activision Blizzard ought to adopt should have a strong basis on market dynamics and strength of the competition. The video-game industry is characterized by a very dynamic and unpredictable market environment, with new market opportunities constantly arising. Developers keep on coming up with new ideas based on prevailing events and situations. Games that have a connection with current or recent events that customers are familiar with tend to be very popular and they take advantage of new market opportunities. In order for Activision Blizzard to maintain its market leadership, it should operate with an

Forensic Archaeology Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Forensic Archaeology - Assignment Example Popular but somewhat not realistic perception and understanding of forensic science has brought much awareness in public and government and has influenced the court system, that it is now called â€Å"CSI effect† (Toobin, 2007). Forensic archaeology, defined and considered a specific emerging field, consists of tools, techniques and methods, developed for archaeological research purposes, to assist legal investigations. Forensic archaeologists are usually the members of faculty of archaeology deployed to work in close coordination with expert search teams, forensic entomologists, forensic botanists and forensic pathologists to find and investigate buried evidence at crime scenes. Forensic archaeology assists in investigating genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, mass disaster victim recovery, and repatriation of war dead (Hunter & Cox, 2005). Forensic archaeology helps to discover and solve the events pertaining to a specific crime scene or disposal site. Generally, each crime scene brings its own unique set of questions requiring answers to unveil the truth as the circumstances of each investigation differ considerably. The questions may include but not limited to the way grave was dug, identities of buried persons, during for which bodies remained buried and presence of any other material in graves that may assist investigations. Constrained by limitation of time and opportunities to access the evidence site, forensic archaeologists devise specific strategies and employ appropriate techniques or a series of methods to optimize the evidence for search and recovery of truth. Thus forensic archaeologist strive to identify the understand the events prior to and around the death and burial, method of death and tools used for burial, and thus help to identify the party or parties involved in crime (Miller, 2010). Usefulness o f Involving Archaeologists Forensic archaeology has several key roles in international war crime investigations including searching, locating and confirming the site such as mass graves, surface scatters and execution sites; excavation, recording, retrieval, recovery, preservation and analysis of evidence. These roles provide sufficient information to determine the existence or refute of a crime, identification of the human remains, their ethnicity, culture, geographical origin, time frame of death and reconstruction of crime scene, the actions of perpetrator and perpetrator’s identity. Such information helps in successful criminal prosecution and identification of victims (Oxenham, 2008). Repatriation of missing and identification of dead in a genocide or war has been the main focus of such forensic archaeological investigations taken place from a humanitarian view. It is worth mentioning that the evidence, which was initially thought to be of humanitarian interest, is now u sed to assist criminal war investigations. In such investigations, the extent to which evidence is required may not be established at initial stages, thus resulting in maximum evidence recovery, high standards of evidence integrity and ability to preserve evidence are emphasized to mitigate any associated risks. Maximum evidence recovery helps to identify victims, reconstruct crime scene and corroborate the witness statements. There are many benefits of collection and analysis of evidence including recovery of remains for proper burial, identification of remains, repatriation of missing, human rights and deterrence to similar incidences. Different artifacts retrieved from crime scene provide information on past events surrounding

What Steps Have Been Taken To Enhance The Stability Of The Financial Essay

What Steps Have Been Taken To Enhance The Stability Of The Financial System In Singapore What Are The Main Steps That Remain To Be Taken - Essay Example FSAPs are designed to assess the stability of the financial system as a whole and not that of individual institutions. They have been developed to help countries identify and remedy weaknesses in their financial sector structure, thereby enhancing their resilience to macroeconomic shocks and cross-border contagion. FSAPs do not cover risks that are specific to individual institutions such as asset quality, operational or legal risks, or fraud. The views expressed in this document are those of the staff team and do not necessarily reflect the views of the government of Singapore or the Executive Board of the Singapore; the name inspires respect and trust. Today, it is looked upon with awe by people from all over the world, both from developed nations and the developing world. It is considered as a role model by the Asian countries. This has been possible because of Singapore's stable and slightly conservative economy, which has withstood the test of economic downturns and sudden asset price declines. Singapore's financial sector, which is dominated by the banking sector, remains robust despite a series of economic downturns and substantial asset price declines. Even when faced with a series of economic jolts and decline in asset price, the economy has stood on solid ground in the past few years. The local banks and insurance companies are endowed with huge capital and making considerable profits. Stress test results indicate that Singapore's systemically important banks and insurance companies could withstand further significant shocks. -Problem Statement What steps have been taken to enhance the stability of the financial system in Singapore What are the main steps that remain to be taken It would be our endeavour here to analyse the running of the financial system in Singapore, study the factors that contribute positively to it and also try to find if anything else needs to be done to create a positive impact on the financial system. Singapore's financial stability can be attributed in large to the smooth running and well organized set-up of the banks and their branches; both local and foreign. The insurance sector also plays a major role in contributing to this stability as it is also capital rich and highly profitable. It has weathered three major shocks: the Asian crisis in 1997-98; a sharp drop in electronics exports in 2000-01 (resulting in the worst recession since independence); and the outbreak of SARS in early 2003. This stability in the face of such downturns can be contributed to sound fiscal and monetary policies, long-standing external current account surpluses, significant external assets and reserve positions, the healthy corporate sector high household wealth, and conservative financial regulatory and supervisory practices. Conceptualization The steps been taken to enhance the stability of the financial system in Singapore include the following: 1. Banks dominate the financial sector Local banks, which hold more than one half share of domestic banking assets, are profitable and well capitalized. They are also liquid, have enough back up for non performing asset exposures, and conservative in their management practices. The insurance sector, though contributes only 6% to the total assets of the system, too is well capitalized and doing good business. Systemically important banks (including major foreign bank branches) and insurance companies have been shown to withstand major shocks under test conditions. 2. Systemic liquidity is well managed The Monetary Authority of Singapore

The Process Of Coastal Erosion Environmental Sciences Essay

The Process Of Coastal Erosion Environmental Sciences Essay Coastal erosion is a natural process in which sand and rocks are dislodged from the shoreline by various eroding agents. Wave erosion is one of the major eroding agents which erode the beaches by breaking the rocks. In coastal erosion land is permanently and completely shifted from one region to another. The intensity of erosion along a beach is influenced by how hard a wave hits it; the intensity of the wave depends on tides and the water density. Coast erosion usually affects most people that live along the coastline and also the marine organisms that have their habitats along estuaries, bays and very shallow parts of the ocean water. Discussion Many coastline are facing rampant coastal erosion and mostly in the Atlantic and gulf where erosion percentages are about 6% per year. Many coastlines within the United States of America have been affected by coastal erosion and in our study today we will concentrate on the coastal erosion in Louisiana specifically along the Mississippi river. Wetlands within the United States are declining at a very fast rate in the past 200 years, this because of the increase in the natural evolutionary processes and also some human activities such as dredging. The wetlands within Louisiana are vast and wide as they extend to about 130 kilometers inland and 300km onshore. Various wetlands within the U.S.A are in stable conditions but the one in Louisiana if not quickly addressed it will be completely eroded in the next two hundred years (Dunne and Knapp 123). The delta plains within the Mississippi river together with its shorelines have been the recipient of sediment deposition by the river dating back to seven thousand years back. There have been shifts in the course of the Mississippi river which has resulted in the staking of sand and mud which later formed deltas which were abandoned by the changing of the river course. These delta began eroding and degrading reason being the following factors; the subsequent increase in the water level which may have been caused by global warming, bombardment by the loose sediment which may have been deposited and also the reason may have been the sudden occurrence of storms which could have washed away the sand particles which were deposited on the deltas. Other than the above reasons the natural marine processes did erode the margins of the deltas which were seaward leading to the formation of barrier beaches and also sandy headlands. Erosion subsequently continued resulting to the barrier islands which were of low relief and eventually causing separation with the main land by lagoons and shallow bays The erosion of the coastal shorelines in Louisiana has really led to the environmental and economic decline of the region as compared to the past. If urgent measures are not addressed the wetland in Louisiana will be no more. Due to the erosion of the deltas there was formation of barrier islands which acted as buffer zones hence leading to the decline of the ocean wave effects to the surrounding wetland and estuaries. Researchers have come up with findings that tend to explain that if the eroding of the barrier islands continue they will be no more by the climax of this century hence exposing the wetlands to the mighty force of marine processes which include; tidal power, transportation of sediments, wave action and the intrusion of salinity. These marine processes will therefore lead to the degrading of the wetlands. Coastal erosion which is also known as shoreline retreat can cause a lot of economic losses since the following sectors are adversely affected and they include ; agric ulture, tourism which to some countries is the main source of income, fishing and shipping as harbors are also affected (Finkl and Khalil 206). In Louisiana there are oil refineries and energy production sites and therefore through coastal erosion such activities are hampered and disrupted. In certain estimation by economists it was noted that if oil refineries in Louisiana were to be hampered for three continuous weeks then the countryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s economy could suffer a setback of three hundred thousand jobs and also the loss of over one billion dollars. In a study conducted by waldemar nelson he states that if the coastal erosion is not corrected then the following economic conditions are likely to be affected: the transportation of oil and gas may be disrupted, navigation will also be hampered as erosion will make it difficult to navigate through the Mississippi river, commercial fishing may be hampered and some recreational activities like surfing may be affected. These are the direct impacts that may accrue as a result of coastal erosion. In a study conducted by Richardson and Scott they stated that coast erosion will impact a lot in the general economy of the United States of America. They further stated that there will be loss of jobs, decline in the household earnings and some of the business transitions of economy may be affected if the coastal erosion continues to disrupt industries in Louisiana. These are the indirect challenges that Louisiana may face as a result of the coastal erosion. Louisiana has had a decline in its wetlands for the past thirty years or so due to this a body of experts was formed to address this problem. This body was known as coastal wetlands planning, protection and restoration act which was made up of a task force whose responsibility was to keenly monitor, implement and design the conservation of the coast and also they were to make a follow up of the restoration projects that were being undertaken (Limnological Society of Southern Africa 81). For the purpose of their duties these task force were u fed with the high resolution and colored photographs of the region which were usually taken through aerial photography. These photographs enabled them to monitor the restoration progress and this was to continue for a period of twenty years. This taskforce always submitted a report of its findings and restoration projects to the congress. The projects to be undertaken were usually ranked regarding their costs and the benefits that were to be acqu ired from it. There is a formula which was used in accessing the benefits and ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s calculated through a methodology which is usually known as the wetland value assessment. Every year restoration projects were to be done and they include; restoration of the hydrology, protection of the shoreline, restoration of the barrier island, diversions of sediments, marsh management, proper use the material which is dredged, introduction of fresh water, planting vegetation and trapping of nutrients and sediments. A special body was established to monitor the progress and effectiveness of the projects. In the restoration of the coastal erosion in Louisiana the project needed an approximate of five hundred billion dollars to one billion dollar. These amounts were to assist in the protection of Louisiana against hurricane attacks (Morton 08). It is noted that it is not nature alone that is to be blamed on the degradation and destruction of wetlands in Louisiana but also the human activities which have been taking place in the Mississippi river delta. The following are some of the activities; there has been construction of levees which were designed to channel the riversà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ waters two thousand kilometers inland hence leading to the transportation of sediments which were deposited far from the coast. This sediment was of importance as they usually nourished the wetlands. Another human activity that has degraded the coast was the dredging of canals which were to be used in the facilitating of hydrocarbon exploration and its production, these led to the intrusion of salty water to the wetland from the Gulf of Mexico. Finally the drainage of water into the wetland so as to give room for development and agriculture has led to the loss and subsequent deterioration of the wetland (Finkl and Khalil 187). There are various ideas which have been put forward to address the problem of erosion of the Barrier Island and wetlands. Some of the ideas include; the restoration of the coast through the nourishment of the barrier island, sand and other materials that were dredged to be distributed to the wetlands, some other people state that a new navigation channel to be created so as to allow the delta plains to proceed normally with their erosion. These ideas still have their pros and cons as they still affect some communities, some interests in agriculture and also the petroleum and oil industry. There are various engineering solutions which are very expensive to implement for instance building of breakwaters so as to prevent the full force of the waves from hitting the wetland and also building of breakwaters. This idea is viable but it is very costly. The only way curb this problem is by understanding how wetlands and barrier islands change or evolve. Various coordinated studies are showing how the nature intended both the wetland and barrier island to work. Therefore in the planning process the researchers should take into consideration how they evolve rather than going contrary to Mother Nature. Some studies are also trying to examine the possibilities of replacing sediments with very fine grained sediments. All this are very good and attainable ideas but up to date all the engineering actions performed are still fruitless (Dunne and Knapp 128). .

Mind over Matter: The Unique Components of Womanhood & Depressive Disor

Abstract: As I sat down to begin this re-write, I made sure to do one thing before diving back into the stack of compiled research I had gathered, I took one good deep breath. As I came towards the end of my exhale, I was hit with a realization; there is unwavering power in positive cognitive embrace. And that one statement sums up pretty what this paper is about. Along with conceptualizing the realities of depression and the many frameworks surrounding its existence, the primary goal of this paper is to discover the unique ways in which women can stand up to the symptoms of depressive disorders. The Basics The National Institute of Mental Health (2012) describes depression as a serious illness which also happens to be very prevalent within all populations. Depression doesn’t discriminate in regard to age, race, gender, or socioeconomic status. However through research, a clear distinction has been made, depression is being seen more and more in women as opposed to in men (2012). A number of factors have been accredited with this trend; among them include hormonal, biological, and affective differences (NIMH) in which are exclusive to women, and are not often seen in men. Indicating that there is a difference in how men and women experience depressive disorders is important but is only half the battle when it comes to developing effective and efficient treatments for this sometimes plagiarizing disorder. Current Psychological Research & Statistics Depressive disorders, projected by the World Health Organization to be amongst the leading sources of illness-prompted disabilities in women by the year 2020 (as cited by Tanti & Belzung, 2011); Furthermore it is believed that more than 16% of the American population will experience ... ...033-295X.115.2.291 Kelly, M. M., Tyrka, A. R., Price, L. H., & Carpenter, L. L. (2008). Sex differences in the use of coping strategies: predictors of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Depression & Anxiety (1091-4269), 25(10), 839-846. doi:10.1002/da.20341 National Institute of Mental Health.(nd.) Depression [Brochure]. Retrieved from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/depression-easy-to-read/depression-trifold.pdf Tanti, A., & Belzung, C. (2010). Open questions in current models of antidepressant action. British Journal Of Pharmacology, 159(6), 1187-1200. doi:10.1111/j.1476-5381.2009.00585.x Mind over Matter 10 Weinberger, A. H., McKee, S. A., & Mazure, C. M. (2010). Inclusion of Women and Gender-Specific Analyses in Randomized Clinical Trials of Treatments for Depression. Journal Of Women's Health (15409996), 19(9), 1727-1732. doi:10.1089/jwh.2009.1784