Returning to School Essay Example for Free

Returning to School Essay Pregnant at seventeen and no foundation of stability, I dropped out of school to prepare to raise my child. I then began to struggle and had a hard time making ends meet, so at that time I got on track to seek help and guidance. I started the process to get enrolled in school but backed out due to finding out at nineteen I was expecting my second child. I finally went back to school and got my GED and graduated my program in summer of 2010. I walked across the stage to receive my diploma carrying my son Joziah Jah’Von (5 months) and holding my daughter Ajiona Amory’s hand (2 years). I was very proud and felt extremely accomplished. The importance returning to school will have on my life is that I will be able to provide a stable life for my children, become successful and self-fulfilled through a career in business, and rise above the negative expectations some people have of me. Being a young mother of two children, I had a rough time finding childcare and being comfortable with strangers caring for my babies. I tried to find work but wasn’t able to find flexible hours. I was at a hard spot in my life. I didn’t know what step to make. I enrolled in cosmetology school and did the best at my classwork and tests but my attendance was poor due to unreliable sitters. I ended up withdrawing from the program to be a mother to my children. Two years later I am now a mother to three intelligent, beautiful, amazing children. I want nothing but the best for them so I’ve decided to make the best move to better our futures and got back on the wagon and got my head back in the books. Returning to school is the best decision I could’ve made for my family. We now have a chance at success and stability. Not having much stability present in my childhood is why I want more for my children. Growing up in a broken home, constantly moving, my mother struggling to make ends meet, and not having happy memories; was miserable. As a child, I always promised myself I’d do whatever it took to make sure my children never had to experience what I did. But I feel I failed my babies, because it has taken me so long to get on track and we have been in a struggle. I am upset that I allowed them to experience not having stability in their lives. But things will now be different. Ajiona Amory, Joziah Jah’Von and Marcella Pamela are my life, my reason for living, my everything and I will give them the best of the best. I am dedicated and devoted to my family; I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure they have the greatest lives I can possibly give them. I want my daughters and my son to be happy and have what they need. I never want to see them wanting or needing anything. My children and I have struggled enough throughout the years, it’s our time to rise above and live the lives we deserve. School will help me to do so and I want stop until they have it all. Education is one of the keys that will open many doors for us. By furthering my education it will help me to get a good job so that I won’t struggle to make ends meet and it will help to keep stability in our lives. With the struggles and lack stability I now am ready to be successful and do what needs to be done for my family. I, Angelique, have always wanted and dreamt of being the successful business type. I’ve always wanted to wear the fancy suits and the sexy heels, while carrying a leather brief case. It’s something I just never stopped wanting, no matter what other careers came my way. Desiring to be successful and have power, respect and money; I knew a good career was the only way. There is no room for trial and error. I got 100 percent devotion and motivation to fulfill my dream get the job I’ve always wanted and I deserve to have. Nothing will stand in my way; I’m on the rise to the top. Majoring in business and management is the start to our new life, new beginnings, new ways and new accomplishments. Finally with striving to have a good professional career and stability, I am ready to prove everyone wrong. I have always had family, friends, and others downing and doubting me, telling me I’ll never amount to nothing nor be a somebody. Not having the support and extra push from the ones that you think love and care for you really take a toll on you in every aspect of life and emotion. But dwelling will hold you back. Yes I have failed myself by not following through with things I have started but I had my reasoning-‘s. I taught myself to take the positive and negative criticism and shift what you can use out and just toss the unnecessary shit aside and keep moving forward. If you sit and ponder on why no wants to see you succeed and why they strive to see you fail, it will eat you alive and stop you from doing what it is that you want to do. It will disable you to be motivated and crush your dreams and dedication. Never let someone reserve space in your mind to the point it stops your life. If they hate they hate. Stand up, smile and strive for the top and don’t stop until you’ve reached it. Prove that you can be who you want to be and that they can’t stop your shine. I as a single mother will keep moving forward and never again let a negative empower me and my life. Indeed, while I have made mistakes, and they pierced my will power to stay motivated these failures also made me work harder to succeed. Being a young mother is very hard and has its ups and downs. But just because I now have major responsibilities on my hands doesn’t mean I won’t be able to travel smooth roads throughout life. I will cross the bumps and dips in life but its normal; everyone goes through it here and there. It now has showed me that it’s okay to fall off the horse a few times but it is most important for me to get up and keep trying until I get it right and succeed. Returning to school was the best choice I could make for not only myself but for my children. Wanting nothing but the best for my family I decided to make the best move to better our futures and got up, got back on the wagon and got my head back in the books. Now having a chance at success and stability, we are happy and anxiously waiting to rise above the negative and evil.

The need for an offshore business plan

The need for an offshore business plan Nowadays the term offshore business is getting more and more business attentions. This term covers a wide range of information technology and other business related services offered by companies in developing countries to the companies in developed countries . The off shoring business is mainly started as a business to do cheap software development, and then it is expended to other areas which can be called ITES, IT enabled services like call centres and support centres . The term Business Process outsourcing (BPO) refers to the transfer of a companies business which are not the core process but the which are critical to the functioning to an external vendor in other country .These external vendors uses IT based delivery. By doing such kind of offshoring , the firms are able to focus on the their core areas ,making cost benefits and the non core areas will be handled by experts . This will help the parent firms shareholder value to increase because it is all about the performance in the market . (Roy,Sharma and Bhushan,2006) During the last one decade India has been developing as the most attractive location for offshore businesses . Companies and Global corporate from all over the world have already moved to Indian to take the advantages of the benefits of this country provides. The number of fortune 500 companies who has already set up their captive offshore business centre in India is not small . Thus India is emerging as the largest offshore hub in the world. The Information technology (IT) Outsourcing and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) market in India has been showing an unbelievable growth. According to the estimates of NASSCOM, the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), Indian offshore business (bothe IT and BP0) market is worth around seventeen billion USD, which is nearly forty four percent of the total global off shoring market (about USD 40 billion). (Tutorial reports, 2009) This report proceeds as follows .The first part will give the SWOT analysis of Indian offshore industry .The second chapter will explain about the benefits of off shoring to India .The third part will give an idea about various challenges that has to be faces in Indian offshore business. The final part will explain about the implication of development to the Indian companies . SWOT analysis In this section , a SWOT analysis of Indian offshore business sector is given .The tables below is very brief .Most of the things mentioned in this SWOT table will be covered in the coming sections. Strengths Rich and wide talent pool. English speaking graduates and Engineering graduates. Attrition rate is low compared to developed countries. Technological competency is high Benefits due to geographical location and time difference. Economical benefits .Reduced labour and infrastructure cost . Weaknesses The infrastructure is feeble. Diversity in culture . Legal issues Data protection and privacy issues Opportunities Availabily of manpower . High quality of information technology The market potential is high Growing economy . Educated young generation Threats Anti outsourcing bill in US Competition from other countries like china, Ireland, Philippians and eastern European countries. The billing rates are growing high Off shoring to India -Benefits Cost Benefits : One of the basic reason for doing offshore business in India is the direct saving of the cost. This cost benefits are calculated as a difference from the wages in India and wages in western countries for doing the same kind of skilled jobs. Even though the difference is decreasing due to the rise of wage in IT professionals in India, there will be significant cost benefits gained from outsourcing to India. The corporations around the world are not only outsourcing India for the end process tasks but also for the Knowledge Process outsourcing.( Robinson and Kalakota (2004) . The clinical trial outsourcing is an example .The clinical trials that can be done in India would give a cost saving of 40-50% compared to that being done in America. It also gives cost benefit in terms of capital benefits .The global corporate need not invest money on infrastructure and recruitment in the country where it is operating .The capital investments may be much cheaper in India. According to World Outso urcing Summit conducted in 2004, cost benefits are cited as the primary motive towards offshoring business services to India (Corbett, 2004). In the airline industry, Delta Air Lines offshore-outsourced some of its worldwide reservation services to India-based Wipro Spectramind. This third-party vendor manages Deltas reservations from its Mumbai call center; a move that Delta expects will save $26 million in 2003 alone . Robinson and Kalakota (2004) Access to the pool of Talent Offshore business is one way of accessing the talent from overseas for certain occupations. India has got a very big pool of people with rich talent .India has got several technology enabled centres (Green,2007).These centres has got the ability to attract the highly talented people .The speed of the recruitment and availability of the talent is much higher when compared to the western countries and US. This why India still remains in the no.1 position in offshore business centres. Another advantage is the availability of English speaking people with high-IQ. ( Kripalani, M., Engardio, P ,2003). Speedy and reduced cost Recruitment In US and western counties, the speed of the recruitment is comparatively less .It can take weeks or months to hire a person and fill the gap especially for a technically skilled position. Due to the large pool of candidates with high talent in Indian , the recruitment process is much faster than that of US .The cost of recruitment in US is much much higher than the cost of recruitment in India. This gives an advantage in offshore operations in India. (Green,2007). Fast Turn around time The time difference between US and India is 12 hours .This will allow the Indian part of the company to do processing at night time US .This difference in the zonal time gives a 24 hours work environment in the companies which does offshore business. So the processing tasks will be done without the backlogs. This gives a big benfits to the companies who wishes to operate 24 hrs and do some offshore business in India. The IT teams who work both in client site and Indian offshore locations has got very big advantage .The team who are in US work with the client during the day time in US and hands over the work to Indian team before they go to bed. The other part of the team who are in india will take over the work and do the work during the day time in India .This will significantly reduce the turnaround time .(Chithlen,2004) One of the main motive behind Nortal networks, an IT firm from Canada to start offshore business is in India was the benefit of turnaround time. They took the advantage of the time difference between Canada and India. Other Benefits:- Since it is not possible to explain all the benfits in details , some of the benefits are listed here . India has got people with information technology skills that are recognized by US companies . Indian government offers some tax exemption to the IT companies . Indian work practices, mainly in IT companies ly comply with the standards of ISO and SEI CMM s. More than eighty percentage of SEI-CMM 5 companies worldwide are located in India. The quality standards are approved by the leading companies from developed nations .The number of countries to which India exports software is 95.. The political factors are favouring the IT industry and it is stable The satellite and submarine connectivity is very good and which makes the broadband connectivity one of the best in the wolrd . Offshoring to India -Challenges Even though India is the no.1 attractive location for offshore business, there are many challenges that has to be faces by the firms to make a successful offshore business. In this section, the possible challenges will be explained briefly. Cultural Issues The culture in India is far different from the other countries where the offshore business jobs are coming from. The way of getting the work done and the conflict resolution methods in India are different .Even the words used in different contexts can have different meanings in Indian culture. These words may have slightly different meaning in European or Indian culture. The companies who would like to set up offshore business in India have to have a well aware of the Indian culture and they have to set their challenges and goals. According to Geert Hoftsede , Indias power distance index is very high compared to US or European countries. Higher power distance means, the inequality in the hierarchical levels is high . Indias power distance index is 77 . But the power distance of US where most of the offshore businesses are coming from is 40. The other dimensional indexes also are different. (Hoftsede, 1980). This can be illustrated by so many examples, In the call centres or other Business Process outsourced industries, the Indian teams have cultural problems in working with American colleagues. In American, the team members are expected to be taking responsibility and ownership .This is much less in Indian teams .In Indian culture is decision making is much more top-down where it tend to be less in American culture .In Indian culture the style of meeting deadlines, commitment, attitude towards the process and mindset about the different hierarchical levels are very different .These are all challenges that has to be faced while setting up offshore business in India. (Schomer, 2010) Infrastructure Challenges The infrastructure challenges are one of the big challenges of those who are keen to do offshore business in India. The firms from US and UK are keen to lease offices in Indian offshore location. The demand for the office spaces in key business locations is so high. So the companies have to book the places even before the construction is finished . Another problem is the future expansions. Companies have to look for office spaces if different location which makes the coordination difficult .For example the company HP has got 20 rented offices spaces in different parts of the Bangalore and they are running out of space .This challenges will lead the companies to get involved in developing their own campus of get involved in real estate business. (Butler,2003) Recruitment Challenges The pool of candidates in India is really huge .Nearly 260,000 engineering graduates come out of the campus every year .Finding the real best talent out of this pool is becoming a real challenge in these years. For example, the company called Infosys does the interview view for 67,000 candidates which are selected from nearly a million application .But only 260000 people are hired. So the effort and money put for these recruitment is not negligible. The companies from US/EU have to define a well structured recruitment process to find the best talent. Another additional challenge is the retention of employees. The attrition rate in India is higher that that of US/EU .As the number of vacancy is high, the candidates have got more opportunities and the other recruiter from other company will approach the candidate .So the retention policy in US or EU will not be applicable in a country like India.(Kottoli,2006). Training Challenges The work force should be trained to be more productive .This demands an organized training program. It can be seen that employees in India may have good englsih written skills, the offshore business demands more skills in verbal communication. The BPO employees should be trained in verbal communication which is more of accent training .(Brodsky and Vance,2009) In order for the employee to interact with the US/UK side of the business , the training should be tailored to include the cultural issues. The one who conducts the training should be aware of cultural issues of both parent and Indian organization. There is requirement that the hires should be trained in some technical specific tools This is to make them more productive in the real work environment. There are some training in specialized tools (eg. SIMMS, Kramer and Chronology etc.) Which are not available in India. This requires the overseas travelling of trainers of employees Challenges in team coordination In the offshore business teams working in different geographic locations. So there will be difference in the time zones. And the cultural differences will also be a problem for the team integrations. So coordination issues are one of the challenges to the offshore business. Rather that focusing on job, team will take time to do storming. Its the job of management to take care of the trust problems in the team and the communication gaps. This will help to minimize work stress among the members of team . The challenges of coordinating teams with different culture are little bit complex and cannot be easily solved with company policies. The companies may require consultants who can handle the cross-cultural issues.(Fabriek,2007)   Security in Data When selecting a technology provider organization for offshore jobs, companies should take care of the fact that they should have proper procedure for infrastructure security and comprehensive data security. There are different specific areas to be included such as compliance, communications and systems management, system development, and classification controls of assets. This can become a challenge while off shoring to India The procedures are policies are intended to cover business as usual activities such as restore and backup , assessment of information risk and change of control guidelines . Also the disaster recovery plans and business continuity policies could be well established Capgemini was selected to work with the Ministry of Defense of a major European country to implement an ERP system using SAP. However, the ministry was constrained by severe budgetary restrictions and therefore wanted to use offshore competencies and rates without compromising security. Following a stringent security audit, Capgemini India was awarded security clearance to develop and test the ministrys ERP solutions offshore (Dhodia-Capgemini,2006) Quality of service   The quality of service is another challenges .The quality can bring the real cost savings .Otherwise it may bring losses instead of savings .For example , after receiving many complaints about the service from customers ,Dell was forces to close one of its support centre . So a keep monitoring of the quality of the work and place where it is outsources is very much required for the offshore jobs. (Green, 2007) Off shoring India -Development of Indian Companies The offshore business in India has contributed significantly to the economic and market growth of India .These offshore business has caused the rise of many companies which are global players. Since year 2006, Indian offshore business providers have made at least thirteen acquisitions abroad in North American and European Markets. (Fitzgerald,2009) .A big competition is going in the top players in Indian offshore industry (Hillary,2004) . A brief explanation of the top players in Indian offshore business will give n insight into the development happened to the Indian companies. INFOSYS Infosys is started in 1981 with an initial investment of INR 1000.It has started its full scale operation in 1993 . The US investment banker  Morgan Stanley   has bought 13% of equity at the offer price of Rs. 95 per share  .. By the year 1999, the share price has gone above eight thousand Indian rupees. At the end of year 2000, the share price of this company went well above 15 thousand Indian rupees. (India Today ,1999) .As of march 2010, the revenue of Infosys is 4.8 billion US dollars and it employees more than 113 thousand people .(Garia,2010) Since it is listed in the Bombay stock exchange , the sales and earnings growth rate of Infosys was more than seventy percentage .(Forbes,200)  .During a speech , the former president of US complimented India for its achievement in technology by citing the company name Infosys .(Indian express ,2000).The number of applications it receives is more than one million which makes Infosys a very well know and branded company among the jobseekers in India . WIPRO Wipro is another giant information technology organization which is benifited from offshore business . According to th2008-2009 financial year report , Wipro is one of the largest information technology services company which employees more than 108 thousand people all over the world .(Wipro quarter results,2009)Even though , it has other business areas other than information technology , its main revenue is from offshore IT services .When IBM was asked to leave Indian information technology sector , Wipro entered into the information technology . As of march 2010, its net revenue is 6.03 billion US dollars(Wipro,2010). Acquisitions, : Over the last few years Wipro was very successful in acquiring companies . Wipros focus in the information technology sector is mainly on SOA, BPO and con ­sulting. Wipro is interested in big deals . Wipro has acquired a company called Infocrossing which makes Wipro as a very well player in infrastructure management deals. Wipro has got collaborative deals with Nokia Siemens in the area os radio acces research and development .Also it has signed contracts with Cisco to step into the networking area. Wipro is continuing to grow as a global player in the off shoring businees. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). Tata Consultancy Services is a strong player in Indian software industry which focuses on software services and consulting .It was founded in 1968 .TCS is listed in National Stock exchange and Bombay Stock exchange .(ICMR,2004) .In 2010 , the revenue of this company reached 6.33 billion USD and it employees more than 160 thousand people . Strong Revenue Growth: It is reported that TCS has got strong 27% growth in revenues .The net income growth is at a rate of 26%. TCS does offshore business with eighteen clients billing more than 50 million USD and six clients above 100 million USD. The growth rate of TCS in Middle east ,Asia and APAC countries is incredible. TCS was able to stepped up into the Telecom and manufacturing services and it is growing. Recently , non-ADM services of TCS has contributed more than 50% of overall TCS revenues. Its BPO services also show good groeth rate which is in the order of double digit. . TCS is the first Indian IT company which employed more than 100,000 employees. These are the development of major players in the Indian offshore business .There are hundreds of companies who are benefited from the offshore business ..

Rabbit Genetics :: essays research papers

Rabbit Genetics The similarity between the physiology of rabbits and humans makes the rabbit a good model for research into human disease. The most prevalent types of rabbits are cottontails and European rabbits. Domestic rabbits are tame assortments of European rabbits. The Californian, Florida White, and New Zealand White are the most common breeds used in research. Until 1912 rabbits were classified as rodents. Scientists discovered that the two types of animals differed in several distinct anatomical ways. Rabbits, for instance, have a second pair of upper incisors, known as "peg teeth," that are found behind the two main visible incisors in the upper jaw. Rabbits have elongated hind legs adapted for moving at high speeds over open areas. Rabbits generally move in a hopping motion. They also have webbed toes to keep them from spreading as they hop. Rabbits have flexible necks, which allow them to turn their heads more than rodents. Their spines are long and fragile and susceptible to fractures if the animal is held improperly. Research The ability to produce tumors in rabbits makes them useful models to study chemo/immunotherapy, as well as immunoprevention of certain cancers. Cholesterol studies: Rabbits have been used to test Probucol, a drug that lowers blood cholesterol and retards the development of hardening of the arteries. Eye ear and skin studies: Rabbits are used to study middle and inner ear infections, which affect millions of infants and children each year. †¢ Rabbits are also used to study Entropion, a condition in which the eyelashes are turned inward, as well as Glaucoma, which often results in blindness. †¢ Rabbits are used in eye and skin irritation tests to develop appropriate procedures for handling certain chemicals and to predict the toxicity of accidental exposure. †¢ More than 10,000 blind or visually impaired people have benefited from corneal transplants, possible only because of hundreds of trials on rabbits. Drug metabolism: Rabbits have been used to study the effects of marijuana on the central nervous system. Pregnacy Test Presently a woman who wants to find out if she's pregnant need only make a quick trip to the local drug, grocery, or convenience store; purchase an over-the-counter home pregnancy test kit; perform a simple test; and she'll know the results within a matter of minutes. Not so long ago, however, it was not nearly as quick or easy: Awomawho thought she might be with child had to schedule an appointment with her doctor, make a trip to his office, give a urine sample, go home, then spend an anxious couple of days waiting for the office to telephone with the test results.

The Atomic Bomb Human Beings and Nature Essay -- Essays Papers

The Atomic Bomb Human Beings and Nature With the surrender of Germany on May 1, 1945, the United States and its allies were well on their way to winning World War II and resuming peace in Europe. Japan was the only country still in their path. American forces soon began capturing islands off the coast of Japan including Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Since the Japanese refused to surrender, the United States began planning a ground attack on Japan's mainland. Many casualties for both sides were predicted; therefore, the United States constructed an alternate plan to end the war. Enricho Fermi and Leo Szilard worked on creating an atomic bomb for the United States in the 1930s. This manipulation of nature changed the relationship between human beings and nature forever. Humans were now capable of ending the world if they so desired. Nature was quickly fading into the background of life. The creation and employment of the atomic bomb affected many aspects of human existence. On August 6, 1945, President Harry S. Truman announced to the United States and to the world, sixteen hours ago an American airplane dropped one bomb on Hiroshima, Japan and destroyed its usefulness to the enemy.(1) After bombing Nagasaki on August 8, Japan surrendered to the United States, ending World War II. The debate about the morality of dropping the bomb is still an issue today. Although the employment of these bombs caused about 200,000 casualties and destroyed over 5.5 square acres of land, the atomic bomb was needed to terminate the war.(2) Despite the major loss of human lives in Japan, using the atomic bomb was the ethically correct decision for the United States. It ultimately saved many American lives through the swift endi... ... http://www.dannen.com/decision/scipanel.tml> (28 February 1999). 16. Rogers, 385. 17. Rogers, 385. 18. Rogers, 384. 19. Rogers, 440. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Additional Source - John Connor, "The US Was Right," and Gar Alperovitz, "The US Was Wrong," in Current Issues and Endearing Questions, eds. Sylvan Barnett and Hugo Bedau (Boston: Bedford Books, 1993), 282-85. These two articles provide opposite opinions and arguments about the morality of dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima Japan. The authors argue the question "Hiroshima: Was the bombing immoral?" The articles discuss the physical damage in Japan not only to humans physically and mentally but also to nature. Both authors present reasonable and well supported evidence for either side of the issue.

Aftircan American Progress in World War II Essay -- essays research pa

World War II, global military conflict that, in terms of lives lost and material destruction, was the most devastating war in human history. It began in 1939 as a European conflict between Germany and an Anglo-French coalition but eventually widened to include most of the nations of the world. It ended in 1945, leaving a new world order dominated by the United States and the USSR.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  More than any previous war, World War II involved the commitment of nations' entire human and economic resources, the blurring of the distinction between combatant and noncombatant, and the expansion of the battlefield to include all of the enemy's territory. The most important determinants of its outcome were industrial capacity and personnel. In the last stages of the war, two radically new weapons were introduced: the long-range rocket and the atomic bomb. In the main, however, the war was fought with the same or improved weapons of the types used in World War I. The greatest advances were in aircraft and tanks.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"For African Americans, World War II was a fight on two fronts. It was a struggle to prevail over the nation’s external enemies and a battle against a familiar home-grown foe: bigotry† (Allen). When World War II began in Europe in 1939, blacks demanded better treatment than they had experienced during World War I. Black newspaper editors insisted during 1939 and 1940 that black support for this war effort would depend on fair treatment. They demanded that black soldiers be trained in all military roles and that black civilians have equal opportunities to work in war industries at home.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  African Americans were some of the quickest and most energetic to condemn the risings of fascism in Europe. They instantly understood the risks Nazism and its Aryan doctrines imposed on the world. Some had read Hitler’s Mein Kampf and had taken offense to its unfavorable comments toward blacks. It was also claimed that in 1936 Hitler had refused to treat African American Olympic stars Jesse Owens and Ralph Metcalf with common decency in Berlin. Also the knockout of the black idol Joe Louis in 1936 by Max Schmeling had fueled some bitter emotions toward Nazism and it was fueled once again when Louis exacted his complete revenge in 1938.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  At the beginning of the war Afri... ...seat at the back of the bus. Robinson refused. â€Å"He was arrested and court-martialed for â€Å"disrespectful† conduct and disobeying orders, he was acquitted, but the incident prevented him from going overseas with the 761st† (Allen). Robinson would go on to become the first black baseball player to integrate the major leagues. â€Å"The World War II experience was a watershed for African Americans. Jim Crow remained intact, but the ideological bases of white supremacy and colonialism were undermined by the horrors of the Holocaust† (Earle 87). The war experience gave about one million blacks the opportunity to fight racism in Europe and Asia, a fact that black veterans would remember during the struggle against racism at home after the war. Perhaps just as important, almost ten times that many white Americans witnessed the patriotic service of black Americans. Many of them would object to the continued denial of civil rights to the men and women beside whom they had fought. After World War II the momentum for racial change continued. Black soldiers returned home with determination to have full civil rights. President Harry Truman ordered the final desegregation of the armed forces in 1948.

Commentary on Henry Handel Richardson(TM)s The Getting of Wisdom Essay

In this extract taken from Henry Handel Richardson’s The Getting of Wisdom, the author uses Laura’s perspective to present a scene in which a group of schoolgirls are seated and lectured in front of the rest of the school, of which one girl in particular, Annie Johns, is publicly called upon by their principal and accused of theft. The text is composed of six paragraphs, of which only one is dialogue, followed by a lengthy seventh paragraph. Told in the third-person, the entire excerpt is rich in descriptive language, enhanced by the use of alliteration and cleverly selective vocabulary, so as to achieve an attention-grabbing and detailed description of the characters’ thoughts and feelings. I find that Richardson is able to create a serious and tense atmosphere, evoking a suspenseful mood as should be the case for such an incident. In the opening paragraph of this extract, Richardson introduces the characters and sets the scene. The poor quality of the desks, ‘blackened, ink-scored, dusty, with eternally dry ink-wells’, indicates that the girls are possibly studying in a lower-class school where a higher standard of education environment is not available. Although Tilly, Inez and Bertha’s names are mentioned, it is made clear that Laura is the central character as we are given a detailed idea of how she feels. Richardson brings the reader into the intense atmosphere immediately, and apart from the literal description of Laura’s ‘flushed’ face, her difficulty of breathing and her cold hands and feet, further detail is added by the use of alliteration and shrewd phrasing. The consonance of the letter ‘f’ in ‘The cheeks of the four were flushed’ not only lets us imagine the pale colour of the girls’ faces but also picture the girls as they bite their lips in anticipation. This idea is brought to mind when Laura moistens her lips. The repeated use of the letter ‘w’, in ‘while the others only whispered and wondered’, forms a particular shape of the reader’s mouth, dissimilar to the shape of a smile. The fact they are whispering and wondering also suggests that there are matters at hand that need to be kept secret to oneself, and the writer is encouraging the reader to keep reading. In addition, we are given the first glimpse of Richardson’s use of placing a short clause at the beginning of his sentences. Using the word ‘But’ at the beginning of a sentence in line 4 is grammatically incorrect, but the author writes in this specific way to augment the reader’s idea of the nervousness the girls are feeling. Also to increase the tension, Richardson employs em dashes to create caesuras (that is, deliberate pauses). Consonance using the letter ‘f’ is used for the second time in the beginning of the second paragraph. ‘The first foregoing minutes’ recalls the picture of the girls’ lips, and the mention of the ‘foregoing minutes’, once more, attracts the reader to keep reading. Although silence is already present, Richardson makes a point of stressing the utter quietness, and exaggerating any noise that can be described, as minimal as they may be. This is done carefully when the writer describes the sound after Mr Strachey enters the scene as ‘an ominous hush’, the sounds of whispering and Laura’s trouble in breathing and when Mr Strachey raises his hand ‘to enjoin a silence that was already absolute’. This marks the beginning of a lot of light being shed on these characters. In line 11, the way in which Laura suddenly grows calm contrasts with the emotional nature of Bertha’s character later on, and this may show that Laura is less easily frightened or anxious and that she has the ability to keep her composure in uncomfortable situations. It is interesting to know that her calmness allows her to clear her mind of all anxiety and ‘take note of everything that passed’. Her calmness is vital for the reader to continue to understand and perceive the event as we are given her view, and the reader can appreciate Laura’s observance and self-control. The reader can also appreciate Richardson’s clever manipulation of this character’s perspective. As for Mr Strachey, him being labelled as ‘The Principal’ gives the impression that he has no need for a name in this current situation. The title is impersonal and implies that he is strictly being professional now. This formal occasion is also accentuated by the tidy arrangement of the desks, as unsanitary as they are, and the use of words and phrases such as ‘culprit’, ‘a few introductory remarks’ and ‘the present case’, relating the school-situated theft to an actual court case. Richardson then allows the reader to know Mr Strachey is somewhat of an authoritarian. This is suggested by Mr Strachey’s decision to raise his hand for silence that the writer vividly describes as ‘already absolute’ and his way of ordering Annie Johns to stand up. ‘†Will Miss Johns stand up!†Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ is a question in strict linguistic terms, but the exclamation mark indicates that it is a command and not an inquiry. Bertha’s description adds a certain fearful quality to Mr Strachey’s character as Bertha cries from an overwhelming sense of panic. Probably the most outstanding use of alliteration is the consonance using the letters ‘b’ and ‘h’ in ‘Bertha †¦ the unhappy’ in lines 16 to 18. The letter ‘b’ generates a dramatic sound as we imagine Bertha releasing her emotions, and the letter ‘h’ produces a sort of sobbing noise that is gradually reduced like the actual use of the letter ‘h’. Last of all, Annie Johns is described as ‘pale and silly-looking’. Everything from the impersonal disregarding of her name, to the metaphor associating her with a small hunted animal, to the portrayal of her unattractiveness and insanitariness, characterize her as an unappealing person to sympathize for just judging by her appearance. Richardson’s use of the letter ‘s’ in the words, ‘stood’, ‘silly-looking’, ‘stared’, ‘Strachey’, ‘stares’ and especially the image created by ‘the snake’, foreshadow the crime that is to be addressed soon. The sounds created by the words, ‘mouth’, ‘fallen’, ‘half’ and ‘fear’, emphasize (yet again) the biting of the lips and the changing shape of the mouth. When we reach the last paragraph in line 25, all the components established in the previous paragraphs come together as Richardson uses punctuation, consonance and figurative language to vividly portray the scene and assign actions to the names and faces of the characters we are now familiar with in this particular extract. Laura’s ability to pay close attention to her surroundings is referred to as she is described as being unable to ‘take her eyes off the scene’, ‘fascinated by [Mr Strachey’s] oratory’ and ‘appreciating [Mr Strachey’s] points’. Richardson mentions lips again and this time, they belong to Mr Starchey. Particular phrases such as ‘the Principal passed on to the present case’ and ‘He made it all live vividly before her’ create a cacophonous effect and the reader may visualize Mr Strachey has he speaks dramatically, perhaps spitting as he enunciates too. Earlier, Mr Strachey is said to be speaking in a ‘low, impressive tone’ and Laura’s admiration of his rhetoric highlights this as well. Information concerning Laura herself is minimal, but we find out about her by observing Richardson’s skilful way of letting us into her perspective without actually writing in the first-person. The reader can know that Laura has the capability to recognize what the rest of the girls are going through by the way the writer talks about how Laura knows ‘what it was to be poor’ and understands ‘what it would mean to lack your tram-fare on a rainy morning’ (a brief instance of pathetic fallacy). Laura ‘could imagine, too, with a shiver’, to what extent the details of this crime could be revealed. When Richardson describes the lolly-shop as having ‘octopus arms’, and tells us that Laura is considering ‘if every one else agreed with [Mr Strachey]’, it indicates that Laura is imaginative, bright and deductive in her reasoning as she puts her observation skills in good use, and all of this suggests that her aptitude is possibly brought about by some difference between her attitude to education and the other girls’ approach. This extract was interesting to analyse and to see how a writer can use a character so captivatingly to direct us to what is significant in the actual plot. This includes the characterisations of Bertha, Annie Johns and Mr Strachey, as well as Laura, and the way in which Richardson applies alliteration to this text to create visual impressions. I guess I could say that I was fascinated by Richardson’s style as he made the scene and the characters all live vividly before me. I hung on his diction, appreciated his style and the clever way in which he worked up his climaxes. As grammatically incorrect as it is in saying this, I feel I have certainly been ‘getting’ some wisdom.

Global Society Essay

The world we are in today has seen the end of bipolarity that has been brought about by wars that divided. Every day we see the world grow smaller and people are brought together by common issues and concerns. States become interdependent and connected through globalization. Global actors include along with the state, non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations. These global actors have diverse and divergent, often conflicting, interests that must be met. States, such as the developing countries, need a level playing field in the global arena. The non-governmental organizations are people oriented, and often seeking to improve their quality of life. Multinational businesses are profit and expansion driven. Multinational corporations play a big role in economic globalization. They fuel economies by the investment they bring in that create jobs and allow the exchange of technology through skills and knowledge. MNCs are also seen as having insatiable greed for wealth, which create and dictate markets, displace small enterprises and dislocate people. Corporate Social Responsibility is when business interests are met along with the other interests of society as a whole. CSR has four integral parts, which are: (1) profit generation, (2) observing human rights, payment of taxes, cooperation with the government, promoting health and safety, and supporting workers, (3) doing the right, fair and just thing, and (4) sharing resources and profits to improve lives especially in the areas of education, health and the arts. The UN Global Compact attempts to develop Corporate Social Responsibility globally. The Global Compact provides the mechanism that covers all directions of the social spectrum such as horizontal and vertical, formal and informal, state and non-state. The approach is from all dimensions, diverse, multi-level and a network structure. UN agencies like UNDP, UNHCR and UNESCO partner with many philanthropic foundations in many CSR activities showing that MNCs can both be profit-motivated and socially-responsible. References Fritsch, Stefan. (January 2008). The UN Global Compact and the Global Governance of Corporate Social Responsibility: Complex Multilateralism for a more Human Globalization. Global Society, Vol. 22, No. 1.