How You Would Develop An Attitude Measure Using Either The Thurstone Method Or The Likert Method Essays

How You Would Develop An Attitude Measure Using Either The Thurstone Method Or The Likert Method Essays How You Would Develop An Attitude Measure Using Either The Thurstone Method Or The Likert Method Paper How You Would Develop An Attitude Measure Using Either The Thurstone Method Or The Likert Method Paper Essay Topic: As You Like it Sociology There is no single, universally accepted definition of attitude. However, several authors seem to agree that attitude may be thought of in terms of a tendency to evaluate a stimulus with some degree of favour of disfavour, usually expressed in cognitive, affective, or behavioural responses (Watkins, Christopher Attitude Measurement: A Methodological Approach. Unpublished Essay). Thurstone is considered the father of attitude measurement. He addressed the issue of how favourable an individual is with regard of a given issue. He developed an attitude continuum to determine the position of favourability on the issue. In 1932, Likert developed the method of summated ratings (or Likerts scale), which is still widely used. The Likert scale requires that individuals tick on a box to report whether they strongly agree, agree, are undecided, disagree, or strongly disagree, in response to a large number of items concerning an attitude object or stimulus. In 1944, Guttman suggested multidimensional scales, as opposed to one-dimensional scales such as those developed by Thurstone and Likert, should measure that attitude. Guttman pointed out that there should be a multidimensional view of the attitude construct; he developed the Scalogram Analysis, Cumulative Scaling, or as usually called, Guttman scaling. The major characteristic of this scale is that the responses to one item help predict the responses to other items. For instance, if the individual responds negatively to the item I like oranges, he is not likely to respond positively to the item Oranges are great for breakfast. Later on, Osgood, Suci, and Tannenbaum developed the Semantic Differential Technique, which is widespread today. Other methods have been developed since. What it is important to point out is that each development has resulted in an extension of the attitude construct, there appear to be a lot of commonalities among the different methods. Thurstone is the social psychologist who first created attitude-measurement methodology. Thurstone scales are still the main way to measure attitude. Thurstones method involved defining and identifying the object, then making a pool of opinion statements, some positive, some negative, some neutral. Thurstone developed 3 scales for measuring attitude. * Paired Comparisons This method requires that attitude comparisons be paired in every possible combination. Since 20 statements will result in the judging of 190 pairs, this method is a lot of work. * Equal-appearing intervals. Judges sort statements one at a time on a range of extremely favourable to extremely unfavourable. It is much like Likert scaling, but neutral items are required to incorporate the entire spectrum of attitude about an object. * Successive intervals. This is an extension to the equal-appearing intervals scaling. It tries to statistically place items on a continuum instead of relying on subjective answers given by judges. It uses the number of times different judges rate a statement to develop the rank order for the scales. I will be focusing on using the Thurstone method to develop my attitude measurement. The Thurstone procedure for scaling attitudes has been developed out of the principles of psychophysics. While the individualisation of the attitude has been documented elsewhere it is notable that Thurstone recognised the potential of a metric scaling of attitudes which give descriptions of and comparisons between social categories. He outlined four uses of mean values on a scale: 1. The average or mean attitude of a particular individual on the issue at stake. 2. The range of opinion that the individual is willing to accept or tolerate. 3. The relative popularity of each attitude of the scale for a designated group as shown by the frequency distribution for that group 4. The degree of homogeneity or heterogeneity on the issues as shown by the spread or dispersion of its frequency distribution. The first two uses focus on the individual and the second two on the social representations. Commenting on a comparative judgemental task Thurstone says that the results describe as much a group of respondents as the groups view of the stimulus. Scale values, he argued, could also be used to compare several different groups in their attitudes on a disputed issue. I will be applying my discussion on the topic of legalisation of cannabis. This issue is and always has been debated by almost everyone who knows about drugs. Attitudes of people have changed either for or against legalisation and I will hope to devise a scale which measures these attitudes. As stated earlier, I will be basing my scale on the Thurstone method as this is seen to be more reliable than the Likert scale. When Olympic officials decided to give snowboarder Ross Rebagliati (Olympic Gold Medallist 1998) his gold medal back, the cheers drowned out the boos. It was a minor scandal involving a minor sport, but it spoke volumes about the worlds shifting relationship with its favourite illicit drug. Marijuana. A decade ago, Rebagliati would have been ostracized regardless of whether cannabis was on the list of his sports banned substances. What has changed today is that our attitudes towards illegal drugs are becoming more sophisticated and discriminating. After thirty years of research into the harmful effects of cannabis, there can be no hidden dangers left to discover. We know that it is plain nonsense to regard cannabis as a performance-enhancing drug, just as it is a myth to think the substance rots the brain or leads inexorably to harder substances. The issue of cannabis legalization has been debated ever since the substance was made illegal on April 14, 1937. The issue remains as alive and debatable today as it has ever been. The publics growing fascination and acceptance of this plant adds fuel to the fire of the controversy. There are many questions that still need to be answered in the realm of cannabis legalization, and pressure to find those answers is another thing that fuels the debate over decriminalisation. The pressure for legislation reform is not specific to any demographic location. All ages, races, and sexes have argued it. There are those that argue for the medical legalization, economical legalization, and of course, recreational legalization. Those that lobby for reform carry large amounts of statistical evidence and personal testimony to show the beneficial elements of this plant. The push for marijuana reform has come from doctors and lawyers as well as skateboard toting teens. Those that push for the decriminalisation of marijuana base their arguments on a number of proven facts, refuted opposing arguments, and positive personal experiences. There are some groups that support the removal of all penalties for the private possession and responsible use of marijuana by adults, cultivation for personal use, and the casual non-profit transfers of small amounts. They back their arguments with claims like: Cannabis has proven to be addictive to a very small portion of the overall user population, and when put in contrast with other addictive over-the-counter drugs (such as alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine), the addictive potential of cannabis is far below those accepted levels. Marijuana supporters also argue that its been in use (documented) for 5,000 years and during that span there hasnt been one single documented overdose case. Still others argue for the medicinal use of marijuana. The anti-marijuana campaigners project that the legalization of marijuana will lead to a breakdown of moral fibres, which leads to the legalization of other drugs, which leads to increased crime, which leads to tremendous amounts of money spent, which leads to distrust of the legal system, which leads to anarchy. They argue, our society couldnt survive and function with the legalization of this drug. The fallacy is represented by the anti-legalisationists in the fact that evidence does prove that societies can thrive and prosper with marijuana being legal. Using the Thurstone method, below I have created a number of statements (items) to do with the issue of legalisation of cannabis. I have divided the items below into four categories (factors) Value Judgement, Attitudes towards experimentation with drugs, Legalisation of drug use and Attitudes of others toward drug use. Each item is to be read by the respondent and then the respondent will have to give the statement a rating out of 11. Giving the item a mark of 11 will indicate that the respondent strongly agrees with the statement, on the other hand, giving a mark of 1 would indicate that the respondent very strongly disagrees with the statement.

Personal Subject Pronouns in Spanish

Personal Subject Pronouns in Spanish Spanish pronouns are usually used much like their English counterparts. The biggest difference is that subject pronouns (ones used to tell who or what is performing the action of the main verb in a sentence) can be omitted where theyre required in English. In other words, subject pronouns in Spanish are used primarily for clarity or emphasis. The 12 Personal Subject Pronouns of Spanish yo - Ità º - you (singular familiar)usted - you (singular formal)à ©l, ella - he, shenosotros, nosotras - wevosotros, vosotras - you (plural familiar)ustedes - you (plural formal)ellos, ellas - they These are called personal subject pronouns to distinguish them from the demonstrative pronouns, the equivalent of words such as this and those. There is also a subject pronoun ello, which can be the rough equivalent of it, but it is rarely used. Note that even though à ©l, ella, ellos, and ellas usually refer to people or animals, they can on occasion refer to inanimate objects, with the pronoun matching the grammatical gender of the object or objects being referred to. Vosotros and vosotras are seldom used in most of Latin America, where ustedes can be used even when talking with close friends or children. How To Use or Omit Subject Pronouns Because verb conjugation often suggests who or what the subject of a sentence is, one can properly leave out the subject pronoun or put it at various places in the sentence. Voy a la escuela, yo voy a la escuela, voy yo a la escuela, and voy a la escuela yo are all grammatically correct ways of saying I am going to the school (although the final option would be highly uncommon except if said for poetic effect). But the placement of the pronoun can make a difference in how the sentence is understood. To see how these pronouns are used, examine the sentences below. Subject pronouns, where used, are in boldface: Mi hermano es muy inteligente. Es doctor. (My brother is intelligent. He  is a doctor.) - No subject pronoun is needed in the second sentence, because the subject of the sentence is made clear by the context and the verb form.Mis mejores amigos se llaman Roberto, Ahmad y Suzanne. Son estudiantes. (My best friends are Roberto, Ahmad, and Suzanne. They are students.) - The pronoun is unnecessary in the second Spanish sentence and normally wouldnt be used becauses it is clear who is being referred to.Es fcil comprender el libro. (It is easy to understand the book.) - No pronoun is used to translate an impersonal use of it.Mi hermano y su esposa son inteligentes. Él es doctor, y ella es abogada. (My brother and his wife are intelligent. He is a doctor, and she is a lawyer.) - In this case, the subject pronouns à ©l and ella are used  for clarity.Tà º, ella y yo vamos al cine. (You, she,  and I are going to the movies.) - Note that in this construction the first-person pl ural form of the verb (the one that would be used with the equivalent of we) is used. Thus it is possible to use that verb form without using the pronoun nosotros. Hazlo. (Do it.) Hazlo tà º. (You do it.) - In a command such as this, the addition of the subject often has a similar effect to its use in English. Although grammatically not necessary, the addition of the subject serves to place additional emphasis on the subject.Ella canta bien. (She sings well.) Canta bien ella. She sings well. - The pronoun would be used in the first sentence if theres no context to clearly indicate who is being talked about. By placing ella at the end of the second sentence, the speaker is placing a strong emphasis on the pronoun. The emphasis in the second sentence is on the singer and not the singing. ¿Vas a salir? (Are you leaving?)  ¿Vas a salir tà º? (Are you leaving?) - The first sentence is a simple, uninflected question. But the second one, by adding the subject at the end of sentence, is placing a strong emphasis on the person leaving. One possible translation might be Are even you leaving? Or one might render the English as Are you leaving? wi th a stress or emphasis on you. Nunca va ella al centro. (She never goes downtown.) Ya ha salido à ©l. (He has already left.) - It is common when certain adverbs start a sentence to immediately follow the adverb with the verb, followed by the subject. No special emphasis on the subject is intended. Adverbs often used this way include nunca, ya, bastante, and quizs.- Te amo, dijo à ©l. - Tambià ©n te amo, respondià ³ ella. (I love you, he said. I love you too, she responded.) - When reporting what people have said, it is common to use the subject pronoun after verbs such as decir (to say), preguntar (to ask), and responder (to reply). No special emphasis on the speaker is intended. (Note: The dashes in the Spanish sentences are a type of quotation mark.)

Application of Ethical Theory to a Case Study Vignette Essay

Application of Ethical Theory to a Case Study Vignette - Essay Example The essay begins with that most ethical decisions possess enough clarity for individuals to decide on their course of action rather easily. This is because most of these issues often pit wrong against right. Deciding on whether to embezzle company money, for example, is not a real ethical dilemma since this is stealing. However, things can become murky when there is more than one vital responsibility, right, or value. In this case, one has to choose one unpleasant alternative. This can be defined as an ethical dilemma, where more than one value can be defined as right, thus causing a conflict. The firm, in response to a difficult economic climate, has taken a decision to restructure, which will involve selling off one less profitable operation and streamlining most of its support functions. Inevitably, this will cause compulsory layoffs at the firm. As part of the team working on this plan, Jagdeep knows that the plan is a top secret because it is price sensitive. Hannah is a colleag ue of his who also happens to be a former college-mate, and they often have drinks after work. Hannah, in charge of a five-member team, is eager to hear about the restructuring progress from Jagdeep over drinks one day, wanting to know if her team will be affected. This is of particular importance to her since she is very concerned for her employees and knows of their personal plans, such as two members who plan to take substantial new mortgages. Jagdeep finds himself in a dilemma, as he knows that two of her members are on the redundancy list. Jagdeep faces a real ethical dilemma. Two right values creating a conflict for Jagdeep in making this decision are loyalty and truthfulness. As the case shows, telling a friend the truth would show disloyalty to the firm that pays his perks and treats him well. The paper explores theoretical approaches to making ethical decisions. The approaches are not perfect and may lead to differing conclusions. Using various approaches will help Jagdeep think comprehensively and carefully about various dilemmas and to prevent him from coming to accident-prone conclusions. At the least, Jagdeep can have a degree of satisfaction from thinking thoroughly about the issue and analyzing it from all possible angles. Jagdeep can also explain the process of decision making if asked by both parties in the future. Consequentialist Theory The consequatialist theory can also be referred to as the teleological theory (Banks, 2011: p34). When Jagdeep is attempting to decide on whether telling Hannah is wrong o r right, the theory puts more focus on the consequence of the action or decision. One the best-known Consequentialist theory is utilitarianism. According to utilitarianism, ethical decisions need to maximize societal benefits, as well as minimize any harm it may cause. In this theory, what is of importance is the net balance the good consequences over those that are bad, overall. The utilitarian approach to Jagdeep’s dilemma would involve the identification of all affected stakeholders in the situation and seeking alternative action and the consequences, benefits and harms, for each stakeholder. A stakeholder is understandably any individual or group of individuals that have a stake with the restructuring plan at Jagdeep’s firm. In Jagdeep’s situation, this includes his friend Hannah, Hannah’s colleagues, his boss, Jagdeep himself, other co-workers, and the firm. The list is quite long, making the consequences even far-reaching, whether he told Hannah abo ut the laying off, of her team members or not. The Consequentialist approach needs Jagdeep to perform a mental calculation of all benefits and harms of the resulting consequences, considering each stakeholder individually (Griseri & Seppala, 2010: p46). What would be the consequence of Jagdeep telling Hannah what he knows of the lay-off? What

Answer the questions Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Answer the questions - Case Study Example The temporal cortex is also much larger than predicted for an ape of our size, which might affect our language ability as this part of the brain contains Broca’s area, implicated in language use. d) From viewing chimps in the wild (The New Chimpanzees), can they be said to have a language? Include Uhlenbroek’s description of pant hoots, the chimp patrol of their territory, their displays in dominance of behaviour, and grooming and begging behaviour. These elements do seem to represent a kind of communication between chimps, so yes, it could be seen as a language by some, although not perhaps as advanced as human language. The differences in behaviours between different groups have been described as ‘cultural differences’. Koko had extensive exposure to sign language and did seem to pick up some elements of language, although the grammar was not perfect. Many of the utterances could just be imitation or nonsense. Michael learned much less than Koko because he was only alive for a short while, but perhaps the transmission of the signs could be seen as language transmission. Ndume does not currently use sign language. Although the video describes Koko has having a lot of knowledge and the gorilla does seem to know a lot of signs, it is not completely clear whether this is imitation or language and therefore is extremely difficult to describe. It does not seem to be a very strong case, although Koko does show extensive evidence of learning. Merely learning a lot of different signs or letters does not create language, although it is interesting that some of these signs were transmitted to another gorilla. However, it is also possible that sign language may not be the right medium for language and gorillas may have their own complex language structure in a form that humans cannot understand. Some people think that language is necessary for a culture, but there are many different aspects of culture (such as

PATHSHALA -LIVING THE DREAM Essay Example for Free

PATHSHALA -LIVING THE DREAM Essay PATHSHALA -LIVING THE DREAM You see things say: Why? But I dream of things that never were and say: Why not? Bernard Shaw This idea clicked me when I joined my CA tuitions and MBA coaching classes. I was so frustrated going from one centre to other to study for my CA intermediate exam and MBA coaching classes. I had my cost tuition in north but tax tuition in south, accounts I had in east but financial management in far east and sometimes I had just 20 minutes gap for traveling and lunch. I had two or three tuitions of three hours each, daily. I was just pissed off with my regular routine. So I was wondering whether the problem is with me or everyone is facing the same problem. I with my friends wanted to research about this problem and what the student wants. After research I found that students in the metro today are looking out to build their career and they don’t compromise it anyhow, they want best tuition and institutes to nurture themselves. Also students today are looking forward to get best professors in respective fields to teach them. They have to travel a lot because one tuition they are having in east and other in the north. So lot of time is wasted in traveling and they don’t have much gap in tuition timings so they even have to skip their meals or even if they have time they have to go home and again pack the bags for evening tuition that means wastage of time and money in traveling. Students are not able to take multiple courses due to lack of timing because of wastage of time due to traveling from one tuition to other. Even parents are worried about their health and meals. Many times they have to skip their meals or else have to eat junk food whatever is available to them in short time. They even don’t get place where they can sit together and discuss things with their friends or have group studies. The main idea is to bring all the tutors and MBA coaching institutes at one  place so that it’s a final stop for all students. I have seen students running from one centre to other to enroll themselves to get registered if the seats are full they get frustrated and have to look at some other place again they have to check the availability of seats. It really so much frustration that we think why we joined CA or CS or CFA, etc. students are just fed up with all this and they want to get everything under one roof where they have best of professors and MBA coaching institutes at one place. Also they should be library or reading room and fast food centre so that they don’t have to go here and there and waste time. They all are looking for everything to the comfort at one place and believe me they are ready to throw money for that. It was this need for ‘something more something different’ that I wanted to serve to the students. The â€Å"PATHSHALA† my project where I will provide ‘the experience, the ambience, and the service’ STUDENTS are looking out for. Objectives The new experience, the ambience, the service the students are looking for keeping in mind basic needs, health and quality. A website www.pathshala.com would also be launched providing all the details of professors, courses, timings, availability of seats and online registration too. Concept: Why? The main reasons for choosing this concept: Providing total solution to students. Cater to the health of the students The students in the metro today are looking out for something more. We are giving them a different/new experience. Mission I want to: Change the meaning of education Impart best education Design the infrastructure with international standards. Save time and cost Give a new lifestyle! We are here to serve intelligence, quality, hygiene, health, freshness experience. Keys to Success The keys to my success are as follows: Best tutors and MBA coaching classes. Service our students needs promptly and efficiently. Maintain a professional image at all times. PATHSHALA would be located at strategic locations convenient to students. Providing education, library, and fast food centre and gaming zone at one place. A place that will motivate students to zeal in life. A website ‘www.pathshala.com’ giving all details and online registration. Feasibility Institute will be first launched in Kolkata, my home town. A venture of Rs 10 crores. Main challenge is to get the place in the heart of the city. Each and everything to be established at one go. Expected to cover every cost within two years. Once the institute is established we can move to others Metros.

Essay examples --

What is a public good? A public good is something that is of benefit to multiple people, including yourself cannot prevent them getting the benefit from. Most things in economics are scarce – say a person is the only one able to enjoy the delicious citrus taste of the can of Diet Coke with Citrus Zest because their consumption of it prevents others from drinking it as well. A public good is something that everyone gets the benefit from, like national defense. This creates the problem for free riders that get the benefit of public goods without paying for them – for instance, a tourist who goes to the seaside and throws his can of Diet Coke with Citrus Zest on the ground, just to be picked up by some council worker who his taxes don't fund. Where the concept gets a bit more controversial is in international affairs, which is where we have the concept of a global public good. Global public goods are things completed by particular countries that benefit everyone else even if they don't have anything to do with it. Because they are inevitably provided by the dominant power and people are rightly suspicious of claims of altruism in foreign policy, it would be safe to say that some people would say the concept doesn't exist. Yet it really does. An often-cited example of a global public good was the way that the United Kingdom kept the seaways open during the period of the Empire, which allowed trading to continue between all countries unhindered. Of course, the British did not do this just because they are jolly good sports. People should not dismiss the belief in one's altruism as a motivating factor in foreign policy; but of course such beliefs are powerless against material interests which dictate to the contrary. By keeping the se... ...we will see the end of uni-polarity and a new era of bi- or tri-polarity as Russia reasserts itself and China grows in power. A world order built by the Chinese and Americans together is going to be quite different to one just made by the Americans, because it was the US who created all these multilateral institutions - global public goods - that the Americans are blamed for incidents, such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization. Despite its faults and excesses, America has reinforced the global system of trade, sovereignty and security for years now - these things didn't just happen by coincidence. It has provided many benefits to free riders the all over the world. History will judge if the United States, generally, did more bad than good. However, there's no God-given guarantee the alternative will be any better.

The Battle of the Sexes

The battle of the sexes has raged on as long as anyone can remember. Each sex, at some point, has either wanted or believed they had the upper hand over the other. It can be in the form of a power struggle or manipulation that one sex proves itself dominant over the other. Many times they find that they are evenly matched. The power balance in today’s society is fairly balanced. We have men who show deep feeling and women who are aggressive and harsh. We also have the opposite in both sexes.Science is still working to discover how much our DNA affects our sex in terms of aggressiveness, affections and other factors in relationships. Science has yet to prove that there is a battle of the sexes at genetic level. Therefore much of it is dictated by society and its expectations of a particular sex. These expectations change through time and there are always exceptions to the rules. There was a time when women were dominant in certain areas, such as the household and men were releg ated to dominate out of doors.There are other times where males are completely dominant and the female submissive. The roles change back and forth through time, each time getting a little more evenly balanced between the sexes. For the most part, today’s society see men and women as equals. There are still issues to be addressed but for the most part we are equal in almost everything. The movie â€Å"How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, is set in present time and shows both sexes as equally driven to succeed. Andi, the main female, is a modern woman who believes most relationships fail because men just don’t understand the female mind.She believes that men allow themselves be driven off due to certain things women tend to do in relationships. She also believes that men don’t want to put forth the effort that a true relationship takes to succeed. She sets out to prove this by betting her boss she can â€Å"lose a guy in 10 days† by doing everything that is usual ly the death of a relationship. She picks out a man named Ben and sets to work. Andi is a modern woman who believes that she is an equal in every way to the male in a relationship and even superior at times.She does everything she can to prove her point. She tries things such as clinging, mentioning marriage, calling his mother and many others. Ben, the main male, believes that women want to fall in love and make that the goal of a relationship when they meet a man. He believes that by telling a woman what she wants to hear and overlooking her â€Å"quirks† men can make any woman fall in love with them. He too makes a bet with his co workers that he can get a woman to fall in love with in 10 days. He picks Andi at the same time she picks him.Both believe that they understand the opposite sex better than the other and can gain the upper hand in a relationship. Ben is shown as an over confident male who thinks ignoring all the things she is doing will make her fall in love him within 10 days. Outwardly he overlooks her buying a dog â€Å"for them†, interrupting his poker games and similar incidents but inwardly he is cringing. He cannot figure out how she turned into such a clingy, needy, marriage minded woman so quickly. Andi, for her part, cannot believe he has not yet called the relationship off.Both find that without all the games and manipulation, they are on equal ground and the male-female relationship does not have to be a contest and their perceptions of the opposite sex were not always correct. In the movie, â€Å"The Wedding Crashers†, the two main male characters, John and Jeremy, have been breaking hearts for years. They believe that flirting and sex are fine as long as they do not get attached. They portrayed as not believing love is worth the risk you must take to get it. If you fall in love, you get hurt so avoiding commitment of any sort is one of their most basic rules.They crash weddings to pick up bridesmaids, whom they w ill never see again and enjoy woman after woman with no regrets. They are successful in business and do not think of the future as it pertains to love. In the 1990, where this movie is set, men are still portrayed as being a more knowledgeable regarding the opposite sex. They believe if they say the right things and keep it casual they are safe from being pulled into a relationship. The women in the film, Claire and her sister Gloria, approach the male –female relationship from opposite directions.Claire is self assured and believes herself to be too smart to fall for the usual pickup lines and manipulations. She holds herself at a distance to causing men to have to approach her rather than approaching them. Gloria is manipulative and aggressive. She is a cheerful and persistent pursuer and does not allow herself to be deterred. Both women reflect the modern woman in different ways. Claire shows it with her self assurance and Gloria with her belief that she can be the aggress or in a relationship. Both are facets of the era we live in and there is no right or wrong in these representations.As the characters find out, both sexes can be the user or the used, depending on the circumstance. Claire has the power to draw the men to her by being aloof or unobtainable, thereby issuing a challenge to the males to overcome her barriers. She is diplomatic but does not meet a man halfway. She likes to control the situation on her terms. Gloria is the complete opposite of her sister and goes after her chosen man with using all her wiles. She is sweet one minute and throwing a tantrum the next, all the while keeping her intended fascinated by her mercurial moods.She has no problem initiating sex and as with most present day women, is not afraid to admit she has a sex drive. Claire is not a prudish woman but chooses more carefully then her impulsive sister. Gloria tends to be needier than Claire, clinging to her chosen man because she worries her clinging will drive hi m off. Claire is presented as a strong woman who will take only the right man and not just anyone who happens along. When John falls for Claire, Jeremy is stunned and dismayed. He urges John to remember the rules they followed. , who wants an immediate commitment from him.While John is trying to woo Claire, who remains just out of reach, Jeremy is targeted by Gloria. She begins to pursue him so intensely that she frightens him. The couples are shown as opposites of each other with the female aggressor in one relationship and the male aggressor in the other. It shows the modern day balance that both sexes have worked hard to achieve and maintain. The results are both couples finding out that both mixes work and they really want to continue their . relationships. The Philadelphia Story is set in the 40s and the main female, Tracy Lord, is a rich, spoiled woman used to getting her way.She has beauty and she has money and that is what really matters in that society. With those two thing s, she can treat a man anyway she likes and be admired for it. People consider her strong and willful but consider it her right to be so. Of all the characters in this movie, the female Tracy, wields most of the power. While the husbands are given certain due simply because they are men, she uses all the expected female wiles and they capitulate. The males are shown as expected to cater to the woman’s whims because she is a rich and beautiful prize.The female acts as she is expected to and in return makes demands of the men that must be filled, lest she move on to the next beau. This was an age of romance as well and both men and women were portrayed as romantic at heart. The males are also shown as having a softer side. Tracy breaks up with her groom, George, because he misunderstood a situation and didn’t believe what she told him happened. He storms out, leaving a church full of wedding guests and everything set to go. Another man offers to step in but it is ex husb and Dexter, who has been in love with her since they divorced, who marries Tracy.In the time of â€Å"The Philadelphia Story† women were expected to draw the men to them, rather than pursue them openly. There were always exceptions to this rule, especially for the extremely wealthy. Women were to be ladylike at all times, however, this gave them power even as it took some from them. Men could openly pursue a lady but if she chose to play coy or hard to get, they would have to work hard to win her favor. Men were portrayed as sophisticated and suave. They were the aggressors, but only to the point that they be the chosen one.They still had to curry favor from the female to keep her as their prize. Women were admired more for wealth, beauty and elegance in those days than for intelligence or imagination. Today’s expectations of the sexes are much different for most people. Women are accepted as equally intelligent, imaginative and brave. We now have women in combat; this does not reflect on them as women, it enhances their appeal. Men are doing cooking shows and designing clothing. There are still diving lines in some areas but we are making progress as shown in the films and in life.Blustain, S. (2000, November). The New Gender Wars. Psychology Today, 33, 42. Cohan, S. (1997). Masked Men: Masculinity and the Movies in the Fifties. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. Connell, Robert William: Gender and Power, Cambridge: University Press 1987 Essentials of Sociology (2005) Appelbaum,R. , Duneier, M. & Giddius, A. Website: http://www2. wwnorton. com/college/soc/essoc/reviews/ch09. asp Galician, M. (2004). Sex, Love & Romance in the Mass Media: Analysis & Criticism of Unrealistic Portrayals & Their Influence. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003) starring Kate Hudson, Matthew McCaughey and Adam Goldberg. Directed by Donald Petrie, Paramount Studios The Philadelphia Story (1940) starring Katherine Hepburn, C ary Grant and James Stewart, Directed by George Cukor, Warner Bros. The Wedding Crashers (2005) starring Owen C Wilson, Vince Vaughn, Christopher Walkin Directed by David Dobkin, New Line Home Entertainment Channel 14 Battle of the Sexes Website: http://www. channel4. com/science/microsites/B/battle_sexes/ Wikipedia (2007): Culture and Gender Roles Website: http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Gender_role#Culture_and_gender_roles

Mood Swings Essay

Have you ever felt that feeling when you hate every single thing around you? Or the feeling that even someone breathing can annoy you? And lets not forget that feeling when you’re just sad and you just feel so empty, for no apparent reason? Well, being a girl it kind of comes naturally being hormonal and all at that certain time every month and no it doesn’t immediately mean that were bipolar. But, not only girls experience these kinds of hormonal activities even boys do. Studies show that everyone can experience mood swings due to the daily factors in our lives like stress, for girls PMS, sometimes even the food we eat, sudden changes and many other factors. Needless to say mood swings cannot be avoided yet it can be coped with. 1. Make sure you get enough sleep. A recent study by the U.S. Mental Health Association and the Better Sleep Council identified a relationship between positive moods and sleeping between 6 and 8 hours a night. Regular bedtimes were also important. 2. Keep your bedroom as dark as possible as this stimulates production of melatonin. (Low melatonin levels are linked with depression.) 3. Make sure you have a diet that supports brain health. For example, the following nutrients have been shown to promote more stable moods: B-complex vitamins, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium, zinc and fatty acids. Also, rapid changes in blood sugar can also precipitate changes in mood, so watch your consumption of refined sugar products, and make sur e you eat lots of complex carbohydrates. 4. Try some natural remedies. Chamomile, lemon balm or valerian root tea are recommended for helping with anxiety. St. John’s wort is said to soothe the mind and relieve irritability. In terms of homeopathic remedies, lycopodium is believed to help with anger, and feelings of agitation; tarentula hispanica is used for mania; and chaste berry, red raspberry, black cohosh and sarsaparilla may help with female hormonal mood swings. 5. Include some regular exercise in your daily schedules. This releases endorphins, the feel good hormones. It also helps with insomnia. 6. Try and identify coping mechanisms that can ward off or soothe fluctuations in mood. Also, keeping a journal of negative triggers can help you interrupt a pattern early on, and work on strategies for coping with these triggers. I have yet to try these remedies because at the point where I experience a lot of stress and don’t get enough sleep and of course PMS, I can honestly say that I am a very moody person and well to avoid arguments and false misconceptions I will definitely try the remedies I stated earlier.

Maritime Transportation Security Act

Maritime Transportation Security Act The U.S. Maritime Security is made up of a variety of laws, regulations, different agencies that bear the responsibility for ensuring that the ports are safe and that the cargo goes in and out securely. Since the 11th September, the National Congress has created and passed an array of laws that relate to the maritime security, including the 2002 Maritime Transportation Security Act (Bondareff O’Neill, 2013, para. 3).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Maritime Transportation Security Act specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More From the start of the Nation, the security of maritime ports has been of great concern. Since the early beginnings of the country development, the US Coast Guard alongside with the US Custom service shared efforts to protect the ports, waterways, and maritime borders from a variety of attacks and other criminal acts (Maritime Transportation System Security Recommendations for the Nationa l Strategy for Maritime Security, 2005, p. 6). They still contribute to the Nation’s security by preventing and suppressing human and contraband smuggling, illegal migration, piracy and other crimes that occur within port facilities. According to the testimony of Christopher Koch (2002), the President CEO of the World Shipping Council, before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, â€Å"Designing and implementing an effective maritime security program will require cooperation, information sharing, and coordination between government and industry. At the outset, the Council recommends that the federal government’s strategy and actions should be consistent with certain principles† (p. 3). Thus, the implementation of the Maritime Transportation Security Act is a unified strategy for addressing the primary issues linked with maritime safety. Improving security aboard and in ports required clearly stated responsibilities as well as an integrat ed approach. Second, the regimen of security should allow the free and efficient trade flow. Secure and efficient transportation should work side-by-side. Maritime Transportation Security Act Significance The authority of law administration is assigned to the Department of Homeland Security and is distributed among various entities within the Department. These entities include the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, the Transportation Security Administration, Customs and Borders Protection, and the United States Coast Guard (Bondareff O’Neill, 2013, para. 6).Advertising Looking for research paper on transportation? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The 2002 Maritime Transportation Security Act is considered a significant piece of legislation that has set up a framework for developing and improving the security of the national ports as well as their protection from possible terrorist attacks. Moreover, ports are the significant pathways that ensure a safe transportation of cargo along the waterways. Twenty-five percent of the US GDP moves via the waterways. An attack targeted at ports can cause a disruption of the supply chain that has been managed and tuned for decades. On the other hand, understanding how the port industry operates is the first step in improving the security on land and aboard. When the Maritime Transportation Security Act introduces the new mandates on safety in the maritime industry, it was done without the disruption of the free trading flow or the maritime sector economic viability (MarEx, 2012, para. 3). However, there are many areas of concern regarding port safety despite the Maritime Transportation Security Act being a story of success. As seen from various hearings of the Committees and Subcommittees, there were no regulations regarding the deployment of the TWIC (Transportation Worker Identification Credential) readers. There are also concerns linked to the new rules fulfilling the requirements targeted at improving maritime security as well as the installment of new tracking technologies aboard, as well as the exchange of information between the government, local authorities, and the agencies. The sources of frustration are the inability of the Service to connect the MDA systems in the ‘operating’ picture as well as the vague approaches to vessel tracking. In addition, because of the physical decrease in the Interagency Operation Centers, the efforts of sharing Maritime Domain Awareness information between stakeholders (MarEx, 2012, para. 6). Port Security Concerns Security experts along with government leaders have great concerns about the ports being a gateway for the terrorists to smuggle weapons, personnel, and other dangerous items into the country. Moreover, there are worries that the ships in the country’s ports, especially large commercial cargo, cruise ships, and other ships could be targets for the terrorist attacks. Experts warn that such attacks can easily paralyze he functioning of ports and the maritime trading system that directly affects the global US Commerce (Frittelli, Lee, Medalia, O’Rourke Perl, 2003, p. 2).Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Maritime Transportation Security Act specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Some Congress Members expressed concerns that the Maritime Transportation Security Act does not go far enough in its requirements for increasing security in ports. Additionally to the proposals about port security enhancement, the Congress should have debated on the problem raised by the last Congress, the problem of paying for ensuring maximum security in ports. Moreover, the Congress can also think about implementing the issues linked to different maritime security provisions set by the Maritime Transportation Security Act. The debate about whether the country is spending enough on secu rity in ports and whether the funding is directed at the vulnerable sectors that can become targets for terrorist attacks. On the other hand, the skeptics put forward an idea that no matter how much funds is spent on the port security, achieving success in preventing terrorist attacks in ports (Frittelli et al., 2003, p. 6). Moreover, there is an issue concerning whether a general taxpayer should be a contributor to ensuring security in port through user fees. Port authorities argue that the port security should be a public good, and thus, the whole nation should share in the cost on security. Others argue that security at ports is only beneficial for the maritime industry because it reduces the cost of cargo theft. Thus, they argue that the industry should be the one to pay for port security. A Decade After Maritime Transportation Security Act November 2012 was a mark of the Maritime Transportation Security Act tenth anniversary. Thus, the anniversary requires a number of improveme nts targeted at protection of country’s ports and waterways from terrorist attacks. The Department of Homeland Security is the main federal agency that is responsible for the implementation of the Maritime Transportation Security Act. The federal government progressed in the port security planning by developing an array of strategies and plans as well as testing them (Caldwell, 2012, p. 5). When it comes to the port safety strategies development, the federal government has made progress. For instance, the approvement of the National Strategy for Maritime Security in 2005 was one of the first steps. The strategy is linked to eight supporting plans that are targeted at addressing various threats to the maritime port environment. In June 2008, it was reported that the plans were developed accordingly, as well as they included the following crucial components: methodology, scope, risk assessment, coordination of responsibilities, integration and implementation. With the help of s uch characteristics, the federal government is able to enhance security in ports. For instance, better risk assessment and the definition of the problem provide further information required for the needs of specific maritime sectors, including ports (Caldwell, 2012, p. 6). Progress and Challenges The Department of Homeland Security has made a significant progress in implementing various programs linked to maritime security, including port security. In addition, DHS has developed an array of security programs and strategies, as well as exercised the security plans.Advertising Looking for research paper on transportation? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More For instance, the Coast Guard has implemented the Area Maritime Security Plan throughout the whole country in order to coordinate the Coast Guard procedures that are linked to the protection and prevention of attacks targeted at the US ports (United States Government Accountability Office, 2012, para. 1). Moreover, the Coast Guard has conducted a number of programs for conducting inspections in federal ports. Despite the fact that the Department of Homeland Security and its components have progressed substantially, there were some major challenges linked to the program and initiative implementation. Since passing the Maritime Transportation Security Act, the challenges faced by the DHS included the following aspects: implementation and program management, collaboration with other agencies, funding and resources for port security implementation, and the measures of performance. One of the major challenges of ensuring port security is connected with funding. For instance, the data acq uired from the Coast Guard states that because of the lack of funding, some port security units are unable to meet the set standards in various security activities – including escorting and boarding vessels (United States Government Accountability Office, 2012, para. 2). Conclusion There is no doubt that since the 11th September the ports become much more secure. However, the government has stopped paying attention to the important part ports play in the transportation system as well as the economy. The funding of the maritime infrastructure and port security has declined significantly. Port security has become only a small step in the transportation security programs. Thus, the Congress should work side-by-side with the Administration in order to enhance and improve the funding for port infrastructure and port security as well as ensure a tighter cooperation between the agencies responsible for port security (Bondareff O’Neill, 2013, para. 18). On the other hand, the Maritime Transportation Security Act has set up regulations for various transportation modes that are linked to reducing the security risks at ports. The regulations can affect the risks connected with on-shore and off-shore facilities, at the intermodal connections that exist within the port infrastructure. For the future, the Department of Homeland Security should consider some guidelines for implementing security in ports. The guidelines are the following: working with national, international, and industry entities that can develop port security regulation for considering whether the regulations are to be revised for managing the risks linked to the terrorist attacks (Maritime Transportation System Security Recommendations for the National Strategy for Maritime Security, 2005, p. 12). For a comprehensive port security network, promotion of technology is essential. The federal government should encourage the use of new technologies for improving port security as well as be a cent ral entity in the relevant technology development. References Bondareff, J., O’Neill, P. (2013). Are Our Ports Safe? Retrieved from http://decisionsciencescorp.com/are-our-ports-safe/ Caldwell, S. (2012). Maritime Security. Progress and Challenges 10 Years after the Maritime Transportation Security Act. Retrieved from gao.gov/assets/650/647999.pdf Frittelli, J., Lee, M., Medalia, J., O’Rourke, R., Perl, R. (2003). Port and Maritime Security: Background and Issues. New York, NY: Novinka Books. Koch, C. (2002). Testimony Before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. Retrieved from worldshipping.org/pdf/charleston_testimony.pdf MarEx. (2012). Tenth Anniversary of the Maritime Transportation Security Act: Are We Safer? Retrieved from maritime-executive.com/article/tenth-anniversary-of-the-maritime-transportation-security-act-are-we-safer Maritime Transportation System Security Recommendations for the National Strategy for Maritime Security. (2005). Retrieved from https://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/HSPD_MTSSPlan.pdf United States Government Accountability Office. (2012). Progress and Challenges 10 Years after the Maritime Transportation Security Act. Retrieved from gao.gov/assets/650/648000.pdf

Biography of Henry V of England

Biography of Henry V of England An icon of chivalry, a conquering hero, an exemplar of kingship and a supreme self-publicist, Henry V is among the triumvirate of the most famous English monarchs. Unlike Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, Henry V forged his legend in a little over nine years, but the long-term effects of his victories were few and many historians find something unpleasant in the arrogantly determined, albeit charismatic, young king. Even without Shakespeares attention, Henry V would still be fascinating modern readers. Birth and Early Life The future Henry V was born Henry of Monmouth at Monmouth Castle into one of Englands most powerful noble families. His parents were Henry Bolingbroke, Earl of Derby, a man who had once tried to curb the ambitions of his cousin, King Richard II, but now acted loyally, and Mary Bohun, heir to a rich chain of estates. His grandfather was John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, third son of Edward III, a staunch supporter of Richard II, and the most powerful English noble of the age. At this point, Henry was not considered an heir to the throne and his birth was thus not recorded formally enough for a definitive date to have survived. Historians cant agree on whether Henry was born on August 9th or September 16th, in 1386 or 1387. The current leading biography, by Allmand, uses 1386; however, the introductory work by Dockray uses 1387. Henry was the oldest of six children and he received the best upbringing an English noble could have, including training in martial skills, riding, and forms of hunting. He also received an education in music, harp, literature, and spoke three languages- Latin, French, and English- making him unusually highly educated. Some sources claim that the young Henry was sickly and puny in childhood, but these descriptions didn’t follow him past puberty. Tensions in Court In 1397 Henry Bolingbroke reported treasonous comments made by the Duke of Norfolk; a court was convened but, as it was one Dukes word against another, trial by battle was arranged. It never took place. Instead, Richard II intervened in 1398 by exiling Bolingbroke for ten years and Norfolk for life. Subsequently, Henry of Monmouth found himself a guest at the royal court. While the word hostage was never used, there was underlying tension behind his presence and the implicit threat to Bolingbroke should he disobey. However, the childless Richard appeared to have a genuine fondness for young Henry and he knighted the boy. Becoming the Heir In 1399, Henrys grandfather, John of Gaunt, died. Bolingbroke should have inherited his fathers estates but Richard II revoked them, kept them for himself and extended Bolingbrokes exile to life. By this time, Richard was already unpopular, seen as an ineffective and increasingly autocratic ruler but his treatment of Bolingbroke cost him the throne. If the most powerful English family could lose their land so arbitrarily and illegally; if the most loyal of all men is rewarded by his heirs disinheritance; what rights did other landowners have against this king? Popular support swung to Bolingbroke, who returned to England where he was met by many who urged him to seize the throne from Richard. This task was completed with little opposition the same year. On October 13th, 1399, Henry Bolingbroke became Henry IV of England, and two days later Henry of Monmouth was accepted by Parliament as heir to the throne, Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, and Earl of Chester. Two months later he was given the further titles Duke of Lancaster and Duke of Aquitaine.​ Relationship with Richard II Henrys rise to heir had been sudden and due to factors beyond his control, but his relationship with Richard II, especially during 1399, is unclear. Richard had taken Henry on an expedition to crush rebels in Ireland and, upon hearing of Bolingbrokes invasion, confronted Henry with the fact of his fathers treason. The encounter, allegedly recorded by one chronicler, ends with Richard agreeing that Henry was innocent of his fathers acts. Although he still imprisoned Henry in Ireland when he returned to fight Bolingbroke, Richard made no further threats against him. Furthermore, sources suggest that when Henry was released, he traveled to see Richard rather than return directly to his father. Is it possible that Henry felt more loyalty to Richard- as a king or a father figure- than to Bolingbroke? Prince Henry agreed to Richards imprisonment but it is unclear whether this and Henry IVs decision to have Richard murdered had any effect on later events, such as the younger Henrys impatience to usurp his father or his choice to rebury Richard with full regal honors in Westminster Abbey. We dont know for certain. Experience in Battle Henry Vs reputation as a leader began forming in his teenage years, as he and took on responsibilities in the government of the realm. One example of this is the Welsh uprising led by Owain Glyn DÃ… µr. When the small uprising swiftly grew into a full-scale rebellion against the English crown, Henry, as Prince of Wales, had a responsibility to help fight this treason. Consequently, Henrys household moved to Chester in 1400 with Henry Percy, nicknamed Hotspur, in charge of military affairs. Hotspur was an experienced campaigner from whom the young prince was expected to learn. However, after several years of ineffective cross-border raiding, the Percys rebelled against Henry IV, culminating in the  Battle of Shrewsbury on July 21st, 1403. The prince was wounded in the face by an arrow but refused to leave the fight. In the end, the kings army was victorious, Hotspur was killed, and the younger Henry famed throughout England for his courage. Lessons Learned in Wales Following the Battle of Shrewsbury, Henrys involvement in military strategy increased greatly and he began forcing a change in tactics, away from raids and into the control of land through strong points and garrisons. Any progress was initially hampered by a chronic lack of funding- at one point, Henry was paying for the entire war from his own estates. By 1407, fiscal reforms facilitated the sieging of Glyn DÃ… µr castles, which finally fell by the end of 1408. With the rebellion fatally, Wales was brought back under English control just two years later. Henrys successes as king can be clearly tied to the lessons he learned in Wales, particularly the value of controlling strongpoints, approaches to dealing with the tedium and difficulties of besieging them, and the need for proper supply lines and a reliable source of adequate finances. He also experienced the exercise of royal power. Involvement in Politics From 1406 to 1411, Henry played an ever-increasing role in the Kings Council, the body of men who ran the nations administration. In 1410, Henry took overall command of the council; however, the opinions and policies Henry favored were often counter to those favored by his fater- particularly where France was concerned. In 1411, the king became so irked that he dismissed his son from the council altogether. Parliament, however, were impressed by both the princes energetic rule and his attempts to reform government finances.​ In 1412, the king organized an expedition to France led by Henrys brother, Prince Thomas. Henry- possibly still angry or sulking over his expulsion from the council- refused to go. The campaign was a failure and Henry was accused of staying in England to plot a coup against the king. Henry denied these accusations vigorously, obtaining a promise from Parliament to investigate and personally protesting his innocence to his father. Later in the year, more rumors emerged, this time claiming the Prince had stolen funds earmarked for a siege of Calais. After much protest, Henry was again found innocent. Threat of Civil War and Ascension to the Throne Henry IV had never secured universal support for his seizure of the crown from Richard and by the end of 1412, his familys supporters were drifting into armed and angry factions. Fortunately for the unity of England, people realized Henry IV was terminally ill before these factions were mobilized and efforts were made to obtain peace between father, son, and brother. Henry IV died on March 20th, 1413, but if he had remained healthy, would his son have started an armed conflict to clear his name, or even seize the crown? It is impossible to know. Instead, Henry was proclaimed king on March 21st, 1413, and crowned as Henry V on April 9th. Throughout 1412, the younger Henry seemed to have been acting with righteous confidence, even arrogance and was clearly chafing against the rule of his father, but legends claim that the wild prince turned into a pious and determined man overnight. There may not be much truth in those tales, but Henry probably did appear to change in character as he fully adopted the mantle of King. Finally able to direct his great energy into his chosen policies, Henry began acting with the dignity and authority he believed was his duty and his accession was broadly welcomed. Early Reforms For the first two years of his reign, Henry worked hard to reform and solidify his nation in preparation for war. The dire royal finances were given a thorough overhaul by streamlining and maximizing the existing system. The resulting gains werent enough to fund a campaign overseas, but Parliament was grateful for the effort and Henry built on this to cultivate a strong working relationship with the Commons, resulting in generous grants of taxation from the people to fund a campaign in France. Parliament was also impressed with Henrys drive to tackle the general lawlessness into which vast areas of England had sunk. The peripatetic courts worked much harder than in Henry IVs reign to tackle crime, reducing the number of armed bands and trying to solve the long-term disagreements which fomented local conflict. The chosen methods, however, reveal Henrys continued eye on France, for many criminals were simply pardoned for their crimes in return for military service abroad. The emphasis was less on punishing crime than channeling that energy towards France. Uniting the Nation Perhaps the most important campaign Henry undertook in this phase was to unite the nobles and common people of England behind him. He showed and practiced a willingness to forgive and pardon families who had opposed Henry IV, none more so than the Earl of March, the lord Richard II had designated as his heir. Henry freed March from imprisonment and returned the Earls landed estates. In return, Henry expected absolute obedience and he moved quickly and decisively to stamp out any dissent. In 1415 the Earl of March informed on plans to put him on the throne which, in truth, were merely the grumblings of three disaffected lords who had already abandoned their ideas. Henry acted swiftly to execute the plotters and remove their opposition. Henry also acted against the spreading belief in Lollardy, a pre-Protestant Christian movement, which many nobles felt was a threat to Englands very society and which had previously had sympathizers at court. A commission was created to identify all Lollards and a Lollard-led rebellion was swiftly put down. Henry issued a general pardon to all those who surrendered and repented. Through these acts, Henry made sure the nation saw him as acting decisively to crush both dissent and religious deviance, underlining his position as Englands leader and Christian protector while also binding the nation further around him. Honoring Richard II Henry had Richard IIs body moved and reinterred with full regal honors in Westminster Cathedral. Possibly done out of fondness for the former king, the reburial was a political masterstroke. Henry IV, whose claim to the throne was legally and morally dubious, hadnt dared perform any act which gave legitimacy to the man he usurped. Henry V, on the other hand, demonstrated confidence in himself and his right to rule, as well as a respect for Richard which pleased any of the latters remaining supporters. The codification of a rumor that Richard II once remarked how Henry would be king, most certainly done with Henrys approval, turned him into the heir of both Henry IV and Richard II. Statebuilding Henry actively encouraged the idea of England as a nation separate from others, most importantly when it came to language. When Henry, a tri-lingual king, ordered all government documents to be written in vernacular English (the language of the normal English peasant) it was the first time it had ever happened. The ruling classes of England had used Latin and French for centuries, but Henry encouraged a cross-class use of English that was markedly different from the continent. While the motive for most of Henrys reforms was configuring the nation to fight France, he also fulfilled almost all the criteria by which kings were to be judged: good justice, sound finance, true religion, political harmony, accepting counsel and nobility. Only one remained: success in war. English kings had claimed parts of the European mainland ever since William, Duke of Normandy,  won the throne in 1066, but the size and legitimacy of these holdings varied  through struggles with the competing French crown. Not only did Henry consider it his legal right and duty to recover these lands, but he also believed honestly and utterly in his right to the rival throne, as first claimed by Edward III. At every stage of his French campaigns, Henry went to great lengths to be seen as acting legally and royally. In France, King Charles VI was mad and the French nobility had split into two warring camps: the Armagnacs, formed around Charles son, and the Burgundians, formed around John, Duke of Burgundy. Henry saw a way to take advantage of this situation. As a prince, he had supported the Burgundian faction, but as the king, he played the two against each other simply to claim hed tried to negotiate. In June 1415, Henry broke talks off and on August 11 began what became known as the Agincourt Campaign. Military Victories at Agincourt and Normandy Henrys first target was the port of Harfleur, a French naval base and potential supply point for the English armies. It fell, but only after a protracted siege which saw Henrys army reduced in numbers and affected by illness. With winter approaching, Henry decided to march his force overland to Calais despite being opposed by his commanders. They felt the scheme was too risky, as a major French force was gathering to meet their weakened troops. At Agincourt on October 25th, an army of both French factions blocked the English and forced them to battle. The French should have crushed the English, but a combination of deep mud, social convention, and French mistakes led to an overwhelming English victory. Henry completed his march to Calais, where he was greeted like a hero. In military terms, victory at Agincourt simply allowed Henry to escape catastrophe and deterred the French from further pitched battles, but politically the impact was enormous. The English further united around their conquering king, Henry became one of the most famous men in Europe and the French factions splintered again in shock. Having obtained vague promises of help from John the Fearless in 1416, Henry returned to France in July 1417 with a clear objective: the conquest of Normandy. He maintained his army in France consistently for three years, methodically besieging towns and castles and installing new garrisons. By June 1419 Henry controlled the vast majority of Normandy. Admittedly, warring between the French factions meant little national opposition was organized but it was nonetheless a supreme achievement. Equally notable are the tactics Henry used. This wasnt a plundering  chevauchà ©e  as favored by previous English kings, but a determined attempt to bring Normandy under permanent control. Henry was acting as rightful king and allowing those who accepted him to keep their land. There was still brutality- he destroyed those who opposed him and grew increasingly violent- but he was far more controlled, magnanimous, and answerable to the law than before. The War for France On May 29th, 1418, while Henry and his forces advanced further into France, John the Fearless captured Paris, slaughtered the Armagnac garrison and took command of Charles VI and his court. Negotiations had continued between the three sides throughout this period, but the Armagnacs and Burgundians grew close again in the summer of 1419. A united France would have threatened Henry Vs success, but even in the face of continued defeats at the hands of Henry, the French could not overcome their internal divisions. At a meeting of  the Dauphin  and John the Fearless on September 10th, 1419, John was assassinated. Reeling, the Burgundians reopened negotiations with Henry. By Christmas, an agreement was in place and on 21st May 1420, the Treaty of Troyes signed. Charles VI remained  King of France, but Henry became his heir, married his daughter  Katherine  and acted as de facto ruler of France. Charles son, the Dauphin Charles, was barred from the throne and Henrys line would follow. On June 2nd, Henry married Katherine of Valois and on December 1st, 1420 he entered Paris. Unsurprisingly, the Armagnacs rejected the treaty. Untimely Death In early 1421, Henry returned to England, motivated by the need to acquire more funds and mollify Parliament. He spent the winter besieging Meaux, one of the Dauphins last northern strongholds, before it fell in May 1422. During this time his only child, Henry, had been born, but the king had also fallen ill and had to be literally carried to the next siege. He died on August 31st, 1422 at Bois de Vincennes. Successes and Legacy Henry V perished at the height of his power, only a few months following Charles VIs death and his coronation as King of France. In his nine-year reign, he had demonstrated the ability to manage a nation through hard work and an eye for detail. He had shown a charisma which inspired soldiers and a balance of justice and forgiveness with reward and punishment that united a nation and provided the framework on which he based his strategies. He had proved himself a planner and commander equal to the greatest of his era, keeping an army in the field constantly overseas for three years. While Henry had benefited greatly from the civil war being waged in France, his opportunism and ability to react enabled him to exploit the situation fully. Henry fulfilled every criterion demanded of a good king. Weaknesses It is entirely possible that Henry died just at the right time for his legend to remain, and that another nine years would have tarnished it greatly. The goodwill and support of the English people were definitely wavering by 1422 as the money was drying up and Parliament had mixed feelings towards Henrys seizure of the crown of France. The English people wanted a strong, successful king, but they were concerned about his level of interest in France and they certainly didnt want to pay for a prolonged conflict there. Ultimately, historys view of Henry is colored by the Treaty of Troyes. On the one hand, Troyes established Henry as the heir to France. However, Henrys rival heir, the Dauphin retained strong support and rejected the treaty. Troyes thus committed Henry to a long and expensive war against a faction who still controlled roughly half of France, a war which might take decades before the treaty could be enforced and for which his resources were running out. The task of properly establishing the Lancastrians as dual kings of England and France was probably impossible, but many also consider the dynamic and determined Henry as one of the few people able to do it. Henrys personality undermines his reputation. His confidence was part of an iron will and fanatical determination that hints at a cold, aloof character masked by the glow of victories. Henry seems to have focused on his rights and goals above those of his kingdom. As ​prince, Henry pushed for greater power and, as an ailing king, his last will made no provision for the care of the kingdom after his death. Instead, he spent his energies arranging twenty-thousand masses to be performed in his honor. At the time of his death, Henry had been growing more intolerant of enemies, ordering ever more savage reprisals and forms of war and may have been becoming increasingly autocratic. Conclusion Henry V of England was undoubtedly a gifted man and one of few to shape history to his design, but his self-belief and ability came at the expense of personality. He was one of the great military commanders of his age- acting from a genuine sense of right, not a cynical politician- but his ambition may have committed him to treaties beyond even his ability to enforce. Despite the achievements of his reign, including uniting the nation around him, creating peace between crown and parliament, and winning a throne, Henry left no long-term political or military legacy. The Valois reconquered France and retook the throne within forty years, while the Lancastrian line failed and England collapsed into civil war. What Henry did leave was a legend and a greatly enhanced national consciousness.

SLP 4 MGT- 412 LEGAL CONSTRAINTS ON EMPLOYEE BENEFITS Essay

SLP 4 MGT- 412 LEGAL CONSTRAINTS ON EMPLOYEE BENEFITS - Essay Example ses a potential legal issue to the company especially when she claims that Mike started treating her differently after learning about her complication. Most employees in the company had not realised any deterioration of Ellens performance. It is clear that Mikes ill-treatment of her stems from her medical condition that has necessitated her to take intermitted leaves in recent time. By the fact that she has been following all the companys procedure in requesting the leave, Mike does not have any legal ground to be critical of Ellens performance. Another issue of consideration is the fact that, Ellens performance has been consistently good through her employment history at the company. Reviewing an employee performance negatively because she took FMLA is against the law. In Goelzer v. Sheboygan County, the court noted that an employee cannot be negatively reviewed bases on the fact she took intermitted leave (Kathleen, 2010). It is in the companys best interest to encourage the employee to exercise their legal right. When encouraged to exercise their legal rights the employee are less likely to abuse the framework within which such a right can be exercised. All the company need is to give a clear guideline on how such rights can be enjoyed. What the company should do is educate it management on the various provisions of The Family and Medical Leave Act. It will serve to ensure that the employee who exercises their right of taking a deserved Family and Medical Leave are treated in accordance with the provision of the law. While intermittent leaves are going to affect employers negatively in the time-sensitive industries, in our case, the company faces no immediate challenges. As well, there is a need to encourage the employees to provide a reasonable notice when taking intermitted leave. The company can go ahead and hire a health supervisor who can be in better position to verify all the health certifications provided by the employees in support of the