Shc 31 1.1 1.2

SHC 311. 11. 2 Communication 1. 1 Communication is an integral part of everyday life, especially for children, Who may not be able to vocalise their needs, and be able to carry out their Own basic needs, there are many reasons for communication and these include: Expressing basic needs and requirements Expressing distress, discomfort To inform others of situations For safety Communication can also provide reassurance and comfort, it can help to diffuse situations, and it is also used to offer encouragement. 1. 2 Communication effects relationships, in a positive way it can build trust and attachments.Children in my care range in ages from a new-born, to age 10, and with the range of ages comes a range of communication skills. The new born uses his cry as a main form of communication, to indicate his need to be fed, changed, winded, or just in need of a cuddle. His cry can be different for each need, and will increase in intensity should his needs not be met. A toddler that is beginni ng to learn words, may use pointing to communicate needs and Desires, but will possibly still revert to crying in moments of distress.An older child with full vocal skills may choose not to always use words to communicate They may at times use less obvious methods such as moods, and behaviour, these are usually used in times of distress. Just as when communicating with adults the written word can be used, a child may use drawings or role play. Tears can be used to communicate both sadness and happiness. It is important to remember that communication does not always come in obvious forms, and when dealing with children it will come in a wide variety of forms, and it is also important to communicate to them reassurance and support on a continuous basis.

Exim Policy India Analysis Essay

EXIM policy should be more transparent which should favour export environment The EXIM policy (Foreign trade policy) was announced on 27th August 2009 for the period 2009-2014. It was announced at a juncture when the world was recuperating from the economic downturn. The downturn had caused a sharp contraction in international trade and adversely impacted global investments. The world trade suffered a drastic reduction of 12%. In this context, the EXIM policy focussed on arresting declining exports. Market diversification strategy was adopted in order to reach out to non traditional destinations in Africa ,Latin America and Asia since there was a sharp decline in demand in the traditional market. Technological up gradation of exports was encouraged and transaction procedures were simplified to reduce costs. Other steps planned wee to concentrate on Labour intensive sectors and the draft policy parameters to enhance the competitiveness of our exports by promoting technology upgrades. A Committee of Experts was constituted to revamp the procedures of transactions and administer the value chain of exports. Amidst the current global economic turmoil, the Indian government should take prudent steps to avoid the recurrence of another recession. In light of the recent developments, the EXIM policy should encourage exports and stimulate international trade. While, the current EXIM policy mentions a considerable emphasis on exports, a detailed check is required if the trade is actually adhering to the policies framed and if the transparency is being maintained in the transactions. a) Currency printing should be done by private top 3 financial institutions in the country. The Reserve Bank of India manages the currency in the country with the help of the advice from the government of India. RBI distributes notes and rupee coins to other bank branches through certain selected currency chest branches. Printing additional currency should be done in a controlled manner since it can have a great impact on the economy. India can’t merely print additional currency to meet public expenditure unless it is a time of extreme financial crisis. This method of increasing liquidity in the market is called Quantitative Easing and happens when the Central bank fails to inject liquidity in the system by lowering interest rates. This is mainly done to prevent deflation. However, uncontrolled printing of money causes inflation and can lead to hyper inflation in extreme cases. RBI uses three main factors are used to estimate the demand for bank notes – current growth rate of economy, replacement demand and reserve requirements. During the time of recession, it is all the more important to be prudent on printing money since the economy is on a decline and it becomes imperative to control inflation. Hence, monitoring the currency printing is of utmost importance and this can be achieved by allowing only the top 3 private financial institutions in the country. a) FDI should be allowed in multi brand so as to eliminate intermediaries and benefit farmers and industries directly. It will help in curbing inflation. FDI in multi brand retail should be encouraged since it would contribute extensively in the growth of the economy. It would improve the availability of high quality goods and create an environment of competitiveness in Indian entrepreneurs by giving exposure to global management practices. It would also encourage better technology and enhance efficiencies. However, the policy should be implemented within the purview of the state laws and regulations. This would ensure that there is no anti- competitive practices including predatory pricing. Investments in terms of FDI in retail would in turn help in developing the infrastructure of the country in terms of supply chain and logistics. This would also eliminate intermediaries and benefit farmers and industries directly. This strategy would greatly help in controlling recession since this help in generating demand at the low income level and eventually would eliminate the income divide. It would also curb inflation in an efficient manner. a) More emphasis should be given on R& D of capital goods which are prima facie being produced by developed economies. The profits of the capital goods sector is directly linked with the profits of the entire Indian industry. This is further corroborated by the high elasticity behavior of Capital goods industry to the fluctuations in the industry growth. One of the key stimulators for demand in the capital goods sector is the manufacturing sector which forms the end user of these goods. Another stimulator for the demand is the gross investment made in this sector by the country. It is important to have a good demand for the Capital goods since its consumption constitutes 17-21 percent of the GDP of the country. However, the investments in this sector have declined when compared to other sectors. Hence, more emphasis on the investment and R&D of capital goods will provide considerable boost to the GDP of the country and in turn help in curbing recession. This is one of the most effective ways to control recession. a) Government should spend in agro based economies like Africa to have favourable terms for import of agriculture products. Although imports of agricultural products form a very small percentage of the total imports, the import duties and countries of trade pose significant hurdles. The current import statistics of various agricultural products are as follows. The total agri imports are in the range of 4-7 percent of the total imports. Edible oil accounts for more than 50% of the agri imports. Raw cashew nut accounts for about 10 percent of the agri imports. Other agricultural products imported are – cereals,pulses,spices,sugar chicken meat etc .However, these form a very low percentage of the agri imports and are imported in climatically abnormal years. Government should put extensive effort to build ties with agro based economies like Africa which would help reducing the expenditure on agricultural imports. This in-turn would help in maintaining the balance even in adverse years when domestic production fails to fulfill the demand. This gap between demand and supply in a bad year is one of the root causes of creating a recession. Hence, this is a cost effective alternative to fulfill this supply and curb the occurrence of a recession.

The comparison of capital structure across industry in UK Dissertation

The comparison of capital structure across industry in UK - Dissertation Example This research work aims at reviewing the literature and identifying the factors which determine the capital structure of firms, and then empirically investigating the relationship between leverage and factors influencing it in different industries in the United Kingdom, which include basic materials sector, financial services sector, customer services sector, consumer goods sector and real estate sector. In this regard, the researcher has made use of secondary sources of information to collect information required for analysis and has conducted descriptive and statistical analysis. The results obtained do not exactly match with the findings form the literatures. OLS method is used to test four hypotheses based on the factors affecting leverage ratio or debt-to-equity ratio using 40 companies from each of five sectors. Only in case of basic materials sector the model is significant and we find a significant relationship of leverage ratio with free cash flow and tax benefits. Again for financial services sector tax benefits is significantly associated with leverage but other variables are not. Amongst the control variables (tax benefits and growth rate) only tax benefits is inversely related in case of basic materials and directly related in case of financial services. ... es Figure 1: Preliminary Understanding of Debt to Equity Ratios in the Sectors Selected 33 List of Tables Table 1: Preliminary Understanding of Debt to Equity Ratios in the Sectors Selected 32 Table 2: Descriptive Findings – Basic Materials 34 Table 3: Descriptive Findings – Financial Services 35 Table 4: Descriptive Findings – Consumer Services 35 Table 5: Descriptive Findings – Consumer Goods 36 Table 6: Descriptive Findings – Real Estate 37 Table 7: Regression Analysis – Basic Materials Sector 38 Table 8: Regression Analysis – Financial Services Sector 39 Table 9: Regression Analysis – Consumer Services Sector 41 Table 10: Regression Analysis – Consumer Goods Sector 42 Table 11: Regression Analysis – Real Estate Sector 44 Chapter 1 – Introduction 1.1. Background to the Context At present all the major business organizations are uncertain regarding the fiscal decision which has to choose between the organi zational debts and its equity capital (Kuhn, 2006). The capital structure of an organization has a direct influence either positive or negative (Bierman, 2003), on the output i.e., revenue and profits and the business. The basic target of researchers while investigating capital structure, were mainly the developed countries particularly UK. Researchers have shown that firms of developing nations tend more to raise capital through equity while developed nations raise capital through leverage or external debt. The legal conditions and tax incentives play a significant role in a firm’s decision about capital structure. Hence a nation with underdeveloped capital market conditions and low protection of creditors will choose internal sources of funds (Baker and Martin, 2011). Decisions regarding capital structure are not an easy task (George,

Introduction to business law Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Introduction to business law - Coursework Example It can be gleaned from the communications made by herein parties their intention to enter into a contract. Under s.64 of Restatement, acceptance given by telephone or other medium of substantially instantaneously two-way communication is governed by the principles applicable to acceptances where the parties are in the presence of each other. Hence, if Eddie had intended to revoke the contract, he should have manifested the same on Tuesday. In the case of Megalift v Terminals [2009] NSWSC 324, the court ruled that both parties were already in negotiation, discussing terms and details such as transportation and delivery. These conversations involved quotations and although no fixed price was agreed upon, it was nonetheless a contract, which was legally binding. Moreover, her Honour disregarded the quotation for the purpose of a budget only. This did not prevent the parties from contracting. Answer to question # 2. Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 (UCTA) places a number of restrictions on the contract terms businesses can agree to. Specifically, it lays down rules for the ways in which vendor businesses can use exclusion clauses to limit liability in certain areas. (Business Link, Buyers' terms and conditions and unfair contract terms). The business selling the goods or services isn't allowed to exclude liability for: death or injury - under any circumstances, losses caused by negligence - unless to do so is 'reasonable' and defective or poor quality goods - unless to do so is 'reasonable' (Ibid.) Liability for negligence that causes other types of damage are subjected to a test for â€Å"reasonableness† (Alistaire 2009, Exclusion clauses and unfair contract terms Part  2). S.2(1) of the UCTA states that â€Å"A person cannot by reference to any contract term or to a notice given to persons generally or to particular persons exclude or restrict his liability for death or personal injury resulting from negligence.† Under s2(1) no one acting in the cou rse of a business can exclude or restrict his liability in negligence for death or personal injury by means of a term in a contract or by way of notice (Law Teacher 2011, Exclusion and Limiting Clauses). Bambi cannot make reference to the notice on the desk that excludes or restricts its liability in case of claim for damages resulting from its negligence. UCTA is the main statutory provision, which regulates exclusion clauses and can either render a term effective, ineffective or subject to the test of reasonableness. It applies to business liability as between businesses or a business and a consumer. Therefore, if parties are not acting in the course of a business, say for example a contract between two private individuals, they can exclude liability. UCTA applies to exclusion clauses in the course of a business in three situations:1. Negligence 2. Consumer 3. Standard Term Contracts (Gillhams Lawyers 2008, Business and Commercial Contract Terms). Negligence is failure to use reas onable care. It is the doing of something which a reasonably prudent person would not do, or the failure to do something, which a reasonably prudent person would do under like circumstances. It is a departure from what an ordinary

Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf from Roald Dahl's Essay

Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf from Roald Dahl's - Essay Example Consequently, she is able to be a mistress of her own, daring all kinds of situations, without outside help. She is also seen seen stripping herself of the â€Å"silly† red riding hood that was presented to her by an over-protective society (Dahl, 40). She is depicted as a young woman who has finally got rid of her self-image of vulnerability, imposed upon her by the society. Dahl has peripherally sticked to the original version of the story of Little Red Riding Hood until by the end. But by imparting the authorship of restoration to Little Red Riding Hood herself, he (Dahl) has banished the outside help that came to rescue her in the original story (40). The uniqueness of this story unlike many other popular fairy tales is in that it has always been open to new interpretations. There are many versions of the story already available and Dahl's attempt at a new interpretation hence seems to be becoming of the spirit of the story. Dahl has begun his story from the middle without introducing the heroine, Little Red Riding Hood (36). It is the wolf instead who takes center stage of the narrative (Dahl, 36). The story is reversed in an act mindful of the time that has passed since the story was first told. In other words, Dahl seems to believe that it is high time Little Red Riding Hood realizes the betrayal of the wolf and be prepared to handle it. So she is seen redrafting her original queries to the wolf once she arrives at her grand mother's hut (Dahl, 40). Parallel to this, it can be seen that the villainy of the wolf did not get updated in time (Dahl, 40). He is practicing his centuries old trick while Little Red Riding Hood has grown into the self-confident lass that the author meets later in the woods (Dahl, 40). The author (Dahl) has used Little Red Riding Hood material as a metaphor that tells the story of the empowerment of modern woman. She is once and for all breaking the stereotyped molds that the society has been putting her in since centuries (Dahl). She turns to be a little surprise for all as to the author (Dahl) of the story and he says, â€Å"But what a change! No cloak of red, No silly hood upon her head.† (40). Dahl has also got rid of the moralizing elements of the story-the dictate of the mother that the girl should not talk to strangers, and that she should not stray from her path. In Dahl's version, it does not matter whether Little Red Riding Hood talked to strangers on the way or whether she strayed a little from the forest path and picked some wild flowers. Windling has opined that this story, now told as a â€Å"cautonary tale†, meant to be a warning to the girls who disobeyed their parents' advice, had originally been a tale of â€Å"female initiative and maturation.† Windling has explained how this story was meant to be one of female initiation into sexual experiences. He has added that in the â€Å"Victorian middle-class† anxieties turned this tale into a moralizing one that t ells how led by her own â€Å"sensual drives†, Little Red Riding Hood fails to obey her mothers' cautions and nearly looses her â€Å"virtue†. On the other hand, in Dahl's tale, it might have been these very sensual experiences of straying from the prescribed path that could have given her the courage to put three bullets into the wolf's head, in the end (Dahl, 40). Dahl's Riding Hood is a woman who has sexual freedom and fearlessness. As Windling noted, in the original story, the wolf is a ware wolf, who can take on the shape of

Staff Training and Prevention of Violence in mental Health Care Units Research Paper

Staff Training and Prevention of Violence in mental Health Care Units - Research Paper Example This research will begin with the statement that the growing number of violence in the health care industry has evoked a variety of responses and those health care professionals who work in mental health care units are most vulnerable to workplace violence. There are a large number of studies that focus on the physical assault or verbal violence shown towards mental healthcare workers including nurses, physicians, psychologists and social workers. These studies emphasize the growing need to implement effective strategies to prevent and manage violence and aggression in the mental healthcare setting. While there have been many strategies implemented to manage and prevent violence in the mental health care units, the significance of effective staff education and training has been stressed by many researchers. However, there have not been many authentic studies that unearthed how far staff training contributes to the prevention of violence in the mental health care industry. In this res pect, the U.S. Department of Labor identifies â€Å"lack of staff training in recognizing and managing escalating hostile and assaultive behavior† as a crippling factor in preventing violence in acute health care units. There are also studies that have highlighted the need to offer staff in-service training to the mental health care professionals. The growing statistics on violence towards the health care professionals in mental and psychiatric units is quite alarming and shocking. In this respect, Adams and Whittington (1995) conducted a remarkable study among a sample group of hospital based nurses and community mental health nurses. The results of the study showed that 29% of the target population experienced verbal aggression over a 10 week period; 44% of the incidents involved threats and the rest consisted of abuses (Adams & Whittington, 1995, p. 171). These shocking statistics point towards the need to offer timely staff training to the mental health care professionals . Duxbury and Whittington (2005) have successfully brought out the staff and patient perspectives on violence in mental and psychiatric health care units. The researchers undertook a survey among a sample of 80 patients and 82 health care professionals (3 ward managers, 10 charge nurses, 35 staff nurses and 32 nursing assistants) from three inpatient mental healthcare wards. The mental illnesses of the patients varied from chronic schizophrenia to depressive disorders. The results of the study showed that the patients regarded ‘environmental conditions and poor communication’ as the two significant factors behind aggressive behavior whereas the nurses identified that the patients’ mental illness was the root cause for the violence; however, both the groups were thoroughly dissatisfied with the ‘restrictive and under-resourced provision that leads to interpersonal tensions’ (Duxbury & Whittington, 2005, p. 469). The study also showed that both the pat ients as well as the nurses were also dissatisfied with the way violence and aggression has been managed. The researchers identified staff training in the use of fundamental therapeutic communication skills as the potential solution to this interpersonal tension. The adverse effects of patient violence on the mental health care workers are many and varied. Patient violence on mental health care professionals not only leads to staff sickness and absenteeism but also to various psychological and mental distresses. Whatever may be the underlying causes for violence, â€Å"a major consequence for individuals affected directly or indirectly by violence is often psychological pain, whether depression, anxiety, isolation, trauma or other reactions

Recommendations for a Company Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Recommendations for a Company - Case Study Example Your firm is rather new in the market. Still, it should be carefully structured and monitored so that failures are identified early and appropriate solutions are given. Most important, the time spent on recovering from failures should be minimized otherwise there would be no time left for focusing on the firm’s expansion, a problem that you have already faced. As a leader, you have to emphasize on keeping the firm’s productivity at high levels (Schermerhorn 2011). You also have to ensure that the resources available are used appropriately so that organizational performance is high as possible (Schermerhorn 2011). In general, the management of organizations is based on four, key, functions: ‘a) planning, b) organizing, c) leading and d) controlling’ (Daft & Marcic 2012, p.9). This means that the leader who aims to secure the success of his business has to be able to respond to the demands of all the above management functions. Apart from the above functions, of particular importance for modern organizations is ‘the achievement of organizational goals’ (Dyck & Neubert 2008, p.7). ... In this way, the mistakes made will be identified and measures can be proposed for avoiding similar problems in the future. In regard to the mission statement of the organization the following comments could be made: a) although the mission statement responds to a basic need of the local market, i.e. the need for convenient accounting services, it seems to suffer at the following point: it does not refer, either directly or indirectly, to credibility, as a criterion of the services provided by the organization. In the specific sector, credibility is quite important at the level that any failure could lead to high penalties for the customer/ taxpayer. Therefore, the firm’s mission statement could be possible alternated. The phrase: ‘Credible management of your finances’ could be possible preferred instead of the firm’s existing mission statement: ‘Have laptop, will travel’; b) in its current form, the firm’s mission statement is related t o another problem: the mission statement is not supported by appropriate strategies, so that the statement’s enforcement becomes problematic. As noted above, planning is one of the key management functions (Daft & Marcic 2012). This means that each firm’s leader has the responsibility for the identification and the promotion of the firm’s mission statement, as also of the firm’s strategies and ethical rules. This means that you have to take measures for ensuring that the mission statement reflects the organization’s capabilities, as revealed through the firm’s performance. At the same time, you need to ensure that the firm is able to respond to the challenges that the above mission statement sets, i.e. the provision

Best Holiday Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Best Holiday - Essay Example Judy and Alex are the customers of the travel agency. They are married couple and want to go for honey moon trip. Best Holiday is a very well reputed travel agency. It offers special discounts to customers. The agency has good reputation for offering detailed tour packages to customers. Judy and Alex felt that they do not need to worry about anything regarding their honey moon trip. Apart from special discounts the agency provides different offers to its customers. All the facilities are available with the travel agency. This is one more reason for choosing the travel agency (Smith, 2014). As it is a honey moon trip for Judy and Alex, so they have chosen Paris as the honey moon destination for them. It is one of the most exotic honey moon destinations in the world. Transportation is a very important part of any trip. In case of this honey moon trip transportation will play a significant role (Archer and Syratt, 2012). Best Holiday will create a hassle free transportation experience for the honey moon couple. The agency has booked the air ticket for Judy and Alex (Kotler, 2008). The honey moon couple will travel by AIR FRANCE flight. Judy and Alex will start their journey on 25th July 2014. They will return on 27th July 2014. The flight will take off from Heathrow airport at 6.20 am and it will reach Paris airport at 9 am. It will take two hours and forty minutes to reach Paris from London. Flight charges for each person will be  £149. For the both occasions, AIR FRANCE will be the airliner for the couple. The agency is set to offer good transportation experience to the honey moon couple which will prepare an appropriate honey moon mood for Judy and Alex. Accommodation is the nerve centre of any trip. Here the importance of accommodation is very significant because it is a honey moon trip. The agency will arrange accommodations for Judy and Alex in hotel Marriott, Paris. It is one of the most beautiful hotels in Paris. The hotel

JP Morgan Chase Shifts IT Outsourcing into Reverse Case Study

JP Morgan Chase Shifts IT Outsourcing into Reverse - Case Study Example The major motive of the deal for JP Morgan Chase was to lower its IT costs and come up with better quality services to the customers. IBM, specializing in IT, could definitely help JP Morgan Chase in its motive and as part for IBM; it was getting the honor of outsourcing for a huge organization and increase its repute in the global customers it retains. This was the reason why the deal was beneficial and took place between the two companies. The deal was although a 7-year duration but ended up in just 21 months. JP Morgan Chase moved back from outsourcing to backsourcing due to a number of factors that proved that the decision of outsourcing was not a right one for JP Morgan Chase. These factors included: The entirely different work environments of both the organizations which influenced the employees of JP Morgan Chase who were also outsourced. Their ' morale and job security were highly influenced as in IBM they were not given the control and authority as they were given at JP Morgan Chase The information technology and information systems strategy of any organization needs to be matched with the business processes and requirements of the business. All the business processes need to be inline with the IT infrastructure and the IS which is being run in the organization. This is the reason why at present most of the companies go for customized information systems for their organizations rather than implementing off-the-shelf systems. With the customized approach, there is no need to change the business processes and the system that is being implemented is built with integration to the business processes. However, when off-the-shelf system is implemented, there is a need for BPR (Business Process Reengineering) in which the business processes are changed. JP Morgan Chase's information technology and information systems were in relation to their providence of the financial services on a global level. IBM is very famous for the quality it provides and the world wide customers it has to which it outsources systems and makes customers. Therefore the IT and IS Strategy of the organization was decided to be fully outsourced by IBM. The full dependency of JP Morgan Chase on IBM and the providence of its all data to IBM for building its IT was not a good decision. This is because the firms should not outsource their operational activities that stand crucial to them by any perspective. Through the operational activities, the firm interacts with its customers. Customer satisfaction is crucial to every business and when this job is handed to any other firm, the job cannot be performed as efficiently as the original firm does. For JP Morgan Chase, cost cutting and quality were the major issues due to which the decision of outsourcing seemed necessary to take; as through outsourcing, the IT budgets can be lowered. IBM, which is the outsourcing member in this case, has IT as its

Load Shedding Essay Example for Free

Load Shedding Essay As far as people are concerned, everyone in Karachi and outside Karachi is just fed up of the catastrophic conditions of load shedding. It leaves a very drastic impact over the minds of the people suffering from load shedding but on contrary this load shedding, very quietly and nicely played its role in bringing people closer and increasing the socialization, without the use of any telecommunication medium. Load shedding has much more benefits which cannot be presented on the fore and can not be considered as a benefit because on whole the load shedding is considered to be the worst process people had to pass through. Some other benefits of load shedding includes the rest in this hustling bustling world .people living in such world do not have time for themselves they live their life only for the sake of money. They just work like a machine, early rising 9 to 5 job then part time business, dinner with family, early to bed to rise up again early. In such routine life men forget him and lost him somewhere in this life .He had no time for himself, load shedding provides that leisure time to him to think for himself. A 19 years old teenager rise up at 7 o clock after breakfast leaves for the high school then after the routine timing he goes to tuition or any sort of part time job to earn his living or to get for his semester fees. Then he came back to his home by almost 9p.m just eat the dinner and get ready for chatting but as soon as he reaches the pc the light went off and he eventually decided to visit any of his friend near his house .then that one hour or more than an hour is the only time which aware him of the happening near to him. Although he was aware of what is happening in America or in Islamabad court but unaware of his neighbor conditions .hence the load shedding provides a Muslim the time to perform his duties for his neighbor as prescribed by Islam.

Characteristics Of Good Readers

Characteristics Of Good Readers I can remember those days clearly. As a student in English Teaching major, I always had problems with English literature and it was hard for me to finish reading an English story like elephants like white hills without trouble and difficulty. Once our literature teacher was asking students comments and suggestions about English literature and it was a good time for me to talk about my horrors and troubles with English literature. Whenever Im reading an English story or poem, a sense from deep inside my heart tells me that give it up! You dont have to shoulder this heavy burden! I said. While he had a smile on his face, our dear master answered me: have you ever seen people who are waiting for sunrise in a dessert to see the beauty of twilight? Do you know that their tolerance is rewarded by the most beautiful scene they can have in whole their lives? This statement was so masterly stated that forced me to think of the hidden part of the iceberg! So instead of giving up this beauty of twilight, I tried to get familiar with different reading skills and different processes affecting it and manage the hard task of reading. In fact, reading is a complex skill and good readers should approach reading from three major points of view: From teaching point of view, from different strategies needed, and from different processes required for the selection of materials. Primarily, reading is a skill which is mostly required in academic institutions. To analyze reading from teaching point of view, you should have a clear definition of reading. Different writers and different researchers have different definitions for reading. Christine Nuttall (1996) has given three groups of ideas for reading definition (p.2). The first group deals with reading as a decoding, deciphering, and identifying process. The second one sees it as an articulation, speaking, and pronunciation. The third one has some ideas like understanding, responding, and meaning for reading. We can see that this group of ideas deals with some loaded cognitive processes for reading and it is somehow related to the definition of reading by Perfetti (1984) who defines reading as thinking guided by print (qtd. in Chastain 216). Some people think that reading is a passive skill, because there is no production from the readers side, but Chastain (1988) is against this kind of definition and oppo ses this groups ideas by stating that: Referring to reading as a passive skill perpetuates a misconception that can only mislead students and harm their perceptions of what their rule in their reading process is. Reading is a receptive skill in that the reader is receiving message from a writer. In the past various writers have also referred to reading as a decoding skill. This terminology derives from the idea of language as a code, one which must be deciphered to arrive at the meaning of the message. Although this term points out the active role the reader must play in reading describe the reading process in a way that implies active reader intent upon using background knowledge and skills to recreate the writers intended meaning (p.216). Sengupta(2002) in her longitudinal study tracing conceptual change in developing academic reading at tertiary level has given an interactive model for academic reading in which the readers background knowledge, his risk-taking, and meaning making through this interaction are of primary importance in academic reading. Figure 1 clearly illustrates this relation. H:M.A1st sem researchtahririindex_filesfigure1.gif Undoubtedly, in order to be able to read in a foreign language, before anything, one has to be familiar with the signs and sign systems of that foreign language. Like the children learning their first languages signs, a person who wants to read in a foreign language has to know for example what an X sign stands for. But we should have in mind that children go under several preparatory processes before being able to read a text or a story. To get familiar with some of these multilevel processes, Smith and Elley (1997) conducted a study on teaching reading for children in New Zealand and they reported that: Children are prepared for reading at an early age by listening to stories, being read to, and interacting with adults and others about the stories they hear. This is done not with the main purpose of preparing a child for reading but as a way that parents and others interact with, show affection for, and entertain and educate children. The interaction involves asking questions about what is going to happen in the story, getting the child to complete sentences in a known story, talking about the interesting and scary parts of the story, and generally having fun (qtd. in Nation 3). As you can see in this example, children primarily pay attention to the meaning the sentences have and the form and pronunciation of the sentences may be of little concern for these little children. This awareness of sentence meaning and the techniques used to teach reading makes this kind of reading interaction largely meaning-focused and Nation (2009) states that it includes shared reading, guided reading and independent reading. In shared reading, the learners gather around the teacher and the teacher reads a story to the learners from a very large blown-up book while showing them the pictures and the written words. The second type is Guided reading which can be done silently or with a child reading aloud to a friend, parent or teacher. Before the reading the learner and teacher talk about the book (pp. 3-4). Several researches have shown the effectiveness of this kind of reading. One of them is the research done by Wong and McNaughton (1980): Research by Wong and McNaughton (1980) showed that for the learner they studied, pre-reading discussion resulted in a greater percentage of words initially correct, and a greater percentage of errors self-corrected. The teacher and the learner look at the title of the book and make sure that all the words in the title are known. Then they talk about the pictures in the story and make predictions about what might happen in the story and talk about any knowledge the learner already has about the topic. Important words in the story are talked about but need not be pointed to in their written form. So, before the learner actually starts to read the story, the ideas and important words in the story are talked about and clarified. Then the learner begins to read (qtd. in Nation p.4). The third kind of meaning-focused reading is the independent reading in which the learner chooses a book to read and quietly gets on with reading it. During this quiet period of class time, the teacher may also read or may use the time as an opportunity for individual learners to come up to read to the teacher (Nation, 2009, p. 5). As you saw, learning to read in the first language seems quite easy, but the way in which you learn reading in second language has its own problems. Taken from Nation (2009), some of these problems are illustrated in table 1(p.7): Table 1.1 L1/L2 Differences for an Individual Beginning to Read Characteristics General effects Particular effects L1 beginning readers already know a lot of the language they are beginning to read (sounds, vocabulary, grammar, discourse). L2 learners do not. Learning to read an L2 involves a great deal of language learning. L2 learners need very controlled texts. L2 learners need a greater amount of pre-reading activities. L2 beginners can already read in their L1. L2 beginners have general cognitive skills. They have preconceptions and attitudes to reading. They have language specific skills. There will be interference and facilitation effects between the L1 and L2 L2 beginners do not need to learn what they can transfer from the L1. They may need to change their attitudes to reading. Learners may have to learn a different writing system. L2 beginners are usually older than L1 beginners. L2 learners have greater metalinguistic and metacognitive awareness It is easy to transfer L1 skills. L2 learners can use more explicit approaches and tools like dictionaries. This table has been kept simple by focusing on only one learner who is just beginning to read. It is more complicated if you have several learners with different L1s, different L2 proficiencies, different L1 reading proficiencies, and different motivations for reading. Reading also requires having different strategies. These reading strategies are grouped into different categories, according to the preference of their writers. For example, www.readinga-z.com (n.d), has given the list of following strategies: Making Predictions Visualizing Asking and Answering Questions Skimming and Scanning Retelling and Summarizing Connecting the Text to Life Experiences, Other Texts, or Prior Knowledge Word-Attack Strategies The first one is making predictions. By making predictions, you can make the reading more interesting. Incorrect predictions can signal a misunderstanding that needs to be revisited (www.readinga-z.com). In making predictions, you should have these points in your mind: Look at the pictures, table of contents, chapter headings, maps, diagrams, and features. What subjects are in the book? Write down predictions about the text. During reading, look for words or phrases from those predictions. While reading, revise the predictions or make new ones (www.readinga-z.com). The second strategy is visualizing. In visualizing, the reader uses his mental power effectively and using shapes, spatial relationships, movement, and colors can benefit greatly from this strategy. This strategy also requires having the following points in mind: Imagine a fiction story taking place as if it were a movie. Imagine the characters features. Picture the plot in time and space. Imagine processes and explanations happening visually. Use nouns, verbs, and adjectives to create pictures, diagrams, or other mental images. Use graphic organizers to lay out information. Make sketches or diagrams on scrap paper (www.readinga-z.com). Lets go to the third strategy which is asking and answering questions. Using this strategy you have to ask different questions from yourself while reading and then by answering these questions you can direct your reading. Like the guidelines given in the previously mentioned strategies, readinga-z.com gives the following guidelines to us: Before reading, think about the subject based on the title, chapter heads, and visual information. Make note of anything you are curious about. While reading, pause and write down any questions. Be sure to ask questions if there is confusion. Look for the answers while reading. Pause and write down the answers. Were all the questions answered? Could the answers come from other sources? Then we come to the skimming and scanning. Lindsay and Knight (2006) give credit to these skills by saying that: the ability to read something quickly and efficiently is an important skill for learners to acquire. Skimming and scanning are two of this (p.71). They define skimming as the reading for gist without trying to understand everything in it. In this process, you read through the text to get a general idea of what it is about, while in scanning you want to find out about something specific, for example get a particular piece of information from a text (Lindsay and Knight, 2006, p.72). The next reading strategy is Retelling and Summarizing during which you have to paraphrase the written materials and summarize it and be able to discriminate between main ideas and minor details (readinga-z.com). In this strategy, readinga-z.com recommends us to pay attention to the following points: During reading, note the main ideas or events. Put a check mark in the book or write a note to point out a main idea. At the ends of chapters or sections, review the information or story. Note main ideas or events and the details that support them. After reading, retell or summarize the text. Focus on the important points, and support them with relevant details. Refer to the book to check the retelling or summarization. The last point to mention in the reading strategies refers to the use of word-attack strategies which help students decode, pronounce, and understand unfamiliar words. They help students attack words piece by piece or from a different angle (readinga-z.com). Using word-attack skills, you can reduce the difficulties of reading process. Reducing the scale of the problem by ignoring inessential words is the first step. Next, students must require strategies for dealing with lexical items that really block comprehension (Nuttall, 1996, p.69). Here we shall discuss three kinds of them: the first is the interpretation of structural clues by looking at the position of a word in a sentence, inference from context is the next which is a skill we have in our L1 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and for less fluent students conscious use of it is valuable. By using it, they can get a meaning not necessarily completely accurate, but enough for their purpose (Nuttall, 1996, pp.69-72). Using a dictionary is the last skill the use of which is both discouraged and encouraged. It is discouraged because of the usual tendency to use them far too often (Nuttall, 1996, p.76). I think there is no need to explain why a dictionary is encouraged. For using a dictionary, Nuttall (1996) emphasizes the implementation of the following steps: The first step towards using the dictionary as a tool instead of a crutch is to decide which word to look upand to accept that they should be as few as possible. Having decided to look up a word, we want to do it quickly and to make the best use of the information in the dictionary (p.76). It is necessary to have continual insistence on the use of this skill. This means you should make frequent use of the dictionary in class (even though it is quicker to give the meaning yourself); and that it should be the student who select the appropriate definition (Nuttall, 1996, p.76). Among the others, Krashen and Terrell (1983) outline the following communicative reading strategy: 1. Read for meaning 2. Dont look up every word 3. Predict meaning 4. Use context (qtd. in Chastain 225) Finally, we come to the selection of materials for reading. Selection of appropriate reading materials is a crucial component in the establishment of a productive reading program (Chastain, 1988, p.231). Defending the place of the selection of the materials, Doff(1988) has given some factors for the selection of materials to consider: In normal life, we do not normally read because we have to but because we want to. We usually have a purpose in reading: there is something we want to find out, some information we want to check or clarify, some opinion we want to match against our own, etc. We also have a purpose in reading when we read stories for pleasure: we want to find out how the story develops, what happens next (p.170). As we can infer from the given text, it is the learners interests and needs which initially shapes the selection of materials, so the first factor to consider in the selection of the appropriate reading materials can be the interests and goals of the learner. Chastain (1988) emphasizes the importance of this point more than linguistic complexity by stating that: With the advent of the concept of reading as taking place within the readers head as he interacts with the words on the page, the readers willingness to continue the process of recreating meaning until the authors message is understood becomes central to reading process. Thus interest in the content rises to a level of importance higher than that of linguistic complexity because no reading will take place if readers are not interested enough to continue reading. However, if they are really interested in knowing what author has to say, they will make every effort to understand the reading (p.231). Here Chastain (1988) raises a question: students interests cover an enormous range of topics, trying to satisfy all would be impossible (p.231). Then, what would we do in selecting materials while at the same time we are going to consider the students interests? The answer is so simple. We can use a variety of procedures to select the reading materials from among the students interests. For example, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ they (the teachers) can choose readings with which students have some familiarities, or they can use prereading activities to generate interest and even enthusiasm for the content of selected reading. They can even survey the students interests later in the course and attempt to incorporate into the course reading on some of the mentioned topics (Chastain, 1988, p.231). The second factor in selecting the reading materials is the factor of readability which is determined through linguistic analysis of the authors language (Chastain, 1988, p.232). Nuttall (1996) defines readability as combination of structural and lexical difficulty and further explains that since the language of a text maybe difficult for one student and easy for another, it is necessary to assess the right level for students you teach (p.174). It is obvious that if the text would be beyond the readers power of comprehension, soon he will be frustrated and he may put it aside and, like what I did with the the hills like white elephants! So the text should be analyzed through the factor of readability before being processed by the reader. Readability of a text can be analyzed from many ways. For example computer programs and the way they process the data you when you give the sample from the text. Some readability indexes like Harrison 1980 and Chall 1984 are frequently used to calculate readability (Nuttall, 1996, p.175). As you pay attention to the level of readability of the text, you should also be aware of the other detriment of reading comprehension: Syntactic simplicity. Bernhardt (1948) points out that syntactic simplicity may decrease text cohesion and thereby hinder comprehension (qtd. in Chastain 232). Now, we shall go to the last factor in selecting the reading materials which is the use of the authentic materials. Nuttall (1996) comments that they can be motivating because they are proof that the language is used for real life purpose by real people (p.172). Chastain (1988) defines authentic materials as follows: Generally, any text that an author writes to be able to communicate some message is authentic because it has an authentic purpose and it conforms to authentic language use (p.233). This definition of the authentic materials is different from the definitions given by some other authors who define authentic materials as those texts written for use by the foreign language community, not for language learners (Nuttall, 1996, p.177). Byrnes (1985) clearly explains the reason why some people only label the texts written by native speakers as authentic materials: Due to the problems students have with such texts because they are unfamiliar with the culture, one may think of material written by native speakers for language users as being authentic (qtd. in Chastain 232). Chastain (1988) comments on which types of authentic materials are good for L2 readers specially for students and which types are not by stating that: Supervisors and teachers of language courses may choose more academic types of reading such as articles, essays, short stories, plays, and novels, and these works certainly are important. One purpose of education is to expose students to high quality writing and to stimulating intellectual ideas from the cultures writers. However, never being exposed to some of the more common types of reading that they do in their native culture such as advertisements, notices, TV schedules, bulletins, manuals, programs, newspapers, and menus may result in students who are unable to read things they will need most to be able to read in the foreign culture (p.233). In this paper, we looked at reading from three major viewpoints and the impact they could have on improving the reading. I often use the reading strategies just mentioned in this paper, but whenever a story like elephants like white hills wants to irritate me, a sense from deep inside my heart tells me that give it up!

Brazil Facts Essay -- Brazil

Brazil Introduction You probably heard of Brazil but, do you know much about it? Brazil is a beautiful place or country, in South America. It’s great for tourists’ sites; it has amazing land features, and especially cool culture and history. Brazil has a tremendous amount of nature and folktale. Brazil was found actually, over 8,000 years ago. The Portuguese were the first European settlers to arrive there. The journey was led by Pedro Cabral who began in the 1500s. When they finally got there they found Native Americans living there. They were around the seven millions. Now over the thousands of years Brazil has literally transformed into modern day. Brazil is the Federal Republic of Brazil. Brazil is in South America and is the largest country there. It’s the fifth largest country in the whole world. Brazil may be the fifth largest country but, it’s the sixth largest nation or population. The population in Brazil is 186 million and the life expectancy for men is 68 years old, for women its 76. In 1494, Pope Alexander VI gave Brazil to Portugal. Then in 1762, Rio De Jan...

The Sauerkraut Festival Essay -- Descriptive Essays, Observation

As I start walking south down sauerkraut enriched Main Street, I get the overwhelming feeling of claustrophobia. This particular weekend is the weekend for the Sauerkraut Festival. The street, being very crowded, has white tents set up on each side of the road with crafts to be sold. Immediately I see wicker baskets and photos that craftsmen are hoping to sell at the festival. As I continue to walk down the crowded street I catch the aroma of cinnamon. The high school wrestling team, which sells one of the non-sauerkraut products, cinnamon roasted almonds, is filling the air with a great scent, and drawing people to the seller’s booth with the scent. Across the street from them, the booth filled with crafts to commemorate firefighters is enjoying the crowd that the wrestling booth is drawing. With all of this attention to the almonds, the firefighter booth is catching some eyes and selling more than the booth would without the wrestler’s booth. As I continue to traverse down the congested street I see many more craft booths. Some of the booths are filled with hats, shirts, and an assortment of jewelry. Scents fill the air as well. The overwhelming scent of sauerkraut is very heavily in the air now. Sauerkraut hot dogs and bratwurst, as well as "kraut-burgers," which are hamburgers with sauerkraut on them, are being sold to help thicken the aroma. As I draw closer to the heart of the festival I hear music playing in the distance. I become curious and begin to try and walk a little faster. I come to the corner, sit on the stairs leading from the local bank, and listen to the band playing on the stage set up in the bank parking lot. It is an all male band with female line dancers dancing in front of the stage. The band is wea... ...estival because I am getting very annoyed at the people here. Once getting around all of the heavy traffic, I hear music again. I squeeze through the crowd, which is not moving at all, and the booths finally end. I find myself at a real traffic jam of cars, sitting on the road waiting at a red light, and one of the cars has its radio up quite loud. Then a police officer holds traffic and the massive group of people that I squeezed through all rushes across the road. I go with them and then return to my car. The trip to the festival was great, but I am not big into crafts. I would have a much greater time at the festival if the crowd was not so big; this way I can take all of the time that I need, and not have to worry about stepping on someone or running into someone. I now appreciate all of the time that the village puts into the festival. They do a great job.

Effects Terrorism has on our Nation Essay example -- essays research p

Effects Terrorism has on our Nation Purpose: To inform readers of the effects the recent terrorist attacks have on society today. Audience: General Thesis: The terrorist attack on America has affected the economy, tourism and the foreign society tremendously. The Effects Terrorism has on Society From the lips of the FBI, â€Å"Terrorism is the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objective.† On September 11, 2001 the United States of America experienced such actions, it was the largest terror attack experienced by any country. The affect this had on America was tremendous, thousands are dead and tens of thousand of Americans in our country know someone who was killed or injured. The terrorist attack on America has affected the economy, tourism and foreign society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The economy has caused the U.S. unemployment to increase. The unemployment rate from two thousand one, to two thousand four has increased by 2 percent. The number of people without jobs has grown from six million, eight hundred and one thousand in The year two thousand and one,to eight million six hundred forty six thousand and two hundred fifty currently. This massive downsize is due to the lack of finances to fund workers in the workforce. Also the United States paid over one point, thirty six million dollars to families who lost loved ones in th...

New Generation of Jails

New generation jails â€Å"seek to manage human behavior positively, consistently and fairly.† (Sullivan, 2007, â€Å"Major changes†) Goals include maximizing the interaction between the staff and prisoners, subjecting the latter to more direct and continuous supervision, and enhancing safety for both parties, by making the jail more manageable and organized. The design is based on a philosophy that accused or convicted offenders must be treated in a humane manner while being incarcerated. (Allen et. al, 2007, p. 101) New generation jails are constructed using a podular design, where housing areas are divided into smaller and more manageable pods or units. A typical unit contains single occupancy cells to avoid triggering aggressiveness among inmates that may occur when they share a cell. Each unit has a secure control booth where the staff can directly and constantly observe and supervise inmate activity. (Nelson, 1998, â€Å"New Generation Jails†) The houses are designed to imitate a â€Å"normalized environment,† where inmates can enjoy visiting, programming, recreation, and related activities. Carpeting, wood, upholstered furnishings, paint color, and considerable natural light are incorporated into the housing unit to encourage better moods and interaction. Educational facilities, telephones, exercise machines and other recreational equipment are also available. Unlike the traditional prison cell which contained only a bunk, faucet and toilet, cells now have a desk and seat, running water, intercoms, and large windows. (Law Library, 2007, â€Å"Jail structure and design characteristics†) So far, assessment of new generation jails have shown that they help alleviate problems of tension and violence, noise inside the prison, idleness, vandalism, discipline and jail costs. Staff morale, inmate control, and communication/relaying of information have also greatly improved. (Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio, 2007, â€Å"The New Generation Direct Supervision Jail.†) New generation jails have been successful in alleviating and minimizing future problems, thanks to the combination of a dedicated and satisfied supervision staff and new facility designs. References Allen, H. E., Latessa, E. J., Ponder, B. S., and Simonsen, C. E. (2007). Corrections in   Ã‚  Ã‚   America: An introduction, eleventh edition. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc. â€Å"Jail structure and design characteristics.† (2007) Law Library – American Law and Legal   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Information. Retrieved April 12, 2007 Nelson, W. R. (January 5 1998). â€Å"New generation jails.† Prop1.org Web Domain. Retrieved   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   April 12, 2007, from http://www.prop1.org/legal/prisons/97jails.htm Sullivan, P. M. (March 21, 2007). â€Å"Influencing juvenile justice architecture.† The   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Corrections Connections. Retrieved April 12, 2007, from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.corrections.com/news/article.aspx?articleid=15338 â€Å"The new generation direct supervision jail.† (February 28 2007) Corrections Center of    Northwest Ohio Online. Retrieved April 12, 2007, from   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   http://www.ccnoregionaljail.org/newgenerationjail.htm   

Krysztof Kieslowski

IntroductionKrysztof Kieslowski‘s genius germinated as a truly original and thought provoking film director was deeply influenced by the presence of Communism in Poland,. Later to join the ranks of the world’s greatest filmmakers, Krysztof was quoted as saying asking questions about our existence was more important than being concerned with political reality ; â€Å" why get up from bed ?!† – If one was not at all concerned about the metaphysics of things. In this context his fascination towards the parameters of memory and complexities of survival developed and was later manifested in his works.The land of his birth, Poland, was the background for many of his movies. He shifted his focus from documentary reality as a filmmaker working in his country. The gaze of his camera shifted from documenting reality to the probing the inner life of human beings, deeply affected by their reality in different ways.   The oeuvre of Kieslowski straddled over many conce rns. Two of his recurring themes were the persistence of memory and survival amidst the harsh realities of life. Death and violence was a feature of life in communist Poland.Every vestige of idealism was stripped away in the wake of mind numbing regimentation and the murder of freedom and humanity – almost reducing people to bare survival level.   On a spiritual level the characters in Kieslowski’s works seem to agonizingly grope their way forward out of this darkness.Each in their own way resolve a dilemma of existence, to find reunion, stark truth, even death, happiness and yet the films never work their way to some artificial conclusion – ambiguous as life is, in fact. An examination of the director’s projects will throw up evidence of these recurring themes. Yet, the films are never completely pessimistic, even if some might go deep into the dark side of human nature or seem to be concerned with erotic obsession. Thus in one hand it magnified memory or the reconstruction of memory and on the other hand he juxtaposed the manifestation and complexities of survival.However, the director was himself a very warm person who simply felt that depicting fictionalized reality was simply a better, if oblique, way to show reality. One tends to get an impression from the whole body of work that a lot is being said in the films but very subtly. Of course, helping Kieslowski was his immensely talented cast who seem to draw every shade of feeling out in films as diverse as No End and The Double life of Veronique.   On the face of it nothing very much seems to be happening in these films.   It is all subtle emotional underplay and a strongly controlled interplay of human conflicts and deeply moving responses. (Dollard, 89-92)Two of his films are representative of the aforementioned themes: Three Colors: Blue and Decalogue 2Three Colors: Blue (1993)‘Blue’ is a work of such intensity that one is eternally grateful that Juliette Binoche plays Julie Vignon De Courcy, the protagonist of the film with such a fine texture of emotions.Blue is the Polish director’s penetrating and highly involving work on loss and freedom and is also the dominant hue of his film. It is also part of a trilogy, Red, White and Blue the director made.A bluish candy wrapper in a small girl’s hand, reflects, sunlight through a car’s window; the next shot cuts to a leaking pipe, hinting at the imminent accident involving the car. Julie Vignon is the only survivor in the accident, which kills her daughter and husband. Fortunately for viewers, the car crash is heard not seen. The rest of the incident is shown in fragments and slivers of shattered glass. This reflects the state of the injured Julie in hospital.Extremely painfully she recollects the incident in fragments. The fragments hint at her life so far. She is the wife of a well known musician. The husband has been lately rumored to have run out of original ideas for composition – his scores are said to have been penned by his wife. Julie seems to fighting these memories off almost as if they cause great suffering. She seems to find it difficult to survive.Through these initial terse cuts , Kieslowski draws us wide eyed into a private world of pain and suffering mad acute by lingering memory   this is a devastated world , and very subtle action depicts this . Dialogue would be utterly contrived in this situation. A typical approach would be to take the path of resolution of this pain shown in quick recovery. True to his commitment, the director does not make it so easy. In the hospital, Julie attempts suicide by an overdose of pills but does not really go all the way – she survives.   Here there is a further ‘hardening’ of the situation. (Lamb, 243-245)After her release from hospital, Julie wants to kill herself off psychologically by withdrawing from the world. Her grief in fact, is so intense that she can ne ither cry nor even feel.   Yet, her body language reveals that she is still in great pain. Her mouth quivers as she watches her family’s funeral on television and her daughter’s casket. She visibly goes limp as she approaches her husband’s study. This is depicted with an economy which truly emphasizes the slow build up of grief.   She withdraws herself completely from the world around her and shifts from the family’s country estate to an apartment, in her maiden name. She wipes out all traces of the past, even of her family except a few slivers of glass. Reflections in glass are a persistent device used in the film – meant to convey the distance Julie is creating for herself and her memories.But the distance Julie wants to create cannot really stave off her past, try as she might; her reaction is to further withdraw into an enigmatic silence. At this point, her husband’s business partner, Olivier, searches her out and offers to complete her husband’s unfinished symphony as a tribute to his memory. Here is the working out of a cathartic device. The audience would find it relieving to have Julie come out of the prison of grief and re attach to the world.The resolution of the film’s mesmerizing tone of grief is toward a brighter shade. Blue is the color of grief but Juliet’s slow emergence back into personal peace helps to overcome this. Olivier’s role is cathartic meant to bring a closure. Towards the end of the film, she decides to collaborate on finishing her husband’s symphony and gives off the family’s country estate to her husband’s mistress. (Fletcher, 188)Losing everything can be freedom too.DECALOGUE 2Decalogue was a series of ten I hour films, each based on one of the Ten Commandments. The work was however, no rendering of the Biblical story but a reframing of the commandments to contemporary Poland. Each sin attributed to a particular moral lapse in each of t he ten films. These films offered Kieslowski the convenience of working with some of his favorite themes and some new ones.   They obliquely refer to Kieslowski’s religious concerns but in a way totally in synch with the director’s typically understated and subtle style. They are tightly made and form a work of considerable cinematic importance.The central theme of Decalogue 2 is of the purest moral dilemma. Dorota’s husband is seriously ill and in hospital. What she needs to know from the doctor is whether he will survive or not. She is pregnant by some one else and if her husband survives, she will abort the child .If he dies, she will keep the child.The doctor denies any knowledge of her husband’s prognosis saying he doesn’t clearly know how to answer her.   The doctor’s story is then told in flashback and we find that his family has been killed in a World War 2 bombing raid.   His tragic loss in the past and his memory of it makes him conscious of another life at stake. Here we have a clear glimpse of the director’s humanity and his strong convictions as a person even when working or dealing with a lot of abstraction in his films. The doctor’s dilemma is;  Ã‚   should he tell her the husband will be well thus making Dorota abort the child? In the end the doctor‘s brilliant answer will help to save two lives (Dorota’s and the child’s).The film is embellished like the others in this collection with the many small details that help build up the situation in a one hour film – details that keep audiences involved in the story unfolding. The film reveals that the doctor lives in the same apartment block as Dorota, walks to work. There are scenes involving Dorota’s smoking which obviously increases the danger to her.The theme of survival is cleverly shown in scenes where a bee tries to draw itself out of a bottle on a table in the husband’s hospital bed, makin g the connections to the issue of the fragility of life and strong survival instincts at work both within the film and in living beings. Human beings seem to be longing for contact or withdrawing in their own private world. Meaning is ambiguous in these films: there are the sub themes to consider – violence, chance, fate, and destiny.   Dream sequences are an extension of memory giving us a glimpse of the depth of anguish or obsession which different in the human beings. (Kar, 145)Rather, as his other creation like The Double Life of Và ©ronique, the films take on a life of their own with individuals in a society, in a state, in a family. More is happening to these characters than the films makes apparent. The director does not observe from the wings but probes deep in to what makes human conflict, what goes on in their minds. Thus the aspects of memory and complexities of survival become evident again and again.ConclusionThroughout the latter part of his career, Kieslowsk i reveals a streak of pessimistic humanism. The works show a fascination for the inner life of human beings and a spiritual quest for the meaning of existence, with carefully structured camera compositions and an almost sparse narrative. The deeper truths lie beneath the surface of reality and the unraveling of it is as unpredictable as life – the creator does not contrive situations to fit his view. However, he remained loyal towards his belief of greater truth regarding memory and complexities of survival. (King, 126)Works Cited:Dollard, John; Krysztof Kieslowski looks into Tomorrow. (New Haven and London: Yale University Press. 2006) pp 89-92Fletcher, R; Art: Beliefs and Knowledge; Believing and Knowing. (Mangalore: Howard & Price. 2006) pp 188Kar, P; History of Cinema & Market Applications (Kolkata: Dasgupta & Chatterjee 2005) pp 145King, H; Art Today (Dunedin: HBT & Brooks Ltd. 2005) pp 126Lamb, Davis; Cult to Culture; (Wellington: National Book Trust. 2004) pp 243-245

Odysseus and Aeneus: Travels to the Dark Side Essay

Ancient Greece’s Odysseus from Homer’s The Odyssey and ancient Troy’s Aeneus from Virgil’s The Aeneid are both heroes who struggle with identity and purpose, and these identities and purposes are tied up into the concepts and symbolism revolving around female versus male and pagan versus Christian-like influences. In comparing Odysseus’ travel to the underworld and Aeneus’ decent to the land of the dead, one can relate these journeys to the main philosophical plots of both works of ancient literature. Although both men return from Hades alive, the two men’s initial approaches to the dead are slightly different, Odysseus performing sacrifices at the direction of the female goddess Circe and Aeneus praying to the male God Appollo and led to the gates by the priestess Sybil. The variance in how the heroes enter the spirit worlds lends significant insight into how their experiences in the underworld play out and mirror the entire themes of both tales. The heroes’ experiences with the dead are not unlike the major plots of both works, Odysseus focusing more on a successful return to his wife and Aeneus centering more on a successful honoring of God and country. The more mortal, pagan, and female experiences of Odysseus’ journey contrast to the more immortal, Christian-like, and male voyage of Aeneus. A main difference in the drive of the two men is that Odysseus is driven by the recommendations of the Goddess Circe and Aeneus is empowered by the guidance of the God Appolo. Here one can see the divine gender differences and the contrast of abiding by the rule of an immortal woman or the power of an immortal man. Leadership positions are of great significance in The Odyssey and The Aeneid, because Ithaca and Troy were in bitter battles for power and influence during this time. In calling attention to modern day Christian theology, it can be stated that perhaps Aeneus displays the most leadership capacity, given that he takes heed of the influence of male figures. However, in refuting modern day Christian mentality, one can suppose that Odysseus may be correct in placing his trust and ability to be guided in the hands of a woman, accepting the idea of womanly power and the feminine energy which can be useful to and benefit male figures. The fact that the tale of Odysseus was born several hundred years before Christian theology contrasts with the story of Aeneus, written only a couple decades before Christ’s birth, on the cusp of Christian influence. The communication of the ghosts to both heroes gives insight to the similarities and differences of their experiences in the underworlds. At the River of Ocean in the land of the Cimmerians, the spirits themselves come to Odysseus, giving him a more rooted or female positioning, Elpenor one of the first to greet Odysseus, begging him to return to Circe’s island and give him a proper burial. In Dis, the land of the dead, Charon delivers souls to Aeneus from across the river Acheron, and Sybil explains to Aeneus that the souls of the dead must remain on the other bank. However, upon showing his golden branch, Aeneus is able to be ferried across and he moves into the underworld, granting him an entering and more male positioning. Further communication with the spirits reveal to both men the end goals or purposes of their expeditions. For Odysseus, in the counsel of the ghost prophet Tiresias, he is informed that the Achaeans are being punished by Poseidon for the blinding of his son Polyphemus and foresees that Odysseus will have a successful journey culminating in the return to his wife, the banishment of her eager suitors, and the future engagement in another trip to appease Poseidon. The goal for Aeneus is also revealed in the land of the dead by the spirit of his father Anchesis, that Romulus will found Rome, a Caesar will eventually come from the line of Ascanius, and Rome will reach a Golden Age of rule over the world. Here, one notes that for Odysseus, a return to Penelope is a large part of his purpose, while Aeneus appears to be on a mission revolving fighting solely for the fatherland. The relative physical nearness of Odysseus to the spirits contrasts the distance of Aeneus to the ghosts they both encounter, Odysseus seemingly swarmed by the souls and Aeneus travelling to the spirits throughout Hades. The shades of the dead are immediately able to interact with and influence Odysseus, while Aeneus is separated from the spirits by the river and must be shuttled across by the gate keeper, Charon. Also, the concept of levels of purgatory is not readily apparent in Odysseus’ experience in the underworld, while Aeneus experiences the movement through stages of Hell, from the suicide victims in the Fields of Mourning to the innocent spirits in the Blessed Groves. One can distinguish between the more ancient belief of Odysseus being directly submerged with the spirit world, souls coming to him directly, and Aeneus’ more Christian-like orientation of being classified in steps away from the divine or away from eternal joy according to the level of preoccupation with sin and death, journeying through the various areas of what could be termed a kind of purgatory in Hell, perhaps just short of divine life or mortality in Heaven. Two former soldier spirits communicate to the men that they would like to be buried properly, which serves to align the tales of Odysseus and Aeneus more closely together. Both Elpenor’s plea to Odysseus and Aeneus’ spotting of Palinurus within the area for spirits having received improper burials bring sadness to the hearts of the heroes, perhaps knowing that the deceased did not receive the most appropriate and respectful honor from them. The quick and dirty nature of battle is called to mind for both of the men as they express regret at their ineffectiveness in having paid proper respects to their lost friends. Here, Odysseus and Aeneus are seen as more similar, both either guilty or saddened by the lost chance to truly honor the dead at the time of their passing. This experience serves for both men a time of self reflection on their own actions, deliberating on whether or not they had made the right choices and calling to mind the concepts of sin and regret due to possibly mistaken actions. In comparing Odysseus’ marriage to Penelope to Aeneus’ sighting of Dido in the land of the dead, one is struck by the sharp contrast in the men’s relationships with women. While Odysseus is faithful to Penelope and keeps her as a driving force in his quest, a goal and treasure to which he wants to return and defend, Aeneus is shocked by seeing his former love in the Fields of Mourning, having killed herself and married a ghost in the afterlife. Aeneus’ incapacity at sustaining a relationship is a very important point to consider in the comparison of both heroes. Perhaps Odysseus’ clinging to the more female part of existence and divine life lends power to his ability to hold his marriage together, giving support and honor to the idea of family life. Although both men are soldiers on journeys to defend their home countries, Odysseus does not make the complete break from home in the way that Aeneus does. The splitting of Aeneus and Dido is a deep and telling fracture which can lend insight into the Trojan way of thinking regarding marriage and family. In this way, Aeneus’ masculinity works against him in that he is effectively separated from romantic love, and Odysseus’ pact with the feminine keeps him bound closer to family and home life. Also touching on the concept of family members as they relate to gender differences is the fact that Odysseus is visited by his mother in the underworld and Aeneus seeks out his father. The coming of Odysseus’ mother Anticleia is again a more female orientation visitation and perhaps another impetus for Odysseus to return home to his wife Penelope, as his mother confesses to have died of grief in waiting for his return to Ithaca. Aeneus’ conversation with his father is again a more male oriented interaction. Anchises explains how the spirits move about in Dis, illustrating more clearly the Christian-like concept of purgatory and gaining insight on how the ghosts are able to reach the Fields of Gladness, as well as gaining insight on the future role of Trojans in Rome and the expansion of the Roman Empire, lending support to the ideas of hierarchy and patriarchy. In paying attention to the sensation of what it was like to have been in the two underworlds, one notes that the experience of the souls in Odysseus’ underworld is nothing less than suffering and that the experience of the spirits in Aeneus’ land of the dead is more variable, some suffering and some happiness. Odysseus’ departure from the underworld in being swarmed by the souls is one of fright and fleeing, while Aeneus leaves the land of the dead courageously. The distaste which Odysseus holds for the dead ghosts is apparent, and he expresses the fact that he wants nothing to do with knowledge of the dead. The encounter with his mother Anticleia may have also invoked fear in Odysseus that his wife Penelope may also surrender to sadness and death. Aeneus is more curious of the afterlife, the positive aspects and negative aspects being grouped separately, and he demonstrates a desire to learn about now to gain access to the nicer areas of the spirit world. The energy he receives from the encouraging conversation with his father regarding the positive aspects of purgatory and the future goal of his triumph in Italy enables Aeneus to leave his visit to the land of the dead with confidence. The notions of judgment and peace are also themes in Odysseus and Aeneus’ visits to the afterworld. In Odysseus’ underworld experience, the dead are not really judged, yet they are all unhappy. In this case, there is no peace for the dead and no judgment of death other than a negative one. To Odysseus, the underworld is black and unfortunate place, hopefully avoidable, yet certainly not avoidable for Odysseus given his own mortality. There is a blanketed negativity in Odysseus’ concept of the afterlife, no room for positive judgment and no room for peace. However, in looking at Aeneus’ experience in the land of the dead, one notes that there are various judgments of the spirits and various areas of suffering and bliss, correlating to the judgment of their life choices before death, Minos handing out judgments to the recently deceased. Although there are suffering souls, there are also ghosts who enjoy happiness and peace in the afterlife, concepts resembling the purgatory of Christianity during this pre-Christian area. In Aeneus’ experience, one is able to glean a sense of hopefulness from the spiritual world, while Odysseus’ encounter with the dead is mostly frightful and perhaps even unhelpful. These two experiences can be viewed in two ways. Perhaps it is positive that Aeneus sees joy in death, granting him extra courage to face the afterlife, however, perhaps this makes Aeneus closer to death, while Odysseus may be made safer by aiming to avoid death completely. In considering the two men and their two tales, it is illuminating to study the two midpoint travels of the heroes into the underworlds. Odysseus as a hero is somewhat more woman led, depending on Circe, interaction with his mother, and yearnings for Penelope, and this thread of female orientation is present throughout Odysseus’ journey. He is even warned by Tiresias to not touch the flocks of the sun, a metaphor which rings a sense of warning to resist the urge of being overly male oriented. Odysseus’ fear of death can be viewed in two different ways. Perhaps he is cowardly, or perhaps he is more attached to life and desires to be in the land of the living. Odysseus’ desire to return to Ithaca and reclaim his wife Penelope is always a drawing factor, and Odysseus’ flight from the spirit world may simply correlate to his desire to return home to his family. The hero Aeneus is more man led, valuing the prayers to Appollo, the conversation with his father, and letting go of his woman Dido, placing the voyage and battle ahead of his family life, remaining more male oriented. The letting go of his relationship with Dido and her subsequent death supports the idea that Aeneus is able to cut ties, however, one cannot be sure if the ability of Aeneus to cut ties is a positive ability or if he wrongly fractures his romance and family bonds. The concepts of opposing and complimentary genders, divine mortal and immortal influence, and pagan and Christian-like theologies and belief systems all contribute to the development of the tales The Odyssey and The Aeneid as well as place meaning and focus on the heroes Odysseus and Aeneus and their travels down into the realm of the dead, giving each character definition and shape in the similarities and contrasts between the two men and their unique yet related voyages. If Odysseus is a more ancient pagan with closer ties to the feminine and Aeneus is a more modern Christian-like figure with closer ties to the masculine, one wonders if something was gained in this historical transition†¦ or if something was lost. Works Cited Homer. The Odyssey, circa 800 BC Virgil. The Aeneid, circa 20 BC

Spectator Violence at Sporting Events

â€Å"These people want to hurt you. It†s frightening. You feel like you†re in a cage out there†. Reggie Smith, (Berger, 1990). Spectator violence at sporting events has been recorded throughout history. People who have power over the events, often team owners, indirectly influence the amount of spectator violence by encouraging the factors contributing to violence, in order to benefit themselves. Sale of alcohol, encouraging crowd intensity, creating rivalries, and targeting social groups, are factors affecting the degree of spectator violence and can be proven to be influenced by the owner†s actions. Therefore the blame for spectator violence can be attributed to whoever has power over the sport. Many historians suggest that an increase in spectator violence coincides with the commercialization of sports. Anthropologists agree that in societies where games were not for profit, they were enjoyed as celebrations of physical skill without competitiveness or violence between players or spectators (Berger, 1990). However, when people gained power or financially from the sporting events, spectator violence increased (Berger, 1990). Public spectacles and games were part of the Roman Empire. Each emperor had an amphitheater and the size of the crowd reflected the emperor†s wealth or power. The emperor through crowd excitement could influence spectator violence to such an extent that gladiators could be killed or freed depending on the crowd†s effect on the emperor (Robinson, 1998). The emperor encouraged the Roman working class, â€Å"to forget their own suffering, by seeing others suffer,† while the senators, and emperor would benefit financially from gambling profits (Robinson, 1998). With the commercialization of sports, owners† profits increased with alcohol sales. Beer drinking has been an integral part of sports since the late 1870†³s. Chris van der Alie noticed that his saloon did well when St. Louis Brown Stockings were in town. As a result, he decided to sell beer at the games. On February 12, 1880, Alie signed a contract with the Browns allowing him to sell alcohol on their property (Johnson, 1988). During a game on July 6, 1881, the first alcohol related brawl broke out in the crowd, injuring twenty spectators and killing two (Johnson, 1998). The signed contract with the Browns† was a financial bonus for the owner, however permitting alcohol to be sold, might have indirectly contributed to the injuries and deaths. Alcohol sales contribute financial support to teams. â€Å"Without beer companies as sponsors, the teams would have trouble making ends meet. † Bob Whitsitt, president of Seattle Supersonics, (Berger, 1990). The more alcohol consumed, the more revenue for the owners. During the 1987-1988 season the Cincinnati Reds sold 12,610 half-barrels and 35,365 cases of beer. The amount of beer consumed averages out to a pint for every man, woman, and child who attended the 81 games the team played at home (Johnson, 1988). The team†s owner benefited with a financial profit of over 1 million dollars. Sponsorship or ownership of teams by alcohol manufacturers, increases the alcohol sales. The first major partnership of beer and baseball dates from the 1953 purchase of the Cardinals by August A. Busch, Jr. , president of the Anheuser-Busch brewery (Johnson, 1988). In twenty-five years its† sales soared from fewer than 6 million barrels a year to more than 35 million (Johnson, 1988). In addition to direct profit, alcohol also indirectly increases profit through increased attendance. In 1974, when the Cleveland Indians† fan attendance was down, the owner implemented â€Å"Beer Night† where they sold beers for 10 cents at the first game of a three game series against the Texas Rangers (Berger, 1990). Attendance was up by 3500. The night turned out to be the first and last â€Å"Beer Night†. When a brawl occurred during the 5th inning, hundreds of Indian fans charged the field and beat up the Texas Ranger players. Seventy-six people were arrested. All were intoxicated (Berger, 1990). There†s no question that the beer played a great part in the affair† (GM Eddie Robinson). Eddie Robinson did not apologize for the incident, and it took Lee MacPhail, president of American League to intervene and ban the beer nights (Johnson, 1988). The rowdy behavior contributed by alcohol consumption often accompanies the throwing of beverage containers. Cups, bottles, and cans act as stimuli and provide a throwing opportunity. In 1988, Pete Rose of Cincinnati Reds was pelted with full cups of beer and whiskey bottles, when he stormed out of the dugout to dispute a call. It was insane, many of the fans were throwing unopened beer cans† Pete Rose, (Johnson, 1988). To restrain spectator violence, many agree with not selling alcohol at sporting events. â€Å"The selling of alcohol at sporting events should be banned† (Johnson, 1988). Other solutions have been implemented, such as limiting drinking to designated areas, selling low alcohol beer, and making it more difficult to buy. The solution of prohibiting alcohol at games was never implemented (Johnson, 1988) Alcohol sales increase revenue; profits keep the owners satisfied. The owners to increase entertainment and increase attendance often promote other stimulants such as music, hearing obscenities, and aggressive play in the event or in the stands. Since sports are a source of entertainment, loud music and aggressive play in the event pump up the crowds, increasing the fans† enthusiasm. Hearing obscenities can be contagious and escalate into more swearing, name calling and fighting. An obscene cheer starts with two fans, increases to eight and soon a whole section is vibrating to the pulse. If fans take exception to the obscenities individual fights break out building into group fights, as friends come to assist. Owners are often able to control the crowd†s involvement in the game with the type of music they play and how loud they control the volume (Robinson, 1998). An excited, participatory crowd heightens the atmosphere and increases future ticket sales, benefiting the owner. However, the same atmosphere can increase hostility leading to fan violence. Basketball games attract anywhere from twenty to thirty thousand fans, whereas a gymnastic competition may attract a few hundred (Robinson, 1998). This is party due to the loud, exciting atmosphere at a basketball game. Goldstein did a study comparing crowd hostility before and after a basketball game to before and after a gymnastic competition. He proved that the hostility increased considerably for the basketball fans, and also discovered that hostility occurred no matter if the fan was rooting for the winning or the losing team (Robinson, 1998). Large sport events like basketball often use music to increase the crowd†s hostility and competitive awareness of the game. Owners often don†t realize at what point hostility turns to fan violence. This may have been the situation for Dan Goodenow, organizer of the 1988 Martin Luther King Classic basketball tournament where 5 fans were arrested, a man's face slashed, and a police officer injured during a riot (Atyeo, 1979). Coaches and game officials blamed the rap group Public Enemy, who played before the game shouting obscenities, carrying plastic guns, and working up the crowd to an extent of raucous excitement (Chapman, 1988). Owners or school leaders help create team rivalry by encouraging fans, through city or school patriotism, to support their team. With media support, owners use historical team rivalry, competitive stories, propaganda and team loyalty to promote high-ticket sales and increase profits. Excessive promotion of rivalry changes crowd cheers to jeers that can lead to violence. The most common rivalries are school rivalries. Starting as far back as 1899 the students of Colorado School of Mines and those of Colorado College would celebrate victory by using dynamite to blow up the rival†s goal posts (Taylor, 1992). During one game the presidents of the universities promoted the final game, as â€Å"The top college in Colorado will win† (Taylor, 1992). By game time, most students from both schools were there to cheer their teams on. When Colorado College was down their fans, frustrated by the score and the name-calling, stormed the field at half time where a riot broke out. When rivalry was claimed to be a factor it was no longer promoted, and violence diminished (Taylor, 1992). A similar example of rivalry leading to hostility occurred in the 1999 Red Feather game Banting vs. Westminster. To encourage attendance and raise money for charities both schools had pep rallies to pump up the students by using music, videos and chants. During half time the two schools emerged towards the center of the field taunting each other. The organizers of the rallies intent on boosting ticket sales inadvertently encouraged spectator violence. There is an increase in violence following sporting events promoting rivalry as compared to regular promotion, as seen in professional boxing following a highly talked about match. The promoters in boxing do everything they can to make sure the matches turn out violent to satisfy the crowd. David C. Phillips a sociologist studied the rate of homicides following highly publicized heavyweight championship fights. The survey was done the 3 weeks following each of 18 highly publicized bouts from 1973-1978 compared to those bouts with normal publicity (Davidson, 1983). Phillips found that there were 193 more murders, in the surrounding areas, after the promoted fights as compared to the norms (Davidson, 1983). After the highly promoted Muhammad Ali vs. Joe Frazier fight on October 1, 1975, the murder rate shot up thirty-two percent (Davidson, 1983). Phillips theory is â€Å"people see how violence is prized in the boxing ring and come to believe that violence outside the ring will also be rewarded† (Davidson, 1983). The rewards however, are the financial rewards to the owners, through increased ticket sales and media advertising. Spectator violence may be parallel to violence in the society. For example in a violent society, play will be violent, whereas in a peaceful society play will be more peaceful. The make up of the social group contributes to the possibility of violence. Spectators can be divided into different social classes and the event advertised in areas where a particular social group is targeted for ticket sales. Often working class males are targeted, as their values and attitudes of aggressiveness, fearlessness and toughness are well suited to competitive sports (Bonney & Giulianotti, 1994). They are likely to be the fans that are betting on the game or are there for the thrills (Berger, 1990). These fans are more likely to attend contact sporting events such as rugby and to be violent, compared to the upper class fans who analyze the game are more likely to attend a cricket match. In the sport soccer, hooligans who dominate the crowds are mainly males who generally act in rough, noisy behavior (Taylor, 1992). They have lawless fun, fighting spectators, throwing objects and vandalizing property. Most hooligans are from the working class. They have low ambitions, violent behavior and high stress levels (Bonney & Giulianotti, 1994). They act out their frustrations, like the Roman working class, by attending sporting events where they loose their individualities. Fans in Glasgow, Scotland, trampled sixty-six persons to death when they tried to return to the stadium they had just left upon hearing that a last-minute goal had been scored. Berger, 1982). â€Å"Hooliganism gives the organization of a team motivation with their traditional cheers and it builds the atmosphere which builds a team† Lesie Davis, management of Peru†s soccer organization (Taylor, 1992). Major soccer teams target this low-income social class because it brings atmosphere to the game and alcohol sales and profits increase (Shumacher, 1975). In marketing ticket sales for most team sports, owners target males nineteen to forty-five. Sixty three percent of males and twenty percent of females in that age range are involved with sports whether they participate in them, or follow them (Oliver, 1971). Team owners often exclusively target males, resulting in an increase of ticket sales and merchandise. However, when males are bonded they often act violently emphasizing their masculinity, machismo, bravery and fighting skills (Tiger, 1970). Many teams in the American Baseball League in the 1970†³s were having problems concerning fan violence, and found the main instigators were males. They changed the games to Sunday, traditionally a family day and encouraged female fans by admitting them free. With women and family present the men were less likely to loose their individuality and act violently as a group. The results for the next 5 years were positive as fan violence decreased by 30 percent (Berger, 1990). By studying the occurrences, degrees, and causes of fan violence over history, owners are able to decrease the incidents of fan violence while maintaining profits and entertainment value of their organization. Slowly but effectively owners, teams, coaches and professional leagues are creating solutions to minimize fan violence. The American Baseball League, National Baseball League and the National Basketball Association participate in TEAM (Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management), which is a program for training everyone from vendors to ushers in handling people who have had too much to drink (Berger, 1982). Many of the NFL teams have moved their tailgate parties outside the stadium to eliminate the hostility caused by loud rock bands on the premises (Berger. 1990). Security cameras have been installed in many of the soccer stadiums and transportation centers to games, spotting the fans that cause the violence, and acting as deterrents for others. Controlled drinking areas, entrance controlled security checks, and increased visible security personnel are measures, which have helped to reduce fan violence in all sports. Most important, the owners need to be aware that some of their actions to benefit their organization have an indirect influence on the factors for fan violence. Sport is a basic feature of Australian culture. The achievements of Australian athletes have enhanced our image as a nation. Participation in sporting activities contributes to the health of millions of Australians; the teamwork and fair play which Australians learn on the playing field provide the basis for a good society. But Australian sport is not without shortcomings. Whilst sporting violence, on the part of both participants and spectators, is less frequent and less severe in Australia than in many overseas locations, it remains grounds for concern. Violence on the playing field sets a bad example for impressionable young Australians. Unruly crowd behaviour can spoil a pleasant family outing.