Is the story Daughters of the late Colonel more comic than tragic Essay

Is the story Daughters of the late Colonel more comic than tragic for the reader overall? Be sure to comment on Mansfield’s use of language. The story â€Å"Daughters of the late Colonel†, written by Katherine Mansfield takes place during Victorian times, based around two sister’s whose father had recently died. Mansfield describes the struggles of these two women as they try to express their femininity and overcome the barriers of etiquette and the presence of their father, whom they feared. The story ends as the sisters Josephine and Constantia attempt to break free of their suppressed world but fail to, thus ending the story in tragedy. Despite this the path leading to the tragic ending is riddled in humorous moments. Therefore it might be said about the story that it is more comic than tragic for the reader. Mansfield often uses humor as a technique to reveal the darker, suppressed side of the two sisters and she often does it subtly. A casual reader might never discover this area of the story. It is as if Mansfield employs comic moments as a mask to cover the tragedy of the play. On one occasion Constantia is worrying about an imaginary mouse: â€Å"A spasm of pity squeezed her heart. Poor little thing! She wished she’d left a tiny piece of biscuit on the dressing table. It was awful to think of it not finding anything. What would it do?† The way Constantia exerts herself is simply pathetic. The reader is amused at her antics to attempt to bring the mouse some food. This obsession with detail is further emphasized with the rhetorical question at the end of the quote, as well as the phrase: â€Å"poor little thing!†- it’s short length and exclamation mark emphasizes its importance, and the use of â€Å"poor... ...ephine was silent for a moment. She stared at a big cloud where the sun had been. Then she replied shortly, â€Å"I’ve forgotten too.†Ã¢â‚¬  During the final section, the sun represents their chance for freedom. â€Å"Golden rays† symbolized the richness and exiting new life which they could have taken. Yet, the whole new path the sisters might have taken was blocked out, symbolizing the cloud. It is thus that the story ends in tragedy- the sisters fail to break free, and remain stuck inside their self-imposed world. Their late father’s influence is too great for them to overcome. In conclusion, it may be said that the story is both a comedy and a tragedy. However, because Mansfield cleverly disguises the tragedy to blend into hilarious moments the reader gets an overall sense of comic fun. Therefore, Daughters of the Late Colonel is more of a comedy than a tragedy.

Multiple Perspectives vs. Single Perspective Approach Essay

The focus of my paper is going to be Pluralism, Monism and Interdisciplinarity in the context of a multiple perspective approach. I will discuss the advantages of taking a multiple perspective approach of viewing things which are, Pluralism and Interdisciplinarity, as opposed to a single perspective approach, which is Monism. Pluralism can be used as the term to define the integration of different values and cultures within a given society. Monism, (comes from a Greek word Monos meaning one) is defined as â€Å"any philosophy that denies that there are many separate beings in the universe† and instead looks at a unified one (James and McDonald). Interdisciplinarity looks at different disciplines, the combination of which can help create something new and different. I agree with both Berlin and Moran that it is better to take a multiple perspective approach. Though people may dismiss multiple perspective approach, I believe that Pluralism is a response to Monism and Interdisciplinarity, being the advancement of knowledge into something better and new in the context of the disciplines that have long become outdated and old fashion and which gave rise to other disciplines. Both Pluralism and Interdisciplinarity are a multiple perspective approach of looking at things. Pluralism as a response to Monism: Monism as defined earlier in the paper is a view of looking at the universe as a unified whole, meaning that it is a singular way of looking at things as opposed to pluralism which looks at things in different ways, the multiple perspective approach. The reason why I agree that it is better to have a multiple way of looking at things is because, as the world keeps changing, societies too change and evolve. New innovations are made, ideas and ideals change and therefore, we cannot have a single outlook on things. People come up with different views, ideas and have their own interpretations to what they believe in and/or agree with. Berlin states â€Å"there is a plurality of ideals, as there is a plurality of cultures and of temperaments† (11). This means that Pluralism is having multiple values, perspectives that people can value more than one thing. Different people have different values and we may not always believe in or agree to them but there is an understanding of why we as human beings, pursuit what we believe in and we may therefore, have some values that are similar. People may have different cultures that they follow and those that are important to them, but this does not mean that they are not aware of or respect other cultures. Monism is the belief that only one set of values is true and the rest being false. This is not true and that is why it is better to have a pluralistic approach as opposed to believing in those who think they know how societies should be arranged or who know what the ways of living should be. Today we are living in a pluralistic society where people around the globe share their knowledge and expertise with each other. The advantage of pluralism is the diversity of cultures which give the freedom of communication between people of different cultures and backgrounds, who come together and work together have the liberty to follow what they believe in as opposed to following those who are in authority and those who think they know it all. Berlin sates, â€Å"true knowledge is knowledge of why things are as they are, not merely what they are† (7). In this day and time, globally, we are seeing a new era emerging where nations that had accepted dictatorship as gospel, are now rebelling and voicing their opinions and liberating their nations. Interdisciplinarity – a multiple perspective approach: Joe Moran defines Interdisciplinarity as â€Å"any form of dialogue or interaction between two or more disciplines† (16). In my opinion what it means is that Interdisciplinarity is the transformation and the organization of knowledge into something new within the context of the disciplines that were already existent but have become obsolete. He points out three main aspects that explain really well the concept of Interdisciplinarity and what it actually does and how it has helped society evolve and transform knowledge for what it was then and what it became. Moran mentions bureaucratization, professionalization and specialization (Berlin, 12). Bureaucratization means a formation of a set of rules and regulations that need to be followed. It can be said that this is similar to what the monists believed about the people who are in controlled and need to be followed but he also talks about professionalization where a pastime is turned into a profession an also specialization sepa ration of areas into discrete areas of concentration. Professionalization and specialization are a contradiction to what the monists believed in because this leads to a freedom of what people were able to do and they managed to transform knowledge into something more substantial than just following rules and regulations that would not allow them to change their ways of thinking as people who had the knowledge were to control and were the ones to be followed. Interdisciplinarity gave rise to different disciplines within the framework of a university where students were given the opportunity to learn more and gain new knowledge and that knowledge was not only limited to a few people. We can say that, Interdisciplinarity is a multiple perspective approach of looking at things, in this context the disciplines that were obsolete and that gave way to the rise of knowledge that was transformed into something new. With this came the rise of natural sciences, social sciences and the humanities that became disciplines in their own because of the different cultures and value systems that are embodied within these disciplines and not just one set of discipline that was to be followed. I conclude by agreeing with both Berlin and Moran that taking a multiple perspective approach of looking at the world and viewing things with different ideas is better than to have a single view of things. This is because a multiple perspective approach brings together different ideas from different mind sets which are more beneficial than ideas of just one person who is in control and who looks down upon people as his inferiors. Today, technology has advanced to an extent that we can get information on our finger tips by just using the internet. Social media such as Facebook and Twitter are the means of communication between people around the world and are much faster as opposed to the old days when the use of telegrams was the norm. News travels fast through these social media outlets than by watching television, or listening to news on the radio or reading newspapers. This is possible due to the fact that multiple perspective approach has allowed different mind sets to come up with and share these innovative ideas. References Berlin, Isaiah. â€Å"My Intellectual Path.† The Power of Ideas. New Jersey: Princeton University Pres, 2002. 5-7, 11-14. Print. â€Å"Monism and Pluralism.† Hugh James Francis Joseph McDonald. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2012. . Moran, Joe. â€Å"Introduction.† Interdisciplinarity. London: Routledge, 2001. 1-18. Print.

Culture and History of Spain Essay

The golden age of Spain does not refer exactly to the economic and military hegemony of Spain, as Spain was on the verge of political, economic, and military collapse during this time. Spain engaged in expansionist policy abroad that had necessitated the government to impose an increased taxation, which leads to the revolts in 1640 first in Catalonia, then in Portugal. From then on, Spain was weakened economically, politically and culturally. Rather, the golden age refer to the flourishing in arts and literature in Spain. The main topics during this period were literature and the arts rather than economic or military victories abroad. The period of the Spanish golden age according to John A. Crow and Patricia Craig as featured by AOL Hometown in their article â€Å"Spain’s Cultural life: Literature and the Fine Arts† was between 1530 and 1680. During this time, theatre works, poetry and novels were very popular, and the most well known was the work of Cervantes entitled Don Quixote published in 1605. (AOL Hometown) Among the most popular names were dramatists like Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina, and Calderon, which had premiered fine works of Spanish theatre. Spanish Famous artist during this time includes Velasquez, El Greco, Zubaran, Rebera and Morales which were held to be the greatest of their times. The reason behind Spain’s golden age was perhaps the existence of these fine artists whose works captivated even the highest nobility. The golden age of Spain according to history (an article entitled â€Å"Spain†) began with the ascension of Philip II to the Spanish throne. It was during his time that the popularity of arts and literature reached to highest level. However, the consequence of the golden age was the political and economic as well as military decline of Spain both in the home front and in overseas. An article entitled Spain in History (iExplore) pointed out that because of the prominence of art, the Hapsburg monarchy became increasingly less able to deal the empire’s somber problems particularly during the 17th century causing the empire’s gradual economic collapse. Most historians attributed this economic failure to the inability of the monarch to rule the empire because their interest was in the arts rather than in improving the economy. Another consequence of the golden age is the ‘feminization of Spain. Feminization refers to the gender emphasis that proliferated in the Spanish societies during the golden age. Men during this time adopted the customs of women such as mode of dressing and cosmetics. In the summary of Sidney Donnell’s book Feminizing the Enemy featured in the website article LAFAYETE the article pointed out that the gender anxieties during the golden age was related to the emphasis on arts and culture that was prevailing during this period of Spanish history. The Role of Religion in the Rules of the Hapsburg (or Habsburg) Kings During the period of 16th and 17th centuries, Spain was under the rule of the Habsburg dynasty, which was the dominant power in the Central Europe with capital in Vienna, Austria. Spain then was ruled by many kings that brought Spain both success and fall; and that, the â€Å"church enlarged its already dominant position in Spanish life† (High Beam Encyclopedia, par. 27). The Obvious topic during this time was Catholic Faith and Church membership as the reigning Monarchs were committed to impose Catholicism through the empire. The role of religion in the rules of Hapsburg kings according to Victor Perez Diaz (1998) was that the Hapsburg viewed society in the context of teleocratic state, which put society in a secondary position. It means that in view of the Hapsburg Kings, society can be a sphere in which they can generate resources to be use by the ruler to accomplish its mission. The implication of this was that the Hapsburg Kings uses religion or the so- called politics of faith to fulfill their mission. In other words, religion has become a powerful apparatus with which they achieved their aims. According to Diaz, although the Hapsburg kings respected the socioeconomic order, yet they were also devoted to some shared goals that necessitate systematic interventions in the social fabric to reinforce the sovereign’s authority. Thus the Hapsburg, Diaz pointed out, marshaled resources for protecting Catholic faith and shaped the moral character of its subjects, making membership in the church the means to recognition in the political community (Diaz). The reason for this was, the Roman Catholicism became the official state religion in Spain in 1492 after Ferdinand V of Aragon, and Isabella I of Castile married which linked the kingdoms. Because both monarchs were devout Catholics they wanted to impose the purity of the Catholic faith as well as to enhance the royal power. Because of the close relations of the Hapsburg to the Holy Roman Empire they were so dedicated to the Catholic Church prompting them to establish the Inquisitor in order to prosecute, and confiscate property owned by the Moors (Spain Life and Culture). Ferdinand and Isabella imposed religious uniformity through out Spain by aggressive campaign to convert the Moors and the Jews or they face expulsion (Spain Life and Culture). However, the consequence of their emphasis in the purity of Catholic faith, leads to the persecutions of Protestants, which resulted to war with protestant England. This prompted Philip to send a great Spanish Armada against England in 1558 unfortunately, it was defeated, and it marked Spain’s decline of power (Spain). Thus the consequence of the Hapsburg use of religion to enhance their power and to strengthen their rule was costly and it cost the gradual collapse of the Spanish hegemony not only in the home front but also abroad. The Bourbon kings in Spain (efforts to improve Spain) The Spanish Bourbon was one of the most vital royal families in Europe that held thrones in Spain during the 17th century. Philip V of Spain became the first Bourbon ruler of Spain after the death of Charles II (1665-1700). The bourbons ascended to the Spanish thrones during the end of Spain’s hegemonic power with the death of Charles II. In the view of J. Clayborn Laforce, with distressing vulnerability Spain slipped into an embarrassing sequence of decline, which continued until all of Spain’s greatness was gone. However, with the ascension of Philip V, Spain crossed a new threshold marked by the extraordinary progressive participation by government in Spanish economic dealings. The main topic during the Bourbon’s rule was economic recovery, in which the Bourbon monarch had implemented series of economic measures designed to improve the economic condition of Spain. Obviously a learned man, Philip’s knowledge in French mercantilism had helped him in improving the economic condition of Spain. Philip launched a series reform policy and programs for commercial and industrial revival and promotes the production of merchandise of high value that previously had been purchased abroad. The next Bourbon king to inherit the Spanish throne was Charles VII (1759-88) Like Philip; Charles was one of the most enlightened Spanish Monarch, which had contributed to Spain’s short-lived cultural and economic revival. The reason behind all these efforts was that through production of these commodities, the government would minimize its dependency on imported commodities. The third Bourbon Monarch to rule Spain was Ferdinand VII (1784-1833) which perhaps marked the end of the short economic revival started by Philip V and continued by Charles VII. It was during the brief reign of Charles IV, an incompetent Bourbon monarch that the flame of economic revival dies down. The reason for the short live economic revival was the squabble in the royal family that prompted Napoleon of France to invade Spain, and gave the Spanish throne to his brother Joseph Bonaparte. Spain after this was engaged in wars that halted its economic hope of revival. The consequences of disunity in the royal family had not only weakened the economic reforms put in place by Philip V but it also invited napoleon to invade Spain and claimed the Spanish throne for himself. It also led to war against England that further pushed Spain to humiliation and defeat. Indeed the misery of Spain cannot be attributed to the Bourbon rule as they merely inherited a declining kingdom. Had the momentum of economic growth that was laid out by the first two-bourbon monarch, Spain could have recovered from its drooping. Spain’s history was indeed very intriguing and full of difficulties, which are a good source of both learning and inspirations for the student of Spanish history. It features the rise and fall of the empire that had conquered much of the known world through sword and religion, but it had collapsed also because of religion and sword when it wage against protestant England in the name of religion. Work Cited Diaz, V. P. (1998) State and Public sphere in Spain during the ancient Regime Vol. 137 La Force, J. C Royal Textile factories in Spain, 1700-1800 The Journal of Economic History, Vol. 24 No. 3(Sep. , 1964), pp. 337-363 Http://links. jstor. org/sici? sici=0022-0507(196409)24%3A3%3C337%3ARTFIS1%3E2. 0. CO%3B2-N http://www. questia. com/googleScholar. qst;jsessionid=HRpGVQQzlhZJSZhM6QdwhnXtr7jp8dDwrBlY2dyNPJ6GGnyjVrvH! 1976250333? docId=5001368566 Spain http://www. geocities. com/CapitolHill/8823/aboutes. html Spain’s Cultural Life http://www. hometown. aol. com/antmagictg/culture. html Spain History I Explore http://www. iexplore. com/dmap/Spain/History Spain. http://www. geocities. com/CapitolHill/8823/aboutes. html Spain. High Beam Encyclopedia. Retrieved March 7, 2008. http://www. encyclopedia. com/doc/1E1-Spain. html Sidney Donnell will Talk about â€Å"Drag Performance and Hapsburg Spain† today. Lafayete http://www. lafayette. edu/news. php/view/5137/

The Nice Trap

The nice trap ? Wen leizheng 178154 Do you think there is a contradiction between what employers want in employees (agreeable employees) and what employees actually do best (disagreeable employees)? Why or why not? I don’t think there is a contradiction between what employers want in employees (agreeable employees) and what employees actually do best (disagreeable employees) , since we can not judge a person only by one dimension . Highly agreeable employees may also achieve high performance as others if their leadership skill is more enhanced in the form of persistence, attentiveness with high standards. uccessful employees usually make compromises specially when area of conflict is reached and show more cooperation when they feel that disagreeable will not serve their personal objectives which give the impression as they are high on agreeableness. The article assumes that employers always want agreeable employees by fault, it could not be true when in some jobs with interper sonally oriented jobs such as customer service, but the situation will definitely not be the same when the employer would like to hire candidates for strategic position with high potential and needs strong leadership behavior.Often, the effects of personality depend on the situation. Can you think of some job situation in which agreeableness is an important virtue? And in which it is harmful? In some cases agreeable is an important virtue . For example , if the work need all the employees work together , agreeableness from all subordinates would be an important virtue because there would not be time to stop, argue, and disagree . In such situation , agreeable employees are more likely to work harmony with each other .However , not all agreeableness from employees is good , especially when the situation requires all of them to stick to their own point of view . Agreeable employees always choose to compromise instead of arguing with others when their opinions are opposite to others , which sometimes may miss the best way to solve the problem . In some research , the negative affects of agreeableness on erning are stronger for men than for women ( that is , being agreeable hurt men’s earning more than women’s ) .Why do you think this might be the case ? The reason why the negative affects of agreeableness on erning are stronger for men than for women can be various . One of the possible reason may be the factor that women are more communicative type acting as a mediator in numerous aspects . Some research has conducted that women are more willing to communicate with their employers if they are not satisfied with their earning . The Nice Trap The nice trap ? Wen leizheng 178154 Do you think there is a contradiction between what employers want in employees (agreeable employees) and what employees actually do best (disagreeable employees)? Why or why not? I don’t think there is a contradiction between what employers want in employees (agreeable employees) and what employees actually do best (disagreeable employees) , since we can not judge a person only by one dimension . Highly agreeable employees may also achieve high performance as others if their leadership skill is more enhanced in the form of persistence, attentiveness with high standards. uccessful employees usually make compromises specially when area of conflict is reached and show more cooperation when they feel that disagreeable will not serve their personal objectives which give the impression as they are high on agreeableness. The article assumes that employers always want agreeable employees by fault, it could not be true when in some jobs with interper sonally oriented jobs such as customer service, but the situation will definitely not be the same when the employer would like to hire candidates for strategic position with high potential and needs strong leadership behavior.Often, the effects of personality depend on the situation. Can you think of some job situation in which agreeableness is an important virtue? And in which it is harmful? In some cases agreeable is an important virtue . For example , if the work need all the employees work together , agreeableness from all subordinates would be an important virtue because there would not be time to stop, argue, and disagree . In such situation , agreeable employees are more likely to work harmony with each other .However , not all agreeableness from employees is good , especially when the situation requires all of them to stick to their own point of view . Agreeable employees always choose to compromise instead of arguing with others when their opinions are opposite to others , which sometimes may miss the best way to solve the problem . In some research , the negative affects of agreeableness on erning are stronger for men than for women ( that is , being agreeable hurt men’s earning more than women’s ) .Why do you think this might be the case ? The reason why the negative affects of agreeableness on erning are stronger for men than for women can be various . One of the possible reason may be the factor that women are more communicative type acting as a mediator in numerous aspects . Some research has conducted that women are more willing to communicate with their employers if they are not satisfied with their earning .

NHS Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

NHS - Essay Example They reviled the concept of iPhone, claiming that it is only an impractical substitute for the desktop computers and other gadgets. The idea of multi-touch screen also became the subject of objection as people found it not as accurate as the ones of previous smart phones. But Steve Jobs was not willing to pay much attention to such criticisms, and he pushed the project with enthusiasm till the finish line. He took the challenge in spite of the negative opinions of others and eventually attained success as iPhone immediately caught the imagination of the people and turned out to be the sensation in the IT market. Unlike Jobs in his legendary success story, what I had to suppress before the talent show was the risk to fail. I performed the rapping in front of the whole school a few days before the end of the camp. Writing a meaningful, even skillful piece of rap in Korean, translating it and â€Å"self-advertising† was not a difficult part of the job as I was a fervent fan of Hip-hop and everybody knew my abilities as a rapper by that time. The problem I encountered was that I had to fight the pressure coming from the scale of the show and the thought that I might not be successful. Moreover, my infirmity – forgetting the words – and the fact I failed all the show rehearsals undermined my self-confidence and I found myself in panic a night before the show. I even considered pretending being sick and avoiding the show! However I made my mind clear when I remembered the advice my father gave me once: â€Å"You won’t get tiger’s skin unless you risk entering its den†. At last, I decided to change my attitude towards the show, not to worry about the results and to do as best as I can in the given circumstances. I spent all the time practicing and thinking of the showmanship. Fortunately, that paid off as I was able to literally â€Å"steal the show† and became an â€Å"overnight star† of the camp. Oh! The

Academic software Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Academic software - Coursework Example In this paper we specifically highlight the benefits of Inspiration software to both teachers and students. Inspiration provides teacher with lesson plan books and visual learning tools. The lesson plan books give teachers practical ideas and step-by-step directions on how to engage students in activities that inspire creativity, thinking and learning. Teachers are also provided with examples of templates and diagrams that they can use to develop students’ cognitive abilities in a wide-range of subjects and topics. Teachers are therefore able to be more effective with regards to transferring knowledge to their students. Furthermore, by supporting visual learning Inspiration software caters for students with learning challenges such as autism, dyslexia, visual or auditory processing disorders and so on. On the other hand, the students benefit from the ability to visualize and develop their ideas using visual maps, and to communicate these ideas with their teachers or fellow stu dents. One challenge that many students face is visualizing what the teacher is explaining especially if it is a new concept, but with Inspiration the students can see what the teacher is explaining for example in courses such as Biology or Chemistry.

The impact of corporate social responsibility on organisational Essay

The impact of corporate social responsibility on organisational effectiveness - Essay Example The article also focuses the value of those components for the stakeholders of the companies. The article further segregates the ethical component of the corporate social responsibility in order ton relate it to some major ethic management approaches, which include moral, immoral, and amoral managements. I think the author of the article has written the article in a well-structured format. The article is easy to read, as well as easy to understand for the readers. All sections of the article are well-organized and provide a clear view of the author’s thoughts. The article is also based on the logical facts about the significance of corporate social responsibility in achieving higher levels of productivity. The author has also focused on ethical and moral; management approaches which is also an important part of the article. The article relates to our research in a way that it makes us aware of ways executives can use corporate social responsibility to fulfill their responsibilities that they owe towards their shareholders and other competing groups. This article focuses of how managers can use finance to make the organization socially responsible and responsive. Of course, finance always play a critical role in almost every organizational matter and corporate social responsibility is no exception. The author puts his views on the criticism regarding corporate social responsibility that it is of little significance of companies as it used mostly as a tool of enhancing public relations. The article reveals that many organizations actually incorporate corporate social responsibility in their daily business activities but are unaware of the way to report that responsiveness in a formal way. Moreover, the article focuses on how accountants can use their knowledge in developing CSR and reporting the metrics to show the organizational involvement in social responsiveness. I have found the article to be very useful in learning the role of