The Development of GAAP in the United States

Setting GAAP These organizations influence the development of GAAP in the United States. United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) The SEC was created as a result of the Great Depression. At that time there was no structure setting accounting standards. The SEC encouraged the establishment of private standard-setting bodies through the AICPA and later the FASB, believing that the private sector had the proper knowledge, resources, and talents. The SEC works closely with various private organizations setting GAAP, but does not set GAAP itself. American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA)In 1939, urged by the SEC, the AICPA appointed the Committee on Accounting Procedure (CAP). During the years 1939 to 1959 CAP issued 51 Accounting Research Bulletins that dealt with a variety of timely accounting problems. However, this problem-by-problem approach failed to develop the much needed structured body of accounting principles. Thus, in 1959, the AICPA created the Accounting Principles Board (APB), whose mission it was to develop an overall conceptual framework. It issued 31 opinions and was dissolved in 1973 for lack of productivity and failure to act promptly.After the creation of the FASB, the AICPA established the Accounting Standards Executive Committee (AcSEC). It publishes: Audit and Accounting Guidelines, which summarizes the accounting practices of specific industries (e. g. casinos, colleges, airlines, etc. ) and provides specific guidance on matters not addressed by FASB or GASB. Statements of Position, which provides guidance on financial reporting topics until the FASB or GASB sets standards on the issue. Practice Bulletins, which indicate the AcSEC's views on narrow financial reporting issues not considered by the FASB or the GASB. Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB)Realizing the need to reform the APB, leaders in the accounting profession appointed a Study Group on the Establishment of Accounting Principles (commonly kn own as the Wheat Committee for its chair Francis Wheat). This group determined that the APB must be dissolved and a new standard-setting structure be created. This structure is composed of three organizations: the Financial Accounting Foundation (FAF, it selects members of the FASB, funds and oversees their activities), the Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council (FASAC), and the major operating organization in this structure the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).FASB has 4 major types of publications: Statements of Financial Accounting Standards – the most authoritative GAAP setting publications. More than 150 have been issued to date. Statements of Financial Accounting Concepts – first issued in 1978. They are part of the FASB's conceptual framework project and set forth fundamental objectives and concepts that the FASB use in developing future standards. However, they are not a part of GAAP. There have been 7 concepts published to date. Interpretat ions – modify or extend existing standards. There have been around 50 interpretations published to date.Technical Bulletins – guidelines on applying standards, interpretations, and opinions. Usually solves some very specific accounting issue that will not have a significant, lasting effect. In 1984 the FASB created the Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF) which deals with new and unusual financial transactions that have the potential to become common (e. g. accounting for Internet based companies). It acts more like a problem filter for the FASB – the EITF deals with short-term, quickly resolvable issues, leaving long-term, more pervasive problems for the FASB. Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB)

Professional and legal implications Essay

This assignment will explore the professional and legal implications of a scenario which took place within a healthcare setting during the last year. Health care is very complex and decisions about how services are provided can have a huge effect on people’s lives. Therefore it is imperative that the care offered has the best chance of benefiting a patient and not harming them. However, in the following scenario a decision made by a healthcare professional for the best interests of their patient is challenged by the patient’s mother. To protect confidentiality the real names of the individuals involved have been changed (NMC, 2008). Katie is a 24 year old woman who has been admitted to hospital with a severe chest infection. Katie suffers from recurring chest infections due to her condition and also has cerebral palsy, learning disabilities and epilepsy. Due to these conditions Katie is unable to communicate, requires a Naso Gastric Tube for feeding, is doubly incontine nt and has one to one care from a Health Care Support Worker for all her personal and clinical needs. Katie lives with her mother at home, who provides her care during the night. The medical team discovered that her chest infection is Pneumonia and begin the relevant treatment, however believe that due to Katie’s quality of life she should be Not for Resuscitation (NFR) in the event of a cardiac arrest. However, Katie’s mother argues that her daughter should be resuscitated and the decision should be made by her, because she is her mother and that the health care team are neglecting her daughter’s right to life and are acting illegally by making such a decision. Katie’s mum also believes that the health care team are basing their decision on Katie’s learning disability rather than her best interests. This essay will encompass the ethical considerations that need to be sought when a decision such as NFR is made. Taking into account the legal and professional implications this has on the health care team involved. Before making any decision the health care professional will need to consider if the Katie has the mental capacity, what are in the her best interests and protecting the her human rights. All these topics will be included in this essay. This essay will also explain why it is important for a health care professional to take into account the Bolam Test and Section 4 of the Mental Capacity Act (2005), taking into consideration a patient’s best interest when they lack capacity, before they make any decision. The Medical Team must act in accordance with the practice  that is accepted at that time and by a recognised professional body (Dimond 2008). All these issues are relevant in this scenario. Making a decision such as NFR is taken very seriously due to the known outcome in the event of a cardiac arrest. A Not For Resuscitation (NFR) decision indicates that a decision has been made not to call the resuscitation team if in the future that patient, such as Katie, suddenly stops breathing or suffers cardiac arrest. Resuscitation decisions are very controversial and have been the subject of much media interest. Especially when that patient has a learning disability. There is evidence of this in the appendix at the back of this essay and it will be discussed further on in the essay. A decision such as NFR is the responsibility of the most senior clinician for the specific patient, according to a revised guidance of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (2007). Every health board should have a resuscitation policy. The Local Health Board’s policy involved in this scenario can be found in the appendix of this essay. The policy, published in (2009) states that cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) should be commenced unless; the patient has refused CPR; the patient is at the palliative stage of illness or the burdens of the treatment outweigh the benefit. The Health Care Team are required, before they make any decision to determine if Katie has mental capacity and if she is able to understand and contribute to the decisions of her treatment. If Katie had capacity and was not consulted about the decision then the heath care professional could be seen as acting unlawfully and the decision maker would be legally and professionally accountable (B v An NHS Trust [2002]). The Mental Capacity Act (2005) describes capacity as an individual’s ability to make a certain decision at a specific time and not on their ability to make decisions generally. Legal capacity depends on the patients understanding rather than their wisdom. They should be able to retain and understand the information that they are given and then communicate their decision with the appropriate professional (Simpson, 2011). A patient’s competency to capacity should not be presumed. An assessment of capacity should be made before a person can be said to be incapacitated (NMC, 2008). Nurses have the ability to assess capacity, if they feel that it is needed. However, they do not have the authority to make a decision such as NFR (Hawley 2007). Therefore, they must  refer to a doctor or psychologist to assess the patient’s capacity and make such a decision (Hutchison, 2005). Katie’s mental capacity, following the Mental Health Act (2005), will need to be assessed by a doctor or a psychologist due to the significance of the decision. The Case of Re C (1994) helped produce the 3 stage test of capacity and this has proved to be a suitable test used in the assessing process of capacity. However, the introduction of the Mental Capacity Act resulted in a 4th Stage being added (Section 3 MCA). The test decides whether the individual is able to: Comprehend and retain information, Believe information given and weigh it up, balance the risks and needs, make a choice. The fourth stage is to communicate the decision. In this particular scenario, after an assessment of Katie’s Mental Capacity using this test, determined that Katie did not have the Mental Capacity to make decisions due to her inability to understand the information and communicate the decision. This enables the team to make this decision for her as long as it is in her best interests. Katie’s mother believes that she should be the one to make this decision for her daughter because she is her next of kin and Katie’s power of attorney. The Mental Capacity Act (2005) allows a person to legally set up a lasting power of attorney. The chosen person or persons have the power to make decisions on the individual’s financial and personal behalf. The act does not allow enduring power of attorneys to be set up; however those already in existence can continue to be used. The lasting power of attorney has the power to give consent on behalf of a patient who is incapacitated if it is in their best interest (Thomson et al, 2006). However, the lasting power of attorney does not have the power to order a patient who is NFR or who is becoming NFR, as in this scenario, to be resuscitated if a health care professional has assessed that the outcome would not be in the best interest of the patient. There is no obligation to give treatment that is futile or burdensome as seen in the case of Re J (A Minor) (Wardship: Medical Treatment [1990]). As in the case of R (Burke v General Medical Council [2004]) no person has a legal right to insist on specific treatments either for themselves or relatives. The health care professional is not obliged by law to resuscitate Katie irrelevant weather Katie’s mother is next of kin or has power of attorney. It was discovered afterwards that Katie’s mother was not her power of attorney because Katie had never had the capacity to  appoint one. The health care professional will make their decision after assessing the patient and following the appropriate legal frameworks which are set to protect them and the patient and examining what decision would be in Katie’s best interests. Section 4 of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) sets out the legal framework for a best interest decision to be made, for people without mental capacity. This can be found in the appendix of the essay. The Act states that the health care professional making the decision must not make it simply on the basis of the patient’s age or appearance. The patient’s condition and aspects of behaviour must not affect the judgements of best interests and duty of care. The health care professional making the decision must consider all the relevant circumstances and consider the possibility of the patient gaining capacity (MCA, 2005). However, if this is not possible then the health care professional must revise the past and present wishes of the patient, especially if an advance directive has been made. In relation to the scenario, it is crucial that this checklist is considered when making a decision such as NFR, due to Katie’s Learning disabilities’. Mencap (2007) published a report called ‘death by indifference’ which can be found in the appendix of this essay. The report examines cases where families believed that doctors used inappropriate use of Do Not Resuscitate Orders simply because the patient had a learning disability rather than assessing the best interest of the patient resulting in institutional discrimination. The Mental Capacity Act (2005) adds that the health care professional must consult anyone caring f or the patient or who is concerned for their welfare and gain their views on the decision (Dimond, 2008). In this scenario Katie’s mother was addressed and informed of the decision and her views were taken into account, despite the disagreement of the overall decision. Katie’s mum’s attitude and opinion towards the decision could be biased. She may genuinely not recognise that an NFR decision would be in the best interests of her daughter. Katie’s mother has her own values and beliefs that are likely to be factors that can influence her disapproval. The health care professional involved with Katie’s care will need to reassure Katie’s mum, show compassion and empathise with her situation. As stated earlier in the essay, the best interests of Katie can be determined via consideration of a checklist of circumstances within Section 4 of the MCA (2005). The benefits of treatment  and the probability of them arising are considered (Griffiths and Tengnah 2008). In this scenario the benefits of resuscitation would be measured. If it was agreed that res uscitation would do more harm than good then it would be considered that NFR would be in Katie’s best interests (Re A (mental patient: sterilisation) [2001]). Due to Katie’s quality of life, because of her cerebral palsy and epilepsy, it was considered by the health care professionals that it was in the best interest of Katie that she becomes NFR, as the outcome of resuscitation would not improve her quality of life. It was also agreed that resuscitation would do more harm to Katie than good, due to the probability of resuscitation being unsuccessful. However, Katie’s mum believes that the health care professionals are depriving her daughter of a right to life as was in the case of Airedale NHS Trust v Bland [1993]. The Human Rights Act (1998) is an Act of Parliament produced to protect the rights of individuals. The Act incorporates convention rights and protocols and is comprised of several articles. Schedule 1 Article 2, the Right to Life is of particular relevance in this scenario. The Article legally entitles every person’s individual’s right to life to be protected by law. It states that an individual†™s life should not be deprived intentionally. Katie’s mum believes that the decision of NFR is infringing her daughter’s human rights. If this is proved to be the situation then the professional could face legal action (Dimond, 2008). In this scenario the health care professionals are acting in Katie’s best interests and will not face any legal proceedings as long as they can justify their decision. This was illustrated in the cases of; National Health Service Trust A V D and others [2000], NHS Trust A v M [2001] and NHS Trust B V H [2001] indicates that decisions such as NFR, which are found to allow the individual to die with dignity and be in the best interests of the person, are not legally classed as infringing human rights. It could be implied that the decisions of NFR supports Katie’s human rights. If it is considered that Katie’s quality of life would remain poor or that resuscitation could potentially cause her harm and not be in Katie’s best interests then it could be implied that resuscitation in the event of Katie experiencing a cardiac arrest could prove a degrading treatment (Thompson et al, 2006). In this particular scenario Katie’s mother is accusing the health care professionals of being negligent. The case of (Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee [1957])  initiated the Bolam test. The Bolam test is used to examine if a health care professional has been negligent. If the health care professional has acted in accordance with an accepted practice which is approved by a recognised professional body then they cannot be thought as negligent. However, it could be disputed that the health care professional could be assumed negligent if they resuscitated Katie since it is not in her best interests as the health care professionals have a legal duty of care to preclude acts or omissions which can potentially injure the patient (Donogue v Stevenson [1932]). If the health care professionals were to resuscitate Katie and it resulted in her becoming harmed then the health care professionals could be accused of being negligent under the Bolam test. Once a decision such as NFR has been justified and documented then if Katie was resuscitated in the event of a cardiac arrest then this treatment could been seen as battery and it is unlawful as in the case of (Airedale NHS Trust v Bland [1993]). Such as in the case of Bland where the patient’s recovery was not going to happen due to him being in a Permanent Vegetative State, then the courts can decide that treatment can be withdrawn and not infringe the human rights of the individual (NHS Trust v M [2001]). In this scenario the health care team have decided, that due to Katie’s ongoing chest infections, the pain that she experiences from her conditions and her poor quality of life, it would not be in Katie’s best interests for her to be resuscitated in the event of a cardiac arrest. Consequently health professionals are not infringing her right to life and consequently not legally negligent. All health care professionals have a duty of care to their patients (Dimond, 2008). For this section of the essay the author will focus on how a decision such as NFR can have on a nurse and discuss the legal implications that may occur. Registered nurses are governed by The Code: Standards of conduct, performances an d ethics for nurses and midwives (NMC, 2008). The code is not a legal document however, it sets a framework of standards that a nurse must adhere to within their practice and it enables them to act lawfully. Decisions such as NFR can cause professional issues for a nurse. The nurse is the frontline provider of their patient’s care (Dimond, 2008). They have the most contact with the patient and their relatives. They often develop a therapeutic relationship with both. This could cause the nurse to face a dilemma of being criticised by the family and friends of the patient if they  do not commence CPR or even face criticism from their colleges if they did proceed with CPR (Dimond, 2008). The nurse may feel duty-bound to commence CPR due to the relationship they have formed with the patient. However, the nurse must always act lawfully. Due to the nurse’s role as the care provider, they often have contact with the family members. This may provide difficulties for the nurse if the family, such as Katie’s mum, disagree with a decision that has been made. Therefore, the nurse may be faced with a possible confrontation from the family or friends of the patient due to their disapproval (Hughes and Baldwin, 2006). The nurse has a responsibility to their patients to provide a high standard of care (NMC, 2008). However, at times they may feel as though they are being prevented from providing this standard when a decision such as NFR is issued and could cause them professional implications. However, it could also be argued that the nurse is fulfilling their role in such a situation as the nurse has a duty to alleviate the suffering of patients (Rumbold, 2002). The nurse would not be alleviating a patient’s suffering if they commenced CPR and it had been decided that it was not in the patients best interests. Nurses are accountable for their actions (NMC, 2008). The accountability of not providing CPR to a patient can present the nurse with a professional implication. Therefore, as the essay mentioned earlier, if the decision of NFR is legal then the nurse will not be held professionally accountable for not commencing CPR if their patient experiences a cardiac arrest. All Health care professionals are responsible for maintaining standards set in the code of professional conduct. The NMC (2008) governs nurses to ‘Adhere to the laws of the country in which you are practicing’. This implies that nurses are required to act lawfully. They are required to follow orders such as NFR regardless of their own values and beliefs. A decision such as NFR creates the question of: who has the right to decide what is in the best interests of a patient. Even though the person making the decision is professionally qualified to do so they may find it complicated in proving that it is in the best interests of a patient without capacity (Runciman et al, 2007). The professional has a duty to act lawfully and be able to sustain this when making such an important decision. The attitudes of a nurse can offer professional implications for a decision such as NFR. Attitudes are governed by personal values and beliefs. If the nurse did not agree that it is in theà ‚  best interests of the patient to become NFR this could create some difficulties. The nurse may decide to vocalise what they consider is in the best interests of their patient and this could conflict with the NFR decision made by the health care professional resulting in an ethical dilemma (Thompson et al, 2006). According to Schlutz (1998), there is considerable evidence that many nurses experience the feeling of powerlessness when confronted with an ethical dilemma and fear conflict with other professionals such as consultants and doctors. Due to this they may abide by instructions regardless of it conflicting with their own professional values and beliefs. This could imply that the nurse involved with Katie’s care could follow an instruction as NFR despite it being against their own professional opinion. However, the nurse must be accountable for their actions and must indicate a satisfactory reason for their conduct (NMC, 2008) therefore potentially resulting in a professional implication. Rundell (1992) claims that the nursing of a palliative patient and providing them with a dignified death, uncomplicated or uncompromised by CPR could prove to be more complex than simply intervening and commencing CPR. Therefore not intervening when a patient is suffering a cardiac arrest can res ult in a professional implication of the NFR decision. The nurse could find it very difficult to watch a patient suffer a cardiac arrest and not be allowed to intervene because of an NFR decision made by a health care professional who may not even have had a therapeutic relationship with the patient or their family. Doctors and nurses are professionally responsible to perform beneficently, justifying and respecting the rights of others (Thompson et al, 2006). Beneficence can be defined as an action taken that will benefit others and prevent and remove harm. Examples of harm are suffering and death (Herbert, 1998). If a health care professional fails to act beneficently it violates social, moral and professional standards (Beauchamp and Childress, 1989). This principle implies that the health care professional would be acting unprofessional by not commencing CPR. However, Casteldine (1993) implies that it is of greater beneficence for the health care professional to acknowledge end of life on certain occasions rather than using CPR, which could potentially cause harm, to prevent death. This implication is seen within the scenario. However it is imperative that the staff perform lawfully. Health care professionals are often faced with the  dilemma as to whether a certified decision has been made morally and legally accepted. This could result in disputes due to differentiating values and beliefs (Herbert, 1998). The NMC (2008) states that a patient, who does not possess capacity, should be protected. This may cause conflict in role responsibility in an NFR decision, as a health care professional not commencing resuscitation in the event of a cardiac arrest could potentially cause the issue of passive non-voluntary euthanasia. This is a further professional implication that the nurse may experience when a decision such as NFR is initiated. Passive non-voluntary Euthanasia can be defined as when the individual who dies is unable to give their consent and the individuals competent requests concerning euthanasia are not known, such as Katie’s wishes are not know due to her not having the mental capacity. In effect it involves not providing or discontinuing treatments that would be relatively successful in preventing the patient’s death because death is considered to be kind to the patient by the health care professional making the decision. Therefore, this type of euthanasia depends on other factors for its achievement in causing death, such as Katie’s underlying pneumonia which if left untreated could kill her or promote her inability to breathe satisfactorily without oxygen or respiratory assistance. By withdrawing treatment or as in Katie’s case creating an NFR that would normally be done for a patient with this condition, with the objective of causing the patient’s death out of compassion could be regarded as passive euthanasia and be interpreted as allowing the patient to die rather than killing them. Again when faced with such a situation the nurse must always abide by the NMC Code (2008) and act lawfully in their practice and they will not be accoun table for breaching their professional duties. In conclusion, this essay has contained numerous reasons why legal implications could arise due to Katie’s mother disagreeing with the NFR decision. When a health care professional makes a decision such as NFR, it is taken very seriously and as this essay has explained the health care professional has a legal obligation to justify their decision. They are required to follow the appropriate assessments and procedures before making their decision. The health care professional has a duty of care to their patient and they must ensure that they are considering the overall outcome and quality of life if CPR was performed and if it would be in their patient’s best interests or  potentially cause harm. It is imperative that they discuss all decisions with the immediate family and reassure the family that they are acting in the best interest of the patient (Hawley, 2007). Decisions such as NFR need to be regularly reassessed because a patient’s condition may improve or they may regain their capacity to make decisions. There are many legal and professional implications that the health care professional could encounter due t o such a decision. Therefore it is essential that they are aware of the law because they will be accountable for their actions. Ultimately they must be able to prove that they are acting in the best interests of the patient and be able to provide relevant evidence to support this. In this particular scenario, Katie’s mother was made fully aware of the NFR decision and what it meant if Katie was to have a cardiac arrest. She was involved in the decision making process and consulted regarding her daughters condition. Soon after the health care professional made the NFR decision Katie’s health deteriorated due to the Pneumonia and subsequently her quality of life was poorer than previously. It was at this point that Katie’s mum finally accepted the NFR decision and realised that it was in the best interests of her daughter that she should not be resuscitated. As the essay has shown, in the event that Katie’s mother pursued a clinical negligence claim against the Health Board, on the grounds that she believed the health care professionals in charge of Katie’s care were neglecting her daughters right to life, the likelihood of a ruling that Katie be for resuscitation in the event of a cardiac arrest would be unlikely due to Katie’s mental capacity, overall outcome, quality of life and the evidence supporting the health care professional’s decision that it would be in Katie’s best interest. In conclusion, the essay draws on the fact that all health care professionals, when making a decision such as NFR are required by law to assess patients mental capacity, follow a code of practice and always act in the best interest of the patients regardless of the patients families views and a patients disability. In order for this to be achieved, the Bolam Test and Section 4 of the MCA (2005) should be considered. The health care professional in this scenario conducted their decision process accordingly, following the correct assessments and legal frameworks, basing their decision on Katie’s best interests due to her ill health rather than her learning disability. Word Count 4,268 References * Airedale NHS Trust v Bland [1993] 1 ALL ER 449 * B v An NHS Trust [2002]2 ALL ER 449 * Beauchamp TL and Childress JF, (1989), Principles of biomedical ethics, third edition, Oxford University Press * Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee [1957] 1 WLR 582 * British Medical Association (2007) Resuscitation Council (UK) and the Royal College of Nursing, Decisions relating to cardiopulmonary resuscitation, BMA. * Campbell A, Grant G and Jones G, (2005) Medical Ethics, Fourth Addition, Oxford publishers * Castledine G, (1993), The Nursing Way of Death, British Journal of Nursing, 16: 138-146. * Degrazia D, (1999), Advanced Directives, Dementia and the ‘Someone else problem’ Journal of bioethics, 13 (5): 373. * Dimond B, (2008) Legal aspects of Nursing, Fifth edition, Pearson education publishers. * Donogue v Stevenson [1932] AC 562 599 * Grifiths R and Tengnah C, (2008), Mental Capacity Act; determining best interest, British Journal of Community Nursing, 13 (7): 335-340 * Hawley G (2007) Ethics in clinical practice: an interpersonal approach. Pearson Education. * Herbert C L, (1998), ‘To be or not to be’ an ethical debate on the not for resuscitation status of a stoke patient, Journal of Clinical Nursing, 6: 99-105 * Hughes JC and Baldwin C, (2006), Ethical issues in dementia care; making difficult decisions, Jessica Kingley Publishers * Hutchinson C, (2005), Addressing issues related to the adult patient who lack the capacity to give consent, Nursing Standard, 19 (23): 47-53 * http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/artcle-2101445/NHS * http://www.gmc-uk.org/guidance/ethical_guidance/writing_references.asp * http://www.mencap.org.uk/74deaths * http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/9/contents * http://www.lawcf.org/CMS/uploads/611/documents/Case Note on Leslie Burke * National Health Service Trust A v D and others [2000] Lloyds rep med 411 * NHS Trust A v M [2001] 1 ALL ER 801 * NHS Trust B v H [2001] 1 ALL ER 801 * Nursing and Midwifery Council (2008) Code of Professional Conduct: Standards for Conduct, performance and ethics, NMC * R (on the application of Burke) v General Medical Council and Disability rights commission and the official solicitor of the Supreme Court [2004] Lloyds Rep Med 451 * Re A (Mental Patient: Sterilisation) [2001]) 1 FLR 594 * Re C (Adult refusal of treatment) [1994] 1 ALL ER 819 * Re J (a Minor) (Wardship: Medical treatment) (1991) Fam 33; [1990] 3 All ER 930; [1991] 2 WLR 140; Times, 03 October 1990; [1992] 1 FLR * Rumbold G, (2002) Ethics in nursing practice, Third edition, Bailere Tindall Publishing * Rundell s and Rundell L, The Nursing Contribution of the resuscitation debate, Journal of clinical nursing, 1: 195-198 * Runicman B, Merry A and Walton M (2007), Safety and ethics in healthcare; a guide to getting it right, Ashgate publishers * Schluzt L, (1998), Not for Resuscitation; two decades of challenge for nursing ethics and practice, nursing ethics, 4 (3): 227-240 * Thomson IE, Melia KM, Boyd KM and Horsburgh D, (2006) Nursing ethics, Fifth edition, Churchill Livingstone.

Heroic Criminals Essay

All throughout childhood we are taught that breaking the law is bad and the people who do are criminals and should be punished. Edward Abbey, author of The Monkey Wrench Gang, and Carl Hiaasen, author of Sick Puppy, alter these thoughts. Both novels focus on adventuresome environmentalists who stir up trouble in means of standing up for their beliefs. Both Abbey and Hiaasen construct higher and natural laws over the traditional justice system that gives characters justification for their actions. Ethically we as humans should not side with these rebellious characters, but the theme is so central in the books cover-to-cover that we, as readers, lose sight of morals as the authors manipulate us to become completely invested in these heroic criminals. With sharp uses of characterization and description, Edward Abbey glorifies the art of law breaking and leaves his readers cheering for the heroic criminals. Throughout The Monkey Wrench Gang, the group of four activists set out to destroy bridges, signs, bulldozers and anything else harming the American southwest. From the very beginning, Abbey illustrates a scene full of the workings of the justice system in his prologue. When describing the ceremony to open the bridge he states, â€Å"the bridge stands clear and empty except for†¦a symbolic barrier of red, white and blue ribbon stretched across the bridge from rail to rail† (3). If the sense of patriotism wasn’t evident enough through images of children eating ice cream cones and people drinking Coca-Cola before that, Abbey drapes the bridge in the colors of our nations flag. His portrayal of the project seems to be adored and almost sponsored by America. He uses the writing technique of verisimilitude throughout the prologue to captivate readers and make them anxious to see who disapproves the project. This is a true introduction and welcoming to rebellious characters. As the novel progresses, we become familiar with the gang: Hayduke, Bonnie, Seldom Seen and Doc, as they are driving through billboard signs. Some readers might lose respect for the characters because their actions seem hypocritical and pointless. Their actions are against the law. But then Abbey slowly develops the characters and gives them justification for these criminal actions. He does this with Hayduke criticizing the construction of bridges, â€Å"They can’t do that; it ain’t legal. There’s a law against it. A higher law† (27). The phrase â€Å"higher law† justifies the gang’s destruction because they are taking a stand to save the environment, the beautiful American southwest. As destruction projects get bigger, we find ourselves rooting for these criminals because they are heroes. And we find ourselves captivated in the novel with Abbey’s clever use of an episodic plot. He arranges plot elements into a story and although we aren’t deep into the character’s lives, the focus on episodes drives us forward. As Abbey slowly develops the protagonist characters, he introduces the character, Bishop Love, who we as readers coin as the antagonist. Once again Abbey manipulates our morals as we begin hating the character who could possibly bring down our rebels. Bishop Love exclaims, â€Å"We might get them on the Mann Act come to think of it-crossing the state line for immoral purposes† (296). The fact that the Mann Act was first established to regulate prostitution across state lines cleverly draws us against the bishop’s character and law in general. Abbey’s use of an actual law brings the entire chase back to reality as we still see ourselves siding with the heroic criminals. Abbey actually creates this chase into a war and the heroic criminals become heroic war veterans. As the chase continues, Hayduke once again defines this higher sense of law and justification for war, â€Å"I sat in that rotting jungle every night, playing with my chain, and all I could think about was home. And I don’t mean Tucson†¦I thought about the canyons† (359). This is a very lively twist on the patriotic term war because when we think of war we think of Americans going into another country. Here, Americans are in a war in America against other Americans. And because of this, someone is breaking the law or going against the law. As true as that statement is, we find ourselves naming the criminals as the war heroes through Abbey’s manipulation. Although in the end these heroes are captured and the project seems to be brought to an end, the denouement proves to serve poetic justice. The epilogue consists of Doc, Bonnie and Seldom being almost immediately bailed out of jail, Bishop Love in slow recovery, and the survival of the most prominent environmentalist, Hayduke. Such a fitting ending for our manipulated beliefs. Similarly to Edward Abbey’s manipulation of our morals through characterization and development, Carl Hiaasen uses the same techniques within the theme of criminal heroes. Right off the bat, we meet Twilly who is the definition of activist. We quickly learn that if he doesn’t like something, he takes immediate action. And it’s not with anger that he takes action, but disappointment, â€Å"†¦if I was really pissed, I would’ve done it on a Monday morning, and I would’ve made damn sure my uncle was inside at the time† (19). This is in response to his therapist asking if the reason he blew up a bank was due to the fact that he was angry his uncle made a loan to some â€Å"rotten people† (18). We aren’t really introduced to the proper sense of law as we were in The Monkey Wrench Gang, but such grotesque images of the characters in political positions make us see them as the bad guys and the person who blows up a bank as a hero. More grotesque images develop as we learn about Robert Clapley and his Barbie dolls and Palmer Stoat and his trophies. So even though we want to hate the main characters, we hate who Hiaasen wants us to hate more. With this manipulation technique and Hiaasen’s rapid tonal shifts between parallel characters, we find ourselves not being able to put the novel down. He creates a sense of higher law that gives us a place to go and pretend we’re there with Twilly being a heroic criminal and activist. Hiaasen also does not overstep his boundaries with this sense of higher law as characters are able to resist destruction. In the scene where Twilly and Desie are driving behind a lady in a Lexus who threw her cigarette butt out the window, Twilly wants to put her car up in flames, but he lets off (219). Although we are already on Twilly’s side, the fact that he can resist gives him more respect as a â€Å"criminal. † Once again, in the reader’s eyes, what makes him a hero is how Hiaasen develops the negative characterization of characters like Clapley, Gash and Stoat. In a very grotesque scene between Clapley and Stoat, Stoat explains, â€Å"The important thing is, that nutty kid is finally out of the picture. And, oh yeah, Desie and Boodle are OK, too. Not that I give a shit† (360). Immediately after this is said, â€Å"Clapley finds himself gazing past Stoat, at a dancer performing in a nearby booth†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢if only she was taller’† (360). As illustrated, Clapley and Stoat are both sick people and we want them to be punished and destroyed. We are pulling for Twilly to torture them and win. The novel takes shifts towards a focus on the greed of politics where nature is just a victim and Twilly is standing up for it. In another beautiful example of poetic justice, the epilogue is used as a framing device to bring the novel full circle. In one example, the novel begins with Stoat hunting a rhino and ends with him being impaled by one (429). The ending of our other hated character, Robert Clapley, comes full circle as his most prized possessions, Katya and Tish, become, â€Å"†¦a trademark symbol; this order to include but not expressly be limited to such oral and visual depictions as ‘Goth Barbies’, ‘Undead Barbies’, and ‘Double-Jointed Vampire Barbies’† (445). This is a direct occurrence of what Clapley didn’t want to happen and we find ourselves giggling about the fact. The sense of the novel as a political cartoon truly adds to our enjoyment as readers and superb justification of higher law and love for heroic criminals. In conclusion, both Abbey and Hiaasen create a new definition of criminal through manipulating our morals in their development of characters and justifying it with the sense of a higher law. Adventuresome environmentalists deface and destroy many things, yet we find ourselves as readers cheering for them to do so and get away with it. Ethically we should not side with these rebellious characters, but we truly are completely, 100% invested.

The Molly Mcguires of Pennsylvania Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

The Molly Mcguires of Pennsylvania - Essay Example Though their life in Ireland was fraught with famine, poverty and arduous labor conditions, life in America was no less hard. At least in Ireland, they were not the subject of bigotry based simply on their heritage, accent or religion. Irish Catholics were thought of as almost sub-human. Two Catholic churches were burned to the ground while occupied in Philadelphia on May 6, 1844 causing 16 people to lose their lives. One of the only places in the country that the Irish were welcomed was in the coal mines of Pennsylvania where the owners of the mines were more than happy to employ those disenfranchised persons of Irish nationality who were desperate enough to take the dirty, dangerous jobs. It was in these Pennsylvania mining camps that the Molly Maguires experienced a rebirth in America. In 1860, following a typical tough day of mining, several Irishmen were heavily drinking and bemoaning the harsh working conditions at their usual location, the Girardville, PA lodge of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, a group established by Irish Catholics (Liljegren, 1964). The Irish working class had a long history of acting violently when they believed that they were being taken advantage of and the addition of being drunk and extremely unhappy served to light the fuse for actions against their oppressors. This is when they reformed the Molly Maguires, a group that had its roots in Ireland during the 1700’s. This very secretive brotherhood was originally formed to exact retribution upon their cruel English landlords who were infamous in their treatment of Irish tenants. The English would actually kill their tenants so that they could raise the rent on new renters. The ‘Mollies,’ as they were commonly called, took this name from such an instance of cruelty. Molly Maguire was an aged widow who was one of the people being evicted from her home by one of these evil

Social Media Marketing Plan Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social Media Marketing Plan - Term Paper Example The organization can achieve the goals by monitoring the stakeholders’ reactions towards the organization’s activities using their views on the social media. Other organization’s goals encompass validation of new products and services using the social media as a research base and generation of registrations to the organization’s events through the media. Given the organization’s marketing strategies, the activities that make sense include increasing awareness of the strengths of the company’s products and providing accurate information about the business. Other activities entail reacting to the consumers’ messages and questions within the shortest period. Additionally, an important activity entails aligning the media activities with the organization’s goals. This is achievable through the effective online status management. Social Media Status The company has successfully engaged in several social activities. Some of the activit ies entail responding to the customers’ questions and selling some products through the social media. These activities have been successful because customers’ views illustrate their level of satisfaction with responses. Additionally, the company has managed to sell several products online. Moreover, the company has been successful in attracting large numbers of clients. However, it has not been successful in increasing their engagement. The organization used some metrics to measure the success of the social media. The social media successes need to be identified by clear measurable goals. The organization has measured its goal of reaching many clients by using the total reach. By using this, the organization acknowledged the value added to the social space. The total reach was large. This implies that the organization was able to attract many clients. Additionally, the organization measured its success through the social customer relationship management (CRM) tool. Thi s, too, was helpful in showing the number of people using the organization’s social page and the level of engagement on the page. This measurement is vital in determining whether the organization’s value is increasing through its social strategy. The social CRM tool used is the Sprout Social, which combined the organization’s activities into a single activity. This enabled the organization to know if its strategy is moving towards the expected direction. Through this metric, the organization’s goal was partly achieved because it had managed to attract a large community. However, it had partly failed because the level of engagement was very low. Furthermore, the organization used the Conversation Share to determine the position of the organization in the social media as far as competition is concerned. This is done through measuring the amount of conversation about organization’s products in comparison with the number of conversations about the riva ls’ products. This metric showed that the organization was successful in acquiring a large market share, although not like some of its competitors. Consequently, the organization needs to upgrade its systems in order to reach very high levels of conversation share like its competitors (Lauby 1). Social Activities The first step of the social medi

Financial Accounting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Financial Accounting - Essay Example Further an analysis is made to understand which of the two objectives is apt for the GPFR. Also an analysis is made to understand if the proposal of the IASB has helped improve the GPFR. A conclusion is then drawn out based on the discussion. However to discuss this further it is essential that we first understand what general purpose financial reports deal with. The next section focuses on understanding general purpose financial reports in detail. The Statement of Accounting Concept (SAC 1) explains general purpose financial reports as reports that are intended to meet the needs of common users who are unable to command the preparation of reports tailored to their specific needs. Also GPFRs can be produced by entities that have users who cannot command the preparation of specific information. The entities are required to be reporting entities and if they are not deemed to be report entity then it would not require producing a GPFR and would not require complying with all the accounting standards (IASB, 2008). GPFRs are not produced for a single group of users. It has grown from the basic need of all groups of users who need financial information. However there are conflicts between the groups since almost every group require different information for example suppliers and lenders vs. the shareholders, or the senior management vs. the employees. Shareholders require a more detailed report which helps them analyses the profitab ility, whereas lenders and suppliers require the report to be made for them to be more conservative. Similarly senior management would have concerns about the profits that are reported as if the profits are reported to be high the chances of increase in wage demanded will also be high. The main objectives of general purpose financial reports of the Australian accounting standards board is to provide reliable and

Fulton's Ice Land Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Fulton's Ice Land - Case Study Example Therefore Fulton is trying to adopt some strategies which would increase its profits. Fulton’s current strategy To evaluate the current strategy of Fulton’s ice Land, the 4Cs of marketing is taken into consideration. The 4Cs includes Customer Value, Cost, Convenience and Communication (Crandall, p.57). Fulton’s Ice Land offers indoor staking with a conventional hockey rink surface. Steve operates the staking program and runs a successful hockey program which is accompanied by decent profits. Steve wants to expand his business so that he could allow 700 people at one time in the public session. Steve has 14 public staking session in his ice skating but unfortunately it has not attracted many customers. Out of which the public sessions hold on Saturday and Sunday afternoon has been the most successful, which has recorded an average of 200 people during the winter session. This session has mainly attracted the kids dropped by their parents for many hours and also at tracted few family groups. But the public session operated on Friday and Saturday evening were the biggest disappointment for Steve. This session attracted the age group of 8-14 years and only a handful of young and teenage couples affecting the environment which Steve expected to create for the dating couples and the old patrons. Later Steve limited this session for people of age group above 14 years so to get a better environment for the young crowds. In order to make the skating fun and relaxing Steve installed few lights and music which encourage people to skate to the beats of the music and couples to skate together. Steve basically tried to attract the couples and was successful. Steve hired a local radio disk jockey which attracted many young crowds and couples. Steve realized that it was hard changing the attitude of the people and most of its customers on the weekends belonged to age group of 13 and less. Thus Steve’s effort to attract the teenage and couples did not generate a positive response. Steve’s motive of expanding his public skating program was assumed to attract as many as 700 customers in a public session instead of limiting the use of ice to 12 to 24 players per hour. Steve plans to charge $200 an hour plus concession sale, the two hour public skating would be charged at a rate of $5 per person which would yield up to $3500 for two hours plus a higher concession rate. By operating a large public skating session Fulton expected to earn a profitable turnover. Fulton’s evening session on Friday and Saturday were rated at $5 per person and $1.50 for skate rental. Steve has invested more than $3000 in lighting and about $9000 in promotional activity mainly promoting the rock music radio station which proved to be a failure. Steve operated 14 sessions out of which the public session on Saturday and Sunday were the most successful. The people could choose a session as per their convenience. The kids and families usually arri ved more on Saturday and Sunday during the winter. Fulton Ice Land is situated in the northern part of USA, which is attracted by many Ice Skating rinks; therefore Fulton’s introduction of 14 public sessions would be convenient for the people to choose as per their timings and enjoy the winter with families and friends. Steve used radio as a means of communication in promoting its new offerings, which did not deliver a desired result. Steve spent almost $9000 in promoting the session over rock music radio

Innovative Change Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Innovative Change - Research Paper Example There is need for these stakeholders to communicate and collaborate effectively for there to be efficient innovative change in the sector. The US Department of Department has taken centre stage in supporting the ‘Flagship Initiative, Collaboration: Open Innovation Web Portal’. This is an online initiative that allows identification of areas of need in the education sector, suggests improvements to solutions and areas that need funding (Open Government Plan: Department of Education, 2012). Through this initiative the Department seeks to create an infrastructure that promotes transformative innovations that are aimed ensuring that every student has the opportunity to get world class education that the system should rightful provide (ED. Gov., n. d.). The initiative aims to provide more insight into the decision making process in the education sector. Additionally, the strategy aims to promote the participation of the public and other stakeholders in the decision making pro cess (Open Government Plan: Department of Education, 2012). ... Redefining the curricula entails the vast expansion of technology and schools are starting to acknowledge the need for modernization in the sector (Hobcraft, 2012). Innovative technologies open the doors to creative applications within the education field (ED. Gov., n. d.). Owing to this, re- imaging of the traditional education system is indispensable. There are educational experts who hold on traditional values. If any change is implemented in the system, the impact will be felt by the students and will lead to improved efficiency in the learning process. Success as an Innovative Change In October 2009, Secretary Duncan announced that there will be a $650 million grant that will be directing towards funding of new promising ideas that are aimed at benefiting all students across the country (ED. Gov., n. d.). In March 29, 2010, the initiative had over 2850 members, 76 innovative ideas had been submitted and most of them have received positive response (ED. Gov., n. d.). In 2011, the budget for the Fiscal year 2011, President Obama and Secretary Duncan requested a $500 million grant to fund the ideas that did not get funding in the previous year (ED. Gov., n. d.). Additionally, an active network is operational and has received immense publicity over time. The Department of Education is motivated by the early success of this initiative. This investment represents the most significant investment that has been made to the Department of education to date. Yet, the department acknowledges that sustaining efficient innovation in the education sector requires more than successful grant completion but also how the innovation is implemented (ED. Gov., n. d.). It is clear successful implementation of innovative ideas in the education sector is affected by lack of a

Sumerize the article, agree or disagree with the author, and react to Essay

Sumerize the article, agree or disagree with the author, and react to the video - Essay Example Even though different erotica in different countries use food and kitchen to relay their messages, some of them fall out of agreement with the feminist perspective. Ironically, women develop most of these, yet some of them seem to be not aligned with the feminism expectations. This is primarily because of the way such literature bluntly portray women as sex objects. For instance, some erotica written for both men and women will portray women as an edible dessert after dinner. Their bodies shown covered with champagne or cream. Most feminists therefore find it hard to find the validity in the assumption that women equal food, as this in itself is belittling to the womenfolk. Feminists can also not make anything out of literature that portrays women negatively. Apart from being portrayed as objects in erotica literature, some literature has portrayed women as voracious eaters. This negative presentation of women is not acceptable in the feminist sphere. The author compares and contrast s a variety of Hispanic erotic literature, which bears heavy culinary eroticism, in order to bring out the different portrayal and representation of women in the literature. ... In this literature, Esquivel portrays cooking as a process through which women discover, empower, and redefine themselves. Maite, in this article also addresses the difference between â€Å"table narratives† and â€Å"kitchen tales†. The author argues that in table narratives, there is a more positive representation of women as compared to the kitchen tales. The author once more employs the example of a table narrative namely, Aphrodite. A Memoir of the Senses, to justify this claim. Here, women sitting at tables are portrayed as powerful and influential. Unlike most kitchen tales, in table narratives, women are not presented as food for satisfaction of men’s sexual hunger, neither are they shown as nurturing machines that live in the kitchen, with their lives revolving around cooking. This is because today, the kitchen is thought of as a marginalized area, which contributes to the insubordination of women, who become less powerful than men in society, by restric ting them from the public sphere. In this article, the author achieves the theme quite clearly by comparing and contrasting as much literature on this issue as possible. What comes out clear is the relationship between women, kitchen, food, and cooking. All these aspects have a psychological connotation, which serves to influence the level of women empowerment in society. Additionally, various social evils directed toward women can be traced to these elements in society. The author of this article is right on point in describing the symbolisms in the culinary Eros in contemporary female fiction. I agree with the author and to great lengths echo the sentiments in this article. The author has widely used a variety of female literature to back the argument in the

Hitchcock began his career in filming Essay Example for Free

Hitchcock began his career in filming Essay Hitchcock began his career in filming in the 1920s. Later on he became a director, this involved changing the script or book into a film. Hitchcock used his own method of preparing the order of shots before filming, as he preconceived each shot in Psycho, ensuring that the tension was built up in a dramatic manner with a purpose, which made him very successful and led to a huge success. Hitchcock found ways to overcome censorship laws against nudity, sex and violence. He shot the film in black and white to conceal flesh/blood. Music was created to build up an atmosphere of contempt to kill, also to make the audience feel relaxed to increase the shock of certain events. The shower scene was shot in 76 cuts! So that the protagonists arms and other objects would cover up her breasts. Hitchcocks, most impressive technique was to suggest violence instead of showing it, which made it much more dramatic. Hitchcock used techniques, which later became known as Hitchcockean techniques. He tries to emphasise a characters view by only having one person in a shot or relating the charter to the audience. Placing objects around the room to show characters characteristics and builds up certain ideas. Hitchcock used an ongoing theme of death through out the film, using stairs to represent life at the bottom and death at the top, which instantly creates tension as soon as a shot with stair is shown. The plot begins with Marion having an affair with Sam. She is sick of sneaking around with him and is sick of her job. So one day when her boss gives her money to deposit in the bank, which she keeps for herself and decides to run away to her boyfriend, the audience have related to Marion and because of this do not think that she has done anything wrong. When se is on the road she is followed by a police officer so part-exchanges her car for a new one, the audience starts to think that she will get caught and start to hope that she doesnt. She then continues on her journey, but gets lost in the rain. She arrives at the Bates Motel and decides to stay there the night. She meets the owner, Norman Bates who seems a nice man, although a little nervous (to scared to say bathroom. ). He offers her tea, but his mother objects so they secretly eat in the back room. The audience have related with Marion and because of this are also unsure this helps to build up the suspense at a key point in the films. Marion then goes to have a shower, but unknowingly is watched through a peephole. She is then killed by a mystery figure, the audience then feel shocked that the main character has died. Norman finds the body and forgets about it. However Marions sister and Sam want to find out where she has gone so hire a private detective, who leads them to the bates motel. Psycho begins with the normal (a big city. ) and draws slowly into the abnormal (Norman and his disturbed mother. )

Causes and effects of international labour mobility

Causes and effects of international labour mobility Introduction Globalisation is the process of intensified international competition and trade. It enables the movement of goods, production factors, labour and technology across borders. If countries use their resources efficiently then globalisation can also enhance growth and social welfare. This depends on how much competition there is and a country has to have a certain stability and mobility of labour and resources for production. The common trade theory suggests that globalisation will equalise the prices of products and costs of production and free trade will lead to a more efficient allocation of resources. It is also beneficial for the customer since free trade suggests high competition and therefore companies will be able to offer low prices to their customers. This seems to be the case in the long run but problems that arise in the short run include high unemployment and income inequalities. Globalisation is an ongoing process that has been around for quite some time now. EU firms can o ffshore many tasks which were never possible before. This also means that international competition is completely changing and going through a transformation. Competition took place mainly between firms or different industries in different countries, however now since a lot of firms go abroad for their production, because it is cheaper, competition takes place between individual workers that use similar skills for their tasks in different countries, so they no longer compete within a nation. This of course can be beneficial for some workers but can also harm other workers. Europe is exactly facing this problem at the moment and this paper will focus on the impact globalisation has on the low skilled workers and income inequalities in Europe. European Globalisation trends Globalisation is taking place in nearly every country on the planet, but it has different effects on different nations. Trade expansion in Europe seems to be proceeding at a rapid paste, especially trade with low wage countries. Due to immense improvements in technology, transportation and communication, it is now a lot easier to handle the production process and this might have caused some firms to move parts of their production process to other nations. Offshoring and outsourcing are the common terms used when companies move their production process abroad. There are many reasons for why companies move to other nations for production. But the main reasons could be because it is cheaper to produce in less developed countries, firms only have to pay low wages and get a better output than in the home country. Especially labour intensive goods are shipped to less developed countries because there are more people that would do the job for less money. Therefore globalisation seems to hav e a negative effect on employment, especially low skilled labour. Since a lot of firms moved their production abroad and the ones that didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t only employ high skilled labour, it makes it even harder for the low skilled labour to find employment. New technologies also lead to higher unemployment rates among low skilled workers, because the low skilled workers that used to have a job are no either replaced by new technological advancements or by high skilled labour. Overall one could say that globalisation lead to a high demand for skilled labour and on the other side a rise in unemployment among low skilled workers. EU trade In Europe most of the countries are part of the EU, which has special trade agreements. Trade among industrialised countries differs significantly from trade with the developing world. This is mainly due to the fact that industrialised countries are relatively similar, in the sense that they use similar production technologies and have similar factor endowments, so one could say that they produce pretty similar goods. Trade between them therefore mainly exists among industries. So countries would import and export products from the same industry sector. For example Germany exports their yogurts brands and France French yogurts to Germany. These goods are similar because they are both yogurts but they have different tastes and characteristics, that is why these countries trade. It is the same with cars, Germany sells German cars to France and France sells French cars to Germany. Trade among industrialised and developing countries is different. Countries export goods belonging to one s ector and import goods belonging to another sector. Germany would for instance export Volkswagens to China and import rice or computers in exchange. Theoretical approach Comparative advantage Ricardian model Globalisation leads to increased trade amongst countries. Countries usually produce goods where it is the cheapest to produce them. Krugman discussed this in Chapter 3, if free trade exists with countries that pay low wages then this will harm the country that pays high wages. In the end the consumer profits from this because if firms have low production costs then they are able to offer the products at a lower price. And the producer benefits from a higher income if he uses his resources more efficiently. Krugman gave an example of this where W represents the wage rate in the home country W* represents the wage rate in the foreign country And the home countries unit labour requirement for good i is aLi, and the unit labour required for good i of the foreign country is a*Li. Now if WaLi < W*a*Li then the home country will produce the good I because it is cheaper, as wages are less at home. Or if the relative productivity of a country is higher than the wages, then the good will be produced in that country. This can be calculated as a*Li / aLi > W / W*. So overall if a country produces the good that uses the resources most efficiently then trade will be beneficial for that country. EU Unemployment To explain why Europe is facing this high unemployment ratio one has to look at the relative wages. This can easily be determined by looking at the relative demand and supply of labour services. If W / W* rises then the relative demand for home labour services will fall. If the home country would produce goods with expensive labour services then this can have a huge impact on society. Because it means that production costs are high as the producer has to pay high wages and therefore he canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t offer the final goods at an attractive price. If nobody buys the products because they are too expensive then the demand for labour services will go down too. This can also lead to fewer goods being produced at home because costs are too high, which will lead to a further reduction in demand for labour services in the home country. The Ricardian model only focuses on the productivity of labour across countries. According to this model a country gains from Trade if a country has a comparative advantage in producing a specific good. If the country produces the good it has a comparative advantage in, then it is able to use all its resources more efficiently and will gain more from producing this good. So here this model shows that overall if a country trades according to rules mentioned above, then the relative price of the good will increase, wages will increase and the producer is able to offer the good at a lower price so therefore even the consumer profits from it. Heckscher Ohlin Samuelson Model The Ricardian Model suggests differences in productivity of labour between nations cause productive differences. The Heckscher Ohlin model suggests that there are other factors of production between different countries, not just differences in productivity of labour, that cause differences in production. Usually the price of a good should be the same as its production costs, and the production costs also depend on how much wages they have to pay and the lending/renting rate of land. Changes in lending rates can affect the final price of a product, depending on how intensively you use land in production. For example if there are two products cloth and food, cloth is labour intensive and food is land intensive. If lending rates for land increase then this should have a bigger affect on the price of food than the price of cloth, because the production of food requires more land than the production of clothes. Heckscher Ohlin model also suggests that an economy will be efficient at producing goods that are intensive in the factors of production in which the country has a lot of. Just suppose the domestic country has an abundant amount of labour relative to land. This suggests that domestic country is abundant in labour and the foreign country is abundant in land. Likewise, the domestic country is scarce in land and the foreign country is scarce in labour. Because the domestic country is abundant in labour it would be very good at producing cloth, as cloth production is very labour intensive. The foreign country on the other hand should produce food as it is abundant in land and the production of food is very land intensive.(64-68) With trade the relative price of cloth should rise in the labour abundant country which is the domestic country, and should fall in the labour scarce country which is the foreign country. According to the Heckscher Ohlin Model, in the domestic country the rise in the relative price of cloth leads to a rise in the relative production of cloth and a decrease in the relative consumption of cloth. The same will happen to food in foreign economy. So what will happen is that the domestic country will become an exporter of cloth and an importer of food. And the foreign country will import cloth and export food. So one could say that a company would be very good at producing the goods that are intensive in its abundant factors, this just means a country produces the goods it has a comparative advantage in. And likewise a country should export goods that are intensive in its abundant factors of production and should import goods that are in its scarce factors of production. (58-63). To explain the wage inequalities among European low skilled workers one has to understand The Heckscher-Ohlin-Samuelson factor endowment model. This model predicts that trade among different countries derives from differing factor endowments across nations. This model looks at different countries that are trading with each other and these countries are also on the same technological level, which just means that they use the same technologies in their production process for both products. The production process for both goods in this case, requires two different inputs, this could be high skilled labour for one country and low skilled labour for the other country. For example, the production of one of the goods, for instance computers, requires more high skilled labour, while the production of the other good, for instance cloth, needs more low skilled labour. It is assumed that one of the two countries is relatively well equipped with either low skilled labour or high skilled labour, for instance Europe is equipped with relative large amounts of high skilled labour and the foreign country is relatively well equipped with low skilled labour. Usually when two countries trade industrialised countries have more high skilled labour and the developing countries have more low skilled labour. The Heckscher Ohlin theory in this case suggests that industrialised countries like Europe would export computers and the developing foreign country Europe is trading with should export cloth. The outcome would be that the relative price of cloth would fall in the industrialised country, but would do exactly the opposite in the developing country, the relative price would increase. This would lead to changes in wage distribution; low skilled labour in the industrialised country such as Europe would decline relative to the wages of high skilled labour. This can be explained because globalisation increased trade among countries and enabled countries access to products that were produced abroad, furthermore this implies that through trade the relative supply of low skilled labour has increased. According to this theory, inter -industry trade would as a result have the effect of increased wage inequality in industrialised countries like Europe, while inequality should decrease in developing countries. (58-61) Overall it seems as if owners of abundant factors gain with trade and owners of scarce factors lose. This model assumes that after international trade factor prices will be equal in both countries. This just means that once the domestic country which has a higher ratio of labour to land than the foreign country trade with each other, the wage rate and the lending/renting rate of land are the same in both countries. But that is not the case with every country that trades because labour moves around and usually both countries are not exactly the same in terms of infrastructure, technology and communication as the Heckscher Ohlin model suggests (68-69). Because ever changing differences in relative product prices has a large effect on the relative earnings of resources, and with trade the relative price also changes, so trade has a negative impact on income distribution. Causes and effects of international Labour mobility (chapter 7) p154 Heckscher Ohlin model focuses on trade as an explanation of bringing together factor prices, and capital / labour movements have similar effects. Capital tends to move from high wage countries to low wage countries. However labour migrates from low wage to high wage countries. Workers usually move to foreign countries in order to get paid more. Krugman suggested that labour will migrate to countries with higher labour productivity and higher real wages. And he further states that due to immigration wages will fall and due to emigration real wages should increase. If wages do not fall despite immigration, employers have no incentive to create additional jobs, and the immigration and this causes unemployment. Due to the fact that countries do not produce the same goods, due to differences in technology and due to immigration barriers, real wages across countries will never be equal (156-157). Companies in Europe which is considered an industrialised country will outsource those activities that use a large amount of unskilled labour. Moving these activities abroad would then lead to a decrease in the relative demand for low skilled labour in Europe within each industry. This means that outsourcing has a similar effect on reducing the demand for low skilled labour relative to high skilled labour within an industry, as does skill-biased technological change. Technological advancements and wages Skill-biased technological change reduced the demand for unskilled workers leading to higher long-term unemployment among low skilled workers in Europe. So low skilled workers would have to receive training in order to retain a job. At the same time, international outsourcing also leads to a shift in relative demand for labour. Firms outsource the low skill intensive parts of production and therefore increase the relative demand for skilled labour. Technological advancements also enabled companies across the world to better communicate with each other. Fast communication is a key factor when you are trading. Better infrastructure and more ways of transportation also enabled and increased trade among different countries. Benefits from globalisation According to the traditional trade theory globalization will equalize the price of products and production factors. Free trade will lead to a more efficient allocation of world resources as competition will shift production to the producers with the lower production cost. This more efficient allocation of resources will boost growth with positive effects on social welfare. Innovation and increased international competition can lead higher productivity, higher wages and improved living standards. Consumersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ welfare will improve due to a decrease in prices. However, the fall in prices relies on the level of competition in the product markets. Conclusion If economies have different capital/labour ratios, free factor mobility will encourage capital (labour) to move from the economies with a high (low) capital/labour ratio to those in which capital (labour) is relatively scarce. This process will affect the distribution of income since it will increase the relative income of capital (labour) in the countries initially with a high (low) capital/labour ratio. As globalization accelerates further, both costs and benefits will tend to raise while costs such as higher unemployment and income inequality will be concentrated in the short run while benefits in the form of lower prices, higher productivity and income will only occur later on.

Manipulation Of Images In Media Texts Media Essay

Manipulation Of Images In Media Texts Media Essay There are many arguments and concepts towards manipulation of images in media texts. The manipulation of images is seen every day by everybody who picks up any kind of media text from newspapers and magazines to internet articles, retouching photos is happening. Whether its changing how a person looks, changing the dominant characters surroundings or deleting parts of the image this all adds to the audiences perception of the text which the media has given them. There is no right or wrong answer unto whether the manipulation of media texts is actually something that should happen and should carry on happening throughout texts, some people think it is wrong to change the way people look, however some people believe that the changing and manipulation of media texts is all part of the media process. There are more arguments throughout the world of media which say the retouching their images is misleading for young people and manipulates them to believe this is how you should look. I want to see regular girls that look like me in a magazine thats supposed to be for me. For the sake of all the struggling girls all over America, who read Seventeen and think these fake images are what they should be, Im stepping up (Bluhm, 2012) Julia Bluhm is a 14 year old American teenager who understood the manipulation of texts and how the retouching and development of photos will influence teenage girls lifestyles and make them change the way they look at themselves because of the fake images portrayed by the media. For young girls like Julia photo manipulation could potentially make them change the ways they look at themselves due to the retouched images, young girls tend to idolize celebrities and icons in magazines. The retouched photos which may lead them to believe their own imperfections are abnormal influencing them to even turn to anorexia and body issues. Many people believe that the manipulation of images in media texts also leads to many people having low self-esteem issues which may also cause self obsessions and body issues within ones self. Theres no end of studies that show that consistently seeing airbrushed images makes women feel worse about themselves. (Crisell, 2010) There have been many articles written to show how the retouching of images affects the lifestyles and health of people, especially women. Many psychologists have studied the effects of the manipulation of media texts and how it reflects on a persons health; many say we are more likely to compare ourselves to these images due to the excessive exposure we have to them. We live in a current society which consists of a high percentage of people living with high body dissatisfaction and manipulation of images in media texts could potentially increase this percentage. Some people may disagree and believe that the retouching of images in media is a normal thing to do and is all part of the media process. No longer is it about  just  taking pictures.   Editing is involved. (Boutwell, 2012) Today, many photographers and people involved in the media believe there is a lot more behind an image and it isnt about just taking a photo anymore, editing is used in the images in media to enhanced the beauty of the image and to potentially get the most out of it. My opinion is that Photoshop is a major reason why photographers make so much money. (Boutwell, 2012) From getting the most out of the image that is possible some people say, like Allison Boutwell, that this is how photographers and the media make more money and sell more which is a process that every worldwide business want to do and this is just the way the media achieve this. Every business and company wants to make a profit, and by selling the manipulated images is the way the media do this. Arguments can show that the manipulation of images in media texts is just the way the media are trying to earn a living so to say. The retouched images seem to show more public interest than the non retouched images due to the public wanting to see the eye catching beautiful celebrities on the cover of their favourite magazines. Beauty-retouching is a quite deceptive art. (Metzmacher, 2008) Like Metzmacher some people disagree that the manipulation of images is wrong due to the idea that retouching images is only enhancing beauty of people and is seen as an art form. Today, 23 percent of women ages 25 to 29 now retouch their own personal photo and even more concerning, 41 percent among those ages 18 to 24 now retouch their photos too. Figure like this now may begin to suggest that women now begin to feel compelled to retouch their own photos due to manipulation of media images in order to fix their own personal self-esteem problems that the media have persuaded them into. Research shows that many women globally have all started editing their own photos in order to try and fit their own personal needs. Although only 43 percent of women agree with retouching photos, higher figure show that women edit their own photos. The media assist in this process subconsciously to the public, but it may lead to potential problems in the future like women becoming too obsessive with having the perfect figure and generating the perfect photo to feel they are meeting the need of the media also. Overall, the manipulation of images in media texts and be misconstrued in both directions, there are many positive and negative aspects to retouching photos. In my opinion, i do think that redevelopment of images can be seen as an art form and is only trying to enhance the beauty of the image in order to grab the audiences attention. I think that the media have in somewhat gone too far with the retouching of photos and can convey ideas to young girls and change the way they look at themselves to try and can potentially cause them problems like anorexia and low self-esteem because of the fake images which are too perfect to even be real.

Abstract: :: essays papers

Abstract: Currently, violence is commonly thought of as serious physical harm done unto another individual. Recently that definition has been rethought to now include milder forms of aggression. This is redefinition is key as instructors begin taking a fresh look at the problem of school violence, especially when it involves very young children. Aggressive children were once thought of as just going through a phase and eventually out-growing the aggressive behavior. But recent research has discovered that aggression in early childhood leads to much more severe behavior in later life. Because of these new findings, the purpose of this research paper is to discover the impact of early childhood violence prevention programs and if they would be successful in combating the issue of school violence. School violence is a rising epidemic occurring every day, in varying degrees, at schools across the country. School shootings that are being broadcasted in the media are the most extreme and rare forms that seems to attract the most public attention to the problem, while bullying and other "smaller" forms of violent acts that are happening more frequently don't gain the same type of media attention as the occasional shootings do. Parents across the nation are thinking, â€Å"not my child, not my neighborhood.† They do not believe that it could happen in their own backyard or in an expensive private school, but it does. Middle and high school students are finally beginning to receive information from school and community prevention programs that are designed to help them to identify and deal with violence in their schools. But there is an alarming new trend of school violence that is occurring with even younger children in elementary schools which is having a tremendous imp act on their behavior as adolescents and adults. Young children are becoming more and more aggressive towards their peers, which is directly escalating the problem of school violence and aggression in middle and high schools. Because of this, school violence prevention programs need to be implemented in early childhood educational settings in order to bring an end to the rising rates of bullying and school violence among kindergarten and elementary school-aged children and to prevent school violence later in life. Today, the term â€Å"violence† in American society is generally reserved for only acts of severe physical harm towards another person. Because of this commonly thought, narrow definition, many educators and parents only see the school violence problem as intentional interpersonal violence between middle or high school students or from a student towards a teacher.

Are Mental Images Real? :: Reality Philosophy Philosophical Essays

Are Mental Images Real? This essay was my first stab at defining and discussing reality for my freshman seminar, What is Reality?. Using a questionable topic of reality (in this case -- are mental images 'real'?), we were to attempt a working definition and method for determing that which is real. Pretty lousy, I'm not gonna lie, but an interesting assignment. In the middle of the night, a boy awakes from the most horrifying chase scene he’s ever witnessed, terrified in a cold sweat. His heart is pounding, he’s lost his breath. And yet he wakes to the comfortable knowledge that it was â€Å"all just a dream.† The mind is a strange entity, in that it is essentially our guide to that which we experience - it perceives, processes, interprets, analyzes, and utterly convinces. We respond physiologically to our minds’ wills, be it with elevated heart rates, elation, or a deep-rooted sense of confusion in the inability to distinguish between what our mind says and what we know to be true. Herein we see the quandary of existence as human beings in society : are the images and experiences of our mind truly real? To a schizophrenic, a hallucination in which he is attacked by a big black dog is as real to him as a true assault by a New York mugger. Where, then, is the line drawn between a pure mental image and reality, and what does this say about the nature of reality? Enlightened philosopher Rene Descartes said, â€Å"I think, therefore I am,† claiming the reality and validity of his existence based on the inner workings of his mind. The mental images and experiences he had were, to him, the fundamental proof that, as an entity, he was truly functional and definite. Yet how many of us have, at one point or another, asked ourselves, â€Å"Is this really happening?† and, despite the knowledge that we must be conscious to be questioning thusly, still couldn’t verify or discredit the reality of the situation? To quote a classmate in a discussion about the nature of existence, â€Å"All that individual existentialism stuff sounds pretty funky, but you’ve got to believe in it for it to work.† Indeed, the idea that reality is created or destroyed by one’s own willingness to exist is a terrifying and thought-provoking concept, riddled with metaphysical questions of procedure and mechanics of life. Do peopleâ€℠¢s minds allow them to know of their own horrifying and grotesque deaths, or is there perhaps an â€Å"I-am-dying-peacefully-in-my-sleep† hormone released when the body becomes aware of its infinite peril?

Person essay Essay

The Most Important Person in my Life We all have someone that is really important to us, someone that has influenced us in our lifetime at some time or another and thanks to that person we are the person we are today. In my case that someone is my mother. My mother is really important to me because thanks to her I exist today, she gave me life .My mother is my best friend, my confident, she is the person that I trust the most in my life .I consider my mother as the most important person in my life because she has always been there for me, gave me all the things that I needed to keep going following my dreams. She is such of a good mother. I love my mother, even though we fight sometimes, I can’t live without her, she is my role model. My mother is a hardworking, supportive, friendly and caring person. My mother is a beautiful woman. She is the youngest of six siblings, she is forty years old. She has light brown skin and is about five feet six inches and 160 pounds. She has black short curly hair, which sometimes she straightens, but she usually keeps it curly. Her eyes are dark brown, like coffee. She has beautiful white teeth which shine when she smiles. On her face she has some freckles. Her eyebrows are black and she likes to shape them square .She also has her ear pierced. My mother wears jeans and blouses most of the time, she is very simple . On Sunday night you would see my mother sitting on the sofa watching T.V. When you first see my mother you will think that she is shy or isn’t a friendly person because of her character, but after you talk to her and know her well you will notice that she is a lovely person, funny, and nice person. On a Saturday morning you would see my mother getting ready to go the church, she usually wears long dress, or a long skirt with jacket, and she is very elegant. My mother is a hardworking woman. She has always worked in order to bring money to our house and to give my little brother and me a better life. She also work hard at home, she always makes sure that everything is okay in our house, she likes to have everything organized. I remember that when I was ten years old , my father moved to the United States in order to find a better way of life, leaving my mother , my brother and me in our country ,the Dominican Republic. After my father left home my mother had to do both roles, be the man and woman. She learned how to fix things at home, so she didn’t have to call someone else to do it. At  first when my father arrived here in the USA he didn’t have a job, so at that moment my mother was the only one that was working and bringing money to our house, but it wasn’t enough to support us. My mother was working in a company, but she didn’t receive a good pay, that’s why she decided to have two jobs. It wasn’t easy for my mother having two jobs, plus she had to do everything at home. I remember that she woke up every day early in the morning in order to prepare something to eat for my little brother and me, and then she had to get ready to work at her first job. After m y mother finished a job, she had to go to the other one, and then when she really ended up working she used to go home to help my brother and me with our homework. I don’t know how she was able to do so many things at the same time, but she did .She always tried to give us a good life. Nowadays, I see my mother, and I feel very proud of her. She taught me that nothing is easy in life that we have to work hard to get the things that we want. Sometimes I feel tired because I work and study at the same time , and sometimes I think that I can’t continue doing this and then I think about my mother, how hard she used to work and never gave up. She is my inspiration and role model. My mother is such a hardworking woman, this is one the qualities that I most admire about her. How nice it is having someone that supports you in every decision that you make in life. No matter what, every time that I need my mother’s support, she is always there for me. Most of the time when I have to make an important decision in my life, I talk to my mother before doing it. I remember that when I started working and studying at the same time, I felt like it was too much for me , because I was working and studying full time. At that moment I did not what to do because I really needed a job to help my mother to pay the bills , but I also wanted to continues my studies in order to have a better life. So one day I decided to talk to my mother about my situation. â€Å"Mommy I feel that working full and being a full time student is too much for me.† â€Å"So, what do you want to do?† She asked me. â€Å"I am thinking to leave my Job.† I replied. â€Å"Dawilsa whatever you think that is the best for you or you want to do, I support you.† She said. After I talked to my mother, I decided to just cut some hours in my job and work part time, so in that way  I would have more time to study, and do my homework on time. Thanks to my mother’s support I got good grades, and I felt most comfortable. I also remember that when I was about twelve years old my dream was to become a famous and professional dancer. So since I knew that my mother supports me in any decision that I make in life I talked to her about it. â€Å"Mom Do you know what is my biggest dream in life?† I asked her. â€Å"Yes, to become a famous dancer has always been your dream.† She replied. â€Å"Mom, Can I go to the dancer school that is in my school?† I insisted. â€Å"Sure, you can go to the dancer school anytime, that’s your dream and I support you. â€Å"She replied. After I talked to my mother I was jumping of happiness because she said yes. Few days later I started taking dance class. I felt so happy because one my dreams was starting to become true. I took one year of class on that dancer school , and then I had to leave it because I was too busy on school with my homework and did have enough time to go the dancer school .So since education comes first I decided to leave the dancer school. My mother is my support, she is like my right hand. My mother is very friendly. My mother has always been friendly with everybody, that’s why she knows a lot of people. It’s nice to be a friendly person because you have a lot of friends and you are also appreciated by other people. When I was a kid I didn’t like to go to the supermarket with my mother because she always found someone that she knew and then stop to talk with that person for a while. Even though I don’t like when I am with my mother and she stops to talk to everybody, it is always good to meet people from everywhere. I remember that one day before coming here I needed a paper from high school in order to be able to register in college, so my mother and I went to the school’s office. When we went and told the secretary what we needed she told us that to get that paper done would take a while. I really needed it right away because I was coming to the USA the day after. After a few minutes talking with the secretary, the manager arrived and since my mother knew him he came and helped us with the paper. Thanks to my mother I learned to be a friendly person and everywhere that I go I know many people. Being friendly is one the qualities that I most like about my mother. It helps to know people. Caring is part of my mother’s personality. It’s like she was born with this quality. My mother always takes care of my  father, my little brother and me. She is always asking me how I am doing in school or in my job. I remember few years ago, I was in the hospital because I was really sick .I stayed at the hospital for a whole week. My mother took vacation from her job because she wanted to stay with me, taking care of me, and making sure that I had everything that need. At that moment my mother showed me that she really care about me and how important I was to her. My mother is always up to me when I need an advice .When I am sad I go to see her and she gives me a hug and good advices and makes me feel much better. When I am sick she gives me medicine and everything that I need to get better .My mother is such blessing in my life. She is always ready to pour out her unconditional caring love to me and those around her. Being hardworking, supportive, friendly and caring are only a few of the attributes that I have learned from my mother. She taught me how to get things in life ,to keep going, it doesn’t matter what happens and never to give up .But ,one the most important things she taught me is how to be a good person. I love my mother, and I am more than proud to say that she is my mother. She has been a huge influence in my life, I will never finish paying and thanking my mother for all the things that she has done for me. Mommy, you are my role model.

Christian perspective in Webster Essay

By close consideration of two extracts of your choice, assess the importance of the Christian perspective in Webster’s presentation of the Duchess.†Ã‚  There has been much debate over whether the Duchess of Malfi is a character who is essentially a victim of her brothers’ tyranny and the corruption of her court, and whose downfall is caused by such, or is responsible for her own negligent and selfish actions by marrying a man she loved but in doing so abandoning her princely duties. Certainly, Webster’s borrowings saw the Duchess as little more than a whore or a strumpet (much like Julia in Webster’s version), but modern audiences, with modern sympathies, have preferred to see the Duchess as a heroine who is sacrificed for love. The two passages I have chosen to consider neatly contrast each other in showing how the Duchess is susceptible to religious corruption (III.ii.305-320), but equally, how she dies a Christian, almost a martyr (IV.ii.210-239).  In I.i, Antonio, the Duchess’ future husband, recounts a description of the French court, the King of which has ‘quitted’ â€Å"his royal palace | Of flatt’ring sycophants, of dissolute, | And infamous persons† (ll.7-9). This depiction acts as a yardstick by which we compare the court of Malfi. In fact, the entire presentation could be taken as an abstract concept presented visually, rather than any actual occurrence – however, the effect is the same either way. Unfortunately, we soon learn what becomes of the King – in III.iii, the corrupt Cardinal tells us that ‘the famous Lannoy’ had â€Å"had the honour | Of taking the French King prisoner†. This shows us just how powerful corrupt courts are. It strikes an ominous note, not filling us with the most hope for the Duchess ‘stars’ or fate. Against this backdrop of sleaze and rottenness, the Duchess hardly stands a chance – and so we come to our first passage (III.ii.305-320). In III.ii.305-320, we witness the Duchess, having confided in Bosola not only that she is married to Antonio, her household steward, but that she has several children by him, is persuaded by Bosola to â€Å"feign a pilgrimage | To our Lady of Loretto† (ll.306-7), under the (clearly ironic) pretence that she  Ã¢â‚¬Å"may†¦ depart  [her] country with more honour, and [her] flight  Will seem a princely progress, retaining  [Her] usual train about [her]† (ll.308-311). In fact, we know that, on arriving in Loretto, where the Cardinal, by design, awaits her, she is shamefully stripped of her princedom, as is Antonio of his lands (III.iv.5ff esp. Stage Directions), and her train, bar a faithfully minority (a sign of hope for us all, displaying the moral rectitude of the few), desert her in her disgrace (III.v.2-3), for reasons of politics, fear, and uncertainty. Clearly, the pilgrims who witness the banishment do not judge either Antonio or the Duchess harshly – rather they sympathise with them (ll.32-43), so perhaps we are meant to too. Having said that, however, they have not seen what we have seen previously – the wise though portentous warning from Cariola, ignored by the Duchess, that â€Å"if you will believe me, | I do not like this jesting with religion, | this feigned pilgrimage† (III.iii.315-18). The Duchess is, by any means, not faultless – to suggest that she ‘defies the evil in her court and her brothers’ hearts’ is too generous – indeed, despite good intentions, good receptions from onlookers, and indeed, sympathy from the audience, especially the modern one, she is not able to over come the evil in her court and in her brothers’ heart in this instance – she falls at their mercenary, Bosola, and, of course unknowingly, gives in to the ‘evil’ – she allows herself, in her own words, to be ‘led by the hand’ at ‘his direction’ (ll.311-2). The Duchess is after all a tragic heroine – her personality is therefore susceptible to the genre which dictated that she should be realistic, like any other human being. The root of ‘the tragedy’ can be traced back as far as Aristotle’s Poetics, which sees it as a form of drama â€Å"in which a calamity is brought about through a flaw in the character of the hero or heroine, who through a flaw in the character of hero or heroine who, through suffering, achieves a dignity and self-knowledge previously lacking.† The audience feels they can identify closely with this character, which has human faults, and the audience is thus sympathetic – even empathetic – to their case – and should experience heights of emotion such as pity, even horror, at the Duchess’ death. They should emerge from the theatre in some way ‘purged’ by the experience. According to this theory, Tragedy is the great dramatic form which shows human nature as unchanging†¦ only increasing the tragedy of the Duchess’ life and story further, especially because we, as a modern audience, know it is based on a true- life story (recorded in Painter’s Palace of Pleasure). The Duchess is motivated by ‘seeking wisely to prevent future sorrows’, ‘lamenting those in the past’ (ll.319-320) – in other words, she has good intentions, but by themselves they are not enough to dispel the power of the corruption which surrounds and suffuses her.  While it may have been established that the Duchess doesn’t really defy the evil in her court and her brothers’ hearts, it is more possibly that ‘she makes a good end’. These are separate things – it is possible to fulfil one, but not the other – and evidence for the truth of the latter statement can be found in the second passage, IV.ii.210-239.