Bisexuality Politicised Essay

This paper asks the question how can bisexuality be or become a danger to the dominant sexual script which I problematise as produced racism, sexism, homophobia, and monosexism. That this brand of heterosexuality occupies 99% of our cultural space in entertainment, education, history and public expression and is considered inevitable and unchallengable for 90% of peoples relationships is, I will argue, the victory of white patriarchal science. I intend to show the nature of this victory and imagine what counter struggle and victories might emerge from the site of my bisexuality. The Historical role of Biphopia- Policing the Treaty. Underpinning this paper is the belief in that many if not all heterosexual identifying people can be bisexual and that the majority are to some extent not privately monosexual. The majority status of bisexuality does not make it normal nor ideal however I mention it because it is important to realise that the invisibility of bisexuality requires extraordinary effort to maintain and it’s repression occurs against all people not just a few â€Å"natural† bisexuals. To understand the historical role that biphobia has played and the historical position of bisexuality it is necessary to recognise homosexuality as a creation of western patriarchal and homophobic medical science. Women have always loved women and men have always loved men but the classification of these experiences as a sexuality with little or no element of choice and a biological or individual psychological basis was given currency in the 19th century by a professional class that feared same sex desire. Their construction of homosexuality shaped and informs Western cultural understanding of sexuality â€Å"not in the first place because of its meaningfulness to those whom it defines but because of its indispensableness to those who define themselves against it. † (Segal, L. p145) for it was and is needed â€Å"not only for the persecutory regulation of a nascent minority of distinctly homosexual men (and women) but also for the regulation of the male (and female) homosocial bonds that structure all culture – at any rate all public or heterosexual culture. † (Eve Sedgewick in Segal, L. pp194-5) Early psychoanalytic texts were quite explicit that the project was to police all male and female relationships warning â€Å"teachers and parents not to take too lightly friendships among girls which become passionate† and society to â€Å"be more concerned with the degree of heterosexuality or homosexuality in an individual than they are with the question of whether he has ever had an experience of either sort†. â€Å"The real danger from homosexuality† was seen to lie â€Å"not in actual sex association but in homosexual attitudes towards life† such as the negative attitudes of â€Å"thousands of women †¦ toward men, marriage and family life† influenced by â€Å"latent homosexuality† for â€Å"neurotic attitudes about love and marriage can prove contagious. † (Caprio, F. pp 6 -11) Generally, prior to this the western world had relied on Christianity to dictate the terms of sexuality. Whether sexual attraction was â€Å"natural† was no defence under a regime which tended to view â€Å"natural† sexual desires as needing control from a religious authority. The medical establishment faced the dilemma of replacing religious authorities without having any utilitarian basis for the repression of same sex desire. The construction of homosexuality as a distinct condition was to define normality as exclusive heterosexuality. In fact heterosexuality was simply the condition of being human. Sexual behaviour became a product of a persons condition; the â€Å"human condition† producing normal heterosexual behaviour. There was now no need for a religious justification for preferencing the heterosexual over the homosexual because behaviour was not a matter of choice but a matter of whether or not you were ill; Well or sane people simply didn’t want to have sex with people of their own gender. This was presented as a more humane response to homosexuality than religious condemnation or incarceration. Psychiatrists often called themselves compassionate as they argued for an adoption of â€Å"scientific† curative responses to homosexuality. (Caprio, F, p. xi) The majority gay and lesbian movement accepted the shifting of sexuality into an area for science and have embraced the notion of a biological basis or early psychological basis for sexuality. Their fight has largely been for homosexuality to be treated as incurable and it follows natural and equally valid alternative to heterosexuality, jettisoning any agenda to argue that is better. Only a minority have argued that homosexuality is a political choice and an option for everyone. With both sides ceasing hostilities1, when homosexuality was delisted as a mental illness in 1973 (Altman,D. ,p5), institutionalised heterosexuality and gays and lesbians overt interests have moved to coincide. Victories to normalise homosexuality also normalise heterosexuality’s dominance by depoliticising sexuality in general. In 1993 when a homosexuality gene was â€Å"discovered† a genetic basis for the majority status of heterosexuality was created though not declared. Anyone who would argue that the commonality of heterosexuality might have something to do with social programming and institutional support can now be said to be messing with nature. The proud bisexual threatens this peaceful coexistence of the heterosexual majority and homosexual minority. Recognition of our bisexuality requires a validation of our sexual relationships with people of our own gender based on choice rather than the agreed legitimate biological basis. Such choice may be personal or circumstantial but also political or moral. Normalising bisexuality with a biological cause won’t defuse it’s threat though it could contain it if it relegates us to a fixed minority status. Society still has to reckon with why we choose to validate relationships with people of our own gender by identifying as bisexual. We reopen old debates that many who have found safety in a biological basis for their monosexual identity want to keep closed. (I will revisit this fear in the last section, Bisexuality and the Future when I discuss Bi supremacy. ) A bisexual identity simply has to be defined as confused or an exception to the rule. Individuals have to be pressured to fit themselves into one or the other category. In a secular society without moral taboos people can’t be allowed to entertain the idea that their partners gender is political. Also, understandably gays and lesbians know those moral taboos still hold significant power so many still see their best option as policing the treaty based on the attribution of their sexuality to a biological or psychological cause. Bisexuality and identification – Withdrawing our support for the status quo. The bisexual identifying person is not predominantly someone who feels attraction equally to both genders or without any reference to gender2 and in terms of actual sexual or emotional experience the majority could be classified as predominantly homosexual or heterosexual. â€Å"Why then, don’t you call yourself gay or straight? † is the inevitable response to this confession. And confession it feels like because to indicate a â€Å"leaning† puts at risk the validity given to a bisexual identity within contemporary discourse. Sexual expression is usually presented as representative of something innate rather than a mediation between a person and their world. Consequently the woman who says she usually finds women easier to make emotional connections with is seen to be describing her â€Å"innate† difficulty emotionally connecting with men rather than her experience of men and their culture. Asserting a bisexual identity in the face of this invalidation is about contextualising sexual responses rather than finding invisible internal reasons for them. A bisexual identity in the above circumstance keeps open the possibility that a preference for emotional relationships with women could change if men and male culture changed. Alternatively a preference for sex with men might be attributable to homophobia. (Weinberg, M. S. , p221) The reasons for choices are not always positive ones but the possibility for counter argument exists. Holding onto a bisexual identification based on potentiality, rejects the conservatism of describing reality by the status quo. However a bisexual identity is also partially an attempt to accurately relate personal history as well and this too has a radical power. Most monosexual identifications represent people only by concealing some bisexuality. By identifying as bisexual a person accepts and celebrates those aspects of their life that are inconsistent with a monosexual identity. The power of metanarratives within modernism, including descriptions of sexuality, relies on such inconsistencies being deemed insignificant. Hence a public bisexual identity is a confrontation of generalist theories with lived experience. If people promote such a solidarity with their experiences and the people who compose them that is greater than any to a proposed theory then expounders of metanarratives (including myself) will lose power. Our authority to dictate â€Å"from above† will be replaced by a decentralised authority based on being â€Å"up close† to our own reality. Bisexuality and other oppressions. Sexuality forms alliances across genders, ethnicities, and classes so any bisexual movement which fails to take gender, race or class issues into account poses a real danger of obscuring differences and concealing oppression. (This is also true for a multiplicity of issues such as disability or mental illness). My discussion of bisexuality and other basis for oppression are not intended to present bisexual identification as the panacea of the worlds ills. Social change must be inspired by a diversity of experience and informed by a range of critiques. Given the above it is presumptious for me as a half-wog male to seek to resolve ongoing debates about a bisexual political agenda among feminist women or debates among black women and men on how to connect bi pride with anti-racism. To do so would be to pretend that I can speak from only my bisexuality and abandon any white, male perspctive. As a long term unemployed person I believe I can speak on class issues from the inside to some extent but also still acknowledge the privelage of my university education. This is not to say that I think that sexism is a womens issue or that the responsibility for opposing racism is solely non-whites. Nor am I comfortable being accountable to lesbian or straight feminists on the issue of bisexual profeminism or placing beyond reproach the homophobia of some black liberationist theorists like Eldrige Cleaver. What to speak on and when in regard to a radical bisexualitys’ impact on patriarchal, white supremist and class oppresion is best defined as problematic. As a simple way out I hope to show how I see a politicised bisexuality contributes to my pro-feminism, anti-racism and support for class struggles. It is my hope that this will have relevance for a wider audience. Radical Bisexuality and Pro-feminism. Judith Butler states that â€Å"the heterosexualisation of desire requires and institutes the production of discrete and assymetrical oppositions between â€Å"feminine† and â€Å"masculine† identities. † (Segal, L. p190) Monique Wittig goes further to argue that a woman’s place in heterosexuality is a class of oppression and that the lesbian escapes her class position. (Wittig, M, p. 47) I agree that â€Å"hetero†-sexuality (literally a sexuality based on opposites) reproduces and supports womens oppression in other spheres by creating a binary gender system. Men need to realise that their love for women is problematic when it is that â€Å"love† of the â€Å"feminine identity† that belongs to this sytem. This is the attraction for the other and requires women’s difference to be exaggerated and emphasised. These exaggerations shape women as not-men while we men shape ourselves and are shaped into embodiments of the ideal. The seeming irony of male heterosexuality where women are objects of love being consistent with misoginy where women are objects of hate makes perfect sense through the operation of oppositional heterosexuality precisely because the love requires women to be less than men. A love that does not require partners to be different than ourselves is not possible within exclusive heterosexuality because it fails to provide the argument to repress same sex desire. It is necessary for heterosexual men to confront their homophobia which demands they repress or invalidate their same sex desire before they can love their female partners as their â€Å"own kind† and not another species. An additional benifit to patriarchy of discrete gender identities that is liable to be lost when men reject oppositional heterosexuality is the regulation of male social interaction. The arguments to exclude gay men from the military reveal the mindset deemed necessary to produce a war machine; â€Å"We are asking men in combat to do an essentially irrational thing – put themselves in a position where they are likely to get killed †¦ One of the few ways to persuade men to do that is to appeal to their masculinity †¦ You cannot have an adrogynous military †¦ The idea that fighting is a masculine trait runs deep. As a cultural trait it predates any written history. It may even be a genitic trait †¦ Just think what it would mean to demasculinize combat. The effect on combat effectiveness might be catastrophic. † – Charles Moskos, Military Socioligist quoted in Colonel R. D. Ray, Military Necessity and Homosexuality (Gays:In or Out, p63) It is regrettable that non-heterosexual men and many women are proving they too can make excellent soldiers. 3 However the above quote exaggerates a fact that male â€Å"buddy† relationships are relied on by the military and that this requires a repression of same sex desire. This is because same sex desire is preferential – it is not a love of all men equally – but of a few and potentially for a time. The same-sex loyalty that is demanded by patriarchy including it’s military needs the stability of exclusive heterosexuality; â€Å".. the recognition of homosexuality is a threat to that peculiar combination of male camaraderie and hierachy on which most organisations depend; sexual desire is too anarchic, too disrespectful of established boundaries to be trusted. † (Altman, D. p63) Unravelling their heterosexuality is not the most important thing men must do to support feminism however it is a legitimate part of this support for â€Å"it is the repressed recognition of this fact (that everyone can be homosexual) that does much to fuel homophobia, but equally acts so as to promote male bonding and certain crucial authority structures. † (Altman D. ,p XI) Radical Bisexuality and Racism. The construction of homosexuality as a â€Å"natural† difference from the heterosexual norm shares and competes for the same conceptual space as constructions of race as biological differences from the white norm. This is particularly true because the hetrosexual ideal is represented as white with the sexuality of non-whites traditionally seen as untamed, violent, promiscuous or otherwise deviant even if heterosexual. Non-whites are considered only ever partly heterosexual while white queers are considered not proper whites. The competition for the limited conceptual space has led to historical difficulites in linking white supremacy with heterosexism (exacerbated by white queer activists own racial interests) and in fact has unwittingly linked Gay Power with white power. â€Å"Homosexuality as a race† has developed into a gay and lesbian ethnicity. For whites under racism where their whiteness is considered the norm and thus unnamed, this ethnicity is their only ethnicity, the lesbian/gay â€Å"language† their only language, and lesbian/gay history their only history, to the point that it is not seen as a difference within whiteness but a difference from whiteness. (Blasingame, p52) While we (white queers) are unconscious of our whiteness queer cultural politics consequently becomes a way of colonising non-white cultures with a new white culture, white leaders and white history in a particularly insidious way. While not as powerful as heterosexual institutions for people wanting to be publicly non-heterosexual we have considerable power; in the framing of beauty along racist lines, in the support of white non-heterosexual bourgeoius or political leaders and in the very conceptualisation of sexuality. As one example Brenda Marie Blasingame in Bisexuality and Feminism speaks of a history of sexuality in U. S. black communities which did not include placing people in particular â€Å"boxes† and accepted the practice of bisexuality. A part of moving into the white gay and lesbian movement for her was the requirement to come out as a specific sexuality and accept the marginalisation of bisexuals. For many people who are not white taking up a gay or lesbian and to a different extent bisexual identity requires an abandonment of their own ethnic politcal identity or view. (Blasingame, pp. 51 – 53) The common conceptual space of non-heterosexual and non-white however can and should however produce queer anti-racism provided white queers realise that this conception of their sexuality is wrong. There is a shared interest in anti-racism and anti-heterosexism in critiqing normalcy and naturalness. As only one example the construction of beauty posits that naturally â€Å"Gentlemen prefer Blondes†. Not only is this sexist for reducing women to a hair colour (and the Blonde is meant to be read as a woman) but it is heterosexist and clearly as racist as â€Å"Gentlemen prefer whites† when Blonde is only a white persons natural hair colour. When we politicise our sexuality we can open up not only the arguments against heterosexual dominance but the arguments against the sexual sterotypes of non-whites including the framing of Asian men as â€Å"young girls† represented in this regrettable quote from the 70’s magazine Gay Power; â€Å"I dig beautiful oriental men. Asking me to shoot at them is the same thing as asking heterosexual soldiers to shoot at beautiful young girls that they would like to fuck. † (Teal, D. p99) Radical Bisexuality and Class. It is worth noting that capitalism which I understand as the continual oppression of the poor that patriarchy is for women is no longer wedded to heterosexuality in Western affluent nations as it has been in the past. This is because Western nations are primarily consumer societies of fairly easily produced goods (easily because their production is either located in the Third World or in the Quattro Monde – the world of the Western underclass or because their production is automated). Western capitalism can therefore relax the â€Å"restraint and repression† which was necessary to both control factory floors and ensure a ready supply of human capital through reproduction. (Altman D, p90) Part of this is also due to unemployment and global capital mobility being sufficient to obtain cheap labour and another contributing factor has been Western women raising their education so they are more useful in employment than at home. Also marriage was the institution by which women were given the role of providing a whole range of services capitalism wouldn’t such as aged care and child raising as well as supporting adult men. Now many of these services are provided by profitable private institutions so traditional marriages are actually in competition with capitalism. Of course the worlds poor can’t afford these services and Thirld World countries remain supportive of compulsory heterosexuality (Altman, D, p90) but in the Western consumer-capitalism there is a an interest to increase consumption through the market of previous services fulfilled by women’s unpaid labour. In order to perpetuate consumption growth capitalism must also locate new disatisfactions like teenage angst, at an alarming rate while also offering at a price their answer. In this context gay, lesbian and even bisexual identities as well as transgenderism, S+M and fetish celebrations are eagerly embraced by many industries as the basis for new markets. Our anxiety for recognition, meaning, ceremony and a positive celebration of our sexuality are easily exploitable. â€Å"†¦ one of the possible negative side-effects of the popularity of ‘lesbian chic’ was that it codes lesbianism as merely a kind of fashion statement, something that requires certain consumer goods to mark the individual as lesbian. † (Newitz & Sandell) Bisexuals have to be mindful that while we seek recognition, capitalism is looking for new markets and while these interests coincide this will only be true for those of us who can afford it and it will be on the backs of the world’s poor involved in the production of our new consumerables and bearing the greatest brunt of the waste from our new consumption. One positive way to resist becoming merely another market is by applying the awareness of the political nature of sexual desire to the desire for consumer goods and services. Both desires are constructed to serve particular interests and not fundamentally our own. Through working to ensure that all of our desire works for liberation we will resist commodification as we achieve recognition. Bisexuality and the Future To outline what I see as the goal of Radical Bisexuality I will illustrate two scenarios depicting false victories and one which I believe genuinely opens up the greatest possibility for liberation. Scenario 1. Recognition of bisexuality as a third alternative way that people unchangably are. To some extent as I have said earlier this can’t overcome the capacity of bisexuals to fit in as straight and thus can’t conceal the choice to embrace the homosexuality within the heterosexual that they represent. However there are arguments that could be presented that bisexuals have to express their same sex desire or become depressed (â€Å"go mad†). These arguments could form the basis of depoliticising and medicalising bisexuality as has been done with homosexuality. This may make bisexual lives easier to defend and add to the options for young people but relegates bisexuals to the same minority status as is currently given to gays and lesbians. Most people who admit to loving their own gender in straight society would face the same oppression bisexuals now face as â€Å"heterosexual experimenters† and recruitment of the majority would be difficult as they would remain â€Å"true† heterosexuals as unable to change as â€Å"true† bisexuals or gays and lesbians. Further it could also trade the oppression that is invisibility for bisexuals with the oppression that is hyper-visibility for straight men and women, and increasingly gays and lesbians. Having recognised sexuality’s repression but not it’s production we will be easily exploitable by capitalism and our liberation may mean as being as marketed to and ritutalised as heterosexuality. Scenario 2. Bisexuality is considered the only natural sexuality which equates it with the only right sexuality. Heterosexuality would be patholigised along with homosexuality as both are considered to have unnatural â€Å"blocks† to loving one or the other gender. This is Bisexual Supremacy which I acknowledge as a justification for gays and lesbians to distrust bisexuals. While it is unlikely to be widely accepted it is possible that it could dominate queer spaces as a pocket of resistance to heterosexual dominance in the same way as celebrations of gay and lesbian purity have. It is certainly more likely to be targetted at lesbians and gays than straights and while this is the fault of heterosexism’s power, not my own, it must be refuted. This is not to say that politicising sexuality will not require some gay men in particular to reassess their rhetoric. Mysoginistic comments which denegrate women’s bodies deserve political criticism and can’t be assured the right to be accepted. However the wider charge of institutionalising the sexual oppression of women and supporting male social bonding can’t be levelled at male homosexuality and certainly not at lesbianism. Indeed at certain points in the struggle against institutionalised oppression different sexual identifications and choices will be appropriate. Because bisexuality is as deliberate a sexuality choice as any other and not a submission to some biological imperative (and even if it were I reject the claim that naturalness equals rightness) we can’t claim an non-contextual ideal status. Its political usefulness is only that of any tactic relative both to the circumstances and to the person, meaning that for some and at some times other sexual choices and identifications are more appropriate. Bisexual supremacy also prioritises the effort to be bisexual over other efforts to unravel heterosexist, patriarchal and racist programming. I have already stressed the need for a variety of critiques of power to inform social change which Bisexual supremacy ignores. In particular men in relationships with women need to realise that doing their share of the housework is far more meaningful than maintaining or developing their capacity to love other men. Scenario 3. The Dream. Realising our sexualities are scripted will hopefully prompt redrafts along feminist, anti-racist and anti-capitalist lines. No-one should be the sole author of this project even with their own sexuality as we all need to listen to the perspectives our privelages rob us off. Certainly a part of this will be a dialogue between political lesbians, bisexuals and straight women which already has a history and whose future I don’t want to conclude. Consequently my dream is vague. What I don’t see in this future is the fetishisation of wealth, whiteness or gendered difference. Women in relationships with men will recieve support and encouragement as full humans. Advertisers will be incapable of capturing our consumption with snake oil as we demand economic production satisfy new needs that we create, for justice and community. Pleasure including sexual pleasure will mean enjoying our values not forgetting them. Bisexuality like other sexualities will have to argue it’s political legitimacy but not it’s existance. Sexual identifications such as â€Å"Confused† may replace bisexual for many if it is recognises more of their personal truth and political terms like Anti-racist may be key elements of sexual identification. Radical bisexuality wont end all struggles but the raw energy of sexuality will be accountable to and in the employ of the great project of improving the world . Bibliography Altman, Dennis, The Homosexualisation of America, The Americanization of the Homosexual, St. Martins Press, New York, 1982 Sedgewick, E. K. , â€Å"How to Bring Your Kids Up Gay†, pp. 69 – 81, Fear of a Queer Planet : Queer Politics and Social Theory, Warner,M. (Editor), University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, 1993 Segal, Lynne, Straight Sex: Rethinking the Politics of Pleasure, University of California Press, U. S. A. , 1994. Foucalt, Michel, The History of Sexuality, Volume 1:An Introduction, Allen Lane, London, 1978 Newitz, A. and J. Sandell,â€Å"Bisexuality And How To Use It: Toward a Coalitional Identity Politics†, Bad Subjects, Issue # 16, October 1994 Caprio, F. S. M. D. Female Homosexuality:A Psychodynamic study of Lesbianism, The Citadel Press, New York, 1954 Weinberg,M. S. , C. J. Williams, D. W. Pryor, Dual Attraction: Understanding Bisexuality, Oxford University Press, Inc. , New York, 1994 Blasingame, B. M. , â€Å"The Roots of Biphobia: Internalised Racism and Internalised Heterosexism† in Closer to Home: Bisexuality and Feminism, Edited by E. R. Wise, Seal Press, U. S. A. , 1992 Colonel R. D. Ray, Military Necessity and Homosexuality , reprinted in Gays:In or Out: The U. S. Military & Homosexuals – A Source book, Brassey’s, March 1993. Teal D. , The Gay Militants, Stein and Day Publishers, New York, 1971. Wittig, M. , The Straight Mind and Other Essays, Beacon Press. Boston, 1992 Descriptors for Sexual Minorities †¢ Front Page †¢ What is h2g2? †¢ Who’s Online †¢ Write an Entry †¢ Browse †¢ Announcements †¢ Feedback †¢ h2g2 Help †¢ RSS Feeds Contact Us Like this page? Send it to a friend! Descriptors for Sexual Minorities | Asexuality | Homosexuality Heterosexuality | Bisexuality | Polyamory | The Kinsey Scale | The Gender Pronoun Game | Coming Out Embarrassing Questions About Sexual Orientation | Going Back In – Sexuality U-turns Modern culture has developed a number of terms and symbols to set apart its sexual minorities. Some of these originated within the different communities themselves. Others evolved from scientists, psychologists, legislators, and newspaper reporters trying to describe their gay, bisexual, transsexual, and polyamorous subjects. Many include obscure references to history that go largely unrecognized. Words Lesbian The word lesbian comes from the Greek island Lesbos, where the poet Sappho lived in 600 BC. Sappho wrote numerous poems about her female love, most of which were destroyed by religious fanatics during the Middle Ages. While the first usage of the word lesbian is unknown, it was used in several academic books as early as 1880. The word became more popular during the 20th Century, especially during the feminist era. The term ‘lesbian separatist’ was commonly used to distinguish feminists who wished to avoid the company of men altogether. Fag, Faggot, Fag Hag ‘Fag’ and ‘faggot’ are American insults for gay men. The term ‘faggot’ first started being used in this way in around 1914, but it is not clear where the word came from. A faggot is a bundle of sticks, used for firewood and tied up for carrying around. In the 16th century it was used as an insulting term for a useless old woman as something that weighs you down, in the same way that ‘baggage’ is sometimes used nowadays. But it’s quite a jump from 1592 to 1914 with nothing recorded in between. Gay men in the latter half of the 20th Century began using the term ‘fag hag’ to refer to straight women who frequently gather at gay establishments, partly as an insult and partly because of the rhyme. Dyke Contrary to popular belief, the origin of the insult ‘dyke’1, in reference to lesbians, has nothing to do with waterways or canals. The word first appeared in 1710 in British newspaper stories about presumed homosexuals Anne Bonny and Mary Reed. The two women captained a very successful pirate venture and completed several lucrative raids of the British Empire before agreeing to be interviewed. Reporters often noted their predilection for wearing men’s clothing, and one editorial avoided the unpleasant connotations of cross dressing by using a French word which refers to men’s clothing, dike. Over the years, this term was corrupted to the modern form ‘dyke’. Since then, general misunderstanding about the term’s origins have inspired many stand-up comedy routines and bad puns. Polyamory, Polygamy, Monogamy The prefix ‘poly-‘ means many, while ‘mono’ means one. The suffix ‘gamy’ was originally from the French word for marriage, but has since been misunderstood as referring to sex. These terms refer to the number of consensual romantic partners taken by each adult in a family. Of course, the suffix ‘amory’ refers to love. Polyamory is a relatively new term coined by modern practitioners, and is greatly preferred by them. Polygamy and the now defunct term bigamy were coined as early as 1800, as the practice of multiple marriages was outlawed in most Western nations. The state of Utah in the USA applied for Statehood three times before finally accepting an injunction against the polygamy practised at that time by the Mormon church. Polygamy is commonly understood as referring to heterosexual relationships where the man has multiple partners. However, with modern polyamory any combination of genders and orientations fulfills the definition. It is not necessary for all parties in a polyamorous relationship to be involved each with the other. Gay During the 1800s and early 1900s, ‘gay’ was simply a state of jubilant happiness. However, during the late 1800s gay was sometimes used to describe prostitutes in much the same way that the phrase ‘happy hookers’ is used today. One theory is that gay came into use to describe homosexual men because of the rise in numbers of male prostitutes during the 1900s. Another theory is that ‘gay’ was

Unemployment Rate – Article Review

THE country's unemployment rate currently stands at 3. 1 per cent compared with the 3. 4 per cent last year, the Dewan Negara heard yesterday. Deputy Human Resources Minister Datuk Maznah Mazlan said the government was fully harnessing its workforce to keep the unemployment rate at four per cent and below. This was because according to international standards, this was considered full employment. â€Å"According to the Statistics Department, the percentage of unemployment last year was 3. 4 per cent or 387,9000 people. Of the total, 65,500 were graduates. â€Å"In the first quarter of this year, the unemployment percentage dropped to 3. per cent or 381,300. Of the number 71,600 were graduates,† she said responding to Senator Khoo Soo Seang. Maznah said the government had implemented measures to assist unemployed graduates. These included offering a short service scheme with government departments, opportunities for apprenticeship and internship, and the 1Malaysia Training Sch eme. Under the short service scheme, graduates who have not secured jobs in six months after completing their studies have the opportunity to intern at participating government linked companies for a year and receive an allowance of RM1,000 a month. Upon completion, the GLCs will assist in finding permanent positions for them. â€Å"The programmes are to enhance the graduates' marketability and provide exposure so that they do not have to rely on the government for employment but can start their own businesses,† she said. Article about During 2011 the employment rate decreases from 3. 4% to 3. 1% due to the government effort to control all the recourse and to maintain the unemployment rate under 4%. Based on the international standard the unemployment rate of 4% and below considered as full employment. Although the number of people that unemployed are decreasing but the number of unemployed graduates are increasing. Due to this situation, the government had executed measures to help graduates to get a job. The government offer a short service scheme which give a job opportunity to them besides giving them skills and internship. The allowance are also provided under the short service scheme. This will help to give the graduates exposure and encourage them to do their own business instead of relying on the government for the job. Analysis. Based on the article, we can conclude that the type of unemployment that we can see is frictional unemployment. This type of the unemployment occurs when people are in between jobs, entering and reentering the labor force. This may happen when fresh graduates are actively seeking for a job. The numbers of unemployed graduates increase by 9. 3% maybe due to the lack of soft skills and experience that most employers seek. The measure that the government took to control the unemployment is direct control measure, which is providing training and technical education and job creation in various sectors in an economy. The governments want to encourage the graduates to own a business because when there are more trade and transaction, the government revenue will increase. This will lead to economic growth and therefore can increase in GDP. The effects of decreasing the unemployment rate The first effect of decreasing unemployment rate is the incomes will increases. This will lead towards to more buying power and accelerating the inflation rate. Thus, this will effect to the distribution of income, the savings, production cost and balance of trade. The second effect of unemployment is new businesses will have a hard time succeeding, because everyone is already employed, who is going to work for them? New businesses will have to raise wages to entice people to work there which again raises wages and lowers profits to a point where it makes no sense to even start the business. Great levels of unemployment are around 3-5%. The pros and cons of decreasing unemployment rate The pro of decreasing unemployment rate is increase of income and self-respect. Secondly, increase the job skills. Thirdly, decrease social and political problems. Fourthly, the GNP gap becomes narrower because the GNP gap will almost towards to potential GNP. The contras of decreasing unemployment rate are inflation will occur and the new business will have hard time to survive. The effect of decreasing rate of unemployment towards society The first effect is employment may bring a increase in social outings and interactions with other people, including friends. Secondly, employment the competition for jobs and the negotiation power of the individual increases and thus also the living standard of people with the salaries packages and income higher. Thirdly, employment also brings up calm and steadiness amongst the tax paying citizens. For the fresh graduate employees, they will not face burden to settle their loans. Recommendation or solution The first solution is, government can use progressive tax rate depends on the number of employees and use the current Malaysia Corporate Tax. If we use this method, the company in Malaysia will hire more employees in order to decrease the corporate tax and lead to the zero unemployment rates. The second solution is government can open up Malaysian mind to new kind of industry that can make the Earth as better place in the future. For example, this legislation would create an estimated 3 million new jobs by opening closed areas of the Outer Continental Shelf which is between Malaysia and Brunei for oil and gas exploration, and streamlining the licensing of nuclear power plants. This also would create royalty revenues for the government that the bill directs to a new trust fund that can promote renewable energy.

Unit 20 Causes and Spread of Infection Hsc3045 Health and Social Care Level 3 Diploma

Unit 20 Causes and Spread of Infection 1. 1 See worksheet. 1. 2 Identify common illnesses and infections caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. Bacteria – sore throat, tuberculosis, bubonic plague, whooping cough, anthrax. Viruses – flu, AIDS, HIV, hepatitis b, common cold, Fungi – thrush, ringworm, anthrax, madurella mycetoma, athlete's foot. Parasites – worms, malaria, sleeping sickness, river blindness, elephantiasis, katamaya fever, body / head lice, amoebiasis. 1. 3 Describe what is meant by infection and colonisation.Infections happen when the body is invaded with micro-organisms like bacteria, viruses and parasites that are not normally inside the body Colonisation is the development of a bacterial infection on/in an individual, the individual becomes a carrier of the infection but may have no signs or symptoms of illness, although they do have the potential to infect others. 1. 4 Explain what is meant by systemic infection and localised infection. Systemic infections affect the whole body – Flu / HIV, while localised infections are limited to one area of the body – ear / eye infection. . 5 Identify poor practices that may lead to the spread of infection. Poor personal hygiene, incorrect disposal of rubbish / waste / chemicals, not washing hands, not wearing PPE, not storing or cooking foods properly, not cleaning your surroundings, not covering your nose or mouth when sneezing or coughing, sharing towels, tooth/hair brushes, not following policies or reporting outbreaks / episodes of disease, direct contact with bodily fluids and waste. 2. 1 Explain the conditions needed for the growth of micro-organisms. The main requirements for the growth of micro-organisms are time and moisture, some need oxygen and warmth, (although micro-organisms can live without air and live in temperatures from 0 to 40 + degrees). 2. 2 Explain the ways an infective agent might enter the body.Mouth, ears, nose, cuts, wounds, e yes, urinary tract, anus, mixing of bodily fluids, needle users, placenta route, unhygienic conditions in piercing / tattoo / body modification environments, blood transfusions, having an operation / plastic surgery / facial injections. 2. 3 Identify common sources of infection. People, animals, food, insects, objects, unclean home / public environments. 2. 4 Explain how infective agents can be transmitted to a person.Skin to skin contact, food / air / water borne, direct contact with bodily waste / vomit and fluids, mixing of bodily fluids, saliva, bitten by insect or animal. 2. 5 Identify the key factors that will make it more likely that infection will occur. Unclean living conditions, the elderly, toddlers, teenagers, poverty, those with illnesses or cancers, unprotected sexual intercourse, weakened immune systems, poor personal hygiene, those who have direct contact with an infected person, poor food preparation / storage practices, contaminated objects.

Explain the four major cultural dimensions identified by hofsted Research Paper

Explain the four major cultural dimensions identified by hofsted - Research Paper Example The four dimensions will be focused upon with respect to USA and other three countries from Europe, Asia and Latin America. Determining a culture of any given country is essential for any business. International business depends upon cultures of different countries in designing their policies; barriers within these cultures are worked upon in an effort to formulate a harmonized culture. In profiling countries based on Hofstede’s cultural dimension, the research will focus on data and indexes provide for in the Hofstede Centre website. Each country will be profiled based on given scores. The score will be done on three countries. These countries are the USA, Mexico, Japan and Germany. The scores will be used to identify suitable environments for setting up a business. The barriers from the chosen country will be focused upon thus allowing an analysis of these barriers and identifying models that will overcome the barriers. The four countries where identified due to their uniqueness in terms of geographical location, government policies and cultural differences. Recommendations will be made based on the suitable country to set up a business (The Hofstede Centre, 2010). The United States of America has a higher score in individualism compared to other cultural dimensions. Individualism had a score of 91, power distance had a score of 40, and masculinity scored 62 while Uncertainty avoidance scored 46. In the case of Mexico, uncertainty avoidance scored highly compared to other dimensions. Individualism scored lowly compared to the three dimensions (The Hofstede Centre, 2010). The scores for this country where; individualism at 30, masculinity at 69, uncertainty avoidance at 82 while Power distance at 81. Japan on the other hand had a high score on Masculinity at 95 and a lower score of 46 on individualism. Power Distance scored an average score of 54 while Uncertainty had an averagely high score of 92. In Germany,

Health Administration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Health Administration - Essay Example After letting go the old habit the change stage comes in, people are then thought to embrace the new habit in their behavior. Finally, when change has taken place freeze stage can be achieved easily as it involves making the change a new habit. For change process to be successful one must understand the reason why change should happen, a motivating factor should be there for it to be realized. Change begins from the unfreezing stage, acceptance to change is very necessary. According to Marquis (157) this stage requires that individuals prepare mentally to receive the new habit and let go the old. We have to feel that there is a need for change so as to embrace change easily. This is usually the most difficult stage to achieve. When individuals get used to a certain way of doing things, it usually is very hard to make them change and embrace a new way of doing the same thing (Marquis 158). People tend to question the importance or relevance of the new

Critically Evaluate Project Plan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Critically Evaluate Project Plan - Essay Example The main difference between leadership and management is how they motivate people as managers motivate their subordinates through communicating while leaders persuade their followers to remain committed to the shared vision (Northouse 2010). The managers react to changes in the built environment while leaders create change. Accordingly, managers exercise their control and power while leaders develop power within their people (Alizor 2011). The managers will try to maintain status quo through organizing and directing project tasks while leaders set new directions and perspectives that challenge the existing status quo in housing projects (Lussier and Achua 2010). Autocratic leadership style involves making decisions without consulting the subordinates and project managers often use this leadership style in emergency situations. Autocratic leadership may lead to team hostility and high dependence on the leader thus it is ineffective in the delegation of tasks (Burke and Barron 2014). Harrell (2008) outlines that the approach requires close supervision, but it is appropriate in making faster decisions. Transactional leadership style will involve the use of formal job descriptions, authority and formal job output expectations to implement a dwelling project. The approach to leadership leads to less job satisfaction. Laissez-faire leadership style is a hands-off approach to leadership whereby the leader provides the required resources and tools for the successful completion of the dwelling project (Lussier and Achua 2010). The subordinates are free to make their own decisions and it is effective when the subordinates are highly experienced and mo tivated. The approach is not ideal where the team members have not prior experience in executing successful dwelling projects.

The Concept of Ethical Obligations Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Concept of Ethical Obligations - Case Study Example Bush. He is considered to have an exemplary public administration and leadership skills that had been both his strengths and his weaknesses (White, 2008, p. 420). Tenet’s career can be considered unprecedented due to his achievements but there are challenges and dilemmas he had to face when he became the director of Central Intelligence (DCI). There are factors then considered to be the main reasons why in the end his efforts failed. These factors also caused ethical dilemmas on his part. The first dilemma is setting his leadership priorities and holding a highly multitasking position as DCI. Due to the fact that a DCI holds numerous roles, he had to answer to different groups and stake holders. The DCI’s role includes manager of CIA, president’s principal intelligence advisor, and the head of the entire intelligence community of 15 agencies. Tenet’s job is highly complex that even an expert would find it very challenging (White, 2008, p. 421). In his case though, the role is difficult because he is considered as an outsider in the institution. Tenet’s leadership can be considered handicapped due to his lack of experience in different expertise required in the role because â€Å"he had never run for political office, managed a large organization, worked as an intelligence officer, shaped American foreign policy, earned academic credentials by authoring a scholarly publication, or served in the military† (quoted White, 2008, p. 421). His perspective is different from the perspectives of the DIC before him which resulted to a more diplomatic type of leadership. The second dilemma he had to face is related to the prioritization of his ethical concerns. Due to the numerous agencies and institutions with different missions, visions and priorities he has to answer to such as the decision making process in White House, CIA’s intelligence priorities and his own conscience. At different points in

To kill a mockingbird Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

To kill a mockingbird - Essay Example Whether well-meaning or ill intentioned the town’s journey spanning three years reveals both optimistic and pessimistic sides of human behavior, and teaches that you must look within yourself – not to your neighbors - to decide what is right and wrong. Set in the Bible belt southern state of Alabama in the 1930’s, To Kill a Mockingbird focuses on the town of Maycomb and the racial tension of a lawyer defending a black man accused of raping a white woman. Though everyone knows the black man, Tom Robinson, is innocent, times have not progressed sufficiently that a white woman would be proven to be a liar over the word of a black man. Several townspeople know that this thinking is wrong, but only one white person openly flaunts his beliefs that blacks should be treated no different than white folks. This man is Mr. Dolphus Raymond. Scorned by whites for living with a black woman and producing mixed children, Mr. Raymond doesn’t have an easy time of it with the black population, either. He is, however, one of the few people who live what they believe in and try to set an example for others who might change the ways of the future. Despite his preference for the company of Negroes, Mr. Raymond is respectful of the inabilit y of the white people to comprehend his way of life and therefore pretends to be a drunk. As he explains to Jem, Dill and Scout one day when they discover his secret, â€Å"It helps folks if they can latch onto a reason. When I come to town†¦ folks can cay Dolphus Raymond’s in the clutches of whiskey – that’s why he won’t change his ways† (p. 204). It is a unspoken (and mostly unknown) compromise that allows the town folk to pity him instead of hating him. Another contribution to the story is that of ignorance and how it can be used to shame others or to learn to â€Å"put yourself in their shoes† as Atticus suggests several times throughout the novel. One example of this ignorance is the plight of Miss Caroline

Assimilation, pluralism, and multiculturalism models, and include Essay

Assimilation, pluralism, and multiculturalism models, and include their historical timelines - Essay Example In this instance, the groups maintain their elements of their identities such as their culture, language and their other form of cultural practices or the traditions. Pluralists in this instance, believe that they can only allow intermingling of their culture with the modern aspects of life. Such aspects include education, music, art, history, cuisine and other relevant aspects of life (Suarez-Orozco, Suarez-Orozco, & Qin-Hillard, 2010). It refers to the evolution of the diversity of culture within a given limit that took place in the past. The evolution of the culture was under the influence of the selection, institution, and the settlement policies. It entails the conjunction of two or more groups due to the demographic features that surround them. The Hispanics regarded themselves as not the same as the Americans’ while some of them could speak both English and Spanish could not fully assimilate into the American culture. Hispanics were also more liberal and conservative in comparisons to the Americans decided not get assimilated into the American culture (GarciÃÅ', 2005). The relationship between these people and the natives was very worse. It was not possible for them to socialize with the natives since there was a lot of racial discrimination regarding their skin culture. Almost in all sectors in the United States, these people never interacted with the natives or the real American citizens by birth. As such, they ended up, not getting assimilated into American culture (Suarez-Orozco, Suarez-Orozco, & Qin-Hillard, 2010). The wave of the assimilation that was to occur for the Native Americans was to undergo the assimilation that involves the acceptance of the foreign culture from the Europeans. The foreigners were at those times majorly the colonialists in the country. Europe agitated for a standard form of education system all over the world, but the Americans believed that theirs was more superior and decided to follow

Short Essays Essay Example for Free

Short Essays Essay Ans. 5: If the stars move across the sky in circles centered directly overhead, the loacation of the observer would either be north pole or the south pole. This could be the location because the earth moves around the axes. This can be exaplained by looking at the following justification: Anyone who would be looking at the sky, would be always standing at the top of the earth. Therefore, the objectcs present at the celestial sphere which are classified relative to the ground willl occur at the same point of the sphere. In order to locate a person, we can mark the horizon diagonally to the mid of the celestial sphere, in such a way that the centre of the earth and the slestial sphere are identical. The observer’s view of the sky doesn’t matter, whether the sky’s view of the observer is the cut off position that is spotted by the horizon therfore the horizon is always kept perfect. The next points for reference would be the North Celestial Pole and the South Celestial Pole. If the person is standing at the equator, the pole would be horizontal through the Earth. If the observer is located at one of the poles, then these poles would go from the earth vertically. The north and the south celestial pole would be marked at the intersections. These intersections would be the result of exrtending the earth’s pole out to the celestial sphere. If we are at the southern hemisphere, the south celestial pole would be below the horizon, which makes it to be on the opposite side of the celestial sphere and for northern hemisphere, this situation is inverted. Ans. 9: Ptolemaic Model: The Ptolemaic model describes the obvious movement of the planets in a very direct and a straight way. this apporach is achieved by supposing that each planet of the solar system moves on a small and tiny sphere or circle. This circle is better known as epicycle. This epicycle moved on a larger sphere or circle. This larger sphere is called as a deferent. It was assumed, that the stars move on a celestial sphere around the outside of the planetary spheres. Copernican Model: Copernican Model is better known as the sun centred solar system. This model explained that the true movement of the planets is not in a uniform circular motion, around. Due to this reason, the Copernican model would still need to have those small nad tiny circles on which the planets move, called the epicycles. The main feature of the Copernican model that differs this model from the ptolemaic model was the retrograde loops. These loops of the planets, the way they are seen from the Earth, arise physically as a result of the plantes motion altogether combined with the Earth’s motion. The Ptolemaic model was considered wrong because it was not precise and as the time passed by the predictiopn in the model proved to be worse and worse. Although this model was very good to predict the position of the planets. Rather than having larger epicycles, earth moving around the sun could also explain the retrograde motions of the planets. Ans. 10: The ptolemaic model accounts better for variations in the brightnesses of the various planets with time. The ptolemaic model contains Epicycles. These epicylces are tiny circles on which the planets move. The epicycles were establish to clarify variations in brightness of the planets as compared to the eccentrics. Eccentric circles are the circular paths that are intended to be seen from some internal point moved from the centre of the circle. These circles allow better estimations of the celestial movements. The copernican model doesnot account for the brightness issue because the Planets in the solar system closer to the Sun tend to moved faster rather than the planets which are further away from the sun. This way, at times a planet could be on the similar side of the sun as the earth and this could make them appear brighter and on the other hand, a planet that could be on the opposite side of the sun from the earth will tend to appear dimmer because it was far away. Therefore the ptolemaic model tends to take care the issue of brightness of the planets as it has different circles for all the planets to revolve around. This makes each planet to appear brighter individually. Ans. 15: High tides are the result of the difference between the gravitational pull of the Moon on the either side of the Earth. The Tidal forces gradually slow down the rotation of the Earth. These Tidal forces slowly increase the dimensions of the orbit of the Moon. The level of the sea rises atleast twice a day. This level is divded into 2 parts. When the sea reaches the highest level, it is said to be high tide. The sea is said to be at low tide when it is at its lowest level or somewhere in between the midway to the highest level. the tides of the earth are defined as the deformation of the ocean and also of the Earth. A gravitational pull is exterted by the moon toward the earth. This is done when the moon is pulled on by the earth. As you get away from the moon, the gravitational force applied by the moon or any other object decreases gradually. Theorotically the pull by the moon on the near by side of the earth is about 7% greater. Therefore it can be said that the difference between the earth’s turn in its axis and the high tide is a result of the gravitational pull by the moon. References: Wikibooks (2008). Astronomy. Retrieved September 7, 2008, from http://en. wikibooks. org/wiki/Astronomy

Buckling Experiments Laboratory Report

Buckling Experiments Laboratory Report BUCKLING EXPERIMENT The experiment entails subjecting loads to a strut along its centroidal axis. The effects of length, shape, material and fixing conditions on buckling were observed. An analysis was then done basing on the results obtained and graphs drawn to establish various relationships measured and calculated. The buckling load was also determined theoretically for all the struts basing on the geometry and material properties. This was then compared to those found experimentally. Buckling is an instability of a material when subjected to loading which eventually leads to failure. It is characterized by sudden sideways deflection of the structural member. When load is applied on a material, it will become large causing it to become unstable and consequently causing change in shape and this can be said to have buckled. This can happen even when the stress subjected on the material is below that needed to cause failure. Bending and buckling can cause change in shape but the difference comes in the method of applying the load. For the bending case, the load is applied perpendicular to the centroidal axis while in buckling, the load is applied axially causing compressive stress and eventual sideways failure. This feature can be measured as the buckling load. Materials having different properties have different buckling loads which is a function of the length of the column and the second moment of area of its cross section. Buckling loads can be determined experimentally or by way of a prediction without actually loading the material to critical load. Southwell plot is a chart of used to experimentally determine the critical load of a structure without subjecting it to its critical load. It is a non-destructive testing method for buckling. Southwell plot is a graphical representation of deflection(y) against deflection by load applied(y/L). This should in return show a linear relationship and a slight curvature at low values of deflection. Further analysis can be done to obtain buckling load. Critical loads can thus be obtained without actually buckling the load itself reducing risk of damaging the strut. The intercept represents the total eccentricity of the strut which is the eccentricity within the equipment and the strut together with the imposed eccentricity. To compare the theoretical and experimental buckling loads of struts in order to test the theory and show its limits. To show how to use the Southwell plot to find the buckling load and eccentricity of a strut. The potential hazards was assessed and it was observed to be majorly from the experiment   handling of the strut in loading and unloading. This has a potential harm to the colleagues and the staff in the laboratory. This hazard was considered by performing the experiment heavily. Plastic inserts were also used to reduce the adverse possible reaction of the strut on loading. The load was applied slowly with full concentration on the reaction of the material under loading so as not to exceed the buckling limits. The strut was also released by unloading swiftly. Experiment 1 The Load Display was connected and switched on. It was then given some few minutes for the display and the load cell to warm up. The load measuring end was tapped to remove any effects of friction and the display zeroed. The digital calipers was then used to obtain the dimensions of the 750 mm steel strut and its second moment of area calculated. The strut was then fit into the rig with the pinned ends condition. Plastic inserts were then inserted in the channels adjacent to the center of the strut such that when load was applied the strut would not come into contact with the inserts. The large hand wheel was used to load the strut slowly. As the wheel was turning, the load reading and the deflection of the strut was observed heavily. The plastic insert was used to ensure that the strut does not buckle further than 15mm.The peak load on the display was recorded and the hand wheel turned to release the load. This is the reading for buckling on its natural direction. A light load was then applied and gently pushed on the center to force it to buckle in the opposite direction. The load was then increased until the strut buckled end the peak load recorded. The load was then released. The mean of the two buckling loads was thereafter calculated. The procedure was repeated for the other steel struts No 2 to No 6. And for one strut made from a different material and the other shape. For strut No 4, the experiment was repeated with a fixed to pinned end condition and strut No 3 with fixed to fixed end conditions. The curve of length against average experimental buckling load was plotted for steel struts 1 6. Theoretical buckling load was then calculated for each length and then plotted on the graph. Comments on the effect of length, end conditions, material and 2nd moment of area on the buckling loads were then made. Experiment 2 The Load Display was connected and switched on. It was then given some few minutes for the display and the load cell to warm up. The load measuring end was tapped to remove any effects of friction and the display zeroed. The 750 mm steel strut was obtained. The strut was then fixed on the pinned ends condition. The deflection gauge was then fitted at the midspan of the strut while ensuring that there is 15mm of travel in the natural buckling direction. The strut was then tested in the natural buckling direction while recording the load at deflection intervals of 0.5mm. The table of results was then filled. The Eccentric End fittings were then fitted to strut number 2 with both fittings set to give the smallest eccentricity (5mm) Strut number 2 was fitted and the position of the deflection indicator adjusted to allow for the offset. The test was then repeated with the same strut. The end fittings at both ends of the strut were reversed to give larger eccentricity. The indicator was adjusted and the test repeated. A chart was then created showing load on the vertical axis against deflection on the horizontal axis. The results from each strut was added to the chart. A chart for a Southwell plot was created, deflection (y) against (y/P) where P is the load. The results from each strut was then added to this chart and further analysis done RESULTS AND CALCULATIONS Experiment 1 Theoretical buckling load (N) 174.70 240.40 306.10 280.52 397.56 339.33 332.99 826.75 304.39 359.29 Average Peak buckling load(N) 189.5 198 236 257 286.5 327 283 279 559 1068 Peak buckling load 2(N) 212 204 251 251 288 334 294 292 579 1187 Peak buckling load 1(N) 167 192 221 263 285 320 272 266 539 949 Strut Details 2nd Moment of area 48.103 57.649 63.311 53.636 70.055 50.244 180.746 170.974 53.636 63.311 d 3.11 3.20 3.41 3.23 3.54 3.15 4.84 6.46 3.23 3.41 b 19.19 19.25 19.16 19.10 19.44 19.39 19.13 _ 19.10 19.16 K value 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0.7 0.5 Fixing conditions P-P P-P P-P P-P P-P P-P P-P P-P P-F F-F Youngs modulus (N/mm2) 207000 207000 207000 207000 207000 207000 105000 207000 207000 207000 Material Steel Steel Steel Steel Steel Steel Brass Steel Steel Steel Shape Rect Rect Rect Rect Rect Rect Rect Round Rect Rect Working length 750 700 650 625 600 550 750 650 600 600 Strut no 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 J 4 3 Experiment 2 Deflection (mm) Eccentricity=0 Eccentricity=5mm Eccentricity=7.5mm Load (N) Defl/Ave Load Load (N) Defl/Ave Load Load (N) Defl/Ave Load 0 0 _ 0 _ 0 _ 0.5 50 0.0100 21 0.0238 8 0.0625 1 74 0.0135 27 0.0370 17 0.0588 1.5 95 0.0158 40 0.0375 24 0.0625 2 108 0.0185 48 0.0417 30 0.0667 2.5 116 0.0216 55 0.0455 35 0.0714 3 125 0.0240 53 0.0566 40 0.0750 3.5 131 0.0267 66 0.0530 45 0.0778 4 135 0.0296 71 0.0563 49 0.0816 4.5 139 0.0324 75 0.0600 54 0.0833 5 141 0.0355 81 0.0617 58 0.0862 5.5 144 0.0382 82 0.0671 59 0.0932 6 147 0.0408 88 0.0682 65 0.0923 6.5 149 0.0436 90 0.0722 69 0.0942 7 150 0.0467 92 0.0761 72 0.0972 7.5 152 0.0493 96 0.0781 73 0.1027 8 153 0.0523 97 0.0825 77 0.1039 8.5 154 0.0552 98 0.0867 80 0.1063 9 156 0.0577 103 0.0874 82 0.1098 9.5 157 0.0605 107 0.0888 84 0.1131 10 158 0.0633 107 0.0935 86 0.1163 10.5 159 0.0660 112 0.0938 89 0.1180 11 160 0.0688 113 0.0973 91 0.1209 11.5 160 0.0719 115 0.1000 93 0.1237 12 161 0.0745 117 0.1026 94 0.1277 12.5 161 0.0776 119 0.1050 96 0.1302 13 162 0.0802 120 0.1083 98 0.1327 13.5 162 0.0833 122 0.1107 100 0.1350 14 163 0.0859 123 0.1138 101 0.1386 14.5 163 0.0890 124 0.1169 103 0.1408 15 164 0.0915 125 0.1200 104 0.1442 Moment of inertia (I) of a circle and rectangle were obtained using the formula; DISCUSSION Below is the graph of working length against buckling load for the first experiment. It is observed that as the working length was increasing, the buckling load was decreasing. For the second experiment, A graph drawn for load against deflection shows a nonlinear relationship between the load applied and the deflection of the beam.   The second graph is of deflection(y) against (y/P) where P is the load. This is the Southwell plot for the beam used. A line of best fit drawn in the Southwell Plot indicates that the points obtained are having an almost linear relationship except at low values of deflection which has a small curvature. The slopes of the graphs, Euler buckling load, were obtained for different eccentricities together with the points of intersection with the y axis which indicates the eccentricity of loading. This represents the imperfection of the strut and the equipment used plus the imposed eccentricity. Southwell plot results Eccentricity (mm) Gradient y-intercept 0 178.18 -1.301 5 164.32 -5.0783 7.5 170.12 -9.6389 Southwell plot; The experiment was a success as the strut was subjected to different loads to determine the buckling load. The effect of material, length of the specimen, shape and fixing conditions were observed. Different graphs were drawn from the results obtained which enhanced further analysis. The Southwell graph was also drawn which was used to obtain eccentricity values and the struts theoretical/Euler buckling load. Wang, C.M., Zhang, Y.Y., Ramesh, S.S. and Kitipornchai, S., 2006. Buckling analysis of micro-and nano-rods/tubes based on nonlocal Timoshenko beam theory. Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 39(17), p.3904. Akgà ¶z, B. and Civalek, -., 2011. Strain gradient elasticity and modified couple stress models for buckling analysis of axially loaded micro-scaled beams. International Journal of Engineering Science, 49(11), pp.1268-1280. Roorda, J., 1967. Some thoughts on the Southwell plot. Journal of the Engineering Mechanics Division, 93(6), pp.37-48. Mandal, P. and Calladine, C.R., 2002. Lateral-torsional buckling of beams and the Southwell plot. International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, 44(12), pp.2557-2571. Singer, J., 1989. On the applicability of the Southwell plot to plastic buckling. Experimental Mechanics, 29(2), pp.205-208. Cowper, G.R., 1966, June. The shear coefficient in Timoshenkos beam theory. ASME.

Basic Strategies Used To Respond To Uncertainty Management Essay

Basic Strategies Used To Respond To Uncertainty Management Essay Nestle is the worlds leading nutrition, health, wellness company. The headquarter of Nestle company is located in Vevey, Switzerland. That is in 1866, there was a first European condensed milk factory opened in Cham, Switzerland. The name of the company is Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company which established by brothers George Page and Chatles Page. After that year, the founder of Nestlà ©, Henri Nestle, a German pharmacist, developed a combination of cows milk, wheat flour and sugar, which name as Farine Lactee. The launched of Farine Lactee had become the largest competitor of Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company. In 1905, Nestlà © merged with Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company after a couple of decades as fierce competitors to form the Nestlà © and Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company. In 1929, the chocolate company Peter, Cailler , Kohler Chocolats Suisses S.A. joined Nestlà ©. And in 1947, Nestlà © change its name to Nestlà © Alimentana S.A after merged with Maggi, a well-known manufacturer of seasonings and soups. In 1974, Nestlà © for the first time diversified outside the food industry and they become a major shareholder in LOreal, one of the worlds leading maker of cosmetic products. And then finally, the last name change that the company would endure was in 1977, where it adopted the name Nestlà © S.A. The first product that launched by Nestlà © is Farine Lactee Nestlà ©, a combination of cows milk, wheat flour and sugar. Farine Lactee was launched by Henri Nestle in 1867 and it was supported by the public. After that, Nestlà © also launched Milo in 1934. Milo is a chocolate and malt powder which is mixed with hot or cold water to produce a beverage and it is developed by Thomas Mayne in Sdyney, Australia. After the launched of Milo, another product launched by Nestlà © that famous among the world which is Nescafe. Nescafe is a powdered coffee that was introduced in Switzerland on April 1, 1938 after being developed for seven or eight years by Max Morgenthaler and Vernon Chapman. Another product that pull Nestlà © toward success is Nestlà © Pure Life, a bottled mineral water that launched in 1998. The smart strategy of Nestlà © had bring them toward the road of success. In 2012, Nestlà © has around 8,000 brands on the market included coffee, bottled water, milkshakes and other beverages, breakfast cereals, infant foods, performance and healthcare nutrition, seasonings, soups and sauces, frozen and refrigerated foods, and pet food. Organizational chart Planning and Strategic Management Basic strategies used to respond to uncertainty Nestlà © is a company that mainly act as a prospector while responding to uncertainty. Prospectors focus on developing new products or services and in seeking out new markets, rather than waiting for things to happen. Nestlà © had create many brands and many different types of products to satisfy consumers needs and wants. The table below showed the list of product of Nestlà ©. Types of Products Brand Baby foods Cerelac, Gerber, Gerber Graduates, NaturNes, Nestum Bottled water Nestlà © Pure Life, Perrier, Poland Spring, S.Pellegrino Cereals Chocapic, Cini Minis, Cookie Crisp, Estrelitas, Fitness, Nesquik Cereal Chocolate confectionery Aero, Butterfinger, Cailler, Crunch, Kit Kat, Orion, Smarties, Wonka Coffee Nescafà ©, Nescafà © 3 in 1, Nescafà © Cappuccino, Nescafà © Classic, Nescafà © Decaff, Nescafà © Dolce Gusto, Nescafà © Gold, Nespresso Culinary, chilled and frozen food Buitoni, Herta, Hot Pockets, Lean Cuisine, Maggi, Stouffers, Thomy Dairy Carnation, Coffee-Mate, La Laitià ¨re, Nido Drinks Juicy Juice, Milo, Nesquik, Nestea Food service Chef, Chef-Mate, Maggi, Milo, Minors, Nescafà ©, Nestea, Sjora, Lean Cuisine, Stouffers Healthcare nutrition Boost, Nutren Junior, Peptamen, Resource Ice cream Dreyers, Extrà ªme, Hà ¤agen-Dazs, Mà ¶venpick, Nestlà © Ice Cream Petcare Alpo, Bakers Complete, Beneful, Cat Chow, Chef Michaels Canine Creations, Dog Chow, Fancy Feast, Felix, Friskies, Gourmet, Purina, Purina ONE, Pro Plan Sports Nutrition PowerBar Weight management Jenny Craig In the effort of seeking out new markets, Nestlà © had employed around 330 000 people in over 150 countries and have 461 factories or operations in 83 countries. Nestlà © also becomes one of the sponsors in many events. For example, on 27 January 2012, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) announced that Nestlà © will be the main sponsor for the further development of IAAFs Kids Athletics Program for the consecutive of 5 years starting from January 2012. This is one of the biggest grassroots development programs in the world of sports. In the year 2012, Nestlà © expect that it will be a challenging year as they will face many uncertainties in the global economy and. However, as a prospector, the company had made specific plans to overcome the uncertainties. They believe that they have good fundamentals and will be able to diversify the global uncertainties. Nestlà © aim to continue the innovation and renovation of their products as long as launching further promotion of nutritional diets and healthy lifestyles Nestlà © will remain vigilant and will take all necessary method to soften any impact on their business due to the volatile commodity prices that were expected to continue in 2012. Besides that, Nestlà © Company can also be considering as an analyzer. Analyzers let other organizations take the risks of product development and marketing and then imitate or perhaps slightly improve on what seems to work best. For example, Nestlà © was Gail Bordens most successful imitators in the production of milk. Nestlà © imitate and make changes based on the condensed milk manufactured by Bordens first canned milk factory. Nestlà © invented a powdered milk food that primarily composed of cows milk and then mixed with water. By 1868, this product was being sold in Switzerland, Germany, France and England. After five year, the product was available throughout Europe. Eventually, Pet Milk and Carnation Milk were produced and sold in United States. In the 21th century, humans wants are unlimited. Therefore, Nestlà © create new brands on the products that already exist in the market and are needed for the consumers to widen their choice. Mission and Vision Nestlà ©s mission is to provide consumers with safe and convenient high quality food products so that people can live a better life. They are friendly, caring and efficient organization and they believe that research can help them make better food so that they can provide selections for all individual taste and lifestyle preferences. We should responsible we role, that means we need to responsive to the social, environmental, economic and cultural aspirations of people anytime, whilst ensuring our shareholders a reasonable return on their investment. Our staff can succeed job satisfaction, self-development and their reasonable targets because Nestlà © are seen as a perfect place of employment with good working conditions and benefits, with an internal environment. Nestlà ©s vision is to providing customers with high quality products and services with added value at competitive prices, simultaneously ensuring the long term viability and profitability of the organization. We have to continue to struggle to get the recognition and satisfy the trust our customers and business partners place in us. Our ambition As the leading Nutrition, Health and Wellness Company we enhance lives by offering tastier and healthier food and beverage choices at all stages of life and at any time of the day, helping consumers care for themselves and their families. This is the foundation of our promise of Good Food, Good Life and puts nutrition at the heart of everything we do.It is our firm belief that, for a company to be successful over time and create value for its shareholders, it must also create value for society. We call this Creating Shared Value. Built on strong foundations of compliance and sustainable business practices, this is our way to do business and to be the trusted leader in Nutrition, Health and Wellness. SWOT analysis Grand Strategy Grand strategy is a systematic, comprehensive, long-term plan of all the company use to achieve their goals. Market, product, and organization development is the main element of this strategy. There are three types of strategy such as Growth strategies, Stability Strategy and Defensive Strategy. Growth strategy involves the expansion of a company. Stability strategy is a strategy there are no-change strategy or little change strategy. Defensive strategy is a control to reduce the probability of loss. Nestlà © is a company that apply growth strategy. Nestlà © started the business in the year of 1866 with a first European condensed milk factory and today becomes the worlds biggest food producer. The product of Nestlà © such as Milk, Beverages, Coffee, Ice-cream, Confectionery Chocolate, Junior Food and other, has make a sales of CHF 44.1 billion in 2012 from 74,660 million at 1999. There net profit increase from 8% to 9.5billion Swiss francs ($10.35 billion) that show at9 August 2012. In 2003,Nestlà © got around 328,000 people that are Nestlà ©s staff in 70 countries and have many operations or factories in the world compare to the old figure of employee in 1998 299,800 people. Besides that, Nestlà © is increasing the size of their company year by year. One of the strategies is give different promotion on day. They give a discount for customer by using coupons. For example, Nestlà © Toll House Birthday Sugar Cookies can save 55$ if we print out the coupons to buy. In addition, Nestlà © also provide the samples food for customer in a promotion time, for instance, Maggi MeeGorengget the FREE Samples of the Delicious in 2nd  July 2012 to 2nd  August 2012. These was the successful strategy of Nestlà © in now a day. Nestlà © begin the business at 1866 with the combination of cows milk, wheat flour and sugar. After 1 year, infant cereal developed for a whole new world to babies. Next, the launch of Milo, Nescafe, Nestea, Nestlà © Pure Life, and Power Bar are launches at the years after 1929. Although these are many product launches, they merger with another company as an example Maggi and Ursina-Franck. Nestlà © did the high risky of investment in the follow year such as joint venture with LOreal, General Mills, Coca-Cola and Fonterra. In conclusion, Nestlà © was trying their best at the sales of product. It has a smart plan for the uncertainly. Growth strategy will give the increasing of cash, bank payment and other to the Nestlà © company and Nestlà © will improve in new product or new market in the future. Competitive Strategies Nestlà © mainly focused on differentiation strategy. Nestlà © is a quality focused company. They differentiate their products with their competitors by giving them better customer satisfaction and quality with in an acceptable price limit. All their market is based on quality products and customer satisfaction. The main factor that motivates a customer is to buy their goods is the nutritional content in their products. They also focused on creating a strong brand by creating brand equity. For have a better quality on their products, Nestlà © had created Nestlà © Nutrition, which is a global business organization designed to strengthen the focus on their core nutrition business. They believe that strengthening their leadership in this market is the key element of their corporate strategy. In order to reinforce their competitive advantage in this area, Nestlà © created Nestlà © Nutrition as an autonomous global business unit within the organization, and charged it with the operational and profit and loss responsibility for the claim-based business of Infant Nutrition, HealthCare Nutrition, and Performance Nutrition. This unit aims to deliver superior business performance by offering consumers trusted, science based nutrition products and services. In order to produce a better quality product, Nestlà © had made an effort on research and development. Research and development is a key of competitive advantage for Nestlà ©. Without research and development, Nestlà © could not have become the leader in food and beverage industries. With 29 research, development and technology facilities worldwide, Nestlà © has the largest research and development network of any food company. Based on the research and development done by Nestlà ©, they are able to produce many products that have a high quality in nutrition, wellness, taste, health, texture or convenience. Besides that, Nestlà © also use cost-leadership strategy for minor products. Nestlà © had used a new strategy called Nestlà ©s Popularly Positioned Products (PPPs) strategy that provide consumers with high-quality, nutritious products, regardless of where they sell them and the price point at which they sell them. PPPs focuses on the specific needs of 3 billion lower-income consumers worldwide. PPPs offer these consumers the opportunity to consume high-quality food products that provide nutritional value at an affordable cost and appropriate format. With a range of locally adapted distribution methods, including street markets, mobile street vendors and door to door distributors, PPPs are a source of income for street traders and individual distributors and contribute to the creation of local jobs. Recommendation Utilizing the identified strengths and opportunities Overcome the identified strengths and opportunities Conclusion Overall achievement Firstly, on 21 May 2012, Nestlà © was in the rank of No. 18 in The Gartner Supply Chain Top 25. The Gartner Supply Chain Top 25 is about leadership. Nestlà © has created a successful supply chain segment for its popular Nespresso line. Nestlà © is also highly advanced and integrated in its raw material sourcing strategies, and has invested significantly in supply development and innovation. Moreover, on 12 April 2012, Nestlà © becomes the first food and beverage company that receives A+ rating, which is the highest standard in Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) for Creating Shared Value report. This shows that Nestlà © do take seriously their responsibility to create shared value and conduct their business in a sustainable way. Next, Nestlà © won the ACCA Malaysia Sustainability Reporting Award 2011. This was because Nestlà © use Sustainability Reporting to communicate to stakeholders regarding the progress of their Creating Shared Value strategy, which is to create value simultaneously for society and their shareholders while carrying out our business activities. On 19 May 2011, Nestlà © receives top environment award which is the 27th World Environment Center (WEC) Gold Medal award for its commitment to environmental sustainability. This shows that Nestlà © was recognized as a global company that has demonstrated an example of sustainability in business practice. Furthermore, on 7 June 2011, Nestlà © became winner of the Stockholm Industry Water Award for its leadership and performance to improve water management in its internal operations and throughout its supply chain. Nestle also has a leading role in the 2030 Water Resources Group. In July 2010, Nestlà © Malaysia was crowned as a winner of the Asia Responsible Entrepreneurship Awards 2010 (AREA). This awards show that Nestlà © was recognized as an organization that have shown a lot of efforts, perseverance and courage in corporate social responsibility initiatives. Besides that, a Global Food Industry Award was given to Nestlà © by The International Union of Food Science and Technology (IUFoST) .in 2010. Nestlà ©s dedication to food science and technology has been acknowledged by the IUFoST as long as Nestlà ©s efforts to advance global food science and technology for the benefit of everyone had been recognized by them. Last but not least, Nestlà © won the StarBiz-ICR Malaysia CR Awards in the year 2009. Nestlà © was one of the seven public-listed companies which were recognized and honoured for their outstanding Corporate Responsibility practices at the StarBiz-ICR Malaysia CR Awards 2009 presentation ceremony.

Importance of Change in Ray Bradburys Fahrenheit 451 Essay -- Ray Bra

Importance of Change in Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  What is change? Webster's Dictionary, defines change as to cause to become different; alter; transform; convert. Many things, people, and world events are able to change. Years of peace may be shattered by one act of terrorism. Technology changes how people interact and work in the world. People also change. Many do not see any wrongdoing internally, and remain the way they are. However, there might be outside factors that help them realize what is wrong with them or the lifestyle they choose to take part in. According to Preston Bradley, "I don't care how much a man may consider himself a failure, I believe in him, for he can change the thing that is wrong in his life any time he is ready and prepared to do it. Whenever he develops the desire, he can take away from his life the thing that is defeating it. The capacity for reformation and change lies within." Throughout Fahrenheit 451, Montag, a dedicated fireman and book burner, sees pleasure and titillation from burning books and destroying lifetimes of important ideas. When outside influences put confusion in him, he begins a series of changes, eventually becoming a revolutionary in a society where books are valued.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Many factors contribute to the changes found in Montag. One of the first influences during the story is the exquisitely observant Clarisse McClellan. She is different from all of the others in society who like to head for a Fun Park to bully people around," or "break windowpanes in the Car Wrecker." She likes to observe people, and she observes Montag, diagnosing him as a "strange...fireman." He is "not like the others" because when she talks, he looks at her, and when she said something about the moon, he looks at it. Clarisse tells Montag that he is different from the other people. He has something inside of him that makes him "put up with" her. Clarisse makes Montag look at himself for the first time when she asks him, "Are you happy?" Montag thinks that she is talking nonsense, but he realizes that he truly is not happy. Something is missing from his life. Looking at his lifestyle, he found that the "only thing that I [Montag] positively knew was gone was the books I'd [he'd] burned in ten or twelve years." Clarisse helped Montag to start to think for himself, instead of letting the society... ...he society outside values books, and by joining it, Montag shows that he is changed from rebel to the ultimate rebel, a soldier of an army that has a strong influential power because of it's attraction to books and their meanings.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In Fahrenheit 451, Montag, a dedicated fireman and book burner changes character and opinion through the help of influential characters and events, gradually transforming into an individualistic person of the society, a rebellious soldier in an army of readers. Montag first changes when he meets Clarisse, opening his eyes and being able to see his own faults and those of the society. He changes further when he questions himself and thinks about his lifestyle after learning how powerful the meaning in the books are when the woman insists on dying. Montag learns the importance of books in the society when he meets Faber, learning how the meaning in books can be applied to what is happening in society. Killing Beatty shows his change from being a passive reader and spy to an active revolutionary. Finally, Montag's changes are completed when he joins the organization that values books, therefore becoming a soldier of an influential army.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury :: essays research papers

In the book Fahrenheit 451 there are many characters that have short parts and go by unnoticed to some. Other characters have noticeable parts but they are short and by the end of the book you forget about them. The minor characters are used to support ideas or to give background for the main character or characters. They have an important part in all stories and yet, for some reason, they are forgotten quickly and not given a second thought. In the book there are more than two minor characters but to bore you with all of them would be cruel so we won’t bother. The two that we will discuss are the ones that appealed to us the most. The first character I want to talk about is Clarisse McClellan. Clasrisse is a free spirited girl who is used to describe the way things are now in the world that Guy (the main character) and she live in. she is a teenager who live with her uncle, who is a very smart man of the old time and he tells her about the way things used to be. The main reason Clarisse is in the story is to show the ills of the world that is described in the book and to show Guy a new way of life. This is the basis for the changes that happen to Guy, emotionally, later in the book. After Clarisse serves her purpose in the plot, she is killed off. The other character that we feel is influential in the book is captain Beatty. Beatty opens Guys eyes to the truth as he sees it. He Finally tells Guy about the way things really used to be. He tells him the truth about what firemen used to do and the way the world used to work. But unlike Clarisse, Beatty likes the new world more and he tells Guy the way things used to be in a way that is distorted a little to make it seem horrible.

The Dramatic Irony in Oedipus the King

The Dramatic Irony in Oedipus the King Before taking a closer look on the identity of the protagonist and murderer, and having in mind that Oedipus the King is a very spacious and difficult to analyze play, including opportunities for discussion on quite a few topics, I have chosen to briefly focus on the dramatic irony used by Sophocles to disclose the characters’ identity throughout the play. In general, irony is a very common technique used in every drama work and it is usually used by the author at times when something dramatic is about to happen the existence of which is cleverly suggested through ironic behavior of the main characters and often includes symbols, comparisons and contrasts pointing to the main idea of the author. In this sense, Sophocles is really famous for his well-known techniques of using irony and skillfully combining it with intricate relations and symbols such as light, dark, morning and night in order to convey his idea. In addition, a dramatic irony could be present when the audience is aware of critical information that the characters are unaware of. In this play, the readers already know the real relations between Oedipus, Jocasta and Laius. A general symbol of the irony used in the play is the exultation of both Oedipus and Jocasta over the failures of the oracles prophecies, however in both cases these prophecies come true – Oedipus leaves Corinth only to find out after that he has actually found his real parents and Jocasta kills her son in order to find him later married to her and more alive than ever. In other words, each time a character tries to neglect and push away the predictions of the oracles, the audience already knows what? that their attempts are futile and in vain. This creates a clear sense of the irony used by Sophocles. An interest thing to note is the very manner in which Jocasta expresses her disbelief in oracles, which is quite ironic by itself. She describes the oracles as powerless in an attempt to comfort Oedipus, but immediately after that she prays to the very same gods whose powers she has just mocked. However, if Oedipus doesn’t trust the power of oracles, he definitely values the power of truth and equality. He firmly believes in his own ability to seek out the truth as a riddle-solver. This is direct contrast between Oedipus’s trust in prophecy and trust in intelligence. Having in mind that those two are complete distinct terms like science and religion, it is quite ironic that they both lead to the same conclusions and outcome. The truth revealed by Oedipus actually fulfills the oracles’ prophecy. Ironically it is Oedipus’s rejection of the oracles that discloses their power. The best example of dramatic irony however, is the frequent use of references to eyes, sight, light, and perception throughout the play. The dialogue between Oedipus and Tiresias reveals it: â€Å"have you eyes, / And do not see your own damnation? Eyes, / And cannot see what company you keep? † Those words by Tiresias prove the blind man’s prophetic powers, for he already knows that Oedipus will blind himself. Moreover, he continues: â€Å"those now clear-seeing eyes / Shall then be darkened†. Where do you think the irony here is? Sophocles actually suggests two different things. Firstly, Oedipus is blessed with the gift of perception for he was the only one able to answer the Sphinx’s riddle. Yet he cannot see what is right before his own eyes. He is blind to the truth, and the truth is all he seeks. Secondly, Tiresias’s presence as a blind man amplifies the irony in Oedipus’s mocking his blindness. He is a man who does not need eye sight to see the truth and Oedipus is just the opposite – he who can see with his eyes is blind to the truth standing before him. Interestingly enough, however, is that Oedipus switches his role with Tiresias, thus becoming a man who sees the truth and loses his sense of sight. This outlines the drama in the play. In addition, the sight theme is further carried on to another level when the Chorus is disgusted and refuses to even see Oedipus. He has polluted his own sight and body but at the same time he has done the same with others’ sights by his very existence. That is why when he enters blinded the Chorus shouts: â€Å"I dare no to see, I am hiding / My eyes, I cannot bear / What must I long to see†¦Unspeakable to mortal ear, / Too terrible for eyes to see†. Ironically, Oedipus has become the same disease that he wishes to remove from Thebes and has turned himself into a sight that is more horrible than the wasted farmlands and the childless Theban women. It is dramatic that when he becomes such a monster, he is already blinded. To finish with, I have thought about the influence that this irony has on the reader and the way it touches the reader’s own perception of Oedipus and his actions. How do you correlate the dramatic irony to the character of Oedipus? Does it change your initial emotion toward him or it further bolsters it? It is important what you generally think of Oedipus: Oedipus as incapable of doing anything to change his destiny and as a mere puppet of fate or Oedipus as a flawed character who is guilty of his own actions and as an instigator of all tragic events. I personally think that in this story you cannot escape fate no matter what you do. In an attempt to do so, both Jocasta and Oedipus change the whole structure of their families and threatening to ruin them. They have set the course of the story into action. His tragic end is not his fault for he is powerless against fate. Works cited Cameron Alister, â€Å"The Identity of Oedipus the King: Five Essays on the Oedipus Tyrannus,† New York University Press, 1968 Great Books of the Western World, â€Å"Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes†, Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc, 1952 http://www. ripon. edu/academics/Theatre/THE231/PlachinskiR/oedipus/dramaticirony. html

Bureaucracy and Max Weber

CONTENT INTRODUCTION2 CHARACTERISTICS OF MAX WEBER THEORY OF BUREAUCRACY2 CRITICS TOWARDS MAX WEBER’S THEORY5 ADVANTAGES OF MAX WEBER THEORIES6 CONCLUSION7 BIBLIOGRAPHY8 1. 0 Introduction According to Stephen P. Robbins and Mary Coulter in their book titled Management, bureaucracy can be defined as a form of organisation characterised by division of labour, a clearly defined hierarchy, detailed rules and regulations, and impersonal relationship. Bureaucracy usually gives a negative meaning in life. When it comes to bureaucracy, automatically people would imagine things like red-tape, filled form with too many information and too detail, small problems become complicated because of the rule to be abided and others. Even though we normally equalize bureaucracy with inefficiency, but the truth is, it represents efficiency because the advantages are more than disadvantages. Bureaucracy also can be regarded as an effective way created in order to move to a big organization. The bigger and complicated a formal organization, the greater requirement needed to control and synchronize every member’s activities. The necessities can be fulfilled by bureaucracy, which is an authority structure operated under a rules and procedures. Max Weber defines organization as a social mechanism that maximizes efficiency and effectiveness in administration. 2. 0 Characteristics of Bureaucracy by Max Weber Weber's focus on the trend of rationalization led him to concern himself with the operation and expansion of large-scale enterprises in both the public and private sectors of modern societies Bureaucracy can be considered to be a particular case of rationalization, or rationalization applied to uman organization. Bureaucratic coordination of human action, Weber believed, is the distinctive mark of modern social structures. In order to study these organizations, both historically and in contemporary society, Weber developed the characteristics of an ideal-type bureaucracy: 2. 0. 1 Written Rules of Conduct According to Weber, all decisions, rules and actions taken by the organization are formulated and rec orded in writing. Written documents ensure that there is continuity of the organization’s policies and procedures. Cutajar, 2010) Weber stressed that rational bureaucracies must be managed in accordance with carefully developed rules and principles that can be learned and applied and that transactions and decisions must be recorded so that rules can he reviewed. Only with such rules and principles can the activities of hundreds of managers at different levels in the organization be predicted and coordinated. If we cannot predict what others will do, then we cannot count on them. 2. 0. 2 Hierarchy of Authority Hierarchical authority is required in bureaucracies so that highly trained experts can be properly used as managers. (Borgatti, 2002) The type of authority laid down by Weber rests on the belief of in the legality of formal rules and hierarchies, and in the right of those elevated in the hierarchy to posses authority and issues command. Authority is given to the officials based on their skills, position and authority placed formally in each position. For instance, officer graduated from universities is respected more than the officer with no qualification from universities. He will be given more authorities and issues command. 2. 0. 3 Hierarchical Structure According to Weber, bureaucracies are goal-oriented organizations designed according to rational principles in order to efficiently attain their goals. Offices are ranked in a hierarchical order, with information flowing up the chain of command, directives flowing down. It was self-evident that coordinating the divisions of large organizations requires clear lines of authority organized in a hierarchy. That means there are clear levels of graded authority. All employees in the organization must know who their boss is, and each person should always respect the chain of command; that is, people should give orders only to their own subordinates and receive orders only through their own immediate superior In this way, the people at the top can be sure that directives arrive where they are meant to go and know where responsibilities lie. 2. 0. 4 Division of Labour Division of labour or in other word, specialization of division, means each office has a defined sphere of competence. The tasks of the organization are divided into distinct functions given to separate offices. These functions are clearly specified so that the staff know exactly what is expected of them. Job-holders are given the authority necessary to carry out their roles. Weber's idea of functional specialization applies both to persons within an organization and to relations between larger units or divisions of the organization. Stephen P. Borgatti in his article titled bureaucracy give an example of division of labour by Swift & Co. In his article, within a Swift packing plant, work was broken down into many special tasks, and employees were assigned to one or a few such tasks, including the tasks involved in coordinating the work of others. So, Swift was separated into a number of divisions, each specializing in one of the tasks in the elaborate process of bringing meat from the ranch to the consumer. Weber argued that such specialization is essential to a rational bureaucracy and that the specific boundaries separating one functional division from another must be fixed by explicit rules, regulations, and procedures. Borgatti, 2002) 2. 0. 5 Impersonality of Relationship Impersonality means  no hatred or passion with equality of treatment for all clients of the organization. It means, there must be no individual objectives are allowed. All people must follow the organization objectives. In other word, staff members are free of any external responsibilities and constraints so that they are able to attend to the ir duties in a fair and objective way. For example, work is separated from residence in order to separate personal duty and objective of the organization. 2. 0. Lifelong Career Commitment Weber stressed that employment in the organization should be seen as a career for officials. An official is a full-time employee, and anticipate a lifelong career. After an introduction period, the employee is given tenure, which protects the employee from arbitrary dismissal. The organization should create a better working scheme such as clear promotion route and good remuneration scheme. Max Weber viewed these bureaucratic elements as solutions to problems or defects within earlier and more traditional administrative systems. Likewise, he viewed these elements as parts of a total system, which, combined and instituted effectively, would increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the administrative structure. 3. 0 Critics toward Max Weber Theories of Bureaucracy There are various critics from public administration philosophers toward bureaucracy theory generated by max Weber. 3. 0. 1 Rigid Rules and Uncreative Weber lined out that the characteristics of his theory on bureaucracy is on hierarchical authority structure. However, the consequences that the organization has to bear is the lost of ability to generate new ideas. There are problems among lower officers due to hierarchical structure. It is because, in hierarchy, order is given by upper officer to the lower officer. The lower officer accepts the instruction without an opportunity to give their own opinion or ideas. So, there were no generation of new ideas and no any check and balance happen. A good organization should involve employees in decision making. 3. 0. 2 Slow Decision Making Process Because of Weber’s theory stressed on hierarchical authority, the decision making process become ineffective. It slows down the process. The decision is all coming from the top management. So, it takes too long for the information to reach the employees. 3. 0. 3 Exploitation of Position and Power Weber’s theory of bureaucracy could lead to exploitation. His suggestion on the use of written rule of conduct can bring problems. A. W Gouldner (1954) noticed that the ‘govern according to rules’ culture in organization caused the consequences of members following the minimum possible rules in order to get by. So, in bureaucratic organization, employees who know to twist the rules would gradually or evidently be more powerful. In consequence, power will have a tendency to shift from a nominal leader of the organization, who did not know how to play by the rules, to employee who really did. 3. 0. 4 Work is not Challenging In bureaucratic theory suggested by Weber, a promotion system is not encouraged. He prefers to use a system based on seniority or qualification in department exams. It means, all the promotions are based on the period he has worked on the organization or the answers on the exam paper. Therefore, there is no earnestness in work because the promotion system is not based on efficiency. The duties also are the same everyday and can create boredom among the officers. 3. 0. 5 Nonresponsive The theories suggested by Weber did not reflect to changes. Reflection is in the term of attitude and speed of changes or adjustments with the changes. For example, when people deal with government agencies or department, bureaucracy cannot help to accelerate the process, meanwhile increase the burden they have to take. The people have to pass through many processes before their problems can be settled. 4. The Advantages of Max Weber Theories of Bureaucracy Weber’s bureaucracy is based on logic and rationality which are supported by trained and qualified specialists. The element of a bureaucracy offers a stable and hierarchical model for an organization. 4. 0. 1 Prevent Misuse of Power Max Weber theories of bureaucracy prevent the misuse of power. It stressed the impersonality of relationship where the officers must distinguish the duties from personal matters. Often happen i n organization where officers use the facilities of the office for personal works. For example, an executive officer used to call his driver to fetch his daughter from school. This action cannot be legalised by the theory. This action shows how the officer used the facilities of the office for personal works. So, by applying the Max Weber theories, an officer can distinguish between the duties and personal matters. 4. 0. 2 Decision is rationalised Bureaucracy practises rational concept is where every decision is based on the objectives and criteria set by the public. Decision being made is not bias as it free from personal matters. It contributes in democracy through technical ability, not because of heritage of family relation in order to obtain certain position. 4. 0. 3 Clear and Written Records The characteristics of Max Weber bureaucracy lined up the need of written rules of conduct. It also stressed the documentation of any decision made. The advantage of this action is that it can be referred easily and any problems arise can be settled without rebuttal when there is a set of rules of conduct. 4. 0. 4 Specialization of Works Bureaucracy enables officers to know in depth on their tasks as the task is divided among them. The specialization also can decrease the burden of duties of the officer and can gradually increase their productivity. Besides that, it is easier for the management to choose among its officers whom are really capable to perform certain tasks. 4. 0. 5 Increase Efficiency and Effectiveness According to Weber, bureaucracies are goal-oriented organizations designed according to rational principles in order to efficiently attain their goals. Offices are ranked in a hierarchical order, with information flowing up the chain of command, directives flowing down. Operations of the organizations are characterized by impersonal rules that explicitly state duties, responsibilities, standardized procedures and conduct of office holders. Offices are highly specialized. Appointments to these offices are made according to specialized qualifications rather than ascribed criteria. All of these ideal characteristics have one goal, to promote the efficient attainment of the organization's goals. 5. 0 Conclusion Some have seriously misinterpreted Weber and have claimed that he liked bureaucracy, that he believed that bureaucracy was an â€Å"ideal† organization. Others have pronounced Weber â€Å"wrong† because bureaucracies do not live up to his list of â€Å"ideals. †Ã‚   Others have even claimed that Weber â€Å"invented† bureaucratic organization. But Weber described bureaucracy as an â€Å"ideal type† in order to more accurately describe their growth in power and scope in the modern world. The bureaucratic coordination of the action of large numbers of people has become the dominant structural feature of modern societies. It is only through this organizational device that large-scale planning and coordination, both for the modern state and the modern economy, become possible. The consequences of the growth in the power and scope of these organizations is vital to understanding our world. Bibliography Borgatti, S. P. (2002, April 02). analytictech. com. Retrieved March 10, 2011, from Bureaucracy: http://www. analytictech. com/mb021/bureau. htm Cutajar, M. (2010, July 29). Max Weber Bureaucracy Theory. Retrieved March 10, 2011, from suite101. com: http://www. suite101. com/content/max-weber-bureaucracy-theory-a267433