Inventories Of Government Accounts Samples †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Inventories Of Government Accounts. Answer: Introduction The topic deals with the inventories on the consumption basis of the government accounts. The consumption method under the generally acceptedaccounting Principles (GAAP) recognizes the assets when they are purchased and the expenses when they are consumed. The discussion has two parts the first part deals with balancing of the stock in hand in the year-end with the fund balance and in the second part consists of the method of disclosure debts services and the capital projects un the government wise statements. The reason why the accountants consider the year end inventories with the fund balance as non spendable when no comparable fund balance is required for cash, tax receivables or any other asset. The fund balance refers to the difference in the liability and the assets. It is positive when the assets are more and negative when the liabilities are more. Some parts of fund balance are reserved and the rest are unreserved. Whereas year- end inventory represents the balance of the stock in hand along with the difference of cost of goods sold and manufactured. The non-spendable is the fund balance of the recorded asset at the time of its purchase. The fund balance in many ways represents the working capital of the business. It can either be used as liquidity reserve or can be kept for future spending (Stewart, Hildreth Antwi-Boasiako, 2015) Balancing the inventory balance in end of the year with the fund balance, there will be a better understanding of the true fund balance. However, the non-spendable has to deal with a problem for representing the amount that cannot be set because of their current form that is the inventories and prepaid amounts; they are required to be maintained legally or contractually. The technique of accounting that the government should follow to report their capital projects and debt service activities in their government-wide statements. The Capital project contains the funds that report the contractually required financial resources that are for acquisition of capital assets. The total cost of capital project is accumulated in the single expenditure account and keeps on accumulating until the project is completed. These are short term in nature thus focusing specific projects. Debt service on the other hand are a part of the capital project that reports the expenditure for principal and interest on all general long term debts. Both debts services and capital projects must follow the modified accrual based accounting process except, in case of debt service principal and interest are not considered in the current liabilities until the period in which they are to be paid, although the interest revenue is held as accrued investments on bonds. The budgetary control over capital and debt projects is necessary in government accounting. This disclosure of these activities in the government-wide statement prevents over exhaustion of funds and the occurrence of unauthorized expenditures. The process will not influence the financial budget of the year, as the debt service fund and the capital project fund do not have any effect on the year-end statements. The budgets are prepared separately, without considering these funds. As long as the combined funds are included in the government funds, the debt service activities and the capital projects should be reported in the government- wide statements. For this, the expenses and revenues are to be recognized by the accrual concept (Ofoegbu, 2014). The method should report the long debt and long-term assets in net assets side of the government wide statements along with interest expenses reporting on activities. The general government fund financial statement should modify the full accrual method. In case of accrual basis, the inflow and outflow of economic resources, both long term and short-term assets and liabilities are contained. Whereas in modified accrual report that the government fund financial statement should follow must have a short run perspective. This is because the government fund assets are expected to be liquidated within a financial year and the liabilities are to be satisfied with the current resources only. Conclusion According to the discussion in the first part, in order to evaluate a true and fair fund balance it is necessary to balance it with the year-end inventory. The second part that discusses the method of disclosure of debt services and capital projects in the government wide statements, points out that accrual method should be followed in the process. References Ofoegbu, G. N. (2014). New Public Management and AccrualAccounting Basis for Transparency and Accountability in the Nigerian Public Sector.IOSR Journal of Business and Management,16(7), 104-113. Stewart, L. M., Hildreth, R. W., Antwi-Boasiako, K. B. (2015). The fund balance conundrum: An ethical perspective.Administration Society,47(8), 915-942.

World Literature Essay Example

World Literature Essay Many obvious connections exist between the objectification of women in Sir Thomas Malorys Le Morte Darthur and the deepening importance of Christian, as opposed to pagan, mythologies on the cultural and social mores of Europe in the Middle Ages.   Among these obvious connections is the equation of femininity and more specifically feminine sexuality with a corruptive sense of worldliness, which can be understood to represent the connection in Christian consciousness between the earth and the Christian concept of sin.   In pre-Christian traditions, nature was associated with sacred space: If there was an Indo-European homeland, there were no temples there, only landscape. Sacral area must therefore in origin be identified by geography, not buildings[] nature’ inevitably underlies the choice of place in which to perform ritual (Dowden 27).   By contrast,   in the Christian world-view, sacredness was grounded in objects and in persons, rather than in the elemental forces o f nature.While it may be obvious to even the casual reader of Malory that Christian mythology   plays a central role in his articulation of the myth of Arthur and the knights of the Round Table, what may be less obvious is the complete manner in which Christian ideals and images are intended to replace older, pre-Christian mythologies and ideas which were rooted in a feminine sense of nature and in the ancient Goddess religions.   In fact, it is not at all too strenuous an assertion to suggest that Le Morte Darthur represents, in its entirety, an attempt by Malory to   erect a throughly Christian facade on the scaffolding of ancient pagan myths.   One of the most important aspects of this facade is the way in which feminity and feminine sexuality are used as a bridge by which ancient suppositions of myth and nature are made into modern Christian myths which reflect a patriarchal rather than matriarchal vision of both nature and human society.Book thirteen of Le Morte Darthur , which covers the quest for the Holy Grail, comprises a microcosm of Malorys   blending of Christian and pagan mythologies.   Within the context of   the work as a   whole, perhaps no individual book within the famous Winchester manuscript demonstrates more clearly Malorys intention, whether conscious or not, to usurp pre-Christian mythologies with Christian myth.   Not only does this chapter provide a clear case of pagan mythologies: those associated with the Fisher King myth, being subsumed by a distinctly Christian myth: that of the Holy Grail, but the figure of Galahad functions with the same transformative power, replacing ultimately all perceived feminine virtues once associated with pagan myth with the masculine-centered qualities of chivalric knighthood.   As the sole perfect representative of the Christian knight, Galahad is an extremely important   facet of Malorys overall transformation of associated myth into a coherently Christian vision.Such an intenti on may or may not have been a conscious idea on Malorys behalf but rather, emerged as an instinctual outgrowth of the combining of mythological material with Christian sensibilities. Another example of this potentially unconscious tendency emerges, clearly, in the introductory verses of Chretiens Lancelot, which invokes feminine imagery as its source of moral inspiration, under the guise of a devotion to royalty:Since my lady of Champagne wishes me to undertake to write a romance, I shall very   Ã‚  Ã‚   gladly do so, being so devoted to her service as to do anything in the world for her,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   without any intention of flattery.(Chretien 1-30)Similarly, when Book thirteen of Le Morte Darthur opens, it is clear that Malory intends the following tale to demonstrate not only aspects of adventure but aspects of morality, as well.   The opening scene of the book describes the arrival of a ful fayre gentylwoman (Malory, 612)   who gallops into Camelot, rising so fast that her hors was al besuette   (Malory, 612).   Here there can be no doubt that the image of a fair woman of gentle breeding astride a hot, excited horse is meant to convey anything other than sexual energy. In point of fact, the ladys errand is one of a summoning which is connection to an earlier erotic interlude wherein Lancelot was hoodwinked into sleeping with   Elaine, King Pelles daughter.   Underlying this past-incident is an extremely   important detail: that Lancelot had believed Elaine to be Guinevere.This is an important fact because it reveals that Lancelot, unwilling to commit the common sin of fornication with Elaine, maintains his knightly virtue.   However, Lancelot is fully willing to commit adultery with his Queen, despite the fact that this adulterous behavior will destroy his knightly virtues and, in fact, endanger Camelot itself.   This reveals that Lancelot is essentially a pagan at heart, unwilling to accept the Christian morals of temperance an d allegiance to a King, and not a Queen. Lancelot is a goddess worshiper and this single fault in his otherwise virtuous character, brings about the downfall of Camelot which, ironically, is only reversed by Lancelots bastard son with Elaine, Galahad.   What is notable about the rather intricate relationships between the characters of Arthurs court and those who associate with it is that relationships are immediately brought into a singular and ever-present contrast: the contrast between masculine virtue and feminine virtue. This contrast is very often expressed as outright conflict and in every case where there is a conflict between two characters, that conflict can be understood as a function of the gender-based division of virtues which is the underlying theme of not only Book thirteen, but of Le Morte Darthur as a whole.Again, this predilection toward the convergence of matriarchal imagery with directly Christian myth is conveyed directly through the relationships between the characters in   Le Morte Darthur.   For example, the character of Lancelot as envisioned by Malory, departs from Chretiens earlier envisioning, specifically in regard to the sexual relationship between Lancelot and Guinevere.   For Chretien, the focus of the relationship is on Lancelot as an object of the Queens desire.   This desire, masked as it must be, plays a key role in Lancelots climactic fight against Meleagant which is foreshadowed in   Chretiens Lancelot by Guineveres internal monologue.   As the Queen assesses Lancelot as the most desirable of knights, so, too, the reader of Chretiens Lancelot will see him as flawless. Along with the Queen, the reader will feel never so glad in her life as she was for his return (Chretien, 6730) and Lancelot will appear to be the completion of joy.   In Queen Guineveres fascinating inner-monologue, Chretien paints a portrait of Lancelot as the most sublime of figures:Why is not her joy complete? Is it mingled with anger or hate? No, certainly, not at all; but it may be that the King or some of the others who are there, and who are watching     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   what takes place, would have taken the whole situation in, if, while all were looking on, she had followed the dictates of her heart.(Chretien 6729-7004)Chretien goes so far as to suggest that the Queen desires infidelity with Lancelot, postponing the greeting until it shall see and espy a suitable and more private place where they would fare better than here and now (Chretien, 7004), but he refrains from injecting reciprocaldesire in Lancelots character outside of that which manifests as knightly deeds in the Queens honor. The division of virtues has signaled a moral lapse on the part of the Queen in Chretiens story; Malory, however, pushes the relationship a step further in implicating Lancelot directly in the erotic sin of adultery.   Of note is the historical fact that when Malory wrote about Lancelot and Guinevere, he did not use Chretien as his source (Goodrich, 62)   and this fact is evident in the portrayal of the   couple in Le Morte Darthur.Although Malory regards the focal point of the breakdown of virtue on the patriarchal side of the equation, that is, on Lancelots, rather than Guineveres desire, his impulse to do so is based on the fundamental Christian understanding that the seductive power of feminine sexuality is corruptive to even the most noble of knights.   In other words, it was natural in the Christian philosophy of the Middle Ages to equate sin with sexuality and women, as agents of sexuality, are then posited as agents of temptation and sin.   Similarly, because women are viewed as being closer to nature and closer to natures corrupting forces, the Christian dogmas which reject the earthly world in favor of the neo-Platonic conception of heaven are the same impulses which, in the Middle Ages, contributed to the view that womens sexuality, even a Queens, was naturall y corruptive. However, such a transition from myths which originally exalted nature and feminine energy to myth which   essentially inverted these ideas was neither directly accomplished by medieval writers, nor fully expressed as such by them.Instead, strange combinations of nature-imagery and Christian imagery collide in the Arthurian romances of Malory and Chretien and these strange collisions produce unique and beautiful images which reflect, not a total conversion from animism to Christianity or from femininity to masculinity in spiritual myth, but the intention to accomplish such a total transformation. A great example of this collision of myths can be found in Chretiens description of the Kings sycamore field: In the field there stood a sycamore as fair as any tree could be; it was wide-spread and covered a large area, and around it grew a fine border of thick fresh grass which was green at all seasons of the year (Chretien Vv. 7005-7008).   Obviously, this description is animistic, and deeply rooted in nature and one might convincingly take it as an expression of animistic (or pagan) spirituality.   The image recalls the pre-Christian idea of sacred spaces in nature which emphasizes natural objects rather than created temples: the sacrality of a grove may rest in the identifiable wood or forest, rather than on the altar placed, doubtless conveniently, within it (Dowden 26).The next passage, directly following, reveals the simultaneous impulse toward Christianity: Under this fair and stately sycamore, which was planted back in Abels time, there rises a clear spring of water which flows away hurriedly (Chretien Vv. 7008-7009).   Note that nature has been anchored in a patriarchal energy, Abels energy, in this passage, which concludes There it pleases the King to take his seat where nothing unpleasant is in sight (Chretien Vv. 7119.).   The passages reveal a dual impulse: one toward nature and one toward Christian morality which is an important duality and in fact a possible duality only to a mind which projects a state of sin onto both femininity and the natural world.If one understands the division of virtues based on gender   to indicate merely the admittedly idealized social mores associated by Mallory with a mythical, European past, then necessarily, the urgency of the protection of virtues along gender lines as it is expressed throughout   Le Morte Darthur becomes dogmatic, and almost absurdly so.   However, if the schism of virtues based on gender is viewed as indicative of a more fundamental, in fact religious function of myth, then the objectification of women as expressed   in Le Morte Darthur stands for something much more than a set of social mores.   The objectification of women in   Le Morte Darthur is, in fact, the main way in which Mallory is able to subvert matriarchal myths to patriarchal myths; pagan myths to Christian myths. Nowhere is this intention (or unconscious subversion) more obvio us than in Malorys characterization of Galahad.   In addition to being the off-spring of Lancelots sinful tryst with Elaine (whom he mistook for Guinevere),   Galahad marks the   pivotal transition point in Book thirteen of Le Morte Darthur simply by   appearing.   The appearance of Galahad implies two profoundly important things: first, that sin has consequence no matter how seemingly unintentional and secondly, that goodness (or redemption) can be born from sin, which is a specifically Christian idea, reflected most obviously by the crucifixion of Christ itself.The idea of redemption through Christ is Malorys thematic target in Book thirteen of Le Morte Darthur.   However, because the animistic myths and pagan legends that infused his work ran contrary to this impulse, due to the Christian positing of nature as being both feminine and intrinsically sinful, Malory had recourse to devise some symbol which would essentially unite the pagan myth of the Fisher King with t he Christian myth of redemption. This symbol, obviously, is the Holy Grail, but the Holy Grail is defined, in Le Morte Darthur not so much by any intrinsic capacities or powers which are overtly attributed to it; rather its qualities are defined by those who seek it: primarily Arthur and Galahad.  Ã‚   The grail essentially stands for all of the aggregate qualities which reside in the hypothetical knight (or King) who receives the grail, qualities which, in turn, are embodied by the seekers.   This means, to understand what the grail represents in Malory, it is foremost necessary to understand the character of Galahad, who, alone, eventually succeeds in finding the Holy Grail.Galahad is introduced to the reader as having come from femininity and from nature.   Lancelot discovers him living amid nuns in a beautiful woodland and the nuns regard Galahad as the essence of purity: Sire sayd they alle we brynge yow here thys child / the whiche we haue nourisshed / and we praye yow t o make hym a knyght / for of a more worthyer mans hande may he not receyue the ordre of knyghthode (Malory, 613)   Galahads connection with the Holy Grail is thereby foreshadowed and   explained.   He will emerge as the truest of knights because he is the purest.   When Lancelot regards young Galahad, he views him as semely and demure as a douue / with alle maner of good fetures / that he wende of his age neuer to haue sene soo fayre a man of forme (Malory, 613) and this implies that Lancelot instinctively knows his son is a more complete knight than he is himself.The key to understanding that both Galahad and the grail represent the redemptive power of Christ is to remember that Galahad was born from feminine trickery and was raised in the sinful influence of wild nature, among women, separated from his knightly father due to his fathers carnal sin.   Therefore Galahad is, himself, born of sin and as Guinevere notes that, he resembled moche vnto sire Launcelot I may wel s uppose said the quene / that syr Launcelot begatte hym on kynge Pelles doughter / by the whiche he was made to lye by / by enchauntement (Malory, 617).   She remembers that Galahad no matter what his virtues seem to be, was born of feminine enchantment and she is able to use this mindfulness to deceive herself into believing that Lancelot, despite his sin, remains noble and virtuous.The complete transformation of the cyclical re-birthing qualities which are inherent to nature and which had been a previous part of the feminine-centered pagan religions which were based in an animistic appraisal of nature, is accomplished by Malory merely by the inclusion of the character of Galahad himself: sir Galahad is a mayd and synned neuer (Malory, 641).   By describing Galahad as a maid and yet not intending to diminish his stature, Malory is conferring upon Galahad the virtuousness and spiritual exaltation which had been previously bestowed upon femininity in the pagan and animistic religi ons which preceded Christianity.   The basic thrust of the sobriquet is to suggest that Galahad is chaste.   This is the reason that the word maid deserves special consideration.By contrast, Sir Gawaine, who also seeks the Holy Grail, like Lancelot, has experienced an immersion into feminine trickery disavowed him of this same capacity: to unite the virtues of feminity with the virtues of masculinity and in doing so become Christ-like.   Instead, he is told that he, Gawaine, has failed a crucial test: Soo thow syr launcelot whan the hooly Grayle was broughte afore the / he fonde in the noo fruyte / nor good thoughte nor good wille and defowled with lechery (Malory, 641).   Therefore Galahads status as a maid surely refers most significantly to his chastity and his ability to resist the decadent charms of feminine sexuality.While Malorys objectification of feminity may be too subtle for the modern reader to fully comprehend, this same impulse is given excellent expression by director John Boorman in his film Excalibur, which expresses the same fusion of feminine/pagan and masculine/Christian motifs in its portrayal of the quest for the Holy Grail.However, the movie distorts Malorys original conception of the grail quest by substituting the character of Percival for that of Galahad.   This substitution is also resonant with the work of Richard Wager who, in 1882, created an opera called Parsifal which was, itself, inspired by   the enormous popularity of Parzival (Goodrich, 77) a poem written by Wolfram Van Escenbach between about 1200 and 1210   (Goodrich, 77).   This poem reveals a similar transformation pagan-to-Christian ideals and images, indicating the heros are those who fight on behalf of the Christian church: See how Christian men baptized to Rome wend their pilgrim way, So there was the heathen custom. At Bagdad was their papal right, And the Baruch as seemed his office purged their sins with his word of   might. (Wolfram, 206-209).à ‚   Both Van Escenbachs and Boormans depiction of Parsifal is meant to evoke, like Malorys Galahad, a character which   is equal to the Holy Grail itself and which defines the Holy Grail.The transformation from   Galahad to Percival in the movie Excalibur is backed up by the use of a Wagnerian score. This let-motif helps the viewer to understand that Parsifal is a character who embodies spiritual qualities, rather than merely those qualities which are commonly associated with knighthood.   In Excalibur, the Wagnerian score signals the Death of the Gods because it signals the death of paganism and the birth of Christianity.   With this transformation comes the transformation of femininity and the disempowerment of women.   Women become aspects of the pre-Christian world, the world before redemption which is vividly described in the draft-script for the movie Excalibur, during a scene in which Percival approaches Morganas tree of death: Dangling from the branches of a dead t ree are a dozen dead knights of the Round Table, crows pecking at the rotting flesh in the chinks of armor. Perceval rides up, cries out in horror, and spurs his horse away (Excalibur).   This is the land when Morgana rules, this is the same feminine power of destruction that gave birth to Mordred through trickery.   This is the inverse power of the Holy Grail; rather than masculine redemption in Christ, wanton destruction, thirst for power and revenge, and dangerous feminine sexuality have overtaken the world.   It is a world of disorder and implies by negative what the world would look like under the rule of a feminine power.Just as Morgana pledges herself to this world of disorder and revenge when she tricks Arthur: The moon flows in my blood to meet your seed. And already I bear him who will be King (Excalibur) she subverts nature, commits incest in order to further her desire for power and revenge.   Excalibur portrays the threatening aspect of femininity just as it is portrayed by Malory as being 1) rooted in nature and 2) rooted in sexuality.   Of course, the two ideas may be considered united in the sense that it is ultimately feminine reproductive power which stands as the central focus of both male and female virtue in regard to Malorys idealized vision of the chivalric code. Purity is equated with redemption, but it is not the purity or redemption of birth into the natural world, but the purity and redemption of the rebirth of the individual in Christ which is true purity.   As such, the Christian concept of universal sin supplants the pre-Christian ideal of nature and birth as sacred processes adn replaces these ideas with the concepts of sin and redemption.   Because one is born sinful, birth is, itself, an evil.   Birth being deeply associated with women and with feminine reproductive sexuality is also evil.   Percival, being born out of sinful lust, must be redeemed through Christ.   The let-motif of Wagners Death of the Gods insists that where the pagan gods vanish, a new God arises, and this musical cue, in Excalibur, centers the viewers attention on the redemptive aspects of the Holy Grail.As the draft-script of the movie indicates, the music is intended to function as the voice of the Holy Grail: Enchanting music from unseen singers grows and weaves. Perceval looks back to see the drawbridge slowly closing, trapping him inside (Excalibur).   This voice ultimately transforms into human words and a riddle is posed What is the secret of the chalice? Who does it serve? (Excalibur).   This riddle is the crux of Malorys transformative mythology, as represented by Boorman.   Obviously, in iconography of pagan or per-Christian mythology, the answer to the riddle would be the Queen or the the Goddess as Lancelot or even Gawaine might have answered.Instead, because the story of the grail marks an attempt at a   complete transformation of pre-Christian nature-myths to Christian symbology, the correct a nswer to the riddle is the ultimate disempowerment of femininity, because the correct answer for Malory and Boorman is that the Grail represents Arthur who is the King and who is now with the land.   When Percival answers: You and the land are one. Drink from the chalice. You will be reborn and the land with you (Excalibur) this answer transforms the land to rebirth.   the profound overthrow of pagan ideas is nearly complete: where once the earth was a place of sin and dangerous feminine sexuality, the land is now reborn in Arthur, in Christ, through the Grail which redeems the world. Where once nature stood for sacredness and holiness, now an artifact: the Grail and a man: Arthur stand as sacred entities.   Percivals final answer to the Grail is to divulge the secret that the Grail is, itself, a man: You are my lord and King. You are Arthur (Excalibur). That redemption in Christ is the sole way in which one may attain a state of purity and innocence is a distinctly Christian idea.   The use of pre-Christian myths and imagery, largely drawn from nature, by Malory in Book thirteen of Le Morte Darthur serves the dual function of supplanting pagan ideals with Christian ideals and providing a deep, mythological basis for his modern legend of the Knights of the Round Table. World Literature Essay Example World Literature Essay 1. â€Å" But you, the journey that stirs you now is not far off, Not with the likes of me, the friend of your father and yours, To rig you a swift ship and be your shipmate too (The Odyssey 223).† This was the goddess Athena in the guise of the Mentor who was addressing Telemachus on his planned trip for Pylos and Sparta to inquire on the whereabouts of his father, Odysseus.   At this point, Telemachus is already a young man who yearned for his father’s return after the famous Trojan War.   His home is occupied by suitors, whose ill-repute and rudeness have no equal in existing literature. The belief that Odysseus was already dead has given these suitors the courage to slaughter his livestock, camp at his home, bother his wife at every opportunity, and drink his wine.   It was Athena herself who first suggested that Telemachus visit King Menelaus and Nestor who were with his father during the Trojan War. We will write a custom essay sample on World Literature specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on World Literature specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on World Literature specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer If was after talking before the Public Council that Pallas Athena promised a rigged ship and her company on his trip to Pylos and Sparta.   She added that Telemachus better prepare for provisions since the departure had to be made in secret.   The next day, Telemachus and Mentor embarked for Pylos. 2. â€Å"Die, die— whoever he was that day in the wilds who cut my ankles free of the ruthless pins, he pulled me clear of death, he saved my life for this, this kindness— Curse him, kill him! (Oedipus the King 648). These were uttered by Oedipus the King when he had blinded himself for the realization and shame of having killed his father and married his mother.   At that point, his mother and wife, Queen Jocasta had already committed suicide.   Oedipus was at that juncture between lamentation and meeting his replacement as the ruler of Thebes, Creon. Specifically, Oedipus was not only bemoaning his fate but was blaming the person whom he thought was responsible for saving his life while still as an infant. An oracle had warned his parents, King Laius and Queen Jocasta about the deed or misdeeds the child would do when he grow up.   It was then both decided to have him killed.   Fortunately or unfortunately, the murder did not happen.   It was to this savior of his infanthood that Oedipus was reserving his strongest curse.   He was blaming the person instead of   himself for contributing to the fulfillment of the oracle.   He said that it was not kindness to save him then considering the situation he has found himself into in his mature years.   Oedipus lamentations, together with the chorus of this play by Sophocles, were a condemnation of his fate.   Oedipus had gorged his eyes out for so that he could not see himself as the embodiment of shame.   What is being emphasized through the excerpt is the paradox of h aving an opportunity or chance to alter one’s fate or one’s helplessness in the face of destiny. The savior of Oedipus in his infancy could have terminated his life and in the process spare him from the fulfillment of a certain prediction.   Still the pain and suffering that Oedipus voluntarily undergoes indicated a sense of blame on his part and not purely on destiny. 3.   The captain of evil discovered himself In a handgrip harder than anything He had ever encountered in any man On the face of the earth. Every bone in his body Quailed and recoiled, but he could not escape (Beowulf 1195). This quotation described that portion of the Beowulf Epic where Grendel had grasped the arm of the supposedly sleeping Beowulf and realized that he had meet somebody who was more than a match for him. Grendel was the dreaded monster which had laid waste the Kingdom of Hrothgar.   Beowulf was the kinsman of Hygelac, ruler of the Geats who had offered his services to King Hrothgar to get rid of Grendel.   The struggle between the hero and the monster was so intense that the writer commented that it was surprising that Heorot, the great hall, was not greatly damaged. Beowulf is described as having the strength of thirty men.   No wonder that Grendel feared so much the outcome that he wrestled himself free from Beowulf although at the expense of wrenching his arm from its socket.   Beowulf then declared that the arm served as hall decoration. This part of the epic is a reversal of fortune for Hrothgar and his people.   Although Grendel’s mother exacts some revenge later on, this was the first time that somebody had withstood against the onslaught of the local monster.   It also described for the first time Beowulf in action and which reinforced the truthfulness of his previous narrations about other great deeds in the past. 4.   He ruled it well For fifty winters, grew old and wise As warden of the land Until one began To dominate the dark, a dragon on the prowl From the steep vaults of a stone-roofed barrow Where he guarded a hoard; there was a hidden passage, Unknown to men, but someone managed To enter by it and interfere With the heathen trove (Beowulf 1227). This is a reference to Beowulf as he reigned for fifty years as king in after the death of Hrothgar’s son.   That reign was noted for the peace when from out of the blue a mighty dragon laid havoc in the countryside.   The dragon has for its residence the neighboring mountains where it keeps its hoard of gold.   Unfortunately, a fugitive slave was able to steal some of the treasure the dragon was hoarding.   This put the dragon on the path of revenge which ultimately resulted to a showdown between itself and an aging Beowulf.   Beowulf with the help of a kinsman was able to kill the dragon but was also mortally wounded. The excerpt is a development after a fifty-year hiatus of serenity in the life of Beowulf.   It was the start of another dangerous quest which ultimately cost our hero his life. 5.   Ã¢â‚¬Å"Roland, Companion, sound your Oliphant now, Charles will hear it, marching through those passes. I promise you, the Franks will come at once (Song of Roland 1276).† The quote is uttered by Oliver, Roland’s best friend, as the Saracen ambush party of a hundred thousand men was approaching them. Roland and a small party were appointed by Charlemagne to serve as his rear guard while the main army with the emperor proceeded towards France.   Charlemagne’s group was only twenty-miles away from Roland’s.   The treachery of Ganelon, Roland’s stepfather, has put Roland and his men in grave danger.   The passes of Roncevaux were the ambush point.   Seeing the approach of the great host, Oliver asked Roland to blow his famous horn Oliphant so that Charlemagne could aid them.   Roland refused; he believed that they could still best the Moors approaching them. He also added that the used of the great horn is something that should not be lightly taken.   A great battle ensued with Roland and his men vastly outnumbered.   During a respite in the battle, Roland blew Oliphant to summon Charlemagne.   It was too late; reinforcements did not arrive until everyone of the rear guard were already dead, including Roland.   Oliver’s appeal to Roland to ask for aid was a crucial point of the epic.   This was the point where the hero had to choose between an opportunity to prove or distinguish him until death or seek help and live to old age. Roland chose glory and death and rewarded himself with immortality. 6.   Nevertheless, the experience of our times shows that the princes who have done great things are the ones who have taken little account of their promises and who have known how to addle the brains of men with craft (The Prince 1955-  Ã‚   1956). This is considered by most to be the most offensive among many advices preached by Machiavelli.   This is what befits the adjective, â€Å"Machiavellian†.   The author preceded this statement with sentence that commends rulers who keep faith through integrity and not through any sly or cunning. Yet he added in the cited selection that the great rulers seldom keep their promises and are adept in the art of deception.   Machiavelli is describing a ruler who is not restrained by conscience but would rather use his baser nature in the interest of achieving his goal.   The end justifies the means would have been addendum to this.  Ã‚   He buttressed this statement with by relating about how Achilles and the other notables of old availed of the half-man and half-beast Chiron as their tutor.   The quotation is very important since it basically sums up the gist of what Machiavelli is preaching. 7.   An oath will bind Lanval and the king will put the matter in our hands. If he can provide proof and his beloved comes forward, and if what he said to incur the displeasure of the queen is true, then he will be pardoned, since he did not say it to spite her. And if he cannot furnish proof, then we must inform him that he will lose the service of the king and that the king must banish him (Lanval 1322). The person speaking is the Count of Cornwall regarding the case put forth by King Arthur against one of his loyal knights, Lanval.   Lanval was guilty of spurning the advances of Queen Guinevere and of uttering some words to the effect that he loved somebody whose servants were fairer than the queen. To avenge the insult to her person of which she was to be blamed-never mind that Lanval had broken some of the unspoken demands of the code of chivalry-she twisted some facts and made it appear that she was insulted without cause by Lanval. This angered the King so much that he himself brought the charges against Lanval.   The barons, who constituted the court, could easily come with a verdict of guilty.   The only way for Lanval to escape punishment was as the Count of Cornwall suggested provides proof of the truthfulness of his claim about his Beloved’s servants as fairer than the queen.   Lanval is at a predicament since his ladylove has not appeared before him for a lo ng time after that tiff with the queen.   The statement of the Count of Cornwall is relevant since it summarizes what happened and what is about to happen. It sets the story for a resolution which could go either good or bad for Lanval. 8.   After that, then, I kept approaching one person after another. I realized, with distress and   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  alarm, that I was arousing hostility. Nevertheless, I thought I must attach the greatest importance to what pertained to the god. So, in seeking what the oracle meant, I had to go to all those with any reputation for knowledge (Apology of Socrates 762). This is Socrates explaining how he was trying to disprove or understand the oracle that he was the wisest man ever.   As he related to the Athenians, this came about when Chaerephon, a friend of his, approach the god of Delphi with the query if there ever was a wiser man than Socrates. The response was none.   Socrates explained that he approached persons of intellectual refute and talk to them and gauge the knowledge they were supposed to be good at.   Although he believed that a god could not lie, he wanted to find out if this was a mistake and was looking for somebody to bring back to Delphi and present as evidence to the contrary of what he has been described. He discovered that these persons were wise by reputation and not by actual reality.   He related that he finds himself wiser because of the premise that he does not know anything at all but is in the process of knowing while the person or persons he compare himself with are not really that wise as touted by themselv es and others.   We must remember that while Plato had Socrates explaining in Apology, a sentence against him has already been passed for supposedly corrupting the youth.   Apology clarifies this misconception and articulated his philosophy that a life that is always inquiring and trying to discover what is good is the best kind of life. 9.  Ã‚   All things, says Plato, are produced by nature, by fortune, or by art; the greatest and most  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   beautiful by one or the other of the first two, the least and most imperfectly to the last (Essays, Montaigne 2193). This is one of the Essays of Montaigne entitled, â€Å"Cannibals† which reiterated Plato about the standards of beauty and goodness in things as they came into being either by nature, fortune, or art.   Montaigne agreed with the emphasis that the thing produced by nature is the greatest and most beautiful.   Montaigne was referring to the non-western worlds that have been described by his contemporaries in unpleasant terms.   This is perhaps done out of spite or fear that such a better world exists.   Montaigne is criticizing the tendency of the west to mislabel or misjudge a particular nation or country that has not belong or undergone western civilization. 10.   There is a play to-night before the King, One scene of it comes near the circumstance which I have told thee of my father’s death. I prithee, when thou seest that act afoot, even with the very comment of thy soul. Observe my uncle. If his occulted guilt do not itself unkennel in one speech, It is a damned ghost that we have seen, And my imaginations are as foul As Vulcan’s smithy. Give him heedful note, For I mine eyes will rivet to his face, and after we will both our judgments join In censure of his seeming. (Hamlet 2453) Hamlet is telling Horatio, his friend, that he has set up a play before the usurper king and his queen which would relate about the death of the former king. King Claudius has replaced Hamlet’s father and is suspected of having murdered him.   Subsequently, he married Queen Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother. Hamlet related to Horatio that he will be observing the king and looking for reactions when that particular scene is played out.   Until this point, Hamlet still needed to be convinced that the suspicion has basis.   This part of the play or what is quoted from Hamlet, prepares the audience for that point where guilt or innocence would be established as predicted by Hamlet.   This juncture will determine what Hamlet would project and what plans would he have if the guilt or innocence is determined. This holds the entire structure together where the days of brooding could be replaced by anger, disappointment, and plans for revenge and the ultimate climax where somebo dy or more than one will pay the ultimate price.

Accidental Shifts in Meaning

Accidental Shifts in Meaning Accidental Shifts in Meaning Accidental Shifts in Meaning By Mark Nichol Words often slowly change their meanings over time and sometimes, as in the case of fulsome, flip-flop but occasionally popular culture inadvertently puts them on the fast track to transformation. Movies and television shows introduce or popularize new senses for words all the time, but there are at least two cases in which filmed entertainment unintentionally created new senses for words that supplanted the original usage. In the first instance, it was actually the print version of The Maltese Falcon, by Dashiell Hammett, in which the author dared to have protagonist Sam Spade refer to a member of antagonist Kasper Gutman’s entourage as â€Å"your gunsel.† That word, probably from the Yiddish term for â€Å"young goose,† originally was hobo slang for a boy in a sexual relationship with an older man. Lore has it that Hammett intended that meaning and inserted it in the original short story to put one over on a prissy magazine editor. When screenwriter and first-time director John Huston adapted Hammett’s tale for the big screen supposedly by merely transcribing the story’s dialogue he retained the term, and the movie-going public, like the editor, assumed that the word refers to a gunman. Ever since then, writers searching for an evocative slang term for a hired gun have passed the viral error on. A similar transmogrification occurred with the word nimrod, a generic reference to the biblical character of that name, who in the Good Book is referred to as â€Å"a mighty hunter.† How, then, did the word become a synonym for jerk or idiot? We have none other a personage (or, more accurately, a rabbitage) than Bugs Bunny to thank for this significant shift in meaning. In a Looney Tunes cartoon featuring Bugs’s fumbling nemesis Elmer Fudd as a hunter on the rabbit’s trail, the carrot-chomping coney sardonically refers to Fudd as a nimrod insulting him by derisively comparing him to a biblical personage renowned for his hunting skills. Apparently, later generations of Looney Tunes fans who hadn’t kept up with their Scripture picked up on Bugs’s attitude without understanding the ironic allusion, and the word acquired a new meaning, while its original sense faded into the background. The moral of these stories? If you come across a mystery word in your reading and are tempted to employ it in your own writing, first be sure you understand its implications. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Redundant Phrases to Avoid75 Synonyms for â€Å"Talk†40 Words Beginning with "Para-"

Interview with an adolescent Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Interview with an adolescent - Case Study Example She made sure that I went to church regularly and she taught me never to say lies. As for my father he didn’t care about anything like that. Puberty has not been too easy. I get quite annoyed that I do not have proper parents to take care of things because my grandparents are old and yet I have to depend a lot on them and it is very stressful. The interview with Michael’s dad was scheduled for another day. I asked Michael to arrange to meet with his dad at the same pond because it was quiet and peaceful here. Michael had telephoned his father and he arranged to meet us there on Saturday by 11:00 in the morning. From this interview I learned to show restraint in dealing with a young child. I also learned to be patient, understanding and the polite and show a lot of care. Listening to Michael’s story I empathized with him because I could understand the way he felt about his parents. This project gave me a lot of interest and kindled my curiosity. It also helped me to gain experience in engaging in a case history interview. This experience has encouraged me to shed some of my own inhibitions and impatience. The theory part of the project has helped me to gain new knowledge as well as improve my analytical and problem solving skills. Michael’s story made me realize how different parents, dealt differently with their children. In Michael’s case he had parents who were totally different not only in their outlook in life, but also in dealing with their son Michael. Michael seemed to love his mother with all his heart because she had been a kind, loving and understanding mother. But in the case of Michael’s dad he seemed to be aloof and did not seem to like him much because Michael had been a victim where he was concerned. Since Michael’s mother had passed away when he was very young, the parenting style of the father could be taken into consideration. Michael’s father was very strict

BUSINESS ASSIGNMENT Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

BUSINESS ASSIGNMENT - Essay Example The mobile telephony combined with internet form the basis for the growth and development of social networks and revolution in media as well. Bala (2010) states that while mobile phone penetration also rises with per capita GDP, it happens earlier, and faster, than Internet adoption.  No longer purchasing a Mobile or Cell Phone is considered as a capital investment. It is forming part and parcel of the life of an individual, especially the youngsters throughout the world on account of its necessity in day-to-day life. Librero et al (2007) states that with falling prices and increasing functionality, however, it is virtually certain that not too far in the future all of the world's students will have a cell phone. The business environment The competition in this area is intense and there are several small retail stores dealing in similar products. These stores display the products of all the manufacturers generally and there are few exclusive showrooms of the manufacturers, especial ly in big cities. Due to fragmentation, customer retention and brand building is a key problem in the business. Customer satisfaction becomes crucial in respect of servicing for building up the business. E-commerce plays a vital role and this would be more effective in the case of the existing customers who could trust the retailers based on their earlier experience with regard to the judgment and advice of the retailers in their buying decisions. Display of varieties, strategic location of the retail units, proper interior decoration, effective advertisements, effective customer service and understanding of the segmentation are essential for market penetration and brand building. Alshurideh (2010, p. 297) states â€Å"Consumer behaviour in the mobile phone purchasing setting is controlled by the actions of marketing management which provides a variety of mobile communication offers that are signalled by behaviour setting stimuli and denote behaviour consequences clearly. †¦ T hese advantages cannot be achieved without †¦ mutual relationship†. Products and Service Though the cost could be same for different consumers for the same product, the ability to absorb the cost differs from the customer to customer. Secondly, the utility value of the new model could be more important to some consumers rather than its cost. In some cases, it could be considered as a fashion (Mobile phones studded with diamonds for instance.); they also change the instrument frequently in line with the latest trend in the market irrespective of its utility. Cell phones are now being used by all walks of people and Kharif (2008) states that widespread adoption by universities would be a welcome boost to sales for Qualcomm, such carriers as AT&T and Verizon Wireless, and hardware makers, such as Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Apple. Gartner outlines 10 mobile technologies to watch in 2010 and 2011 which include Blue Tooth, Mobile Widgets, GPS and Broadband, which opens up new av enues for growth. Permutations and combinations of services offered by the handset manufacturers to cater to the different types of users would improve the product spectrum with immense scope for

Focusing on the first scene Essay Example for Free

Focusing on the first scene Essay At the beginning of the play, from Alfieris monologue you can tell that there is constant tension between the people in the neighbourhood because of when he says how I often think that behind that suspicious little nod of theirs lie three thousand years of distrust. This shows that this trust hasnt been broken recently, it has been going back generations upon generations. The comment Oh, there were many here who were justly shot by unjust men. Justice is very important here says to the reader that no matter how much violence it may lead to it will be done, and in the hands of the Italian civilians. They dont go to the police and instead fight it out themselves. Things are obviously starting to calm down now though because Alfieri no longer keeps a pistol in his filing cabinet and says that people are now quite civilized, quite American. When we first meet the Carbone family, we see an excited Catherine welcoming Eddie home from a long day of working in the docks. Catherine obviously has been waiting around for his approval of her new dress because she is very excited when she asks him what he thinks, (running her hands over her skirt) I just got it. You like it? and when he also asks about her hair change she wants his immediate approval. Eddie delivers with flattering comments like oh, your mother was alive to see you now and you look like one of them girls that went to college which is a complement in itself because it is saying she looks smart and sophisticated and not like any average person. Eddies comment about how the dress looks a bit short when she sits down and how she walks is what reveals his protectiveness over her and how she may look attractive to other men. Listen, you been giving me the willies the way you walk down the street Im telling you youre walking wavy He doesnt like that she may seem attractive to other guys in the neighbourhood. This upsets Catherine because Eddies approval obviously must mean so much to her. She even almost breaks into tears because he disapproves of how she walks. Eddie has always treated Catherine like a baby, even now when shes 17 years old he says Youre a baby, you dont understand these things. when he talks about her waving to Louis he warns her that I could tell you things about Louis which you wouldnt wave to him no more. Louis is obviously not the nice guy that Catherine thinks he his and seems like he has a dark past. From Catherines comment about how I wish there was one guy you couldnt tell me about means that Eddies has a dark story about every guy in the neighbourhood which is so bad it would actually lead to an end of conversation between them and Catherine. Beatrice and Eddies relationship has an obvious problem which is that he has more feelings for Catherine than he does for Beatrice. Which Beatrice realises but Eddie doesnt. At the beginning Beatrice isnt so open about the fact that she knows Eddies has feelings for his niece, but after some time she starts to argue with Eddie whenever its just them left in the room. But right now at the beginning Beatrice doesnt speak it out. When Eddie tells Catherine that Beatrices cousins have landed, B. is very concerned about how the house looks and that she hasnt bought a new table cloth (astounded and afraid) Im I just I cant believe it! I didnt even buy a new tablecloth; I was gonna wash the walls. Eddie is actually a nice and caring person and not just the guy who brings in the money. He reassures Beatrice that Listen, theyll think its a millionaires house compared to the way they live this calms her down a bit but she is still a little doubtful until Eddie says Youre saving their lives, whatre you worrying about the table cloth? They probably didnt see a tablecloth in their whole life where they come from which begins to calm her down. When Beatrice and Catherine reveal to Eddie that Catherine may start working, it isnt surprising that Eddie is worried because he has feelings for her and obviously doesnt want her to go to work and meet other men. Also Eddie obviously usually has say in the house because as soon as they say Catherine has a job he replies with what job? Shes gonna finish school. When Catherine tries to change his mind he interrupts her and says No no, you gonna finish school. It seems everything has to go through eddies approval before anybody can make any changes to anything. But when the two women manage to get him to half agree he still isnt sure about it. The stage direction showing that hes strangely nervous proves this. It seems like there is no end to his questions because it goes from wheres the job? What company? to Nostrand Avenue and where? to what about all the stuff you wouldnt learn this year though. Eddie is just trying to keep Catherine at school so she will still be living in the house. If she makes her own money sooner or later she will move away. If she has been offered a job and been told she is the best student in the class there is no more for her to learn. Then it turns to That aint what I wanted, though. Which shows that Eddie had a plan set out for Catherine this whole time which would probably keep her in the house for as long as possible and now she wont be following it. He still tries to convince her that she shouldnt go to work by saying Near the Navy Yard plenty can happen in a block and a half. And a plumbing company! Thats one step over the water front. Theyre practically longshoremen. Eddie himself is a longshoreman so this obviously means if she is going to leave he wants her to leave to better people than himself or Louis or the plumbers at her stenography job. Beatrice replies with Yeah, but shell be in the office, Eddie but again its not what Eddie had in mind. He had had good intentions for Catherine because he wanted her to be with different kind of people. I want you to be in a nice office. Maybe a lawyers office in New York in one of them nice buildings. He obviously doesnt want her to go because when Beatrice tells him to think about it (he is silent, staring down at the tablecloth, fingering the pattern). Beatrice tells him that shell get out of the subway and be in the office in two minutes but Eddie is somehow sickened by the idea of her working in that neighbourhood. After some time Eddie actually agrees to let her work, Catherine is excited and says that she will buy new dishes with her first pay and Eddie replies with a sudden and then youll move away Catherine denies this accusation but Eddie still carries on with Why not? Thats life. And youll come visit on Sundays, then once a month, then Christmas and New Years, finally Catherine again denies the accusation but Eddie is hurt that she will be leaving him and the house and this shows he isnt ready to move on yet.

A Streetcar Named Desire, by Tennessee Williams Essay -- A Streetcar Na

ENGLISH ESSAY   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the play A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams uses his brilliant writing to bring life to his characters in the story. I will be composing a character sketch on Stanley, one of the main actors in the play. I will focus on evaluating Stanley's ever changing character traits in the role he plays. They consist of different moods that he demonstrates during the play: his aggressiveness, his love for Stella and also his rudeness and cruelty towards Blanche.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Let's begin by talking about the way Stanley's aggressiveness affects the climax of the play. During scene three, while the boys were playing poker, Blanche and Stella come into the kitchen and, as a result, disrupt the games. This got Stanley very angry and violent . For this reason he got up and began attacking Stella. Here is a passage from that scene: ' Men: Take it easy, Stanley, easy fellow,--Let's all--. Stella: You lay your hands on me and I'll—'(57) This just proves what I was saying about one of Stanley's moods. His violence and the fact that he looses control of his actions is one characteristic which I didn't particularly like at all about Stanley. Here's another passage in Scene 10 that really show's how mean Stanley really is. This scene depicts when Stanley gets into a fight with Blanche. The scene concludes on a sour note when Blanche breaks a bottle top on the table and try's to hurt Stanley . Stanley says: 'Oh! S...