Membranophones Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Membranophones - Assignment Example Nonetheless, the Greeks did not have much use of the drums, unlike the Romans who used it in their armies and in their orchestras. They, however, neglected the patterns and rhythms that the Africans had developed but after their fall and invasion of the Moor, the rhythm was reinstated. The Moor used a different type of membrane for the drums. Unlike with the Africans who used animal skins, the Moor used the animal intestines. This made the drums make more distinct sounds unlike those of prior times, which formed the basis for the genesis of the physics of drums in the period of the Middle Ages. In the current age, however, we use metal strings instead of the animal intestines alongside other designs. The evolution of the modern drum of bass originated from different parts of the world. For instance, the Indians used the bass drums and it was taken to Europe through the Turkish trade routes. It then became a main instrument in the European culture due its large sound and application i n daily routines. The Europeans then went into North America to set up colonies and used the drums in numerous situations. The incoming of the slaves from Africa led to the incorporation of the missing patterns and rhythm. I like the drum due to it bass effect and makes the sound have a masculine effect. I suppose I also like the base since when I grew up, most of the music I used to listen to would be rated highly or lowly depending on the quality of the base and beats it had which resonates well with the beats of the drum.

Essay 2 Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 4

2 - Essay Example In 2009, the poverty rose to over fourteen percent, which was the highest since 1993. In 2008, the poverty rates reduced to about thirteen percent. Generally, since 1980s, the poverty rates in U.S have been higher compared to the other wealthy nations (Hefner 7). Currently, California has over twenty percent of the poverty rate, which is the largest in all the States of America. In 2009, the poverty rates were approaching the levels of 1960s, which prompted the war against the poverty in America. In2011, the poverty levels in children, reached record high levels with over sixteen millions of children living in poverty. In 2013, the UNICEF records showed that U.S was ranked second with the highest child poverty levels among the developed nations. As at January 2009, over six hundred thousand sheltered and unsheltered people were homeless in the nation. Close to two-thirds stayed in the transitional housing program, and the emergency shelter and there are three were waiting in the stre ets. In 2008, over one million people of the America’s population were using transitional or emergency housing program and in2009 there were about forty-four percent of the employed people who were homeless. The America’s poor population has a lot that they offer in the nation building. However, the poor have been neglected in many ways, and their recognition has been assumed on many occasions, they have an alt of wealth of ideas that can be of critical importance in the nations growth. According to the article â€Å"born poor and smart,† refers to the mother who was destitute but she had brain wealthy. The woman never did things that were done by the poor counterparts. The woman had self-believe her and never allowed anyone to demean her due to her social class. In another article by Matt Yglesias, it addresses the concern of the equality between the poor and the rich (Yglesias 23). It illustrates that the

The Profound Aspects Of The Islamic Society Religion Essay

The Profound Aspects Of The Islamic Society Religion Essay During the sixth and fifth centuries B.C.E new religious philosophies came to the surface in India and rejected the ancient Indian religion that revolved around the ritual sacrifices offered by Brahmin priests in hopes that the gods would reward their loyal human servants. The development of the Indian economy and the evolution of the societies to wealthy classes have raised the questions about the ancient religion for its role in the societies and rejected it as meaning less and less connected to the Indian societies of the time. The early Buddhism started when the Buddha publicly announced his doctrine first time about 528 B.C.E in the Deer Park of Sarnath, near the Buddhist holy city of Banaras (modern Varanasi), in a sermon delivered to friends (Bentley and Ziegler 220). The core of Buddhas doctrine consists of Four Noble Truths that teaches that all life involves suffering; that desire is the cause of suffering; that elimination of the desire brings an end to suffering; and that a disciplined life conducted in accordance with the Noble Eightfold Path brings the elimination of desire (Bentley and Ziegler 220). The Noble Eightfold Path states that the individuals should seek to live balanced moderate lives by rejecting both the devotion to luxury and extreme asceticism (Bentley and Ziegler 221). Buddhism appealed to many people and become popular from social implication of the doctrine as well as the language and other community service reasons. The Buddhism did not favor the Sanskrit and adapted vernacular tongues that reached a much larger popular audience. In addition, the organization of Buddhism movement created many monastic communities that dedicated their life for enlightenment and salvation. Overtime these monasteries become important institutions in the Indian societies and served as community organizations such as banks and social welfare institutions for the Indian country side populations. As these networks of monasteries have evolved overtime, the monasteries have made significant impact on social, cultural and economic aspects of India. In addition, the Buddhism has also received the endorsement from the Mauryan dynasty, where a major empire Ashoka adapted the Buddhism in about 260 B.C.E, according to Ashokas own accounts (Bentley and Ziegler 221). This is con sidered as a major influence of Buddhism as the King Ashoka said that he had decided to pursue his aims henceforth by means of virtue, benevolence, and humanity rather than arms after his realization of war against Kalinga and adaptation of Buddhism (Bentley and Ziegler 221). By the Ashokas decision he has implemented nonviolence and banned animal scarifies in Paraliputra and gave up his beloved hunting expeditions, and eliminated most meat dishes from the tables of his court, a great example of religion influencing the rule of law in an empire and a government. In addition, he as encouraged Buddhists by awarding grants for spreading the Buddhism and developed monasteries, stupas, and holy sites of Buddhism. Furthermore, Ashoka also sent missionaries to other parts of the world such as Bactria and Ceylon and eventually spreading the religion to central Asia, east Asia, and southeast Asia (Bentley and Ziegler 222). Overtime, Buddhism was adapted by various classes of people at various levels and evolved to a more regional faith. A good example of this is the Mahayana Buddhism that flourished with its advanced educational system and advancement towards the future innovations of the society. The best known institution of historic time is Nalanda University of Gupta dynasty in the Ganges River valley near Paraliputra. The University was famous for teaching Buddhism as well as Vedas, Hindu Philosophy, logic, mathematics, astronomy, and medicine. In conclusion the Buddhism evolved from the rejection or way out of the strict Ancient Indian Religion and evolved to a more moderate religion and then influenced the Mauryan dynasty and spread across Asia and other parts of the world. The Christianity inception dates back to the tenth century B.C.E when the dissolution of the Jewish kingdom of David and Solomon occurred. While the Jewish people maintained their faith various other groups from Babylonian, Achemenid, Alexandrian, Seleucid, and Roman embraced many different ethnic and religious practices; and the empires created state cults that honored their emperors as gods. As these state cults evolved and imposed rules of their own, they clashed with Jews as they did not see the state cults as honorable and refused to participate in the state requirements and created tensions between imperial authorities and Jews and ignited wars between Jews and Roman forces. Ultimately Roman forces decisively defeated the rebels during the Jewish War of 66 to 70 C.E; and then Jews founded new sects that looked for saviors to deliver them from subjection; The Essenes formed one such sect; and one sect formed in 1947 by the discovery of Essene writings. According to the sources, though the early Christians probably had little contact with the Essenes they shared the similar concerns, and Christians formed their community around Jesus of Nazareth, Jewish teacher and a recognized savior. Jesus presented himself as peaceful man, who taught many about devotion to god and love for fellow human beings. He became popular and attracted large population for his wisdom and miraculous powers; especially the ability to heal the sick (Bentley and Ziegler 280). Jesus spread the spirituality and faithfulness towards the God to others and believed that the the kingdom of God is at hand. meant the spiritual realm in which God would gather those faithful to him (Bentley and Ziegler 280). The Roman administrators took this belief as a threat to the Roman Empire and executed Jesus by fixing him to a cross during the early 30s C.E; however, this did not put an end to the movement and continued the spread of the Jesus for his proclaimed presence after th e crucifixion. Although, the Christianity has originated as a sect of Judaism, with its popularity and adaptation by the urban populations, it became the most dynamic and influential religion in the Roman Empire by the third century C.E. The growth of Christianity occurred among mass populations in urban lower classes, and women who did not have the freedom to enjoy the freedom of spirituality in the Roman Empire. In addition, Christianity provided the platform of faith to women as well as men to succeed in life as long as they keep faith in god. In conclusion, the Christianity developed as a spiritual faithful religion promoting equality and hope for better life of all classes and genders of people, which was not evident by the various religions around the Roman Empire. About the 610 C.E, Prophet Muhammad underwent a profound spiritual experience and seeded the path for the religion Islam. According to the sources his convictions include that there is only one deity, Allah(God), that ruled the universe, that idolatry and the recognition of other gods amounted to wickedness; and that Allah would soon bring his judgment on the world (Bentley and Ziegler 348). As he shared his convictions with others, by about 620 C.E. enthusiastic and expanding minority of Meccas citizenry joined his circle and started the promotion of the Islam. During the first century of the Islams existence, Islam reached beyond Arabian homeland expanding to Persia, parts of Byzantine Empire; and by eighth century it has started influencing the political and economic sectors of the post classical societies. According to the sources, the early Islamic religious beliefs reflected the influence of Jewish and Christian faith, and the Muslim society reflected the nomadic and mercantile Arabian society from which Islam arose (Bentley and Ziegler 346). It is common observation in the Islamic society that the evolution of the religion includes the adaptation of various religious practices overtime. For example, after Muslims conquered Persia, they have adapted the Persian techniques of government and financial administration, Persian literature, science, and religious values. Similarly, during the later centuries Muslims adapted the traditions from Greek and India as they travelled or conquered these areas. It is observed that the Islamic society is rather formed by the inclusion of various practices from these other societies then being created as new by blending the elements from Arab, Persian, Greek, and Indian societies. One of the profound aspects of the Islamic society is the establishment Islam in Arabia, occurred when Muhammads followers attacked in 630 C.E. and conquered the city. They force the elites to adapt Muhammads faith and imposed government dedicated to Allah. This attached included the destruction of pagan shrines and were replaced by the mosques for Muslims praying holy places; by the prophets death in 632 C.E., most of the Arabia under the control of Muslims. During the Muhammads period, his faith and his personal leadership influenced significantly for the development of Islamic community. Muhammad founded the community based on the Five Pillars of Islam: (1) Muslims must acknowledge Allah as the only god and Muhammad as his prophet. (2) They must pray to Allah daily while facing Mecca. (3) They must observe a fast during the daylight hours of the month of Ramadan. (4) They must contribute alms for the relief of the weak and poor. (5) And, in honor of Muhammads visits to Mecca in 629, and 632, those who are physically and financially able must undertake the hajj and make at least one pilgrimage to Mecca (Bentley and Ziegler 351). Though, the Islamic community expanded the doctrine features with specific legal, social, and sects, the five pillars remained as basis and powerful. In addition, during the centuries after Muhammad the Islamic holy law, known as sharia, also added to the Islamic society governance model and was used as part of the Islamic empire. After Muhammads death in 632 C.E. his followers expanded the Islamic military power and expanded the Islamic empir e beyond Arabia and brought additional transformation to the Islamic society. As the evolution and spread of the Islamic society continued, it has thoroughly transformed the cultural traditions that it absorbed, and provided political and administrative framework for large part of the eastern hemisphere, from Africa to the islands of southeast Asia; this included the framework for trade operations for this part of the world. Eventually this is referred as dar al-Islam (house of Islam). In conclusion, the Islamic religion has founded as a powerful religion about during the 600 C.E and rapidly expanded the religious community and the Islamic empire that ruled significant part of the world and transformed some parts of the world permanently with Islamic traditions and practices. In conclusion, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam have evolved during the classical era and created permanent footprint in the world for their religious practices, beliefs, and faith towards god. In addition, these religions have provided framework and basis for the political and government systems and influenced, also dismantled other religions, in some cases, as part of the establishment process.

Essay --

W hile social media has played an integral role in many prominent international events, there is a clear drawback to the technology, which the world witnessed in the horrific events in the recent brutal terrorist attack in Kenya. The shooting at the Westgate Premier Shopping Mall in Nairobi, which began Sept. 21 and lasted until Sept. 24 and resulted in 72 deaths, appears to be a highly sophisticated undertaking, and social media was a significant component with Al-Shabaab, a Somali-based Islamist group, claiming responsibility for the attack in Kenya. As the attack began, and during the three days in which the gunmen held hostages in the shopping mall, there were regular Twitter dispatches from the terrorists. What’s more, the terrorists exploited Twitter in an attempt to explain the rationale for the attacks. In fact, Al-Shabaab has had a series of Twitter accounts over the years and each of them has been suspended under a clause in the terms of service that bars direct threats of violence. Still, the terrorist group simply – as is quite easily done – creates new Twitter accoun...

Are Women in India SAFE? Essay

India’s definition of the term â€Å"ladies first† is not for the development, constructive, progressive things my friends. With India, â€Å"ladies first† since decades has been about victimizing women in incalculable, brutal crimes. And with that note, a good afternoon to respected jury members, members of the audience and my fellow orators I, Aishani Sheth would not want to answer this question by saying women in India are safe or otherwise. Rather, I would like to expose the true nature of the very question. â€Å"Does the sun rise in the East?† Well, this is not a question that needs an answered, is it? It is rhetoric and the condition of women in India today is such that this question too becomes rhetoric. I do not wish to talk about how walking alone at night or going to schools or waiting for transport in broad daylight also or staying in your own house or just enjoying with friends IS NOT SAFE today! All of us know it because every 20minutes a rape case is reported in India and statistics state more than 50% cases are not even reported. But I am going to talk about who a woman is! She is a mother, a wife, a lover, a daughter, a friend, a professional, a sister. And I am not going to give names, all I am going to give you is 5 instances. In Kerela a teenage daughter was sexually abused by reportedly being promised roles in TV serials. In Kashmir, Human Rights organizations including Human Rights Watch have reported that the number of raped friends, sisters was as high as about 100 in just one night by army officials. In Uttar Pradesh, a 28 year old wife was raped by her own father-in-law. In Maharashtra, there was a major case of human trafficking, rape and sexual slavery and more than 500 school or college going daughters had fallen victims. And how can we forget the gang rape on a friend in our prestigious Capital City! (Well is there any safety in India? And my friends it not that only Indian women are not safe, every woman coming to India is unsafe today! French Tourist was drugged and sexually abused who later died. While 6 men raped a Swiss Tourist) ? India has been invaded by Prussians, Mughals, Sultans, Romans, French Britishers but has attained freedom in the end. It has independence today. But what about the women? Do they have the freedom? They are still the slaves of a patriarchal society. It would be surprising to note that just yesterday I was reading the Forbes Magazine and I came across the list of â€Å"World’s most powerful Women 2013† and out of 100 only 4 were from India. In the top 10 it had Sonia Gandhi at no.9 and Indra Nooyi at no.10. But friends, lets act practical. Sonia Gandhi is an Italian while Indra Nooyi is a US Citizen. Power and Safety go hand in hand. Without safety there can be no power. And the condition of Safety is a pre condition and this is clearly evident through this report! All of us, whether a male or female are scared to walk in the streets past midnight in the fear that dogs will bite or chase us. While for women in India the situation has become such that at any place or at any time of the day there is a chance that she will get attacked by â€Å"Those dogs†. Lastly to conclude, I would like to share my own experience. Just yesterday I was preparing for this elocution competition and as it demanded time, I was in the campus beyond the regular college hours. I might have received more than 40 calls from my mother, my father and my brother every 2 minutes with just one concern in their mind â€Å"Are you safe? Are you safe? Are you safe?†

The Great Train Robbery and The Phantom Carriage: Editing Comparison

Drawing on the evidence provided by a sequence notation, show how editing functions narratively and expressively in one sequence from either Broken Blossoms (1919) or The Phantom Carriage (1921) and comment on the ways in which this differs from The Great Train Robbery (1903). The Great Train Robbery and The Phantom Carriage are both considered as one of the key creative movies ever made in history. The Phantom Carriage was very well known for showcasing it’s advanced narrative construction with flashbacks within flashbacks. The Phantom Carriage would have had technological advantages over The Great Train Robbery since it was made eighteen years after. Hence, both their editing methods are substantially different. Having made a notation on one of the sequences from The Phantom Carriage, the narrative functions of the editing styles between the two will be discussed while the differences are highlighted. To start with, both the movies consisted of interesting cinematographic elements that allowed the editors to the cut the movie in the most creative way. For a first narration film, The Great Train Robbery managed to introduce many interesting editing techniques. There were multiple location changes, camera movements and the introduction to the style of cross cutting was also impressive. The Phantom Carriage also consisted of many interesting techniques such as the use of various shots from different angles, camera movement and the display of a title card to express the narrative. The sequence chosen from The Phantom Carriage is the beginning to part three, which starts off with a black fade to colour transition. This transition automatically communicates a time change within the narrative. We are then shown an establishing outdoor shot, of a man dressed in a suit, walking out of a tall door that is closed by another man who seemed to look like a guard. This shot re-establishes the location as the outside of a jail due to its features such as tall doors, the presence of a guard, brick walls and then a tall building with corridor openings behind the brick wall, which is revealed after the camera pans slightly to the left as the man walks towards the camera. The man then looks to the left and exits the frame where the next cut is ade. As the cut is made before the man completely exits the frame, as audience, we expect it to be a match cut; instead it is a jump cut that cuts into the man running into one of the houses in the street. Although this marks a transition in time and space, it makes the audience curious on where the narrative had gone from when he left the jail, to when he got to the h ouse. However compared to The Great Train Robbery, the narrative in The Phantom Carriage is still stronger as although there was a jump cut, the audiences were able to see the man leave the jail and enter the house. The element of continuity in action expressed the narrative better. The scene in The Great Train Robbery, where the operator runs to the nearby dancehall to inform the others of the incident, the audiences are not shown the operators journey to the dance hall at all; instead the operator looks as if he is getting up to inform the others and then a jump cut is made to the ballroom where the people are dancing. We can then see another man enter the room; at first we would think that it is the operator but it is somebody else. Due to the lack of continuity, it could confuse the audience on what the narrative is. As the operator later joins the crowd and informs the crowd of the incident, with the help of their exaggerated reaction to the situation, the narrative is made clearer. ‘In both narrative and non-narrative films, editing is a crucial strategy for ordering space and time. Two or more images can be linked to imply spatial and temporal relations to the viewer’. The Phantom Carriage consisted of a variety of shots from different angles that denoted the narrative over to the audience. In contrast, The Great Train Robbery did not show any one sequence from various angles. Most scenes were shown from one angle and the set looked theatrical, almost like a black box theatre where the camera is the fourth wall. However, the narrative in The Great Train Robbery was very quick and easy to understand as each cut meant a scene change. A lot more happened between cuts in The Great Train robbery than in The Phantom Carriage. Therefore if somebody missed a cut from The Great Train Robbery, compared to The Phantom Carriage, it would have been more difficult for the person to understand what had occurred. The variety of shots in The Phantom Carriage meant that, even if somebody missed couple of shots, they would still be able to understand the plot. Also, having a variety of shots, allowed the audience to feel more connected to the movie, as they were able to analyse the situation from different angles. ‘ In the classic narrative system, editing is governed by the requirements of verisimilitude, hence the characteristics in any one film sequence of establish ing shot, closer shots that direct the gaze of the spectator to elements of action to be read as significant, followed by further long shots to re-establish spatial relations. ’ The element of continuity is significant in making the movie appear as real as possible. A variety of shots were used to give the continuity effect in The Phantom Carriage. In the second shot from the sequence, it is established that the man is walking on the street and is about to walk into a house. We then see a mid shot of the man going up the stairs followed by a close up of the object he is looking at. We are then taken back to a mid shot of him looking down. The movements between the shots are cut and matched perfectly, meeting the requirements of verisimilitude. The Great Train Robbery also had interesting moving background that set the scene without having to explain where the location was. For example, the way the background moved, while the thieves were robbing, made the narrative clearer by explaining the robbery that was happening in the train. This explained the title of the movie while expressing the narrative across. However, there were continuity issues, such as the differences between the speeds of the background movement between scenes. For example, after the robbing scene, the scene cuts to a robber climbing the engine of the train. This is an outdoor scene and the movement of the train in the background suggested that the robbery happened while the train was moving. Compared to the previous shot, the speed in which the train moved has noticeably decreased, making the background movements in between the scenes look like a jump cut. Continuing on with the sequence, the next cut is made when the audience first sees an empty stairway, where the sequence has an added vignette effect to he frame. We then see the man quickly running up the stairs in the continuing movement from the previous frame. The vignette effect made it seem like someone was observing the man’s actions through a keyhole or peep hole from another room. We are then shown the man’s attempt in trying to get into the room using various eye-line matches between him and the doormat. The vignette effect still makes it seem like it was from a p erson’s point of view, as the effect disappears as soon the camera position changes in the next cut. The next cut is a reverse angle shot that follows the 180-degree rule of the man walking into the room with the continuing movement from the previous shot. Perfect continuity plays a crucial part here as from the moment he got up from the stairs to where he got in to the room; all the cuts were perfectly matched with his movements. In contrast, there were no eye line matches or point of view shots in The Great Train Robbery. Most of The Great Train Robbery’s frames seemed like a theatrical stage where the actors entered in from either sides and left through those sides. When the next cut is made, the vignette effect disappears denoting that the other vignette shots were definitely from someone’s point of view. We then see the character walk into the room through a door. The camera is placed facing the door towards the left of the frame making sure that both the doors are in the frame. As the character walks in, the camera pans to the right to include the door on the right in the frame. At this point, we are able to see all the three doors in the frame. This moment is a key moment as this shows the importance in including the all doors in the frame. Having a door on the frame always brings in an idea of suspense, in finding out on the ways in which the objects behind the door is going to influence the narrative of the story. We then see the character run into the room, as expected the next cut is made where the physical action of the character running into the room is completed. This smooth match cut looked almost perfect since there were no absence of continuity in the movement expressed by the character. This helped strengthen the way the narrative was expressed, as we were able to understand that the character couldn’t find what he desired. The next match cut was also equally effective as the cut made matched his action. There is an interesting mirror element to the way this short sequence from when the character came into the room, until when he walked out of the room was shot and cut. As he walks into the room, the camera pans slightly to the right as he enters the room on his left. This match cut of him going in and out of the room is perfect due to it’s element of continuity. The cut matches the shot to its initial camera position that was used when the character walked into the room initially. Similar to the way the camera panned to the right as he walked into the room on his left, the camera pans slightly to the left, back to its original position as he walked out of the room. He then knocks on the opposite neighbour’s door; as soon as he knocks a lady opens the door immediately. It is interesting how quick she opened the door, as this confirms the discussion on the vignette effect denoting the shot as a point of view. The camera was probably positioned by the door, and low angled shots such as the one looking down at the doormat and back up at the man shows that the camera is representing someone’s eyes. The restriction of view due the shot being a close-up with the added the vignette effect makes it almost look like someone was peeking through either a keyhole or a peephole. The use of point of view angle would connect the audience to the movie in a deeper level, as they are able to view the actor from another actor’s perspective. In terms of mise-en-scenes used; the setting, the actors’ performance and costumes were a lot more exaggerated and unnatural in The Great Train Robbery compared to The Phantom Carriage. Due to this reason, The Great Train Robbery lacked the sense of realism in comparison. Due to the variety of cuts, it is easier for The Phantom Carriage to express emotions and denote the narrative through subtle acting, natural setting and simple costumes as the audiences are able to see more and close into the actors. With The Great Train Robbery, if the elements were not exaggerated, the moments may go unnoticed leading to the narrative being conveyed as unclear to the audience. Although both the movies have significant differences in terms of the way it was shot and cut, The Great Train Robbery can be considered as an impressive work due to its ability in showing a difficult narrative in such a short time. Although its narrative was mainly expressed using its establishing shot, we were still able to understand the narrative without the help of title cards that was used in The Phantom Carriage as the main tool in expressing its narrative.

To Kill a Mockinbird essays

To Kill a Mockinbird essays One of the major masterpieces of American literature, To Kill A Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee originally as a love story, was published in 1960 and won a Pulitzer Prize in 1961. It also won an Academy Award when it was later made into a film starring Gregory Peck. The story is set in imaginary Maycomb County in southern Alabama. The time frame for the story is the early 1930's during the great depression. Poverty was common and times were extremely tough. This book is loaded with interesting characters. Here is an outline and description of some of the most important characters. The story revolves around the Finch family, led by Atticus Finch, a lawyer. Atticus has two children: Jem, short for Jeremy, his eldest son and Scout, nickname for Jean Louise, his younger and only daughter. Scout is a bit of a tomboy and enjoys hanging out with her brother and their friend Dill. Dill is a young boy who comes to stay in Maycomb every summer with his aunt, Miss Rachel. Aunt Alexandra is Atticus' sister and the family has a maid named Calpurnia. The children spend a great deal of time at the house of Arthur "Boo" Radley. Bob Ewell who lives with his daughter Mayella Ewell is the man who accuses Tom Robinson, a black man, of raping Mayella. Law enforcement in Maycomb consists of Heck Tate, county law official and Judge Taylor. The story begins when Jem and Scout meet a new friend, Dill, who has come to spend yet another summer with his aunt, Miss Rachel. The town is full of gossip about Boo Radley, which fascinates the three friends. Dill, Jem and Scout try to think up creative ways to lure Boo out of his house with no success. The next summer Dill returns and is even more curious and becomes more daring in his attempt to see Boo. On the last evening of Dill's stay in Maycomb the children decide to sneak up on Boo's porch to see what they can see. Just as Jem reaches the window, Nath ...

Metropolis essays

Metropolis essays The Working Class vs. The Upper Class Movies must contain some sort of plot or conflict in order to make them interesting. In Metropolis, a definite social conflict emerges between the workers and their ruthless boss, John Frederson. This conflict is due to the major differences in the lives of the working class and upper class. The clear division in society provides a basis in which the revolt is able to erupt in the first place. At the bottom of society lie the pitiful workers, with the ruthless machine that controls them above. At the top, lies the rich upper class, particularly the Brain, John Frederson. In Metropolis, the workers are depressed, over-worked, and short-lived. Not only men work this terrible and dangerous job, but very young boys too. The workers are depressed since they all enter the factory, which resembles hell, early in the morning together, with their heads all hung down. They work a long shift that lasts ten hours. This is obvious due to the fact that the clock on the wall runs only until 10:00. Only working hours count. This machine, ironically resembling the Pagan god Moloch, runs continuously, producing overwhelming tasks for the workers as it devours them. Therefore, this horrible machine enslaves its workers, rendering them helpless against its unmerciful wrath. Unlike the working class, the upper class in Metropolis lives a joyous, yet unproductive, and easy lifestyle. The main character, Fredersons son, is seen playing around in a garden with a pretty little nymph. This scene portrays the upper class as people who waste their time away by involving themselves in unconstructive activities. Not only is the higher society not aiding the workers in their demanding job, but it does not even seem to care about the workers inhumane condition or health. For example, when the main character goes to his father about what he has seen underground, the father just tur...

Accounting Sustainability and Reporting.

Sustainability refers to striking out a balance between present needs and the future needs and accordingly making out a decision for consumption of the resources. In the context of development or consumption of resources, the sustainability means consuming resources responsibly by taking the future needs into consideration (Schaltegger, Bennett, & Burritt, 2006). The business organizations consume scarce environmental resource, few of which are difficult to be restored. Therefore, these organizations should assume a sense of responsibility to use the scarce environmental resources in an effective and efficient manner. The regulators around the world are now being actively engaged in framing the rules and regulations to achieve sustainability in the developments. Major steps at the global level are being taken to enhance the sustainable business developments. In this regard, one of the major steps taken by the regulators is compelling the business organizations to adopt sustainability accounting and reporting practices (Schaltegger, Bennett, & Burritt, 2006). Sustainability accounting and reporting practices are directed to report the steps taken by the companies towards sustainability issues. The companies have been mandated by the government regulations to contribute towards the environment and society for promoting sustainability (Brockett & Rezaee, 2012). The concept of corporate social responsibility emerged which requires the companies to contribute towards the development of society and the environment. The sustainability accounting is a broad concept that provide for aligning the sustainability initiatives with the organizational strategies. Sustainability accounting not only involves reporting on the sustainability initiatives, but it also involves evaluation of the risks and threats to the environment and measurement of the company’s performance from environmental perspective. The issues of sustainability are being considered at the international level requiring the firms to adopt these practices. The adoption of sustaina ble business practices is considered beneficial not for a firm only but for the overall economic environment at the global level (Brockett & Rezaee, 2012). The report presented here is aimed at exploring the significance of sustainability accounting and reporting practices in the overall economic development of a country. In order to achieve this aim, the report will address the following objectives: This research report covers a comprehensive literature review to gather the views of existing literatures on sustainability accounting and reporting. Further, the report takes on data analysis on the subject matter of the research to find out actual impact on the corporations and economy. In this regard, the report precisely describes the methodology used to collect and analyze the data. Further, a discussion taking the view of existing literatures and the findings of the data analysis has been carried out followed by a concise conclusion being drawn.  Ã‚  Ã‚   The literature review section of the entire research report is very crucial. In this section, the researcher gets the knowledge of existing literatures on the subject matter of research, which is necessary to understand the foundation of the research (Jesson, 2011). Further, the review of literature also boosts up the confidence of the researcher by providing a strong foundation for data collection and analysis. The current research focuses on sustainability accounting and reporting, thus, the review of existing literatures focuses around this topic. In order to carry out the review of literatures appropriately, the entire subject matter has been bifurcated into different heads as discussed below. According to Soderstrom (2013), traditionally, the accounting and reporting practices in the firms could be found to be focusing on communicating the financial information and operational data to the stakeholders. However, the process of accounting and reporting has undergone a severe change to include the reporting on the sustainability issues. Over the last two decades, a drastic change in the approaches of reporting to the stakeholders has been witnessed (Soderstrom, 2013). The government regulations made it compulsory for the corporations to report on the corporate sustainability in their annual reports. The origin of sustainability reporting can be traced in way back 1960s and 1970s; however, the popularity was very less. As per the survey conducted by one of the world’s largest accounting firms, â€Å"Earns & Young†, only 1% of the 500 fortune companies were found to be reporting on the social and environmental sustainability in the mid 1970s in the United States (Soderstrom, 2013). According to Zu (2008), in the mid 1990s, triple bottom line reporting was introduced to promote sustainability (Zu, 2008). The triple bottom line model of reporting was primarily aimed at balancing the three crucial aspects of the business such as society, environment, and profitability. This model provided that the business should not only concentrate on the profits, but equal emphasis should also be given to the social and environmental aspects. Further, the triple bottom line reporting model also claims that the profitability of the company automatically increases when proper balance between the needs of shareholders, society, and the environment is maintained. This model greatly emphasized the role of society and environment in building the firm’s business and enhancing the firm’s value in the long run (Zu, 2008). Further, in the year 1997, the Global Reporting Initiative, a non-profit organization was founded, which provided for guidelines in regard to sustainability accounting and reporting by the firms (GRI, 2008). It was the increased need for sustainability that laid the establishment of Global Reporting Initiative in the last 1990s. According to Gupta & Mason (2014), the Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) provides reporting frameworks which assist the corporations in complying with the legal reporting requirements in regard to sustainability. Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) has issued G3 guidelines which cover three core areas of sustainability such as economic, social, and environment. Gupta & Mason (2014), further state that reporting under the G3 guidelines helps the corporations enhance transparency and goodwill in the market which ultimately affects the worth of the company positively (Gupta & Mason, 2014).  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Daizy & Das (2014), Sustainability reporting has become part of the strategic decision making in the firms. Both, management as well as other stakeholders such as shareholders, society, and the government are benefited in some or other way by the sustainability reporting practices. The primary reason for sustainability reporting is to ensure that the efforts made by the corporations towards sustainability are measured and communicated to the stakeholders (Daizy & Das, 2014). Further, in the views of Daizy & Das (2014), the companies can improve their operational efficiency and ensure growth in the shareholder’s value in the long run by implementing and maintaining the sustainability reporting practices. Thus, apart from being a regulatory requirement, the sustainability reporting is also crucial for the long term growth (Daizy & Das, 2014). Further, sustainability reporting assists the management in analyzing the non financial factors and finding out impact of those factors on the firm’s profitability. In the present scenario, it has been really pertinent to measure and evaluate the impact of non financial factors such as society and environment on the financial performance of the firm (Daizy & Das, 2014). It is compulsory for the firms to continually contribute towards the social and environmental sustainability and assess its impact on the firm’s financial performance. This assessment can be carried out with the help of structured data which is prepared through the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. Therefore, sustainability accounting and reporting plays a crucial role in analysis and decision making, whether it is being done by the management for internal purposes or by the shareholders (Daizy & Das, 2014).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The sustainability reporting has become part and parcel of financial reporting for most of the corporations in the 21 st century (CPA, 2013). The adoption of sustainability reporting has been promoted not only because regulators made is obligatory, but more due to its enduring advantages. The sustainability reporting provides benefits to all type of companies and in particular the large corporations are benefited in the form of enhanced shareholder’s confidence, improved goodwill in the market, and improved operational efficiency. Further, there are many other indirect advantages of adopting the sustainability reporting practices, for example, savings in resource consumption, cost reduction, waste reduction, and improved relationship with regulatory bodies (CPA, 2013).   As per Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin (2012), about 250 companies from all over the world have adopted the corporate sustainability reporting practices and providing a separate report on the social and environmental initiatives (Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin, 2012). The large corporations and particularly the companies listed on the stock exchanges are being more complaint in regard to sustainability reporting than the smaller companies. The authors further state that though the sustainability reporting is increasing at the global level, but it is still imbalanced. It is perceived that the adoption of sustainability reporting adds additional burden on the smaller firms and thus, it has not been made obligatory for them in most of the countries. However, the bigger firms (listed companies) are quite capable to bear that additional burden and also the fact that these firms consume the environmental and economic resources at the large scale and affect the bigger part of the society, leads to making the adoption of sustainability reporting practices compulsory for them (Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin, 2012). Though adoption of sustainability reporting practices is advantageous for the firms but at the same it is challenging also. According to Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin (2012), the first key challenge in implanting the sustainability reporting effectively is identification of the needs of target audience. The sustainability reports are prepared to provide information on the approach followed by the company towards the social and environmental issues. The key challenge is to decide a standard format so that the information is communicated to the target audience in the best manner. However, challenges in this area are to some extent lessened by the guidelines provided by GRI. Further, the firms also struggle in measuring and evaluating the impact of its activities on the society and the environment precisely. It is quite a subjective matter to measure and evaluate the impact of firm’s activities on the social lives and the environment Faisal, Tower, & Rusmin (2012). Despite these challenges, the firms are adopting the sustainability reporting practices all over the world. According to OECD (2008), 120 companies out of total 500 have adopted the sustainability reporting and these numbers are expected to increase further in future. However, the popularity of sustainability reporting is increasing rapidly in Australia, but comparing it at the global level, it seems that improvements are still needed (OECD, 2008). There is a need to make strong efforts by the regulators, government, and the corporations to make sustainability reporting widespread in the country. The regulator has to consider that making the sustainability reporting obligatory for only listed companies would not be enough. The small and medium sized firms should also be encouraged to come forward and adopt the best sustainability reporting practices (OECD, 2008).  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Vasile et al. (2016), the sustainability reporting fixes responsibility on the companies to make legitimate efforts towards development of society, environment, and the overall economy. There are various aspects which could be put into discussion to assess the impact of sustainability reporting on the economy. These aspects are improvement in living standards of the people, savings in the consumption of scarce natural resources, and improvement in firm’s long term profitability. Vasile et al. (2016), further state that development of the society and environment are the elements of economy development, thus, if the efforts are made to improve the society or the environment, the economy will automatically be affected positively (Vasile et al., 2016). According to Higgins (2013), the sustainability and economic development are interdependent on each other. The gross domestic product indicates economic growth. If a country chases high growth in the GDP, it would require increasing the production quantities at a large scale (Higgins, 2013). The increase in production of goods would entail consumption of resources at the large scale. The consumption of resources at a rapid pace is dangerous for the sustainability. Therefore, the need to strike out a balance between the desired economic growth and the consumption of resources in a sustainable manner is essential. Further states that balancing the current economic growth and the consumption of the resources is crucial for long run survival of the economy (Higgins, 2013).  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The reporting on sustainability issues has raised awareness in the business firms to save wastage of resources. The reduction in wastage of resources enhances the profitability of the firms which in turn increases the economic growth positively (Higgins, 2013). Further, as part of the sustainability efforts, the business firms are also contributing significantly for improving the societies. The contribution of the firms in this direction is critical to rise up the living standard of the people. Further, the improvement in the living standard is crucial for the overall economic growth. Thus, it could be said that the sustainability efforts made by the firms are essential for the overall improvement in the economic conditions of not only a country but at the global level (Higgins, 2013). In the views of Daly (2014), the economic development in the sustainable manner could be slow but it will be study and long last. The sustainability gives an impression that the resources are not to be used heedlessly (Daly, 2014). The firms are required to keep the needs of future in mind while consuming environmental resources. The consideration of future needs leads to consumption of the resources in a responsible manner which might lead to slow growth. However, the growth may be slow but it would be study. Consuming resources in this manner, the firm will be able to sustain its business for longer term which would ultimately affect its value positively (Daly, 2014).     Ã‚   The views of authors on sustainability accounting and reporting have been analyzed in this section. The literatures were reviewed with the objective of finding out the impact of sustainability accounting and reporting practices on the overall economic development of a country. In this regard, many authors provided their views on the reasons for evolution of the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. Some of the authors stated that it has become a mandatory requirement and few of them stated that sustainability accounting and reporting practices affects the value of the firm positively in the long run. Further, review of literatures reveal that though the adoption of sustainability reporting benefits the firm but it is quite a challenging task. However, the implantation of sustainability reporting could be vital for the overall economic development sustainability.  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   A systematic approach is adopted in conducting a research which involves application of appropriate methodology to collect the required data and apply the data analysis tools. The tools and techniques applied in the research for data collection could be scientific requiring application of principles of statics (Olsen, 2011). The selection of appropriate data collection methods and the analytical tools is critical for completing the research in an effective manner. There are two main categories of data collection methods such as primary and secondary. The primary data collection methods comprises of the methods such as survey and interview. Further, the secondary data collection methods comprises of the methods such as review of the documents and observations (Olsen, 2011). It has been observed that the secondary data collection methods are suited the best in the case of qualitative researches. The research carried out in this report aims at exploring the impact of accounting sustainability and reporting practices on the overall economic development (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011). The research is qualitative in nature, thus, the secondary data collection methods have been applied. For the purpose of this research, the data has been collected through study of books, journal, reports of regulatory authorities and the government. In this regard, it has been ensured that the data collected is latest; therefore, the books, journals, and the reports of the regulatory authorities of the latest years have been referred for data collection (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011). The data collection was organized in three categories such as reasons for adoption of sustainability accounting and reporting by the firms, impact on the firm’s value of sustainability reporting, and its impact on the overall economy (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011). The data collected in regard to reasons for adoption of sustainability reporting practices relates to identification of the key drivers of sustainability. Further, the data collected in regard to impact on the firm’s value covers the profitability and net worth of the firm’s before and after the adoption of sustainability reporting. Further, in regard to evaluation of impact on the overall economy, the data relates to macro economic factors such as gross domestic product, standard of living, poverty levels, and reductions in the carbon emissions (Lapan, Quartaroli, & Riemer, 2011).     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The data collection process has been carried out ethically and in an effective manner so that all the required information could be gathered. There certain limitations of the secondary data, which are required to be made explicit so as to assist the readers in drawing conclusions (Ary et al., 2013). The secondary data is prone to the risk of inappropriateness and there exists lack of control on preparation of the secondary data. Thus, effectiveness of the research carried out based on the secondary data depends upon the accuracy of the data. Further, the ethical concerns in regard to the use of secondary have been adhered to carefully. Proper referencing and citations have been given in the report wherever considered necessary to give credit to the authors whose data is used (Ary et al., 2013).  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research report presented here has main goal of finding out the impact of sustainability reporting on the economy of a country. In order to achieve this goal, it has been considered pertinent to find out the reasons for adoption of the sustainability reporting practices. The sustainability reporting provides value addition to the firm in various ways .There are countless parameters which can be used to assess the value added by sustainability reporting as shown in the figure given below: Figure 1: Value Added by Sustainability Reporting (EY, 2013) From the figure show above, it could be observed that there are various areas which are positively affected by adoption of sustainability reporting practices. It could be observed that more than 40% of the total surveyed companies consider that improved reputation is the major factor which drives the adoption of sustainability reporting practices (EY, 2013). The adoption of sustainability reporting practices enhances the confidence of investors and consumers which helps in building reputation in the market. Further, there were more than 35% companies which claimed that sustainability reporting is crucial in increasing the employee loyalty. Employee’s loyalty is very important for the firms to achieve the targets on time and succeed in the market. Further, few companies also found increase in the consumer loyalty due to adoption of the sustainability reporting (EY, 2013). Further, the sustainability reporting also helped the firms to make their strategies stronger in terms of long run business and refine their visions. Further, there were observed around 25% companies which claimed that achieving reduction in wastage of the natural resources was one of the primary reasons for promotion of sustainability reporting (EY, 2013). The other commonly accepted factors which laid the adoption of sustainability reporting were improved relationship with the regulatory bodies, reduced long term risk, enhanced long term profitability (EY, 2013). Due the above discussed factors, the sustainability reporting has been adopted by various firms world-wide. The following chart shows the growth in sustainability reporting adoption from to year 2000 to 2011: Figure 2: Growth in Sustainability Reporting (EY, 2013) From the chart presented above, it could be observed that there has been a complete transformation since the year 2008. The increase in the number of companies adopting sustainability reporting practices has been enormous from the year 2008 to 2011. Within a period of 3-4 years, the number of companies complying with the sustainability reporting guidelines (issued by GRI) has increased to a significant level (EY, 2013). Further, data has been collected and analyzed to find out the impact of sustainability reporting on the firm’s profitability and its value. The firms perceive that consuming resources optimally keeping the future needs in mind will help them build better tomorrow. Further, the reduction in cost and risk and increase in reputation and quality are expected to lead the firm on the path of high profitability in the long run. The implementation of the sustainability accounting and reporting practices increases the legal compliances and it also put additional burden on the firm in terms of new manpower. Further, the benefits of sustainability reporting accrue over the years in the long run. Therefore, in the short run, the impact on profitability of the firm employing sustainability reporting practices may be adverse, but it would be positive in the long run.  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The data analysis conducted NWOBU (2015) reveals that there exists a positive correlation between the profit after tax and sustainability reporting index. The profit after tax depicts profitability of the company while the score on sustainability index indicates the compliance level of the firm with sustainability reporting requirements. Thus, a positive correlation between profit after tax and sustainability index is the indicative of the fact that with the increased compliance of sustainability reporting, the firm’s experience increase in their profitability. The research of NWOBU (2015) reveals that correlation between profit after tax and the sustainability index is 0.281, which is low positive correlation. The correlation of 0.281 implies that increase in sustainability index would entail increase in the profit after tax, but the increase in profitability might at the low rate (NWOBU, 2015). Further, the correlation between shareholder’s fund and sustainability index was also analyzed. The correlation between these two factors was found to be 0.183, which can again be categorized as positive and low (NWOBU, 2015). Thus, the interpretation would remain as it was before in case of profit after tax. Therefore, the increase in sustainability index would entail increase in the shareholder’s fund. It is to be noted that the shareholder’s fund represents the value of a firm. Thus, it could be articulated that with the increase in sustainability index, the value of the firm increases. However, the increase might be at very slow rate (NWOBU, 2015). After analyzing the impact of sustainability reporting on the firm’s profitability and its value, it is essential to observe the changes in the macro economic factors due to adoption of sustainability reporting practices (Talberth, 2010). In this regard, it is considered crucial to analyze the gross domestic product, standards living of the people, and poverty level. It is argued that sustainable business practices may cause reduction in the overall gross domestic product of the country. The reduction in GDP may be caused due to reduction the production level caused by decrease in the consumption of the environmental resources. For example, if the mining companies decrease the exploration of minerals, the production level of commodities will go down affecting the gross domestic product adversely. However, due to recent shift in the economic and environmental conditions, the gross domestic product is no longer considered to be reliable measure of well being of an economy. The p erformance on sustainability indices is taking place of gross domestic product now a day (Talberth, 2010). Further, the improvement in the sustainability practices also implies contribution to the society at a large scale. The firms working in the economy make combined efforts to raise the living standard of the people. Further, with the rise in the living standard of the people, the poverty level automatically goes down. Therefore, it could be inferred that the improvements in the sustainability reporting enable the economy to stabilize and grow in a sustainable manner (Talberth, 2010).  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The research carried out in this report addresses the crucial matter which relates to adoption of sustainability accounting and reporting practices by the firms operating in the economy. The aim of this research is to explore that whether the sustainability accounting and reporting is essential for the economy or not. In order to achieve the aim, the activities of the research are bounded by three objectives. The literature review has been carried out around these three objectives and the data analysis has also been conducted by keeping the three identified objectives in the centerfield. The articulation of the reviews of various authors reveals that promotion of sustainability accounting and reporting is really important for the well being of the overall economy (Daly, 2014). The authors state that there are various factors which make the firms to adopt the sustainability reporting. The improvement in the market reputation of the firm is one of the most crucial factors in that regard. The views of the authors reveal that firm’s reputation is improved to a great extent when it complies with the sustainability reporting guidelines. Further, the data analysis also supports this view of the authors. The analysis of data findings reveals that most of the companies consider the market reputation as one of the essential factor in adoption of the sustainability reporting practices (EY, 2013). Further, there have been identified few other factors as well such as customer loyalty, operational efficiency, and regulatory compliances. These factors also make the firm to comply with the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. In regard to the impact on firm’s financial performance, the authors state that the adoption of the sustainability reporting affects it positively in the long run. However, in the short run there may be adverse effect due to high compliance cost at the beginning. Further, the findings of the data analysis also support this view of the authors. The data analysis depicts that the sustainability reporting and the firm’s financial performance are positively correlated. This implies that the financial performance of the firms which comply with the sustainability reporting practices is found to be better than the firms not complying with it. Further, it has also been explored that the firm’s value (shareholder’s equity) is also affected positively by the adoption of sustainability reporting practices (EY, 2013). In regard to impact on the overall economy, the authors have stated that sustainability accounting and reporting is necessary to achieve economic development in a sustainable manner (Higgins, 2013). Further, the data gathered from the secondary sources also supports this view of the authors. The findings of the data analysis reveal that adoption of sustainability in the operations leads to contribution by the firms towards social and environmental causes. The firms contribute at the large scale to save the scarce environmental resources and to raise the living standard of the people. Further, the protection of the natural resources is very critical from the view point of sustainability.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The report presented here presents a research study on the sustainability accounting and reporting. The primary aim of the research is to explore the impact of sustainability accounting and reporting on the overall economy of a country. In this regard, it has been considered essential to find out the impact of sustainability reporting on a particular company and then on the overall economy. Based on the findings of the report, it can be concluded that the sustainability reporting is essential for the long term economic development. The articulations drawn from the literature review bring out the fact that sustainability reporting has become crucial for the firms to survive and thrive in the market. The recent developments in the areas of social and environmental sustainability are admirable. The regulators from all over the world are making collective efforts to make the business sustainable and futuristic. The survey report of EY discloses that there has been observed a significant increase in the number of firms adopting the sustainability reporting practices since the year 2008. From the findings of data analysis, it could be articulated that the increased awareness and the enduring advantages of sustainability is pushing the firms to opt for the best sustainability accounting and reporting practices. The major advantages of sustainability reporting have been identified as the improvements in the firm’s reputation, enhancement in the investor’s confidence, employee’s loyalty, and consumers trust. Further, the company is also able build a good rapport with the governmental regulatory authorities. However, there certain challenges which the firms have to while implementing the sustainability accounting and reporting practices. Among various such challenges, the high operating cost and administrative problems are the major ones. Though, there are challenges, but the benefits of sustainability accounting and reporting are enduring, therefore, the firms have to make effort to implement it. Further, it was observed that sustainability reporting is also essential to raise the standard of living of the society and the maintaining a proper balance between the present and future needs. From the findings of the research, it could be inferred that maintaining a proper balance is crucial for long term economic developments. The sustainability in operations not only improves the financial performance of the firm but it also enhances its value. Further, the overall economy is affected in a positive manner which is the center point of the sustainability accounting and reporting. Schaltegger, S., Bennett, M., & Burritt, R. 2006. Sustainability Accounting and Reporting. Springer Science & Business Media. Brockett, A. & Rezaee, Z. 2012. Corporate Sustainability: Integrating Performance and Reporting. John Wiley & Sons. Jesson, J. 2011. Doing Your Literature Review: Traditional and Systematic Techniques. London: SAGE. Soderstrom, N. 2013. Sustainability reporting: past, present, and trends for the future. Retrieved February 07, 2017, from https://www.insights.unimelb.edu.au/vol13/04_Soderstrom.html Zu, L. 2008. Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Restructuring and Firm's Performance: Empirical Evidence from Chinese Enterprises. Springer Science & Business Media. GRI. 2008. Global Reporting Initiative Sustainability Report. Retrieved February 07, 2017, from https://www.globalreporting.org/resourcelibrary/GRI-Sustainability-Report-2007-2008.pdf Gupta, A. & Mason, M. 2014. Transparency in Global Environmental Governance: Critical Perspectives. MIT Press. Daizy & Das, N. 2014. Sustainability reporting framework: comparative analysis of global reporting initiatives and Dow Jones sustainability index. International Journal of Science, Environment, 3(1), pp. 55-66. Faisal, F., Tower, G., & Rusmin, R. 2012. Legitimizing Corporate Sustainability Reporting Throughout the World. Australasian Accounting, Business and Finance Journal, 6(2), pp. 19-34. CPA. 2013. Sustainability Reporting: Practices, Performance, and Potential. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.cpaaustralia.com.au/~/media/corporate/allfiles/document/professional-resources/sustainability/sustainability-reporting-practice-performance-potential.pdf OECD. 2008. OECD Environmental Performance Reviews OECD Environmental Performance Reviews: Australia 2007. OECD Publishing. Vasile, J., Andrei, Nicolo, & Domenico. 2016. Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Investments in the Green Economy. IGI Global. Higgins, K.L. 2013. Economic growth and sustainability – are they mutually exclusive? Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.elsevier.com/connect/economic-growth-and-sustainability-are-they-mutually-exclusive Daly, H.E. 2014. Beyond Growth: The Economics of Sustainable Development. Beacon Press. Olsen, W. 2011. Data collection: key debates and methods in social research. SAGE. Ary, D., Jacobs, L.C., Sorensen, C.K., and Walker, D. 2013. Introduction to research in education. Cengage Learning. Lapan, S.D., Quartaroli, M.T. &Riemer, F.J. 2011. Qualitative Research: An Introduction to Methods and Designs. John Wiley & Sons. NWOBU, O. 2015. The Relationship between Corporate Sustainability Reporting and Profitability and Shareholders Fund in Nigerian Banks. The Journal of Accounting and Management, 5(3). Talberth, J. 2010. Measuring What Matters: GDP, Ecosystems and the Environment. Retrieved February 08, 2017, from https://www.wri.org/blog/2010/04/measuring-what-matters-gdp-ecosystems-and-environment

Read the case and assignment, and answer the question. don't find any Assignment

Read the case and , and answer the question. don't find any resource from Internet or other book - Assignment Example The force is only significant when certain suppliers within the industry can differentiate their products to improve the quality of the industry’s products. However, the supplier bargaining power can influence the industry since not all suppliers possess all the movies available in the movie rental industry. Potential new entrants pose a strong competitive force within the movie rental industry. The dynamic nature of markets makes it easy for emerging firms to penetrate the market to fill any identified gaps within the industry. Existing firms do not have any control over the changing markets. New entrants increase the competitive forces within the industry. Similar firms in the industry compete on the basis of ‘business rivalry’ among themselves. The strength to attract customers among multiple sellers in the industry is the strongest competitive force. Customers are satisfied by the product that satisfy their needs, and maximizes their utility. Movie libraries compete to attract customers with the aim of maximizing revenue. The firm with the largest customer base becomes the most preferred firm among the existing and prospective customers. There are numerous changes about where and how movie rentals can be sourced. Movie rentals can be obtained from cable, fiber-optic, and satellite television providers. Consumers can connect their television sets to the internet to stream movies from online providers. Consumers are at liberty to obtain movie DVDs by; The internet has proven to be limitless within the movie rental industry. Advancements in technology have forced Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Amazon Prime Instant Video to resolve to online streaming as opposed to the traditional pay-per-view rentals. The gradual transition from pay-per-view and Video on Demand (VOD) rentals to unlimited internet streaming is a driving force in the movie rental industry. The dynamic nature of the movie rental industry

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Marketing Strategies - Essay Example The main purpose of this essay is to develop an effective marketing strategy for Global Bikes Co. considering various significant aspects. The different major aspects include the identification of the target market, setting marketing objectives and the facets of marketing mix strategies of Global Bikes. Section 2: Target Market The target market for Global Bikes can be identified by executing certain market segmentation variables on the basis of four major categories that include demographic, psychographic, geographic and behavioural environment. The important market segmentation variable of the demographic environment is concerned with the aspect of age structure. Fundamentally, the demographic environment is very much important for the business organisations due to the fact that it significantly deals with certain vital components such as market size and population among others. In this regard, Global Bikes must consider the significant factors of age structure in relation to the s egmentation variable of demographic environment while implementing its marketing strategies. In this connection, the company should emphasise largely upon the different age groups of different people that include the teenage, children, young, old age and adults. Thus, it can be stated that the Global Bikes should target its customers or people belonging to the age group of 10-50 years that largely constitute the students, workers and children among others (Thomas, 2007). In terms of segmentation variable in relation to psychographic market environment, the Global Bikes should consider the lifestyle factor of the target consumers that generally include their attitudes, interests, emotions, values as well as beliefs. With the intention of developing effective marketing strategies, it is very much necessary for the business organisations such as Global Bikes to strictly consider the attitudes and the interests of the consumers regarding the purchase of their products. In this context, regarding psychographic market segmentation, the target market or the consumers of Global Bikes would be those customers who enthusiastically possess utmost interest towards the products such as bicycles and related accessories. This particular consideration upon the interests along with the attitudes of the customers on the basis of psychographic or lifestyle market segmentation ultimately would contribute to attain noteworthy competitive position along with expected business goals for the company (Wright, 2006). With due consideration to the behavioural market environment, Global Bikes should emphasise upon the segmentation variable of knowledge of particular products, adequate implementation of the products along with the development of understanding regarding the responses towards the different products that are generally represented by the customers. In this context, the behavioural aspects based market segmentation tends to encourage the marketer or the business organisation t o possess deeper understanding of the buying procedures of the customers. Moreover, the aspect of behavioural segmentation environment can also assist the business organisations to largely identify their potential target markets. The conception of behavioural segmentation generally include certain decisive facets such as adequate application of a specific brand, buying procedures of the customers, effective decision criterion and finally the attitudes along with the preferences of the decision makers (Beide, 2003). In terms of the

Reflective blog Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Reflective blog - Article Example The main question that comes into people’s mind is what bars them from studying search languages. In most cases, anxiety plays a big role in creating the fear that they cannot learn in search environments. By definition, anxiety refers to the subjective feelings of nervousness, apprehension, tension as well as worries that are associated with the stimulation of the automatic nervous system (Worde 9). When anxiety is restricted to situation of language learning then it falls into the categories of precise anxiety reactions. According to psychologists, they use specific anxiety reactions to distinguish those individuals who are anxious in numerous situations from the ones who feel anxious only in precise circumstances. Therefore, the consequences and symptoms of foreign language anxiety need to become readily identifiable to individuals who are concerned with teaching and language learning. Impacts of anxiety on learning language Anxiety plays crucial roles in the learning of a foreign a language. As a result, these roles create some impacts on either the learner or the instructor. The following are some of the effects of anxiety on the learning of a language: i) Second language studies For several years, researchers have researched on the prospect of anxiety-provoking on the study of foreign language. ... Many current studies try to find out the effects that anxiety has on learning a foreign language, nevertheless there has been some divided opinions on these efforts by researchers. Even though the pertinent researchers have been different in the techniques used, they can be characterized normally by the comparison of self-reports of student’s anxiety with the ratings on their foreign language proficiency. This is accomplished through international measure or discrete skills task such as the final course grade. ii) Clinical experience The psycho-physiological symptoms, behavioral responses, and subjective feelings of anxious foreign languages are generally the same compared to any other specific anxiety. They experience the uneasiness worry even the dread ones. They have difficulty in their concentration thus they sweat, have palpitations and become very forgetful. They normally show the behavior of avoidance for instance postponing homework and missing classes. The clinical ex perience with students studying foreign language in universities as well as Learning Skill Centers also recommends numerous discrete problems that results from anxiety and shows poignantly on how the problems can also interfere with the process of language learning. Basically, counselors establish that the anxiety centers base their ideologies on the two primary roles needed students learning foreign languages. These requirements include speaking and listening. The complexity involved in speaking language is perhaps the most cited concern of students learning foreign language. How anxiety is manifested in children Anxiety is manifested in children in the following ways: i) Physical: this is one technique in which anxiety is manifested in children. Some of the common physical symptoms

Technology and International Development Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Technology and International Development - Essay Example This paper discusses Maasai community’s social, economic, and political challenges in their endeavour to maintain their culture. According to Akubue, Great disparities exists in the level of developments that any suggestion of inflexibility in technology will not be practical (Akubue, 2000). Maasai community are still holding on to their cultures despite the advancement in technology, better and environmentally friendly farming techniques, and changes in the weather patterns. The Maasai community have a small population (approximately 800,000) of the people in Kenya and Northern Tanzania. They are indigenous Nilotic ethnic group, who live a nomadic pastoralist lifestyle. For centuries, Maasai community has lived harmoniously with nature, engaging in pastoralism for subsistence. The men in this community are warriors and herders who move with the cattle from place to place in search of pasture. Their movement depend with presence of pasture, which makes them move to the lowlands in high season and to the highlands in dry seasons. The women and the children live in the homesteads as they engage in small-scale farming to supplement the animal products. The Masaai economic activity is based on biological assets, which are vulnerable to weather and other conditions. Therefore, the Maasai community engage in unstable economy. The problems of the Maasai community started way back in colonial era when they lost approximately 75% of their ancestral lands as a result of protection of Mau forest, which is an ecosystem supporting many lives. They lost the pastures they would use in dry seasons and their sacred sites too. Due to lack of proper grazing lands, Maasai community faces great loss of animals in every dry season. The dry seasons depleted their resources greatly leaving them in hard economic times. The threat on Maasai land is still on as private developers are moving in and investing on Maasai’s pastoral lands. Their economic

The Role of a Mentor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Role of a Mentor - Essay Example As the essay stresses the learning opportunities provided by the mentor to the students are immense .In order for mentors to develop and evaluate the quality of the learning environment they need to develop trusting relationships with the students. At the start of the placement they should give the students an orientation pack or welcome pack. This is required by the students for the purpose of gaining information which will help in facilitating the learning and will help the experience of practice placement. A mentor who has developed a good working relationship with a student is in a better position to obtain honest feedback on their placement experience. This paper declares that from the NMC guidelines, the practice areas will be using evaluation results in developing the practice learning opportunities in their respective areas. Student feedback on an individual basis and overall evaluation, guides the mentor in gauging their mentoring performance as well as identifying changes that could be implemented in the practice area for the improvement of the learning experience of the students. The evaluation results will also be reviewed within the learning area. The students are required to conduct a formal evaluation at the end of placement. This will help in providing evidence of the experience the pre and post registration nurse have had in their placement education. An alternative method of evaluation is that of informal feedback. Both these methods provide evidence of both positive areas which as well as highlight the difficult areas and areas which prevented skill generation (Pinfield et al, 2011). The NMC guidelines and standards s tate that the students are required on a formal basis, to evaluate their practice and learning opportunities. This is sometimes done through online survey at time they return to the university however the disadvantage is that the ward/unit may not always get that evaluation feedback. The students are asked to respond to a series of questions associated with the practice

Cv Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cv - Essay Example I am proactive and have a strong determination to succeed. I am competent, reliable, enthusiastic and energetic. I have good convincing ability that was aquired through my prior job experiences which required me to handle various individuals. I possess good analytical and conceptual skills. I believe these attributes can prove to be extremely beneficial for the organizations I work for. I am a motivated and confident individual with a willingness to learn. I am adaptable and flexible and am adept at handling changes. Relevant Skills I possess extremely good communication skills which were acquired through my academic experience during which I had to make presentations. I have good convincing ability and during my job as an assistant in ‘The Nido Student’, I was able to improve my persuasive and negotiation skills. I am a team player and have the ability to work in cooperation and coordination with my team members to achieve the team’s goals. I could improve on thi s particular skill through my experience of working in teams during my university education. I am a self starter and make sure that tasks are accomplished with perfection. I was entrusted with the responsibility of planning and organizing various tasks and allocating the tasks to the various team members. I strictly adhered to deadlines and accomplished the assigned tasks within the stipulated time period. During my previous jobs, I have worked as a team member as well as a team manager. I have successfully fulfilled my responsibilities demanded by the various roles that I had to undertake in the teams. I had worked as the Student Ambassador and Student Representative in the London Metropolitan University. Computer Skills I am computer literate and have working knowledge of computers. I have an in depth knowledge of various word processing packages and Microsoft Office. Language Proficiency I am proficient in English and Arabic and possess slight knowledge of Italian. However, I am a quick learner and have the ability and the interest to learn new languages. Key Strengths I possess extremely good interpersonal skills and I am good at presentations. In my prior jobs, these skills have helped me to perform well since I have had direct interaction with customers and it requires good communication skills. I am a quick learner and can quickly adapt to changes. I am proactive and always take the initiative to accomplish tasks to perfection. I am capable of performing well in teams as well as individually. Mobility I am free to travel anywhere as demanded by my job. Academic Qualification Duration Year Degree Course College/University 2010- 2011 Third year Undergraduate Degree Business management London Metropolitan University 2009-2010 Second Year Undergraduate Degree Business management London Metropolitan University 2008-2009 First Year Undergraduate Degree Business management London Metropolitan University 2007-2008 Business Foundation Programme London Metropolit an University 2007-2008 Student Representative London Metropolitan University 2006-2007 Certificate of Advanced level of English EC London College, London 2001-2005 Intermediate Diploma in Accounting Libyan College Training Undergone I have received training in customer services, leadership and entrepreneurship from London Metropolitan University. I had also undertaken a security course for the position of a door supervisor

The Role of a Mentor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Role of a Mentor - Essay Example As the essay stresses the learning opportunities provided by the mentor to the students are immense .In order for mentors to develop and evaluate the quality of the learning environment they need to develop trusting relationships with the students. At the start of the placement they should give the students an orientation pack or welcome pack. This is required by the students for the purpose of gaining information which will help in facilitating the learning and will help the experience of practice placement. A mentor who has developed a good working relationship with a student is in a better position to obtain honest feedback on their placement experience. This paper declares that from the NMC guidelines, the practice areas will be using evaluation results in developing the practice learning opportunities in their respective areas. Student feedback on an individual basis and overall evaluation, guides the mentor in gauging their mentoring performance as well as identifying changes that could be implemented in the practice area for the improvement of the learning experience of the students. The evaluation results will also be reviewed within the learning area. The students are required to conduct a formal evaluation at the end of placement. This will help in providing evidence of the experience the pre and post registration nurse have had in their placement education. An alternative method of evaluation is that of informal feedback. Both these methods provide evidence of both positive areas which as well as highlight the difficult areas and areas which prevented skill generation (Pinfield et al, 2011). The NMC guidelines and standards s tate that the students are required on a formal basis, to evaluate their practice and learning opportunities. This is sometimes done through online survey at time they return to the university however the disadvantage is that the ward/unit may not always get that evaluation feedback. The students are asked to respond to a series of questions associated with the practice

Ocean of information Essay Example for Free

Ocean of information Essay Information seeking skills are needed whenever there is a search for new information. With the advent of the internet there is suddenly a lot of information available at the click of a mouse and yet, one needs to have some knowledge and skills to obtain the relevant information from the vast ocean of information on the internet. When it comes to searching on the internet, there are many search tools available: search engines, subject directories / virtual libraries, invisible (deep) web databases, Meta search engines, etc (Barker, 2007). Search engines such as Googleâ„ ¢, AlltheWeb, MSN, Teoma, AltaVista and Wisent provide specific information (Bazac, 2006). Metasearch engines such as ez2Find, Division, Info Grid, Info NetWare, boogie, etc can be used when searching for a unique search term, or in-depth information on a particular subject (Bazac, 2006). Web directories such as Googleâ„ ¢ Directory, Open Directory Project (ODP), Yahoo! Zeal, JoeAnt and Gimpsy provide general information on popular topics, and scholarly information is best got from virtual libraries such as Librarians Index to the Internet, INFOMINE, and Internet Public Library (Bazac, 2006). Real time information is best obtained through deep web which are specialized databases (MU, 2007). Examples of excellent invisible web databases are Profusion, Invisible-web. net, Complete Planet, Resource Discovery Network and direct search (Moore, 2007). Robert Muldrow Cooper Library, attached to the Clemson University, is known for its automated information retrieval system, the Clemson facilities (CU, 2007). Numerous periodical indexes are housed on-line and available for automated searching. The collections deal mainly with agriculture, natural and physical sciences, economics and technology. Many of the databases that include full text of many articles are available for access through the internet. There are many links to web indexes, search engines, and tips on searching and evaluating sources (CU, 2007). The essential steps in an internet-based search strategy are having a focus, identifying and understanding the key concepts of the topic, finding alternative terms for these concepts and identifying the place for searching and this includes synonyms, plural/singular forms, spelling variations, variations of root words and acronyms (MU, 2007). If the initial information is too little or too much, the search terms should be modified. A search may be broadened by any of the following steps: reducing the number of concepts, using an OR search, looking for alternative terms, using more general search terms, using subject headings as search terms or using alternate spellings. On the other hand, a search may be narrowed by using an AND or NOT search, looking for more specific alternative terms, using subject headings as search terms, or using more precise terms (MU, 2007). Journal websites that can provide full text articles for nursing students and professionals include NursingCenter, Medscape, Hardin MD and Online Journals (Research Medical Library). CINAHL sources provide links to websites of interest to various journals of interest to nursing and allied professions (CINAHL, 2007). CINAHL stands for Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. Other important websites for nursing information include Medscape, Toxline and AIDSLINE, Journal of Nursing Management, NursingCenter, and The American Journal of Nursing (AJN). The AJN site allows one to find articles from more than 50 trusted nursing journals, including AJN and Nursing2007. Registration is free (AJN, 2007). Thus, the internet is a treasure trove of information for the searcher with the right set of searching skills. Bibliography: CINAHL (2007). http://www. cinahl. com/csources/csources. htm Barker, Joe (2007). Finding Information on the Internet: A Tutorial. http://www. lib. berkeley. edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/FindInfo. html MU (Monash University) (2007). Library Online Tutorials. http://www.monash.edu/library

O. Henrys Surprise Endings

O. Henrys Surprise Endings A theme would have to be his surprise endings of O.Henry. He uses this in a large amount of his stories. Many adults who read O.Henrys works are eagerly waiting for a surprise ending. (Rollins 155) O.Henrys works basically all contain a surprise ending. They lead you on it the beginning with a thought that everything is going according to plan. He lets the reader think that they have it figured out by we dont. He has something waiting for us at the end of the book. Something that would seem like it came out of no where. Hyder E. Rollins said â€Å"The conclusion is an enigma.†(155) He has the reader under suspense until the last sentence. This is shown in O.Henrys story The Gift of the Magi. Where a husband sells his watch to buy his wife some combs she worshiped, and the wife cut and sold her hair to buy her husband a chain for his watch. This was such a surprise because you never expected this in the beginning. Also O.Henry had an idea that life is a surprise that the unexpe cted continually happens. (157) Rollins spoke about O.Henry saying that â€Å"He is then, a pure romanticist who strives earnestly for realistic effects.† (157) A romanticist is a person who acts on impulse. They hate conformity they dislike following the rules. They prefer to make there own rules, and they are also in touch with nature. They love the outdoors. Rollins is saying that O.Henry is a romanticist because of his idea. His idea about how life happens unexpectedly. Its spontaneous so therefore you never know what kind of turn your life will take one for the better or worse. Eugene Current-Garcia said that â€Å"the most obvious technical manifestation of O.Henrys delight in the unexpected is in his famous surprise endings.†(Current-Garcia 137) O.Henrys way of using these surprise ending really played a big part in most of his stories. Another theme would of O.Henrys his most commonly used theme when he reverses everything on you. This means when he gives you a story and as soon as you think you have it figured out he changes it completely. He lets you think you know what kind of person the main character is while he has a plan to complete make that person plan a completely different role. Its not like surprise ending, but more like a reversal of the character completely from the way they act to the way they dress, talk, and walk. O.Henry liked to leave the reader guessing not only on the ending, but on what the characters would do next. For example in â€Å"The Princess and the Puma† the princess is portrayed in the beginning of the book as a princess one who lives highly. While she is really a pistol wearing, roping, riding cowgirl who has to fight off a mountain lion when she is suppose to be rescued. Technique was something that O.Henry was good at using. He used many different techniques and different styles in his writing one of the techniques his like using was local color. O.Henrys writings take the speech patterns and rhythms of the common folk and adds â€Å"vivacity, variety, and interest of his stories† said Eugene Current-Garcia. (Current-Garcia 142) He came directly from a southern background being born in North Carolina. The cultural tradition he inherited brought out a deep influence on his literary career. About thirty of his stories were placed in the old south setting or had to do with activities and attitudes of southern characters. When he writes he puts out a realistic dialogue from his childhood, his own history, and first hand observations of the various classes of people he knew and lived with.(Current-Garcia 12) O.Henry was born in the south so most of his stories talk about the lifestyles of the people in the south. His characters models are people w ho were around O.Henry. His narrative methods came from him dealing with Texas outlaws also from his childhood in the south. (Current-Garcia 4) There is a story where he talks about life with the outlaws in Texas. That is because he was there and witnessed it first hand. So he takes them and puts them into his story so that they can become major characters based on the way they were around him. O.Henry moved from the south to Texas and was later in jail all of these things were reason that were put into his stories. Since he was in jail some of his characters are based on people he met in jail or some of them are based on how the jail life was. In 1894 cash was found to have gone missing from the First National Bank in Austin, where Porter had worked as a bank teller. When he was called back to Austin to stand trial, Porter fled to Honduras to avoid trial. Little is known about Porters stay in Central America. It is said, that he met one Al Jennings, and rambled in South America and Mexico on the proceeds of Jenningss robbery. After hearing news that his wife was dying, he returned in 1897 to Austin. In 1897 he was convicted of embezzling money, although there has been much debate over his actual guilt. Porter entered in 1898 a penitentiary at Columbus, Ohio. All of this things helped O.Henry by being in his local color. They each played a significant part in his life and in his stories. O.Henry either wrote like a humorist like A.B. Longstreet and J.J. Hooper or he wrote with local color. Both ways you can tell that the characters had southern attitudes, manners, and speech. (Current-Garcia 4) Another technique would be O.Henrys ability to use allusions. An example of O.Henrys artistry with words can be seen in his many literary allusions, especially toward Shakespearean plays and the ancient classics. (Current-Garcia 146) O.Henrys â€Å"The Poet and the Peasant,† puts together a lot of literary devices. The story starts off first person narrative and follows a detailed description. At each turn of the story the irony gets further complicating. (Current-Garcia 152-153) This is just one example of how O.Henry uses many different literary devices. A writer said that in the many allusions to Shakespeare found in O.Henrys stories â€Å"how shows a tendency to word-play or to an unexpected turn similar to that manifest of the plots of his stories.†(Current-Garcia 146) The light touch of O.Henry â€Å"his mastery of the vernacular, his insight into the life of the disinherited, makes it needless for him to resort to such inventions.†(Forman 152) When O.Henry writes he has a touch that is unbelievable the way he makes everything fall together. Each line is unique in a way because he writes like he talks, but in some cases he is able to use academic terms in his writings. He just builds up a picture for us. Forman said â€Å"The piquant and picturesque phrasing, the dash of the slang. The genial and winning fancy seems to carry the most fantastic situations.†(Forman 152) This quote describes exactly what I mean he is able to paint a picture for us. His stories have the â€Å"harmony of tone so essential to the short story writer,† said Rollins. (Rollins 158) Even though O.Henrys ridiculous use of modern slang, he still is a master of felicitous expressions and strange verbal flavors. (Current-Garcia 136) O.Henry had a â€Å"malt reatment of words.† O.Henrys stories were either based in Texas or in New York City. Both of these places he spent a significant amount of time in during his life. He was in Texas working in a drug story. Then he was put into jail and some how found his way to New York City. These places made the setting of his stories simple and easy because every one has heard of New York City. While in prison O. Henry started to write short stories to earn money to support his daughter Margaret. His first work, Whistling Dicks Christmas Stocking (1899), appeared in McClures Magazine. After doing three years of the five years sentence, Porter emerged from the prison in 1901 and changed his name to O. Henry. He moved to New York City in 1902 and from December 1903 to January 1906 he wrote a story a week for the New York World, also publishing in other magazines. Henrys first collection, Cabbages and Kings appeared in 1904. The second, The Four Million, was published two years later and included his well-known stories T he Gift of the Magi and The Furnished Room. The Trimmed Lamp (1907) included The Last Leaf. After his death in 1920s his rep dwindled and critics wonder how he was ever taken seriously new fiction gained much more respect in 20s and 30s went against moral standards, taboos and conventions of older generation nd reliance on plot structure. Critics consider all of O.Henry work jokes because he was humorous and he used slang he didnt take it seriously. While other said it is fair to compare him woth anybody. He was just amazing like Henry James Forman said â€Å"No talent could be more original or more delightful. The combination of technical excellence with whimsical,sparkling wit, abundant humor and fertile invention is so rae that the reader is content without comparisons.† This is true on many levels about O.Henry the way in which he wrote so many stories was amazing. Towards the end of his life things started to fall out. O. Henrys last years were shadowed by alcoholism, ill health, and financial problems. He married Sara Lindsay Coleman in 1907, but the marriage w as not happy, and they separated a year later. O. Henry died of cirrhosis of the liver on June 5, 1910, in New York.