Legalization Of Same Sex Marriages - 1390 Words

Legalization of Same Sex Marriages As a Muslim, in my opinion same sex marriage is not right and same sex marriage should not be legalized. Out of this statement comes the question: what is the purpose and meaning of marriage. Can we ever explain marriage in the context of a bond between two males or two females. Can this relationship be called a â€Å"Marriage†? Whether we disguise this relationship with the label of marriage, does it become accepted into society as a real marriage? Or are we fooling ourselves? Marriage is a sacred bond between a man and a woman which defines many different aspects of a relationship. It is a complement between two different and opposite types of humans. In the natural state of existence, traditional marriage is meant to be between two people of the opposite sex. But for the past 20 years, the debate of the legalization of marriage has uprooted many ideologies that once existed in traditional societies. Society is now conforming to a different mentality and it is questioning the purity of marital relations as cited in the Torah, in the Bible and in the Quran as well in ancient scripts from civilizations of the past. Do we really believe that same sex marriages will be equal to heterosexual marriage? Many people believe that marriage has two objectives; one is to procreate and the other is to have intimate relations. In society a lot of people are opposed to same sex marriages because in a traditional marriage the idea is that there is onlyShow MoreRelatedLegalization Of Same Sex Marriage Essay963 Words   |  4 PagesKaye Shannelle Romuar Alfritz Arevalo Angelika Figueroa Legalization of Same-Sex Marriage I. Introduction Same-sex marriage can also be called gay marriage. This is a marriage between two males or two females, in either a religious setting or in a civil ceremony. Same-sex unions are recorded in the history of a number of cultures but this type of marriage is rare, or doesn’t exist in other cultures .The first law that provided same-sex marriage for the people was in 2001 in the Netherlands. As of JulyRead MoreLegalization Of Same Sex Marriage1594 Words   |  7 PagesWhy The Nationwide Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage Will Greatly Benefit The Economy Same-sex marriage has been a long debated issue in the United States. Since the nationwide legalization of same-sex marriage in countries such as Holland, Belgium, and Canada American gay couples have been pushing harder for equal marriage rights under the law. Opponents claim that allowing same-sex unions would not only lead to less stable marriages and higher divorce rates for heterosexual couples, but also precipitateRead MoreThe Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage930 Words   |  4 Pagesof legalizing same-sex marriage all across the nation, after years of social, political, and cultural mobilizations of members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community and allies. However, this achievement is not an end it itself. Leaders of the marriage equality movement, as well as community members, ask: Now what? This proposed project attempts to provide an answer for this question by looking at the perceived impact of the legalization of same-sex marriage among Black LG BTsRead MoreThe Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage938 Words   |  4 PagesRights To All Most people believe that they deserve the rights they are granted by the government. A citizen who pays their taxes, serves their community and abides by the law should be afforded the same rights as any American. However, not all citizens are afforded equal rights. Lesbians, gays, bi-sexual, and transgender (LGBT) are consistently denied rights that are typically taken for granted by the average American. Specifically, gay and lesbians couples are denied the right to marry even ifRead MoreThe Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage2317 Words   |  10 PagesCavataio PHL 118: Intro to Philosophy 8/14/14 Gary Fuller One of the most heated and debated topics today is the legalization of same-sex marriage. No matter where you look, people are always expressing their opinion on this issue. Politicians, athletes, and celebrities are some of the many people who continually come out with either support or opposition of same-sex marriage. History has shown that issues regarding equality and rights take time to move forward. The women’s suffrage movementRead MoreThe Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage1091 Words   |  5 PagesThe legalization of same-sex marriage is a hot topic in the U.S. approving, it in all fifty states can be harmful to the country. Same-sex marriage should not have been legalized in the United States. First, legalizing can be harmful to the society, Second, same-sex marriage it always denies a child a father or a mother, Third, legalizing It Offends some religions and violates tradition. In addition, It means all citizens should have understood of the consequences before maki ng the decision. OneRead MoreThe Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage1411 Words   |  6 PagesNikta Kalatari Writing Assignment #1 The proposead legalization of same-sex marriage is one of the most significant issues in contemporary American family law. Presently, it is one of the most vigorously advocated reforms discussed in law reviews, one of the most explosive political questions facing lawmakers, and one of the most provocative issues emerging before American courts. If same-sex marriage is legalized, it could be one of the most revolutionary policy decisions in the history of AmericanRead MoreThe Legalization Of Same Sex Marriage1294 Words   |  6 Pages The Legalization of Homosexual Marriage Brandon Taylor Wichita State University Gay marriage, also known as homosexual or same-sex marriage, has been a major topic in our country ever since it was allowed in Massachusetts whenever the state’s Supreme Court ruled the ban as unconstitutional. It was legalized in thirty seven of the fifty states before the Supreme Court’s ruling on June 26, 2015 that it was unconstitutional to deny marriage to a same sex couple (ProCon.org, 2015). The Merriam-WebsterRead MoreThe Legalization of Same Sex Marriage 1623 Words   |  6 Pageshow the citizens value their morals. An every day American would think that being with the same sex is not normal, or is frowned upon. Recent studies show that half of all Americans believe that gay men and lesbians have a constitutional right to marry (Craighill). Same-sex marriage has caused many conflicts around the country and even the world with multiple stand points. World views on same-sex marriage are changing day to day. â€Å"Of the 15 countries worldwide to permit gay m en and lesbians to marryRead MoreLegalization of Same Sex Marriage9779 Words   |  40 PagesTHE LEGALIZATION OF SAME SEX MARRIAGE AS ASSESED BY CITHM STUDENTS S.Y. 2011-2012 A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the College of International Tourism And Hospitality Management LYCEUM OF THE PHILIPPINES UNIVERSITY In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Science in Tourism By Ang, Dianne Marie M. Bayot, Donalynne B. October 2011 CHAPTER 1 THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND INTRODUCTION    In our generation today, homosexuals

Changing the Target Audience in Retail Sales Free Essays

â€Å"On average, middle-aged consumers devote 39 percent of their retail expenditure to department store products and services, while for younger consumers the average is only 25 percent. Since the number of middle-aged people will increase dramatically within the next decade, department stores can expect retail sales to increase significantly during that period. Furthermore, to take advantage of the trend, these stores should begin to replace some of those products intended to attract the younger consumer with products intended to attract the middle-aged consumer. We will write a custom essay sample on Changing the Target Audience in Retail Sales or any similar topic only for you Order Now Essay 1: The argument that department retail sales will increase in the next 10 years and thus department stores should begin to replace products to attract middle-aged consumers is not entirely logically convincing, since it omits certain crucial assumptions First of all, the argument ignores the absolute amount of retail expenditure of middle-aged and younger consumers devoted to department store products and services. Although younger consumers spend a smaller percentage of their retail expenditure to department store products than do the middle-aged consumers, they might actually spend more in terms of the absolute amount. Even if middle-aged consumers are spending more than younger ones in department stores, the argument ignores the possibility that the trend may change within the next decade. Younger consumers might prefer to shop in department stores than in other types of stores, and middle-aged consumers might turn to other types of stores, too. This will lead to a higher expenditure of younger consumers in department stores than that of middle-aged consumers. Besides, the argument never addresses the population difference between middle-aged consumers and younger ones. Suppose there are more younger consumers than the middle-aged ones now, the total population base of younger consumers will be bigger than that of the middle-aged ones if both of them grow at the same rate in the next decade. Thus there will be a bigger younger consumer base. Based on the reasons I listed above, the argument is not completely sound. The evidence in support of the conclusion does little to prove the conclusion since it does not address the assumptions I have already raised. Ultimately, the argument might have been more convincing by making it clear that the absolute population of middle-aged consumers are higher than that of the younger consumers and the number will continue to grow in the next decade, and that the middle-aged consumers will continue to spend more money in department stores than younger consumers do in the next decade. Essay 2: The argument that retailers should replace some of the products intended to attract the younger consumers with products intended to attract the middle-aged consumers is not entirely logically convincing, since it ignores certain crucial assumptions. First, the argument omits the assumption that the business volumes of both the middle-aged consumers and the younger consumers are the same. If the business volume of the middle-aged consumers’ 39% is smaller than that of the younger consumers’ 25%, the retail sales will not increase during the next decade. Second, even if the business volumes of both the middle-aged consumers and the younger consumers were the same in the last decade, the increase of the middle-aged people in the next decade is not the same as the increase of the retail expenditure, for the retail trade depends more on such factors as the economic circumstances, people’s consuming desire. Finally, the argument never assumes the increase of the younger consumers within the next decade. If the younger consumers increase at the same rate and spend the same amount of money on the goods and services of department stores, the retailers should never ignore them. Thus the argument is not completely sound. The evidence in support of the conclusion that the growing number of middle-aged people within the next decade does little to prove the conclusion—that department stores should begin to replace some of their products to attract the middle-aged consumers since it does not address the assumptions I have already raised. Ultimately, the argument might have been strengthened by making it clear that the business volumes of both types of consumers are the same and comparable, that the increase of a certain type of consumers are correlated with the increase of the retail sales, and that the growth rate of the younger consumers are the same as that of the middle-aged consumers. Essay 3: Based on an expected increase in the number of middle-aged people during the next decade, the author predicts that retail sales at department stores will increase significantly over the next ten years. To bolster this prediction, the author cites statistics showing that middle-aged people devote a much higher percentage of their retail expenditure to department-store services and products than younger consumers do. Since the number of middle-aged consumers is on the rise and since they spend more than younger people on department-store goods and services, the author further recommends that department stores begin to adjust their inventories to capitalize on this trend. Specifically, it is recommended that department stores increase their inventory of products aimed at middle-aged consumers and decrease their inventory of products aimed at younger consumers. This argument is problematic for two reasons. First, an increase in the number of middle-aged people does not necessarily portend an overall increase in department-store sales. It does so only on the assumption that other population groups will remain relatively constant. For example, if the expected increase in the number of middle-aged people is offset by an equally significant decrease in the number of younger people, there will be little or no net gain in sales. Second, in recommending that department stores replace products intended to attract younger consumers with products more suitable to middle-aged consumers, the author assumes that the number of younger consumers will not also increase. Since a sizable increase in the population of younger consumers could conceivably offset the difference in the retail expenditure patterns of younger and middle-aged consumers, it would be unwise to make the recommended inventory adjustment lacking evidence to support this assumption. In conclusion, this argument is unacceptable. To strengthen the argument the author would have to provide evidence that the population of younger consumers will remain relatively constant over the next decade. How to cite Changing the Target Audience in Retail Sales, Papers

Massimo Dutti Marketing Plan free essay sample

As Massimo built its brand taking care of all the above, the brand managed to built a strong customer base that’s loyal and satisfied, for all of that Massimo customer management is considered the best and always fulfill the promise they treat their customers as a unique personals who are fashionable and classy and looking to own the best out there. Physical evidence people Logistics Production Visual demonstration of the importance of each Success Factor Customers Industry Analysis| * Industry Trends | Designer Houses: everybody in the fashion industry is looking to imitate and make the designer houses high end expensive styles available for the streets. * Runway Style: the runway iconic styles and trends is the main leader of the fashion industry, anything that goes on the runway is anticipated by all fashion customers. * Inclusive: there is a wide range of styles and looks that is available each season, so it’s not a stiff industry it’s fast moving industry. * key success Factors| to success in this industry you have to make sure that you are doing the following: * Differentiation Customer Focused * Physical Evidence * Satisfying New Fashion Consumer SWOT analysis| * Opportunities * Plus Size women do not have a fashion brand that is high end and they can relate to. * Unsatisfied huge segment in Egypt, most Egyptian women are curvy and tend to be a little bit fat. * Threats * Design difficulties. * advertising challenge â€Å" you can’t tell women they are FAT â€Å" * Exciting Customer reaction and keeping current female customers who are not FAT. * Fat is not Fashionable * Strength * Strong Brand * Loyal Customers * Unique image * Sustainable growth Weaknesses * New in the segment * More experienced competitors * Lack of e-commerce Customer Analysis Profile: Todays Fashion and outfit customers: * More educated: the level of education is high, also the resource to learn more about fashion is available everywhere especially with the digital revolution and the mobile and internet availability. * Have a lot of choices: a lot of brands are available which allow the current customers to choose from a lot of alternatives, that makes them very careful of small details and what the brand has to offer. More savvy and demanding: as they have a lot of choices they turned to become more demanding because if a brand wont obey them another one will, so the customers know that they can get what they demand. Behavior Fashion Customers: * Well educated: they know about the fashion trends and they are looking for the latest trends in the brands they love. * Group buyers: they tend to follow the group, so they buy stuff similar to what their friends are wearing specially if their friends are trendy. * Buying dec ision are self motives trying to reflect a better self image. out of every 3 women is unhappy by the way their clothes fit them Segment Analysis Plus size â€Å" curvy women â€Å" market share 60% 40% increase by 2014 Only 5% of fashion retail space is dedicated to plus size products Market Analysis Low price High price Low Fashion High Fashion Bershka Pull and Bear Burrberry CK French collection Concrete Tawheed amp; Noor Wild Hamp;M * As we can see tha Massimo brand owns a very unique position within the fashion industry, as it comes with high fashion outfit with a reasonable price. Marketing and Promotional Plan Strategic Marketing Objectives | Overall Marketing Objectives Increase customer equity Sub objectives: * Increase customer satisfaction, decrease dissatisfaction of Plus size curvy consumers. * Increase purchase frequency of plus size curvy consumers. * Continue to grow and extend current Massimo Dutti Consumers. * Increase brand awareness among customers. Marketing STP Main Segment Plus size, Full shape body women Demographics * Age 18-40 * Live in big cities * Professional women * High class B house wifes * Educated Physiographic * Enjoy shopping * Interested in fashion trends Want to buy * Clothes that fit their body * Make them feel beautiful Positioning The only brand that designs its products specially to fit your body and make you beautiful† Building a customer focused Product: Design: * Design products that complement full body shape Product symbolism * Massimo Dutti knows my body shape * I Look good in Massimo dutti Cloths * I feel beautfull Colors and material * Differenciate from compeitiors * Colors and materials should reflec t high quality Brand Lable * Differnciate form compeitiors * Reflects elegance and quality Promotion Strategy Above the line: Print Advertising Below the line: Public Relation Brand Communication Sponsoring Social events Main Objective Inform about the new line Create positive emotion about it Generate consumer interest and Purchase intention. Advertising Strategy: â€Å"The only true fashion brand that consider your body shapeâ€Å" Emotional appeal * Less is more * Consistent with current strategy * Support new line launch only Advertising idea Generation: For the Full body shape women target consumers , Massimo Dutti is the fashion expert brand character for your wardrobe Product competitive frame that helps you look the best you can Brand promise because it takes the high fashion trends and adapts them for the real you emotional support Advertising Creative Elements * High Fashion Look * Full Shape body model * Body shape reveled: Curve lines should not be hidden, Give the feeling of powerful and dominant sexy women, * Desired impact: released sexuality, element of surprise. Format Double page spread print with the Massimo Dutti logo in a great position. Placement * Fashion monthly magazine. * Teenager magazines. * Women Magazines. Art work inspiration For you By For you By Thank you

Loyalty In Odyssey Essay Research Paper LoyaltyIn free essay sample

Loyalty In Odyssey Essay, Research Paper Loyalty In The Odyssey by Homer, the scene when Odysseus Canis familiaris Argos recognized him after 19 old ages of absence, along with Eumaios still esteeming his maestro greatly showed that a loyal individual in the Odyssey or even in the Grecian society will be respected while the disloyal are despised. Unlike unpatriotic characters such as Melanthios, the reader respects characters that put responsibility over personal addition in The Odyssey. The Characters get what they deserve in the Odyssey, if they are respectable, they normally end up good, if they are unpatriotic, they end up bad. Both Argos and Odysseus did non bury each other during their 19 old ages of separation. Even when Argos is weak, dirty, and death, he still tried to demo fondness toward Odysseus by wagging his tail, and puting his ears back. This showed that his trueness towards Odysseus neer faded despite his maestro s absence. We will write a custom essay sample on Loyalty In Odyssey Essay Research Paper LoyaltyIn or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page When Odysseus recognized Argos, and realized he neer forgot about him, Odysseus becomes emotional, and wiped a bead of tear off. I was touched after reading this scene, and it was difficult to disregard my regard and sympathy towards Argos. Not merely the animate beings display this kind of allegiance, nevertheless since Argos was loyal, the reader respects this character. Eumaios, the pigman, besides embodies the features of a faithful retainer. Like Argos, even when Odysseus is speculated as dead, Eumaios still refers to Odysseus as his maestro: I call him my Maestro, though he is absent. His sort intervention of the mendicant, who was really Odysseus, shows he is a good individual in general, non merely to his maestro. The fact that Eumaios sleeps with Odysseus hogs every N ight greatly reinforces this form of being loyal. He was so loyal that in order to take attention of his absent maestro s support he sacrificed himself. I respected Eumaios because he treated the belongings as if he expected Odysseus to return at dawn. In the terminal, he besides helped Odysseus in the feast hall conflict. His ultimate destiny was non due to luck, but instead a life of sturdy devotedness. Not all of Odysseus s retainers emulated this ideal. Melanthios, to the reverse was the exact antonym of Eumaios. He ignored his responsibility as a goat herder by presenting the caprine animals to the suers alternatively of protecting Odysseus belongings. Even though Odysseus has been gone for a long clip, he should still make his occupation because Penelope was still his maestro. Even though the goat herder insulted Odysseus inadvertently, the writer used dramatic sarcasm here to stress the servant s foolhardiness. The reader knows Odysseus was in camouflage, and he was keeping in his choler, but Melanthios didn t. He kicked him on the street, he tried to state Odysseus to go forth his ain house, and he even helps the suers during the feast. These scenes foreshadowed Melanthios barbarous executing later in the narrative. In decision, the loyal characters in The Odyssey had a good terminal to them, and the unpatriotic characters all suffered. Since Homer wrote this drama 100s of old ages ago, this shows that in the Grecian society trueness was an of import feature to hold. ( In a universe of great uncertainness, the devotedness of Alliess, friends, and retainers can non be overlooked. Though the times have changed, the value of fidelity has non. Like Odysseus, each of us should measure our friends and Alliess before puting complete trust in them.

the American constitution essays

the American constitution essays The Federalist No. 10 by James Madison and The Tyranny of the Majority by Alexis de Tocqueville are two political papers which analyze some parts of the American constitution. Each of the authors have their own distinct thoughts on the constitution and they agree in some areas, and, differ drastically in others. To start, a topic that is touched upon in both of these documents was the fact that although it may not be in the best interest of the general public, the needs of the many will outweigh the needs of the few. This is also know as the concept of majority. Although Madison was trying to prove the constitution was a worthy government plan, he yet was honest in his Federalist No. 10. He knew that there would be drawbacks to the factions that were beginning to form. Yet, he was sure to sate the brighter side of the picture about the factions and how the government planned to limit the number of parties to prevent a non-majority. He also came to the conclusion that when a majority has been reached it has two options. First, the majority can continue being the winning argument and virtually control the minority. Or, if the majority sees fit, it can surrender it position of control and give the power to the minority therefore limiting the absolute power of the minority. Tocqueville on the other stated his views on the factions from the view of an unlimited faction republic. He wrote that majority was impossible with unlimited factions due to that they would be so numerous and inadequate in size for there to even be a chance for a majority. Another thing that Tocqueville had theorized was that if a government ran simply upon majority rule, there would be a great upset in the balance of law. There would be this upset due to that the majority would vote one way and there would be no other option on the subject. For example, a man killed an attempted murderer in self defense. Giving the majority the benefit of th...

Habits and Traits of Gall Wasps

Habits and Traits of Gall Wasps Have you ever seen those misshapen lumps on the twigs of oak trees? Those peculiar growths are called galls, and theyre almost always caused by gall wasps. Although theyre quite common, gall wasps (family Cynipidae) often go unnoticed because of their diminutive size. How Are Gall Wasps Classified? Kingdom: AnimaliaPhylum: ArthropodaClass: InsectaOrder: HymenopteraFamily: Cynipidae What Do Gall Wasps Look Like? Cynipid wasps are quite small, with few species measuring over 5 millimeters in length, and usually drab in color, which makes them rather inconspicuous. Its often easier to identify gall wasps from the galls themselves. Tracks and Sign of Insects and Other Invertebrates is an excellent reference for identifying North American gall-makers from the galls they leave behind. Cynipids infest plants in the rose, willow, aster, and oak families. Cynipid galls vary greatly in size, shape, and appearance, depending on the host plant and the gall wasp species involved. Gall wasps arent the only organisms that trigger gall development in plants, but they are probably the most prolific gall-makers, especially in oak trees. About 80% of gall wasps target oaks specifically. In North America, well over 700 gall wasp species create galls in oaks. Gall wasps look like tiny hunchbacks. When viewed from above, the abdomen may appear to have just two segments, but the rest are simply compressed beneath, in telescoping fashion. Gall wasps have minimal wing venation and filiform antennae (usually consisting of 13 segments in females, and 14-15 segments in males). Youre unlikely to see gall wasp larvae unless youre in the habit of dissecting galls. Each tiny, white larva lives within its own chamber, feeding constantly. They lack legs and have chewing mouthparts. What Do Gall Wasps Eat? Gall wasp larvae derive nutrition from the galls in which they live. Adult gall wasps are short-lived and do not feed. Surprisingly for an insect that eats so much, the larvae dont poop. Gall wasp larvae dont have anuses, so there is simply no way for them to expel their waste. They wait until the pupal stage to rid their bodies of fecal matter. The Life Cycle of Gall Wasps The cynipid life cycle can be quite complex. In some species, male and female gall wasps mate and the female oviposits in the host plant. Some gall wasps are parthenogenetic, and produce males rarely, if ever. Still others alternate sexual and asexual generations, and these distinct generations may use different host plants. In very general terms, the gall wasp life cycle involves complete metamorphosis, with four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The female deposits an egg into the meristematic tissue of the host plant. When the egg hatches and the larva begins to feed, it triggers a reaction in the host plant, causing the formation of the gall. The larva feeds within the gall and eventually pupates. The adult gall wasp usually chews an exit hole to escape the gall. Special Behaviors of Gall Wasps Some gall wasps dont produce galls in their host plants but are instead inquilines of other species galls. The female wasp oviposits into an existing gall, and her offspring hatch and feed on it. The inquiline larvae may indirectly kill the larvae that induced the gall to form, simply by outcompeting them for food. Where Do Gall Wasps Live? Scientists have described 1,400 species of gall wasps worldwide, but many estimate that the family Cynipidae may actually include as many as 6,000 species. Over 750 species inhabit North America. Resources and Further Reading   Capinera, John L., editor.  Encyclopedia of Entomology. 2nd ed., Springer, 2008.Frogge, Mary Jane. â€Å"Most Leaf Galls Dont Hurt Trees (Galls).†Ã‚  Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources: The Nebline, University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Lancaster County, May 2012.Johnson, Norman F., and Charles A. Triplehorn.  Borror and DeLongs Introduction to the Study of Insects. 7th ed., Cengage Learning, 2004.Leung, Richard, et al. â€Å"Family Cynipidae - Gall Wasps.†Ã‚  BugGuide.Net, Iowa State University, 13 Apr. 2005.

MARKETING - Brands cannot be expected to last forever Essay

MARKETING - Brands cannot be expected to last forever - Essay Example The ability of brand to capture the market determines the term of its survival. Several factors play crucial roles in determining the life span of a brand. Raymond Vernon (as cited in Steers & Nardon, 2006, p.36) has developed a product or brand life cycle theory that clearly illustrates different phases in the life span of a brand, they are; product development, introduction, growth, maturity, and decline. It is the first phase of a brand life cycle and the company carries out design, production, and research in this phase in order to ensure that the proposed idea would meet customer needs effectively. According to Kotler, Keller, Koshy, and Jha (2009, p.550), the management team usually conducts some market surveys to identify current market trends. Subsequently the company makes further modifications to the product in the light of obtained market responses. During this phase, the designed product is introduced into the market under a certain brand name. As it is a new brand in the market, consumers may not have adequate knowledge about it. Hence, marketers launch some public campaigns to promote the specific features of the products and thereby to popularize the brand. During this phase, the branded product would build its foundation in the market. The launched public campaigns and promotional techniques would begin to show its outcomes. However, the company still works with its advertising efforts so as to expand the brand image in the market. The branded product would have maximum market shares and have reached its peak of sales. In the opinion of Kotler et al (2009, p.304), during the maturity phase, growth gradually begins to slow down. The term of the maturity phase may vary from product to product according to the value of brand image. According to Meissner (2010), in the decline phase, brand awareness would be high even though sales are on the decline. Price falls, weakness in competitiveness, and emergence of rival would be other common

Screening asia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Screening asia - Essay Example Only those who manage to get into leaderships positions are able to control their own destinies. The ones who are content with being their master’s servant will suffer for his sake and will be doomed if their leader loses. The reviewer also discusses the theme of tradition as presented in the movie with the triad leader required to fulfill several obligations that are required, for the leader, to assume power. These include getting the Dragon’s Head Baton and the violence that follows when the two antagonists try to get to it. The latter reveals the deep-seated traditional respect the triad members hold for the baton (Scott, 2007: p1). The reviewer also manages to place election in its proper context, which is within the Hong Kong Triad traditions. By comparing the movie to other triad movies and the fact that Election does not have guns, unlike other triad movies, Derek Elley already gives the reader the setting for the quintessential triad movie. The reviewer also com pares it to classic triad movies such as To be Number One, PTU, and The Mission. The reader already expects that such a favorable comparison to these classic movies will adhere to the classic triad movie storyline. ... However, I do not feel that he discusses this genre well enough to allow the reader to form a conclusion as to whether the movie is good enough to be a classic. The techniques in the movie are well addressed with the reviewer noting that, unlike previous triad movies that rely, on violence and gunfights, to show the struggle within these triads, the film employs hand-to-hand combat, as well as power-play conversations, which works towards supporting one of the movie’s main themes of tradition. Brian Gibson gives a similar review for election, although he also gives a review for the sequel, Election 2. Like Derek, Brian discusses the movie’s theme at the beginning of his post, which involves Hong Kong Triads and their control of the Hong Kong underground. Unlike the previous review, Brian delves into these activities; including prostitution rings, gambling operations, and drug smuggling. By including these activities, the reviewer, illuminates the theme better than in th e early review. It shows a world with no morals, and this sets the stage for him to discuss the bitter and no-holds barred competition between the two men vying for leadership of the triad (Scott, 2007: p1). The reviewer, just like in the previous review, also discusses the theme of tradition in the Hong Kong underground, which is a major theme of the movie. In his review for the sequel, Brian also covers the theme of crime adequately enough, particularly because it is the main theme of the sequel. In this case, he also discusses pornography as part of the triad’s new dealings, which forms another theme of the movie. However, unlike in the previous review, Brian is more critical of the movie, particularly its sequel, comparing it unfavorably with the first installment. According

Sales Tax Essay Example for Free

Sales Tax Essay OBJECTIVE   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The objective of this work is to discuss sales tax issues from the viewpoint of both the citizen and the Budget Director. Reviewed will be issues of ‘volatility’, ‘reliability’, and ‘equity’ as well as how the sales tax impacts activities of government such as economic development, community initiatives and service provision. Finally this work will answer the question of whether there are any other taxes or revenue sources to substitute for the sales tax as well as stating why or alternatively why there is not an existing substitute. INTRODUCTION: SALES TAX ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Sales taxes are collected at the local and state levels and utilized by the government in service provision to the citizens of the United States. The United States imposes sales taxes in both state and local administrations in which the customer is charged a combined rate which bundles together (USA Sales Use Tax, 2006) the state tax with the local tax. A merchant is required to charged a sales tax if the business has nexus. A nexus is defined as a substantial physical presence. (USA Sales Use Tax, 2006) Not all products are subject to the sales tax and different states exempt difference products. Sales taxes are applied on the end purchase of goods in retail sales. Economic development has been defined as a multi-faceted approach to the development of policies and programs designed to preserve, enhance and promote a vibrant and successful business community. (Economic Development Action Program, 2005) The health and success of the businesses in communities are stated to be directly linked to the quality of life experienced by residents in that community (Economic Development Action Program, 2005) which is of primary importance to the entire city or municipality. Creation of jobs and generation of sales tax revenues provide a major contribution to fund the initiatives of service provision with the city. The economic development within a city of municipality is greatly dependent on sales tax revenues in most U.S. states. VOLATILITY, RELIABILITY, AND EQUITY ‘Volatility’ and ‘Reliability’ are the two primary considerations of a budget director when revenues raised by taxes are spent on new initiatives. Hirsch et al state that Reliability and Volatility are that which marks the outcome of the question which asks: â€Å"Are new revenues raised by the taxes relatively stable over time or are they excessively volatile and difficult to predict? It is a fact that generation of revenues from sales taxes may be unpredictable since these revenues are greatly dependent on seasonal factors and economic conditions therefore, merchants may experience a really great Christmas hence the sales tax revenues for the government will be great as well however, a lean year for merchants will also result in the coffers of the government for spending in economic development being quite thin as well. In a journal article relating to the impact of sales tax on the economy of the state of California it is stated that: â€Å"If times are good and consumption is high, there will be more revenue from sales taxes than otherwise. If times are bad and layoffs and unemployment are up, personal income taxes will be reduced. Some taxpayers will lose their jobs or not have opportunities to work overtime. Sluggish economic activity will hurt profits and thus collections from corporate income taxes. Similarly, if times are bad, certain kinds of welfare-related expenditures may increase. While the linkage between economic developments and the status of the budget is clear, the actual budget process involves making a forecast of what those economic developments will be. Then budget forecasters must estimate precisely how the assumed developments will affect revenue† (Hirsch, et al, 2004) The third element is that of Equity which is one of the five principles stated by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) that were compiled in 1988 with input from lawmakers and academics. The principle involving Equity along with the other principles for sound tax policy. The five principles are:   (1) Provision of appropriate revenues (sufficiency, stability, and certainty of revenues produced) (2) Neutrality; (3) Equity; (4) Easy and economical to administer; (5) accountability – (i) taxpayers are accountable for payment of their taxes (ii) tax agencies are accountable for administration and enforcement of the tax laws efficiently and fairly; and (iii) lawmakers accountable for the integrity of the tax laws. (Hirsch et al, 2004) III. VIOLATION OF PRINCIPLES IN NEW YORK ECONOMIC DEVELOPEMNT In a recent testimony before the U.S. Senate in a hearing before the Subcommittee on International Trade of the Committee on Finance earlier this year given by Walter Hellerstein who is said to be: â€Å"the nations leading legal academic authority on state and local taxation† stated is that a New York economic development incentive to attract sales to the New York exchanges was a discriminatory tax to the Boston Stock Exchange that viewed the incentive as diverting economic activity from the Boston exchange, a view with which the U.S. Supreme Court concurred. (Testimony of Walter Hellerstein, 2006) Stated as well is that the economic development incentive for its fledging wine industry was a discriminatory tax to sellers of alcoholic beverages produced in other states, a view with which the U.S. Supreme Court concurred. (Ibid) SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Clearly the sales tax scheme or plan of a city or municipality involves the necessary view which is all-inclusive of the factors that will impact the revenues realized from sales taxes and as well are able to realize the volatility or alternatively the reliability of the sales tax revenues in the budget plan. Then the comprehension of the sales taxes as they affect the individuals within the community both from the advantages of the economic development in the community as well as the impact the increase of sales tax will have on the spending habits in times that are characterized by layoffs and unemployment in the area. Finally it must be comprehended that all of this is inherently linked in the planning of sales taxes, city budgets and economic development in that economic development works to ensure a healthy and quality lifestyle for the taxpayers that reside in the community, and as well that economic development furthers the growth of businesses and employment within the community. These successful individuals and households within the community in turn replenish the community or city coffers with the sales taxes on the purchases that they make in the community thereby funding even more economic development in the community. Last, the principles that have been reviewed in this research as set out by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) must be followed in order to avoid the situation that the economic development initiatives in New York and Hawaii experienced in being found in violation of those principles by the U.S. Supreme Court. WORKS CITED Testimony of Walter Hellerstein before the U.S. Senate; Hearing before the Subcommittee on International Trade of the Committee on Finance (2006) Online available at: http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:EnVhxxKAqIYJ:www.law.uga.edu/news/advocate/spring2006/hellerstein.pdf+seconomic+development:+sales+tax+issueshl=engl=usct=clnkcd=17 Economic Development Action Program (2005) City of Bothell nd Online available at: http://www.ci.bothell.wa.us/dept/CM/EconDev/ActionProgram.html One Taxpayers Economic Development Incentive Is Often Anothers Discriminatory Tax.(Advocate: Spring/Summer 2006 Online available at: http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:EnVhxxKAqIYJ:www.law.uga.edu/news/advocate/spring2006/hellerstein.pdf+seconomic+development:+sales+tax+issueshl=engl=usct=clnkcd=17 Hirsch, Werner A. et al (2004) Making California’s State Budget More User-Friendly And Transparent Online available at: http://www.spa.ucla.edu/calpolicy02/HirschEtc.pdf USA Sales Use Tax, (2006) http://www.ustaxnetwork.com/

Essay --

Written around 1606, Macbeth is recognized as one of Shakespeare’s greatest works. Macbeth deals with the downfall of the title character Macbeth as he falls from a respected, decorated soldier to a despised, tyrannical monarch. This fall from grace is accompanied by the motif of darkness. Darkness serves to set the ominous and superstitious tone of the story, foreshadows events, and is used as a symbolic device. One of the uses of darkness is to establish the dark and mysterious tone. One example of darkness being used to establish tone is when Lennox notes of the â€Å"unruly night.† (Act 2, Scene 3) Lennox also points out that â€Å"the chimmneys were blown down†, meaning there were odd wind patterns, and that the â€Å"obscure bird†, meaning owl, often associated with darkness, was noisy all night. This quote shows the eerie events that happen at night and associates the darkeness of night with mysterious happenenings. Another use of darkness for tone is when Lady Macbeth mentions it when she decides that she would help Macbeth do the necessary dirty work to take the throne after reading his letter to her. While she calls upon the dark spirits to strip away her feminity she also says â€Å"†¦nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark To cry â€Å"Hold, hold!†Ã¢â‚¬  (Act 1, Scene 5) In this quote Lady Macbeth is also using darkness metaphorically as a way that she and her husband can keep their ambitions secret and how the darkness serves as a cover so that no one can see them commit the murder. The secrecy that the Macbeths desire helps add to the dark tone of the story. In both these quotes, darkness establishes the enigmatic and cryptic tone that dominates the play. In addition, darkness is used to ... ...l things since she decided to help Macbeth become king. It is a vain attempt to keep herself in a good light even though she has done many bad things. While it physically keeps her in a bright state, it cannot take the darkness out of her heart. This struggle adds to her insanity. In this scene darkness and light represent good and evil as they often do in many stories. Darkness is one of the more prominent motifs in Macbeth. It establishes the tone, foreshadows events in the story, and is used as a symbolic device. When its uses are put together darkness helps show us the theme. Macbeth is a tragedy, creully showing how fearless ambition can have disastrous effects. One cannot get so far without suffering some consequences. Sometimes all the work put in just isn’t worth the price you pay. And unfortunately for Macbeth it him cost everything.

Response to Shakespeare Essay

The key character within the mechanicals is Bottom. In the Hoffman version he presents Bottom as a useless dreamer and even gives Bottom wife who actually says ‘he is a useless dreamer’. He is also portrayed as a bit of a town clown as he begins to perform in front of the town people a couple of kids pour red wine all over his white suit. The crowd that has gathered then begins to laugh and no one goes to comfort him or try and catch the kids that poured the wine, they just stand and laugh at him. In the noble version he is portrayed as a larger than life character that everyone appears to love. The actor that has been cast to play this part, who is larger than any other actor in the film, reinforces this larger than life character. The nest group of characters that Shakespeare throws upon the audience are the fairies, which I mentioned earlier. He takes the audience straight to the heart of the fairy world by showing the King and Queen of fairies, Oberon and Titania. They appear to be having a fight, or a lover tiff and this appears to have a direct affect on the mortal world as when they are arguing the weather is wet and stormy. Also because of this argument between the King and Queen the rest of the fairy world is seen to be in disorder. This is shown in the Hoffman version by their being a party and fairies getting drunk and causing general chaos within the fairy world. In Shakespearean times there were only a limited amount of props that Shakespeare could use during his play therefore he had to transport the audience to the fairy world using their imagination. Shakespeare only had a fraction of what is available to use today in his plays and therefore heavily relied on the audience power of imagination and his ability to create a place by using mere words. Shakespeare uses his words very effectively by emphasising the beauty and richness of the fairy world by using world like, orbs, gold coats and rubies. Another technique Shakespeare uses to try and place the audience inside the fairy world is alliteration. Alliteration helps outline the key words in the sentence and reinforces the beauty of the words that Shakespeare uses. An example of alliteration is in Act 2 Scene 1 when Puck says’ ‘And now they never meet in grove of green, By fountain clear or spangled starlight sheen. ‘ Alliteration is used at the end of both of these lines and imprints a picture of beauty into the audience’s mind. Each director confronts the problem of giving the audience the idea that they are changing realms relative to their respective budget. The Hoffman version uses rich props and obscure settings, such as big colourful trees, to resemble the fairy world. Where as in the Noble version where there is a much smaller budget the fairy realm is represented by different colours and lighting effects and a minimal amount of obscure props, such as big umbrellas that the fairies float in on. Through out the play the theme of dreaming becomes very important and is in fact so important it is in the title of the play. Six characters falling asleep and dreaming during the play, which also reinforce the idea of dreaming. When characters fall asleep and dream it causes confusion with the character that has been dreaming and sometimes the dream even stretches to characters around the sleeper. This is when reality and dreams become so closely entwined it becomes impossible for the characters, and the audience to some extent, to tell between the two. An example of this is Bottom, from the mechanicals, when he has a short relationship with Titania and an ass’s head on his shoulders. When he arises he doesn’t know whether his escapade with Titania was reality or just a dream. The fairies playing tricks with the lovers’ emotion’s and feelings as the put fairy dust in their eyes that reinforce this general feel of confusion. This is done while they sleep so when they wake up and are unsure of what they feel about the people closest to them. Examples of this are with Demetrius and Lysander, both of whom where fixated upon Hermia but when they feel asleep they arose madly in love with Helena and couldn’t care less about Hermia because of what the fairies had done while they were sleeping. Dreaming is also reinforced throughout this play as most of it is set in the dark at night time where dreaming traditionally takes place. Also when in the dark, objects are seen in different light and can be construed in the imagination to look like anything as their shadows mangle the shape of the actual object. In the Noble version the power of the subconscious mind is focused on much more than in the Hoffman version, as Noble uses weird sets and strange costumes throughout the play but especially in the woods where so much confusion and mystification occurs. Not only the actual things the viewers see on the screen are used to create this image of a very powerful subliminal world that this play is set in but also the way in which Noble lays out the play. Noble adds a boy to the play and makes it appear as if the play is the boy’s dream and therefore Noble is able to make the play run like a dream which gives him more freedom to make the play more surreal. This idea of the play being the boy’s dream comes from the opening seen when the audience is taken inside a house to the boy that is sleeping with a copy of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ under his arm. The boy is then suddenly awake exploring a house that is larger than and very unrealistic as doors are enlarged and the boy is made to be very small amongst these huge objects. The reason for the boy dreaming these sequences of events could be because he has read the play as a sort of bedtime story and literal events that could have happened around him or within his family. The boy could have jumbled up the two; reality and fiction, in his subconscious mind and when he fell asleep these idea could have come through. The Noble version could also be thought to take the play to the next level if you like thinking the play to be a more deeper philosophical type of play, rather than a light hearted romantic comedy which Shakespeare original wrote it to be. This philosophical reasoning could be construed as that there is no reality and we all live in one huge dream. In conclusion when comparing the two plays yet they consist of exactly the same characters that say exactly the same words they are quite different. The Noble version appears to be a much funnier play than the Hoffman play becomes of the way certain characters, especially the mechanicals, are presented to the audience. Along with the idea that the Noble version is funnier I believe because Noble has tried to make the play funnier he has also added more fantasy that the Hoffman version mainly because of the sets, back drops and costumes that Noble had decided to use. I think that the Noble version appeals to a younger audience than the Hoffman version does because of its funnier side than the Hoffman version but not a wide spread basis, the film will never be nominated for a BAFTA award or anything of that sort because of its low budget. Where as the Hoffman version has a much higher budget and will therefore appeal to filmgoers rather than people who like to watch Shakespeare on stage. Because of its glamour, lush background and expensive actors I feel that the Hoffman is more magical because Hoffman is able to use whatever set he pleases or go out on location and ‘doll’ up a place to his satisfaction, Noble I don’t think never had that luxury. I think it is more magical because the of setting that Hoffman presents with the film, for example when the audience is taken into the woods and the fairy land I think that the tree in which they are partying appears quite magical. I also feel that the Hoffman version is more romantic because the actors and actresses are always quite close to each and the opening scene illustrates this in the Hoffman version where Hermia, Lysnander and Helena are all pressed closed together. Overall I think that the Noble version is better because I like the way in which Noble has presented the mechanicals and feel that it is more light hearted than the Hoffman version. I also think that the Hoffman version has tried too hard to create the sets that Shakespeare writes about throughout the play and at times is a bit over the top with the backgrounds.

The Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire Essay

The story of Christianity’s rise to prominence is a remarkable one but also blurry one. As far as historical fact about the beginnings of Christianity that is. Many scholars point to the time around 4 BC as the most likely period for Christ’s birth, but that is also uncertain. Likewise the year of his death is not historically accurate or clearly established. It is thought to have taken place sometime around Ad 26 through AD 36. Christianity as a religion faced many years of persecution and punishments, sometimes even death. But, over the course of a few hundred years, despite all of this, the small persecuted religion of Christianity rose to become the dominant religion of the Roman Empire (Adler). Based off of historical texts Jesus of Nazareth was a very easy going laid back religious teacher and later a Jewish leader. Raised the earthly son of a carpenter, he did not come from high class society(Rise). He was just a normal, religious boy from next door to those who knew him growing up. It was only later that the Christians began to believe he was the Messiah, which is the human personification of God. Although there is little historical text about his early life more is known about his later years during his time as Messiah. He was clearly not one of the Jewish zealots who sought to overthrow and push out Roman rule in the land but, the Roman rulers did see him as a threat to security. It is known that Jesus did denounce the priests that Rome had appointed in charge of the religious sites of the Palestine(Lunn). This denouncement could have been perceived as an indirect threat to Roman rule by Jesus. This threat coupled with the fact that he was becoming known as the â€Å"King of the Jews† is why he was condemned and sentenced to death. The Roman leaders saw his death sentence as the closing of a chapter on a minor problem before it became a major nuisance and came back to bite them in the behinds. Therefore, it can be concluded that the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth was nothing more than a political decision based on political motivations(Paulgaard). Whatever the importance his death was to the Roman leaders is went hardly noticed by Roman historians. To them his death was no more important than a street beggars. It can be assumed that the Roman leaders who agreed to his crucifixion  thought that his teachings would die along with him or shortly thereafter(Lunn). They must have been furious when his very loyal and determined followers didn’t allow that to happen. One of their own Roman citizens, Paul (known as Saint Paul) proved to be the most effective in caring on spreading the word of God the way Jesus himself did. He was a devout follower of Jesus and believed that if Jesus was willing to die for the sins of mankind and for his beliefs then it all must be true. Saint Paul became well known for his missionary trips that took him from Palestine into the Roman Empire (Syria, Turkey, Greece, and Italy). He carried only his teachings of Jesus new religion with him and spread the word to the non-Jews(Lunn). Up to this point in history Christianity was only known as a small Jewish Sect. It was Paul who took this new religion and the story of Jesus the Messiah to the masses. Most of the biblical scriptures of the new testament were written after the death of Jesus so there would have been very few available to him to use. The actual outlines of his new religion of that day is relatively unknown so Paul’s teachings and preaching would have been on the general ideas of Jesus and his ideas of Christianity such as the firsthand knowledge Jesus said he had of his holy father being the one and only God. It was Christianity’s insistence of one all-knowing and all-powerful God and others teachings like it that led to the Roman’s feeling threatened. Roman authorities waited for quite some time before deciding how to best approach and deal with this new religion. In the mean time, Paul and others like him were picking up so many followers so fast that the Roman leaders began to think of Christianity as a cult(Paulgaard). The Roman Empire had for so long kept it guaranteed religious peace due to the principles of religious toleration most of all Christianity was in direct defiance of the â€Å"official state religion of the empire.† To top it all of Christians refused to perform Caesar worship, which was required of all citizens of the Roman Empire, and this more than anything else proved of the Christians disloyalty to their Roman rulers. Finally, in AD 64 Roman authorities got an answer to the question of what to with the followers of Jesus and Christianity ,when Nero’s bloody repression led to the persecution of the Christians(Rise). This repression ,though rash and short lived, was a significant historical  event. After the repression and upon learning of the Christians refusal to perform Cesar worship, the Roman emperor Domitian sent investigators to Galilee to questions the family of Jesus. They released all they questioned without charging them but just the fact that the Roman Emperor had taken interest in this small Jewish sect proved that Christianity was no longer merely just a small Jewish sect but a force to be reckoned with. It was towards the end of the 1st century that Christians finally severed all ties with Judaism and established themselves as their own religion(World). They were Christians and they were independent of all other religions. After the separation Roman authorities no longer had them on radar. They didn’t know who Christians were independent from Judaism. The fact that Christianity was now unknown to the Roman Empire led to all kinds of rumors about this new sect. There were all kinds of rumors that Christians were performing all kinds of secret rituals such as child sacrifice, incest and even cannibalism. This led to major bad publicity ,so to speak, for Christians. During the 2nd century AD Christians were once again persecuted for their beliefs. The biggest reason this time was because Christianity did not allow their members to give the statutory reverence to the images of the gods and of the emperor. Their gatherings then became considered a civil disobedience and a transgression against the edict of Trajan. The edict of Trajan forbade meetings of secret societies and since the roman authorities considered Christianity a cult, that was a secret society(Lunn). The next serious persecutions were those under the rule of Marcus Aurelius. This period defined the Christians understanding of martyrdom. Following a period of widespread toleration of the Christians by the roman authorities after the persecution by Marcus Aurelis, Diocletian enacted what was to become the greatest persecution of Christians under Roman rule. He and Caesar Galerius launched a purge against the sect. They saw the Christians as becoming far too powerful and so in turn to dangerous. AD 312 marked the beginning of a new era in the history of Christianity under Roman rule. Emperor Constantine had a vision of the sign of Christ in a dream on the eve of a battle with his rival emperor Maxentius. The vision told him that he was to have the symbol inscribed on his helmet so he did.  He also ordered all of his bodyguard to paint in on their shields. After his victory in battle he declared that he owed his victory to the God of Christians. Constantine already had a tolerant attitude of the Christians that he had gotten from his father but before that night he had never indicated that he would be on their side(Paulgaard). His vision changed the fate of Christianity for good. Constantine secured religious toleration towards Christians all over the empire. It was in AD 324 that he defeated his last rival emperor and his final religious restraint disappeared that he became the first Christian emperor that ruled over the entire empire. He saw to the construction of many gr eat churches and great monuments to Christianity. He also became openly hostile toward the pagans and sought out to confiscate their treasures. The items confiscated were later given to the Christian Churches. Citizens of the Roman empire never really were even given time to work into Christianity, they were just kind of shocked into it by Constantine saying I am ruler and what I say goes. Following Constantine as ruler was Julian. When he took the throne he immediately renounced Christianity but could do little to change it as Christianity by then dominated the religious make-up of the empire. After years of trying to establish what was and was not part of the Christian religion in was the emperor Theodosius in AD 380 that took the final step and made Christianity the official religion of the state(Lunn). There were ups and downs for Christianity in the Roman Empire following the decision to make it the official religion, but no matter who argued against it, the fact was that Christianity was there to stay. The road for Christianity from a small Jewish sect to the official religion of the Roman Empire was a long and deadly one paved with the loves of many a Christian, starting with the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus start out with the goal of spreading the news that there was only one God and that he was a loving, forgiving, and faithful God. Roman authorities from first learning of Christianity, sought to destroy it. They wanted no part of a cult that didn’t bend to their will because they could not control them. Many Roman’s thought that by threatening and then following through with killing Christians, they would renounce their faith in their God. But, they didn’t. It took a very long time and many, many deaths and persecutions for one  Roman emperor to stand on the side of the Christians. Had it not been for Constantine and his vision, Chrisitanity may not have gotten to where it is today. It is not only to official Roman Empire’s religion it has beco me the most well known and most practiced religion among the western world to date. And it all leads back to one man who died on the cross for my sins. Bibliography 1. Adler, Philip J., Pouwels, Randall L. World Cvilizations. 6th ed. copyright 2012,2008 Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. pgs 138-142 2. The Rise of Christianity. Purdue Online. Purdue.Edu.com April 22,2014 3. Lunn-Rockliffe, Dr. Sophie. Christianity and the Roman Empire. BBC History Ancient History in depth. pub.2011-02-17. Online. April 24,2014. 4. Paulgaard, James. The Expansion of Christianity in the Roman Empire. University of Saskatcewan.1 April 1999. Worldpress.com April 22, 2014.

The eNotes Blog Man Booker Prize Awarded to Eleanor Catton for The Luminaries

Man Booker Prize Awarded to Eleanor Catton for The Luminaries What were you doing at age 28? If you were author Eleanor Catton, you would be graciously  accepting Britains highest literary honor, the Man Booker Prize.   Catton won the prestigious award for her   second novel  The Luminaries.   In addition to making her the youngest recipient in the history of the prize, Cattons 832 page novel is also the longest work to ever win. The Luminaries  is set in New Zealand during the gold rush of 1866.   Catton knows the country well, as she moved from Canada to New Zealand at the age of six. Here is an excerpt from the novel, published by Londons  The Telegraph.   Click here to read the longer sampling: MERCURY IN SAGITTARIUS In which a stranger arrives in Hokitika; a secret council is disturbed; Walter Moody conceals his most recent memory; and Thomas Balfour begins to tell a story. The twelve men congregated in the smoking room of the Crown Hotel gave the impression of a party accidentally met. From the variety of their comportment and dress – frock coats, tailcoats, Norfolk jackets with buttons of horn, yellow moleskin, cambric, and twill – they might have been twelve strangers on a railway car, each bound for a separate quarter of a city that possessed fog and tides enough to divide them; indeed, the studied isolation of each man as he pored over his paper, or leaned forward to tap his ashes into the grate, or placed the splay of his hand upon the baize to take his shot at billiards, conspired to form the very type of bodily silence that occurs, late in the evening, on a public railway – deadened here not by the slur and clunk of the coaches, but by the fat clatter of the rain. Such was the perception of Mr. Walter Moody, from where he stood in the doorway with his hand upon the frame. He was innocent of having disturbed any kind of private conference, for the speakers had ceased when they heard his tread in the passage; by the time he opened the door, each of the twelve men had resumed his occupation (rather haphazardly, on the part of the billiard players, for they had forgotten their places) with such a careful show of absorption that no one even glanced up when he stepped into the room. This award marks the last in which Americans are not eligible to win.   In 2014, the Man Booker will also accept submissions from across the pond.   The only stipulations for consideration are that the work is published in English and that it is available for purchase in the U.K.   This year, Catton won against the following nominees:   Ã‚  A Tale for the Time Being  by Ruth Ozeki,  Harvest  by Jim Crace,  The Lowland  by Jhumpa Lahiri,  The Testament of Mary  by Colm Toibin and  We Need New Names  by NoViolet Bulawayo. In 2012, Hilary Mantel won for Bring Up the Bodies,  Ã‚  her sequel to  Wolf Hall.   Wolf Hall  won it in 2009.

A study into paraphilias and its effects

A study into paraphilias and its effects Statistics report, At least 1 woman in 7 will be raped in her lifetime. Because only 1 rape in 5 is reported, the true figure is much higher (CDC, 2007; FVPF,2007). Many would consider these women a victim, but could the perpetrator also be suffering from something we as observers have not yet considered, something far worse? Perhaps the mark of true sexual deviations, the compulsive and destructive paraphilias, a sickness at which causes it’s victims guilt, anxiety, or discomfort for one or other participants (Coon, D Mitterer, J, 2009, Chapter 12, â€Å"Introduction to Psychology: Gateway to Mind and Behavior†). Most feel a deep sense of inadequacy, which produces a compulsive need to provide their genitals to the unwilling viewer. Others may fantasize that their target may become aroused by the display. In regard if confronted by an exhibitionist one can assume their goal is to shock and alarm victim, to become upset would only encourage them (Hyde & Delamater, 200 6). Although the scene maybe quite alarming, studies show the exhibitionist is basically harmless. I believe they simply wish to entertain someone, if not themselves, typical thrill seekers. Have you ever heard of the phrase, â€Å"Shoe fetish?† Well now, don’t be alarmed this doesn’t mean you have a sickness, Fetishism are unusually objects or body parts associated with in sexual arousal (http://www.minddisorders.com/Del-Fi/Fetishism.html). Fetishes can pertain to anyone, whether male or female, even you may have a strange fetish. Most common examples being clothing, stuffed animals, breast, legs, bottoms, genitals, and even pets. I once met a man who had a strange thing for women in high heels, the high heels were his fetish. The non sexual object which got him aroused. How about Victoria’s Secret Models, dazzled with in expensive lingerie? This item of clothing is a non sexual object used to spark the scenes of the viewer to want and desire the clothin g. They convince the viewers that having this will make you or your partner become more desirable. We have all heard the saying â€Å"Sex sells,† well it’s true. Does this mean we have a sickness, no. What are symptoms of Fetishism? If you find yourself spending so much time thinking about the fetish that you can not control compulsive urges and or cases become unhealthy, inflicting humiliation or suffering to oneself or partner, it’s best to seek therapy for such extreme. The key is to control the fetish, don’t allow the fetish to control you.

How did Syria got impacted the Middle-East and especially Turkey Research Paper

How did Syria got impacted the Middle-East and especially Turkey - Research Paper Example The World Food Programme offers monthly food donations to about 4 million people who are victims of the civil conflict in the region (â€Å"World Food Programme† 1). Moreover, other humanitarian agencies offers clean drinking water to about 1.1 million people in Syria (â€Å"Government of Canada† 1). Notably, most of the countries in the Middle East region are downstream riparian states and have scarce water resources and hence the continued debate and conflict on water issues in this region (â€Å"The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs† 1). Ideally, agriculture accounted for about 25 percent of gross domestic product in this region and hence the water shortage is hindering efforts to maintain economic growth in this region (Williams 1). The water conflict is equally a source of tension as many countries including Syria seek to increase its political dominance where it competes for the water resources with Turkey, Iraq, and Israel. Analysis shows that Turkey is likely to face water shortages in the near future although it presently has significant water resources (â€Å"The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs† 2). As a result, of the crisis there have been continued debates and efforts geared towards addressing the Syrian crisis. In the meantime, many Syrians fled the violence in their country and took refuge in Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, and Iraq (â€Å"World Food Programme† 1). Indeed, about 2.2 million Syrians are refugees in these countries, which further strain the infrastructure, food security, and water supply in this region. Additionally, more countries including the U.S are still offering the refugees agencies a leeway to settle more refugees and conflict victims in Syria thus influencing the social and economic aspects in Syria. However, as we expect the need for humanitarian aid to increase in Syria over the next few years, there is international pressure on the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, to remove bar riers to the delivery of humanitarian assistance in Syria (Cumming-Bruce 1). Saudi Arabia has been opposing the Syrian government and continuously calls for action against Syrian President Assad (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). On the other hand, Iran has been supporting Syria and criticizes any international action on the current crisis in Syria. Nevertheless, although Iraq is less significant to Syria, it opposes any US military action in Syria and hosts a significant number of refugees from Syria. Conversely, Israel does not offer its public opinion on the Syrian crisis but warns other nations into dragging Israel into the conflict and assert its readiness to deal with the crisis if the civil war extends to Israel (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Additionally, Qatar supports the proposed military action on Syria while Egypt opposes any military action without the authorization of the UN (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Jordan supports limited military action in Syria upon proving the use of che mical weapons in Syria by the US Congress (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Indeed, Jordan hosts refugees from Syria and therefore opposes any international intervention that would cause civilian casualties. The Jordan government advocates for a political settlement to the Syrian crisis (â€Å"BBC NEWS† 1). Nevertheless, some people believe that in 2013, Jordan facilitated the supply of weapons to rebel fighters in southern Syria (â€Å"

Real Business Cycles Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

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Organization and Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Organization and Management - Essay Example This paper compares two organizations in terms of their approaches to three aspects of organizational theories. The comparison will be based on their approach to teamwork and teamworking, organizational structure and design, and organizational culture. Comparison of approaches to teamwork and teamworking Public and private organizations have been similar in embracing the different organization theories. According to Robbins & Judge, (2010, p. 23) organizations have embraced the scientific management theory by trying to apply all the eleven principles of scientific management. Biogenic plc divides tasks and assigns workers that have skills in performing the specific task only. The organization emphasizes on assigning different tasks to workers according to their best ability and academic credentials. This can be referred to as division and specialization of labor. It’s the most common principle of management. Applying division and specialization of labor has been facilitated by the availability of knowledge and skills among the workers. This has enabled organizations to assign tasks to workers according to their skills and abilities. The bureaucracy theory developed by Max Weber is also applied in managing both public and private organizations. All the hierarchies are involved in decision making thus it takes a long time to approve an action. This is the case of Biogenic plc where teams are designed on the basis of their position in the hierarchy of management. The administrative theory as developed by Henry Fayol emphasizing the importance of the functions of management including planning, organizing, controlling, coordinating and commanding. Public and private organizations apply the functions of management in their daily operations. These organizations are structured around the five functions of management. The application of the principles of management has been promoted by the close relationship among the functions of management. However, Sleepeasy h as little application of the five principles of management which has led to the company lacking a team. Employees are hired on the basis of part-time and there are formal processes that make it difficult for managers to fulfill the principles of management. Comparison of organizational structure and design In an organization, workers are the most important between the system and workers. Classical organizational theories were centered on tasks rather than the human aspect of workers. Workers were viewed as parts of a machine that played a significant role in the running of the business. All the organizational theories aimed at finding the best way of managing resources especially human resources in order to improve their efficiency and effectiveness in the production process of the organization. The organization is in itself run by workers who operate machines or work manually.  

Towards Speaking English Through Creative Drama English Language Essay

Towards Speaking English Through Creative Drama English Language Essay This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of creative drama on the enhancement of learners positive attitude towards speaking English in state high schools. A one-group pre-test/post-test study was carried out with 12 intermediate level students who were voluntarily selected. As a treatment students attended a 4-week creative drama program run by the researcher who received 320 hours of training for being a creative drama instructor. Four different instruments were employed to collect data in the study: Attitude questionnaire, student interviews, teacher observation notes and reflective journals. The attitude test was administered to the participants before and after the 4-week creative drama program, and the findings were compared to see the impact of the treatment. The data obtained by reflective journals, observation notes and interviews was grouped and analyzed. The results of the obtained data indicate that there were significant differences before and after the treatmen t in terms of enhancement of positive attitude towards speaking English. I.INTRODUCTION Statement of the purpose The present study was designed to determine the empirical validity of the assumption that providing learners of English as a foreign language with creative drama activities during English classes can enhance their positive attitude towards speaking English. It is suggested that learners will be more eager to learn and practice English if they adopt a positive attitude towards it. Justification It is clear that in the age of communication the role attached to speaking skill is far greater than it used to be. Due to the increasing mobility of nations, it is not surprising to see people who witness others speaking a number of languages in their daily life. The change in social structure has been reflected in linguistics through shifts in thoughts and notions, methods and techniques. What was once linguistic-oriented has now become a communicative one. With the increasing importance of learning English as a foreign language, many studies have been conducted to investigate better ways to teach English so far. Creative drama is shown as one of those ways by contemporary trends in language teaching. It is suggested that with creative drama activities learners cooperate with each other effectively during the application of the knowledge and the skills that they have acquired, learn better and discover new things about themselves. Creative drama is a kind of education technique that was developed by Peter Slade, Brian Way, Dorothy Heathcote and Gavin Bolton in England and is applied for almost all kinds of learning activities especially in improving verbal and written expression in language learning lessons. According to Davis (1996), in national education programmes in England, it is obligatory to use drama in English lessons. It is a known fact that in England, drama is being used as a method in speaking and writing fields of language teaching for a long time. In Turkey creative drama started to be applied especially in preschool education and elementary schools, in order to develop their creativity, self-confidence, independent thinking, self-control, and problem solving skills. In our world where individual, national and international competition is getting hard and there is a constant change, existing is based on having these qualities not on rote learning. In order to bring the children and adults in these qualities, instead of traditional education methods, methods of learning by living in social and natural environment should be used. One of these methods is creative drama. AdÄ ±gà ¼zel (2006) defines creative drama as follows: Creative drama is to represent or animate a subject, an experience, an event, a concept or behaviour with a group utilizing improvisation and role play techniques and using the experiences of group members. These improvising activities are carried out with an experienced leader and creative drama directly utilizes the general facilities of children games. In the light of this definition creative drama may be considered as a method of learning, a tool for self-expression, as well as art. In order to add more to this definition, UlaÃ…Å ¸ (2008) briefly explains the scope of creative drama through six learning principles: A student learns meaningful content better than other contents. Learning occurs as a result of a students interaction with his environment. The more sensory organs a student uses while learning, the greater the retention of the lessons. A student learns best by doing and experiencing. Effective participation is important in learning emotional conduct. Learning becomes easier and more permanent in educational environments where there is more than one stimulus. (p.876) Creative drama emerged from the work of John Dewey which emphasized the importance of the instinctive and impulsive attitudes and activities of children to education (Siks, 1981; cited in Freeman, 2000, p.7). It is believed that if the childrens natural activities and the games they played with their friends in daily life are transferred to the field of education, children will be more motivated towards learning. Learning by doing is the core of the idea that creative drama is an effective method of learning. As Mally (1983) said, Drama is more concerned with what is happening within and between members of a group placed in a dramatic situation. It is never intended for performance and rarely if ever rehearsed, since it depends on the spontaneous inventions and reactions of people involved in it. Drama involves the participants themselves (cited in AldaÄÅ ¸, 2009). As it is stated participants are completely active in drama activities. They have to receive the message quickly, find out practical solutions to the problems, and convey their responses to the other players. Like other fields drama is an effective technique in language teaching. By integrating drama activities in English classes, the monotony of a conventional language class can be broken and the syllabus can be transformed into a more meaningful one which prepares learners to face their immediate world better. If it is remembered that one of the significant problems for English language learners in Turkey is having a negative attitude towards speaking English, it will be more meaningful to claim that creative drama activities should be used in language classes. Learners negative attitudes are mainly caused by anxiety, lack of confidence and motivation Thus, it is important for teachers to find ways to motivate learners and reduce their anxiety while enhancing their confidence. Recent studies show that the use of creative drama activities could be regarded as one of the effective methods to help learners improve a positive attitude towards speaking English and also support them to acquire necessary communication skills. As Wagner (as cited in AldaÄÅ ¸, 2010) states that drama is powerful because its unique balance of thought and feeling makes learning exciting, challenging, relevant to real life concerns, and enjoyable. The integration of drama brings both real life and imaginary situations and characters into the language classroom. Through their imagination the students have to produce various actions that fit in with the situation they encounter. Teaching language skills through drama gives students a context for listening and meaningful language production provides opportunities for reading and writing development and involves children in reading and writing as a holistic and meaningful communication process. As Slade and Way (1967) state, Drama is a good way of teaching second language because students are learning and practicing the language with communicative activities in a real context. Another important benefit of integrating drama with second language teaching is that it improves relationships among learners and consequently, the class atmosphere. When the classroom context is relaxing and friendly, anxiety levels of learners are expected to be low. This principle is supported by Krashens affective filter hypothesis. According to the affective filter hypothesis, there is a kind of filter which determines how input is turned into intake. It is this filter through which learners motivation, anxiety level and self-confidence are shaped. Thus, who have a low anxiety have a low filter while the opposite is true for the opposite case. In the light of this hypothesis, it can be postulated that when the learner is unmotivated or lacks confidence, the filter will be up. (Gas and Selinker, as cited in SaÄÅ ¸lamel, 2009). Therefore, the classroom environment needs to be as stress-free as possible in order to lower the affective filter of the learner and consequently let the acquisition take place. (Krashen and Terrell, as cited in Shand, 2008). According to AldaÄÅ ¸ (2009), the most important benefit of using drama in second language teaching is that it increases self-esteem, self-confidence and spontaneity by reducing inhibitions, alienation feeling and sensitivity to rejection. In addition, drama develops problem-solving skills, working in groups, taking more risks and communicational skills such as turn taking, topic changing, and leave taking. To sum up the advantages of drama Ã…Å ¾amlÄ ±oÄÅ ¸lu and KarakuÃ…Å ¸ (2008) list what effective use of creative drama can achieve in learners: Creative drama; 1. Promotes long-lasting learning 2. Nurtures empathy 3. Empowers imagination, 4. Offers new dimensions, 5. Triggers curiosity and investigation, 6. Improves problem-solving and analysis-synthesis skills, 7. Concretizes the abstract, 8. Provokes creativity, 9. Assures self-confidence and personal development, 10. Enhances studentsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸ repertoire, 11. Helps students develop effective addressing strategies and improve their rhetoric. 1.3 Significance Although there are a number of studies on attitude towards speaking English and those studies, to a great extent, give a rough idea about the importance of the problem. However, there is still need to elaborate on the issue with respect to creative drama applications. When we reduce the scale to Turkey, it is possible to see the scanty literature welcoming further studies. The literature on creative drama is pretty abundant, as well. However, the literature about the use of creative drama in EFL contexts is rather scarce. Thus, documenting any probable advantage of creative drama techniques for EFL contexts would be of great help for those who want to experiment without losing the enjoyable and pedagogical nature of the courses. 1.4 Literature Review There are several studies (AldaÄÅ ¸, 2010; Fuentes, 2010; KÄ ±lÄ ±Ãƒ §, 2009; SaÄÅ ¸lamel, 2009; Saraà §, 2007, Shand, 2008; ) which have demonstrated that the use of creative drama activities not only creates a motivating environment for speaking English but also contribute positively to learners speaking skills in the field of EFL both abroad and Turkey. 1.4.1 Studies Conducted Abroad Shand (2008) conducted a study on the effects of a creative drama curriculum for a group of third, sixth and seventh graders. As a mixed study participants response to the drama curriculum was measured by pre-test and post-test, observations and interviews. Results of the study showed that drama activities were successful in lowering the third grade participants anxiety and increasing their confidence and motivation towards speaking English. Drama clearly helped motivate these students, reduce their anxiety, and increase their confidence. Shand (2008) stated that the students were much more relaxed when speaking English. They spoke more, and when they spoke, they were louder and uninhibited. In another study, Fuentes (2010) conducted a qualitative study to examine the effect of drama on second language learning. A total of 40 pupils of the first year of Primary Education participated in the study. The participants were separated into two groups. With group A, a didactic unit based on a simple play adapted to their level was developed and with group B several drama activities and techniques to support the existing planning were used. The implementation of the unit in group A took seven sessions of 50 minutes each; whereas in group B six sessions were dedicated to drama techniques. For evaluation a diary was used by the researcher in which she has taken notes of the learners difficulties and progress. Children also evaluate their own performance in the L2 (self-assessment), they received feedback from both their partners and the teacher (co-assessment). Fuentes study demonstrated that the activities presented during the study had some very positive and interesting results regarding learner autonomy, motivation and pronunciation. 1.4.2 Studies Conducted in Turkey Several studies on creative drama and teaching English as a foreign language have also been conducted in Turkey. One of those studies is SaÄÅ ¸lamels study (2009), which aimed to find the effects of creative drama as an alternative way to reduce language anxiety of university students in English speaking classes. At the beginning of the study the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale was administered to 565 randomly selected students from different levels. Next, semi-structured interviews were carried out with 30 students and 20 speaking teachers to get their perceptions of language anxiety in speaking courses. In the light of the findings from the interviews carried out with students, it was observed that almost half of the students found learning and speaking English as an anxiety-provoking experience. The possible reasons for language anxiety were investigated from the students perspective through interviews. It was found that linguistic difficulties (vocabulary, grammar a nd pronunciation), cognitive challenges (fear of failure in front of others, fear of exams, fear of failure in communication, lack of self-esteem, fear of making mistakes), the role of the teachers, competitiveness and lack of information were considered to be correlates of language anxiety. After covering the role and possible sources of language anxiety and possible ways to alleviate language anxiety from a variety of perspectives, the study focused on a single way to lower language anxiety in speaking classes: applying creative drama activities. 22 participants chosen on a voluntary basis attended a 6-week creative drama program. The Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale was administered both at the beginning and at the end of the study, and then the findings were compared. The difference between the pre-test and the pos-test was found to be statistically significant and the findings indicated that creative drama activities could be useful to lower language anxiety. In another study Aldag (2010) aimed to investigate the effectiveness of creative drama on the enhancement of motivation of the students who learn English in public elementary schools. Fifty randomly sampled 4th grade students of a state school participated in the study. The Control Group continued their conventional lessons while the Experimental Group was exposed to drama-based curriculum, but the content of the course was the same. Five different instruments were employed to collect data in the study: Motivation Questionnaire, Personal Information Form, Student and Teacher Interviews, Individual Diaries, and Observational Field Notes. Motivation test was applied twice: Firstly at the beginning of the study as pre-test; and secondly at the end of the study as post-test. The results of the obtained data indicate that there were significant differences between Experimental Group and the Control Group in terms of enhancement of motivation and speaking skills. At the end of the study, m otivation of the students of Experimental Group who were exposed to creative drama activities increased in a considerable extent, whereas motivation of the students of Control Group who continued their traditional curriculum remained the same. AldaÄÅ ¸ (2010) states that when learners overcame the fear of making mistakes in foreign language and relied on themselves, they were very eager to speak in English during activities. They were more enthusiastic about speaking in later stages of training. In another study Saraà § (2007) aimed to investigate whether creative drama has a positive impact on developing the speaking skills of young learners. For this purpose, the researcher conducted eight English lessons in which creative drama activities were applied. The lessons were recorded and checked by an observer. In addition, with the purpose of determining the expectations, feelings and thoughts of the students in terms of the influence of creative drama on the learners, the students were asked to keep journals. The observed lessons showed that speaking skills gradually increased towards the end of the research implementation. In addition, the students journals indicated that creative drama made a positive influence on the learners, such as providing a stress free environment, developing self confidence and providing high learner participation. Saraà § (2007) highlights that after the creative drama activities the students experienced only the positive feelings, most were happ y and found the activity to be fun. Not a single student felt anything negative about the activity afterwards. According to the data obtained, almost all the students show some of information routine, negotiation skills, simplification skills and rephrasing, use of fillers and hesitation devices in their journals. The results also showed that class participation and learner motivation was at the highest level in creative drama classroom enabling even the most shy and passive learner gain self confidence and thus become more active in the classroom. Another study which aimed to investigate the effect of creative drama on speaking English and students attitudes towards speaking English was submitted by KÄ ±lÄ ±Ãƒ § (2009). She included a research sample composed of high school students, who are between 15-16 years old. Research was designed according to experimental model with pre and post test control group. The advised methods and techniques in the course book were applied by the teacher to the students of control group. Unlike the control group, in addition to the methods and techniques recommended, drama activities were also applied to the experimental group. Speaking test and attitude test were applied before and after the treatment to determine the effect. The results of the study suggested that there had been a significant change on the attitudes of the students in the experimental group towards speaking English. Learners answers to the questionnaire after treatment showed that they felt more relaxed and were n ot afraid of making mistakes while speaking English. KÄ ±lÄ ±Ãƒ § (2009) stated that this may be because of the power of creative drama to help learners gain self-confidence during creative drama activities. In the light of this literature review the current study aims to find out whether creative drama has a positive effect on the attitudes of intermediate level high-school students towards speaking English in Turkey. 1.5 Research Question Does the use of creative drama in English classes help learners developing a positive attitude towards speaking English? 1.6 Research Hypothesis Creative drama activities can help developing positive attitude towards speaking English among intermediate level learners of English in state high schools in Turkey. 1.7 Limitations and Delimitations In this study the number of participants was one of the limitations. Since high school students have a very tough program during the week it was not possible for so many students to stay at school for the study. Therefore, only 12 students were available. This may limit the generalization of the study results to other populations. Another limitation is the time factor. The treatment was only applied for four weeks despite the fact that this kind of treatment must take a great deal of time. If the treatment had been applied for a longer period, it is anticipated that the results would have been more significant. II. METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY 2.1 Sampling and Setting The study took place at a state high-school in Sultanbeyli. The school is located in a socio-economically disadvantaged district of Istanbul. There are approximately 600 students and 50 teachers in the school. 9th grade students have 6 hours of English every week, while 10th, 11th and 12th grade students have 4 hours. As it is an Anatolian high-school, great importance is attached to the teaching of English. The administration provides support to ensure that there are enough foreign language teaching materials and resources. However, there is a shared opinion among English teachers that students are not eager to communicate in English. Instead they prefer studying grammar as memorizing grammar rules is easier for them than producing real language. The participants of the study are 12 students who were chosen on a voluntary basis. There are 8 females and 4 males. They are 15-16 years old and this is their third year at the school. 2.2 Design of the study The study is a combination of pre-experimental and qualitative research design. It is pre-experimental because there is no control group. Due to curricular issues, participants were not assigned as the Experimental Group and the Control Group during the study. Therefore, only the impact on the experimental group was measured. The study contains elements of both qualitative and quantitative research techniques. Qualitative data was obtained from students reflective journals, semi-structured interviews with students, and a colleagues observation notes on the study. Quantitative data was obtained from the attitude questionnaire which was applied before and after the treatment. 2.3 Instrumentation In this study four types of instruments were used for data collection. These instruments are attitude questionnaire towards speaking English, students reflective journals, semi-structured interviews with participants and a colleagues observation notes. The attitude questionnaire was developed by KÄ ±lÄ ±Ãƒ § (2009). It was designed to explore what an individuals attitude towards speaking English. The questionnaire has 30 phrases and designed as a five likert scale (1=strongly disagree, 2=disagree, 3=neutral, 4=agree, 5=strongly agree). This scale was applied before the treatment as a pre-test and after the treatment as a post-test. At the end of each creative drama session the students were asked to write in their reflective journals about that session. They were provided with some guideline questions and asked to write in their journals in a way to answer those questions. The questions are: What did you learn in this session? What did you feel in this session? Was it different from your other English classes? Which three words would you choose to describe this session? Do you think you could express yourself in English? In which activity? Would you like to attend more creative drama sessions? Why? The main purpose for keeping journals was to collect data about students feelings and opinions about the session in order to find out how the session affected their attitude towards speaking English. Participants were allowed to write in Turkish as the priority is to reach their ideas and feelings rather than evaluating their language competence. At the end of the creative drama program two randomly selected students were interviewed with the aim of getting more information about how creative drama activities affected their attitude towards speaking English. They were asked open-ended questions related to the activities and their responses were recorded, transcribed and evaluated by the researcher. The questions asked in the interview are: What do you think about creative drama? Do you think creative drama sessions are beneficial for you? Can you compare the English lessons in the classroom and the creative drama lessons? Would you like this program continue? What would happen if this program continued? In order to decrease the level of researcher subjectivity, a colleague was invited to observe one of the creative drama sessions. She was kindly asked to take notes during the session and share those notes with the researcher. Procedures Necessary permission was taken from the school management in order to conduct the study at school. It was announced to the intermediate level students that there would be a 4-week study about English teaching. Twelve students were chosen on a voluntary basis. Since the study was going to be carried out after the school, their parents were asked to sign a form which showed that they were willing to let their children participate in the study. The room for the sessions was determined and prepared for creative drama activities by placing comfortable seats, cushions and costumes. Before the first session the pre-test (the attitude questionnaire towards speaking English) was administered to the participants to identify their attitudes towards speaking English. They were also provided with guideline questions for their reflective journals. The participants were exposed to the creative drama program for 4 weeks. The program was planned as 3 hours each week. Therefore, it consisted of 12 hou rs in total. The participants were requested to write about their opinions and feelings in their reflective journals by following the guidelines after each session. A colleague was invited to observe the third weeks session. The post-test (attitude questionnaire towards speaking English) was administered to the participants reporting their attitude towards speaking English at the end of the creative drama program. Interviews were conducted with four randomly selected participants at the end of the treatment. The findings gathered from the instruments were analyzed and compared to see the impact of the treatment. III. DATA ANALYSIS 3.1 Results In this section, the analysis of the data obtained from the pre-test and post-test of attitude questionnaire of the participants will be presented. 3.1.1 Results of attitude questionnaires The attitude questionnaire was applied twice during the research study. It was firstly applied before the treatment as pre-test and then secondly at the end of the treatment as post-test. It was applied before and after the treatment in order to reveal whether there is any effect of creative drama on enhancing positive attitude or not. This questionnaire was formed by using Likert Scale (1=strongly disagree, 2=disagree, 3=neutral, 4=agree, 5=strongly agree). The results of these tests were analyzed through Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows 20.0, in this programme Paired Samples T-test was used in order to reveal whether drama activities affect the learners attitude towards learning English in a positive way or not. Pre-test Results of the Participants Pre-test Results Table 1 ITEM Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree 1.I have difficulty speaking English. 0 0 5 5 2 2.I am afraid of making mistakes. 2 3 4 2 1 3.I dont want to speak English. 0 1 0 0 11 4.Lack of grammar knowledge inhibits my speaking. 0 1 2 4 5 5.Lack of vocabulary inhibits my speaking. 1 3 2 4 2 6.I can speak English fluently. 0 4 6 2 0 7.I feel nervous while speaking English. 3 2 2 2 3 8.I forget what to say when I am nervous. 2 2 4 1 3 9.Lack of correct pronunciation inhibits my speaking. 1 1 4 2 4 10.Lack of knowledge inhibits my speaking. 0 1 1 9 1 11.I cant express my ideas. 1 1 3 7 0 12.I cant understand what others say. 1 1 0 3 7 13.I dont know how to study to speak English. 0 0 2 3 7 14.Because of my teachers negative attitude. 0 0 1 0 11 15.I think nobody will understand me while speaking. 0 1 1 3 7 16.I think in Turkish. 1 1 2 4 3 17.Because my friends are teasing me for my mistakes. 0 0 0 1 11 18.Other students are better at speaking English. 2 1 1 0 8 19.I am afraid of not being understood by others. 1 1 2 4 4 20.I think I have no ability in learning a foreign language. 0 0 1 1 10 21.I cant remember the English meaning of words while speaking. 0 2 6 3 1 22.I think my teacher isnt interested in what I am saying. 0 0 0 0 12 23.I dont have to speak English in class. 1 0 4 1 5 24.My friends tell what I think before me. 0 3 2 4 3 25.I cant realize the mistakes I have done while speaking English. 1 0 1 5 5 26.I prefer learning grammar structures rather than speaking English. 0 0 1 6 5 27.I cant use computer because I dont know English. 0 0 0 1 11 28.I cant surf the Internet. 0 1 0 0 11 29.I cant watch movies in English. 1 1 0 2 8 30.I cant read newspapers or magazines in English. 5 5 2 0 0 Table 1 summarizes the participants responses to the items in the questionnaire which demonstrate their attitude towards learning English before the treatment. Post-test Results of the participants Post-test Results Table 2 ITEM Strongly agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly disagree 1. I have difficulty speaking English. 1 1 2 5 3 2.I am afraid of making mistakes. 1 3 0 3 5 3.I dont want to speak English. 1 1