Plan of action for Eliazar Gomez Essay

Research has shown that shaking babies is the leading cause of infant mortality. In the United States, up to 1,400 children receive medical treatment after being shaken. Twenty-five percent of these die, while a majority of survivors have to cope with a lifelong vision problems and brain injury (First Statewide, undated). Debby Golonka, MPH, writing for BCB Health Guide, in its Web site, expounds that the long-term complications of the shaken baby syndrome may include seizures (uncontrolled muscle movements and unable to speak, see and interact normally), muscle spasticity that results in awkward movements, mental retardation, blindness or vision problems, delays in physical or emotional growth, learning and behavior problems at school. Vincent Palusci, MD adds that damage to an infant’s immature brain, with little stored information and developed capacities, will impair the brain’s adaptive abilities. Dr. Palusci cites an example that a child with severe vision-related problems will not learn by observing. Dr. Palusci also says that the development of language, motor coordination and balance will be adversely affected, requiring physical and occupational therapy, using a sensory-rich environment, in order to assist the child acquire the skills. Dr. Palusci also underlines the importance of building the child’s ability to be attentive. Dr. Palusci writes that therapists often work on one child to help him focus and further his attention span. Dr.Palusci also says that older kids with SBS may require special education and continued therapy. Plan of Action for Eliazar Gomez From his medical records, it seems that Eliazar may have shaken baby syndrome. It’s utterly important to ascertain for sure if he is mentally retarded. It is highly probable that Eliazar has problems with his social skills with fellow students and teachers, and communication skills (â€Å"just looking at you† might indicate that he didn’t understand what was being said). His being a busybody might indicate his short attention span. All of which are signs of mental retardation (National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities, 2004). If Eliazar is determined to be mentally-retarded, he will need individualized help. One would need to work with Eliazar’s parents to come up with an individualized education program for him. Further, the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities writes in its fact sheet that teachers will do well to learn more about mental retardation, and the techniques and strategies one can employ to help mentally-retarded students. One also needs to get more involved by emphasizing the student’s strengths and interest, being aware of his educational goals. On the instruction side, the fact sheet suggests being as concrete as possible, giving less verbal instructions and doing more demonstrations (show a picture, or other visual aids). Longer tasks also need to be broken down into smaller steps. (National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities, 2004). References 2004. Mental Retardation Fact Sheet. National Dissemination Center for Children withDisabilities. Retreived on 28 March 2008. First statewide shaken baby prevention research project in US. EmaxHealth. Com Retrieved on 28 March 2008. Golonka, Debby. 2007. Shaken Baby Syndrome. BCB Health Guide. Retrieved on 28 March 2008. Palusci, Vincent J. 2004. Shaken Baby / Shaken Impact Syndrome. .

John Locke Provisos Essay

John Locke was an English philosopher who had the thought that all people have natural rights. Their natural rights included that of life. autonomy and belongings and the thought of these rights being held by each person is frequently said to be the primary influence of the American Declaration of Independence. Locke farther explains his principle behind natural rights in Two Treatises of Government and peculiarly belongings right in his â€Å"Provisos. † saying the conditions the brand belongings populace or private. Locke’s â€Å"Provisos† discusses the thought that belongings becomes private when a individual labours upon the belongings. His logical thinking that the land becomes the person’s private belongings is that a individual has the right to the fruits of his labour. and he besides has the right to the resource that bore his fruits. in this instance the belongings. As Locke says. â€Å"He by his labour does. as it were. envelop it from the common† ( page 437 ) . By this he means that by tuging over the land. the land is taken off from the remainder of society. the common. and becomes the private belongings of the person. Locke besides believes that â€Å"as much as a adult male tills. workss. improves. cultivates. and can utilize the merchandise of. so much is his property† ( page 437 ) . In this. he is saying that a adult male can have every bit much as can be utile to him ; claiming belongings in surplus and non being able to do it productive is incorrect because the belongings will so travel to blow alternatively of bearing fruit. This is incorrect because â€Å"nothing was made by God for adult male to botch or destroy† ( page 436 ) and holding land lying to waste is along the same lines as destroying the land. This thought from Locke’s â€Å"Provisos† follows from his thought of general belongings rights. He believes that land that has non been influenced by an individual’s labour is land available for all of society. Man should still esteem the land and non work it. but â€Å"were it non for the corruptness and ferociousness of pervert adult male. there would be no demand of any other. no necessity that work forces should divide from this great and natural community† ( page 441 ) . However because world can non be trusted. Locke believes that one time a adult male does set forth attempt to better a piece of belongings. that land and the merchandises of it belong to him. Although that land might belong to one adult male. it is still profiting the remainder of society because â€Å"the commissariats functioning to the support of human life produced by one acre of enclosed and cultivated land are ten times more than those which are yielded by an acre of land of an equal profusion lying waste in common† ( page 437 ) . This is similar to the manner in which both a husbandman and society benefits from his crop. The husbandman and society both can have nutriment from his crop and what crop goes to the remainder of society. he is repaid for. which allows him to go on seeding seeds that will go on to foster the common. A state of affairs of private belongings that would conflict with one of the Lockean provision is belongings that is acclaimed through coercing Native Americans to hold with the American imposts that were being imposed and the American regulation. or to go forth. such as with the Indian Removal Act that was signed into jurisprudence in 1830. The Native Americans had worked the land and made it suited to back up their life style and in the quest to accomplish Manifest Destiny. nil would impede the determined heads of the Americans. Harmonizing to Locke. the land truly belonged to the Native Americans because they had labored on the land to do it comfortable. They did non work it ; they used the resources sagely and nil went to blow with their minimalist life style. With the Indian Removal Act that President Andrew Jackson signed into consequence. all Native Americans had to be relocated to countries west of the Mississippi River. The Native Americans were removed on the footing that American colonisers needed the land and wanted to accomplish Manifest Destiny. Another state of affairs affecting private belongings that would go against one of the Lockean provision would be that of the authorities prehending land due to unpaid revenue enhancements. In this state of affairs. a husbandman could hold yielded a big crop. but the demand for his harvest declined greatly to the point that he is unable to do a big adequate net income to pay his revenue enhancements. This could fall into a form for many old ages to come. finally making the point that the authorities can no longer merely maintain seting the husbandman into more debt. The husbandman would hold to claim bankruptcy and the authorities would prehend his land. This would go against Locke’s thought that the land a adult male plant. is his. The husbandman was making the best he could. was profiting society. and ne'er consented to losing his right to his land. but the authorities took it away anyhow. I believe that Locke right draws the line on private belongings because we have the right over our ain organic structures. and if the work of those organic structures can unite with resources to make something. so we have the right to claim that merchandise and the resources we used to do it. No 1 else put forth the attempt and therefore the fruit of our attempts are ours. I believe that difficult work deserves reward and that wages is the right to the merchandise. As Locke says. â€Å"The labour of his organic structure and the work of his custodies. we may state. are properly his† ( page 436 ) .

Barbara Stoller Millers Bhagavad Gita

The commentary by Bhagavad-gita is a modern translation of Bhagavad-gita by Barbara Stoller Miller, which briefly introduces Krishna's Legal Counsel in War. This is a fairly simple but detailed explanation of the Hindu faith and the conflicts mankind encounters when deciding the way to follow. Translation is a kind of poetry that you can divide into 18 doctrines and chapters if you desire. Each teaching focuses on the spiritual discipline revealed through Hindi god Krishna, and in the most important stage of his life Arjuna seeks knowledge. Gita has many English translations. Perhaps the most readable are Swami Prabhavananda and Isherwood (http://www.krsna.com/gita/), but Swami Nikhilananda, S. Translation of Rada Krishnan and Barbara. Stoller Miller is academic and literary. The prose of Aurobindo about Sanskrit is very troublesome, but it is still invincible. (Bhagavad gita and its information, Aurobindo) Bhagavad Gita, astronomy is not bound by any religious caste or faith. There is no boundary. It only recognizes true essence, that is, all people 's Atmans (soul). In a nutshell, Bhagavad Gita is the only bridge of eternal existence between man and God ... a person who shows you the way of salvation. There is no other document teaching steps in such precise and clear terms in the earth. The commentary by Bhagavad-gita is a modern translation of Bhagavad-gita by Barbara Stoller Miller, which briefly introduces Krishna's Legal Counsel in War. This is a fairly simple but detailed explanation of the Hindu faith and the conflicts mankind encounters when deciding the way to follow. Translation is a kind of poetry that you can divide into 18 doctrines and chapters if you desire. - Confession v. Gita When ancient people tried to understand religion, they were more likely to be associated with higher powers, also known as God. Hundreds of different religions have been established over time around the world, and stories about talking to God are often found in the work of groups of these different people. This will help other people understand and follow the same beliefs

Social Biases Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social Biases Paper - Essay Example Prejudicial attitudes are dangerous because these are based on mere beliefs or impressions which can be very far from the truth. It can lead to wrong assumptions and then lead further into erroneous actions or judgment on someone who may fit a certain stereotype. Some of the ways to avoid prejudice is to keep an open mind and see a person for what he or she is and dispose of the preconceived notions one may have against another individual. Another is to have adequate and open channels of communication to prevent prejudice from taking more sinister forms such as an action that is discriminatory or exclusionary which is what happens if a person has the wrong or incomplete information to make an informed and wise decision. Biases are dangerous traits because it prevents rational arguments from influencing a rigid outlook or viewpoint from being changed and corrected. A biased person therefore can be said to have a warped mind and precludes an impartial judgment on any matter being discu ssed. Most of biased persons end up as bigots who are inflexibly intolerant of other people and their opinions; it can lead to conflicts from an irrational fear, hatred or suspicion of a particular group. Discussion Prejudice pertains to the attitudes of a person towards a particular group that is not totally correct because these are based on incomplete or wrong information. Prejudice can be thought of as a form of latent discrimination because there is as yet no actual action taken by that person to express or externalize those distorted attitudes, values and beliefs. Prejudice can vary in intensity or mode of expression but all its forms exhibit a negative sentiment towards a certain group or to an individual belonging to that group (Brown, 2010, p. 35). Although not outwardly manifested, prejudice has serious consequences for any society because of its adverse impact on any target. On the other hand, stereotyping of people is putting them into â€Å"neat† categories which are often mistaken because these are based on the wrong beliefs, or in short, a prejudiced viewpoint. A stereotype is an over-simplified conception, notion, representation or image that conforms to a particular set of characteristics of a group of people but disregards any individual traits. It is very damaging to a person because that particular person may not have the same group features. It is a bad to stereotype someone because it imputes negative attributes (Zanna & Olson, 1994, p. 1). A person who classifies people because of unique characteristics is guilty of stereotyping. Lastly, discrimination is the overt manifestation of prejudice and stereotyping. It is external and expressed through actions which are favorable to one group and injurious to another group. Discrimination results from the prejudices of a person who then makes a distinction between the stereotypes of a certain group to which an individual belongs and makes a decision based on the group's features or chara cteristics and no longer on the individual merits of a person. Different Kinds of Biases – the subtle bias is often unconsciously practiced by the person. It means he or she is even not aware of the inherent bias. More distressingly, a subtle bias is very hard to detect by the persons

The representation of savagery and civilization Term Paper

The representation of savagery and civilization - Term Paper Example The American civilization for example, was a combination of European immigrant new technology in terms of superior weaponry farming and international trade technology. It therefore easily overpowered that native technology of bows, arrows and constant migration of Native American tribes. This paper sets out to distinguish between the concepts of savagery and civilization with reference to the contribution of a number of primary sources who have tackled this topic in the past. Perspectives of Primary Sources on Savagery and Civilization In the Descent of man, Darwin describes as native the communities that were to be found in the Western Frontier during the expansion of American rule. He makes the assertion that reproductive power is lower in barbarons or savages than in civilized people (Darwin 45). This was an attempt to compare a purely biological process [reproduction] in people who had attained different levels of civilization. It is clear from the argument in the paper that Darw in is actually talking about mortality rate or reproductive rate. This is because he goes further to argue that because of the poor living conditions, the barbarons have a lower rate of survival. However he goes further to allege that savages appear to be â€Å"less prolific that civilized people† (Darwin, 46). Among the reasons given for the low population levels among the savages are wars with neighbors, a tendency to wander from place to place that endangers the lives of infants, diseases, famine and lack of water. Darwin also states that infanticide is a major cause of depopulation since the savages would rather kill children, especially girls, in an attempt to keep down the population levels (Darwin, 46). Another great blight of colonialism was slavery. Arguments that some cultures were superior to others and civilized persons were much more superior to native savages fuelled the slave trade. This trade ensured that some people were subhuman as they had not undergone the full extent of development in the process of natural selection. According to Darwin certain humans were a sub species of the human species (Darwin 175). Humans therefore shamelessly traded in other humans like commodities. They owned them, made them work and then sold them up to other owners. However, Darwin’s allegations have since been challenged by later day scholars who termed some of Darwin’s assertions as inadequate, presumptive and not supported by irrefutable evidence. Among the scholars who disagree is Fredrick Jackson Turner who refers to the civilization of America as meeting of minds between the European settlers and the American native life (Turner, 3). He goes further to describe how the European had to adjust to the American life by planting corn, using the birch canoe to travel and even adopting the native Indian war cry in order to survive. He acknowledges that the European brought with him some superior technology including the gun and train, but the se alone were not enough for his survival as the environment proved too tough unless he adjusted (Turner, 4). According to him, therefore, it is the combination of cultures that brings about civilization rather than a single purist culture (Turner, 4). The contribution of these arguments towards colonialism was that colonists always argued that they were bringing forth a new

Increase of fruit and vegetable consumption by promoting them as an Essay

Increase of fruit and vegetable consumption by promoting them as an alternative to less healthy snacks - Essay Example They calculated factor scores for each participant and examined prospectively the associations between their dietary patterns and colon and rectal cancer risks. Quite astonishingly, the results were quite alarming. The prudent pattern was characterized by higher intakes of fruits, vegetables, legumes, fish, poultry, and whole grains, while the Western pattern, was characterized by higher intakes of red and processed meats, sweets and desserts, French fries, and refined grains. During 12 years of follow-up, they identified 445 cases of colon cancer and 101 cases of rectal cancer. After adjusting for potential confounders, they observed a relative risk for colon cancer of 1.46 (95% confidence interval, 0.97-2.19) when comparing the highest with the lowest quintiles of the Western pattern (P value for trend across quintiles, .02). The prudent pattern had a non-significant inverse association with colon cancer (relative risk for fifth quintile compared with the first, 0.71; 95% confidence interval, 0.50-1.00; P for trend across quintiles, .31). ... and the risk of colon cancer."( Fung, Hu, Fuchs, Gioannucci, Hunter, Stampfer, Colditz, and Willet, Programs in Nutrition, Simmons College, 300 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02115, USA. fung@simmons.edu).1 This paper is targeted at the time-starved office-goers and health conscious people. African Americans have a higher risk for almost all heart-related diseases compared to the native whites for the simple reason that they consume less to moderate amount of fruits and vegetables. Heart disease, obesity, blood pressure, cancer, and diabetes are common forms of disease that can affect them more. Fruits and vegetables provide abundant vitamins and minerals to maintain a healthy body. There are distinct advantages in consuming fruits and vegetables compared to the less healthy snacks. Phy-to-chemicals Despite the fact that we come across food that fills our palate and is easy on the pocket at every street corner, it must be said that most of these food supplements may not be as healthy as one would expect it to be. Fast foods are a mixture of fatty and less healthy substances. This does not in any way take away the gullible replenishment of the youth and office goers. Life on the fast track can be unforgiving. Where does one have the time and inclination to spend time looking for a health specific menu when time is their biggest enemy Walking up to a restaurant to grab a quick bite may sound a tempting proposition, but the fact remains that not all these food are as healthy and nourishing as we think. The gradual side effects could be more harmful and painful than a more planned intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. A growing body of research proved that fruits and vegetables are critical to promoting good health. In fact, fruits and vegetables should be the foundation of a

CIS273 Week 1 123 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

CIS273 Week 1 123 - Assignment Example a) Standardizing HTML ensures that web pages are accessible to all sorts of internet users including the visually impaired. While designing a website, developers need to acknowledge that there are web users with disabilities such as poor eyesight. Other issues to be identified are choice of language and conditions for use. The issues provide developer with the knowledge of user circumstances hence accounting for them. b) Further stipulates that with combination of factors put forward by the W3C, the issues can be broadly divided into cultural, social and technological. Language and symbols considerations are for cultural issues, social differences are found in age, gender are even economics while technology is with computer related issues. a) The selected website uses java script based on character set utf-8. The HTML DOCTYPE reveals that the version used in the site is 4.01. The comment tags used in the source code are of this type, â€Å"†. Furthermore, the marked header elements contain the main subject of the webpage which in this case is definition. b) The website is also preferably designed for internet explorer. The fact that the used comment tag is and does not employ â€Å"---â€Å" is proof enough that the comment syntax used is SGML. a) With respect to the e-Activity comments are at the beginning of the selected source code. The comments basically talk about the language used in the website which in the selected case is English. The essence of the comment is that during editing of the source code the web designer will tell the exact place to make changes. b) Adding a comment into a web page requires something like HTML Comment Box which offers one of the easiest ways to add a comment to a web page of a website. Furthermore Disqus Comment Box could also be used. Comments are necessary for code explanation, for

Working with the New Millenials Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Working with the New Millenials - Essay Example Case facts revealed that new millenials have tendencies to question everything, demand explicitly clear and consistent expectations, are primarily family oriented and earn to consume immediately as their very philosophy embodies living for the moment. Likewise, the facts indicate that new millenials want flexibility and working in a virtual environment where they can wear casual clothes and come at a time they please. Therefore, rather than restricting their movements, organizations can focus on providing flexibility in work, as long as explicitly stated goals and objectives are attained. Organizations should encourage their creativity and innovativeness and evaluate performance using Management By Objectives (MBO) that would determine progress and discuss meritorious increases depending on performance and attainment of goals. As confirmed by Heathfield (2012), there are some guidelines to manage millenials, to wit: (1) effective provision of structure, leadership and guidance; (2) e ncouraging â€Å"the millennial's self-assuredness, "can-do" attitude, and positive personal self-image† (Heathfield, 2012, p. 1);

Tort Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Tort - Essay Example summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale; and where an offence under this Section committed by a corporation has been committed with the consent or connivance of, or facilitated by any neglect on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or other officer of the corporation, he, as well as the corporation shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly". Therefore, Betty is obligated by law to obtain insurance for liability to employees. Employers are responsible for the health and safety of their employees while they are at work. Employees may be injured at work, or they may become ill as a result of their work while in employment and might face claims for compensation in this regard. The Employers Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 ensures that employers have at least a minimum level of insurance cover against any such claims. Public Liability Insurance is designed to cover businesses from the threat that they will be sued from a member of the public. The basic concept of public liability is, it will cover one’s business in the event that it causes injury or death to a third party, it will also cover the business in the event that it damages a third parties property. Public liability insurance is not compulsory in the UK and therefore, Betty does not require it, though it might be recommended to protect Betty from future liability from third parties. Liability for land and premises differs depending on the question whether the injured person is a lawful visitor or a trespasser. While the former case is governed by the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957, the latter is governed by the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1984. Under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957, an occupier must be prepared for children to be less careful than adults1 and where damage is caused to a visitor by a danger of which he had been warned by the occupier, the warning is not to be

The Role of the Schools of Jurisprudence in Preserving Islamic Law Essay

The Role of the Schools of Jurisprudence in Preserving Islamic Law - Essay Example This report stresses that the consensus of the Muslim community and the precedents and analogy applied by Muslim scholars significantly defines Sharia. The Islamic law follows the concept of ‘rule of law’ and is therefore published and known to all citizens and courts for purposes of implementation. Additionally, the legislation of a body of legal injunctions ensures the realization of the sharia objectives. Sharia has direct links with jurisprudence. Firstly, Islamic law not only governs all aspects of Muslim’s life but also influences criminal and civil justice. Indeed, the Sharia history relates to political and social developments that led to opportunities and challenges for the jurists. Moreover, different madhabs, or schools of thought, came to life after the emergence of Islamic law. This paper declares that the main purpose of the schools of jurisprudence was to rescue the Islamic law from absorption by the administrative legal system thus reestablishing the link between the law and religion. As such, the schools of Jurisprudence played a fundamental role in the preservation of Islamic Law. However, the practice of Muslim faith and the interpretation of the Islamic law has been growing and equally becoming challenging with time. Nevertheless, consistent studies and debates among legal scholars, religious, and political leaders maintain the life of Islam in the modern world. Notably, the schools of jurisprudence originated from different places with significant effects on decisions relating to Islamic law and Islamic faith. Specifically, the Islamic schools of jurisprudence include the Qur’an, personal interpretation, the Sunna of the Prophet, and the community’s consensus (Lewandowska, n.y). Ideally, the schools of Jurisprudence lay down the legal theory allowing a judge to establish the legality and morality of an act by a Muslim thus preserving Sharia. Indeed, the main aim of the Islamic schools of jurisprudence to define the normative Islamic conduct as established under the Islamic law and in relation to legal precedents and principles. This ensured that Sharia reigns. Moreover, the schools of jurisprudence initiated the ‘closing the gate of Islamic jurisprudence’, which denied future scholars to invent legal principles that guarantee equal freedom between the Qur’an and the Prophetic traditions and their predecessors (Lewandowska, n.y). This played a significant role in preserving the Sharia and the methodologies and traditions of ancient Islamic schools of jurisprudence. As a result, the schools of jurisprudence seemingly reinstated the Islamic law and social order to the foundations of Islamic religion. In fact, the Islamic schools of jurisprudence resisted the Western influences thus preserving the Muslim character and the character of Islam legal opinions. Furthermore, Prophet Mohammad was significant in encouraging Quran teachers in different parts of the Islamic territories to teach the Islam how to read and write the Quran. As a result, many people got to know about the

The Red Scare of 1919 Essay Example for Free

The Red Scare of 1919 Essay The Red Scare of 1919 was the first of two major periods in American History when fear of radicalism culminated in the persecution and deportation of Americans thought to be radicals (communists, anarchists, or socialists). An unprecedented event, the Red Scare of 1919 exhibits how popular suppression and fear of radicalism can have disastrous consequences. The causes of the Red Scare are numerous and varied, however, one of the most important factors that contributed to the scare was the acts passed during World War I. During the war, social-anarchists did not support American involvement, nor did they support the subsequent draft. In response to the dissent, Congress passed the Sedition Act (actually, amended the Espionage Act). It was important in relation to the Red Scare because it allowed for censoring of radical literature as well as regulation of the mail. It was directed against subversives and, therefore, cast a very broad net. Because of the Sedition act, many individuals were arrested for distributing media that criticized the American military (Eugene Debs, head of the Socialist Party, was one of them). It was in response to this act that Justices Oliver Wendell Holmes set forth the clear and present danger doctrine and marked the beginning of modern First Amendment jurisprudence. Therefore, the Sedition Act of 1918 was important in the imposition of censorship after World War I. Reds were seen as a danger to the American system of government, economic stability, and way of life. In this sense, the war produced an era of intolerance for subversives, and it was this attitude that provided a ripe setting for the Red Scare of 1919 to take place. The Sedition Act was the legal excuse people used to regulate, censor, prosecute, and deport Americans thought to be radicals. Intolerance during the war would cause Americans to fear immigrants and radicals afterward, and it would only take a little spark to cause full blown hysteria. The Bolshevik revolution in Russia only deepened Americans fears because they felt the same thing could happen on their soil. The labor unrest following the end of World War I would prove to be instrumental in igniting the fire that was the Red Scare of 1919. The years after the war were marked by economic turmoil and labor unrest. At first, laborers expected the good working conditions, a staple of the wartime economy, to continue after the war was over. The economy was in good shape because war time contracts had cased industry to boom. Labor was supported by the government during the war in order to keep production levels high. After the war ended, however, contracts were canceled, which caused rising unemployment, and managers stopped cooperating with labor. Also, the cost of living had risen 99% by 1919 because of inflation. Without government support, labor unions began to strike in order to recapture the gains they had made during the war. One such strike took place in Seattle and involved sixty thousand workers (Painter, 346). Soon, this strike and others were labeled as a communist effort to undermine the American economy. The cycle of hysteria had begun. Labor unions were seen as Bolshevik sponsored organizations, and union members were labeled as communists. America began to become afraid because they saw there way of life slipping away. This fear would soon turn into action. The fear of radicalism stemmed, as stated earlier, from the era of intolerance during World War I. Propaganda techniques that once united the American public against Germany and hyphenated Americans during the war were easily converted into an instrument to cast a negative light on Bolsheviks. After all, America was not happy with Russia leaving the war and instituting a form of economy that was directly opposite of capitalism. Bolsheviks, therefore, were seen as a threat to democracy. Likewise, the forming of the Communist International was seen as an attempt to spread communism throughout the world. People felt insecure after the war, and this feeling was only bolstered by the idea that communists were working to overthrow the American economy and government. When a series of mail bombs were discovered, one of which exploding at Attorney General Palmers home, they were labeled as a communist effort to undermine America. The Red Scare of 1919 had begun. Labor unions were hardest hit. However, anyone seen as radical was persecuted and labeled a red. Elected officials who were members of the socialist party  were dismissed from office. In fact, the New York State Assembly dismissed five elected socialists. However, the most vivid example of the extent of the scare is illustrated by the Palmer raids, in which six thousand people were arrested and five hundred were deported. There were very few Communists in the United States in 1919, yet Palmer viewed them as a huge threat. Encouraged by Congress, Palmer began a series of showy and well publicized raids against radicals and leftists. Striking without warning and without warrants, Palmers men smashed union offices and the headquarters of Communist and Socialist organizations. They concentrated, whenever possible, on aliens rather than citizens, because aliens had fewer rights. As quickly as it had began, the Red Scare of 1919 ended. Although the hysteria had subsided, consequences still arose. The scare, as well as the raids, was seen as unproductive. Of the numerous arrests made in association with the scare, only a small percent of the suspected communists were deported. Therefore, government persecution of subversives only stopped because it was not working as well as hoped, yet the fear and hatred of radicals was still looming in the distance. It would again resurface in the 1950s during the McCarthy era when another Red Scare, more organized and brutal, would take place. America had learned how to deal with reds, and these lessons would be effectively applied in the next crusade against communism in America. Finally, a more visible and immediate consequence of the Red Scare of 1919 was the mass fear of immigration that took place afterwards. The highly visual raids by Palmer had a deep effect on Americans because the raids exposed the enemy. Restrictions and quotas were placed on immigration, especially on those people coming from Eastern Europe. Fear of communists turned into hatred of immigrants, and American citizens would have a hard time excepting new arrivals. In many cases, immigrants were automatically labeled as subversives, anarchists, and communists. The association between immigrants and social upheaval would have a negative effect on American immigrants in the years to come, a fact most vividly portrayed through the trial of Sacco and Venzetti. Also, for many years to come, unions were seen in a negative light. The association of communism with unions would continue  to be a hindrance for labor and the advancement of labor reforms.

The Poetry of Elizabeth Bishop Essay Example for Free

The Poetry of Elizabeth Bishop Essay In my answer I will be talking about my ideas on the themes, styles, and images in the poetry of Elizabeth Bishop. Elizabeth Bishop was born on the 8th of February 1911 in Worcester, Massachusetts. Her father died when she was eight months old and her mother, in shock, was sent to a mental hospital for five years. They were separated in 1916 until her mother finally died in 1934. She was raised by her grandparents in Nova Scotia. There are four main themes in the poetry of Bishop. These include nature, childhood, domesticity/motherhood, and the resilience of the human spirit. The two poems I will be discussing about in my answer related to the following themes are ‘Sestina’ and ‘The Filling Station’. The two themes I will be discussing about are domesticity and childhood. The first poem I will be discussing on is ‘Sestina’. The theme in ‘Sestina’, which I will be discussing, is childhood and domesticity. In ‘Sestina’ Bishop is looking back at her childhood in a child’s perspective. The use of the third person voice in Sestina blends the poets adult perspective with the childs. A sestina is a seven stanza poem with 6 lines in every stanza except for the last one, where there are only three. If we look at the last word in every line of the first stanza we realize that house, almanac, stove, grandmother, child, and almanac are used over and over again as the last word of every line, except the last stanza where there are two words in every line. The reason why Elizabeth Bishop titled her poem after the form it was written in was because she wanted the reader to understand the way a child sees. A child rearranges things until it makes sense, the way the words are rearranged over and over again. In stanza five of the child is drawing a picture. The picture is an outlet of the child’s emotion. I think this is a great way of doing so, after all a picture tells a thousand words. The picture the child draws therefore reflects truly what the child dreams of, †Å"a rigid house† and â€Å"a man with buttons like tears†. Apparently, this is a complete contrast to the current situation. It is a happy past that she’ll never have again. It is the bitter mirror image of the present and the past of dream and reality. Although, in the last two stanzas the mood of the poem takes a turn for a brighter theme because of the child’s picture â€Å"†¦little moons fall down like trees from between the pages of the almanac into the flower bed†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Personally, I take the image of flowers in the rain as a very interesting one. It resembles the silver lining in every cloud and the light at the end of the road. It’s about restoring hope in the face of affliction. This is clearly shown at the beginning of the last stanza. The verse â€Å"time to plant tears, says the almanac† marks the turning point of the poem. It is also at this moment that the child becomes happy, therefore not being completely unhappy. It’s time for the grandmother to bury her tears in the earth and grow hope. The message of the poem is then unveiled: there will be a rainbow after the rain, just as there will always be hope for tomorrow. â€Å"The grandmother sings to the marvellous stove and the child draws another inscrutable house†. The grandmother stops crying and starts to sing, the child stops dwelling on the past and starts to draw the future. The almanac in the poem represents the domestic. Its secular and full of information. We have this domestic scene with a stove a grandmother and a childbut then we have tears. The tears tip the poem towards the absurdity. The child can sense the grandmothers tears even though she is trying to hide it. The child expresses this through the picture she drew if a man with buttons like tears,, and by watching the teakettles small hard tears dance like mad. And in the last stanza where it ends with an inscrutable house, the last thing that should be inscrutable is her house. But in this case there are many symbols and the child is having a difficult time making sense out of things, so even though we have this domestic scene, it isnt really. I think that the tears are from the lack of the grandmothers children, the childs mother. Maybe thats the unspoken reason. The second poem I will be discussing is ‘The Filling Station’. In this poem I will be discussing the theme of domesticity/motherhood. I think it is the domestic details that fascinate the poet in this poem. I think so because the poet seems to write in a lot of detail about the domestic items in the â€Å"little, filling station†. Instead of saying it’s an oily filling station, she describes it further in saying it’s â€Å"oil-soaked, oil-permeated to a disturbing, over-all black translucency†. This is one example of her in-depth detail of the filling station in the poem. The two things in which she goes into extreme detail in are the â€Å"doily† and the â€Å"plant†. She becomes very interested in these two domestic objects because they greatly contrast the atmosphere which the poet saw the filling station to be, â€Å"somebody embroidered the doily. Somebody waters the plant, or oils it maybe.† This shows how interested the poet was in these two objects. I understand the â€Å"somebody† in stanza six to be a caring mother. This may be linked to Bishop’s personal life in that she lost her own mother and is longing for a caring mother figure in her life, or, at least, in her life as a child. The realisation that the mother isn’t to be seen happens gradually as we see that it’s a family filling station and that there is wicker furniture, a woman’s touch surely, but then the sudden realisation floods Bishop in the sixth stanza when she repeats the word â€Å"somebody† again and again. The repetition of â€Å"somebody† appears to be a method of ignoring who this person might be even though the association is obvious. Bishop seems to be hiding from the realisation, reinforcing the thoughts that this is about her own lack of a mother. One of the things I love the most about the poetry of Elizabeth Bishop is the imagery. Elizabeth Bishop is well-known for her ability to take the mundane or most unimportant things in life and use her imagination to change it into something completely out of the ordinary. ‘The Fish’ is a great example of this. Elizabeth Bishop is renowned to write poetry about the beauty of poetry. This poem is not an exception. Bishop merely catches a fish, yet by her imagination and creativity, which is a part of her poetry, she is able to imagine the fish beyond what it is, not only talking about its skin but also talking about its innards and portraying it as a war veteran. In fact, the ending speaks of how Bishop even begins to see the colours of the rainbow. Sad to say, the poem focuses more on poetry itself; it is unlikely the poem is speaking of morality or life and death between herself and the fish. This is what makes it such a great poem. The main thing I like about this poem is the vivid imagery Bishop gives, especially when describing the fish. In this poem, the central image is of the poet holding the fish beside her rented boat. There are three main groups of factual images. The first group contains thirteen physical images of the fish: â⠂¬Ëœtremendous fish†¦ mouth†¦ brown skin †¦ speckled with barnacles†¦ infested with tiny white sea-lice†¦ his gills were breathing in the terrible oxygen†¦ the coarse white flesh the big bones and the little bones†¦ his shiny entrails†¦ the pink swim-bladder†¦ his eyes†¦ mechanism of his jaw†¦ his lower lip’ The second group contains seven factual images of the boat: ‘ beside the boat†¦ the little rented boat†¦ the pool of bilge where oil had spread a rainbow around the rusted engine†¦ to the bailer rusted orange†¦ the sun-cracked thwarts†¦ the oarlocks on their strings†¦ the gunnels†¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ The third group contains seven factual images of fishing: ‘ my hook fast in a corner of his mouth†¦ five old pieces of fish-line†¦ or four and a wire leader with the swivel still attached†¦ with all their five big hooks grown firmly in his mouth†¦ A green line, frayed at the end where he broke it†¦ two heavier lines†¦ and a fine black thread still crimped from the strain and snap †¦Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ Overall, there is a great variety in the imagery used in this poem, which is why I like the imagery in this poem. The writing style of Bishop was very different in comparison to her notable contemporaries such as Robert Lowell and John Berryman. In contrast to their confessional style involving large amounts of self-exposure, Bishops style of writing, though it sometimes involved sparse details from her personal life, was known for its highly detailed and objective, distant point of view and for its necessity on the personal subject matter that the work of her contemporaries involved. In contrast, when Bishop wrote about details and people from her own life, as she did in her story about her childhood and her weeping grandmother in Sestina, she always used discretion. Sestina, in other words, is not personal confession, as the lack of personal names indicates, but representative in the way that a tale is. Along with the persona, the point of view, and the poetic form, the language creates a complex experience for the reader. One sympathizes with the grandmother and the child, sensing sorrow, yearning, and the tensing of the childs effort to be an individual within the sheltering, suffocating domestic scene. Yet one also hears wariness in Bishops telling of their story.

Consumer Attitudes: Online Shoe Shopping

Consumer Attitudes: Online Shoe Shopping Segmentation is to identify homogeneous groups or customer segments in the market place that will respond in a consistent, predictable way to variations in the marketing mix (Reynolds, 2006). Previous market segmentation research studies indicate that market segmentation benefits firms in various ways. It directly influences the consumer decision-making process (Haley, 1968). Also, it generates new market segments and creates new business opportunities, which enables companies to overcome developing barriers and to achieve competitive differentiation. IKEA, Gillette and Microsoft are all successful examples. (Bowonder, 2010) The product that people choose to use or wear exactly reflects their life taste and social identity (Solomon and Barmossy, 2006). Belk (2003) think that the shoes consuming are crucial for both men and women which are not only a way of self presentation but also inseparable parts of our extended selves. Shoes are the mirror of our souls. Furthermore, people assume others from their footwear. They would rather bear the tortures from a pair of uncomfortable but stylish shoes than wear an average one, because they believe that shoes have the magic for their self achievement. 4.11 Consumer Attitudes towards Shoes Women are known to be much crazier on shoes than men. A research in America in 2000 showed that women aging from 16 to 74 owned more than twice pairs of shoes as men did on average. And lots of women owned over 50 pairs of footwear while none of the male respondents owned more than 30 pairs. However, men spent almost 25 dollars more on their most expensive shoes than women (Belk, 2003). Another survey of working women recently conducted by Mintel revealed why women are so keen on shoes. Forty-four percent of those who aged 18-34 said they needed two pairs of shoes for work, one for commute and the other one for wearing in the office. And almost two-thirds of participants said shoes helped them to achieve a fashionable working look (Dolliver, 2010). But the report in Minter about footwear retailing in 2008 demonstrated that Younger consumers are looking for better but affordable quality while the older care more about comfort and durability. The younger, especially men, are much more willing to buy shoes online. Once experiencing successful online shoes shopping, they are more likely to repeat purchase. In 2008, only 5 per cent adults aged over 15 buy shoes online, in which those who aged 15-24 and 35-44 more frequently buy shoes on the Internet (Mintel, 2008). 4.2 Competitor Benchmark Learning from the Icons in the same industry can help company quickly improve in an economically way. The most successful example online for shoes selling is Zappos.com from the USA. Although Chinese culture and economical environment are completely different from the USA, there is no border for business. Zappos business mode and managerial experience could be a good model for EA. Zappos online shoes selling business is in common with EAs e-commerce plan. It built up the brand online and reached $1 billion annual sales after 10 years effort (Zappos.com, 2009). There are more than 500 brands and 90,000 styles of shoes on Zappos.com with the price ranged from $20 to $2,000 to meet the needs of different consumer groups. Delivering high-quality online service and building up brand credibility by favourable WOM are the two key successful necessities to Zappos (BRAND WEEK, 2008). The store experience and the product try-on experience are the two highlights of physical shoes stores that online shoes shopping can hardly compare at present. However, the customer service, entertainment marketing as well as no sale area limitation are the benefits that most physical stores can never reach. Craig Adkins, Executive Vice President of Zappos, said that they dont compete with other online trade companies but compete with physical stores. The only reason that they have grown so quickly and won the game in the fierce competition is to offer the best customer service, product option and delivery speed possible (Zmzsk.com 2009). The interactive sections such as videos and blogs also provide more diversified customer experience and achieve the breakthrough of customer value. Namely, customer service, product variety, delivery and interactivity could be the four key points for EAs e-commerce. 4.3 Market Data Research There is barely any research about the shoes market or online market specifically focusing on the places EA plans to target (Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong province). However, we could have a general understanding about the Chinese online shoes market as a whole from the small amount of literature. With the popularity of online business, a lot export trade companies have been stepping into the home market through the internet. Certain famous shoes companies also start to change their companies from traditional bricks and mortar to bricks and clicks, even majority click level. Needless to say, EA will meet the competitors threats when it starts the approach into the new market. China is the largest footwear manufacturing base as well as the largest footwear consuming market around the world. The sales volume of Chinese shoes market is huge and steadily growing by years due to the large population and the annual improvement of disposable income. Those who live in the big cities such as Beijing and Shanghai as well as the coastal cities in Chinas southeast have the greatest purchasing power. According to The 2009 China Leather Shoes Market Situation Analysis and Forecast Report from Beijing Heading Century Consulting Co. Ltd, 85% of the total shoes consumption in China is low-to-middle-level products whereas most high-end shoes are imported from abroad (Sewworld.com 2009). There is a gap of the high-end domestic footwear market for EA to fill. Suffering from the economic recession, export trade shoes companies all consider stepping into the domestic market which contains numerous consumers and large consuming potential. But lots of them failed. The main barriers for those companies to open the home market are enormous variations of the outdated product style, lack of distribution channels, unfamiliarity with the market and huge costs of human and financial resources. Still, a great deal of export trade companies plan to have a finger in the pie despite of the difficulties (Cnxz.cn 2009). That means a chance for EA to survive in the dog-eat-dog world as long as the company finds the right way. On the other hand, department stores and speciality shops are the main distribution channels of leather shoes, according to The 2009 China Leather Shoes Consuming Market Research from Beijing Heading Century Consulting Co. Ltd, with 51.5% and 40.1%. Certain famous Chinese shoes brands, for instance, Belle, Aokang and Daphne, have occupied the majority of the domestic market and there is little market share left for those not that well-know SMEs (Sewworld.com 2009). The competition among physical stores is extremely fierce. Therefore, the SMEs start to explore a new distribution channel by opening the online market. In fact, several shoes brands which have physical stores have opened the online market. Not only the SMEs, but also large and famous companies either have built an online shopping website or have set up a virtual store with B2C websites. According to the China B2B Research Centre, there are more than 100 million internet consumers in China in 2009, and the number of the SMEs with e-commerce has dramatically increased to more than seven million in the past six years. Nevertheless, online sales in the footwear industry are basically at the initial stage except for a few industry leading companies which have entered the Internet shoes market early and systematically operated it in a large scale (Zmzsk.com 2009). EA could seize the right moment to open up a new world. 4.4 Online Consuming Analysis More and more people have joined the dramatically growing group shopping online, but still lots of people hold a conservative attitude towards online transaction. Risk perception about offering personal information, online payment and product quality etc. prevents consumers from further purchase behaviour. How can we encourage people to be willing to take risk (Schoormanà ¯Ã‚ ¼Ã…’2007)? How can we convert web visitors to buyers? Considerable previous studies proved that online trust building is the biggest issue facing e-marketing managers. Trust to a large extent determines the success of the relationship between buyer and seller and it is rather significant in the changeable e-business environment (Morgan and Hunt, 1994; Pavlou, 2003; Wang and Emurian, 2005). Establishing trust between shopper and sellers can reduce consumers uncertainty and rick perception. Furthermore, it has a positive impact on e-shoppers purchasing behaviour (Lim et al., 2010). There are manifold studies contributed to the definitions about trust. Deutsch (1962) thought that trust is an actions that increase ones vulnerability to another; Moorman (1992, p315) defined that Trust is the willingness to rely on an exchange partner in whom one has confidence; Sitkin and Roth (1993, p373) referred that trust is a belief in a persons competence to perform a specific task under specific circumstance. Whereas, Koufari and Sosa (2003) developed the concept of initial trust. In their opinion, trust can be built at the first time when people interact with the company, which directly influence the following consumer behaviour. Well-designed website and the good name of company can help visitors to form a positive attitude and against the risk of switching to competitors websites. Pleasant experience can gain a lot of new customers even at the first time. We agree that the first impression is very important, it may determine whether the future communication will continue or not. However, we believe that the temporary positive feelings aroused from the website are not equal to trust. Customers real faith towards the website requires companies to take continuous effort and to develop a good relationship with online consumers over time, such as offering an ongoing enjoyable interactive communication with customers. Furthermore, establishing and maintaining the trustful relationship can eventually affect the customers purchase intention (Bhattacherjee, 2002; Lee et al., 2001; Lim, 2001; Hoffman and Novak, 1996). Purchasing online involves risk, especially when a person lack experience with the online firm (Schlosser et al., 2006). In the particular case of EA, which just starts its approach to the domestic market, few people are aware of the company (reputation and size) and its products (brand and quality). Therefore, the progress of convincing consumers is fairly necessary and critical for EA, which means ongoing trust building is essential for EA to gradually convince its customers and maintain a good customer relationship. Thus, the present research is focused on investigating the importance and determinants of ongoing trust building. Numerous researchers have studied the importance of online trust building as well as the factors that influence the construction of trust in the virtual environment. For instance, Bhattacherjee (2002) claimed three key dimensions about the e-commerce trust: trustees ability, benevolence, and integrity. In his journal, he defines trustees ability as the trustors (website visitors) perception of trustees (online company) competencies and knowledge salient to the expected behaviour. For an online business, its website should clearly and successfully present the companys capabilities and professional skills (e.g. EAs expertise technology in making leather shoes) to increase the e-customers confidence via, for example, offering the list of the powerful partners, presenting detailed product or service information, designing an both attractive and functional (easy to understand/use/response) website. (Bhattacherjee, 2002) Benevolence here is referred to the faith in an online business that the company is willing to do more/extra service for the customers without profit consideration. The service or behaviour the online companies take can increase peoples confidence and sense of security. Its not possible for every company to offer extra service considering the additional cost. However, directed by the benevolent rules, online business firms should at least be completely aware that they need to respect their online consumers, fully understand their specific requirements, and work effectively and continuously on reducing web visitors uncertainties and worries. (Bhattacherjee, 2002) Integrity, in the e-shopping context, means customers confidence to the firms that their online commercial activities are directed under a set of moral principles or professional standards (Schlosser et al., 2006). In the practical virtual environment, the firms which conduct the integrity rules should attach great importance to the process of online transaction and relative service, the usage of consumers private data. These rules are practically linked with the realisation of company fulfilment, such as timely delivering, accurate record, reliable payment system and so on. (Bhattacherjee, 2002) In sum, indicated as the measurement of online trust building in many researches, trustees ability, benevolence, and integrity are associated with website design such as product presentation, attractiveness and usability, service quality, say delivery and payment system, and credibility (Bhattacherjee, 2002; Doney and Cannon, 1997). In other words, website design, credibility and service quality could contribute to purchase intention through ongoing trust building, and in the next section, a conceptual framework is built to testify it. 4.5 Conceptual Framework According to the studies on consumers relationship with companies (Bhattacharya and Sen, 2003), trust and online purchase intention (Schlosser et al., 2006), the key determinants of online satisfaction and the impact on the following behaviour (Zeng et al., 2009), the role of trust in online business (Lim et al., 2008) and online product presentations influence on peoples purchase intention (Park et al., 2005), we develop a conceptual framework about the key determinants that impact ongoing trust building, combining the practical situation of EA with previous studies on online shoes consuming characteristics. This study divides the contributors to ongoing trust building into three categories: (1) website design, (2) credibility and (3) service quality. The Research Model is presented below (Figure 1). It is predicted that website design, credibility and online service quality will affect consumers intention to purchase indirectly through ongoing trust building. Whats more, the study will discover whether the three contributors share equal weight of influence on purchase intention. In a word, we argue that if online consumers perceive high-level web design, high credibility and high-quality service, then they are more likely to trust in the online service provider, which in turn contributes to intention to purchase. The results will be able to offer the directions and guidelines for EA or future shoes business to improve their online marketing performance. Figure 1: Research Model 4.51 Ongoing Trust Building Crosby et al. (1990) defined trust as a conviction when the customer develops a tacit understanding with a seller, and a seller can be relied upon to behave in such a manner that the long-term interest of the customer will be served. Pavlou (2003) indicated that trust in e-commerce is the belief that allows consumers to willingly become vulnerable to web retailers after having taken the retailers characteristics into consideration. In the virtual world, customers cant access enough information about the company to build the trust, which makes it more difficult to achieve trust at the beginning of a relationship than in the physical world (Wirtz and Lihotzky, 2003). Therefore, on the basis of the previous literature review, we define ongoing trust building as the continuous efforts that create and maintain a consumers confidence in an online service providers ability, benevolence, and integrity in order to achieve a lasting buyer-seller relationship (Liang and Chen, 2009; Bhattacherje e, 2002). Several researches have studied trust in e-business. There are different points of view about the taxonomy of trust. For instance, Kim et al. (2005) thought trust impacts buyers purchase intention in four dimensions: trust in technology, trust in product, trust in institution and trust in information. Plank et al. (1999) categorized trust into three types: trust in product, trust in company and trust in salesperson and developed various sales strategies for each. Moreover, Lim et al. (2008) proposed three key trust variables specific to online automobile insurance business which are service trust, company trust and product trust. And this viewpoint was proved by Lim et al. (2010). In our opinion, services, products and company reputation are more paramount to EA as a high-end online shoes selling SME and require more trust from consumers. Thus, we argue that service trust, company trust and product trust could be the key variables to high-end online shoes selling business and EAs ong oing trust building should base on the three dimensions. For an online business, its website is the primary channel for contact and communication with its customers and it shapes the cognitive perception of the customer. That is why e-commerce companies are constantly looking for ways to improve their websites to make the interaction between the website and the customer more inviting, convenient, and ultimately conductive to purchasing their products and services. (Lim et al., 2010) As we mentioned in the previous literature review, consumer perception to the website has an indirect effect on purchase intention via ongoing trust building. Namely, consumers perceptions towards website design, credibility and service quality of an online service provider are positively associated with its ongoing trust building and ultimately influence consumers intention to purchase. 4.52 Website Design As the traditional shopping channel is gradually replaced by the internet, e-retailers have to rely to a great degree on the website interface, which is not only a critical medium to publicise itself and improve its reputation, but also a necessary channel to sell products and services as well as interact with web shoppers to win e-consumers trust (Rayport and Jaworski, 2001; Bellizzi, 2000; Hoque and Lohse, 1999; Jarvenpaa and Todd, 1996/1997; cited in Song and Zahedi, 2005). Features, component, information are three key components of website design (Song and Zahedi, 2005). A well-designed website can skilfully apply the three elements and attractively present valuable content in a clear-structured format with certain creative feature (Ahn et al. 2004; Konradt et al 2003), by which can increase web visitors interest and prolong their browsing time. The longer visitors stick to one particular website, the easier they are likely to form a positive attitude towards it, which could con tribute to a trustful relationship (Mccloskey, 2003-2004). New information technology is welcomed only when its useful and easy to use (Davis et al., 1989). Taylor and Todd (1995) also clarified that compatibility impacts peoples acceptance of technology. When people are searching or shopping online, the websites learnability, efficiency, memorability, infrequency of errors, and other key features of web design (Nielsen, 2000), such as the ease of use of the website, the quality of information, or the effectiveness of online transaction, are very significant. They dominate consumers following behaviours: to stick to the website or switch to another one, to view more information or actively communicate with the company via internet (Zeng et al., 2009; Koh and Kim, 2004; cited in Lin, 2007). In addition, attractive outlook or atmospheric stimuli in the offline shopping environment may increase consumers purchasing possibilities (Weinberg and Gottward, 1982; Weinberg and Gottward, 1994; cited in Wang et al., 2009). Similarly, well-designed website and skilfully application of the information technology can appeal web-visitors to stick longer to the website and have interactive communication with its staff (Heijden, 2003). And it was valued as the reason for satisfaction and subsequent trust (Martà ­n and Camarero, 2007). As Anderson (1980) referred that it is very important to catch peoples eyeballs at the first time, the visual appeals would possible influence the subjective judgment about the websites performance (Jennigns, 2000; Tractinsky et al., 2000). Approving this theory, Lindgaard and Fernandes (2006) also emphasised that a reliable decision can be made in 50 minutes. When consumers visit one website at the first time and the impression formed in the first 50 mi nutes could influence the consequent decisions. On the other hand, for apparel shopping, consumers are quite concern about the material, the fit, the colour and the quality of the products, but its difficult to know when people shopping in the virtual environment. Risk perception might be one of the most important reason that restrain consumers to purchase online (McCorkle, 1990; Ernst and Young, 2001; Park et al., 2005). As a result, presenting product in an attractive and convincing way is necessary to the online apparel companies. Also, pleasant virtual shopping experience may reduce the perceived risk which associated with online purchasing behaviour (Bhatti et al., 2000; Park et al., 2005). Furthermore, as mentioned above, one of most key factors for Zappos success is the shoes presentation in 360 degree with plenty of pictures, which minimise the uncertainties of online shoes shopping (Zappos.com, 2009). According to the empirical research conducted by Song and Zahedi (2005), website design can strengthen customers beliefs and consequently increase the tendency of purchasing online. Therefore, we assume that the website design presents a unique competitive advantage among all the e-commerce strategies and the website usability combined with novel design as well as the product presentation in a detailed and clear way lead to e-consumers ongoing trust building. H1: Web Design has a positive influence on ongoing trust building. 4.53 Credibility Credibility was defined as the consumer belief that a seller is competent, reliable, predictable, and honest, and would perform a potential transaction effectively and reliably, acknowledge explicit contracts, and fulfill the requirements of an agreement (Pavlou, 2002). It is another important contributor to the online trust building. Credibility was also described as believability and a credible website means a believable website (Fogg et al., 2001). Drawing on previous studies, credibility has been identified with two most important dimensions: trustworthiness and expertise. (Fogg et al., 2001; Corritore et al., 2003; Fogg and Tseng, 1999). Trustworthiness is characterised by the well-intentioned, truthful, unbiased behaviour, which requires the web-marketers to convey a real-world features towards its customers, that is to say, providing physical address and employee photographs, linking to outside materials and sources or stating a policy on content, to create a honest and accountable company image. Expertise can be proved by the professional knowledge or skills, sufficient experience and capability (Fogg et al., 2001). In the context of e-commence, e-retailers expertise and profession can be delivered to e-consumers by the demonstration of credentials or the proofs from a third party. As we mentioned before, the Internet is still considered as a risk shopping channel for public. E-marketers face the challenge of reducing the risk perception of shopping online when stepping into the online market where traditional face-to-face communications are replaced by the way of face-to-screen. Particular virtual characteristics require online business to offer a convincing mechanism. Some researchers have proved that feedback mechanism can positively support online transaction, functioning as WOM in the off-line commerce context (Pavlou, 2002). Additionally, reputation is a critical element in the online world, which can help e-retailers to reduce consumers risk perception and lead to the improvement of online trust (Pavlou, 2002). Positive comments from the third parties (previous buyers) have been examined to increase e-retailers reputation and can be a major source of information for trust building, which in turn improve online sellers credibility (Doney and Cannon, 1997, cited in Pavlou, 2002; Kim et al., 2004). Considering online feedback mechanism is a continuous two-way communication progress, it can also contribute to the ongoing course of online trust building. Thus, we hypothesise that a credible website with truthful and expertise features, supported by good reviews, positively affects the ongoingtrust building. H2: Credibility has a positive influence on ongoing trust building. 4.54 Service Quality Parasuraman (1985) defined service quality as the relative perceptual distance between customer expectations and evaluations of service experiences and service quality in his SERVQUAL model (Sung et al., 2009). High-quality service including regularly update web information, response customers enquiry immediately, easy and safe online payment system, clear return/chance/refund policies has a positive impact on website performance (Park and Kim, 2003). Technology development has laid a sound foundation for the service evolution of e-commerce. The increasing popularity and quality of broadband Internet access as well as advanced Web technologies have allowed online retailers to provide flexible and competitive services to their existing and potential customers. These technologies allow retailers to build their online stores and services, and effectively deploy strategies in all aspects of their operations (Lusch et al., 2007 and McCarthy and Aronson, 2000; cited in Ayanso et al., 2010). More and more web retailers are applying advanced information technologies and creative website features to offer better service to the customers (Dabholkar et al., 2003; Moitra and Ganesh, 2005; Tarafdar and Zhang, 2005; Udo and Marquis, 2001; Viswanathan et al., 2007; Wakefield et al., 2004). These refined technology-based website functionalities such as personalisation, advanced search tools and product cataloguing are remarkably popular among onl ine retailers (Chu et al., 2007). They couldnt offer such high-quality online service without the technology support. Many past researches have positively linked online service quality to e-commerce performance. Liu et al. (2001) pointed out four determinants that are significantly related to e-commerce success, which are information and service quality, system use, playfulness, and system design quality. Based on DeLone and McLeans study (2003), Liang and Chen (2009) identified service quality as one of the three important factors of information system success. Marimon et al. (2010) examined that high levels of online service quality has a positive impact on purchasing behavior. While lots of researches testified that service quality is a key attribute of the e-commerce success, several studies argued that none of them have established an empirical link association between online service quality and the retailers actual sales performance (Ayanso et al., 2010; Marimon et al., 2010). However, considering this study is a consultancy project which is reality-based, practical experience of other firms cant be ignored. In the case of Zappos we have learned that the most critical reason for them to develop so rapidly from an unknown company is customer service, especially the 365 day return and free shipping both ways policy. The main concern when people buying shoes online is that the purchased shoes do not fit them (in size/colour) because they cant try them on before ordering. Particularly in the case of EA, which is not famous and sells quite expensive shoes, a customer-friendly advanced delivery system helps to remove or at least reduce the concern, which is matched with the study conducted by Tan and Wu in 2004. Also, Parasuraman et al. (2005) identified fulfilment, the extent to which the sites promises about order delivery and product availability are fulfilled, as the most critical dimensions of e-service quality and Boshoff split fulfilment into delivery and reliability and proved it to be the strongest predictor of value perception (Parasuraman et al., 2005, Boshoff, 2007; cited in Marimon et al., 2010). Therefore, we argue that service quality could be a stronger antecedent of online trust building due to fulfilment aspect. Furthermore, Tan and Wu (2004) referred that, especially for the wholesalers and retailers in China, the barriers to employ online promotions were poor credibility monitoring systems both for vendors and consumers, awkward delivery systems, and lagging behind payment. A reliable payment system is also important for EA due to the high price of its products. People start to think more when its a large amount of money paying to a not well-known company. Moreover, Stockdale and Standing (2006) compared the benefits and barriers which SMEs should take into account for e-business. Apart from limited resources, one of the most possible barriers for SMEs is the lack of specific e-commerce marketing experience or e-busines s professionals. Especially in China e-commerce is still at the initial stage and organisations are exploring e-business while doing it. That is, another important attribute is e-business professionals. Perceived service quality significantly contributes to customer trust (Liang and Chen, 2009). Namely, the service quality of an online firm is positively linked with its ongoing trust building in three dimensions: e-business professionals, fulfilment and payment system. Accordingly, we propose that: H3: Service Quality has a positive influence on ongoing trust building. 4.55 Intention to Purchase We can expect that the various antecedents of online trust building web design, credibility, service quality have different effects on purchase intention. This expectation is based on the previous study about the behavioural consequences of customer satisfaction (Zeng et al., 2009). In the findings, five elements (fulfilment/reliability, customer service, ease of use and product/service quality) are directly/indirectly impact the customer behavioural consequence through overall satisfaction, while those behavioural consequences are practically and theoretically proved to demonstrate as loyalty to the firm, intention to purchase and repurchase, willingness to pay premium price, willingness to post positive reviews about the firm and its service, and recommendation to others (Bearden and Teel, 1983; Zeithaml et al., 1996; cited in Zeng et al., 2009). Customer satisfaction was found to possibly contribute to trust and satisfied customers mostly have high confidence in the company and their future transaction activities (Garbarino and Johnson, 1999; Geyskens et al., 1998; Ganesan, 1994; cited in Liang and Chen, 2009). Approved by their own research, Liang and Chen (2009) suggested that trusted consumers have more commitment and more willingness to develop a solid relationship with service providers than satisfied ones. This finding logically supports the prediction that trust has a positive influence on the intention to purchase/re purchase. Public Opinion: Gender Differences in Sex Abuse of Children Public Opinion: Gender Differences in Sex Abuse of Children Table of Contents (Jump to) 1. Introduction 2. Gender Bias 3. Gender Inequality 3. Registering of Sex Offenders 4. Limitations of the Research Approach 5. References 1. Introduction This dataset is analysed using the principal of thematic analysis. The dataset was extracted from media reports related to the case of a woman who abused her partner’s three-year-old daughter. Thematic analysis is a qualitative analytic method used for analysing or identifying themes across a dataset (Craver, 2014). The process is illustrated in the appendices, adopting the approach used by King and Horrocks (2010). One of the overarching themes in the analysis of the data relates to public opinion about gender differences in the sexual abuse of children. There are two sub-categories, namely gender bias and gender inequality. 2. Gender Bias Gender bias can be seen in the few quotes below: â€Å"A group of feminist not too long ago told me women never sexually abuse anyone only men I guess this women and those teachers that have been in the news recently don’t exist† â€Å"This cannot be true! Because feminists are constantly telling us that it is only men who are violent and abusive!† â€Å"It has been kept quiet over the years just how many women abuse children. I’m glad that she is being held accountable. â€Å"Another female paedophile, the myth of all women being gentle is lifted† â€Å"We hear so many stories of â€Å"boyfriends† of women being guilty of abusing a child, so this is quite shocking, what is her excuse? â€Å"We live in a gynocentric feminist so society. Had he not done it this way, she would have accused him, he would have been arrested, separated from his child and would never been believed. Ask the thousands of fathers to whom similar things have happened through malicious false accusations. Men a perpetrator. Women are victims. De facto† Analytic research done by Landor and Eisenchlas (2012) shed some light on gender bias in Australian print-media reports regarding sexual acts. The authors gave two case studies. First, they described the teacher Mary Kay LeTourneau’s marriage to her former student, with whom she had been engaged in a sexual relationship since he was 12 years of age. The headline they use as an example reads: â€Å"School lovers tie knot†. The contrasting case advanced by the authors was related to the story of Brisbane teacher Allan Thomas Walters, who was charged with indecency in his dealings with a 13-year-old boy; the example headline reads: â€Å"More time for pervert†. The two case studies advanced by the authors are very similar in terms of the age of the victim and the offences committed. However, the media clearly portrayed LeTourneau’s case in a less negative way than Walters’ case. The article uses the comparison appropriately throughout, although the arg ument presented is unbalanced. Another example of gender bias was given by Tsopelas et al. (2012), in which a victim of a female perpetrator was not believed when they made allegations to the authorities. This suggests that a higher standard of evidence is required in cases of child sex abuse by female perpetrators. It can be seen on the data transcript that some people were angry that the father had to put the girl through more abuse before enough evidence could be gained. â€Å"My stepmother, a famous person, abused my little brother like this when he was a toddler. To this day, despite my witnessing it and my brother being terrified of her, my father refuses to believe us. If only we too could have planted a camera† â€Å"Another awful thing about this is that with the knowledge that his daughter was being abused in order for him to gather evident the child had to endure another vile attack† â€Å"Its so sad that the faher had to put his daughter through two more violent events in order to get proff but I guess he had no choice.† â€Å"Well done for showing self restraint altho I don’t agree with the way the child was put thu the abuse again in order to abtain more damning evidence† â€Å"Men a perpetrators. Women are victims. De facto† â€Å"†¦..after just having read bat those poor wretched girls in Rotherham. Authorities there should all be sacked, how can this happen, seriously? â€Å"Reading the comments made I can say that the Father did the right thing 1. He had a recording of what was happening the Child screaming, yelling, crying for Help. That is not enough proof for the Police, that can be classified as Child Abuse only. 2. He had to have actual evidence for the Police, Courts. Of the actual act been committed for his (Partner) to be prosecuted in court in accordance with the law. She could have turned all against him, had he not had that important piece of evidence, so she can be convicted and from now on be classified as a Paedophiler(visual/audio proof). 3. Gender Inequality Gender inequality is the second sub-category. Geddes, Tyson, and McGreal (2012) discovered that female teachers who have committed sexual acts with a student are punished more leniently compared to male counterparts. The study also found that participants showed significantly more anger towards male teachers who commit such acts. However, the sample size of the study was not equally distributed: although the author randomly sent out the questionnaire to 250 female students and 250 male students, out of 130 respondents, 86 were female and 44 were male. Geddes, Tyson and McGreal (2012) believed a sample size of more than 30 participants was large enough to obtain significant values, based on a test run on the violation assumption using analysis of variance. However, it is important to achieve a gender-balanced sample size to study gender bias. Gender inequality can be found in the following comments: â€Å"As usual not naming this monster, but a guy doing this would have his picture and name plastered all over the media† â€Å"Why isn’t she being named, if it was a bloke his name would be plastered everywhere for what he did† â€Å"This woman is a common filthy pedophile and must go to jail, as men go to jail. Anything other than jail would serve as proof there are not equal rights between the genders† â€Å"2Guaranteed this woman will not do jail I don’t care what that judge said, however if the roles were reserved this would be another matter† â€Å"Who recalls the push for laws where women would be allowed to have the police run back ground check on potential partners. Do man get this right? If not why not?† Angelides (2008) discusses another aspect of gender inequality in child sex-abuse cases. The author presented two examples involving a teacher-student relationship. One involved Karen Ellis, a 37-year-old teacher who committed sexual offences with a child under the age of 16. She was sentenced for six months. On the other hand, tennis coach Gavin Hopper pleaded guilty of having a sexual relationship with his 14-year-old student and was jailed for two years and three months. On the basis of this comparison of two similar situations Angelides (2008) presents a very good argument regarding the principal of gender equality in the sentencing of offenders. While judges have shown some leniency towards female perpetrators, comments from the data seem to express a wish to see harsh punishment for sex offenders. For example: â€Å"A nice long sentence I hope† â€Å"I’d lock her in solitary confinement and feed her food under the door and weld it up so she could not be released.† â€Å"Jail this pedophile for life† â€Å"This woman is a common filthy pedophile and must go to jail, as men go to jail. â€Å"Hope the horrible woman is jailed for a long time. â€Å"It’s the other prisoners who could be her real punishment† â€Å"VILE WOMAN THROW THE BOOK AT HER† Statistics have shown that sex-offender treatment programmes have a small but positive effect on sex offenders (Craissati, South, Bierer, 2009). However, in some patriarchal cultures such as in India, harsher punishments are meted to stop violence against women (Gill, Harrison, 2013). Gill and Harrison (2013) discussed both punitive options and the kinds of treatment that are available for sex offenders in relation to the sexual violence issue in India. The punitive options are demonstrably based on the human-rights principle regarding the death penalty. Gill and Harrison (2013) believed that harsh punishment might not be the best approach to sex offences in the justice system in India. Sex-offender treatment programmes might be a better strategy. Declining moral standards is another overarching theme. Males were dominantly viewed as perpetrators of child sex abuse in the 1980s, with females appearing almost exclusively as victims (Tsopelas, Tsetsou, Ntounas and Douzenis, 2012). Current literature is paying more attention to the role of female sexual abusers. This cultural shift was due to the increasing of the proportion of female sex offenders in all sexual-assault arrests from 1% in 1994 to 8% in 1997 (Vandiver and Walker, 2002). Below are the illustrative quotes from the data that show public disappointment about declining moral values in society: â€Å"Britain in the 21st century† â€Å"What the hell is wrong with people. Why would you harm an innocent child?† â€Å"What has gone so wrong in our world when so much of this is happening?† â€Å"Some people say it was always so, but I dont believe that at all. I think its an epidemic now† â€Å"I remember my childhood as being safe and secure. Parents were always there for me. I wish it could be the same for all children. What a horrible world we live in† â€Å"Something is clearly wrong in this godforsaken world we live in† 3. Registering of Sex Offenders One further overarching theme is related to legislation. Registering of child sex abusers is practised by many Western countries such as the USA and the United Kingdom. The general public tend to want sex offenders to be put on a register in order to protect the general public. But other find this labelling could create a barrier to sex offenders reintegrating with society (Bollinger, Seidler, Kemp, 2012). The study by Bollinger, Seidler and Kemp (2012) found an interesting result: people with children wanted more punitive approaches towards sexual offenders, even when not fully aware of the purpose of a register. A few relevant quotes are shown below: â€Å"I hope shes put on the domestic abuse register† The attacker has, IMO, no right to anonymity† â€Å"so she can be convicted and from now on be classified as a Paedophiler† â€Å"Around here we are starting to name and shame people that don’t pick up their dog mess YET they don’t name or shame these disgusting vile people? We have right to know who she is. However, some quotes suggest perpetrators should not be named, in order to protect their victims: â€Å"The anonymity of the perp is to protect the identity of the child, not the perp. As a victim of sexual abuse there is an automatic protection of identity† The problem with naming and shaming is that if the perpetrator of the abuse is known to people in the area, the little girl would also be identified by association which is often best avoided† 4. Limitations of the Research Approach Thematic analysis is a popular method widely used in qualitative research (Braun Clarke, 2013). However, this qualitative method can be subject to the personal bias of researchers (Vaismoradi, Turunen, Bondas, 2013) as well as the researcher’s grounding in epistemological philosophy. Hence, it is important to take the philosophical perspective into account when choosing the design for the study. 5. References Angelides, S. (2008). ‘Sexual offences against â€Å"children† and the question of judicial gender bias.’ Australian Feminist Studies, 23(57), 359-373. Doi: 10.1080/08164640802233302 Bollinger, J., Seidler, K., Kemp, R. (2012). ‘Who thinks what about child protection: Community perceptions and awareness of child protection strategies and their effectiveness for reducing sexual reoffending.’ Sexual Abuse in Australia and New Zealand, 4(4), 33-40. Retrieved from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4sid=4f62b2c7-f642-47e6-b828-1f128e44c525%40sessionmgr4001hid=4213 Braun, V., Clarke, V. (2013). Successful qualitative research: A practical guide for beginners. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Craissati, J., South, R., Bierer, K. (2009). ‘Exploring the effectiveness of community sex offender treatment in relation to risk and re-offending.’ Journal of Forensic Psychiatry Psychology, 20(6), 769*784. Doi: 10.1080/14789940903174105 Craver, G.A. (2014). ‘Not just for beginners – A review of successful qualitative research: A practical guide for beginners.’ The Qualitative Report, 19 (review 16), 1-4. Retrieved from http://www.nova.edu.ssss/QR/QR19/craver16.pdf Geddes, R.A., Tyson, G.R., McGreal (2012). ‘Gender bias in the education system: Perceptions of teacher-student sexual relationships.’ Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 1-11. Retrieved from http://www.tandfonline.com Gill, A.K., Harrison, K. (2013). ‘Sentencing sex offenders in India: Retributive justice versus sex offender treatment programmes and restorative justice approaches.’ International Journal of Criminal Justice Sciences, 8(2), 166-181. Retrieved from http://eds.a.ebscohost.com/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=7sid=bf077283-9215-4735-9500-dad6353ad5fc%40sessionmgr4001hid=4213 King, N., Horrocks, C. (2010). Interviews in qualitative research. London: Sage Publications Ltd. Landor, R.V., Eisenchlas, S.A. (2012). ‘â€Å"Coming clean† on Duty of Care: Australian print media’s representation of male versus female sex offenders in institutional contexts.’ Sexuality Culture, 16, 486-502. Doi: 10.1007/s12119-012-9134-5. Tsopelas, C., Tsetsou, S., Ntounas, P., Douzenis, A. (2012). ‘Female perpetrators of sexual abuse of minors: what are the consequences for the victims?’ International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 35(4), 305-310. Doi: 10.1016/j.ijlp.2012.04.003 Vandiver, D.M., Walker, J.T. (2002). ‘Female sex offenders: An overview and analysis of 40 cases.’ Criminal Justice Review, 27(2), 284-300. Retrieved from http://cjr.sagepub.com/content/27/2/284 Vaismoradi, M., Turunen, H., Bondas, T. (2013). ‘Content analysis and thematic analysis: Implications for conducting a qualitative descriptive study.’ Nursing and Health Sciences, 15, 398-405. Doi: 10.1111/nhs.12048

The Red Pony: Death and Rebirth Essay -- Red Pony Essays

The Red Pony:Â   Death and Rebirth The pony still lay on his side and the wound in his throat bellowed in and out. When Jody saw how dry and dead the hair looked, he knew at last that there was no hope for the pony . . .he had seen it [the dead hair] before, and he knew it was a sure sign for death." In Steinbeck's The Red Pony. death played an intricate role in the life of Jody, an adolescent farmer's child. With the reoccurring theme of death's association with violence, we are eventually enabled to discover that from one such horrific incident, a rebirth of life can be formed. In Steinbeck's classic tale of a young boy's coming of age and his initiation into manhood, this sense of life and rebirth played harmonious roles together. As a typical ten year old boy in a western farming village, Jody basically~y felt the need to justify his manliness, and to prove to his parents that he alone could handle immense responsibilities that others of his own age couldn't. To test this exact faith, a horse, named Gabilan, was handed to Jody by his stem father, ironically called Carl Tifflin instead of "dad." The horse, in fact, proved to be Steinbeck's reoccurring message throughout the remainder of the novel. Testing the patience between man and horse, and also the boy's great love for the beastly animal, it is learned of the need to develop discipline in order to cope with life and with death and the violence associated with it. With the death of the horse came the arrival of an old Mexican man, who too so happened to be coming to the crossroads of his life. The man claimed to be coming to the mountain region to die in the place where he so happened to have been born. Jody's immediate reaction to Gitano, as he was called, appear... ...y now must correlate into his own life. All of Jody's experiences surrounding the violent death of his treasured horse, Gabilan, served to prepare him for an eventual balanced acceptance of life and death. Realistically, Jody knew that the pony was going to die: "When Jody saw how dry and dead the hair looked, he knew at last that there was no hope for the pony." But however prepared he appeared for the death, he still had to assert some resistance to it. This is expressed when he "bashed" the head of the "buzzard straight" as retribution for harming his loved animal. This gory attack on the buzzards at the end of the story indicated his irrational, emotional rejection of the violent aspects of nature. This aspect is what the death of the Red Pony helped Jody to realize, for although his friend had passed, a new rebirth of insight into maturity had entered his mind.

Gender Roles in The Cosby Show Essay -- Gender Television Media The Co

Gender Roles in The Cosby Show On September 20, 1984 a show aired that changed the way we view gender roles on television. Television still perpetuates traditional gender stereotypes and in reflecting them TV reinforces them by presenting them as the norm (Chandler, 1). The Cosby Show, challenged the typical gender stereotyping of television, daring to go against the dominant social values of its time period. In its challenge of the dominant social view, the show redefined the portrayal of male and female roles in television. It redefined the gender role in the work place, in social expectations, and in household responsibilities. The Cosby Show supported Freidan in her view of â€Å"castigating the phony happy housewife heroine of the women’s magazines† (Douglas 136). The Cosby Show is a wonderful sitcom about Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable, commonly known as Cliff, and his family. The show revolved around the day-to-day situations faced by Cliff and Clair Huxtable and their five children. The show goes away from the one-liners that most sitcoms boasted and focused on the humor of real life situations that often occur in an average middle class family. Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable was a successful OB/GYN (obstetrician/gynecologist), who was equally as involved in domestic tasks as his wife Clair. Cliff had a great part in raising his five children and dealing with their emotional and physical problems. Cliff’s wife Clair Huxtable was a successful partner in a large law firm, who balanced her busy career with her family. She filled the role as the head of the household and always made sure to keep not only her kids but also her husband Cliff in line. The eldest daughter, Sondra Huxtable was a very serious, intelligent, and hard working young woman who had a plan for her life. Her hard studies in high school and goal-oriented mind landed her at the prestigious Princeton University. The second oldest daughter Denise Huxtable had the gift of a good sense of humor. She liked to test her parents with her rather eccentric dress and viewpoints on life. The only son Theo Huxtable was an extroverted and witty young man. He played out the typical teenage boy role of putting friends, cars, and girls before school. Vanessa Huxtable, the second youngest daughter was an intelligent girl, who often came off very air-headed in the show. Her focus during the show was to give off a b... ... for your life. If a woman wants to be a housewife who focuses on raising her children or a career woman, it is her choice ultimately. If a man wants to be equally involved in his career and family, it should be his choice too. It should not matter what the gender stereotype is and this show helps women and men believe that the individual feeling is often more important than the typical societal belief. I think the show does this to make a statement to the society that gender stereotypes are often wrong and only based on tradition. The Cosby Show went against the norm to show that the opposite side of the societal gender roles were also perfectly acceptable practices. The Cosby Show might have made a leap into uncharted territory with sitcoms of its time period, but in doing so it gave us a glimpse of the gender roles of today. Work Cited Bordo, Susan "Gender Matters: Gentleman or Beast? The Double Blind of Masculinity" Keller 163-174. Chandler, Daniel. Television and Gender Roles. 4 Jan. 2004. 31 Jan. 2005 . Douglas, Susan "Gender Matters: Genies and Witches." Keller 135-148. Keller, Michael, ed. Reading Popular Culture: An Anthology for Writers. Iowa: Dubuque, 2002.