Extra Credit Assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Extra Credit Assignment - Essay Example That means I have to work with an understaffed team. Also half of the staff does not have relevant job experience. Finally the remaining half of the employees has done the work in a given style for as long as 15 years; adapting to new changes may be a problem. The steps I would take during the first 90 days as manager to address these challenges First I will get the employees to agree that there is need for change. I will gather the employees to evaluate their situation, identify what the problem is and set up procedures to correct the situation. Suggested changes will be announced then implemented through my close supervision. I will make sure I don’t impose the change but rather let the employees to manage the process themselves. To do this I will organize a workshop to help gain common understanding, to chart the way forward by coming up with plans, aims, commitments and actions. I will seek through this event to inspire the staff to make relevant and real objectives. I wil l guide them to make objectives that are easy to attain. Long term objectives shall be divided and be accomplished in stages. I will come up with a guiding team which will comprise of carefully selected supervisors for departments based on their track records.   The team shall compose enough key players such that those who are left do not block any suggested plan of action. They shall be people who command respect because pronouncements of such people are taken seriously. They shall be people with proven leadership capability. These people shall need to have high level of commitment and competence. One of their immediate work shall be to build teams within the areas of their supervision. They shall take advantage of the fact that every human being has a nature of joining a group. The teams they create will have to beware that they are teams that are born to compliment the efforts of each other and not competitors. If they try to compete then we shall have a â€Å"win lose† situation whereby one group can try to outdo the other using methods that make your opponent to go down so that you appear on top. It shall be the work of these team leaders to encourage informal relation among the team members in order to create a good working atmosphere and raise their morale. Each team shall handle related activities hence one plan of action shall be developed for them. This will ensure unity, focused efforts and coordinated strength. The changes to be effected must take into consideration that the time in which to realize the change is short, hence actions that will impact on short term performance will be much welcome. In our discussions, all staff shall need to identify priorities so that each one majors on the major and minors on the minor. This will eliminate incidences where an employee is fully preoccupied by a task that is less important leaving undone the most important. There is all possibility that this can happen because this centre suffers from under staffing.   Ã‚  Ã‚   To ensure smooth operations, I will make sure there is proper discipline by among other things ensuring that those who are appointed to any position of authority are properly disciplined. The juniors shall need to observe rules and regulations that they help develop. Incentives will be used to promote discipline. While identified obstacles shall be removed, achievements as well as progress shall be rewarded. I will work at avoiding constant criticisms because this way they won’

Medical Ethics Essay Example for Free

Medical Ethics Essay Medical interventions always possess two possible outcomes in every situation or case. The principle of double effect is the actual ethics that governs the conditions of alternatives. The main concept that it utilizes is the thought that persons are faced with decision that cannot be avoided and, in the circumstances, the decision will cause both desirable and undesirable effects. Considering the value ethics involved in every intervention implemented, the risk factors should always be considered. Essentially speaking, the principle of double effect involves the critical assessment of the situation considering the fact that the choices being made greatly impact a life of an individual. In an ethical controversy of maternal-fetal conditions wherein the mother is suffering from a case of complications that lead to the severe necessity of evacuating the conception product. The case possesses no other alternatives, and has greatly compromised both life conditions of the mother and the fetus. Moreover, if medical intervention is not implemented as soon as possible both lives shall be endangered severely. In some part of logical implication, some might categorize such action as direct attempt of killing; essentially since, either of the mother’s life or the fetal life needs to be sacrificed in order to save one. In such case of saving life through resuscitation, if the significant relatives or others imposed the negation of such life saving treatment for the patient provided with the considerations of higher good than evil, it is not considered anymore as actions of euthanasia nor direct killing. The medical provider is not anymore liable if incase the patient suffered from any untoward conditions that requires resuscitation, however in the end resulted to death, as it is already a directed will of the patient and the support groups. The principle of total effect protects no singular parts or single levels of life. In fact, it does even consider the whole or total person as a whole. The whole or total person is what is sacred and has rights. To promote parts or lower levels independently of the person’s totality would violate just the quality of life considerations. The medical provider should consider the treatment interventions not only for the benefit of a single part, but rather every aspect of the whole body, such as the effect of the therapy or medical intervention on other parts of the body. Psychotherapy involves the utmost obligation to facilitate the psychological health and well-being of the society. As far as medico-ethics is concerned, psychiatrists possess such responsibility of conjuring psychological health to the people. Such principle involves the concept of the divine as well as the societal requirement of psychological health linked together with the guidelines of psychotherapeutical interventions. Such principle considers man as a psychic unit and total aspect of a person as a whole. Considering the fact that man functions as a whole, psychiatric therapy should revolve in every aspect of a person not only on particularities of disease, disorder, or signs and symptoms but rather as a whole unified being. However, still in response to this perspective, the concept of the individual should still deal in the specifics and objective details of an individual. The guide protocols of this principle are the fact that man is a unified unit of the community that requires social interactions, and morality considerations over the psychological interventions. Rights to Health Care The general principle of health care greatly considers that every individual possesses the right to have unconditional, indiscriminate, and with no considerations on an individual’s society. The rights of health care, by law, divine protocols and natural necessities, should be ethically available for every individual. As for the ever conjuring issues in terms of impairment of the delivery of health care, it is both the responsibility of the patient and the health care provider to facilitate maximum health care potential. The health seeking behavior is expected for the patients requiring health care needs as their responsibility, while health care information dissemination, motivation and encouragement are the ethical duties of the health care providers. With the advent of managerial, profit-oriented and progressive modernization, the principle of the health care basic right is arguably being violated in some sense. As the fact states, at least 35 million Americans cannot afford proper health care delivery system for them due to either expensive medical insurance requirements or poverty. As for the both interacting requirement, most of the public, especially those living in or below poverty line, undeniably obtains their medical care from governmental provisions, which are not always sufficient to consider every individual’s health care needs. In fact, Medicaid insurance, which is a public insurance firm that caters mostly for the financially incapacitated individuals, is extensively and progressively increasing. However, the worst case of such Medicaid provision is that sickness status possesses a marginal requirement to consider a person a candidate for health care treatment. In such case, the health care status of these individuals worsens before they can even attain their due medical interventions. Another controversy is the rising patients of Medicare insurance, which is a public governmental firm that caters to elderly health care welfare. Due to the increasing number of those that cannot afford geriatric care necessities, the last option for these elders is to obtain the care that the government hospitals provide. However, there are cases wherein these elderly incapacitated individuals are being eagerly discharged by the hospital. Adding on to the situation is the increasing profit-oriented hospital firms, which perceives delivery of care as business-money-earning sources. Such condition is beginning to coincide and dominate the health care market, which if not regulated, may even caused further decline of health care obtainment by the public due to financial incongruencies. Considering that the incidence of poverty in the public is increasing, incapabilities of health care insurance to support the appropriate and adequate requirements of their beneficiaries, and the increasing incidence of profit oriented hospitals, greatly contributes to the health care scarcity and health care status of the society. Essentially speaking, such condition possesses the possibility of aggravating the morbidity and mortality ratings in the society. Such case is considered indeed as violations of the ethical principle of right of health care. On the contrary, such protocols are necessary in order to keep the hospital and medical insurance organizations surviving. Although, the evident consequence of such scenario is the increasing individuals suffering from health care impairments. As far as the ethical principle, rights of health care, is concerned, such occurring scenario violates the fundamental ethics of health care. Suffering Even with subjective evidences or manifestations, the concept of suffering seems central for the most fundamental concerns of bioethics. Suffering is in part constituted by the experience of a profound evil, as the Old Testament denotes, or threat to our sense of self and identity that we are unable to control. IT is the experience of the inexplicably arbitrary and typically destructive. Suffering is not of course an end of religious experience but a problem demanding interpretation. Religions traditions have historically tried to give meaning to suffering by placing the experience in a context of broader questions about ultimate purpose in life, and even human destiny beyond life. Suffering is knowledge of evil but is not evil in itself. Frequently its existence serves as a helpful spiritual or physical warning that something is amiss. Physical pain is often first sign of a serious illness; it informs us that something has gone wrong and that we need medical assistance. Of course, sometimes we become aware of evil but are unable to do anything about the situation. The evil is not in our knowledge of a certain state of affairs but in the state of affairs themselves. While we experience our knowledge of these evils as suffering, the knowledge itself remains a basic good. As salvation denotes liberation from evil, Christ liberates man from sin by means of His cross, that is, by means of suffering. The work of salvation is a labor of suffering. Every person is called to participate personally in that suffering through which our redemption has been accomplished and through which all suffering was redeemed. Suffering, symbolizes by the Cross, is the one universal door through which all must pass to enter the kingdom of God. While on the human level suffering is an â€Å"emptying,† on the divine level it is a glorifying or a â€Å"filling up† and an invitation to manifest the moral greatness of man. The glory of suffering cannot be seen in the martyrs, but also in those who, while not believing in Christ, suffer and give their lives for the truth. As for a Christian perspective, suffering is an opportunity for everyone to experience the power of God and share in the work of redemption. In the midst of each individual’s suffering, Christ is present to share that person’s suffering-just as He invites each of us to share His sufferings. This inter-participation of suffering unites our sufferings and Christ’s sufferings, as well as uniting us with Christ personally. In terms of the medical ethics application, suffering is for both patient and the health care provider to share; however, one must not join each one and extend the same negative feelings but rather, facilitate as the motivator and alleviator of sufferings. The greatest part of relieving the patient from the occurring suffering is on the part of the health care provider, as they are the ones who are responsible for the alleviation of such condition. The suffering of undergoing the case of alleviation and the suffering of alleviating the patient itself are the two considered faces of suffering, which has to be considered in every ethical case action. In is indeed necessary to think that the difficulties imposed by the situation is carried by both interacting parties and not one alone.

Blood Pressure And Pulse Lab Physical Education Essay

Blood Pressure And Pulse Lab Physical Education Essay The purpose of the blood pressure and pulse lab was to test many variables which could have an effect on blood pressure and pulse. The variable tested in this lab was the, Effects of Changes in Posture, the Effects of Exercise, and the Effects of Cognitive Stress on Mean Arterial Pressure and Heart Rate. Background: Blood is an essential factor for all living organisms. Blood is an important fluid within our bodies which delivers oxygen, nutrients and essential substances, to cells throughout the body. Blood also has the function of transporting various wastes materials / products, such as carbon dioxide, from various body cells through the respiratory and excretory organs. The activities performed in the blood pressure and pulse lab examined the rate at which blood flows throughout the body, and which factors would either increase or decrease the blood pressure, being the pressure of the blood within the circulatory system, and pulse pressure. Blood flow and blood pressure is determined by two distinct factors. These factors are the force needed to push the blood through the blood vessel and the amount of resistance of blood flow through the blood vessel. The average normal blood pressure in a healthy individual should be around 120/80 BP, but it is stressed that the blood pressure should remai n a little lower than this pressure. The sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system plays an important role in blood pressure and heart rate. The sympathetic nervous system through the Cardio acceleratory center increases heart rate in fight or flight situations. While the parasympathetic nervous system uses the cardio inhibitory center to decrease the heart rate. The mechanical events of the cardiac cycle are the sequences of events which take place in order for the heart to work properly. In the cardiac cycle there are two distinct phases. These two phases are the diastole phase and the systole phase. In the medical field the diastolic pressure and the systolic pressure are measured with the use of a stethoscope and Sphygmomanometer. The measure of pulse pressure refers to the difference between the systolic number (Top) and the diastolic number (Bottom). The normal blood pressure of a healthy individual is 120/80 BP; in this instance, the pulse pressure would equal 40mmHg (120 80 = 40mmHg). Blood pressure is constantly fluctuating; because of this doctors need to take an average blood pressure to adequately check for any complications in their parents. The average blood pressure is called the mean arterial pressure (MAP). To begin to calculated the mean arterial pressure one must first start by calculating the pulse pressure (PP). The Puls e pressure can be calculated by taking the difference between the systolic pressure (SP) and the diastolic pressure (DP); (PP = SP DP).Using the Pulse pressure the mean arterial pressure can be calculated. The mean arterial pressure is equal to a third of the pulse pressure plus the diastolic pressure (MAP = DP + (PP*1/3) ). The basic mechanical events of the cardiac cycle can be deduced into four phases. Phase one in the cardiac cycle is referred to as the First Diastole Phase. During the first diastole phase, the atria and ventricles within the heart are fully relaxed, as the Atrioventricular valves remain open. This allows De-oxygenated blood to flow to the right atrium, from both the superior and inferior vena cavae. The rate in which blood flows back into the heart is given the term Venous Return (De-oxygenated blood). The muscles incorporated in exercise require a lot of oxygen in order to perform their function, as a result there would be an increase in venous return. Blood within the right atrium is emptied into the right ventricle though the Atrioventricular or Tricuspid valve. At the end of diastole (the loading or filling phase), the amount of blood accumulated in the right or left is referred to as the end-diastolic volume (EDV). The second phase of the cardiac cycle is referred to as the first systolic phase. During this phase the right ventricle receives incoming electrical signals from the purkinje fibers, which are the fibered branches which extend from the Atrioventricular bundle, in the intraventricular sulcus of the heart, and are dispersed from the apex of the heart. The purkinje fibers signal the ventricles to contract, which closes the Atrioventricular valves and forces the semilunar valves to open, pushing de-oxygenated blood into the pulmonary arteries. The pulmonary arteries function is to prevent the flow of blood back into the right ventricle. All of the blood is never fully ejected from the ventricles after systole. The amount of blood which remains in the ventricle at the end systole is known as end-systolic volume (ESV). The end-diastolic volume and the end-systolic help to calculate the stroke volume (SV) which is the volume of blood ejected from one ventricle during each beat. The stroke v olume can be calculated by taking the difference between end-diastolic volume and end-systolic volume, (SV = EDV ESV). The stroke volume can also be used to calculate the cardiac output, or the rate at which blood is ejected from the heart, (CO = HR x SV). In the second diastolic phase, the semilunar valves are closed and the Atrioventricular valves are opened, as a result oxygenated blood within the pulmonary veins and beings to fill within the left atrium. At the same time, blood from both vena cavae fills within the right atrium. The mitral valve closes preventing any oxygenated blood from flowing back within the left atrium. In the second systolic phase, Atrioventricular valves close and semilunar valves open. Similar to the first systolic phase, Purkinje fibers send messages to the ventricles signaling them to contract, in which oxygenated blood is pumped into the aorta. The aortic semilunar valve prevents any oxygenated blood from pumping directly back into the left ventricle. Hypothesis: Posture Changes Reclining for 3 minutes It is expected that arterial pressure and pulse rate would most likely decrease; when someone is resting the body is controlled by the parasympathetic system which uses the cardio inhibitory center to decrease heart rate. Standing up quickly after reclining for 3 minutes It is expected that arterial pressure and pulse rate will increase, when the subject is in the standing position versus when they are laying down their blood has to overcome gravity and the heart has to work harder to produce the force necessary to push blood to the upper limbs. Standing at attention for 3 minutes It is expected that arterial pressure will decrease compare to standing up quickly after reclining for 3 minutes, because 3 minutes is a long enough period for the body to adjust to the effects of gravity and to assess the force needed to pump blood to the upper extremities. It is hypothesized that the standing at attention for 3 minutes data will be an intermediate between the reclining test and the standing up quickly after reclining test. Exercise Immediately after exercising it is expected that arterial pressure and pulse pressure will increase, because muscles involved in the exercise demand more oxygen which will increase the amount of venous return and increase the heart rate and pulse pressure. One, Two, and Three, minutes post exercise It is expected that arterial and pulse pressure will decrease compared to immediate testing after exercise. As the individual begins to rest after strenuous exercise the body begins to incorporate the parasympathetic nervous system and through the cardio inhibitor center, it begins to decrease the heart rate. Cognitive Stress It is expected that cognitive stress will increase the blood pressure slightly, because stress is believed to trigger the sympathetic nervous to increase the heart rate. Procedure For Procedures, Refer to Lab 6, Activity 2, in the Anatomy and Physiology Lab Manual Data Results: Lab Activities Data Tables Proper use of the Sphygmomanometer: Subject: Brianna Burton Systolic Pressure Diastolic Pressure Pulse Pressure MAP Trial 1 110mmHg 70mmHg 80mmHg 83.33 mmHg We were told by the instructor there was no need to perform a trial 2 Effect of Postural Changes Subject: Same as above Blood Pressure Pulse Rate MAP Sitting Quietly (Baseline) 110/70 mmHg 80 BPM 83.33 mmHg Reclining (After 2-3 minutes) 110/70 mmHg 76 BPM 83.33 mmHg Immediately Upon Standing 118/78 mmHg 92 BPM 91.33 mmHg After Standing for 3 Minutes 112/72 mmHg 85 BPM 85.33 mmHg Exercise Subject: (Well-Conditioned) Aaron Banks Fitness Index: 50 Subject: (Poorly-Conditioned) Justin Kim Fitness Index: 44 Baseline Immediately 1 Minute 2 Minutes 3 Minutes 4 minutes 5 Minutes Well-Conditioned Subject BP: 130/80 mmHg BP: 132/80 mmHg BP: 128/70 mmHg BP: 120/78 mmHg BP: 110/68 mmHg BP: 110/72 mmHg BP:108/72 mmHg HR: 90 BPM HR: 101 BPM HR: 103 BPM HR: 100 BPM HR: 98 BPM HR: 98 BPM HR: 87 BPM MAP: 96.67 mmHg MAP: 97.33 mmHg MAP: 89.33 mmHg MAP: 92 mmHg MAP:86.67 mmHg MAP: 84 mmHg MAP: 84 mmHg Poorly-Conditioned Subject BP: 122/98 mmHg BP: 128/90 mmHg BP: 138/86 mmHg BP: 120/82 mmHg BP: 122/90 mmHg BP: 122/90 mmHg BP:118/96 mmHg HR: 82 BPM HR: 120 BPM HR: 119 BPM HR: 111 BPM HR: 110 BPM HR: 110 BPM HR: 108 BPM MAP: 106 mmHg MAP: 102.67 mmHg MAP: 103.33 mmHg MAP: 94.67 mmHg MAP: 106.67 mmHg MAP: 100.67 mmHg MAP: 103.33 mmHg Cognitive Stressor Subject: Nika Condition Max HR Min HR Mean HR Systolic BP Diastolic BP Pulse Pressure MAP Baseline 1 100 BPM 82 BPM 89 BPM 134 mmHg 91 mmHg 43 mmHg 105.3 mmHg Spell Forward 96 BPM 83 BPM 91 BPM 108 mmHg 88 mmHg 20 mmHg 94.7 mmHg Spell Back 112 BPM 84 BPM 92 BPM 111 mmHg 89 mmHg 29 mmHg 96.3 mmHg Number of misspelled words forward = 1 Number of misspelled words backward = 3 Discussion: The purpose of the blood pressure and pulse lab was to test many variables which could have an effect on blood pressure and pulse. The variables tested in this lab were the, Effects of Changes in Posture, the Effects of Exercise, and the Effects of Cognitive Stress on Mean Arterial Pressure and Heart Rate. In activities the variable being tested is the Effects of Changes in Posture. For the baseline the subject, in this case Brianna, sat quietly as her baseline blood pressure, pulse rate, was tested, and her mean arterial pressure (MAP) was calculated. The results for Briannas blood pressure was 110/70 mmHg, which is about the average blood pressure (120/70 mmHg) in a healthy individual. Her Pulse pressure was 80 beats per minute (BPM). Given these values her baseline MAP, was calculated to be 83.33 mmHg (MAP = 70 + ((110 70))*1/3) ). In the next test, the effect of reclining for 2-3 minutes was tested. In this test, after reclining for 2-3 minutes, her blood pressure, and MAP remained the same as the Baseline test. It was observed that her pulse rate did in fact decrease: (80 > 76 BPM), though it is not known if this decrease in the pulse rate is significant enough. In the hypothesis above it was expected that arterial pressure and pulse rate would most likely decrease when someone i s resting because parasympathetic nervous system would begin to signal the body to relax affecting the cardiac centers (CAC deactivated CIC activated). The activation of the cardio inhibitory center decreases the heart rate and pulse pressure. For the next test the Effect of standing quickly after 3 minutes of reclining was tested. Immediately after standing up, her Blood pressure, Pulse rate and MAP was determined. Her blood pressure was 118/78 mmHg, her Pulse Rate was 92 BPM and her MAP was 91.33 mmHg. The MAP was calculated by using the formula: (91.33 mmHg = 78 + ((118-78))*1/3)). During this test Briannas Blood pressure, Pulse Rate and MAP significantly increased, ((BP: 110/70 >> 118/78 mmHg) (PR: 80 >> 92 BPM) (MAP: 83.33 >> 91.33 mmHg) as expected in the hypothesis. In the hypothesis it was expected that arterial pressure and pulse rate would increase, when the subject is in the standing position versus when they are lying down. When Brianna quickly stood up her heart had to overcome the effects of gravity; the heart has to work harder to produce the force needed to effectively push blood to the upper limbs and the head. Also immediately standing activates the sympathetic nervous system, which activates the CAC incr easing heart rate. This hypothesis is accepted, based on her data the blood pressure, pulse rate and MAP did in fact increase when she stood up. Next we tested the Effects after standing for 3 minutes. After standing for 3 minutes Briannas blood pressure was 112/72 mmHg and her pulse rate was 85 BPM. Given these values her MAP for this test was calculated to be 85.33 mmHg (MAP = 72 + (112-72)*1/3). In the hypothesis it is expected that the arterial pressure would have decreased compared to the standing up quickly after reclining for 3 minutes test. It was hypothesized that arterial pressure would decrease because 3 minutes is a long enough period from the body to properly adjust to the effects of gravity and to assess the force needed to pump blood to the upper extremities. As stated in the hypothesis the blood pressure, pulse rate and MAP did in fact decrease based on the standing for 3 minutes test, because of this, the hypothesis can be accepted (BP: 110/70 >> 112/72 mmHg) (PR: 80 >> 85)) (MAP: 83.33 mmHg >> 85.33) In the next test, we tested the effects of exercise on the Body, comparing a well-conditioned person and a poor-conditioned person. For the first test a well-conditioned person was chosen. The baseline BP for this individual was around 132/80 mmHg. Immediately after exercise the blood pressure was 132/80 mmHg. This shows that there was an increase of blood pressure dependent on the effects of exercise. In the hypothesis it is expected that arterial pressure and pulse pressure will, increase, because muscles involved in the exercise also increase the venous return which will increase heart rate. For this test as hypothesized the Heart rate also increased (90 >> 101 BPM). After 5 minutes of resting the blood pressure and Heart of the subject decreased lower than the baseline, indicating some level of human error in reading the equipment effectively. Despite this, it is found that the blood pressure and pulse rate at 5 minutes was significantly lower from the baseline in the well-condit ioned person vs. the poor conditioned person. In the poor conditioned person. Their baseline blood pressure was 122/98 mmHg and after exercising for 5 minutes it was 128/90 mmHg. After 5 minutes the poor conditioned persons blood pressure was 118/96 mmHg. Again in this experiment its hard to compare the two subjects because there seems to be some human errors in effectively checking the blood pressure since it is lower than the baseline. After 5 minutes the well-conditioned persons systolic pressure dropped from 128>>108 SP despite the diastolic pressure increasing from 70 >> 72 mmHg DP. The fitness index to the well-conditioned person was 50 and 44 for the poor conditioned person. Based on the fitness index both subjects display the poorest physical conditioning possible. For the final test the effects of cognitive stress was tested. Based on this experiments results it is difficult to determine whether or not cognitive stress had any effect on the blood pressure. It was hypothesized that cognitive stress would increase heart rate because stress activates the sympathetic nervous system, which increases the heart rate. There seems to be no correlation between cognitive stress and heart rate, so the hypothesis is rejected.

The Strength of a Single Parent Shown in The Scarlet Letter Essay

What is a single parent? Is it one who destroys their child’s life? Is it one who ultimately cannot raise a minor on their own? Or is it one who dedicates their lives to the well being of their kid? Imagine a parent, and for whatever reason they were left alone to raise a child. That parent you imagined has to work long hours just to put a meal on the table. That parent has to play the role of the mother and father. That parent has no financial support. Unfortunately, in our society, this image of a single parent is looked down upon. There are people that don’t realize how much a single parent goes through to give their child a better life. When it comes to the controversial issue of parenting, I believe that a single parent has the ability to raise a child just as effectively as two parents can. The reasons why are because the minor can learn life lessons that can only be acquired with a single parent, the single guardian can be the best choice for the young one, and a single parent has the ability to put all their attention and care to the son or daughter. Although some readers may object that it is impossible for a single parent to take care of a child than two parents, I would answer that it is not impossible. In The Scarlet Letter, a woman named Hester and her baby daughter Pearl were ostracized from society; and the young mother was left alone to take care of her daughter. Ultimately, my goal is to demonstrate that a child with a single parent can be raised properly by using the example of Hester and Pearl. By being with Hester, Pearl got to experience a different manner in life which enabled her to see an outside perspective of Puritan life and learn moral lessons from it. Pearl was not born into the typica... ...† (271). Hester had effectively raised a youngster to become something that was not expected. Despite being shunned upon on, Hester found a way to positively show Pearl moral lessons with the scarlet letter. Even when the townspeople wanted to take Pearl away from her mother, they were not triumphant to do so. The mother’s life was solely about Pearl; to keep her protected, warm, fed, clothed and loved. My conclusion, which is that based on the success of Pearl’s life, is that a single mother can raise a child. A single parent has the capability to nurture and love a son or daughter just as two parents can. A single parent sometimes is the best choice of who the minor can be with. A single parent may have challenges, but they can overcome them just to keep the child they love alive and well. Is it time now to realize what a single parent can truly accomplish?

Night World : Witchlight Chapter 16

We were so careful, she thought, setting up wards three days early and having agents watch the house. Nothing got inside during those three days; we were sure of that, and so we thought we were safe. But we didn't stop to think-what if the dragon was already inside when we put the wards up? Brett. He's the dragon. It could take on any shape, assume any animal's form, and know all that the animal knew. A human being was an animal. So why couldn't it touch a human and know all the human knew? It would be the perfect disguise. And we all fell for it, Keller thought. I knew there was something creepy about him, but I just put it down to him being obnoxious. And he's been here all the time, inside the wards, laughing at us, waiting for Iliana to come. And Iliana's with him right now. Keller felt sure of that in her gut. She wanted to throw herself against the door again, but that wouldn't do any good. She needed to be calm now, to think, because she couldn't afford to waste any time. The window. Keller tried to open it, looking down at a hedge of rhododendron bushes below. The sash was stuck, nailed fast. But it didn't matter. Glass was more breakable than wood. She stepped back and changed. Melting, flowing, jumpsuit becoming fur. Tail shooting free. Ears. Whiskers. Heavy paws thumping down. A single long stretch to get used to the new body and being on four feet instead of two. She was a panther, and she felt good. Strong and mean. Her muscles were like steel under her soft coat, and her big paws were twitching to bat someone silly. That dragon would be sorry he'd ever messed with her. With a rasping yowl that she couldn't help, she gathered herself and sprang straight at the window. The full weight of her panther body hit the glass, and it shattered, and then she was flying in the cold night air. She got cut. Panthers actually had thin and delicate skin compared to other animals. But she was indifferent to the pain. She landed and took off running, shaking her paws in flight to get rid of little bits of glass. She raced around the mansion, looking for a place to enter. Eventually, she found a low, unshuttered window, and once again, she gathered herself and jumped. She landed in a sitting room with glass falling all around her onto a fine, old carpet Brett. And Iliana. She would smell them out. She lifted her muzzle, smelling currents in the air. At the same time, she expanded her sense of hearing to its fullest. No Iliana. She couldn't get even a whiff of her. That was bad, but she would try again from the game room, where Iliana had been last. That was where she was going anyway, because that was where Brett was. Not Brett, she reminded herself as she loped through corridors and rooms. The dragon. She raced through the ballroom and heard a scream. She barely turned her head to notice a girl standing frozen, just lifting her hand to point. The college band crashed to a halt, almost as one, except the drummer, who went on playing for a moment with his eyes shut. Keller ignored them all, running at top speed and leaping down the stairs, her heavy front paws hitting the carpeted floor first, then her back paws hitting almost on either side of them. Each spring propelled her into the next. She burst into the game room. For an instant, she stood still, taking in the scene. She wanted to make sure with her eyes that what her ears and her nose told her was true: Iliana wasn't here. It was true. Winnie was missing, too, and Keller couldn't smell them anywhere. Then someone spotted her, a full-grown panther, jet black, with glowing eyes and long teeth just showing as she panted gently, standing in the doorway with her tail lashing. â€Å"Oh, my God!† The voice soared over the babble. â€Å"Look at that!† Everyone looked. Everyone froze for an instant. Chaos erupted. Girls were screaming. Boys were yelling. Plenty of boys were screaming, too. They saw her, and they fell over themselves, diving for the exits or for hiding places. They poured out of the room, dragging each other, sometimes trampling each other. Keller gave a loud, snarling yowl to help them on, and they scattered like chickens. The only one Keller cared about was the Brett-dragon. He turned and ran down a corridor. Luring her? He must be. Maybe he didn't realize she had found out yet Maybe he had some reason for continuing the charade. She threw her head back and gave a snarl that resounded through the house. It wasn't just anger. It was calling Nissa and Galen. If they could hear her, they would understand and come running. Then she took off after the dragon. As she loped down the corridor, she changed again. This time, she couldn't just try to kill him; she needed to be able to talk. But she also needed her claws, so she changed to her half-and-half form, fur shriveling off her arms, body rearing up to run on booted feet, hair flying out behind her. The dragon was almost at the end of the corridor when she jumped him. She knocked him down and rolled him over, straddling him. She was braced to feel the agony of the dark power crackling through her, but it didn't come. She pinned his arms and showed her teeth and screamed in his face. â€Å"Where is she? What did you do with her?† The face looked back at her. It looked just like Brett, just like a human. It was sickly white, with rolling eyeballs and spittle at the corners of the mouth. The only answer she got was a moan of what sounded like terror. â€Å"Tell me! Where is she?† â€Å"-it's not my fault†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"What?† She lifted his body and banged it down again. His head flopped on his neck like a dead fish. He looked like someone about to faint Something was wrong. â€Å"She's in the bedroom with my parents. They're all asleep-or something-â€Å" His forehead. When she shook him, his hair flew around. It was uncharacteristically messy, but the forehead underneath was smooth. â€Å"I couldn't help it He did something to my brain. I couldn't even think until a few minutes ago. I just did what he told me to do. I was like a robot! And you don't know what it was like, having him in the house the last three days, and feeling like a puppet, and when he let go a few minutes ago, I thought I was going to be killed-â€Å" The babbling went on, but Keller's mind had disengaged. She had lots of thoughts all at once, like layers in a parfait. Chalk up another ability for dragons: telepathic mind control. Of weak human subjects, anyway. Nissa was right* the Night World did know what had happened in the music room. The substitution was probably made right after that. They could have grabbed Jaime on her way back to class. The car incident was designed to make us sympathetic and to lull our suspicions before they began. We thought of her as a victim. The doctors at the hospital must have been controlled, too. They had to have been-they'd looked at Jaime's head. Jaime's headaches have kept her at home for the past three days, so she never had to cross the wards. Diana trusts Jaime implicitly and would go anywhere with her without a fight Jaime wears bangs. And on the last layer, rushing at her cold and sharp as crystal: Jaime is the dragon. Jaime is the dragon. A vast, silent calm seemed to have filled Keller. She felt as if there was too much space inside her head. Very slowly, she looked down at Brett again. â€Å"Stop talking.† It was almost a whisper, but his gabble stopped as if she'd turned off a faucet â€Å"Now. Who's in the bedroom with your parents? Your sister?† He nodded, terrified. Tears spurted out of his eyes. â€Å"Your real sister.† He nodded again. They must have brought her in sometime, Keller thought. Certainly before we put the wards up and started checking cars, maybe even before the fake Jaime got back from the hospital. Why they'd kept her alive was a mystery, but Keller didn't have time to worry about it â€Å"Brett,† she said, still in a careful whisper, â€Å"what I want to know is where Iliana is. Do you know where she's been taken?† He choked. ‘1 don't know. He didn't tell me anything, even when he was in my mind. But I noticed-4here were some people down in the cellar. I think they were making a tunnel.† A tunnel. Under the wards, of course. So we were made fools of twice. She had to grit her teeth to keep from screaming. The floor plan of the house was a blur in her mind. She hauled Brett up by his shirt and said, â€Å"Where's the basement door? Show me!† Ic-can't-â€Å" â€Å"Move!† He moved, staggering. She followed, pushing him along, until they got to a door and stairs. Then he collapsed. â€Å"Down there. Don't ask me to go with you. I can't. I can't look at him again.† He huddled, rocking himself. Keller left him. Three stairs down, she bounded back up and grabbed him by the shirt. â€Å"That phone call from Iliana's mother-does he really have the baby?† She need to know if it came to bargaining. â€Å"I don't know,† Brett moaned in a sick voice. He was clutching his stomach as if he were wounded. â€Å"There wasn't any phone call, but I don't know what he's been doing.† He threw her a desperate look and whispered hoarsely, â€Å"What is he?† Keller dropped him. â€Å"You don't want to know,† she said, and left him again. She took the stairs very quietly but very quickly. Her senses were open, but the farther she went down, the less useful they were. They were being swamped by an overpowering sickly-sweet odor and by a rushing sound that seemed to fill her head. By the time she got to the last step, her fur was bristling, and her heart was pounding. Her tail stood out stiffly, and her pupils were wide. It was very dark, but details of the room slowly came into focus. It was a large furnished basement, or had been. Now every piece of furniture seemed to be broken and piled in a heap in the corner. There was a raw hole in one concrete wall, a hole that opened into a black tunnel. And the sickly-sweet smell came from piles of dung. They were lying on the floor all around, along with giant scratch marks that had dug grooves into the tile. The entire place looked like nothing so much as a huge animal's den. She couldn't sense anything alive in the room. Keller moved toward the tunnel, fast but stealthy. Ripple, freeze. Ripple, freeze. Leopards could move this way across grassland bare of cover and not be seen. But nothing jumped out to attack her. The mouth of the tunnel was wet, the soil crumbly. Keller climbed in, still moving lightly. Water dripped from the mat of roots and earth above her. The whole thing looked ready to cave in at any moment. He must have made it The dragon. Goddess knows how; maybe with claws. Anyway, he wasn't too fussy about it; it was meant to be a temporary thing. The smell was just as powerful here, and the rushing sound was even clearer. There must be an underground stream-or maybe just water pipes- very close. Come on, girl, what are you waiting for? You're a grunt, it's your job to move! Don't stand around trying to think! It was hard to make herself go deeper and deeper into that damp and confining place. Her senses were all useless, even sight, because the bore twisted and turned so she could never see more than a few feet ahead. She was heading blind and deaf into she had no idea what. At any moment, she might reach a shaft or a side tunnel where something could attack her. And the feel of the earth above her was almost crushing. She kept going. Please let her be alive. He doesn't need to kill her. He should try to make her join him first Please, please, don't let him have killed her. After what seemed like forever, she realized that the angle of the tunnel was changing. She was heading up. Then a current of air swirled to her, barely sniffable under the thick dragon smell, and it was fresh. Night air. Somewhere ahead. The end of the tunnel. A new panic invaded her. Please don't let them have gotten away. She threw aside all caution and sprinted. Up, up-and she could smell it clearly now. Cold air, unfouled. Up, up-and she could hear sounds. A yell that suddenly broke off. The voice sounded like- Galen! she thought, and her heart tore. Then she saw light Moonlight. She gathered her muscles and jumped. She scrambled out of the mouth of the tunnel. And there, in moonlight that hurt her eyes, she saw everything. A car, a black Jeep, parked under a tree. The engine running but the seats empty. And in front of it, what looked like a battlefield. There were bodies everywhere. Several were vampires in black-dark ninjas. But also on the ground were the bodies of Nissa and Winnie and Galen. So they followed, a distant part of Keller's mind said, not interfering in the slightest with the part that was getting ready for the fight. They followed the dragon-which must have done something to Winnie to get Iliana away from her. That was why I couldn't smell anybody; they all went into the tunnel while I was upstairs with brother Brett. She couldn't tell if they were dead. They were all tying very still, and there was blood on Winnie's head and on Nissa's right arm and back. Blood and daw marks. And Galen†¦ he was sprawled out full-length, with no signs of breathing. He wasn't even a warrior. He'd never had a chance. Then Keller saw something that drove the others out of her head. The dragon. It was standing near the Jeep, but frozen, as if it had just wheeled to face her. It was holding a limp figure in silvery-white casually, almost tucked under its arm. And it still looked like Jaime Ashton-Hughes. It was wearing Jaime's pretty blue dress. Its soft brown hair blew gently about its face, and Keller could feel its dark blue eyes fixed on her. But there were differences, too. Its skin was deadly pale, and something yellowish was oozing from a cut on its cheekbone. Its lips were drawn back from its teeth in a grinning snarl that Jaime never could have managed. And when the wind blew the soft hair off its forehead, Keller could see horns. There they were. Stubby and soft-looking-or at least soft on the outside, like downy skin over bone. They were so obviously real and yet so grotesque that Keller felt her stomach turn. And there were five of them. Five. The book said one to three! Keller thought indignantly. And in rare cases four. But this thing has five! Five seats of shapeshifting power, not to mention the black energy, mind control, and whatever else it's been keeping up its sleeve just for me. I'm dead. Well, she had known that from the beginning, of course. She'd known it six days ago when she first leaped for the dragon's back in the mall. But now the realization was more bitter, because not only was she dead, so was all hope. I can't kill that thing. It's going to slaughter me as easily as the others. And then take Iliana. It didn't matter. She had to try. â€Å"Put the girl down,† she said. She kept her half-and-half shape to say it. Maybe she could startle it by changing suddenly when she sprang. â€Å"I don't think so,† the dragon said with Jaime's mouth. It had Jaime's voice down perfectly. But then it opened the mouth, and basso profundo laughter came out, so deep and startling that Keller felt ice down her spine. â€Å"Come on,† Keller said. â€Å"Neither of us wants her hurt.† While she was talking, she was moving slowly, trying to circle behind it. But it turned with her, keeping its back to the Jeep. â€Å"You may not,† the dragon said. â€Å"But I really don't care. She's already hurt; I don't know if she'll make it anyway.† Its grin spread wider. â€Å"Put her down,† Keller said again. She knew that it wouldn't. But she wanted to keep talking, keep it off guard. She also knew it wasn't going to let her get behind it. Panthers naturally attack from behind. It wasn't going to be an option. Keller's eyes shifted to the huge and ancient pine tree the Jeep was parked under. Or they didn't actually shift, because that would have given the dragon a clue. She expanded her awareness to take it in. It was her chance. â€Å"We haven't even properly introduced ourselves-† she began. And then, in mid-sentence, she leaped.

Dangerous Liaisons Vs. Cruel Intentions Essays - Free Essays

Dangerous Liaisons Vs. Cruel Intentions Essays - Free Essays Dangerous Liaisons Vs. Cruel Intentions It is my intention to compare the book, Dangerous Liaisons by Choderlos de Laclos, to its modern movie version, Cruel Intentions starring Sarah Michelle Gellar. I intend to examine how the original French text was modified in reference to plot, character, morals/values, and themes. I also plan to discuss how these transformations change the meaning of the story and reflect different cultural/historical contexts. There are some major differences between these two works, if only because of when they were written. First, the plots of both works need to be discussed and explained how they are different. The stories of both works have basically the same structure, until it gets toward the endings. In Dangerous Liaisons, the Vicomte de Valmont dies in a sword battle between him and Danceny. Right before he dies, though, he gives Danceny all of his letters between him and the Marquise de Merteuil and tells him to circulate them in order to ruin Merteuils reputation. Danceny does this and then moves away for a while. Merteuil ends up becoming disfigured from small pox and her reputation crumbles. She moves to Holland because of this. Cecile moves back into the convent and Madame de Tourvel dies of misery because of the suffering that Valmont put her through. Because Cruel Intentions is such a modernized version of this story, the ending is a lot different. Sebastian (Valmont) dies by being hit by a car because he pushed Annette (Tourvel) out of the way in order to save her life. Obviously, this is a much more modern way of dying in a movie than dying in a sword fight. Also, it shows the Valmont character as being more heroic, which in Dangerous Liaisons, he was not quite so heroic. In the movie, it does not really say what happens to Ronald (Danceny). He fights with Sebastian, and that is the last we see of him. Catherine (Merteuil), like in the book, also has her reputation ruined, but she gets humiliated in a more dramatic way (in front of the student body and faculty). Also, there is the issue of drugs. Her addiction to cocaine is revealed. The use of drugs is a common issue in todays modern movies, and that is one of the reasons Cruel Intentions is different in terms of its cultural context. Cecile and Annette (Tourvel) worked togeth er to produce copies of Sebastians journal, which revealed Catherines true self, and they handed them out to the student body and faculty. Cecile directly gets revenge on Catherine. In Dangerous Liaisons, she does not. This also relates to cultural context. It shows how more independent women are in the modern world. In Dangerous Liaisons, Tourvel dies of misery and Cecile goes into the convent. This shows that women were much weaker and less independent in society in the late 1700s. The last scene in the movie shows Annette driving off in Sebastians expensive car. This is a typical ending to a modern story. In the book, her character dies, but in the movie, she is the vengeful, independent woman. It is apparent that the morals and values of both works change because of their cultural and historical context. Dangerous Liaisons was basically written to teach young women in society what not to do. This kind of literature was looked down upon at the time it was written. In 1824 a decree of the cour royale de Paris condemned it to be destroyed as dangerous. This verdict remained the official one throughout the later nineteenth century. The book was spoken of only to be deplored: a picture of the most odious immortality, that should never have been revealed even supposing it had been true, a work of revolting immorality, a book to be admired and execrated.(Laclos, p. 7) It was considered to be an immoral book. The movie was made mainly for entertainment purposes. Since we basically live in an immoral society, it was well accepted as a good movie. Although the schemes that Catherine and Sebastian thought up and carried out were at times blown out of proportion, I think todays audience is entertained by that sort of character. Catherine and Sebastian were the kinds of people that probably do

Free Essays on Radicalism

Trace the history of Radicalism and the causes of its rise. What are its major ideas and movements? Radicalism is a rejection of liberal democracy and industrialization. Even with the fall of the Soviet Union it is still a vital force in the world. The middle class was aware of the social problems they were creating as they developed an industrial society. As a result, they had to reconcile their own affluence with the poverty of the workers. They used the theories of a number of thinkers to rationalize their ascendancy. Adam Smith sustained individual enterprise and Thomas Malthus and David Ricardo gave a rationale for economic individualism. Jeremy Bentham argued that every institution must be measured against its social utility – the greatest good for the greatest number. The fact that society was benefiting justified the change that brought the industrial world into being. There were those who disagreed with this. Radical theories began to develop in the 1840’s. Louis Blanc argued against competition and for a system of workshops governed by the workers. Pierre Proudnon proposed that the price of items be based on the amount of labor used to produce them. The ideas of Blanc and Proudnon received their clearest and most forceful expression in the works of Karl Marx and Friedrick Engels. Marx and Engels worked to produce a theory that would explain how society had come to its present state and propose a means of altering it. The theory was published by Marx in 1848 and was titled â€Å"The Communist Manifesto.† Society, he argued, was no more than a reflection of a hierarchy dictated by those who own the means of production. As history progressed, so the means have changed. Feudalism was defeated by capitalism and capitalism would be defeated by communism. The process would involve the concentration of economic power into fewer and fewer hands and the consequent opposition of an ever-increasing working class. Once the wor... Free Essays on Radicalism Free Essays on Radicalism Trace the history of Radicalism and the causes of its rise. What are its major ideas and movements? Radicalism is a rejection of liberal democracy and industrialization. Even with the fall of the Soviet Union it is still a vital force in the world. The middle class was aware of the social problems they were creating as they developed an industrial society. As a result, they had to reconcile their own affluence with the poverty of the workers. They used the theories of a number of thinkers to rationalize their ascendancy. Adam Smith sustained individual enterprise and Thomas Malthus and David Ricardo gave a rationale for economic individualism. Jeremy Bentham argued that every institution must be measured against its social utility – the greatest good for the greatest number. The fact that society was benefiting justified the change that brought the industrial world into being. There were those who disagreed with this. Radical theories began to develop in the 1840’s. Louis Blanc argued against competition and for a system of workshops governed by the workers. Pierre Proudnon proposed that the price of items be based on the amount of labor used to produce them. The ideas of Blanc and Proudnon received their clearest and most forceful expression in the works of Karl Marx and Friedrick Engels. Marx and Engels worked to produce a theory that would explain how society had come to its present state and propose a means of altering it. The theory was published by Marx in 1848 and was titled â€Å"The Communist Manifesto.† Society, he argued, was no more than a reflection of a hierarchy dictated by those who own the means of production. As history progressed, so the means have changed. Feudalism was defeated by capitalism and capitalism would be defeated by communism. The process would involve the concentration of economic power into fewer and fewer hands and the consequent opposition of an ever-increasing working class. Once the wor...