A Critical Response to Hawthorne’s Puritans Essay -- Literacy Analysi

Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) is critically acclaimed for the portrayal of New England Puritans in his fiction. The grim picture of the rigid and forbidding Puritan community in his works reflects the widespread attitude towards Puritans, yet Professor Deborah L. Madsen, in her paper, â€Å"Hawthorne’s Puritans: From Fact to Fiction† claims that this monolithic portrayal of Puritanism results in a ‘powerful misrepresentation of the actual puritans [and] of the dynamics of Puritan theology’ (Madsen 1999, p 510) . The present response is a critical review of Madsen’s paper. The title of the paper is appropriate. While ‘Hawthorne’s Puritans’ implies a difference between actual Puritans and those conceptualized by Hawthorne, ‘From Fact to Fiction’ extends this idea by suggesting the disparity between history/fact and Hawthorne’s fiction. Madsen’s study argues that Hawthorne attempts to defend his puritan ancestors by creating a monolithic Puritanism, in which the conduct of all authoritarian puritans resembles that of his own ancestors such as John and William Hathorne. The ultimate goal of Hawthorne, according to Madsen, is to excuse ‘the sins of his fathers by showing that they were incapable of acting otherwise’ (Madsen, 1999, p. 510). What Madsen means by ‘a monolithic Puritanism’ is one that here allows ‘only one interpretation of itself and its significance’ (Madsen, 1999, p.516). In other words, it is an essentialist and stereotypical representation that does not take into account the complexities and the changeability of puritan behavior in an attempt to portray its underlying and unchanging essence. The outcome is a fixed and commonly-held image of puritans as a ‘grim and gloomy race, impatient with human weakness and m... ...h they are written and the social sphere in which he moved, his background, and various other influences on him. In conclusion, she brings out how Hawthorne’s fiction creates a biased and monolithic portrayal of the puritans ignoring the complexity of their theology and culture. Ideally, Madsen should have shed some light upon this complexity which could have substantiated her claim that Hawthorne denies the existence of any sophistication in puritan culture and theology. Works Cited Hawthorne, N., 1850. The Scarlet Letter available at: http://www.forgottenbooks.org Montrose, L. A., 1989. "Professing the Renaissance: The Poetics and Politics of Culture," in Veeser, A., 1989. The New Historicism, New York, London: Routledge. pp. 15-36. Madsen, D.L., 1999. Hawthorne’s Puritans: From Fact to Fiction. Journal of American Studies, 33 (1999), 3, 509-517

Corporate Social Responsibility in Banks

Corporate Social Responsibility in Banks S. Kavitha[1] Abstract Corporate social responsibility stands for business contribution to sustainable development and covers company’s active participation in different fields, human rights, human resources, relations with clients, suppliers, and other stake holders, corporate governance, environment and contribution to community and society. The social responsible attitude is integral part of the identity of financial institutions like banks, and it is one of their distinctive features. The Reserve Bank of India has asked the banks to pay special attention towards integration of social and environmental concerns in their business operations. Many of the newly formed private and foreign banks are aware of the importance of such a step and therefore are having an active CSR department in their banks. This paper is an attempt to explain the concept of corporate social responsibility and the different CSR practices followed by banks in India. Key Words: CSR – Corporate Social Responsibility, Friedman’s View, Carroll’s View, Discretionary Responsibility Corporate Social Responsibility in Banks S. Kavitha[2] Introduction Corporate social responsibility stands for business contribution to sustainable development and covers company’s active participation in different fields, human rights, human resources, relations with clients, suppliers, and other stake holders, corporate governance, environment and contribution to community and society. The concept of social responsibility proposes that a private corporation has responsibilities to society that extend beyond making profit. Social responsibility is the way of life for most business organizations. It enables all such activities ranging from providing safe products and service to giving a portion of company’s profit to welfare organization. The social responsible attitude is integral part of the identity of financial institutions like banks, and it is one of their distinctive features. The Reserve Bank of India has asked the banks to pay special attention towards integration of social and environmental concerns in their business operations. Many of the newly formed private and foreign banks are aware of the importance of such a step and therefore are having an active CSR department in their banks. Concept of Social Responsibility: Corporate social responsibility is the sense of obligation on the part of companies to build social criteria in to their strategic decision-making. The concept implies that when companies evaluate decision from an critical perspective there should be presumption in favor of adopting course of action that enhance the welfare of society at large. The goals selected might be quite specific. To enhance the welfare of communities in which company is based. – To improve the environment – To empower employees to give them a sense of self worth. Different views on social responsibility Friedman’s Traditional View of Business Responsibility Urging a return to a laissez-faire worldwide economy with a minimum of government regulations, Friedman argues against the concept of social re sponsibility. Adam Smith and Milton Friedman, economists, according to them the only responsibility of business is to perform its economic functions efficiently and provide goods and services for society and earn maximum profits. By doing so business performs its economic functions and leaves the social functions to other institutions of society, such as the government. A businessperson who acts responsibly by cutting the price of the firm’s product to prevent inflation or by making expenditures to reduce pollution, or by hiring the hard-core unemployed, according to Friedman, is spending the shareholder’s money for general interest. Even if businessperson has shareholder permission or encouragement to do so, he or she is still acting from motives other than economic, in the long run; it may harm the society the firm is trying to help. Friedman referred o the social responsibility of business as ‘fundamentally subversive doctrine’ and stated that â€Å"There is one and only one social responsibility of business, to use its resources engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception of fraud. But this view is severely criticized on several grounds. On the other extreme, there is opposite view, which favors the position that it is imperative for businesses to be socially responsible. This is based on the argument that business organizations are a part of society and have to serve primarily societal interests rather than narrow economic objectives such as profit maximization. In doing so they have to deal with social concerns and issues and have to allocate resources for solving social problems. Carroll’s four responsibilities of business. Archie Carroll proposes that the managers of business organizations have four responsibilities Economic Responsibilities Economic responsibilities of a business organization’s management are to produce goods and services of value to society so that the firm can repay for its creditors and shareholders. Legal Responsibilities Legal responsibilities are defined by governments in laws that management is expected to obey. For eg, U. S. business firms are required to hire and promote people based on their credentials rather then to discriminate based on non-job-related characteristics such as race, gender or religion. Ethical Responsibilities Ethical responsibilities of an organization’s management are to ollow the generally held beliefs about behavior in a society. E. g. , Society generally expects firms to work with the employees and the community is planning for layoffs, even though no law may require this. The affected people can get very upset if an organization’s management fails to act according to generally prevailing ethical values. Discretionary Responsibilities Discretionary responsibilities are the purely voluntary obligations a corporation assumes. Examples are philanthropic contributions, training the hard-core unemployed, and providing day care centers. The difference between ethical and discretionary responsibilities is that few people expect an organization to fulfill discretionary responsibilities, whereas many expect an organization to fulfill ethical ones. Carroll lists these four responsibilities in order of priority. Social responsibility includes both ethical and discretionary but not economic and legal responsibilities. A firm can fulfill its ethical responsibilities by taking actions that society tends to value but has not yet put into law. When ethical responsibilities are satisfied, a firm can focus on discretionary responsibilities. The discretionary responsibilities of today can become the ethical responsibilities of tomorrow. E. g. , Provision of day care facilities, is moving rapidly from being discretionary to ethical responsibility. Benefits received from being socially responsible 1. Being known as a socially responsible firm may provide a company a competitive advantage. Programs to reduce pollution can actually reduce waste and maximize resource productivity. 2. Their environment concerns may enable them to charge premium prices and gain brand loyalty. (Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Inc. ) 3. Their trustworthiness may help them generate enduring relationships with suppliers and distributors without needing to spend a lot of time and money policing contracts. (Maytag) 4. They can attract outstanding employees who prefer working for a responsible firm (Procter & Gamble) 5. They are more likely to be welcomed into foreign country (Levi Strauss) 6. They can utilize the goodwill of public officials for support in difficult times (e. . Minnesota supported Dayton-Hudson’s fight to avoid being acquired by Dart Industries of Maryland) 7. They are more likely to attract capital infusions from investors who view reputable companies as desirable long-term investments (Rubbermaid). CSR in India India has been named among the top ten Asian countries who are paying an increasing importance towards corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure nor ms, a survey says. According to social enterprise CSR Asia’s Asian Sustainability Ranking (ASR), India was ranked fourth in the list, which was topped by Australia. The other countries in the list include China (second), Hong Kong (Third), Japan (fifth), Malaysia (sixth), Pakistan (seventh), Philippines (eighth), Singapore (ninth) and Thailand (tenth). The 2009 ASR list was dominated by Australian companies, with eight out of the top ten companies analysed coming from there, followed by India, the survey said. However, the report further said although there are increasing levels of disclosure in the Asian region, it still is generally poor compared with Europe and North America. In India we find surprisingly high levels of disclosure, particularly from large companies with recognised brands such as Tata and Infosys. Leading oil companies (such as ONGC and the Indian Oil Corporation) also have reasonable levels of disclosure,† the report said. CSR initiatives in banks The benefits of CSR for companies include increased profit, customer loyalty, trust, positive brand attitude and combating negative publicity. CSR strategies have been embrace d by the international banking community. 0 Major international private banks have signed the Equator Principles agreement which supports socially responsible development. (Eg of such banks are Citigroup, JPMorgan, Bank of America, ABN Amro, Barclays, HSBC and ING). Research suggests that dissatisfaction is the major reason why customers switch banks this arises mainly because of rising fee. Normally to get more favorable price, customers try to switch banks. Most of the customers have accounts in more than one bank so they find it very easy to compare the services and accordingly they do their transactions. So, customer turnover has become an important issue for the banks. The customer loss may have an adverse effect on bank market share and profit. So if the banks concentrate more on CSR and spent more for this that will create a good image for the banks which in turn will bring many new customers to the banks and also the customer loss can be reduced. RBI guidelines on CSR The Reserve Bank of India is now rooting for environment conservation and fair social practices. The central bank has asked banks to put in place a suitable and appropriate plan of action towards helping the cause of ‘sustainable development’, with the approval of their boards. Spurred on by the worldwide momentum in sustainable development and the initiative being taken on various fronts by different organisations, including all major banks globally, Indian banks have been encouraged to actively look at corporate social responsibility, sustainable development and non-financial reporting. Among banks in India, ABN Amro Bank was the first to put out a ‘sustainability report’ recently. It includes key indicators on the bank and its subsidiaries’ environmental (like paper, water and electricity usage) and social governance performance. Other companies, which issue sustainability reports, include ITC, Tata Tea, Dr Reddy’s and Reliance. Sustainable development essentially refers to the process of maintenance of the quality of environmental and social systems in the pursuit of economic development. Non-financial reporting is basically a system of reporting by organisations on their activities, which includes environmental, social and economic accounting. Best CSR practices in Banks – Some Examples SBI – State Bank of India Apart from the normal banking operations, the Bank, as a responsible and responsive corporate citizen, seeks to reinvest part of its profit in various community welfare projects to improve the quality of life of the poor, neglected, weaker and downtrodden sections of society. In the financial year 2007-08, the Bank made donations aggregating Rs. . 11 crore to various Relief Funds and also to NGOs / Trusts / Societies for their projects with social orientation. In recognition of its contribution to Rural Community Development, the Bank was awarded the prestigious Reader’s Digest Pegasus Corporate Social Responsibilities Award 2007. Infact, it was the only Bank to have received this recognition. Under a new scheme named ‘Adoption of t he Girl Child’ over 8,300 poor girl children have been adopted by various branches throughout the country to meet their personal and educational expenses. This is not merely a financial assistance scheme but offers emotional and psychological support to the ‘adopted girls’ due to the active involvement and care of the SBI Ladies Clubs. From the Research and Development Fund, the Bank has so far extended Rs. 6. 61 crore as research grants to 71 chairs / research projects at various Universities and Academic institutions. For the current year SBI has extended 100000 Sterling Pounds to London School of Economics for establishing an India Observatory and I. G. Patel Chair at their Asia Research Centre in participation with RBI. ICICI Foundation An example for CSR practices by banks is the ICICI foundation. ICICI Bank runs a very active and well known foundation in India but there is no clearly visible link of the ICICI Foundation on the website. ICICI is also very active in its support of government programs to improve the livelihoods of people. ICICI Bank has joined hands with NGOs to reach out to children in ten states helping them have better access to education Standard Chartered Bank The HIV/AIDS pandemic is a global challenge faced by Standard Chartered as a business. In different developing countries HIV has a significant impact and they respond to this programme through Living with HIV programme, , a global policy aimed at protecting basic human rights, promoting the health of their employees and keeping the business costs associated with HIV/AIDS to a minimum. The programme is well established and focuses on the following areas: †¢Raising awareness with their employees through training Educating local people about the prevention and treatment of HIV †¢Strengthening their position as thought leaders in HIV/AIDS †¢Sharing their knowledge with other organisations Standard Chartered, which happens to be one of the country’s largest international banks, is involved in real partnerships with local community organisations, involving active participation of its employees in their community projects. It is the human face of banks. Or what is call ed corporate social responsibility, the new term devised for the social service that companies do with some of their profits. The global community programme of the bank is called ‘Believing in Life’. Part of this is the internal initiative ‘Living with HIV’. An extension of the programme in Africa, it seeks to create awareness about this deadly disease and thus help prevention by educating all its staff across the different countries from where the bank operates. Banks like HDFC, SBI, ICICI, HDFC, Standard Chartered Bank are now active in a host of areas including primary education, women empowerment, rehabilitation of poor, and aged environmental issues Future of CSR The Corporate Social Responsibility has increased in importance around the world. The world becomes a global village in the information technology era. Sharing and accessing of information become very easy. All big companies are expanding their business opportunities all over the world. Simultaneously the CSR activities also expanding speedily where company initiatives started. Now these days every company feels CSR is unavoidable and responsible thing. Moreover companies allocating separate budget and deploying professionals for CSR initiatives. It shows that it is emerging as a powerful thing in social development sector. The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is high on every corporate agenda. Social commitment is an essential part of every company. Corporate social responsibility involves the aspiration to make a positive contribution to the progress of the company and society. If a company initiates CSR wing the company concerned need to work hard consequently on a formal, coherent and transparent policy in this field. Then only the CSR will become a potential area for development of the society. Conclusion The rapid information technology innovations are changing the face of Corporate Social Responsibility. The concept of CSR is still debatable in democratic countries. There is a major criticism in all over the world is corporate companies are utilizing this concept to build their business expansion. Through this concept corporate companies are liaison and lobbying with higher bureaucracy in the government to get permissions/licenses to their companies easily. Many companies are getting tax exemptions by carrying out these social development activities. The increased awareness of CSR has also come about as a result of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, in which a major goal is the increased contribution of assistance from large organizations, especially Multi-National Corporations, to help alleviate poverty and hunger, and for businesses to be more aware of their impact on society. There is a lot of potential for CSR to help with development in poor countries, especially community-based initiatives. CSR can be very much useful for the financial institutions like banks to get good reputation in the society. Banks should do the CSR activities to the fullest benefit to the society and not just for the sake of doing it. References Sen, S. , Bhattacharya, C. B. , Korshun, D. (2006), â€Å"The role of corporate social responsibility in strengthening multiple stakeholder relationships: a field experiment†, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 34 pp. 158-66. Bhattacharya, C. B. , Sankar Sen and Daniel Korschun (2008), â€Å"Using Corporate Social Responsibility to Win the War for Talent,† MIT Sloan Management Review, 49 (2), 37-44; â€Å"The Good Company†, The Economist (2005-01-20). Retrieved on 2008-25-07 Financial Express, Wednesday, Oct 28, 2009 at 1541 hrs IST http://www. karmayog. org/csr501to1000/csr501to1000_21878. htm http://www. csbanking. com. au/ http://economictmes. indiatimes. com/News http://www. deccanherald. com/deccanherald/july202004/spt9. asp; http://www. financialexpress. com/fe_full_story. php ———————– [1] S. Kavitha, MBA,MCA. ,MPhil. ,NET. , Asst. Prof, MBA, Vivekanandha Institute of Information & Management Studies, Tiruchengode, Namakkal Dt. , – 637 205, Research Scholar, Anna University, Coimbatore Phone:99421-60277, email: [email  protected] om [2] S. Kavitha, MBA,MCA. ,MPhil. ,NET. , Asst. Prof, MBA, Vivekanandha Institute of Information & Management Studies, Tiruchengode, Namakkal Dt. , – 637 205, Research Scholar, Anna University, Coimbatore Phone:99421-60277, email: [email  protected] com ———————– Economi c Legal Ethical Discretionary (Must do) (Have to do) (Should do) (Might do) Social responsibilities

Prefrontal Cortex Vs Criminal Behavior

This very broad overview of prefrontal cortex function allows us to appreciate circumstances in which prefrontal cortex function is compromised in a human. Humans comprise a special case when considering this brain region. Despite evidence that the prefrontal cortex in rodents and non-human primates regulates cognition and behavior in ways quite similar to that of the human, we are the most ‘frontal’ of species, insofar as the frontal cortex is its largest, in both absolute and relative terms, in the human.The first realm to consider where prefrontal cortex function is compromised in humans is, quite reasonably, during development. Children show only minimal frontal function, from the standpoints of cognition (for example, in reversal tasks), emotional regulation, control of impulsive behavior and moral reasoning. One of the myths of child development is that the brain is fully developed at some remarkably early age. Instead, brain development is far more prolonged and, not surprisingly, the prefrontal cortex is the last region of the brain to fully myelinate. Remarkably, this process extends well beyond adolescence into early adulthood. Various transient states can compromise prefrontal cortex function.Alcohol is long recognized for its capacity to impair reasoning and impulse control, and surprisingly small quantities of alcohol impair the capacity of the prefrontal cortex to detect errors of commission or omission, as assessed electro-physiologically.Another example concerns stress. Most individuals have experienced severe and/orprolonged stress as disrupting attention, judgment and other purviews of the prefrontal cortex, and this has been shown more formally in both humans and animals;In making sense of this, it should be appreciated that the prefrontal cortex contains some of the highest levels of receptors in the primate brain for stress hormones. Moreover, stress or stress hormones will dramatically alter the turnover of several classes of neurotransmitters in the prefrontal cortex.Prefrontal cortex function is also compromised in another circumstance experienced by all individuals. With the onset of sleep and the transition to deep, slow wave sleep, there is a characteristic decrease in activity throughout the brain, particularly in the cortex. However, with the transition to paradoxical rapid eye movement sleep, there is increased activity in a variety of brain regions, including associational cortex and limbic systems; strikingly, metabolic rate can even be higher than during wake periods.Amid this shift, there is a virtually complete cessation of activity in the prefrontal cortex, producing a relatively metabolically active brain that is unconstrained by the regulatory effects of the prefrontal cortex. It has been speculated that this, in effect, accounts for why dreams are ‘dream-like’: characterized by emotional liability, non-sequential thinking and extreme disinhibition.Amid that, general intellig ence and executive function can remain intact. By contrast, when damage occurs at earlier ages, executive function is impaired and the impulsivity  takes on a more global and malign nature that has been termed ‘acquired sociopathy’, where antisocial behaviors can be markedly premeditated. The issue of brain development becomes relevant when considering individuals with sociopathic and antisocial behavior in which there is no obvious history of prefrontal cortex damage.Moreover, when sociopaths must engage the prefrontal cortex, they activate more of the prefrontal cortex than control individuals to achieve the same level of efficacy. In other words, even when these individuals actively attempt to do the ‘harder thing’, their prefrontal cortexes are less effective. Importantly, among such sociopathic individuals, the smaller the volume of the prefrontal cortex, the greater the tendency towards aggressive and antisocial behavior.The Prefrontal Cortex and th e Criminal Justice System:We have come to recognize numerous realms in which a biological abnormality gives rise to aberrant behavior, and such recognition has often then given rise to an expectation that people now exert higher-order control over that abnormality. For example, as noted, we would never consider an epileptic violent who strikes someone in the process of a seizure: ‘it is not him; it is his disease’. However, we expect that pileptic to not drive a car if their seizures are uncontrolled. Or we are coming to understand the euro chemistry of context-dependence relapse into drug dependency in organisms. Thus, we have come to expect ex-addicts to avoid the settings in which they previously abused drugs.There is a false dichotomy in this manner of thinking. It is as if we artificially demarcate an area in which biology dominates: yes, there is something organic that gives rise tothis person having uncontrolled and synchronous neuronal discharges, or who has cer tain pathways potentiated that project onto dopamine-releasing ‘pleasure’ pathways. But it is as if, with that area of organic impairment identified and given credence, we expect it to be bounded, and for the rest of our ‘us-ness’, replete with free will, to now shoulder the responsibility of keeping that organic impairment within the confines of its boundaries. It cannot possibly work this way.What the literature about the prefrontal cortex shows is that there is a reductive, materialistic neurobiology to the containment, resulting in the potential for volitional control to be impaired just as unambiguously as any other aspect of brain function. It is possible to know the difference between right and wrong but for reasons of organic impairment, to not be able to do the right thing. The most obvious implication of this concerns how individuals with demonstrable prefrontal cortex damage are treated in the criminal justice system. As the simplest conclusion, everything about this realm of contemporary neurobiology argues against the retrenchment back towards a sole reliance on M’Naghten that has gone on in recent decades.Amid the seeming obviousness of this conclusion, there is always a valid counter-point that can be raised: there are individuals with substantial amounts of prefrontal cortex damage who, nonetheless, do not commit crimes. At present, knowing that someone has sustained prefrontal cortex damage does not give much power in predicting whether that person’s disinhibition will take the form of serial murder or merely being unable to praise a nearly inedible meal prepared by a host. This seems to weaken the ‘volition can be organically impaired, just like any other aspect of brain function’ argument; in these interstices of unpredictability seem to dwell free will.However, we can begin to imagine tree diagrams of variables that, with each new layer, add more predictive power. We can already see two l ayers in the realm of prefrontal cortex function. The first layer might query, ‘prefrontal cortex: normal or damaged?’   The second might then query, ‘if damaged: damaged in childhood or later?’ This same structure of increasing predictive power was shown in a recent, landmark study concerning clinical depression.Having a particular variant of the gene 5-HTT (which codes for a protein that regulates synaptic levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin) increases the risk of depression. However, ‘5-HTT: pro-depressive variant or other variant?’ gives only a moderate predictive power, but the authors then demonstrated the adding in of a second layer, ‘if the pro-depressive variant: major stressors during childhood or not?’ now generates an impressive predictive power as to which adults succumb to clinical depression. If free will lurks in those interstices, those crawl spaces are certainly shrinking.Recent U.S College Case Study:By Da niel Strueber, Monika Lueck and Gerhard Roth.On September 13, 2006, Kimveer Gill walked into the cafeteria at Dawson College in Montreal and, without apparent motive, shot 21 people, injuring 19 and killing two, including himself. The same day a judge in West  ­Virginia sent a woman to jail for, among other atrocities, forcing her six children and stepchildren to gorge themselves on food and then eat their own vomit. Also on the 13th, a court in New York sentenced a man for killing his girlfriend by setting her on fire–in front of her 10-year-old son. There was nothing special about that Wednesday. From around the world we hear reports of murder, manslaughter, cruelty and abuse every day. Violence is ubiquitous.But what drives one person to kill, maim or abuse another, sometimes for little or no obvious reason–and why do so many violent offenders return to crime after serving time in prison? Are these individuals incapable of any other behavior? We have evaluated the results of studies conducted around the world, focusing on acts ranging from fistfights to murder, in search of the psychobiological roots of violence. Our key conclusion is simple: violent behavior never erupts from a single cause. Rather it results from a combination of risk factors–among them inherited tendencies, a traumatic childhood and other negative experiences–that interact and aggravate one another. This realization has a silver lining: positive influences may be able to offset some of those factors that promote violence, possibly offering hope for prevention.Indeed, male gender is the most important risk factor for violent behavior. As criminal statistics show, boys and young men commit the majority of physical assaults. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's statistics on crime in the U.S., 90.1 percent of murderers apprehended in 2004 were male and men accounted for 82.1 percent of the total number arrested for violent crimes. Girls and women are not necessarily less aggressive, as was assumed until the 1990s. But women engage in more indirect, covert aggression, whereas men tend toward immediate, outward physical aggression.The causes of these gender differences are manifold. Learned sex roles certainly enter into it: â€Å"girls don't hit,† for example, but â€Å"boys need to be able to defend themselves.† Also, indirect aggressive strategies require a relatively high level of social intelligence, which girls develop earlier and faster. Moreover, neuropsychological discrepancies almost certainly play a role. The small group of males who exhibit chronic violent behavior from an early age typically share other telltale traits, among them a low tolerance for frustration,  ­deficiencies in learning social rules, attention problems, a decreased capacity for empathy, low intelligence and, most characteristic, extreme  ­impulsiveness.Similarly, repeat offenders–particularly those who have long prison records seem unable to keep their aggressive urges in check. The late neu ­roscientist Ernest S. Barratt and his colleagues at the University of Texas Medical Branch interviewed imprisoned criminals in Texas in 1999 and found that many inmates consistently picked fights, even though they knew that their lives would be made more difficult as a result. When asked why they continued to behave in ways that hurt them, many responded that they had no idea. Even though they understood the consequences and resolved to act with greater self-control the next time, they did not trust their own ability to keep their impulses at bay.Preliminary research indicates that biology may handicap some of these individuals, making it more difficult for them to show restraint. Among violent offenders, neuroscientists have found anatomical and physiological differences in both the limbic system and the prefrontal cortex, brain regions that are involved in the development and control of emotions. Some sci entists propose that the orbitofrontal cortex, a region of the prefrontal cortex where decision making takes place, inhibits areas of the limbic system–specifically the hypothalamus and the amygdala, primitive brain regions that are a source of fear and aggressive impulses. Thus, if some defect or injury impairs communication between the limbic system and the frontal cortex, a person might not be entirely able to moderate his or her emotional reactions.References:1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.scientificamericanmind.com2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.nature.com/mp/journal/v8/n2/full/4001256a.html3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www. jnnp.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/71/6/7204.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=16934455.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   www.sciammind.com/print_version.cfm?articleID=33EF147A-E7F2-99DF-3696EF69D814FCFF

Symbolism in A Long Days Journey into Night Essays

Symbolism in A Long Days Journey into Night Essays Symbolism in A Long Days Journey into Night Paper Symbolism in A Long Days Journey into Night Paper Essay Topic: A Long Way Gone Literature ONeill makes extensive use of symbolism in the play by introducing objects, props and cultural artifacts that develop the major themes in the play. He achieves this by giving the objects second meanings far beyond the literal, and by having them stand for whole concepts that are in fact the plays core. One of the first and most meaningful things of this nature that the reader, or a member of the audience is introduced to is the fog and the foghorn, when Mary mentions them for the first time: Thank heavens, the fog is gone. I do feel out of sorts this morning. I wasnt able to get much sleep with that awful foghorn going all night long (Baym 1343). Throughout the play, the presence of the fog parallels the time of day when night comes, so does the fog, and when it is morning, the fog is gone. This, of course, is no coincidence. One of the key human features explored in the play is deception, or keeping each other in the dark. Thus, one might suggest that the fog and darkness in the form of the night are congruent symbols reinforcing one another, because they come together and empower the same concept. The fog can also be seen as a sort of a personal fog each character is shrouded in, and something that suggest blurriness and unreality, especially in the final parts of the play when the fog is denser than ever and makes everything sound so sad and lost (Baym 1390-1391). The fog, then, obscures ones perception of the world, and it parallels the attempts of each member of the family to obscure or hide reality Tyrone and his stinginess, Mary with her addiction, Jamie with his life of a loafer and Edmund, with his tuberculosis that they all attempt to hide from Mary. The second important symbol is the foghorn, which too has a number of possible or combined meanings. Foghorns are used by ships for signaling in foggy conditions, therefore are a sort of warning and orienting signals. In the play, the foghorn stands for each family members efforts to find a way through the mess theyre in, perhaps excluding Mary, since she is completely passive. The fact that she does not like the foghorn also suggests that she is not up to trying to better the situation (Baym 1343). A partial success in finding a way through everything appears in the compromise that Edmund and Tyrone reach That Edmund doesnt have to go to a lousy sanatorium, and can go wherever he chooses. This compromise is only partial, though, because his choice has to be within reason (Baym 1402). In the warning sense, there are instances when the foghorn has significance as well, for example when Jamie warns Edmund of himself in his long speech Remember I warned you, for your sake. Give me credit. Greater love hath no man than this, that he saveth his brother from himself (Baym 1412). Thus, the foghorn symbolizes the search for solutions and ways around obstacles, but just as an actual foghorn on a ship, this search does not actively bring solutions about for the most part, it only emphasizes the presence of difficulties (the fog). A third major object, or objects, that stand for an important concept in the play are alcohol and morphine. The reason I chose to group them together is because both stand for the same concept escape. Alcohol does it for the men in the family, and morphine is Marys scene, but they all seek to escape what plagues them and these substances alter their thinking and perception (at least in theory) to do that. Nearly every stressful conversation or encounter that brings up any of the familys troubles results in either one (or more) of the men drinking, or Mary going upstairs to take morphine I understand that Ive been a God-damned fool to believe in you! Tyrone says as he realizes that his wife is back on the drug, and immediately pours himself a big drink (Baym 1366). Edmund drinks on several occasions although he isnt supposed to due to his illness, and even though his father knows it, he still lets him drink with only symbolic protest, probably because he subconsciously realizes that Edmund needs the escape just like him (Baym 1393). This peaks in the final scenes of the play, when the whole family is under the influence, and in a state of stupor. In the effort to obscure the grim reality from their minds (all of this with the dense fog outside and the faint haziness in the air), the men are all drunk, and Mary is higher than ever on morphine, according to Tyrone (Baym 1416). Therefore, both alcohol and morphine stand for the familys collective effort of escape. From the examination of the above and other objects, props, or cultural artifacts in the play, it becomes evident that the vast majority of those used by ONeill were meant to stand for more complicated concepts, and to act as symbols that develop the major and underlying themes of the play.

A Writer Lept to a Wrong Conclusion

A Writer Lept to a Wrong Conclusion A Writer Lept to a Wrong Conclusion A Writer Lept to a Wrong Conclusion By Mark Nichol While reading an otherwise well-written and well-edited book, I was bemused to note that the number of high school students in the United States had â€Å"lept† from one total to another over a given span of years. How was it, I wondered, that the fact that lept is not a word escape a writer, a developmental editor, a copy editor, and a proofreader (assuming that the manuscript benefited from perusal by each of these agents) not to mention a spell-checking program? It’s easy enough for a writer to be mistaken about the validity of such a word. Leapt is a variant of leaped (more commonly used in British English than in American English, but gaining in popularity on this side of the Pond), but the writer can be forgiven for assuming that just as the past tense of creep is crept and those of keep, sleep, sweep, and weep are kept, slept, swept, and wept, leap takes a past-tense leap to lept. (Creeped is not a word, except informally to refer to being creeped out, the sensation of being disturbed by someone or something thought to be creepy, and keeped, sleeped, sweeped, and weeped are likewise nonwords, though the last two mutations sometimes sneak past editors.) A moment’s thought, however, will make it clear to the writer that this progression (or is it a regression?) is not universal: The past-tense forms of beep, peep, and seep are beeped, peeped, and seeped, rather than bept, pept, and sept. (That last word is valid as a noun meaning â€Å"clan† or â€Å"branch of a family.†) More significantly, though, words identical to leap in spelling as well as sound form past tenses of heaped and reaped, not hept and rept. English is full of challenging inconsistencies of spelling and pronunciation: Compare the present and past tenses of read identical in appearance but not in sound and note the difference in tense transformation for head (headed) and lead (led), not to mention the fact that the present-tense forms are pronounced differently. These idiosyncrasies make it all the more important for even native speakers and writers including those with decades of experience to consider the consequences of less-than-stringent vigilance: Nobody else may notice your mistake, either until I pick up the published book and write a post about it. To help you maintain a high standard of diligence, remember this hypothetical penalty (one that I should post a notice about in my office): Pretend that spelling and other mechanical errors are a capital crime, and see what this imaginary impetus does for your motivation to avoid them. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Comma After i.e. and e.g.Among vs. AmongstComma Before Too?

Important Phrases for English Phone Conversations

Important Phrases for English Phone Conversations Telephoning in English includes learning a number of special phrases, as well as focusing on listening skills. Some of the most important phrases include how to answer the phone, how to ask for others, how to connect, and how to take messages.   Introducing Yourself Here are a few ways to informally introduce yourself on the telephone: This is Ken.Hello, Ken speaking If youd like to reply more formally, use your full name. This is Jennifer Smith speaking.Hello, Jennifer Smith speaking. If you are answering for a business, just state the business name. In this case, its common to ask how you can help: Good morning, Thomson Company. How may I help you?Plumbers Insurance. How can I be of service today? British / American Difference Hello, this is KenBrighton 0987654 The first example response is in American English and the second is in  British English. As you can see there are differences in both forms. The telephone articles include both  British and American English, as well as phrases that are common to both forms. In  American English, we answer the phone stating This is ... In British English, its common to answer the phone by stating the telephone number. The phrase This is ... is used only on the telephone to substitute the phrase My name is ... which is not used to answer the telephone. Asking Who Is on the Telephone Sometimes, youll need to find out who is calling. Ask them politely for this information: Excuse me, who is this?May (Can) I ask who is calling, please? Asking for Someone At other times, youll need to speak to someone else. This is especially true when you telephone a business. Here are some examples: Can I have extension 321? (extensions are internal numbers at a company)Could I speak to...? (Can I - more informal / May I - more formal)Is Jack in? (informal idiom meaning: Is Jack in the office? Connecting Someone If you answer the phone, you might need to connect the caller to someone at your business. Here are some useful phrases: Ill put you through (put through - phrasal verb meaning connect)Can you hold the line? Can you hold on a moment? When Someone Is Not Available These phrases can be used to express that someone is not available  to speak on the telephone. Im afraid ... is not available at the momentThe line is busy... (when the extension requested is being used)Mr. Jackson isnt in... Mr. Jackson is out at the moment... Taking a Message If someone isnt available, you might want to take a message to help the caller.   Could (Can, May) I take a message?Could (Can, May) I tell him who is calling?Would you like to leave a message? Continue practicing your skills by using the  practical exercises  below which include information on leaving messages on the telephone, how to ask  native speakers  to slow down, role plays on the telephone and more. Practice With a Role Play Begin by learning important telephone English with the dialogue below. Here is a short telephone conversation with some of the key phrases: Operator: Hello, Frank and Brothers, How can I help you?Peter: This is Peter Jackson. Can I have extension 3421?Operator: Certainly, hold on a minute, Ill put you through... Frank: Bob Petersons office, Frank speaking.Peter: This is Peter Jackson calling, is Bob in? Frank: Im afraid hes out at the moment. Can I take a message?Peter: Yes, Could you ask him to call me at ... I need to talk to him about the Nuovo line, its urgent. Frank: Could you repeat the number please?Peter: Yes, thats ..., and this is Peter Jackson. Frank: Thank you Mr. Jackson, Ill make sure Bob gets this asap.Peter: Thanks, bye. Frank: Bye. As you can see, the language is rather informal and there are some important differences from face-to-face conversational English.

Information and Systems for Competitive Advantage Research Paper

Information and Systems for Competitive Advantage - Research Paper Example The researcher states that for many organizations, such Web sites are helpful to customers because they are able to acquire resources, as opposed to determining requirements for resources. On the other hand, customers make use of the sites for determination of requirements, as opposed to using them for acquisition purposes. At the same time, the Web helps firms to be in a position to compete in the manner expected. CLRC is advantageous due to the fact that it is able to provide guidance that assists in the search for SIS opportunities by focusing on the needs of customers. Products that are provided by an organization to its customers appear as supporting resources from the point of view of the customers. This is due to the fact that a customer must go through a kind of resource lifecycle to acquire them, and this requires a significant amount of effort and time to manage. The ability of a supplier in assisting a customer to manage this lifecycle enables them to differentiate themsel ves from the competition, thus creating a competitive edge. The differentiation method applied may be in form of enhanced customer service, the introduction of direct cost savings or investing in ICT. The relationship between ICT and the CRLC framework is crucial especially in today’s technologically advanced world due to the fact that enhancement of customer service/ experience is largely dependent on the advancement. Various studies have been carried out to determine the prevalence of ICT in the wine industry; different forms of ICT used in the industry, how they are applied and incorporated in the various operations, what they are used for, their importance in enabling production, as well as the factors that could influence their use.