Acting style Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Acting style - Essay Example An acting style is the way a play is presented or the way an actor portrays his character. Â  It can refer to quite a few different things - like period acting (roles that take place in a different earlier, era, place or society), or stylized acting (such as the very specific styles used Restoration comedies etc.), or it may refer to verse acting (such as Shakespeare), or proper classical acting (such as ancient Greek plays), or to the early "declaiming" acting (a very stiff, presentational style directly aimed toward the audience), or to modern-day acting (such as we see today in contemporary comedy and drama where actors act realistically). Â  Two major classifications of acting style can be made as presentational and representational. Where representational refers to modern realistic acting and representational refers to the more formal or exaggerated acting styles of old (Kernodle) In 1971, Alan Schneider directed an historic video taped performance of Samuel Becketts Krapps Last Tape, starring Jack MacGowran. The play dramatized an old mans struggle to repossess his youth by searching through reels of audiotape. The style of acting adopted by MacGowarn is simple and realistic as is characteristic in contemporary cinema. He conveys the old mans age and disability (he is nearly half-blind) through body movements and literally no dialogue at all. There are no other actors and the only props are a single table and chair in an otherwise empty room. The film is totally focused on the old man and his every expression. MacGrowan uses his facial and subtle body movements to convey his infirmity and even the joy and difficulty at eating a banana is emoted with great ability and expression in total silence. In 1964 Camera Three, New York, NY produced a short film featuring James Cahill, John Heffernan & Roy Scheider based on excerpts from Ben Jonsons 17th century comedy of

Identifying a Research-Worthy Problem Assignment

Identifying a Research-Worthy Problem - Assignment Example It is unfortunate that the school administrators who are charged with the responsibility of using school funds, either misuse, embezzle or abuse them. This has caused a lot of havoc to the ordinary American children who entirely depend on public education (Starr, 2014). Therefore, this paper will be about a research on the misappropriation of school funds by the public school administrators. Unlike private schools which are sponsored by their owners or supported by the fees levied directly from the learners, public schools need to get resources from the local, state and federal government. Without such interventions, they might not get money to use in running their day to day activities. The little money they get from tuition and catering services are not sufficient to sustain them throughout the year (Radin, 2006). Since each school has diverse needs and preferences, it would be better if their administrators are given an opportunity to have a direct control over their expenditure. They use such opportunities to identify priority areas and allocate them enough funds. According to the Department of Education, more than $500 of school funds have been misused, embezzled or abused since the year 1998. This has been proven by the unending scandals involving school principals and administrators since all along. Among these cases have been evidenced in schools like New Colonial High School, Kingsville High School and Springfield School in which the administrators were charged for stealing school funds. For instance, on her part, Olga Amaral of Springfield School, San Diego, was charged for using school money as gifts to her relatives and friends. Her action was so detrimental since it made the school to be unable to fully support its essential activities for which it was established. Although they are expected to be accountable for their school budgets, many of them can not effectively do so. This, in the long run, ends up affecting the

Polycultural Education: Overview and Reflection

Polycultural Education: Overview and Reflection The problem of enhancement of education belongs to a number of those pedagogical problems which dont lose the relevance eventually. The modern situation in modern society is characterized by the growth of the local ethnic conflicts. Tasks of preserving safety in modern society require continuous work on studying the nature of the conflicts between representatives of various ethnic groups, their influences on the social and economic life of society, and also search of ways of their overcoming. All this sets serious problems for education which cant but react to the taking place events in society. The experience of foreign countries, in particular, the USA, shows that educational institutions are the main structures where the purposeful uniting and peacekeeping policy is pursued. Therefore, education can help society to bring up youth in the spirit of the humane attitude towards representatives of other cultures and to find effective methods of a decrease in international hostility whi ch can be applicable in a social environment in one hand and in another hand can help to improve students grades. Nowadays, researchers propose a theory of culturally focused pedagogy that might be considered in the reformation of teacher education. According to Lopez, (2016), some researchers assert that culturally responsive teaching (CRT) improves academic achievement because it views students culture and language as strengths. All schools have their ratings, and parents usually want to send their children to that school where the ratings are very high. Also, parents look for schools where their children can feel themselves comfortable in other words, in their plates. As an educational leader, I would like to incorporate cultural pedagogies at my school. According to that place where teachers will work, we should prepare future teachers with following requisite teacher beliefs. They are high expectations, cultural knowledge, cultural content integration, and of course language. Firstly, I would like to speak about high expectations. There are so many cultures, which are mixed in every country during the globalization and the role of all teachers be closer to their students helping them to overcome any academicals issues which they will face. According to Villegas and Lucas (2002) state, Teachers attitudes toward students significantly shape the expectations they hold for student learning, their treatment of students, and what students ultimately learn (p. 23). It means that all teachers are responsible for their students performance. Teachers should make standards-based content and curricula accessible to students and teach in a way that students can understand using aspects of their cultures. Once students feel comfortable with how a teacher talks and discusses academic material, they will feel comfortable enough to focus and try to learn the content. For example, in my country when I became a class teacher, I had a class with bad ratings. There were many children from problematic families. I mean, not full families, where they dont have father or mother or both of them. Children were psychologically closed in their inner world. All teachers didnt want to go and teach them because children didnt take a part in discussion or activities during the lesson. And of course, their marks were really bad. It was for me very hard to understand those children, but I did. I started to spend more time with them, and every time I told them you are the best and you can change the world. I encouraged them with sports and they won sports competition at the school. They were very happy. Next, my step was to improve their knowledge. I told them that they won sports Olympiad at the school and it means they are not bad. If they could do it, they can do the best in their subjects too. And they did. I was very satisfied when all my children started to show good results at school. The second, in my opinion, is much important to have cultural knowledge. To know how to teach them using their cultures, traditions and teaching styles. I mean how to behave yourself. New teachers should know all about students culture and the books which they will use in their classes should have included famous and well-known people from local culture. It will keep students attention during the class in one hand and in another hand they will learn many interesting facts which they didnt know before. The treatment of differences as traits, however, may be in part due to the emphasis on differences in ways students learn, and how these merit considerations by teachers. Gay (2002), for example, states that Culture encompasses many things, some of which are more important to know than others because they have direct implications for teaching and learning. Among these are ethnic groups cultural values, traditions, communication, learning styles, contributions, and relational patterns (p .107). The CRT literature is consistent in the need to validate students cultural experiences as knowledge. Avoiding the reduction of cultural experiences as traits, cultural knowledge is also represented in constructivist views of learning, where learners use their prior knowledge and beliefs . . . to make sense of the new input (Villegas Lucas, 2002, p. 25). Ladson-Billings (1995a) shares the constructivist view in her conceptions of self and others, where teachers believed in a Freirean notion of teaching as mining or pulling knowledge out (p. 479), as well as the use of student culture as a vehicle for learning (Ladson-Billings, 1995b, p. 161). According to Crystal Kuykendall, a former executive director of the National Alliance of Black School Educators, culture determines how children perceive life and their relationship to the world. Because culture also influences how and what children learn, educators can use culture to improve self-image and achievement. Not only must tea chers show an appreciation of cultural diversity, they must also incorporate teaching strategies that are congruent with the learning styles of their students (1989, pp. 32-33). The ways culture has been represented in practice, however, have proven to be problematic, as reflected by Ladson-Billings (2014) in her statement, Many practitioners, and those who claim to translate research to practice, seem stuck in very limited and superficial notions of culture (p.77). She elaborates, The idea that adding some books about people of color, having a classroom Kwanzaa celebration, or posting diverse images makes one culturally relevant seem to be what the pedagogy has been reduced to (Ladson-Billings, 2014, p.82). The teacher is the person who has to create a bridge between students home and school lives. So, they should learn students culture from them and their families. The third significant role is playing cultural content integration. To represent students culture as a way to create new knowledge, teachers have to add to the educational process cultural information, resources, and materials reflected in all subjects taught in schools. What information should be included in the curriculum, how it should be integrated into the existing curriculum, and its location within the curriculum, this content integration was described by Banks (1993). And the CRT scholars explain that incorporating students culture into the curriculum affirms the legitimacy of cultural heritages of different ethnic groups, both as legacies that affect students dispositions, attitudes, and approaches to learning and as worthy content to be taught in the formal curriculum (Gay, 2000, p. 29). This is also one of the element to increase students cultural attitudes, which also will be positively reflected on their knowledge. The last one and very important is language. It is not enough to be an attractive teacher after the teacher should follow his or her followers. Thats why the teacher should know students native language. Teachers may not know a 100% of that language but should understand and sometimes use it to explain some kind of hard theme in students language. If the teacher will know students language it will give the opportunity to respect him or her. It is always good to understand each other when the student didnt understand some materials from the book. Gonzà ¡lez (2001) states, to speak of language is to speak of our selves. Language is at the heart, literally and metaphorically, of who we are, how we present ourselves, and how others see us. . . . The ineffable link of language to emotion, to the very core of our being, is one of the ties that bind children to a sense of heritage. (p. xix). Look into blends have reliably supported methodologies that support understudies in their local dia lect (e.g., August Shanahan, 2008; Salazar, 1998; Slavin Cheung, 2005), and the advantages of utilizing students non-English local dialects as a part of direction are not restricted to psychological advantages (e.g., Peal Lambert, 1962). The matter of examining language and its role in achievement trajectories, however, is not simply a conceptualization that applies to non-EL students. As described by Garcà ­a (2009): In cases when bilingualism is developed after the language practices of a community have been suppressed, the development of the communitys mother tongue is not a simple addition that starts from a monolingual point. . . . Therefore, bilingualism is not simply additive, but recursive. (p. 52). Consistent with the view of language as not being limited to ELs, Darder (2012) asserts, It is critical that educators recognize the role language plays as one of the most powerful transmitters of culture, and as such, its central role in both intellectual formation and the s urvival of subordinate cultural populations (p. 36). For instance, when I was teaching, in my class were many children from other nationality. There were Uzbeks, Tatar, Turkish, Russian and other. I tried to speak using all these languages. And you know what, my children tried to correct me if I were wrong. In this way, we could be close to each other. When a teacher knows students language, students usually start to respect their teacher. And this is fact. To conclude, polyculture education is the special mentality based on the ideas of freedom, justice, equality; the educational reform aimed at transformation of traditional educational systems so that they corresponded to interests, educational needs and opportunities of pupils irrespective of racial, ethnic, language, social, gender, religious, cultural origin; the cross-disciplinary process penetrating the content of all disciplines of the training program, but not separate courses, methods and the strategy of training, relationship between all participants of the teaching and educational environment; process of familiarizing of pupils with richness of world culture through consecutive assimilation of knowledge of native and national cultures, arms of pupils ability to critically analyze any information in order to avoid fallacies, and also formations of the tolerant attitude towards cultural distinctions the qualities necessary for life in the multicultural world. References: Anderson, L. M., Stillman, J. A. (2013). Student teachings contribution to preservice  teacher development: A review of research focused on the preparation of teachers for  urban and high-needs contexts. Review of Educational Research, 83(1), 3-69. Antrop-Gonzà ¡lez, R., Và ©lez, W., Garrett, T. (2004). Challenging the academic (MIS) categorization  of urban youth: Building a case for Puerto Rican high achievers. Multiple Voices for  Ethnically Diverse Exceptional Learners, 7(2), 16-32. Antrop-Gonzà ¡lez, R., Và ©lez, W., Garrett, T. (2008). Examining familial-based academic success  factors in urban high school students: The case of Puerto Rican female high achievers.  Marriage Family Review, 43(1-2), 140-163.   Banks, J. A. (1993). Multicultural education: Historical development, dimensions, and practice.  Review of Research in Education, 19(1), 3-49.   Darder, A. (2012). Culture and power in the classroom: A critical foundation for the education of  bicultural students. Boulder, CO: Paradigm Press.   Gay, G. (2002). Preparing for culturally responsive teaching. Journal of Teacher Education,  53(2), 106-116.   Gay, G. (2000). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice. New York,  NY: Teachers College Press.   Gay, G. (2010). Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice (2nd ed.). New York,  NY: Teachers College Press.   Ladson-Billings, G. (1995a). Toward a theory of culturally relevant pedagogy. American  Educational Research Journal, 32(3), 465-491.   Ladson-Billings, G. (1995b). But thats just good teaching! The case for culturally relevant  pedagogy. Theory Into Practice 34(3), 159-165.   Ladson-Billings, G. (2014). Culturally relevant pedagogy 2.0: aka the remix. Harvard  Educational Review, 84(1), 74-84. Research: Prevalence of Induced Abortions Research: Prevalence of Induced Abortions Shahida Abbasi Literature Review: Prevalence of induced abortion Prevalence of inducedd Abortion in KP, Pakistan Introduction: Maternal morbidity and mortality (MMR) due to complication of unsafe inducedd abortion constitute a major public health concern in many countries. It is assumed that most of the induced abortions are performed by unskilled personnel. Opting unsafe abortion may lead to severe morbidity and infection which results in affecting quality of life. The ultimate result of unsafe abortion is death, which is one of the contributing factors to increase MMR. Low literacy levels, ineffective use of contraceptive and high unmet need are major contributing factors for unintended pregnancies. World Health Organization (2008) most recent report estimated that each year 80 million unintended pregnancies occurs, of these 33 million are caused by ineffective use of a contraceptive methods. The World Health Organization defines† unsafe abortion as a procedure for terminating an unintended pregnancy carried out either by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment that do es not conform to minimal medical standards, or both†(p.1). Nearly all unsafe abortions (97%) are in developing countries. Grimes, et.al. (2006) estimated that 68 000 women die worldwide as a result of complications due to unsafe abortion. In addition, it is estimated that in 2008, in developing countries the rate of inducedd abortion has been increased from 78% to 86% in 1985. South-Central Asia accounts for 200 deaths per 100,000 abortions. In our country the actual data related to induced abortion are scarce due to under reported cases because of legal implications. Naqvi and Edhi (2013) revealed that Pakistan is among the top six countries where atmost half of the world’s all maternal deaths occur. Grimes, et.al. (2006) reported that in Pakistan, abortion rate was estimated 29 per 1000 women per yea. Unlike other causes of MMR, death due to induced abortion is absolutely preventable. It is hypothesized that abortion rate is to be higher in the communities with poor socioeconomic status where contraceptive use is lower and rate of unwanted pregnancies is higher. Significance of the study: There is scarcity of community base studies of induced abortions, especially in KP. Most of the studies on prevalence of induced abortion have been conducted in hospital setting. Only women, who develop complications after induction, visit for treatment. Consequently the hospital studies do not represent the true profile of the abortion seekers living in community level. Moreover, findings of this study will purely represent the profile abortion seeker and determinants which will enable the health professionals to plan safe and better care for them. Finally, findings of this study will be used to improve the standards of care in terms of knowledge and practice for induced abortion. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to determine the profile of abortion seeker, prevalence of inducedd abortion, determinants, complication in the community level. In addition, this study also aims to identify standards of safe abortion care provided in the clinic in community level. Study Question: To explore the prevalence and determinants of induced abortion in the community level in the Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa Pakistan. What is the prevalence rate of induced abortion in the community level? What is the level of knowledge of the women who seeks induced abortion? What are the standards of safe abortion care in the abortion clinic? Search Strategies: Pub Med, CINAHL and Mosbys Nursing Consult used as data source for this paper. Studies published between February 2000 and February 2014 on the topic â€Å"induceds abortion† were included. To retrieve relevant literature, electronic databases were searched using a combination of the key terms, namely: (MMR), inducedd abortion, unsafe abortion, causes and complication. Net search was also extended to Google scholar, Population Council of Pakistan and WHO web search to capture the relevant studies. Search generated 150 articles, and through a selection process, 100 were rejected after reading the title and abstract of the article. Inclusion Criteria: Articles with the same key words published after 2000. Exclusion Criteria: Articles were excluded if the study explored: (1) Abortion due to fetal anomalies (2) Illegal abortion (3) Abortion when the mother health is in danger Critical Review Analysis/ Synthesis Determinants of inducedd abortion: Rehan, Inayatullah, and Chaudhary, (2001) and Shah, Hossain, Noonari, and Khan,(2011) Study conducted in 32 clinics 452 women were interviewed to find out characteristics of Pakistani women seeking abortion. A majority of the women (36.6%) were aged 35 years, 61.0% had given birth to 5 children, among them only 40.2% were illiterate. among them (62.8%) were illiterate. The major cause for abortion were â€Å"multi-gravidity† (64.4%), contraceptive failure was the second highest cause (20.3%). Most of the abortions were performed by incompetently trained persons. Saleem and Fikree (2005) study also substantiate these findings (e.g., example multiparous). Most of the women irrespective of their education who undergone for induced abortion wanted a small family. Similar study conducted by Shah, Hossain, Noonari, and Khan,(2011) reported that n= 43 women who were admitted for treatment of induced abortion related complications. Of these (35%) die d due to abortion related complications which accounts for 9.7% of total MMR. DC is the most preferred method used for unsafe abortion (68.4%) despite the fact that manual vacuum aspiration (MVA) is safest technique for induced abortion. Most of the inducedd abortions were performed by untrained abortion providers (84.6%). It is assumed by the researcher that most of the doctors refuse to perform abortion because of having inadequate knowledge. On the contrary Rehan, (2003) reported that among 114 health professionals all of them were aware of the country abortion law. Of these 67.3% have negative attitude towards the induced abortion. One study conducted in field sites by Saleem and Fikree (2005) reported that the causes for unplanned pregnancies were ineffective use of contraceptive and desire to have small family size. The profile of abortion seeker is similar to reports from Rehan, et.al. (2001). Complication of unsafe abortion: A case study of a 29-year old woman who underwent for an unsafe abortion for  unintended pregnancy reported by Naqvi and Edhi, (2013) that the unskilled person perforated the uterus during DC and pulled out the intestine through vagina. Another study conducted by Shah, Hossain, Noonari, and Khan(2011) identified that septicemia was the most common complication (79%) followed by uterine perforation or bowel perforation (30.2%). Hemorrhage accounts for third frequent complication (20.9%). Shaikh, Abbassi , Rizwan, and Abbasi (2010) conducted a study n=230 on admitted patients with complication due to unsafe abortion. induced abortion for 80% of the women were performed by the trained health professionals while for 20% abortion performed by Traditional Birth Attendant (TBA). Major complications included uterine perforation and gastrointestinal injury, observed in (54.0%) women. Hemorrhage was observed in (26.0%) women. Of these 50 women, (12.0%) women died due to septicemia developed because of delay to avail health services after having unsafe abortion and related complications. Saleem and Fikree (2005) study findings shows that 61% of the women reported heavy vaginal bleeding and fever. 19 of these admitted for treatment due to complication of unsafe abortion. (7/19) received blood transfusion. DC was the most frequent method for induction. This report indicates that induced abortion is a significant reproductive health problem causing morbidity and fatality, which needs special attention of the policy makers. Moreover, Rahim, Shafqat, and Faiz, (2011) study findings revealed that 9 women out of 268 died due to unsafe abortion in Peshawar, Pakistan, which accounts for 3.4% MMR. Gap analysis: Despite the fact that induceds abortion is prohibited by the law and religion findings of the studies suggest that it fairly prevalent in the country. Majority of women, who develop complications, seek treatment from public hospital. Consequently the hospital studies do not represent the true profile of the abortion seekers living in community level. Moreover, findings of this study will purely depict profile abortion seeker and their problems which will enable the health professionals to plan safe and better care for them. Emphasis should be placed on improving the technical expertise of the health professionals in order to enable them to provide safe abortion care and treat unsafe abortion related complication. All those facilities which provide abortion care should be monitored against the WHO standards. Post abortion family planning counseling should be the part of the service. By preventing abortions related complications and deaths we can save our children from becoming motherless. References Grimes, D. A., Benson, J., Singh, S., Romero, M., Ganatra, B., Okonofua, F. E., Shah, I. H. (2006). Unsafe abortion: the preventable pandemic.The Lancet,368(9550), 1908-1919. Khan, A. (2013). inducedd Abortion in Pakistan: Community Based Research.JPMA. The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association,63(4 Suppl 3), S27-32. Korejo, R., Noorani, K. J., Bhutta, S. (2003). Sociocultural determinants of inducedd abortion. Journal of the College of Physicians and SurgeonsPakistan: JCPSP, 13(5), 260. Ç ºhman, E., Shah, I. H. (2011). New estimates and trends regarding unsafe abortion mortality.International Journal of Gynecology Obstetrics,115(2), 121-126. Naqvi, K. Z., Edhi, M. M. (2013). The horror of unsafe abortion: case report of a life threatening complication in a 29-year old woman.Patient safety in surgery,7(1), 1-4. Rahim, R., Shafqat, T., Faiz, N. R. (2011). An analysis of direct causes of maternal mortality.Journal of Postgraduate Medical Institute (Peshawar-Pakistan),20(1). Rehan, N. (2003). Attitudes of health care providers to inducedd abortion in Pakistan. J Pak Med Assoc, 53(7), 293-6. Rehan, N., Inayatullah, A., Chaudhary, I. (2001). Characteristics of Pakistani women seeking abortion and a profile of abortion clinics. Journal of womens health gender-based medicine, 10(8), 805-810. Saleem, S., Fikree, F. F. (2005). The quest for small family size among Pakistani women-is voluntary termination of pregnancy a matter of choice or necessity?. quest. Sathar, Z. A., Singh, S., Fikree, F. F. (2007). Estimating the incidence of abortion in Pakistan.Studies in Family Planning,38(1), 11-22. Shah, N., Hossain, N., Noonari, M., Khan, N. H. (2011). Maternal mortality and morbidity of unsafe abortion in a university teaching hospital of Karachi, Pakistan.JPMA-Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association,61(6), 582. Shaikh, Z., Abbassi, R. M., Rizwan, N., Abbasi, S. (2010). Morbidity and mortality due to unsafe abortion in Pakistan. International Journal of Gynecology Obstetrics, 110(1), 47-49. WHO, Unsafe abortion: Global and regional estimates of the 2011. 22 Feb. 2014 http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2011/9789241501118_eng.pdf> World Health Organization. Unsafe abortion incidence and mortality World Health Organization. 2012. http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/75173/1/WHO_RHR_12.01_eng.pdf> Unsafe Abortion: Unnecessary Maternal Mortality. 2009. 22 Feb. 2014 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2709326/> Safe and unsafe inducedd abortion World Health Organization. 2014. 22 Feb. 2014 http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/75174/1/WHO_RHR_12.02_eng.pdf?ua=1> Newhouse, RP. Advanced Practice Nurse Outcomes 1990-2008: A Systematic Review. 2011. https://www.nursingeconomics.net/ce/2013/article3001021.pdf> Rehan, N, Attiya Inayatullah, and Iffat Chaudhary. Characteristics of Pakistani women seeking abortion and a profile of abortion clinics. Journal of womens health gender-based medicine 10.8 (2001): 805-810. Shah, Nusrat et al. Maternal mortality and morbidity of unsafe abortion in a university teaching hospital of Karachi, Pakistan. JPMA-Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association 61.6 (2011): 582. Shah, Nusrat et al. Maternal mortality and morbidity of unsafe abortion in a university teaching hospital of Karachi, Pakistan. JPMA-Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association 61.6 (2011): 582. Rahim, Rehana, Tanveer Shafqat, and Nasreen Ruby Faiz. An analysis of direct causes of maternal mortality. Journal of Postgraduate Medical Institute (Peshawar-Pakistan) 20.1 (2011). Maternal and Perinatal Health in Developing Countries. 22 Feb. 2014 http://books.google.com/books?id=tPi0-hLbTtECpg=PA112lpg=PA112dq=Shaikh,+Abbassi+,+Rizwan,+and+Abbasi+(2010)source=blots=crdQlY4AHgsig=1ZNnZdi8q-99Pg7_vd1BOC0Gock>

Essay --

Mortality The weight of one's mortality and the complexities of life and death are introduced from the beginning of Hamlet. In the wake of his father's death, Hamlet can't stop pondering and considering the meaning of life — and its eventual ending. Many questions emerge as the text progresses. What happens when you die? If you're murdered, then will you go to heaven? Do kings truly have a free pass to heaven? In Hamlet's mind the idea of dying isn't so bad. It's the uncertainty of the afterlife that frightens Hamlet away from suicide, even though he's obsessed with the notion. A turning point for Hamlet occurs in the graveyard scene in Act V. Before, Hamlet has been appalled and revolted by the moral corruption of the living. Seeing Yorick's skull (someone Hamlet loved and respected) propels Hamlet's realization that death eliminates the differences between people. The sheer number of bodies at the end of Hamlet can be misleading. Even though eight of the nine primary characters die, the question of mortality is not fully answered. The questions about death, suicide, and what co...

Widespread Adoption Of E-Books

E-books could be referred to as digital media that are similar to print outs. They could also be referred to as books that are in electronic format or version but similar to conventional printed books. As every aspect of life seems to be undergoing a kind of revolution, printing industries are not left behind as they are also moving from analog to digital times by offering books online or in other electronic formats. This essay is going to look and discuss in depth about issues that surround its widespread adoption.In the beginning there were very few books that were available in electronic format as people were reluctant to adopt them. In most cases it is only books that were familiar and in the public domain were published as e-books but of late even new books are available in fact, this mode has given new authors a platform to market their work. E-books requires one to have an electronic device such as a phone or a computer to be able to read them and specific software such as Ded icated e-book reader and Adobe PDF for one to be able to read them. (Viney, 2005).Just like it is the case with other thing, that is having merits and demerits, the same applies to e-books and these factors in one way or the other affects their widespread adoption according to Bergeron and Blander (91). There are those factors that favor its adoption and these are things like; you can carry around a lot of information on a very simple device such as compact discs and phones. It is much easier to search for information in e-books than in other ordinary printouts as you can go to a specific page automatically without having to turn pages one after the other.Many publishers opt to publish their books in electronic form because of various reasons such as; it is cheaper to publish e-book than to print ordinary books which requires a lot of color and labor. Another thing that leads to its adoption world wide is the fact that unlike ordinary printouts, the case is different when it comes t o e-books as you can adjust the font size and backlight to suit your needs. On the other hand, there are those factors that undermine its world wide adoption and these are things like; e-book might require internet connection, requires electronic devices such as phones and computers.Again you have to buy some recommended software such as Adobe PDF reader which costs more than the book itself something that hampers its widespread adoption. Electronic devices are prone to malfunctioning and thus can become faulty anytime when you least expect it and thus it is not reliable. Again this book requires electronic devices that use electrical power thus adding the cost of having it plus it becomes a limitation to areas where there is no electricity. In other circumstances, author’s effort and time spent becomes a waste when their work is hacked by pirates and sold cheaply to readers.There are also reasons such as environmental diversity of end users for example e-books requires parti cular properties for machines for one to read them like specific resolution of the screen, screen size and other things (Viney, 2005). Again this book requires different software for one to access it on another machine making it very costly when you factor in the cost of the software plus the book itself something that impedes on its widespread adoption (Bergeron and Blander, 2002).Indeed departure from analog books to digital e-books is the height of civilization but as it is the case with new products to have no easy flow in the market, e-book has been no exceptional as there are a number of hindrances that hamper its widespread adoption such as the need for specific reading software that are very costly and electronic devices that consume a lot electricity. Despite this, e-book has its advantages such as; it is easily accessible, portable and less costly when it comes to publishing.

Gender and Stereotype in Sitcom Essay

In both sitcoms, Black Books and Men Behaving Badly, comedy is generated and dependant on the representation of stereotypes shown through characters. Some follow stereotypes and others don’t, but throughout both sitcoms, this is where the humor comes from, and this is extremely visible in the two episodes chosen for each sitcom. In Men Behaving Badly, the two main characters, Tong and Gary have fixed views on gender and couldn’t be closer to the modern day stereotype of a youngish male. They are two men who are lager swilling and football crazy, and even though both in their thirties, adult life hasn’t dawned on either just quite yet. The mise – en – scene of their flat is very boyish and the pub is dark and dingy. They never change throughout the sitcom and seem extremely content with their laidback lifestyles. Much of the humor is generated from this because the middle aged male audience can relate, and wish they were in that situation. The audience will understand their jokes and think of the times when they were probably the same. This behavior also allows them to get away with much more, for example in this episode neither gets back from the pub until the early hours and Gary misses Dorothy specially prepared romantic meal but avoids confrontation. They also both have female companions. Dorothy is Gary’s on/off girlfriend who is always extremely forgiving, and could be considered as the female stereotype in many aspects. She says she wants a proper relationship, but knows it’s unlikely with Gary. She cooks him romantic meals and is always working hard to please him. Deborah on the other hand is not in a relationship with Tony, but knows she can use him for a bit of fun whenever she likes. An example is at the end of this episode when she tells him to wait outside for her naked in the shed in the early hours of the morning, for the second time in a matter of weeks. Tony obviously falls for it, with him being the sex crazed stereotypical man that he is portrayed to be, and comedy is generated from this. Deborah on the other hand, is the stereotype of the attractive and sophisticated girl upstairs, the one who is definitely most likely to take advantage of men. Women can relate to these characters, with the struggles they go through and the laughs they have mocking their men, and this is how the audience is formed. The whole audience is able to relate through the portrayal of stereotype in this sitcom, and humor is generated along the way. Men will find the parts played by the men funny, and the women watching vice versa, but it can be viewed by all in confidence that laughs will arise from any episode. The women mock the men, but the men get their own back with their loutish, get away with anything attitudes, and by the end everyone is satisfied. On the other hand, in Black Books, most of the comedy is generated due to characters deviating from their stereotypes. Bernard is the only main character who does not. He is a stereotypical Irishman, who is an incredibly easygoing, drinking smoking lout, whose witty humor generates from him ordering about his only employee and best friend Manny. Manny is the other half to this relationship, and the much more the feminine personality wise. His appearance is of a hippy, and for much of the time he is acting as the forgiving wife to Bernard’s demanding husband role. Bernard tells Manny that he hasn’t washed his things, and Manny replies politely, ‘I want a herb garden’. In their relationship though they both conform to stereotypes, Bernard of the bad husband and Manny of the forgiving wife. Bernard is forever ungrateful for Manny’s effort for example he says after Manny has spent time cooking a meal, ‘What kind of filth is spewing out of your hatch tonight?’. Manny is used to it though, and just ignores his petulance. Bernard also mocks Manny’s female ways in saying that, ‘Ill wait until you put your teeth in dear’, before speaking to Manny. In the episode watched, much of the comedy derives from this repeated bickering between the two, and contrasting stereotyp es. They both eventually go and see a psychiatrist who almost changes roles around, but eventually, as with every episode, the equilibrium is restored by the end, and Manny’s subordinate role is re-established. The third main character in the sitcom is Fran, and she is much the glue between the two males as she can relate to both ways of life and confront their problems. She derives greatly from her stereotype though, and acts as an extremely masculine female, smoking and drinking, and is told by her friend she smells. In this particular episode Fran even tries to make a menz to her ways by stopping drinking and smoking and taking up yoga, but this vision is not long lived. When her friend Eva and she are together the mise – en scene is bright, light and modern, but by the end of the episode she is back as being considered one of the boys in the way. She returns to the dingy bookshop and has the last line in this particular episode, a belch, which sums her up in a way. By the end of the episode the unity of the group is definitely restored, and so are all normal ways of living. Manny and Fran’s deviations from stereotype are back in place and Bernard’s was never in doub t. This particular sitcom provides a different type of comedy to Men Behaving Badly; in that stereotypes do not have to be adhered to in order to produce comedy. A different type of humor is created, whereby the audience is laughing at the characters rather than relating to them. All in all, the humor created by both situation comedies comes back to the portrayal of stereotype, or deviation of it by characters, but Black Books just shows a different edge to how it can depend on the stereotypical representation of gender in situation comedies.