Free Essays on Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy

In â€Å"The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy† by Douglas Adam, the main character’s, Arthur Dent, main conflict was that he was placed into a foreign situation with no idea of what to do. But first to describe Arthur Dent, he is a British man with seemingly dim wit in the beginning of the book, but this is mostly due to his own confusion. Arthur’s best friend Ford Prefect comes to tell him of the impending doom laid upon the Earth, but Mr. Dent is preoccupied with the task of warding a bulldozer away from demolishing his home. His friend, Mr. Prefect, tells him about the plans for the destruction of the Earth due to the building of an intergalactic bypass, which is ironic for that was the same reason his house was being demolished on the Earth that now laid in ruins. But because of Arthur’s friend he was on of very few survivors, but now they were held on a ship belonging to the very aggressive race of aliens known as the Vogons. With no knowledge of these people, Mr. Dent has been put in an unfortunate position. Although Arthur Dent had no prior knowledge of the universe, or the different alien races that inhabit it, he was fortunate in one respect he had an indispensable resource in his friend and his electronic book, â€Å"The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.† After a short while from being transported onto the Vogon war ship, Mr. Prefect showed Arthur how to operate the book. With this he could learn all he would possible need to know in order to avoid death in the hands of the Vogons. With his friend he had one of the people who contributed to the creation of â€Å"The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.† Thanks to his friendship with Mr. Prefect, he was able to learn about the most deadly weapon in the Vogon’s arsenal, the reading of their poetry aloud. Thanks to this information provided by his friend, and the book he carried, he would be able to avoid death by the Vogons.... Free Essays on Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy Free Essays on Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy In â€Å"The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy† by Douglas Adam, the main character’s, Arthur Dent, main conflict was that he was placed into a foreign situation with no idea of what to do. But first to describe Arthur Dent, he is a British man with seemingly dim wit in the beginning of the book, but this is mostly due to his own confusion. Arthur’s best friend Ford Prefect comes to tell him of the impending doom laid upon the Earth, but Mr. Dent is preoccupied with the task of warding a bulldozer away from demolishing his home. His friend, Mr. Prefect, tells him about the plans for the destruction of the Earth due to the building of an intergalactic bypass, which is ironic for that was the same reason his house was being demolished on the Earth that now laid in ruins. But because of Arthur’s friend he was on of very few survivors, but now they were held on a ship belonging to the very aggressive race of aliens known as the Vogons. With no knowledge of these people, Mr. Dent has been put in an unfortunate position. Although Arthur Dent had no prior knowledge of the universe, or the different alien races that inhabit it, he was fortunate in one respect he had an indispensable resource in his friend and his electronic book, â€Å"The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.† After a short while from being transported onto the Vogon war ship, Mr. Prefect showed Arthur how to operate the book. With this he could learn all he would possible need to know in order to avoid death in the hands of the Vogons. With his friend he had one of the people who contributed to the creation of â€Å"The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.† Thanks to his friendship with Mr. Prefect, he was able to learn about the most deadly weapon in the Vogon’s arsenal, the reading of their poetry aloud. Thanks to this information provided by his friend, and the book he carried, he would be able to avoid death by the Vogons....

Answers to Questions About Semicolons

Answers to Questions About Semicolons Answers to Questions About Semicolons Answers to Questions About Semicolons By Mark Nichol Here are several questions from DailyWritingTips.com readers about use of prepositions, and my responses. 1. This sentence showcases my burning semicolon question: â€Å"That’s a great trick; best I’ve seen in ages.† I know the second clause in it contains no subject (or noun), at least explicitly. I’m therefore wondering whether this sentence can take a semicolon perhaps because the subject in the second clause is implied or instead deserves an em dash because there’s no second subject at all. The sentence, as you wrote it, is correct as you mention, the subject is implicit but the formality of the semicolon is at odds with the informality of the omission of the subject, so I’d opt for a breezy em dash instead. 2. In the following sentence, should semicolons separate the three business segments?: â€Å"Its businesses are divided into three segments: Domestic Retail, Bakeries and Foodservice, and International.† No, that’s a simple list with three simple elements. Even the addition of brief detail would not require semicolons, because the segments and their descriptions can be clearly delineated: â€Å"Domestic Retail, which includes merchandising through stores, Bakeries and Foodservice, which involves direct sales, and International, which deals with nondomestic buyers.† But when it would be obtrusive to repeat a structure such as â€Å"which (verb)† that clearly organizes the elements, use semicolons: â€Å"We invited our friends Jan and Dean; Fred and Wilma, the couple next door; and my brothers Greg, Peter, and Bobby and their wives.† 3. So, a comma in place of a semicolon is wrong? I once read a book on crafting sentences that mentioned that a semicolon is never accepted in American fiction and that a comma can always do the work. I’ve been going by this standard, and I like the economy and simplicity of the comma compared to the clumsy, Britishy semicolon. Do you think I’m wrong? A semicolon does seem intrusively formal for transcribing speech whether within dialogue in fiction or when quoting a speaker but replacing it with a comma is erroneous, and the book’s advice is unfortunate. I recommend using an em dash or starting a new sentence instead. 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 Punctuation category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:85 Synonyms for â€Å"Help†Latin Plural EndingsHow Do You Fare?

Research Reports Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Reports - Research Paper Example In other words, the research report chosen substantially conforms to the standard template or outline presented in the text (Trieschmann, Dennis, Northcraft and Niemi, 2000, pp. 1130-1141). To be specific, the chosen research report details an Abstract, an Introduction, a section on Methods, a Results section, and a Discussion section. The Conclusion is lumped together with the Discussion, and forms the last part of that section, and ties with the first paragraph of the Discussion section too. The first paragraph looks at the factors that impact MBA program performance and research performance, and they are different, with also differing performance ratings for each set of criteria for all of the business schools examined. Meanwhile, the other half of that Conclusion found in the first paragraph of the Discussion section is in the last paragraph, and details a recommendation for business schools to be more balanced in their emphasis on both MBA program performance and business research performance. In this sense, based on the Discussion above, this research report deviates somewhat from the standard outline in the text, in that there is no separate Conclusion section. Other than that, the research report substantially complies with all of the required sections in the template (Trieschmann, Dennis, Northcraft and Niemi, 2000, pp. 1130-1141). To further discuss, the research report details a Discussion section that substantially tackles research implications, limitations, and directions/suggestions for future research, though not in the ordering as specified in the text outline. As already mentioned above, the Conclusion can be found as consisting of the first and last paragraphs of the section. Meanwhile, directions for future research are found right in the middle of the section, around the fifth and sixth paragraphs out of nine paragraphs, whereas in the text outline Future

Supply and Demand in the Global Automotive Industry Essay

Supply and Demand in the Global Automotive Industry - Essay Example According to the report findings the greatest machinery that has been behind the progression of the automotive industry are the principals of economy known as demand and supply. The law of supply states that keeping all other factors constant, the more the price of a particular product goes up the more the quantity of that particular product is supplied. On the other hand, the law of demand also provides that keeping all factors the same, when the price is high the demand for the product will be great. Therefore, the automotive industry has survived on these two principles to sustain itself in the market. It has always been about the quality of the cars manufactured and the prices about the market and customers. As the paper stresses economic ways, the global market, has been enjoying a relatively stable growth characterized by profits, and sales had improved to prerecession levels in countries. A substantial ambiguity concerning the future of the industry is still an issue. The European market looked much weaker around 2008, as it was just recovering from a six-year depression. Aggressive competition within the fluctuating market have risen customers’ expectations, consumers have become demanding and have increased on their preferences . Market fluctuation is caused by mobile client’s earnings; that is to say, customer’s earnings being seasonal. It affects the producers in a way that they cannot predict the size of the market and therefore, cannot be sure of the quantity to produce.

Rationality, Educated Opinion and Peace Essay Example for Free

Rationality, Educated Opinion and Peace Essay Abstract: This paper addresses the relevance of interwar thought to the building of peace through examining the ideas of three important writers of the period: Edward Hallett Carr, Norman Angell and Alfred Zimmern. The role of public opinion was under much query in the politics of the period they wrote in, and crucial to this issue are the questions as to whether the public mind is rational and capable of reason. These writers are concerned with the influence of public opinion and believe that through educating the public mind, the possibility of peace can be increased. Drawing from their ideas, this paper thus postulates that peace is a product of rationality and there is possibility of progress through education. The birth of international relations as a separate discipline was founded against the context of the interwar years, which brought about important consequences for the subsequent development of the interwar years. The tensions prior to and the subsequent devastation of the Great War forced intellectuals of the early twentieth century to seek explanations for the causes of war and to postulate measures by which another catastrophe could be prevented. The general psyche of the people exerted an influence on the direction of international studies. As David Long points out, the academic study of international affairs during this period of time possessed a normative though not necessarily utopian interest in the avoidance of war1. Such a trend is manifested in the trust deed of the Wilson Chair of International Politics (one of the first few schools of the discipline), which states that international politics is the political science in its application to international relations with special reference to the best means of promoting peace between nations.2 Woodrow Wilson, being a leading statesman at the time, presents one of the possible avenues for peace. He consciously and deliberately tied issues of foreign policy to domestic politics, giving rise to what will come to be known as the democratic peace thesis. Wilson advocates the belief that popular participation, public life and opportunity for all [will be] the guarantee of peace. Wilson believed that diplomacy and foreign policy must be taken with regard to public opinion and the public being rational would prefer peace to war.3 The crucial premise here is that public opinion matters in a democratic political system. The assumption further made is that the political leaders are sensitive to public opinion and will be susceptible to their demands. The issue of public opinion gives rise to another set of issues, and one of the foremost in this period, is the skepticism that the basic assumption of a rational public rejecting war is true. Is the public rational? Is war a rational choice? The political definition of rationality is the ability of the public to discern the options open to them, and to adopt the best option to achieve their prioritized goals. The Great War cast doubts as to whether public is necessarily aware of what their options and goals are, much less their ability to choose the best option to fit their preferred purpose. As historian A. J. P. Taylor argues that the intellectual backlash against the dehumanizing war made the interwar years an age of intellectual and artistic activity, where intellectuals from various fields of study question the power of man to reason.4 The devastation of war brings queries, particularly from the idealists, as to whether war can be a rational choice. Even if the assumption holds true, there is still the question as to whether public opinion has any weight on policy formulation. Given this particular context, this paper questions the foundations of Wilsonian politics. This paper will thus postulate on the influence of public opinion and the impact of rationality on the maintenance of peace by drawing from the ideas of three important writers of this period: Edward Hallett Carr, Norman Angell and Alfred Zimmern. This paper will first introduce the positions of all three writers. It will then examine the fundamental assumption shared by all three writers with respect to public opinion, before expounding on their arguments on the rationality of the public and why the issue matters. The paper will then look into the possibilities of peace, and how the three concur on the issue of education. Due to source constraints, this paper will draw on secondary references to the works of the three writers, where the primary sources are not available. Carr, Angell and Zimmern Peter Wilson in Thinkers of the Twenty Years Crisis introduces Carrs book as a work which not only set the tone for subsequent discussion of inter-war thought, but also substantially shaped postwar attitudes towards it.5 The premise for The Twenty Years Crisis is the critique of inter-war idealism, which Carr terms utopian6. Carr dismisses the utopians as being unable to understand political reality and sets up a dichotomy that supposes utopia: reality= free will: determinism= theory: practice= morality: power =universal: relative= intellectual: bureaucrat= Left: Right 7 The dichotomy presented by Carr undermines interwar idealism, and leads, in part, to the rejection of the practical value of these theories. This dichotomy shapes subsequent debate and is consequentially identified as the polarity of realism and idealism, which will dominate international studies for the next few decades. In order to posit queries of the dichotomy, it is first necessary to expound on the assumptions that are conventionally made of either school. Brian C. Schmidt summarises the assumptions of idealism as follows : a pervasive faith in reason and rationalism, a belief in the infallibility of public opinion, the view that war was irrational, that the best way to end conflict was through education, international law, and world government, and, finally, a belief that the essential harmony of interests existed, which translated into the international doctrine of war-does-not-pay8. Superficially, both Norman Angell and Alfred Zimmern adopt such assumptions in their writings. Significantly, both Angell and Zimmern share the same devotion to one key tenet: the possibility of progress through educating public opinion and conditioning human behaviour. Their devotion to the tenet became stronger later into their careers, especially after the Second World War. The realist school of thought as represented by Carr, refutes the idealist assumptions. In particular, the realists argue that the concept of power is central to international affairs. Carr adopts Thomas Hobbes argument on human nature and advances the argument that the state as a rational actor will choose to maximize its capacity for power in order to secure its survival. He argues that public opinion, even when informed, is not necessarily pacifist and that thought can be mould by political purposes. Through defining his position by rejecting and critiquing the idealists assumptions, Carrs realist position is thus seen as the diametric opposite of the idealists. It is then necessary to redress both the ideas of Carr and the much-maligned interwar idealists, among whom are Zimmern and Angell. The choice of juxtaposing Angell and Zimmern with Carr in this paper is conscious. Both Zimmern and Angell are among the few utopians whom Carr explicitly criticizes in The Twenty Years Crisis. Andreas Osiander points out that Zimmern is still widely regarded as what Oslon and Groom have called the consummate idealist9, and is thus identifiable with the idealist school of thought. Yet Zimmern, as Paul Rich and Peter Wilson suggest, is considerably less adverse to Carrs ideas than his idealist colleagues.10 Angell, on the other hand, is one of the fiercest adversaries to The Twenty Years Crisis, but J. D. Miller raises the argument that Angell should be regarded less as an idealist than a far sighted realist because of his acute awareness of the issues of political reality11. The interplay of their ideas then calls to question the validity of a clear dich otomy. In essence then, this paper seek to question if the positions of these writers on the assumptions raised by Schmidt are as concrete as they appear to be. In other words, this paper examines the complexities of Carr, Angell and Zimmerns ideas on the applicability of public opinion, rationality and possibilities of peace. On closer examination, this paper argues that despite the differences, the three share a fundamental similarity: the belief in progress. The dichotomy between the realists and idealists is permeable, and in their postulation of the long term, the arguments of Carr, Angell and Zimmern coincide. Public Opinion First and foremost, the underlying assumption that Carr, Angell and Zimmern adopt is that public opinion matters, even though their understanding of public opinion differs. Zimmern argues that [p]ublic opinion is the lifeblood of a civilized community but unfortunately, the majority of the peoples is guided by caprice of ignorance, passion or greed, and the other devils if unreason.12 The title of Carrs inaugural speech at the University College of Wales, Public Opinion as a Safeguard of Peace says much. Carr argues that public opinion can exert tremendous influence over a foreign policy issue that it feels sufficiently strongly about, using the case of the public rejection of the Hoare-Laval plan to build his case. He states that, No nation, and least of all a democracy, can wage war unless it has the support of an overwhelming majority of its people13. The implication of such a statement in light of guarding the peace is that insofar as the public is not in favour of war, a state and particularly a democratic state will not and cannot adopt war as a policy instrument. Angells Nobel Lecture, Peace and the Public Mind, adopts the same position, except that he argues public opinion, being misinformed and disastrously erroneous can lead to war. 14 Interestingly both Angell and Carr argue that public opinion is easily manipulated. Carr devotes a section to Power over opinion in The Twenty Years Crisis, suggesting that the greater proportion of public becoming conscious or involved in politics relates to the importance that the ruling elite place on propaganda as an instrument of power. The influence of propaganda rests on the premise he sets earlier in the book that the crucial contribution of realism is the idea that thought is relative to purpose. 15 For instance, nationalism, as a form of ideology, could be seen as a means by which the public can be persuaded to go to war. Similarly, Angell contends that a small militant minority is capable of appealing to the majority towards a policy that may not be in the majoritys best interests.16 Rationality Having established that public opinion has a role to play, we then move on to the crucial questions: is the public rational, and is war a rational choice? On both issues, there are significant differences between Carr and the idealists, arising from the difference in the way they interpret and infer from past and current events. Reason and rationality give rise to different outcomes for Carr and the idealists. An important observation is that Carr places more faith in reason and rationality than do the others, contrary to our earlier presupposition that it is the idealists who have a pervasive faith in reason and rationalism. A proper definition of what is meant by rational behaviour has yet to be provided as a premise for argument. To proceed, we adopt James Mills argument for the rational public opinion quoted in Carr as a guide to what rational behaviour entails: Every man possessed of reason is accustomed to weigh evidence and to be guided and determined by its preponderance. When various conclusions are, with their evidence presented with equal care and with equal skill, there is a moral certainty, though some few maybe misguided, that greatest number will judge right, and the greatest force of evidence, whatever it is, will produce the greatest impression. 17 Whereas Carr believes that the public, being self-interested, is capable of defining their goals and seeking the best possible means to achieve toward that end, he rejects Mills definition of rational behaviour. Mills definition is in turn based on the ideas espoused by Jeremy Betham who assumes that the ideal option is the greatest good to the greatest number. Carr argues that public opinion comes from the masses, who are for large part, neither enlightened nor educated and thus the greatest number need not necessarily judge right. He argues that Betham and Mills assumption that self-interest can be sacrificed for the sake of the greatest good to the collective is based on some kind of intuition of what is right and cannot be demonstrated by rational argument.18 Carr suggests, instead, that rational necessarily demands a consciousness and the ability to adjust to the balance of power existing in international affairs, which serves as a constraint on the options available. The discerning public thus does not only take into account what is right, but also what is most practical in catering to self-interest. Carr then adopts an argument that is parallel to Thomas Hobbes. Hobbes, in Leviathan, states the fundamental law of nature as: it is a precept, or general rule of reason that every man, ought to endeavour peace, as far as he has hope of obtaining it; and when he cannot obtain it, that he may seek, and use all helps, and advantages of war Carr comments, to the same effect, that although war is undesirable, it is not possible to impose an absolute judgement that war is always and unconditionally wrong. The implication of Hobbes and Carrs argument is that the public being rational favours peace. However, when the public believes that they have more to gain from war, or more to lose from not going to war, war becomes a rational and logical solution. Historically, Carrs argument seems to find sufficient basis in the outbreak of World War I. One of the reasons contributing to the war was the increase in bellicosity, arising from rationalization of cost and benefit or cooperation and non-cooperation. Prior to the Great War, the perceived cost of non-cooperation19 had decreased. The perception was influenced by beliefs that any war would be short, a consequence of a highly exaggerated faith in the efficacy of offensive military strategies and tactics20 and by the system of alliances. The perception was further coloured by nationalism. Secondly the perceived gains of non-cooperation had increased. The general belief was that expansionism and offensive foreign policy was perceived to be too high, due to the general suspicion of the intentions of the other states. Given these perceptions then prevalent, European states saw it to their advantage to go to war, and in fact to initiate the war so as to reap the greatest advantage of the gr ound. This international game theory exemplifies in part the rational process that Carr espoused. The idealists depart greatly from Carr. Angell and Zimmern accept that Mills definition is greatly desired but finds it incongruent with political reality. Reus-Smit, in his essay The Strange Death of Liberal Theory, argues that the conflict between morality and political reality is seen by Angell as a divide between reason and unreason. He argues that, If the former prevailed, there was some hope of a reconciliation between morality, defined as the well-being of all and reality, which in [Angells] favoured area was the incompatibility of warfare and such well-being.21 However, within the historical context, Angell believes that unreason prevailed. Angell believes that the public mind is often irrational, because it is too easily persuaded; it does not possess sufficient information, nor the ability to process vast amounts of information when it is available and it lacks the skill to seek evidence for the various conclusions, as Mill points out, i.e., it cannot see the likely results of actions. 22 The public mind cannot compute cost-benefit-analysis, which is central to rationalization. Angell accounts for this irrationality of the public mind, stating that it arises from the failure to apply to our international relationships knowledge which is of practically universal possession23 In Angells opinion then, it is not for the lack of intellectual capacity on the part of the public that lead to the irrational behaviour, but the inability to apply knowledge. Resting on his idea of the irrational public, Angell expounds on the war and why the publics choice to go to war is actually irrational. In his aptly named book, The Great Illusion, he puts forth a convincing argument on the futility of war on grounds of rationality and economic considerations. Angell argues that the perceived benefits of war under modern circumstances, are reduced, as victors can no longer expect to benefit as much from the spoils of war. The change is largely because goods and spoils are no longer portable (such as gold, silver, slaves, precious stones) as they had before. Goods and services are non-physical such as currency, shares, and fixed assets, and are thus not transferable wealth. As such, if states act purely in their self-interest, given the expectation not to gain from war, states would be unlikely to pursue war.24 Angell considers this line of reasoning to be simplistic and easily applicable to the conduct of international relations. Yet as the advent of World War I proves, the public is incapable of applying such rationale to political practice. Angell argues that the pervading reasons behind war, then, are irrational. Not only does war not serve to the benefit of the state concerned, better alternatives of action could be sought such as building economic relations, social interaction. Such connections can be used in persuading, as opposed to coercing, other states into behaving in the manner that is beneficial to the state concerned. Thus the argument adopted is that war is irrational, i.e. not the best-laid option, and man being irrational and susceptible to external influences, chooses to use war as a policy instrument. Andreas Osiander points out that unlike what Carr implies, Zimmern, like Angell, was very far from seeing public opinion as necessarily a force for peace.25 Like Angell, he believes that the conflicts in the international arena, giving rise to war are resultant of intellectual, and not political failure.26 However, if Carr is to be believed, Zimmern can, in fact, be seen as being more extreme than Angell. Carr states in The Twenty Years Crisis that Zimmern is inclined towards the hypothesis that If mankind in its international relations has signally failed to achieve the rational good, it must have been too stupid to understand that good. Carrs statement is not altogether justified. Although Zimmern does point out that the impediment to overcoming the obstacle towards peace is that man are beings of conservative temper and limited intelligence27, what he implies is that man is reluctant to adjust to present realities brought by modernity. As a result of the inherent resistance towar ds change, mans mental capacity does not adapt to the fact that previous ways of managing international relations are no longer applicable. Consequentially, public opinion cannot be trusted to be rational. Zimmern subscribes to John Stuart Mills argument of the tyranny of the majority. He argues that the ruling elite, that is, the politicians in positions of power tend to be capable of rationalization. However this intellectual minority in government is consumed by the irrational public: for statesmen, however wise and far sighted, are limited in their policies by the public opinion and parliaments to which they are responsible.28 Angell concurs on this issue. J. D. Miller, drawing from Angells comments, argues that Angell too feared the impact upon politicians of an unreasoning crowd mind, and doubted the capacity of politicians to resist it. Both Angell and Zimmern, then, prefer that the intellectual minority be given the ability and power to lead the rest of the populace, so as to govern rational foreign policies. In this regard, Carr again differs. Whereas Carr does agree that the intellectual minority has a role to play in leading public opinion,29 he believes that the intellectual minority is however, sadly, out of touch with reality. He argues his case by drawing on the difference between intellectuals perceptions of the League of Nations with those of the man on the street. The intellectuals, who tend to be idealists by his definition, strive to secure and maintain peace via means of treaties, covenants and legal codifications. The general public, however, is more concerned with the practice of international affairs (as opposed to the theory.) Going by Carrs understanding of rational behaviour to be taking into account what is right and also what is most practical in application, the intellectual minority is in pra ctice less rational than the public. Change and the possibility of progress As it is, there seems to be a great divide between Carr and his two contemporaries with regards to whether man is rational. However, central to their arguments is the shared belief that history is a directional process, that is, there is the idea of constant change. Carr argues that war occurs because of the conservative reluctance to allow change to the status quo and the way to peace is to provide means of peaceful change.30 Angell and Zimmern suggest that war occurs because man has yet to come to terms with change, and that the mentality and psyche of the populace has not kept in line with international developments. As Zimmern states, the statesmen and the peoples have not adjusted their minds to the new realities31. The central concern with the issue of change harkens to a broader issue on which the three writers concur: the possibility of progress. The interwar context is one of pessimism. The first decade had been one of recovery and rehabilitation from the shock of the Great War and the second decade of mounting tensions and escalation to an even more disastrous war. The context in which these writers write in, therefore, begets the question of whether man can move away from destruction of war, and by what means. The three writers agree that the current situation calls for change, as present movements and measures to maintain peace are insufficient and inadequate, and are reasonably optimistic that such change can be effected. Carr notes even in 1936 that, the cause of peace has made tremendous stride during the past fifteen years and shows his preference towards progressive history, arguing that a sense of change as a progressive factor in history, and belief in reason as our guide for the understanding of its complexities are crucial to the current world. Angell is of the same mind when he questions the unchangeability of human nature and argues that just as cannibalism and slavery can be systematically reduced in our society, so too can the warlike nature of man and states32. Zimmern, even when decrying the decline of international standards (which he defined as rules of behaviour) at a meeting at Chatham House in 1937 argues that the process of change allowing for peaceful coexistence was already taking place.33 The ultimate aim of change is the maintenance of peace, which is assumed to be the preferred good, through the avoidance of war. The question that is then posited is, by what means? Carr, Angell and Zimmern propose different measures but the one pertinent to the prior argument on public opinion and rationality is their faith in education. Due to their fundamental belief that public opinion matters, it is logical to argue that if the public mind, as Angell would call it, could be trained and conditioned to favour peaceful change, then the chances of states going to war would be minimized. Angell quotes in his The Great Illusion that Not the facts, but mens opinions about the facts is what matters, and making a parallel with the abolishment of witch hunts, he comments that just as in the matter of burning witches a change of behaviour was the outcome of a change of opinion in a same way a change in the political conduct of can only come about as a result of a change of thought34. The w ay to peace then is to shape mans perceptions about war. Given this understanding, the most basic and possibly most efficient way of bringing about this conditioned public is through education. However in his address given to Chatham House in 1931, Angell claims that the current education system does not adequately prepare the individual to make intelligent and informed inferences from the facts presented to him. He believes that the reason behind this lack in the system is that education tends to follow a tradition whereby an older generation influences and instruct the younger through a process of socialization.35 Unfortunately this tradition means that values and ideas that are taught are often unable to catch up with present realities. The educational system had also focused on provision of information, without equipping the individual with means to discern the motivations, the causation analysis, the implications et cetera behind the piece of information. According to him, We have thought too much of the facts and too little of their meaning. 36 Thus the socialization/education of an individual does not adequately provide him with the skill to make rational choices. Given his premise that war is irrational under any circumstances lest in defence and a rational public will therefore reject war, the skill deficiency means that man may choose to go to war due to their lack of understanding, unless the educational system can be changed. Beyond the suggestion that education shifts its focus from its informational purpose towards equipping successive generations with the skill to possess information, Angell does not however provide for how education can be otherwise structured. Zimmern elaborates on his ideal educational system in his book Learning and Leadership, which is not only designed to impart the skill of discerning information but also specifically equipped to teach students about international life. Particularly, he believes that practical experience through interaction with people from other nations will allow students to imbibe the habit of cooperation and harmonious living37. Zimmern believes that once people are given more exposure to the international arena, they will be able to understand foreigners and foreign influences better and become more acutely aware of the idea of universal brotherhood. This basic premise being established, man will be more able to understand the actions of others, less inclined to take preemptive action and to go to war. The assumption of such an argument is that people are less inclined to advocate war against a party that they share an understanding with. Education is thus seen as an instrument which can build commonality among peoples, as well as a means by which the public can be trained to be rational. In The Twenty Years Crisis, Carr argues for the application of reason to understanding current situations and political reality; in his later work What is History he extends the role of reason to the capacity to reform: The primary function of reason, as applied to man in society, is no longer merely to investigate, but to transform; and this heightened consciousness of the power of men to improve the management of his social, economic and political affairs by the application of rational processes seems to me one of the major aspects of the twentieth century. 38 The core assumptions here are that reason leads to progress and progress is necessarily an improvement. Remembering the key concern of the study of international relations in the interwar period, a foremost improvement of the human condition is the eradication of war. As do Angell and Zimmern, Carr believes that education was to be the tool by which such improvement can come about. However, unlike Zimmern and Angell who believe that the public has to be thought how to make rational choices in the first place, Carr believes that education can be used to shape the way the public thinks about their choices. Carr notes then that education policy must be shaped: Educators at all levels are nowadays more and more consciously concerned to make their contribution to the shaping of society in a particular mould, and to inculcate in the rising generation the attitudes, loyalties and opinions appropriate to that type of society: educational policy is an integral part of any rationally planned social policy.39 It is then assumed, that rationally, a society will be prefer not to resort to war in a conflict of interest, and a means by which this can be ensured is to design an educational system which, in the context of the interwar years, should imbue in them the moral norm that peaceful change is the preferred means of achieving policy objectives. To put it more plainly, Carrs ideal is using education to persuade man against the doctrine of power, providing a basis whereby a compromise between morality and power can be reached and peaceful change achieved. In his contention that thought is relative to purpose, Carr postulates that mass opinion can directed and in fact mass-produced via universal popular education. It is imperative to note that by popular education, Carr has included the mass media.( Carr does not, however differentiate between education and propaganda in The Twenty Years Crisis though in What is History, he associates education with rationality and the growing consciousness from below as well as from above of the role which reason can play40). The application of reason and rationality therefore means that education can be used to persuade mankind against war. Instead of making an argument that war is irrational, educators can influence the public into making a conscious choice not to use war as a policy instrument. As Carr states, I regard as of immense importance and promise the gradual extension of the area of the worlds surface within which war has been effectively been placed under the ban, such that war is actually unthinkable41. What becomes interesting is how closely Carr mirrors the utopians he derides. Peter Wilson, in his attempt to understand what Carr means by utopian, lists the various characteristics that Carr associates with the term. According to his analysis, all of these characteristics are progressive ideas; and it might be therefore be concluded that the core characteristic of interwar idealism is belief in conscious, progressive change. On this basis, Carr does not seem to be any much different, which recalls Reus-Smits observation quoted earlier in this paper that Carr is himself not a consummate realist. It is also possible to put forth an argument that Carrs argument against utopianism was never meant to be an outright and unconditional rejection of the interwar theories. Conclusion Whether or not these three writers think the public mind is rational depends largely on whether they believe war can be a rational choice, and yet regardless of their perspectives on these two issues, they believe that progress towards avoidance of war can be ensured through changing human behaviour. Education policies thus become important, as they can shape the perceptions of the public and thus affect their choices, which is in turn reflected in the chosen foreign policy. However there is a point to note based on this argument set. All three writers are writing within a democratic framework and tradition, where by definition, requires that public opinion matters. Yet, public opinion is less likely to make an impact in an authoritarian state, and even in democratic states, there is the consideration of public apathy, the leaders gambling and taking risks by not going according to public opinion, et cetera. These complications bring us back to the consideration of Wilsonian politics. Woodrow Wilson professes that his aim is to make the world safe for democracy, and that democracy will bring peace. His tendency has been to look at the building and maintenance of peace from a top down approach, where the political structure and political ideological apparatus are enforced. In other words, he looks to providing a mechanism which will allow the rational public to prevent the tendencies of the militant minority from dragging the state to war. However, from the ideas of Carr, Angell and Zimmern, such a mechanism would not function effectively against war unless the public mind can be first conditioned through a fitting educational system emphasizing co-operation and peace. 1 David Long, Conclusion: Interwar idealism, liberal internationalism and contemporary international theory. Thinkers of the Twenty Years Crisis: Inter-war idealism reassessed. p. 303, pp. 306-307. 2 Quoted in E. H. Carrs inaugural speech in the University College of Wales. Public Opinion as a Safeguard of Peace International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1931-1939). Vol. 15. No. 6. (Nov- Dec 1936), p. 846. 3 Mortimer Chambers, et al. The Western Experience Vol C: The Modern Era. pp. 892-893 4 A. J. P. Taylor, From Sarajevo to Potsdam. London: Thames Hudson: 1966 pp. 103-106 5 Peter Wilson. Introduction: The Twenty Years Crisis and the Category of Idealism in International Relations. David Long Peter Wilson. (ed.) Thinkers of the Twenty Years Crisis: Inter-war idealism reassessed. Oxford: Oxford University Press: 1995. p.1 6 Carrs term utopians is generally taken to refer to the idealists, though he does not clearly define who he considers to be utopians. 7 Wilson, Introduction, p. 12. Wilson adapted the equation from Hedley Bull, The Twenty Crisis Thirty Years On, International Journal, Issue 24, Vol. 4 (1969), p. 627-8. E. H. Carr, The Twenty Years Crisis: 1919-1939. New York: Harper: (1946) 1964. pp. 11-21. 8 Brian C. Schmidt. Lessons from the Past: reassessing the Interwar Disciplinary History of International Relations. International Studies Quarterly (1998) 42. p 452 9 Andreas Osiander, Rereading Early Twentieth Century IR theory: Idealism Revisited, International Studies Quarterly, Vol. 42, No. 3 (Sep.,1998). p. 417 10 Paul Rich, Alfred Zimmerns Catious Idealism: the League of Nations, International Education, and the Commonwealth. Thinkers of the Twenty Years Crisis: Inter-war idealism reassessed. p.88; Peter Wilson, Carr and his Early Crtics: responses to the Twenty Years Crisis. Michael Cox (ed). E. H. Carr: A critical appraisal. New York: Palgrave: 2000. p. 167. 11 J. D. Miller. Norman Angell and Rationality in International Relations. Thinkers of the Twenty Years Crisis: Inter-war idealism reassessed. pp. 116, 119. 12 Alfred Zimmern, Learning and Leadership: a study of the needs and possibilities of international intellectual co-operation. London: Oxford University Press: 1928. p. 10; p. 82. 13 Carr, Public Opinion as a Safeguard of Peace pp. 857-858. 14 Norman Angell, Peace and the Public Mind. June 12, 1935. http://www.nobel.se/cgi-bin/print. March 24, 2004. 15 E. H. Carr, The Twenty Years Crisis. pp. 132-133; pp. 67-75 16 Norman Angell Peace and the Public Mind. para. 19 17 quoted in E. H. Carr, The Twenty Years Crisis. p 24. 18 Ibid. p. 26; p. 41 19 The line of reasoning here is tied to the idea of an international game theory, which due to practical constraints cannot be covered here. The argument is made in line with Robert Jervis theory on international behaviour in his Cooperation Under Security Dilemma World Politics. Vol. 30, No. 2 (Jan, 1978), pp.167-214. 20 Stephen van Evera, Why co-operation failed in 1914. World Politics, Vol. 38. No. 1 (Oct, 1985). p. 81 21 Christian Reus-Smit, The Strange Death of Liberal International Theory. European Journal of International Law. Vol. 12. No. 3. pp. 578-9. 22 J. D. Miller. Norman Angell and the Futility of War: Peace and the public mind. London: Macmillian: 1986. pp/ 124-125. 23 Norman Angell. Peace and the Public mind. para. 17 24 Norman Angell. Europes Optical Illusion. London: Simpkin, Marshall, Hamilton, Kent , 1909(?)24-40; The Great Illusion:A study of the relation of military power to national advantage. London: William Heinemann 1913. pp. 26-40. 25 Andreas Osiander, Rereading Early Twentieth Century IR theory p. 417 26 Alfred Zimmern, Learning and Leadership. p. 11. 27 Alfred Zimmern, The Problem with Collective Security (ed) Q. Wright. Neutrality and Collective Security. Chicago: University of Chicago Press: 1936. p. 8. 28 Ibid. 29 E. H. Carr, Public Opinion as a Safeguard of Peace. p. 854. 30 E. H. Carr. The Twenty Years Crisis. pp. 208-223 31 Alfred Zimmern Learning and Leadership. p. 22 32 Norman Angell, The Great Illusion. 1913. pp. 200-221. 33 Alfred Zimmern, The Decline of International StandardsInternational Affiars (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1931-1939). Vol 17. No. 1 (Jan.-Feb. 1938), p. 21. 34 Norman Angell, The Great Illusion. P. 327 35 Norman Angell, Popular Education and International Affairs International Affairs (Royal Institute of International affairs 1931-1939) Vol. 11, No. 3 (May 1932), p. 323 36 Ibid, p 335-338, 338 37 Alfred Zimmern Learning and Leadership. p. 26-60 38 E. H. Carr. What is History? New York , St. Martins Press , 1961 p 190 39 Ibid. 40 Ibid p. 195. Propaganda is associated with the emotive and not with reason. 41 E. H. Carr. Public Opinion as a Safeguard of Peace. p. 861.

Emily Dickinson Essay -- essays research papers

An Analytical Essay on Emily Dickinson Emily Dickinson was a woman who lived in times that are more traditional; her life experiences influence and help us to understand the dramatic and poetic lines in her writing. Although Dickinson’s poetry can often be defined as sad and moody, we can find the use of humor and irony in many of her poems. By looking at the humor and sarcasm found in three of Dickinson’s poems, "Success Is Counted Sweetest", "I am Nobody", and "Some keep the Sabbath Going to Church", one can examine each poem show how Dickinson used humor and irony for the dual purposes of comic relief and to stress an idea or conclusion about her life and the environment in the each poem. Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst Massachusetts; a small farming town that had a college and a hat factory. There, she was raised in a strict Calvinist household while receiving most of her education at a boarding school that followed the American Puritanical tradition. She seldom left her hometown; virtually, her only contact with her friends came to be made through letters. As a young woman, Dickinson rejected comforting traditions, resisted male authority, and wrestled alone with her complex and often contrary emotions. Although she was claimed to be a high-spirited and active young woman, Dickinson began to withdraw from society in the 1850's. The many losses she experienced throughout her life, the death of her father, mother, close neighbors, and fr...

The Dating Game

Gwendolyn ‘Wendy’ Stokes Professor Josh McCall Intermediate Composition September 21, 2011 The Dating Game: Spectator or Participant Finding a good man is like trying to nail jelly to a tree. Some people say that all the good ones are either married or gay. As a single heterosexual woman that has been in the dating scene, I must say that statement is not far from the truth. The hunt for Mr. Right is not for the feeble hearted woman. The learning curve on dating has been interesting to say the least.A few months ago, I was approached by a guy that seemed nice enough. We met at a local sports bar. We had mutual friends and he was interested, which was more than I could say for the rest of the male population. He asked if I was on Facebook. As our initial conversation progressed, I realized Facebook was his correspondence of choice. What happened to the old fashion line of â€Å"Can I have your number? † Yet, I decided to trudge forward and â€Å"go with it. † After a few Facebook chats, I agreed to let him visit me at home. He came over and flopped down on my couch.It was awkward but I was determined to find something we had in common. The conversations led to our high school days. As he told story after story, it came to me that he was nowhere near the age I had originally thought. I interrupted him just to ask, â€Å"Exactly what year did you graduate? † His response of â€Å"2001† made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. I had been a mother for two years when he was tossing his high school graduation cap in the air. Needless to say, I politely ended his visit with no goodnight kiss included.Another recent dating encounter was the dreaded blind date. As I drove to the agreed upon meeting place all I could think was â€Å"Why do I get myself into these situations? † Yet, the guy I met was really nice. He was extremely attractive and had a great personality. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy the conversat ion flowed from subject to subject without any awkwardness that I had previously experienced. As the gathering was breaking up, he asked if he could have my telephone number and when would be a good time to call.Of course, I gave him my number and tried not sound eager as I said, â€Å"Anytime would be fine. † After he left, I overheard a conversation regarding his astonishingly recent separation from his wife. He was married. My newly elated attitude towards dating was quickly deflated. Transitioning from the â€Å"in a relationship† world into the â€Å"unattached† world is not as transparent as I once thought. I have learned that men in my dating pool tend to be scorned by women from their previous relationships.Those scorned men are almost always cautious to the point of being noncommittal. I have never enjoyed cleaning especially a mess created by someone else. When it comes to love, I just don’t want to work quite that hard. After all, love is suppo sed to be easy in the beginning, isn’t it? Being single is hard but being with the wrong man is even harder. I have a tendency to believe that Mr. Right will come along when I am least expecting it and then, we can just keep the jelly in the fridge.

The Bald Eagle

The bald eagle or Haliaeetus leucocephalus, a specie of sea eagles, is the only eagle that is unique to North America. Recognized for being the national bird of the United States, it can be found today over the North American expanse from northern Mexico, to Canada and to Alaska where approximately half of the estimated total population of 70,000 live (Bald Eagle Information).Together with the Golden eagle, the bald eagle or American bald eagle, is the largest of the eagles. It has a wingspan that reaches some 79 to 89 cm.  long, an average weight of around 14 pounds for males (females are slightly larger and heavier) and a strong and large hooked beak two inches long and one inch deep (Merry  ¶ 1).Classification Class: Aves (birds) Order: Falconiformes (along with falcons, hawks, old-world vultures, condors, buzzards, kites, caracars, ospreys, harriers, accipiters, secretary birds and bateleurs) Sub-family: Buteoninae (together with true buzzards, true eagles and other sea eagle s) Family: Accipitridae (hawks and eagles) Genus: Haliaeetus (all sea or fish eagles) Species: leucocephalus (derived from the Latin word â€Å"leukos† that means white)There are two sub-species of bald eagles: Haliaeetus leucocephalus leucocephalus or the traditional â€Å"southern† variety, which lives in the gulf states, south of 40 degrees north latitude and the slightly larger Haliaeetus leucocephalus alascanus or â€Å"northern† bald eagle, which inhabit the states north of 40 degrees north latitude across North America (Bald Eagle Information P 1-3). Living Habits Bald eagles inhabit North America because of the abundance of their diet sources. The rivers and streams in Washington, Montana and Alaska are visited by the American eagles in large numbers during the spawning seasons of salmon, shad and eulachon.The bald eagle is primarily a scavenger bird that feeds on dead, dying or weakened fish and other prey but they have the predatory skills and equipmen t when needed (Merry  ¶ 4-5). Based on radio telemetry, the American bald eagles have been shown to regularly roost right after dawn, alternatively glide and flap on its flight direct to their favorite feeding perch and roost back in the evening (Merry  ¶ 8). Maturity, Mating and Nesting At juvenile age, the American bald eagle is a mix of brown and white feathers. They attain sexual maturity when they reach four or five years of age.Adult eagles are covered with white head, neck and tail feathers and blackish-brown breast and back feathers (General Fact). They build their eyries or nests atop tall trees near bodies of water or coasts where they perch. Bald eagles, who mate for life or until the death of their partners, use and add sticks and leaves to the same eyrie year after year. Two to three eggs are laid every spring; the males help the females in incubating the eggs from 35 to 40 days. The eaglets, when hatched, are covered with grayish-white downy and will need to be fed by their parents until they become six eight weeks old.At 9 to 14 weeks, they fledge and at 4 months old, the eaglets come of their own. As Endangered Specie The American bald eagle was categorized as endangered for over half a century until the United States Fish and Wildlife Service upgraded its status to ‘threatened' in July 1995. Earlier in 1967, the specie was officially listed as an endangered species in most of the lower parts of the country because of continuing decline for several decades because of the loss of habitat, prey and the then widespread use of the pesticide DDT.In 1973, the Endangered Species Act was passed in a bid to halt the loss of several endangered animal species and to help reverse environmental degradation. The Endangered Species Act has been shown to be at least fairly effective at preventing the extinctions of many animal species, including the bald eagle whose number increased from under 500 in 1963 to over 9,000 pairs in 2006 (Wikipedia, Endan gered Species Act  ¶ 19). References bald eagle. (2007). In Encyclop? dia Britannica. Retrieved March 5, 2007, from Encyclop? dia Britannica Online: http://www. britannica. com/eb/article-9011927 Endangered Species Act. (2007, March 1).In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 12:35, March 5, 2007, from http://en. wikipedia. org/w/index. php? title=Endangered_Species_Act&oldid=111852673. General Facts About Bald Eagles. American Bald Eagle Information Site. Retrieved 05 March 2007 from http://baldeagleinfo. com/eagle/eagle-facts. html. Homepage. American Bald Eagle Information Site. Retrieved 05 March 2007 from http://baldeagleinfo. com/index. html. Merry, Sondra. Species: American Bald Eagle or Haliaeetus Leucocephalus. University of Wisconcin. Retrieved 05 March 2007 from .

Barbaric vs. Barbarous

Barbaric vs. Barbarous Barbaric vs. Barbarous Barbaric vs. Barbarous By Mark Nichol What’s the difference between barbaric and barbarous? The terms are nearly interchangeable, though for two connotations, one term is preferred over the other. Barbaric or barbarous behavior or other characteristics are those that suggest a cultural attainment between savagery and civilization. These adjectives also refer to unrestrained actions or those a civilized person would consider primitive, strange, or uncouth. Barbaric, however, is more appropriate in the sense of cruelty or harshness, while barbarous more strongly implies unsophisticated behavior. Barbarian, the noun form, is also used as an adjective. The origin of these terms is the Latin word barbaria, meaning â€Å"foreign country†; this meaning derives from the Greek term barbaros, meaning â€Å"foreign† or â€Å"strange.† Ultimately, it likely stems from the idea that utterances in unfamiliar languages sound like meaningless babble and can be recorded as something close to â€Å"bar-bar.† (Babble and blabber may be related to barbarian.) Latin usage referred to anyone outside the cultural influence of the Roman Empire, and later connotation of barbarian implied someone who does not speak one’s language; these senses, still later, extended to identify any ill-mannered person. The name Barbara shares this etymology, with the appealing sense of â€Å"exotic† rather than the unattractive one of â€Å"strange†; a saint by that name prompted its popularity among Christians. The root of the proper noun Barbary, which referred to the lands along the north coast of Africa, is of disputed origin. It derives from Berber, an Arabic term for the inhabitants of North Africa outside Egypt, which might have a local origin, might stem from Arabic (with the same sense of â€Å"babbler†), or might be borrowed from Greek. Barber is unrelated to these words and names; it stems from the Latin term barba, meaning â€Å"beard.† That word itself is probably cognate with barber through a common ancestor word. 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:Types of RhymeConfusing "Passed" with "Past"Drama vs. Melodrama

Latin vs English Differences in Word Order

Latin vs English Differences in Word Order A typical English sentence puts the subject first, followed by the predicate, but its not true that every English sentence starts with a subject, places the verb between the subject and the object, and has the object, if there is one, at the end. Below, you can read  two sentences where the verb comes first. Still, the examples conform to English grammar, which doesnt allow random placement of subject, verb, and object. In English, Use SVO Speakers of English are used to putting the subject of the sentence at the beginning of the sentence, the verb in the middle, and the direct and indirect object at the end (SVO Subject Verb Object), as in Man bites dog, which means something entirely different from Dog bites man. In Latin, Use SOV or OVS or... When learning Latin, one of the obstacles to overcome is the word order, since it is rarely SVO. In Latin, it is often Subject Object Verb (SOV) or Object Verb Subject (OVS) or Object Verb (OV), with the verb at the end and the subject included in it.* At any rate, it wouldnt matter whether the dog or mailman came first, because who did the biting would always be clear. canem________ vir_____________ mordetdog-acc_sg.(object) man-nom._sg.(subject) bites-3d_sg.man bites dog vir_____________ canem________ mordetman-nom._sg.(subject) dog-acc_sg.(object) bites-3d_sg.man bites dogbut:canis___________ virum___________ mordetdog-nom_sg.(subject) man-acc._sg.(object) bites-3d_sg.dog bites man Exceptions to the English SVO Rule Although English has a fixed word order, it is not entirely foreign to us to find the words in an order other than SVO. When we utter a sentence in the imperative, like an order, we put the verb first: Beware of dog! Incidentally, the Latin imperative can have the same order: Cave canem!Beware dog! This word order is VO (Verb-Object) with no stated subject. An English question has the verb first, too (even if it is an auxiliary), and the object last, as in Will the dog bite the man? The point of these examples is that we are able to understand sentences that are not SVO. Inflection Accomplishes the Same Thing As Word Order The reason Latin is a more flexible language in terms of word order is that what English speakers encode by position in the sentence, Latin handles with case endings at the ends of nouns, adjectives, and verbs. English word order tells us that what is the subject is the (set of) word(s) that comes first in a declarative sentence, what is the object is the set of words at the sentence end, and what is the verb separates subject from object. We rarely confuse a verb with a noun, except in ambiguous cases like Bart Simpsons: What has 4 legs and ticks? There is ambiguity in Latin, as well, but most of the time, an ending will show, just as efficiently, what is the subject, what is the object, and what is the verb. omnia______________ vincit______________ amoreverything-acc._pl._neut. conquers-3d_pers._sg. love-nom._sg._masc.Love conquers all. (attributed to Vergil.) An important point: A Latin verb can tell you the subject of the clause/sentence or it can tell you much of what you need to know about the subject of the sentence. The verb vincit can mean he conquers, she conquers or it conquers. If the noun amor werent in the sentence omnia vincit amor, if all that were there were vincit omnia or omnia vincit, you would translate the sentence as he conquers everything or she conquers everything.

Choosing the Right Coach for Your Employees Article

Choosing the Right Coach for Your Employees - Article Example The importance of hiring the right coach and the available options has been extensively addressed by Leslie Allan in his book, From Training to Enhanced Workplace Performance. Allan points out that the coach plays a major role in determining whether your coaching program will be a failure or a success. He or she may be someone with a prior working relationship with your organization's employees and may be hired from within or outside the organization. A manager is one of the internal coach options suggested by Allan. By manager, he is referring to anyone in a leadership position within the organization such as the supervisor or team leader; someone who the employee's report to directly or who is higher up the managerial ladder. Those higher up bring in some degree of objectivity and are best suited for leadership, professional and interpersonal skills coaching. Managers are a good choice if the training involves technical aspects that they are conversant with. It will also serve to make managers more productive and to strengthen the manager-employee working relationship. You can also choose a trainer especially if the coaching program is related to a running training course. Through a trainer, the employees will be able to apply the skills acquired in the training course on the job. The trainer possesses the required knowledge and is familiar with the learning styles of each employee. Subject matter experts also make good coaches as they possess the relevant expertise in a particular area and can pass this on to employees. In all choices, you should ensure that the coach has the necessary coaching skills and the time (Allan, 2008) Allan also offers suggestions on who to hire outside the organization. These include external consultants who are skilled in coaching and who bring in objectivity due to their unfamiliarity with the organization. Peers can also be hired and these are people working in the same level as the employees being coached. This is somewhat unconventional but can be made to work by encouraging employees to share their work experiences and learn from them. You do not have to work with a single option only and can organize for multiple coaching interactions which will cater to the learning styles of each employee. The quality of the coach's skills is crucial and should not be overlooked. The coaching schedule should also be made available to participants and a system of monitoring and evaluation set up to monitor the program's success (Allan, 2008). Choosing the right coach for your employees is not an easy task. You have to ensure that he or she is the best possible candidate for the job and will bring out the best in your employees. Allan's book offers great insight into the hiring of coaches and is a great read for employers seeking to create a good coaching environment for their employees. His proposition to hire managers from within the organization as coaches is especially valuable since they are the best placed to ensure the success of the program. This is because they are in constant contact with the employees and therefore understand his or her background, including strengths and weaknesses very well. Being managers, they should possess at least the technical skills for the job that they will pass on to the employees through training. Most employees look up to their managers for direction and if coached by them, are likely to put more effort to appear productive and increase their

Group Dynamics and the impact upon the function of management Essay

Group Dynamics and the impact upon the function of management - Essay Example Basically this is the core premise and assumption supported in this paper: that it is favourable, more civil, and more ingenious to engage the entire individual in question and interaction and makes a lot of sense to engage the group in its own learning, development, and resolution (Benson 2001). For the purposes of this paper, group work practice denotes the well-organised, conscious, and methodical application of understanding about the mechanisms of collective human interaction, so as to get involved in a knowledgeable manner, or advance some wanted goal in a group context (Luthans 2005). Group work is a creative, healthy, and productive experience, performed based on open agreements, explicitly practised and clearly attained, about the task and goal of the group, responsibilities, rights of members (Greenberg 2000). Therefore, in order to address the premises of this paper various literature on managing organisational behaviour and group dynamics are used. It is evident that group situations evolve as an outcome of the energy produced by devotion and motivation divergences in the group. Exploring and understanding the adjustment in situations is an essential capability of group work practice (Mullins 2005). By observing the fluctuation in situation and determining the patterns and premises of behaviour, interaction, and relationship, it is possible to discern what needs or demands exist in the group at any specified time, and allow intervention to arise out of the given group condition (Robbins 2004). Tuckman, Garland, and his associates along with several scholars assume a sequential or linear progression in group development. This academic and systematic demarcation of group dynamics can be unknown to the experience of several novice group members as they analyse the evident disorder and uncertainty of their own