Assess Task Essay Example

Assess Task Essay The end of semester is just days away. I should be cramming as usual, but my mind just won’t anchor. It drifts from scene to scene unsatisfied at every moment, a restless buoy in a swelling sea. I am a model student – what is the difference this time? The difference this time is that it is the last time. Once more through the examination mill and then out I pop – an educated graduate. I can’t help but think that I feel more like an Uncle Toby’s Raspberry Roll-Up coming out flat at the other end.The last few years have flown by in a spicy, rebellious fog of cigarette smoke and 5dollar cocktails. I’m not ready for the corporate smoke den. What have really accomplished? A degree. A degree of waste, unhappiness and boredom. I wanted to study what I loved; instead, I chose what would guarantee my employment. I chose numbers over words, and words over meaning. Now I sit alone with my mistake. Now I have to forge hope out of my beaten-down heart. I haven’t been feeding my soul. I’ve been poisoning it with convention. Four years of conscientiousness and responsibility.Four years of crowded classes, annoying assignments and exhausting exams. Four years of stellar marks which fail to elicit any feeling of joy. Four years listening to my voice getting smaller and smaller inside of me. This is not you this is not you this is not you this is not you †¦ Four years has felt a lot like treading water. It hasn’t taken me anywhere. Except maybe back to myself. Old passions and desires have been brewing just under the surface – boiling like vegetables in a pressure cooker. Getting so hot sometimes, I thought my skin would break.But every time I thought it would, someone released the valve just enough to stop me from exploding. I could give in – admit a waste of time – but was it? If I am able to learn in anew short years what others take a lifetime to discover – that you must follow yo ur desire – then perhaps there was no waste – only a shortcut. I could choose so many paths to follow now, but which is the right one? A major in Pure Maths, yet I can barely get a grip on the infinite series of possibilities extending out in front of me. A moment ago I was locked in a cell with my mistake and now I see that this prison is self imposed.I am the warden. I hold all the keys. It is an odd feeling, when you realise how many choices you have and that for the most part there will be no dire consequences to face, the extent of that freedom is dumbfounding. Even for my small life, which is so big to me, to think and wade in the luscious possibilities is intoxicating. At the moment, Iam experiencing life as an outsider. I feel like I am holding my breath, swimming underwater and looking around at the landscape. I see myself on the land above, moving through life with effort. I want to rejoin myself and move as effortlessly as I do down here.I know I will have t o surface soon. And when I come up for air, and back to the noise, decisions will have to be made. A direction followed. I am ready to stop treading water. I want to swim. BY CHENOA PATERSON SUMMARY The writer is a UNI student just about to finish completing her pure maths degree that she has been doing for four years now and she has had enough and is over it. She didn’t study what she loved but instead study what would get her a job the easiest. For the four years she has been studding all she has been hearing herself say it that it isn’t her, she doesn’t belong in this degree.The degree is a degree of wast unhappiness and boredom. But then she realises to herself that she could give in and asks herself if it was really a waste of time, or a lesson that she needed to learn the same lesson that take some people a life time to learn but only took her a few short years, to follow your desires. CONCEPT OF BELONGING In the text ‘treading water’ the writ er doesn’t belong, she is over school/uni and doesn’t like the subject that she has chosen â€Å"I wanted to study what I loved; instead, I chose what would guarantee my employment. And for the four years she has spent doing this degree she has been telling herself â€Å"This is not you this is not you this is not you this is not you †¦Ã¢â‚¬  The degree she is doing doesn’t have anything to do with her character and she is not enjoying it at all, and for four years she has been listening to her voice getting smaller and smaller inside of her expressing that this isn’t her, which displays that she isn’t belonging. Now she is left with a beaten down heart. â€Å"Now I sit alone with my mistake. † Now I have to forge hope out of my beaten-down heart. now she has finished the degree she is upset and she has to forge her hope it’s not just going to come from what she has done she has to start some things again. â€Å"A degree. A d egree of waste, unhappiness and boredom. † This quote emphasis the point of not caring about the degree she has just gotten and that it was just a degree of waste, unhappiness and boredom. She isn’t going to be able to use this degree joyfully. She also emphasises it through a triple repetition of a word or phrase or sentence style 3 times for effect, waste, unhappiness and boredom.ANALYSIS OF THE LANGUAGE FEATURES AND STRUCTURES SIMILE = â€Å"Once more through the examination mill and then out I pop – an educated graduate. I can’t help but think that I feel more like an Uncle Toby’s Raspberry Roll-Up coming out flat at the other end. † Creating an image of the choice of food used in this simile which is common food in a playground/school (recess food) so this image is linking to a school image too. The extended metaphor â€Å"Old passions and desires have been brewing just under the surface – boiling like vegetables in a pressure co oker.Getting so hot sometimes, I thought my skin would break. But every time I thought it would, someone released the valve just enough to stop me from exploding. † Emphasis how much she doesn’t belong, referencing to the point that her old passions have still been there while she is doing her degree. She uses a simile to create an image of there being so much pressure on her but she actually wants to just do what she wants to do. â€Å"Four years of conscientiousness and responsibility. Four years of crowded classes, annoying assignments and exhausting exams.Four years of stellar marks which fail to elicit any feeling of joy. Four years listening to my voice getting smaller and smaller inside of me. † This is an exaggeration of the four years she has spent in uni and how much she hates/hated it. She didn’t belong in this course of maths and spent all this time doing it but hating it at the same time because she didn’t want to be there. â€Å"Four years† is alliteration to strengthen and reinforce the image of how long she spent doing what she didn’t want to do. stellar† is a strong adjective used to convey that she really doesn’t dig the course she is doing and feels no joy in her from it. CONNECTIONS TO THE SET TEXT (PETER SKRZYNECKI) The comparison of how long they have been in school (St Patricks College) and UNI (Treading Water) The repetition of â€Å"four years† in treading water. â€Å"Four years of conscientiousness and responsibility. Four years of crowded classes, annoying assignments and exhausting exams. Four years of stellar marks which fail to elicit any feeling of joy.Four years listening to my voice getting smaller and smaller inside of me. † The repetition of â€Å"eight years† in St Patricks College. This repetition in both of the texts is emphasising how long they have been in school/UNI. In the poem ‘St Patricks College’ Skrzynecki explains that he has been doing the same thing for â€Å"eight years† and still nothing is different, he got nothing from being in school and he didn’t enjoy it. Also in the reflection ‘Treading Water’ she emphasises that she has spent â€Å"four years† in UNI and hasn’t got any joy, hope or happiness.She isn’t enjoying it and is so excited for the last day but didn’t actually achieve anything. The simile â€Å"like a foreign tourist† this simile describes that he feels like a tourist he doesn’t belong at St Patricks College. The cultural barrier stops him from belonging like all the other Australia’s he knows this place because this is where he has grown up but he still doesn’t belong. In ‘Treading Water’ she too does not belong as she doesn’t belong in the degree she is doing, she knows it but she â€Å"wanted to study what I loved† and because she didn’t study what she loved â⠂¬Å"I sit alone with my mistake†.She made a mistake by picking the wrong degree to do because now she doesn’t belong in it. TEXT 2 Esther chapter 3 verses 8- 15 Then Haman said to King Xerxes, â€Å"There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them. 9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will give ten thousand talents[b] of silver to the king’s administrators for the royal treasury. 10 So the king took his signet ring from his finger and gave it to Haman son of Hammedatha, the Agagite, the enemy of the Jews. 11 â€Å"Keep the money,† the king said to Haman, â€Å"and do with the people as you please. † 12 Then on the thirteenth day of the first month the royal secretaries were summo ned. They wrote out in the script of each province and in the language of each people all Haman’s orders to the king’s satraps, the governors of the various provinces and the nobles of the various peoples. These were written in the name of King Xerxes himself and sealed with his own ring. 3 Dispatches were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces with the order to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews—young and old, women and children—on a single day, the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month of Adar, and to plunder their goods. 14 A copy of the text of the edict was to be issued as law in every province and made known to the people of every nationality so they would be ready for that day. 15 The couriers went out, spurred on by the king’s command, and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa.The king and Haman sat down to drink, but the city of Susa was bewildered. Esther chapter 4 When Mordecai learned of all that had b een done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. 2 But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it. 3 In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes. When Esther’s eunuchs and female attendants came and told her about Mordecai, she was in great distress. She sent clothes for him to put on instead of his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then Esther summoned Hathak, one of the king’s eunuchs assigned to attend her, and ordered him to find out what was troubling Mordecai and why. 6 So Hathak went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king’s gate. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal t reasury for the destruction of the Jews. He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to instruct her to go into the king’s presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people. 9 Hathak went back and reported to Esther what Mordecai had said. 10 Then she instructed him to say to Mordecai, 11 â€Å"All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that they be put to death unless the king extends the gold scepter to them nd spares their lives. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king. † 12 When Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, 13 he sent back this answer: â€Å"Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 Fo r if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this? † 15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 â€Å"Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me.Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish. † 17 So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther’s instructions. SUMMARY While at a banquet, King Xerxes summons his wife at the time (Queen Vashti) to parade around and show her beauty to make the Kings advisers jealous and lustful of her. After she refuses King Xerxes banishes her and holds a beauty pageant for all virgins to replace her.He then makes Esther queen without knowing she is a Jew. Mordecai Que en Esther’s cousin, who raised her like a father, finds out that that Haman on behalf of King Xerxes is going to annihilate the Jews. The Jews had all torn their clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes as a way of mourning. CONCEPT OF BELONGING She doesn’t belong with King Xerxes as she is lying to him, telling him she is not a Jew when she is, and she continues to lie until she finds out that he is planning to annihilate all the Jews. â€Å"6 So Hathak went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king’s gate. Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. 8 He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to instruct her to go into the king’s presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people. † Esther has now been asked by Mordecai to tell the king that she is a Jew and â€Å"to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people† â€Å"15 Then Esther sent this reply o Mordecai: 16 â€Å"Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish. †Ã¢â‚¬  She belongs with the Jewish group as she is following a normal Jewish ritual in asking them to fast and pray, until she goes before the king to beg for her people. ANALYSIS OF THE LANGUAGE FEATURES AND STRUCTURESThe repetition in these two verses, of destruction and annihilation is emphasising how much Haman â€Å"the enemy of the Jews. † Hates and wants the Jews dead and there is nothing they can do about it, and also emphasising how much they hate the Jews. †¢ â€Å"The destruction of the Jews. 8 He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation† †¢ â€Å"Dispatches were sent by couriers to all the king’s provinces with the order to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews† But the Jews know that the Queen Esther is a Jew and that she may be able to stop King Xerxes from having all the Jews killed. Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?. † The rhetorical question? Is expressing why she has come to this royal position at a time like this and that its God’s plan for her life, to stop them killing of the Jews,

5 Cases of Confusion Between Things and Their Names

5 Cases of Confusion Between Things and Their Names 5 Cases of Confusion Between Things and Their Names 5 Cases of Confusion Between Things and Their Names By Mark Nichol 1. â€Å"Users can choose from any website that offers RSS feeds, short for ‘Really Simple Syndication.’ â€Å"RSS feeds† is not short for â€Å"Really Simple Syndication.† The sentence refers to RSS feeds and then explains what the initialism stands for, but the association of the spelled-out term with the initialism is confusing, so the additional information needs to be distinguished from the main point: â€Å"Users can choose from any website that offers RSS feeds. (RSS is short for ‘Really Simple Syndication.’)† More simply, the parenthesis could be introduced as here: â€Å"Users can choose from any website that offers RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds.† However, the information is not essential and is better introduced in a trailing parenthesis. Use your judgment according to the context of each case. 2. â€Å"This is a camera obscura, a Latin term that means ‘dark chamber.’† This sentence suffers from the same type of confusion as the previous example. A camera obscura is not a Latin term; it is a device with that Latin name (and though the origin of the name is Latin, the term, despite being taken from that language, is English). Revise the sentence to clarify both points: â€Å"This is a camera obscura, a device whose name, borrowed from Latin, means ‘dark chamber.’† 3. â€Å"The pre-emptive offer also a common term in corporate transactions is hardly new.† Here, the concept of the pre-emptive offer is being mistaken for the name of the concept. Again, word the interjection of information to clarify the distinction: â€Å"The strategy known as a pre-emptive offer that phrase is also a common term in corporate transactions is hardly new.† 4. â€Å"With his talkie debut, as British secret agent Bulldog Drummond (1929), he became the first silent star to become even bigger in sound films.† This sentence attempts to name both a character and a film in one designation, but as we all know from physics class, two phenomena cannot occupy the same space at the same time. Separate the reference to the title character from that of the film title: â€Å"With his talkie debut, as the titular British secret agent in Bulldog Drummond (1929), he became the first silent star to become even bigger in sound films.† 5. â€Å"John is a Wetland Watcher a moniker he wears with pride and satisfaction.† This sentence’s conflict of concept and name is not as jarring as in the previous examples, but the statement would nevertheless benefit from more of a separation of the two elements: â€Å"John is a Wetland Watcher, and that’s a moniker he bears with pride and satisfaction.† 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 Grammar category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:"Because Of" and "Due To" "Owing to" vs "Due to"Shore It Up

Finance Officer Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Finance Officer - Essay Example The education required to get the job includes studying finance; if one has done their M.B.A in finance, it makes it even easier for them to be eligible for the job because of the accounting skills that are required to maintain modern books of accounts and manage the money coming in from customers purchasing the travel package deals. One, however, need not study travel and tourism extensively. Mr. Higgs mentioned that experience is required greatly and in order to be eligible for the post one must have worked as a managing and finance officer in a firm and also must have internship experience in the same field in order to understand the intricacies of the job better. Managing money might seem to be an easy job but is very difficult because one has to maintain various records to be sent to different travel agencies as well as the government. Moreover, proper rates need to be taken from hotels and leisure activity organizers from various parts of the country in order to provide a prope r deal to the customers. The main thing to be kept in mind is the management of profits and losses; one has to be well versed with studying operational financial management because it involves knowledge regarding how to make profits for the organization and save it from incurring heavy losses. Proper accounts have to be made ascertaining the profits and losses on a long-term so as to determine the ups and downs that the company may go through. Moreover, he also has to ascertain the assets and liabilities of the organization based on which he helps the entire firm decide the money that it can shell out for its various activities. The daily obligations thus include day to day management and looking into the books of accounts and maintaining a hold on the finances being taken out and brought it back to the company. In a week, almost 6 hours a day are required because of the constant money that keeps going in and out of the company.

Computer Module Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Computer Module - Essay Example The question being asked is what constitutes the defining paradigms of quality in the phase of conflicting perceptions in the IT industry. It is against this background that the central focus of this paper is tailored towards highlighting the most classical principles that are in tune with best practices in the industry. For obvious reasons, it spares the paper the drudgery of professing speculative theories. The conventional structure of software language has always being targeted at making available a system of unambiguous programming pattern based on logical processes that are explicit in their usage.1 In a related study, Jagdish et la (2002) allude to the fact that the continuous dependence on computer software for the execution of virtually all industrial, commercial and social activities makes it imperative for the question of quality to be ranked very highly in the process of developing software-a fact that has gained unanimous support from all concerned stakeholders. Notwithstanding the consensus held about the latter, the point of division however, lies in the inability to establish a similar consensus in establishing a standardized definition of what the term "quality" really means when it comes to software technology. Its definition is always crafted to suit a specific purpose, in other words, depending on what the software in question will be used for, then an appropriation o f quality is assigned to it (Boehm 1978, Vincent et la 1998, Sefikla et la 1998). To ease this complication, Jagdish et la (2002) recommends the usage of the object-oriented paradigm to replace the conventional systems of conducting any meaningful software quality assessment (also see Li & Henry 1993). Object-oriented metrics approach is a representation of an entirely innovative system of that is able to handle a comparatively larger aggregate array of tasks than was hitherto possible. Notwithstanding, it is woefully saddled in a limitation of the magnitude and scope of the tasks it can be used to assess. Primarily, the obvious reasons are that all that is known about it and application is still in its infancy. For instance, it is known to lack the capacity to fully integrate a small quantity of discrete data, which may be terribly below the high expectations placed on quality assessment in a large scale context (Schmidt et la 2000, Brian et la 1996, Sefikla et la 1996). In another interesting study, Schmidt (2000) is not particularly enthused about the fact that prior to the implementation of the object-oriented metrics, there is no mechanism that enables any credible quality assessment check to be conducted on it during the development process. Essentially, any quality alterations that the software might stand in need of, would certainly have to be deferred until such a time that user feedback is generated. A significant amount of effort is required to get the object-oriented metrics running effectively during the early stages of the development process. Granted all the working dynamics are systemically synchronized then, much of the testing process will ensure a smooth performance of the software. Quality Appraisal In view of the limitations inherently

Evaluation of Rosenbergs self-esteem scale

Evaluation of Rosenbergs self-esteem scale Psychological tests are tools used to measure differences between individuals or between the same individual under different circumstances. A psychological test is an objective and standardized measure of a sample of behavior. Before a test is released, researchers have to check its reliability and validity. By the term reliability it is meant consistency of scores obtained by the same person on different occasions. Validity of a test means that it actually measures what is meant to measure. Validity of a test tells the researcher what the test is measuring. In this study, Rosenbergs Self esteem scale is examined thoroughly by first looking at what self esteem is and how it is measured. The conceptualization of self esteem as a phenomenological construct seems to be linked with its measurement. There is plethora of research on the measurement of self esteem and some studies have shown that Rosenbergs scale is valid and reliable for some samples but others find that because self esteem is an unstable characteristic its measurement cannot be reliable. Difficulties in defining self esteem are also linked to its methodological issues as some researchers define self esteem as evaluative and others as descriptive. Problems of measuring a construct like self esteem are identified in this study as well as research on what population Rosenbergs self esteem scale is found to be valid and reliable is encountered. Self esteem promotes behaviors, goals and gives individuals a sense of worth. Some theories suggest that self esteem is a basic human need or motivation. Maslows theory of hierarchy of needs included self esteem by describing two different types of esteem; the need for respect from others and the need for self respect. Without fulfillment of self esteem individuals, according to Maslow could not obtain self actualization. Robson (1989) defined self esteem as the sense of contentment and acceptance that results from a persons appraisal of ones own worth, attractiveness, competence and ability to satisfy ones aspirations. (Columbus, 2006) Rosenberg and social learning theorists defined self esteem in terms of a stable sense of personal worth. These definitions have been applied to global and specific self esteem, meaning that global is an individuals overall evaluation of himself and specific on a facet of the self such as academic competence. This is one of the problems of self report measurements. It looks at what the individual perceives of himself. If an individual perceives himself as competent then the test will result that the person has high self esteem regardless of how competent he really is. Rosenbergs self esteem scale is an attempt to achieve a measure of global self esteem. There is research evidence that this scale is useful for getting a global sense of how a person feels about himself and is a good predictor of other measures of mental health such as depression and anxiety. Unfortunately research shows that it is not such a good predictor for specific domains like academic ability. Self report is one of the most used methods for gathering information on children and adults and its consistent with theoretical concepts of how to obtain information about oneself. Of course, its not without its drawbacks. There are issues on how accessible this information is in the memory, the situations or contexts a person is when they are answering and other factors that might influence how one answers questions about himself. As mentioned earlier cognitive and affective processes are involved in how information is processed through the memory and how its retrieved at a particular moment. A method for finding reliability is based on the consistency of responses to all items in the test. Due to the cognitive and affective processes, there are biases such as self-deception that occur when accessing information. The context and the emotional state where someone is asked to answer self report questionnaire on self esteem involves the situational factors that might influence responds about the self. If for example, someone is asked to answer about his self esteem after getting a promotion it will elicit his response to feel better with himself thus with more self esteem. Self presentation also impedes a persons belief about himself as he might want to be perceived by the researchers as someone with self esteem. It is important to know if individuals are responding honestly as social desirability is a factor tha t alters feelings. These factors may be biasing the responses they are giving. Rosenbergs self esteem scale is a ten item scale that asks individuals to rate themselves using four categories (strongly agree to strongly disagree) on statements regarding their sense of self worth or confidence. The scale is perhaps the most famous and widely used measure of self esteem. It is used with children and adults and is considered to be reliable and valid measure of self esteem. The SES has been validated for use with substance abusers and other clinical groups, and is regularly used in treatment outcome studies. The scale has been validated for use with both male and female adolescent, adult and elderly populations. It has been used with francophone populations but studies about other cultural groups are debateful. That might be the case because of the fact that the concept of self is highly dependent on verbal behavior and social norms in each society. The complexity of the concept as well as the lack of theoretical agreement and empirical data has resulted in acceptin g a general definition of self esteem, which is mirrored in the broad use of Rosenbergs self esteem scale. (Columbus, 2006) Although Rosenbergs self esteem scale has excellent psychometric properties it constitutes a unidimensional scale that does not capture the complexity of self esteem. Unidimensional scales are useful for gathering information on general mental health of individuals. There are a lot of scales that measure aspects of self esteem. Researchers should use measures that are specific to the issue they are investigating whether it is a global sense of self worth or specific evaluation of competencies across a wide spectrum of behaviors. There are allot of studies examining Rosenbergs self esteem scale and their results vary. An important condition influencing the size of a reliability coefficient is the nature of the group on which reliability is measured. A study that examined further support for multidimensionality within the Rosenberg self-esteem scale suggested that Tafarodi and Swann (1995) had another perspective on the relationship of Rosenbergs self esteem scale and the concept of global esteem. They thought that global self esteem is comprised by two separate and different concepts; self competence and self liking. A study examining the psychometric properties of the Rosenberg Self esteem scale in Chinese acute coronary syndrome patients (2006) suggest that the RSES has been found associated with depression. The RSES has also been widely used to gain insight into a diverse range of areas of substantive psychological interest including aspects of gender (Huyck, 1991), aggression and family dynamics (Haj-Yahia, 2001), perfectionism (Stumpf Parker, 2000) and neuroticism (Pullman Allik, 2000). Self esteem is found to be related to basic dimensions of personality as individuals with high self esteem tend to score high on extraversion, agreeableness and openness to experience. A more complex issue is the relation of self esteem and narcissism, as they have been found to correlate. The RSES has been found to correlate well with tests of self concept (Beck, Steer, Epstein, Brown, 1990) thus supporting the construct validity of the instrument. Rosenbergs self esteem scale has been translated into a l ot of languages and is used in diverse populations. One such example is the translation and validation of the Rosenberg self esteem scale in Spanish. The study consisted of the translation, adaption and analysis of the psychometric properties of the scale in a sample of university students. The results showed that the scale presents a unifactorial structure with good levels of internal consistency and stability. Test- retest correlation was good, supporting the reliability of the scale. A recent study (2009) examining the Psychometric Properties of the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale in African American Single Mothers shows that the scale can be released to other cultural groups. The purpose of this study was because self-esteem has been identified as an important factor in the mental health of African American women. African American women unfortunately experience multiple oppressions related to both racism and sexism, which has an impact on the formation and maintenance of self-esteem. Women with this kind of background, and especially single mothers with low income are correlated with poor self-esteem (Jackson, 2003) The RSE Scale showed adequate internal consistency with an alpha coefficient of .83. Two factors that accounted for a total of 54.7% of the variance were extracted. Self-esteem showed a strong negative relationship with both depressive symptoms and negative thinking. This study provides support for the internal consistency of the RSE Scale and partial su pport for its construct validity in this population. The RSE appears to represent a bidimensional construct of self-esteem for African American women, with the cultural influences of racial esteem and the rejection of negative stereotypes forming a separate and distinct aspect of this concept. As seen above, there is empirical evidence that shows that socioeconomic status plays role in self esteem scores. It is very weakly correlated to self esteem but it seems that wealthy individuals have a bit more self esteem than working class individuals. Researchers who study self esteem generally assume that its a stable trait that predicts future behavior. Research indicates that although self esteem levels can be temporarily elevated or depressed in everyday life studies show the stability of self esteem across years. Test retest is a method for finding the reliability of test scores by repeating the identical test on a second occasion. Test retest correlation of self esteem is comparable to those found for more basic dimensions of personality such as extraversion or neuroticism. There has been research on the stability of self esteem and it seems that it is high in childhood, falls in adolescence and increases during adulthood. A study made in 2006 by Quilty Oakman Risko suggest that although Rosenbergs self esteem scale was developed as a global self esteem factor, there is mixed support for its unifactorial structure. Many investigation of the structure of the scale used factor analysis. Factor analysis was developed as a mean of identifying psychological traits and is used for analyzing the interrelationships of behavior data. Hensley and Roberts (1976) found that an exploratory factor analysis of the scale results in two factors, consisting of the positively and negatively worded items which reflected an underlying response set. A study looking at the norms and construct validity of RSES in Canada suggests that Kaplan and Pokomey (1976) found that while there was a strong unitary factor in the scale, research showed a two factor solution with positively worded items and negatively worded items. These factors were called defense of individual self worth and self derogation accordingly. In 1990 another s tudy looked into the two factor structure of Rosenbergs self esteem scale and studied 1,700 adults in the USA and found the same results. They also argued that the scale can be regarded psychometrically coherent with a unitary structure. These findings indicate that the RSES is a reliable and potentially valid scale for use with Canadian high school students of all ages (Bagley Bolitho Bertrand ,1997) Another study compared Rosenbergs self esteem scale with Coppersmiths self esteem inventory with people with eating disorders. Researchers wanted to see which test would fit best in measuring self esteem so they measured the validity of both tests. The study found that Rosenbergs self esteem scale had better construct and convergence validity than the Coppersmith self esteem inventory at the particular sample. It is obvious that reliability and validity in some samples might not be granted. Reliability is the consistency of scored obtained by the same sample when they are reexamined with the same test on different occasions. Test reliability indicates the extent to which individual differences in test scores are attributable to true differences in the characteristics under consideration and the extent to which they are attributable to chance errors. When the differences are not true they are called error variance and this is a possibility when measuring self esteem. The researcher would have to test the correlation coefficient of two sets of scores. As we can see from studies mentioned when researching the self, the methodological issues are difficult. The researchers should examine each tests reliability and validity before releasing it to the public. The problems of measuring a construct like self-esteem apply on nearly all of the studies that measure elements of the personality. Some researchers assume that phenomena that occur at the cognitive level will be manifested by behaviors that can be observed and measured. Other researchers suggest that behaviors should not be used to measure personality traits because we are unable to determine what cognitive processes might be affecting that trait. They argue that constructs like self-esteem should not be studied because there is no clear way to measure them or even know if you are measuring the right thing. As the majority of the theories suggest, individuals develop their self and self-concept through social interaction. There may be some innate cognitive process that is modified by social interaction or just social interaction, but either way people display behaviors and express opinions about who they are, from a very young age. For this reason it is important that psychologists be able to study and measure this phenomenon. Future work needs to address the issues of theory, definition, and methodology that have remained unresolved across the centuries. A consensus on these issues will lead to better measurement and a better understanding of how self-esteem influences the mental health and behavior of individuals.

John Miltons Paradise Lost Essay -- Epic Biblical Poems Blind Faith E

John Milton's Paradise Lost Freedom (free will) is the absence of imposed behavior. Individual freedom is obviously attractive, but when there is real freedom of choice, the wrong choice is the one that is made - such as the choice made by Satan who although he can be admired for his having dared to rebel against the norm, is not heroic for having chosen to plot against God. Free will was given to man in order to be able to choose the faith since in the absence of free will, there is no way to test faith. The more tested we are, the closer we are to God although whether we truly exercise free will is questionable since perhaps it is simply enforced via the threat of punishment upon transgression. In any event, despite the sanctions, man continues to disobey. Paradise Lost begins in medias res, i.e. in the middle of the action and from line 1, the association is made to the consequences of sinning (disobedience). Such is the responsibility of free will. The motivation to sin is the associated pleasure of fulfilling individual desires. Disobedience leads directly to punishment. It is important to note however that there is no fulfilment with transgression since the feelings associated with this fulfilment disappear before they can even be apprehended while the punishment lasts. Milton surely knew all about since as a puritan, he was a great believer of penance. It was also believed by Protestants at the time that without deprivation during life, there was no ascent to Heaven upon death. Satan's flaw in one word was pride. For any true protestant, this is a terrible sin since any achievement is directly attributable to God and not to the man in question. Milton identifies pride as the cardinal sin b... ...ms throughout Paradise Lost that this simple equation might work : since God is good and Charles II can be compared to God then logically it can be deducted that he is also good. Conversely, in the poem, we arrive at the conclusion that Satan is bad and this time, since milton compares cromwell to Satan then it would seem logical to deduce that cromwell is also bad. However, this equation does not hold up to close inspection and in this way, it is evident that in fact, this is a test since we should properly analyse the facts and not simply accept things at face value because they seem right. He encourages us to make our own investiations and make informed, knowledgable decisions. Consequently, it cannot be simply stated that all monarchs are good since such sweeping statements are false and it is primordial to properly examine each separate individual.

Disgrace by Coetzee

This paper will discuss and evaluate the changes that the main character David Lurie goes through in the novel Disgrace by Coetzee. It would also cover as how it reflects the changing times in South Africa and its affects on other characters in the novel. In Disgrace by Coetzee, Lurie is a man who has various levels of character evaluation. He went through various phases of changes. At one time, he seems to be contemptuous of others, uses his position to take what he wants and to justify the taking. On the other level, in parallel, he is a white South African male forced to re-evaluate his entire world when he thinks he is too old for change.In the novel â€Å"Disgrace†, we see that 52 years old David Lurie is a professor of communications at a Cape Town University. Unfortunately, he is twice divorced and enjoys this personal opinion that having a woman has never been a problem. In this novel, he reveals various traits of his personality and character through various phases an d changes. Ultimately, he has to acknowledge that he is no longer fascinating with the passage of time; he sought the suitable services of a prostitute. This was an arrangement that finally came to an end, leaving him with no channel for his virility.He is confronted with another change in his approach and approach at this phase in the novel. David Lurie lastly induced himself that an affair with a one of his female students would not be a bad idea after all and went for it. At this stage, we observe another turn in his life. The complaint of sexual harassment by the student shook his academic life upside down and he had to quit the job. As soon as he realizes this, David Lurie go through another phase of his character and leaves for the country side to an unsafe and remote farm. There, he intends to spend some time with his daughter who ran an animal refuge and sold produce and flowers.He gets himself involved in writing. Lucy is violated by gangsters and with that David's disgrace reaches its climax. David, at this critical stage and point of life, unexpectedly finds himself re-evaluating and changing his character. He reconsiders his relations with people, his affiliation with his only daughter, as well as his links with women. This change of approach and re-evaluation process reveal upon him that that love is never unreflecting rather it is always two-sided; it may be called a matter of give and take. He feels a certain kind of change in his character and approach at this specific point of time he was going through.The basic message from this novel is that the reader comes to know the generally accepted truth that a person can comprehend who he/she is only when he analyzes his past. An important change in Lurie’s character is revealed through a significant event when on his journey, Lurie is compelled to visit Melanie's family where he finally performs an act of contrition. When he finds his Cape Town home vandalized, he decides to permanently chang e his life. He returns to stay with his daughter, who is pregnant with the child of one of her attackers and living under the protection of being one of Petrus's wives.Lurie devotes himself to volunteering at the animal clinic, where he helps put down diseased and unwanted dogs, and composing his futile opera. Although not what he would ever have expected, he finds some form of life purpose. We also see Lurie in a different shade of his character when he resists to being part of the University committee's desire for â€Å"prurience and sentiment† echoes the efforts of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) which offered immunity in return for full disclosure of facts and a public show of remorse.The TRC has been internationally acclaimed for contributing to the way South Africa avoided a civil war. The change in his character transpires when Lurie finally apologizes, members of the tribunal refuse to be satisfied, demanding to know whether it reflects his sincere feeli ngs and comes from his heart: â€Å"Confessions, apologies: why this thirst for abasement? † Lurie asks himself. We see that he enjoys various virtues and traits of character during different phases of his life.David Lurie could save his job if he simply expressed the kind of repentance demanded of him by the university disciplinary board that has authority over him. He seems a different Lurie at this stage. We find ourselves sympathizing with the reasons he gives for not giving them what they want when he says: We went through the repentance business yesterday. I told you what I thought. I won't do it. I appeared before an officially constituted tribunal, before a branch of the law. Before that secular tribunal I pleaded guilty, a secular plea. That plea should suffice.Repentance is neither here nor there. Repentance belongs to another world, to another universe of discourse†¦. [What you are asking] reminds me too much of Mao's China. Recantation, self-criticism, public apology. I'm old fashioned, I would prefer simply to be put against a wall and shot. (Coetzee, 1999, p. 58) There is not a word about the ethical conflict between lust and abuse of academic power. And there is no hint that the protagonist thinks he has committed an act genuinely subject to ethical objection. As regards to the same inclination, we also find a somewhat more honest confrontation.A South African professor of English is caught imposing sex upon a beautiful student enrolled in his â€Å"Romantic Literature† course. Here, he seems a different kind of person persuading a young girl to fulfill his lustrous desires. When he first proposes that she â€Å"spend the night† with him, she asks â€Å"Why? † and he answers, â€Å"Because you ought to. † â€Å"Why ought I to? † â€Å"Why? Because a woman’s beauty does not belong to her alone. It is part of the bounty she brings into the world. She has a duty to share it†¦. † â₠¬Å"And what if I already share it? †Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Then you should share it more widely. † (Coetzee, 1999, p. 16) Conclusion In depicting the characteristic evolution of David Lurie's fall and rise, Coetzee uses his typically spare prose to great effect. Sometimes, the accusation of using stereotypes confuses Coetzee's habit of avoiding unnecessary detail with racial typecasting. If we are to believe that Coetzee is casting all black men as immoral, rapists and liars, then surely it would be equally true that we are to believe that all white men are academic Lotharios who spend their time sexually harassing students.On the contrary, by following the downfall of one man Coetzee is drawing attention to South Africa's dilemma of striving for color-blind equality in the immediate aftermath of decades of institutionalized racial discrimination. The evolutionary changes in the main character of the novel have been connoted in over all opera of contrasts based setting of the nov el. The existence of contrast should not be taken to suggest, however, that these are two entirely separable ways of working with cultural materials; the point at which making becomes creating, or creating reverts to making, is never predictable, and can be assigned only after the fact.It is often a gradual process of false starts and wasted efforts, erasures and revisions, slowly inching nearer to an outcome that, one can only hope, will be the desired one, or arriving at it in fits and starts. We may quote from Coetzee's Disgrace again, though this description of David Lurie's composition of a chamber opera is the echo of thousands of similar accounts across a number of fields. This reflects and suggests change in his character.