Engineer Ethics Essay

The roles of engineers are respectively wide. Amongst the major responsibilities for engineers are design, construction supervision, consultation, project procurement, commissioning and management etc. Engineers are responsible to give the highest regard to his profession and conduct himself with integrity when executing his task. For example a good design solution would have to include two important aspects namely design adequacy and cost effectiveness. In addition, engineers have obligation to generate design solutions that are environmental friendly at the same time meeting the demanding requirements of client. Engineers have a duty of care to the environment, society and to their valuable customers or clients. They would have to generate design that fulfill the design clauses in the engineering codes of design, meeting the requirements by the various Governmental Departments and incorporate design solutions that are environmental friendly which induce minimum negative impacts to the surrounding environment and society. Besides, engineers would have to take into consideration the cost implication of their design solution to their clients. This has caused great dilemma in engineers, as they have to balance cost implication of the design solution with other factors such as quality, efficiency and various socio-economy factors. In the context of a developing country like Malaysia, in some cases, clients however have different mindset from that of the engineers. Clients are more concern about the cost implication of the generated design solution; they are more interested in design solution that is cost effective and yet fulfills the minimum design requirements by the Government. In this respect, clients would normally opt for design solutions that are cost effective, that stay within their budget. Some clients would incorporate project budget that is far inadequate which requires the engineers to sacrifice the quality and long-term efficiencies aspects in their design solution. This has obviously contradicted with the engineers’ interests of incorporating optimum design that would guarantee long-term efficiencies and easy maintenance. In addition, a not-up-to the standards design solution that obviously with an associated lower construction cost would mean that the engineer would be getting a much lesser consultation fees in view that the engineering fees are normally proportional to the cost expenditure of the project. However these two factors, namely the cost factors and quality are normally indirectly roportional to one another. This has made the engineers’ life extremely tough and difficult. Engineers are constantly wondering if they should go for expensive design solution that would definitely give both long-term efficient operations and maintenance and most importantly getting a higher professional fees, or go for an ‘ok’ design solution that might not be able to guarantee the quality aspects of the project and yet getting a lower professional fees. In view of the dilemma that engineers are constantly encountering in balancing capital expenditure with optimum design for efficient operations and maintenance, engineers should by all means combine both the design and cost aspects in the process of generating design solutions for their clients. Engineers should not produce a cheap design solution that does not comply with the relevant code of practices with the purpose just to please their valuable clients, hoping for more projects. Neither should they generate expensive design, ignore the cost implication of that particular design and with the purpose to obtain higher professional fee.

World Without Electricity

What would the world be like without electrity? As we are creates of habit, we heavily depend on electricty to function. The majority of items that are used on a daily basis depend on electricity to function. Modern socirety adapted to electricity more than ever. There is no specific date as to when electricity was discovered. In June 1752 Benjamin Franklin proved that lightening is electricity. In 1791 Galvani publisged his doscoverey of Bio electricity. In 1800 Volta invented the Galvanic cell, in which this day in age we call it the battery. Without these advances we woukd be living in a society without any sort of electrity.In July 2012 more than 700 million people in India had been left without power in the world's worst blackout of recent times. This lead to fears that protests and riots could follow after the lost of electricity. Traffic lights went out, causing serve jams. Surgical operations were cancelled across the entire country. The nurses at some hospitals were operatin g life saving equipment manually as the back up generrators failed. Air conditioners, flat screen tvs, and other gizmos and gadgets became just unusable items. If electricity was gone indefinietly in the united states, our country would become chaotic for a few years.Americans would eventually be able to adapt to such circumstances. Our economy would suffer horribly without the sotck exchange. modern medicine would be flushed down the drained, technological advances would be no good. many people would not be able to have life saving surgies performed- hence a terrible mortailty rate. life expectancy would drop. life would become seriously uncomfortable. Everyone would have to get acustomed to life as in as in the olden days. A lot of hard and manual labor, everything must be done in the hours of daylight. Wood would be burnt to keep warm in the winter.Cars would not run because electricity is needed to pump gas. Electric hybird cars would become invaluable. Crime would rise. Candles would be used to see in the dark. The Amish folk live without electricty and they do just fine. If a crisis such as no electricty were to were happened we would just have to mimick the their lifestyle and the lifestyle of those before us. Back to farming, Candles as lighting, Back to reading and educating ourselfs with literature. No moderen technology to distract people from daily tasks. families would bond, Everyone would be equal. World Without Electricity Lucy Ellman fantasizes about a world without electricity, yet she stumbles upon her own rebutall. To live comfortably in a world without power requires many other human beings to toil without a hint of comfort. This lifestyle was accessible without power, but it's unlikely she would have reaped its benefits. The â€Å"mechanical slave† she references was simply known as a â€Å"wife† or â€Å"servant. † I have fantasies of electricitylessness. To live in a steading somewhere, equipped with a reliable well, vegetable patch, fireplace, maybe a wood-fired Aga.Cold white wine would somehow emanate from its own spring just outside the door. Inside, it would be all porridge and patchwork quilts, padded silk hangings in progress, a chicken or two, and musical instruments, which we’d play to warm ourselves up. Yes, I would miss the ready supply of the finest music, now provided instantly by free music streaming. And washing clothes by hand would be a chore. And it ’s easier to fill a hot water bottle if you’ve got an electric kettle. Many household machines, I admit, are useful — cookers, dishwashers, fridges, freezers, toasters. But they take up so much space!If only they could be merged into one do-it-all mechanical slave that charges around your house vacuuming, toasting, and broadcasting non-stop. Cooks up a stew too, once it gets hot enough. Dutifully obeying the modern principle of agglomeration, it would be called an iPlod. Ellman's fantasy did exist. It was a world where most women were stooped over from manual labor by their 30s, where life expectancy was far shorter than today, and life for most was composed of backbreaking labor. That may be a world worth having, but there's a reason our ancestors so eagerly latched onto the concept of electricity.

Aging Population Effects on Health Care Essay

Health care is a fast evolving field with advancements of technology and treatment options growing every day. The delivery of care has grown and often shifts direction over the years to accommodate changing population demographics and needs of patients. Many factors play a part in the role of health care and medical treatment, one of those factors being population demographic changes. When the demographics of a population change it can cause adverse effects on the surrounding area in many ways, such as access to care, types of treatment needed to care for the population and the need for health care employees. In a particular population where the demographic is aging the dynamic and need for care begins to affect the health care system in a variety of ways. All health care entities involved play a role in ensuring the challenges and the needs of the population change are met. As the population demographic ages the impact on the delivery of care will be significantly altered, such as t he organization of care and how it is delivered, treatment options, long-term care, and health care coverage will all be affected in different ways. According to the Administration on Aging of the Department of Health and Human Services, approximately 13% of the people living in the United States are elderly as of 2011, which average to about 40 million people. The Department of Health and Human Services estimates that by the year 2030 this number will expand to 72 million making up for 20% of the population in the United States (Campbell, 2013). Another factor that affects the aging population demographic is the rapid rate of retiring Baby-Boomers, with almost 10,000 entering retirement every day over the next 16 years this number will continue to grow (Campbell, 2013). The increasing amount of people aging in the United States as well as all over the world means the focus of health care will shift from acute care to the treatment of serious chronic diseases and assisted living skilled and non-skilled medical care will be in high demand. The aging population also results in the growth and demand for an increase in health care services impacting the health care market in a way that increases cost for all health care entities, such as the individual patient, the federal government, individual states, hospitals, physicians, etc. Other impacts of the health care system will be the increase need for health care employees with  specific skill sets along with the need for additional health care settings to attend to the elderly population. When population demographics change such as aging, many health care related challenges begin to rise and must be addressed and overcome quickly to ensure the quality of care is not impacted. Some of these challenges in an aging population are the need for in-home medical care and assisted living, such as hospice care, skilled nursing facilities and other long-term medical care settings. The challenge these bring to the health care system as well as the aging population are the high financial cost of in-home support and increased difficulties recruiting the proper trained employees (Potter, 2010). Another challenge this specific population change is faced with is the increased cost of health care coverage. Most retirees and elderly population turn to the federal government health plan known as Medicare for his or her individual health care coverage, with the majority of the Baby-Boomer population turning 65 years old at a rapid pace, more and more Americans are qualifying for Medicare coverage. In recent years the cost of Medicare has raised, mainly impart to the increased cost of prescription medications and the consumption of the elderly population (Potter, 2010). With decreasing long-term care options and increasing health care cost the elderly population is faced with many challenges within the health care system. Ultimately the current state of the health care system in the United States must address the concern of the aging population and adapt to the needs of the elderly. In the current era of advanced technology, more and more elderly people are connected to the internet and have a wide variety of receiving health care information. As the health care market moves into a more diverse and technology driven state it is important to market these wellness programs as well as changes in health care coverage that will ultimately effect the aging population. Another way to address the challenges of the aging population is ensuring that individual patients receive the most up to date information regarding his or her health care coverage and diagnosis information. Individual patients, communities and society as a whole can bring together the focus on the aging population health care needs by promoting wellness programs and providing the support to health care facilities needed to face the aging popu lation’s challenges.

Analyze an evaluate the impact of volunteer tourism on host Essay - 1

Analyze an evaluate the impact of volunteer tourism on host communities 2 - Essay Example As identified by Sin (2010), we live in a world of â€Å"heightened responsibilities†. At least in the developed world, people are being bombarded; from almost all directions that they need to show have to exhibit great environmental friendliness, moral responsibility, ethical consumerism, eco-friendliness and concern for less privileged members of the society. Corporate social responsibility, ethical marketing, social marketing, charities, cause related campaigns are a manifestation of the same. Volunteer tourism also falls under the same umbrella (Tourism Research and Marketing, 2008, p. 43). Researchers and experts have welcomed this idea with great deal of optimism and energy since it appears that such approach towards tourism can emerge as a much needed catalyst for social change. It can build bridges, foster intercultural relations, generate employment, help less privileged in the underdeveloped countries and set them towards the path of sustainability while providing sa tisfaction to the volunteers. Most of the projects undertaken by the volunteer tourists fall under the umbrella of building, community welfare, teaching, environmental regeneration, business, cultural development, environmental protection, healthcare, journalism, research and others. Countries that most hosted volunteer tourists include Kenya, India, Italy, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Ghana, Honduras and China. This paper, however, is an attempt to review and analyse the concept of volunteer tourism in a critical light. Discussion Tourism is a lucrative industry since it has the potential to contribute to the national output of the host country, generate employment and open doors of foreign exchange. One of the most significant advantages of volunteer tourism is that it directs this tourism money and its economic impact to more deserving and underdeveloped destinations that would not have received the same from other forms of mainstream tourism. Wearing (2001) acknowledges the fact that in the case of volunteer tourism, the host communities are on the receiving end, the volunteers also receive a significant degree of intercultural experience, personal satisfaction, self fulfilment and inner peace. Quite understandably, a volunteer tourist who is working alongside local communities is likely to have much more meaningful interactions with the local community as compared to a tourist who is residing in five star hotels and visiting only elite locations (p. 58). Such interactions are not only helpful in promoting intercultural relations, but at the same time, they also allow people from developed countries to understand the problems of people from developing countries and empathise with them. Guttentag (2009), in light of the overwhelming evidence, acknowledges the fact that over the past couple of decades, volunteer tourism has emerged as a promising mass niche market within the tourism industry, which has been hailed widely to benefit the host communit ies as well as the tourists. However, the author highlights the fact that widespread enthusiasm and optimism regarding volunteer tourism has translated into an uncritical approach towards volunteer tourism,

Hospitality Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Hospitality Law - Essay Example The rights would cease if there are reasons to believe that the guest room could be used as a security threat venue. In such case, the hotel management can breach this policy and allow the third party’s accessed after proper confirmation (Jeffries 103-107). Confirmation could be in a form of ex parte, a judicial proceeding obtained granted at the persistence of and for the advantage of individual party only, and with no need of the other partys attendance. The other reason is a search warrant. An order in formal forms in reference to the state; authorized or authenticated by a magistrate and specified to a peace officer instructing him to search for personal possessions and take it to the magistrate (Jeffries 103-107). In a nutshell, the privacy right of a guest can be breached by hotel management if there is suspicion or proof of security threat. The second review question seeks to assess the relevance of Campbell v. Womack in hotel guest’s right of privacy. The hotel had an obligation, an affirmative duty, supported by a â€Å"guest’s rights of privacy and peaceful possession of the room† (Jeffries 103-107). policy that gave them mandate not to permit unauthorized and unregistered individuals to gain access to the guestrooms of its guests (Jeffries 103-107).. The affirmative duty refers to the obligation or duty of making verification, in the initial instance, of issues alleged or in the appealing of the court; the duty to maintain the need for proof. The right of a hotel to prohibit unauthorized or unregistered guests was established even in the scenario of an unregistered wife. In this scenario, a husband acquired a guestroom on a monthly basis (Jeffries 103-107). When the spouse, a frequent guest, asked for a key, she was denied since she was not listed with the hotel. The Louisiana Court of Appeals confirmed that the restaurant was under

Workplace code of conduct Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Workplace code of conduct - Essay Example It is assessed that having ethical framework is, performing the right or moral thing when no one is looking. The implementation and fulfillment of the ethics are a personal preference and consequently, how workplace ethics are managed depend on the personal ethics of those who are in power over that place of work as well as those who work in that operational atmosphere (Ghillyer) and (Workplace-Ethics). It is significant to keep in mind that workplace codes of conduct are shaped through two significant factors. Workplace policy is the initial factor that has to be in agreement via entire laws as well as regulations that are at present in the authority where the business functions. This helps to make sure that essential workplace ethics prevent some pressure or compulsion to employ in actions that are measured to be against the law, encourage favoritism in the workplace, maintaining unfair hiring plus firing carry out or permit salary to be set that are beneath the smallest legal amou nt or the established standards for the area (Tatum). Nowadays the workplace code of conduct /ethics emerges according to the workplace environment. At the present, organizations have better code of conducts for handling all the type of situations. In company code of conduct we see all the aspects from the ethical point of view. The list of ethical conducts is developed through the analysis of the business situation and operational practice. In company we can have code of conduct regarding lot of different aspects, for examples Forced Labor, Child Labor, Harassment or Abuse, Nondiscrimination, Health and Safety, Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining, Wages and Benefits, Hours of Work and Overtime Compensation (Fairlabor). . For instance, code of conduct for Ubunto available at: http://www.ubuntu.com/community/conduct The above given aspects and codes of conduct seem to fulfill all the areas of

Marine Fisheries Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Marine Fisheries - Research Paper Example Due to marine fishing, the number of stock that is available for the fish breed to ensure their sustainability for the next years has always reduced. Therefore, there is need to ascertain whether marine fishing has reached to a point where it threatens the extinction of some species of marine fish and relate these to environmental ethical issues. The main aim of the study is to ascertain the impact of marine fisheries and how it relates to some of the environmental ethical theories. The following research questions will assist in attaining these research objectives. Is the level of marine fisheries threatening the sustainability of some marine fish? How does these relate to the environmental ethical theories like utilitarianism? Any entity that is engaged in harvesting or rising of fish is referred to as a fishery. The terms that typically define a fishery are types of fish or species, individuals involved, the area of seabed or water, fishing method, the activities, purpose or the class of the boats. Fishers as well as fish are usually combined in the definition with the latter utilizing similar gear types to fish similar species. Aquatic culture, fish farming or capturing wild fish may be involved in a fishery. Fish stocks are continuously being reduced due to overfishing that has led to fish being taken beyond sustainable levels. (Jennings et al, 78)

Education ch6,8 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Education ch6,8 - Essay Example that religion contributes to the development of the fundamental peace through progressive inclusion of various religions in the education system globally. By analyzing the input of Thomas Aquinas, the author of the book further asserts that religion contributes fundamental societal values that help constrict cohesive societies. Religion is therefore a fundamental aspect of the society whose inclusion in the education system is paramount. Education serves the purpose of communicating the values to successive generations thereby influencing the social structures and relations among people. The values further influence the interactions among the learners and the educators. Discipline is an essential aspect of education that contributes to the success of the entire exercise. The religious values often influence the creation of laws to guide the conduct of the learners and the development of appropriate ethical codes of conduct for the teachers. This way, each group appreciates the other and acknowledges the need for respect a feature that enhances the success of the learning process. In chapter 8, the author analyses the contributions of John Calvin to the development of education. In doing this, he discusses the American education movement often giving keen attention to the contributions and ideas of John Calvin. Among the fundamental aspects of the chapter is the rise of nationalism. Just as the name suggests, nationalism refers to the love of an individual’s country. The historical rise of nationalism is therefore an essential aspect of historical studies since it helps understand the historical relationship among people in a society. Additionally, nationalism led to the development of modern day government. The historical analysis of nationalism thus helps understand the nature of contemporary politics in the country. Additionally, John Calvin also makes fundamental religious contributions to the development of education as he explains the need for translation

Drugs of Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Drugs of Abuse - Essay Example ay and white matter and is the focal point of all human activity—controlling all movements and coordination when a person need to breathe, drive a car, eat some snacks, create some artistic masterpiece, and many other things. Note that, human brain has three very vital areas that can be damaged by drug abuse. The brain stem, which controls basic functions crucial to life, examples include: breathing, heart rate, and sleeping; The limbic system, which consist of the brain’s reward circuit, whereby brain structures are link together, control and regulate a person’s ability to sense pleasure as well as motivates to repeat behaviors like eating. Then, the limbic system that is practically activated the moment people perform activities including drugs of abuse. Furthermore, the limbic system is accountable for perception of other emotions, whether it is positive or negative, and this explains the mood-altering characteristics of many drugs. Probably, the most essential part of the brain is the cerebral cortex, since this area is occupied by structures controlling the senses, enabling people to see, feel, hear, and also to taste. Cerebral cortex is also the â€Å"thinking† area of the brain, very essential for memory, association of facts and events and also for decision making process. Entirely, the brain basically regulates individuals’ basic body functions, including the process of interpreting facts as well as responding to experiences, emotions, and even behavior. Indeed, the brain is composed of many parts which all work together as one team and these parts are responsible for coordinating and conducting particular functions. However, drugs can modify important brain areas which are essential for life-sustaining functions; it can drive the uncontrollable drug abuse which marks addiction. The areas of the brain are certainly affected by drug abuse (National Institutes of Health - U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2008; p 15). Drugs are

Apple case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Apple - Case Study Example pany’s business strategies are unique in the sense that it designs, manufactures, and markets a variety of personal computers, portable digital music players, and mobile communication and media devices. The company’s manages its distribution channels by selling its products globally through its retail stores, direct sales force, online stores, and third-party cellular network carriers. Apple Inc. has undergone major revolutions since its founding in 1976 with Steve Jobs playing a significant role of sustaining the company’s business strategies as a co-founder. Since 2007, Apple has gained a large chunk of the market share, considering that it faced a number of challenges in the past that arose from mismanagement and boardroom wrangles. As at January 2010, Apple’s board of directors had eight members with Steve Jobs playing an active role as the company CEO and internal board member. Like any other big company with an international presence, Apple has had it fair of bureaucracies with its top management undergoing major reshuffles over the years. Apple’s business strategy embraces innovation in that the company optimizes customer experience through constant innovation of its soft wares, hardware, internet features, and other peripherals. The company has gained a competitive advantage by developing its operating system, unlike its rivals that do outsource for the products. By using a unique business organization, Apple has amassed huge market share in Europe, Asia-Pacific, America, and Japan. The company organizes its business or geographical basis in order to manage the market segments efficiently. Although Apple faces stiff competition from manufacturers of rival products, the company has edged out its competitors through use of cutting-edge technology. As a founding member and CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs played a primary role in resuscitating the company, especially during economic and management crisis. For close to four decades, Steve Jobs has

Four Principles of Individual Decision Making Assignment

Four Principles of Individual Decision Making - Assignment Example But in order to purchase a television we have no other way, but to give up some money. In economic terms it is said that â€Å"There is no such things as a free lunch†. The second principle says that the cost of something is what we give up to get it. For example, consider a person forced to give up $ 200 for purchasing a television the cost of that television would be $ 200. If another person spends $ 300 on an advanced television the cost of that television would be $ 300. Suppose a person exchanges a television for a mobile phone, the cost of the television and the mobile phone would be equal. In short, cost of a commodity is determined by the sacrifice we did to achieve it or gain it. The third principle says that whenever rational people purchase something they will think of the margins they may get. In other words rational individuals compare the marginal benefits and the marginal costs before taking a purchasing decision. Suppose a person think of purchasing some gold as an investment. The prices of gold goes on increasing at present and a rational person know that if he invests in gold now, he will get more benefits in the future. At the same time he has another option of investing the money as term deposits in banks. But the marginal benefits received from banks as interests might be less than the marginal benefits gets from the gold investment. In other words the decision to select one alternative over other depends on the marginal benefits associated with both of them. The fourth principle says that people may respond to incentives. For example, buy one get one free is a common sales strategy adopted by many manufacturers. When we go to shopping, we often see advertisements like that. A person visiting a shopping mall for purchasing a particular brand of shirt may change his decision if he sees the advertisement of another branded shirt in which they offer one free shirt of same quality for every purchase of a new shirt from them. Thus incentives may often influence the decision making of individuals.  

An Introduction to Genre Theory Essay Example for Free

An Introduction to Genre Theory Essay An Introduction to Genre Theory Daniel Chandler 1. The problem of definition A number of perennial doubts plague genre theory. Are genres really out there in the world, or are they merely the constructions of analysts? Is there a finite taxonomy of genres or are they in principle infinite? Are genres timeless Platonic essences or ephemeral, time-bound entities? Are genres culturebound or transcultural? Should genre analysis be descriptive or proscriptive? (Stam 2000, 14) The word genre comes from the French (and originally Latin) word for kind or class. The term is  widely used in rhetoric, literary theory, media theory, and more recently linguistics, to refer to a distinctive type of text*. Robert Allen notes that for most of its 2,000 years, genre study has been primarily nominological and typological in function. That is to say, it has taken as its principal task the division of the world of literature into types and the naming of those types much as the botanist divides the realm of flora into varieties of plants (Allen 1989, 44). As will be seen, however, the analogy with biological classification into genus and species misleadingly suggests a scientific process. Since classical times literary works have been classified as belonging to general types which were variously defined. In literature the broadest division is between poetry, prose and drama, within which there are further divisions, such as tragedy and comedy within the category of drama. Shakespeare referred satirically to classifications such as tragedy, comedy, history, pastoral, pastoral-comical, historical-pastoral, tragical-historical, tragical-comicalhistorical-pastoral (Hamlet II ii). In The Anatomy of Criticism the formalist literary theorist Northrop Frye (1957) presented certain universal genres and modes  as the key to organizing the entire literary corpus. Contemporary media genres tend to relate more to specific forms than to the universals of tragedy and comedy. Nowadays, films are routinely classified (e. g. in television listings magazines) as thrillers, westerns and so on genres with which every adult in modern society is familiar. So too with television genres such as game shows and sitcoms. Whilst we have names for countless genres in many media, some theorists have argued that there are also many genres (and sub-genres) for which we have no names (Fowler 1989, 216; Wales 1989, 206). Carolyn Miller  suggests that the number of genres in any society depends on the complexity and diversity of society (Miller 1984, in Freedman Medway 1994a, 36). The classification and hierarchical taxonomy of genres is not a neutral and objective procedure. There are no undisputed maps of the system of genres within any medium (though literature may perhaps lay some claim to a loose consensus). Furthermore, there is often considerable theoretical disagreement about the definition of specific genres. A genre is ultimately an abstract conception rather than something that exists empirically in the world,  notes Jane Feuer (1992, 144). One theorists genre may be anothers sub-genre or even super-genre (and indeed what is technique, style, mode, formula or thematic grouping to one may be treated as a genre by another). Themes, at least, seem inadequate as a basis for defining genres since, as David Bordwell notes, any theme may appear in any genre (Bordwell 1989, 147). He asks: Are animation and documentary films genres or modes? Is the filmed play or comedy performance a genre? If tragedy and comedy are genres, perhaps then domestic tragedy or slapstick is a formula. In  passing, he offers a useful inventory of categories used in film criticism, many of which have been accorded the status of genres by various commentators: Grouping by period or country (American films of the 1930s), by director or star or producer or writer or studio, by technical process (Cinemascope films), by cycle (the fallen women films), by series (the 007 movies), by style (German Expressionism), by structure (narrative), by ideology (Reaganite cinema), by venue (drive-in movies), by purpose (home movies), by audience (teenpix), by subject or theme (family film, paranoid-politics movies). (Bordwell 1989, 148) Another film theorist, Robert Stam, also refers to common ways of categorizing films: While some genres are based on story content (the war film), other are borrowed from literature (comedy, melodrama) or from other media (the musical). Some are performer-based (the Astaire-Rogers films) or budget-based (blockbusters), while others are based on artistic status (the art film), racial identity (Black cinema), locat[ion] (the Western) or sexual orientation (Queer cinema). (Stam 2000, 14). Bordwell concludes that one could argue that no set of necessary and sufficient conditions can  mark off genres from other sorts of groupings in ways that all experts or ordinary film-goers would find An Introduction to Genre Theory acceptable (Bordwell 1989, 147). Practitioners and the general public make use of their own genre labels (de facto genres) quite apart from those of academic theorists. We might therefore ask ourselves Whose genre is it anyway? Still further problems with definitional approaches will become apparent in due course. Defining genres may not initially seem particularly problematic but it should already be apparent that it is a theoretical minefield. Robert Stam identifies four key problems with generic labels (in relation to film): extension (the breadth or narrowness of labels); normativism (having preconceived ideas of criteria for genre membership); monolithic definitions (as if an item belonged to only one genre); biologism (a kind of essentialism in which genres are seen as evolving through a standardized life cycle) (Stam 2000, 128129). Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or settings) and/or form (including structure and style) which  are shared by the texts which are regarded as belonging to them. Alternative characterizations will be discussed in due course. The attempt to define particular genres in terms of necessary and sufficient textual properties is sometimes seen as theoretically attractive but it poses many difficulties. For instance, in the case of films, some seem to be aligned with one genre in content and another genre in form. The film theorist Robert Stam argues that subject matter is the weakest criterion for generic grouping because it fails to take into account how the subject is treated (Stam 2000, 14). Outlining a fundamental problem of  genre identification in relation to films, Andrew Tudor notes the empiricist dilemma: To take a genre such as the western, analyze it, and list its principal characteristics, is to beg the question that we must first isolate the body of films which are westerns. But they can only be isolated on the basis of the principal characteristics which can only be discovered from the films themselves after they have been isolated. (Cited in Gledhill 1985, 59) It is seldom hard to find texts which are exceptions to any given definition of a particular genre. There are no rigid rules of inclusion and exclusion (Gledhill 1985, 60). Genres are not discrete systems, consisting of a fixed number of listable items (ibid. , 64). It is difficult to make clear-cut distinctions between one genre and another: genres overlap, and there are mixed genres (such as comedy-thrillers). 2 Specific genres tend to be easy to recognize intuitively but difficult (if not impossible) to define. Particular features which are characteristic of a genre are not normally unique to it; it is their relative prominence, combination and functions which are distinctive (Neale 1980, 22-3). It is easy to underplay the differences within a genre. Steve Neale declares  that genres are instances of repetition and difference (Neale 1980, 48). He adds that difference is absolutely essential to the economy of genre (ibid. , 50): mere repetition would not attract an audience. Tzvetan Todorov argued that any instance of a genre will be necessarily different (cited in Gledhill 1985, 60). John Hartley notes that the addition of just one film to the Western genre changes that genre as a whole even though the Western in question may display few of the recognized conventions, styles or subject matters traditionally associated with its genre (OSullivan et al. 1994). The issue of difference also  highlights the fact that some genres are looser more open-ended in their conventions or more permeable in their boundaries than others. Texts often exhibit the conventions of more than one genre. John Hartley notes that the same text can belong to different genres in different countries or times (OSullivan et al. 1994, 129). Hybrid genres abound (at least outside theoretical frameworks). Van Leeuwen suggests that the multiple purposes of journalism often lead to generically heterogeneous texts (cited in Fairclough 1995, 88). Norman Fairclough suggests that mixed-genre texts are far from uncommon in the mass media (Fairclough 1995, 89). Some media may encourage more generic diversity: Nicholas Abercrombie notes that since television comes at the audience as a flow of programmes, all with different generic conventions, means that it is more difficult to sustain the purity of the genre in the viewing experience (Abercrombie 1996, 45; his emphasis). Furthermore, in any medium the generic classification of certain texts may be uncertain or subject to dispute. Contemporary theorists tend to describe genres in terms of family resemblances among texts (a notion derived from the philosopher Wittgenstein) rather than definitionally (Swales 1990, 49). An individual text within a genre rarely if ever has all of the characteristic features of the genre (Fowler 1989, 215). The family resemblance approaches involves the theorist illustrating similarities between some of the texts within a genre. However, the family resemblance approach has been criticized on the basis that no choice of a text for illustrative purposes is innocent (David Lodge, cited in Swales 1990, 50), and that such theories can make any text seem to resemble any other one (Swales 1990, 51). In addition to the definitional and family resemblance approach, there is  An Introduction to Genre Theory another approach to describing genres which is based on the psycholinguistic concept of prototypicality. According to this approach, some texts would be widely regarded as being more typical members of a genre than others. According to this approach certain features would identify the extent to which an exemplar is prototypical of a particular genre (Swales 1990, 52). Genres can therefore be seen as fuzzy categories which cannot be defined by necessary and sufficient conditions. How we define a genre depends on our purposes;  the adequacy of our definition in terms of social science at least must surely be related to the light that the exploration sheds on the phenomenon. For instance (and this is a key concern of mine), if we are studying the way in which genre frames the readers interpretation of a text then we would do well to focus on how readers identify genres rather than on theoretical distinctions. Defining genres may be problematic, but even if theorists were to abandon the concept, in everyday life people would continue to categorize texts. John Swales does note that a discourse communitys nomenclature for genres is an  important source of insight (Swales 1990, 54), though like many academic theorists he later adds that such genre names typically need further validation (ibid. , 58). Some genre names would be likely to be more widely-used than others: it would be interesting to investigate the areas of popular consensus and dissensus in relation to the everyday labeling of mass media genres. For Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress, genres only exist in so far as a social group declares and enforces the rules that constitute them (Hodge Kress 1988, 7), though it is debatable to  what extent most of us would be able to formulate explicit rules for the textual genres we use routinely: much of our genre knowledge is likely to be tacit. In relation to film, Andrew Tudor argued that genre is what we collectively believe it to be (though this begs the question about who we are). Robert Allen comments wryly that Tudor even hints that in order to establish what audiences expect a western to be like we might have to ask them (Allen 1989, 47). Swales also alludes to people having repertoires of genres (Swales 1990, 58), which I would argue would also be likely to repay  investigation. However, as David Buckingham notes, there has hardly been any empirical research on the ways in which real audiences might understand genre, or use this understanding in making sense of specific texts (Buckingham 1993, 137). Steve Neale stresses that genres are not systems: they are processes of systematization (Neale 1980, 51; my emphasis; cf. Neale 1995, 463). Traditionally, genres (particularly literary genres) tended to be regarded 3 as fixed forms, but contemporary theory emphasizes that both their forms and functions are dynamic. David Buckingham argues that genre is not simply given by the culture: rather, it is in a constant process of negotiation and change (Buckingham 1993, 137). Nicholas Abercrombie suggests that the boundaries between genres are shifting and becoming more permeable (Abercrombie 1996, 45); Abercrombie is concerned with modern television, which he suggests seems to be engaged in a steady dismantling of genre (ibid. ) which can be attributed in part to economic pressures to pursue new audiences. One may acknowledge the dynamic fluidity of genres without positing the final demise of genre as an interpretive framework. As the generic corpus ceaselessly expands, genres (and the relationships between them) change over time; the conventions of each genre shift, new genres and sub-genres emerge and others are discontinued (though note that certain genres seem particularly long-lasting). Tzvetan Todorov argued that a new genre is always the transformation of one or several old genres (cited in Swales 1990, 36). Each new work within a genre has the potential to influence changes within the genre or perhaps the emergence of new sub-genres (which may later blossom into fully-fledged genres). However, such a perspective tends to highlight the role of authorial experimentation in changing genres and their conventions, whereas it is important to recognize not only the social nature of text production but especially the role of economic and technological factors as well as changing audience preferences. The interaction between genres and media can be seen as one of the forces which contributes to changing genres. Some genres are more powerful than others: they differ in the status which is attributed to them by those who produce texts within them and by their audiences. As Tony Thwaites et al. put it, in the interaction and conflicts among genres we can see the connections between textuality and power (Thwaites et al. 1994, 104). The key genres in institutions which are primary definers (such as news reports in the mass media) help to establish the frameworks within which issues are defined. But genre hierarchies also shift over time, with individual genres constantly gaining and losing different groups of users and relative status. Idealist theoretical approaches to genre which seek to categorize ideal types in terms of essential textual characteristics are ahistorical. As a result of  their dynamic nature as processes, Neale argues that definitions of genre are always historically relative, and therefore historically specific (Neale 1995, 464). Similarly, Boris Tomashevsky insists that no firm logical classification of genres is possible. Their de- An Introduction to Genre Theory marcation is always historical, that is to say, it is correct only for a specific moment of history (cited in Bordwell 1989, 147). Some genres are defined only retrospectively, being unrecognized as such by the original producers and audiences. Genres need to be studied as historical phenomena; a popular focus in  film studies, for instance, has been the evolution of conventions within a genre. Current genres go through phases or cycles of popularity (such as the cycle of disaster films in the 1970s), sometimes becoming dormant for a period rather than disappearing. On-going genres and their conventions themselves change over time. Reviewing evolutionary change in some popular film genres, Andrew Tudor concludes that it has three main characteristics: First, in that innovations are added to an existent corpus rather than replacing redundant elements, it is cumulative. Second, in that  these innovations must be basically consistent with what is already present, it is conservative. Third, in that these processes lead to the crystallization of specialist sub-genres, it involves differentiation. (Tudor 1974, 225-6) Tudor himself is cautious about adopting the biological analogy of evolution, with its implication that only those genres which are well-adapted to their functions survive. Christine Gledhill also notes the danger of essentialism in selecting definitive classic examples towards which earlier examples evolve and after which others decline (Gledhill 1985, 59). The cycles and transformations of genres can nevertheless be seen as a response to political, social and economic conditions. Referring to film, Andrew Tudor notes that a genre defines a moral and social world (Tudor 1974, 180). Indeed, a genre in any medium can be seen as embodying certain values and ideological assumptions. Again in the context of the cinema Susan Hayward argues that genre conventions change according to the ideological climate of the time, contrasting John Wayne westerns with Clint Eastwood as the problematic hero or anti-hero (Hayward 1996, 50). Leo Baudry (cited in Hayward 1996, 162) sees film genres as a barometer of the social and cultural concerns of cinema audiences; Robert Lichter et al. (1991) illustrate how televisual genres reflect the values of the programme-makers. Some commentators see mass media genres from a particular era as reflecting values which were dominant at the time. Ira Konigsberg, for instance, suggests that texts within genres embody the moral values of a culture (Konigsberg 1987, 144-5). And John Fiske asserts that generic conventions embody the crucial ideological concerns of the time in which they are popular 4 (Fiske 1987, 110). However, Steve Neale stresses that genres may also help to shape such values (Neale 1980, 16). Thwaites et al. see the relationship as reciprocal: a genre develops according to social conditions; transformations in genre and texts can influence and reinforce social conditions (Thwaites et al. 1994, 100). Some Marxist commentators see genre as an instrument of social control which reproduces the dominant ideology. Within this perspective, the genre positions the audience in order to naturalize the ideologies which are embedded in the text (Feuer 1992, 145). Bernadette Casey comments that recently, structuralists and feminist theorists, among others, have focused on the way in which generically defined structures may operate to construct particular ideologies and values, and to encourage reassuring and conservative interpretations of a given text (Casey 193, 312). However, reader-oriented commentators have stressed that people are capable of reading against the grain. Thomas and Vivian Sobchack note that in the past popular film-makers, intent on telling a story, were not always aware of the covert psychological and social  subtext of their own films, but add that modern film-makers and their audiences are now more keenly aware of the myth-making accomplished by film genres (Sobchack Sobchack 1980, 245). Genre can reflect a function which in relation to television Horace Newcombe and Paul Hirsch referred to as a cultural forum, in which industry and audience negotiate shared beliefs and values, helping to maintain the social order and assisting it in adapting to change (Feuer 1992, 145). Certainly, genres are far from being ideologically neutral. Sonia Livingstone argues, indeed, that different genres are concerned to establish different world views (Livingstone 1990, 155). Related to the ideological dimension of genres is one modern redefinition in terms of purposes. In relation to writing, Carolyn Miller argues that a rhetorically sound definition of genre must be centered not on the substance or form of discourse but on the action it is used to accomplish (Carolyn Miller 1984, in Freedman Medway 1994a, 24). Following this lead, John Swales declares that the principal criterial feature that turns a collection of communicative  events into a genre is some shared set of communicative purposes (Swales 1990, 46). In relation to the mass media it can be fruitful to consider in relation to genre the purposes not only of the producers of texts but also of those who interpret them (which need not be assumed always to match). A consensus about the primary purposes of some genres (such as news bulletins) and of their readers is probably easier to establish than in relation to others (such as westerns), where the very term purpose sounds too in- An Introduction to Genre Theory strumental. However, uses and gratifications researchers have already conducted investigations into the various functions that the mass media seem to serve for people, and ethnographic studies have offered fruitful insights into this dimension. Miller argues that both in writing and reading within genres we learn purposes appropriate to the genre; in relation to the mass media it could be argued that particular genres develop, frame and legitimate particular concerns, questions and pleasures. Related redefinitions of genre focus more broadly on the relationship between the makers and audiences  of texts (a rhetorical dimension). To varying extents, the formal features of genres establish the relationship between producers and interpreters. Indeed, in relation to mass media texts Andrew Tolson redefines genre as a category which mediates between industry and audience (Tolson 1996, 92). Note that such approaches undermine the definition of genres as purely textual types, which excludes any reference even to intended audiences. A basic model underlying contemporary media theory is a triangular relationship between the text, its producers and its interpreters. From the perspective of many recent commentators, genres first and foremost provide frameworks within which texts are produced and interpreted. Semiotically, a genre can be seen as a shared code between the producers and interpreters of texts included within it. Alastair Fowler goes so far as to suggest that communication is impossible without the agreed codes of genre (Fowler 1989, 216). Within genres, texts embody authorial attempts to position readers using particular modes of address. Gunther Kress observes that: Every genre positions those who participate in  a text of that kind: as interviewer or interviewee, as listener or storyteller, as a reader or a writer, as a person interested in political matters, as someone to be instructed or as someone who instructs; each of these positionings implies different possibilities for response and for action. Each written text provides a reading position for readers, a position constructed by the writer for the ideal reader of the text. (Kress 1988, 107) Thus, embedded within texts are assumptions about the ideal reader, including their attitudes towards the subject matter and often their class, age, gender and ethnicity. Gunther Kress defines a genre as a kind of text that derives its form from the structure of a (frequently repeated) social occasion, with its characteristic participants and their purposes (Kress 1988, 183). An interpretative emphasis on genre as opposed 5 to individual texts can help to remind us of the social nature of the production and interpretation of texts. In relation to film, many modern commentators refer to the commercial and industrial significance of genres. Denis McQuail argues that: The genre may be considered as a practical  device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. Since it is also a practical device for enabling individual media users to plan their choices, it can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication. (McQuail 1987, 200) Steve Neale observes that genres exist within the context of a set of economic relations and practices, though he adds that genres are not the product of economic factors as such. The conditions provided by the capitalist economy account neither for the existence of the particular genres that have hitherto been produced, nor for the existence of the conventions that constitute them (Neale 1980, 51-2). Economic factors may account for the perpetuation of a profitable genre. Nicholas Abercrombie notes that television producers set out to exploit genre conventions It makes sound economic sense. Sets, properties and costumes can be used over and over again. Teams of stars, writers, directors and technicians can be built up, giving economies of scale (Abercrombie 1996, 43). He adds that genres permit the creation and maintenance of a loyal audience which becomes used to seeing programmes within a genre (ibid. ). Genres can be seen as a means of controlling demand (Neale 1980, 55). The relative stability of genres enables producers to predict audience expectations. Christine Gledhill notes that differences between genres meant different audiences could be identified and catered to This made it easier to standardize and stabilise production (Gledhill 1985, 58). In relation to the mass media, genre is part of the process of targeting different market sectors. Traditionally, literary and film critics in particular have regarded generic texts (by which they mean formulaic texts) as inferior to those which they contend are produced outside a generic framework. Indeed, film theorists frequently refer to popular films as genre films in contrast to non-formula films. Elitist critics reject the generic fiction of the mass media because they are commercial products of popular culture rather than high art. Many harbor the Romantic ideology of the primacy of authorial originality and vision, emphasizing individual style  and artistic self-expression. In this tradition the An Introduction to Genre Theory artist (in any medium) is seen as breaking the mould of convention. For the Italian aesthetician Benedetto Croce (1866-1952), an artistic work was always unique and there could be no artistic genres. More recently, some literary and film theorists have accorded more importance to genre, counteracting the ideology of authorial primacy (or auteurism, as it is known in relation to the emphasis on the director in film). Contemporary theorists tend to emphasize the importance of the semiotic notion of intertextuality: of seeing individual texts in relation to others. Katie Wales notes that genre is an intertextual concept (Wales 1989, 259). John Hartley suggests that we need to understand genre as a property of the relations between texts (OSullivan et al. 1994, 128). And as Tony Thwaites et al. put it, each text is influenced by the generic rules in the way it is put together; the generic rules are reinforced by each text (Thwaites et al. 1994, 100). Roland Barthes (1975) argued that it is in relation to other texts within a genre rather than in relation to lived experience that we make sense of certain  events within a text. There are analogies here with schema theory in psychology, which proposes that we have mental scripts which help us to interpret 6 familiar events in everyday life. John Fiske offers this striking example: A representation of a car chase only makes sense in relation to all the others we have seen after all, we are unlikely to have experienced one in reality, and if we did, we would, according to this model, make sense of it by turning it into another text, which we would also understand intertextually, in terms of what we have seen so often on our screens. There is then a cultural knowledge of the concept car chase that any one text is a prospectus for, and that it used by the viewer to decode it, and by the producer to encode it. (Fiske 1987, 115) In contrast to those of a traditionalist literary bent who tend to present artistic texts as nongeneric, it could be argued that it is impossible to produce texts which bear no relationship whatsoever to established genres. Indeed, Jacques Derrida proposed that a text cannot belong to no genre, it cannot be without a genre. Every text participates in one or several genres, there is no genre-less text  (Derrida 1981, 61). Note *In these notes, words such as text, reader and writer are sometimes used as general terms relating to texts (and so on) in whatever medium is being discussed: no privileging of the written word (graphocentrism) is intended. Whilst it is hard to find an alternative for the word texts, terms such as makers and interpreters are sometimes used here as terms non-specific to particular media instead of the terms writers and readers. 2. Working within genres John Hartley argues that genres are agents of ideological closure they limit the meaning-potential  of a given text (OSullivan et al. 1994, 128). Robert Hodge and Gunther Kress define genres as typical forms of texts which link kinds of producer, consumer, topic, medium, manner and occasion, adding that they control the behavior of producers of such texts, and the expectations of potential consumers (Hodge Kress 1988, 7). Genres can be seen as constituting a kind of tacit contract between authors and readers. From the traditional Romantic perspective, genres are seen as constraining and inhibiting authorial creativity. However, contemporary theorists, even  within literary studies, typically reject this view (e. g. Fowler 1982: 31). Gledhill notes that one perspective on this issue is that some of those who write within a genre work in creative tension with the conventions, attempting a personal inflection of them (Gledhill 1985: 63). From the point of view of the producers of texts within a genre, an advantage of genres is that they can rely on readers already having knowledge and expectations about works within a genre. Fowler comments that the system of generic expectations amounts to a code, by the use of which  (or by departure from which) composition becomes more economical (Fowler 1989: 215). Genres can thus be seen as a kind of shorthand serving to increase the efficiency of communication. They may even function as a means of preventing a text from dissolving into individualism and incomprehensibility (Gledhill 1985: 63). And whilst writing within a genre involves making use of certain given conventions, every work within a genre also involves the invention of some new elements. An Introduction to Genre Theory As for reading within genres, some argue that knowledge of genre conventions leads to passive  consumption of generic texts; others argue that making sense of texts within genres is an active process of constructing meaning (Knight 1994). Genre provides an important frame of reference which helps readers to identify, select and interpret texts. Indeed, in relation to advertisements, Varda Langholz Leymore argues that the sense which viewers make of any single text depends on how it relates to the genre as a whole (Langholz Leymore 1975, ix). Key psychological functions of genre are likely to include those shared by categorization generally such as reducing complexity.

The complex issue of hypermasculinity

The complex issue of hypermasculinity Through past experience and research, hypermasculinity has led African American culture to be defined as a culture that strongly fights for their sign of status, and sexual aggressivity and dominance appear to be highly regarded. Research has concluded that media and false misinterpretations of hypermasculinity are the main causes, and the strong influences they have are causing these dominant, aggressive and demanding behaviours. Research has been done through personal interviews, field work and observation. Perhaps present and previous research is showing a better understanding for many cultures as to why African American men display certain characteristics, in which demonstrate power and control. Furthermore studies are creating awareness for society, although they are not justifying these behaviours as being acceptable. Introduction: Life threatening situations are brought upon us every day as we walk out the front door, into the bus or into the front doors of school. Growing up in todays society and conforming to various norms, values and behaviours in which one witnesses, is traumatic and time consuming amongst young men and women, especially young African American men. Gender roles and societies expectation are presented at such a young age, this leading to pressure and unjustified behaviours, such as drug trafficking, prostitution and pimping. Within African American society, gender roles are depicted precisely and followed. Various different ethnic groups live in different parts of the world, but the status of black males in American society has been in flux for the last several decades (Lips 2001, p.5). The reasons why all these groups must show status is to prove their images of what it means to be masculine. Sentimental, submissive and superstitious (Lips, 2001, p.5) are qualities associated with females in every country. On the other hand males are more likely to be connected to characteristics resembling dominance, forcefulness and strength (Lips, 2001, p.5). In a variety of Hip Hop, Rap music video clips, the images being portrayed of how young men must behave always consists of the same factors; dominance, power, aggressivity and the tough guy. The question of how hypermasculinity is defined in African American culture and why sexual aggressivity and dominance appear to be highly regarded within this culture, has been an ideology for many. Despite false interpretation that the media portrays, and the pressure of role models and real men, the following paper will examine the main points and answers to these questions. Furthermore it will observe the use of the term nigga and gansta from an open minded point of view. Hypermasculinity defined and expressed Hypermasculinity is an extremely important sign of status for black males. Hypermasculinity is defined in the (Oxford Dictionary) as an exaggerated masculine qualities, although this term can be negative, it is also personalized when examining these behaviours as adaptive or maladaptive impassively. The term gansta for example comes from the word gangster, which means a criminal who is a part of a gang; who would want to be viewed as a criminal. The other term often miss used, is the word pimp. A pimp, is an agent for prostitutes who lives off their earnings (Oxford Dictionary). Today pimp is being used to refer to guys who sleep with many girls, or the ones who can pick up any girl they want. Where will society draw the line, and who comes to decide whether one corresponds to the definition of a man an adult human male, sometimes also used to identify a male human regardless of age, as in phrases such as mens rights (Oxford Dictionary). DeReef examines African American behaviour and defines masculinity to the degree where a male is able to successfully manifest their attributes (DeReef, F. J. 2006, p.46). These behaviours are being shown in different ways where males are modifying or distorting their real behaviours in order to conform into society, as to what seems to be correctly acceptable. Over a long period of time until today black compulsive masculinity has been a dysfunctional response to solving racial domination and has been causing more problems within the environment. In other words black compulsive behaviours is an ideology composed of African consciousness, in which has created a reactionary masculinity in many African American males who seek to imitate their white male counterparts (DeReef, F.J. 2006, p. 47). According to Wolfe African American males strongly believe it is hard to achieve masculine identity through usual work or responsibilities. They are justifying their behaviours through assumption s in which they believe that they are the only ones who must work hard and have responsibilities in order to achieve masculine identity. Maladaptive hypermasculine behaviours such as drug trafficking, or being a pimp are the ones being justified because there is not enough employment opportunities given to black men. There has been a correlation between joblessness and higher incidence of various maladaptive behaviours. Hypersexuality and homophobia Black males, especially young men are so afraid to be referred to as wimps, or homos, that they have even created the term no homo (Masculinity, homophobia and Hip Hop, n.d ),. The term No homo must be said at the end of each sentence, in order for people not to think they sound gay, or they said something gay. During an interview regarding the term no homo, males claimed not to be reinforcing that their not gay because they know theyre not, but they are just making sure that when they speak others dont assume theyre gay. Homophobia is a big issue that has aroused and has become serious within the generation today. Elijah G.Ward, discusses how the black churches are also encouraging homophobia amongst black males and most of the time those who are against homosexuality are uncertain of their own sexuality and fear that they will be categorised as a community. This strongly emphasizes their powerful beliefs that heterosexuality is the right way. Many cultures do not support homosexual ity, a significant amount of black people according to Elijah G. Ward, see homosexual relationships as unacceptable and morality wrong p.494. In the black community a famous gansta-rapper Ice Cube has implanted in one of his famous songs true niggers aint gay (Ward, G.E .2005, p. 497). Homosexuality is seen to be a sign of weakness and is associated with feminine characteristics, these also encouraging labels towards men such as fags or queers. The black church strongly enforces that homosexuality is not what a man is and a man should be violent, demanding and have control. Their main priorities are their labels and they pay close attention, not to be called sissies which is the opposite of being cool. They want to portray that hard core gansta rapper role model who is an intensified, black male cultural reflection of patriarchy, sexism, hetorosexism and gansta-style (Ward, G. E. 2005, p. 497). Violent behaviours and gansta Throughout history, the black population have undergone several changes some harder to adapt to then others. The main issue with behaviours constantly changing and deviance sometimes being accepted, is when you adapt to an aggressive dominant behaviour you dont want to let go of that control you have obtained. A problem which has occurred and is important to understand is to know the difference between, understanding what you have been told and believing and making your own judgements accordingly; if it is right. For example in the black society it is a sign of status, to sleep with as many women as possible. William, A. Wolfe, summarize in their article that it is right to deceive a girl in order to have sex with her (Wiliam, A. Wolfe 2003, p 848) and that they dont believe in the use of the condom for a simple reason that they would be undermining their masculinity (Wiliam, A. Wolfe 2003, p. 848).Black males have been socialized into using their penis as a way to achieve manhood . Different expectations within a culture or society and how values have changed over time. This has also caused many African American women to fear their partners, and studies say that a woman has been in an abusive relationship is more likely not to speak up and fight her partner. In regards to sexuality and power the black African American society believes that when sexual aggression exists in a relationship (Wiliam, A. Wolfe 2003, p. 848 ), this shows violence is involved therefore he is a man; concluding violence is manly. Adolescent black males are also accounted for having a higher victimization rate than any other racial or age group (Gregory,S. 2007, p 371). African American women compare to their counter parts are the ones to usually get involved in abusive relationships and stay quiet due to their surroundings and or an abusive father. African American women are more vulnerable and listen to their partners when they use aggressive behaviours. This also brings out statist ics which show that over fifty percent of babies are born to minor females, fathered by African American men. They also show that the father is usually on average 26.1 years older (Wiliam, A. Wolfe 2003, p. 849.From this one can clearly conclude that a young African American female is no way has interpersonal skills and dominance over her partner to demand the use of a condom. Furthermore, black males are often taught or trained to control their emotions internally towards exercises that stimulate minor frustration, although this does not emphasise the power that long term maladaptive, self destructive and life threatening (Gregory, S. 2007,p.386) consequences have above it all. An infant who is brought up in a dangerous neighbourhood, attended an unsafe school and dealt with racism is more prone to recognize feelings towards aggression and violence. Black men who have experienced a tragic event of a life threatening situation will want to be prepared if it ever happens again, this is why Gregory, S. discusses the use of carrying of a weapon. In most neighbourhoods today and schools, young teens will not walk around with knifes and use it as an excuse of security purposes, although in neighbourhoods where there are at least three people getting stabbed every day, these young kids want to feel safe. The college of New Jersey evaluated that males are more l ikely to carry a weapon than females, and a survey in 2007 showed that 27% of boys did carry a weapon (Gregory, S. 2007, p.369). Carrying a knife or a gun is a sign of security, despite its encouragement towards violent behaviours. A weapon stimulates the fight or flight response which is a decision you make when experiencing a dangerous situation. Is the individual going to walk away, or will he make a decision and fight. In a situation where someone is carrying a weapon, almost one hundred percent of the time if they feel secure enough to fight and win, the weapon is their support and will cause them to partake in this dangerous behaviour. Statistics show that in 1994, gun control accounted for approximately 1,700 Black youths aged ten to nineteen (Gregory, S. 2007, p 368). The following statistics tell us that most of crime is being committed at a young age by youth. Young children are the ones who are victimised, especially in schools in poor neighbourhoods and the fear they exp erience is unpleasant and it creates an awareness of danger. Hip Hop; a justifiable reason leading to hypermasculinity The third point, if not one of the most influential one in society influencing power, dominance and control is Hip Hop. As a whole Hip Hop has become a culture for most black African American men and this has brought up a new image of acceptable behaviours and hypermasculinity. Many video clips you watch or lyrics you read are not only full of vulgar language, but its always a battle over a girl, power or insulting someones mother. Rap has created a new lifestyle for young men, and also many role models like Eminem, 50 cent and Tupac. Luxury has also become a big part of status. Many African American men today believe that rap is a way to express their true black life. There are different kinds of rap music, this having an influence on different kind of behaviours that are being acted out in society. Rap is categorised using five different forms. Teacher-rap, nation conscious rap, gansta rap, player/lover rap, porno rap and last religious rap (DeReef,F.J. 2006). These different kinds of rap all influence different ideas from social commitment to struggle, romance, sexual aggressive behaviours and spirituality of Christianity and Islam. It is amazing to listen to a rap song and interpret all these different ideas, and thinks to yourself, how can a young fifteen or sixteen year old kid understand this. What is being said is sometimes due to a personal experience or the rap artist is expressing his feelings and or emotions. Media has shown violence to be a part of masculinity, that it has become a norm and is no longer deviance within society. Statistics show that one in four men will use violence against their partner, and eighty-five percent of murders are being committed by men. As one can witness sexuality, criminality and violence play a strong role as being partners. Hip Hop role models like Lil Wayne display high rates of criminality for young African American men, and also use violence and strength towards sexuality. Young males are being brain washed and influenced in regards to these being the real characteristics of men and its a direct justification for hypermasculine behaviours. Roots of slavery The 17th century African American slavery was devastating and today has become a part of history. Slaves were not entitles any equal rights compare to what other had. They were demanded to do hard labour work and were treated with cruelty. Slaves were working ridiculous amount of hours a day and werent even treated as human beings.These slaves were being sold as if they were commodities from city to city. Slaves were seen by many as a different class of people in society. Many slaves tried to fights their master although there was not much success as they would be arrested or sent somewhere else. Slavery today plays a role on how society view black males and how they view themselves compare to society. The word nigga The word nigga is a good example or a word that has different meanings and that has been re-appropriated in society depending on who uses it. The word nigga comes from the word nigger which was originally used to refer to black people. The word was also used in the time of slavery for the black who were trying to escape. Today many African American men use the word amongst each other like white people would use the word brother. Although if a white person were to use the word nigger it is seen as insulting and some African American men take it to the extreme of being offended they might even beat someone up. Nigger for the African American culture is a sign of self identity amongst one another and pride. It is a moment in time of history and they want to hold onto this. In the 1970 the word nigger was seen as racists, offensive and as early as today it is a word that many will refrain from using. Slavery and hypermasculinity Men have enslaved other men to show their mastery over them, and think it is a weakness to show or express their feelings towards other human beings. Patriarchal masculinity has caused problems that are so complex. Long after legal racial segregation ended ( Lips, 2001, p.2 ), it is still clear how the white society treats Black men. Unless close attention is being payed to little factors which make a difference; often Black men are referred to not as men but as boys (Lips, 2001, p.20). Black men lived through times where they were never given the same privileges as white men, and they always had to earn their masculinity, most of the time not feeling good about being a man. Black males were always viewed as inferior to other cultures and always had to prove themselves one way or another. They were always stereotypically related to drugs, poverty and violence. Black American youth during the period of black power to Hip Hop, were denied opportunities to exercise their citizenship; th is having an effect today, they dont want to fall back down beneath everyone. Being denied opportunities, rights and not able to achieve personal goals has stuck with the black society until today. Not only is being labelled black a mental damage, but creates physical aggression as well. It seems that an individual who has been constantly emasculated over the years would at least try to conform to the dominant culture in hope of their being some acknowledgment of acceptance. It has been proven throughout society especially in the United States, that growing up as a black male has been a tough process. Being a black male is a burden at times because some people see and think of me, and men like me, as menaces to society. The masculinity that has been a part of my life has been one that has been used to oppress others and oppress me (Clifford, A. 2006, and p.4). The status of poverty for African American youth is the one that is the most revealing. In 2001 among all American children under the age of eighteen, the poverty rate was sixteen percent, but it was three times as high for black children; 30 percent (Collins, H, P. 2006, p.3). Black youth are the ones who are affected the most by social problems. Increasing employment opportunities for African American males would be ideal, this would give them a better environment, better surroundings and influence them that they are like the rest of the society. This is also why many black males rape, because that act of aggression towards a women is a form of status in which they would use in a workplace which is often not available for them. In other words, having the right to work and live a normal life style, will affect them positively. Several African American men have shaped their understandings and realities based on the past and keep exercising those actions. Having a normal life style r emains a dream for many black youths living under the age of eighteen. The main problem that touches upon poverty is the ineffectiveness of political strategies that strive to resist it (Collins, H, P. 2006, p.9). The civil rights movement was the primary strategy to solve racial integration, although African American politics are trying new social challenges to meet old responses. Despite some accomplishment, African Americans are frustrated because they dont see anything opening up ahead of them and they are still dealing with high unemployment rates. Beyond social problems resulting to poverty, unemployment and lack of civil rights, masculinity today is a big part relating to the past. African American societies have developed strong personalities to prove who they are and what they are capable of. For instance when you look around today, you will see more black males working, neighbourhoods are less poor and opportunities and chances have been and are being given to black commun ities. Considering that young African American males occupy such a visible position within society, they have demonstrated a zero tolerance for race, nation, gender, age and sexuality (Collins, H, P. 2006). All these different aspects that influenced black men have created the drives towards manhood today. When black men were in slavery they were being ordered around and always given commands; comparing that to this new generations they are the ones who are in control, and for the most are the ones giving commands. Conclusion: The issue of hypermasculinity is one that is quite complex and a total solution cannot be found. Research has shown that African American men believe in proving themselves as real men; this leading to behaviours in which can no longer be controlled. These actions are being tolerated by society today especially for young black males. Sexual aggressivity, dominance and hypermasculinity are highly responded within the culture for a countless amount of reasons. Media is portraying false misinterpretations as to what it means to be masculine, there is always a constant pressure being brought upon black males which enforces violent and controlling behaviours and they are being accepted as normal. Thirdly, African American culture has such a strong influential past of slavery that their culture is looking at society through a different lens. Black male needs to accomplish giving themselves an identity that will cause them to be comfortable with themselves. Ideally black males should critically assess the dominant cultures norm of masculinity instead of reworking the norms to satisfy their social situation. Many black males have failed to see the problem of the dominant cultures norms of masculinity in their lives. Society in general has labelled black men as being dangerous, and regardless if you know the person or not before even speaking to many black men they fall into that category that they are violent, dangerous or a sex maniac. Society has enforced black males to feel this way and cause them to do things in which they shouldnt do. It has caused a psychological problem which is hard to erase. In no way do African American men believe they can show weakness, this would mean they are not men. Violence in the media is glorified, and is exposed to children of all ages. Police will not hesitate to use violence against s uspects, and these young black males are often the targets of violent behaviours in their neighbourhoods; drugs, rape, gang related fights or domestic violence.

The Socio Cultural Forces Economics Essay

The Socio Cultural Forces Economics Essay As discussed earlier also, the Al Ain Diary is planning to expand its business overseas market of Germany by launching its new camel product within the foreign country. Thus, the launching of new products in the new market gave rise to development of the new international strategy which requires the external environmental analysis of the Germany market in comparison to the UAE market. The business environmental analysis of the Germany is done as under: Socio-Cultural Forces: Socio cultural forces have great impact over the international business as it is directly related with the external and the internal customers of the country. Germany is considered as the most popular nation of Europe and contributes a lot to the national culture of Europe, such as the German culture. In order to establish the international business within Germany, it is very essential for Al Ain to induce the cultural and social factor of the country within the international strategy. The key cultural and social features of the country are as follows: Ordnung: German living and the working style is regulated by the structures such as with the help of laws, rules, procedures linked with the economic, political and social factors. Thus, the German business is regulated by the strict and prescribed rules and regulations of having low degree of flexibility and spontaneity. Focussed Facts: The decision making and the problem solving process are based on the objective facts within the country. So, such processes are governed by logical analysis of information rather than perception. Focussed Tasks: Germans believe that they have to achieve the task that is in their hands rather than future tasks. They have well defined structure of their tasks and the interpersonal relationship plays a secondary role in the business. Communication Style: Germans follow direct and confrontational communication style. Therefore, the business discussions are followed by the open criticism and the project problems are not taken as the personal issues. Punctuality is the essential and vital part of doing business in Germany. German Business culture is well defined and strictly followed on the structures and hierarchy. There is a clear description of roles and responsibilities for each and every person. Personal life is never mixed in the professional life by the Germans. Business relationships are often made for mutual advantage. The level of formality is even maintained within the business and the colleagues. The first name is only taken by the closed ones, however within the professional environment, the last names and appropriate titles are used. Business meetings are totally formal procedures and greeting is initiated with the firm and brief handshake. Body language and eye contact plays a very vital role in business communications. The official language of the country is German and most of the Germans follow Christianity (Gorrill, 2007). Hofstedeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Cultural dimensions of Germany in comparison to UAE: Power Distance: The power distance in Germany is highly decentralised and supported by the strong middle class. The score for the power distance is 35, which shows that the co-determination rights of the country is comparatively extensive and requires management. While in the UAE, power distance is highly centralised and governed by the upper middle class. Individualism: German society is truly individualistic and controlled by the short families with parent child relationship. While the UAE society is mostly grabbed by the expatriates and the migrants from the different countries. Masculanity/ Feminity: Germany has a very high score in this factor and performance is highly valued in the country with transparency. The people in Germany have high standard of living and managers are decisive and assertive. While in the UAE, the society strongly follows the male dominance and women are restricted to work outside. The high level of standards is also maintained in the UAE society. Uncertainty Avoidance: Germany is among the uncertainty avoidant country and the UAE also falls in the same category. To avoid uncertainty, they plan everything wisely and try to set rules, laws and regulations to rely on. The above analysis depicts that there is a great cultural differences between the culture of UAE and Germany and thus for the expansion of Al Ain within Germany all the cultural factors must be kept in mind as it directly related the internal and external customers of the company. Operation in Germany comprises of local employees following the German culture so the whole HRM should be designed within the cultural paradigms of Germany. The Major area of focus is the customers of Germany as they also believe in German culture and thus much concentration should be given on the cultural areas as these factors directly affects the loyalty of the customers. Economic and Socio-Economic Forces: The economy of UAE have witnessed a significant rise in the past decade, wherein they have been considered with an adequate economic stability and viable growth rates which are inclusive by their increased GDP and Fiscal Balance. On the other hand, the economic growth statistics of the UAE which was reported to be 2.9% owing to the impact of depreciated oil prices evident on a global scale will subject to vulnerability. Germanyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s economic freedom score is 71.0 which make the German economy as the 26th freest economy in the index of 2012. German economy has ranked as the 12th among the 43 countries of the European Region. The foundation behind such long term competitiveness and dynamic growth is based on the high quality legal regime of the country and strongest rule of the law. Regulatory efficiency of the market and the open market polices benefits Germany to contribute within the global economic business and market. The economy has been emerged from the effects of the global economic downturn which has negatively affected the financial and economic management. The budget deficit of the country has been pushed over the 3 % of the GDP (Germany). The population of Germany 81.726 million which makes it 16th most populated country. 13.7 % of the total population accounts for the people of age group 0-14 while 66.1 % of the total population accounts for the age group of 15-64 and 65 and above age group accounts for 20.3 % of the total population. The sex ratio within the economy is 0.97 Male/Female. The local German citizens within the total population accounts for 73.63 %, while German citizens with immigrant background accounts for 10 % of the total population and 8 % of the total population are foreigners without German citizenship. The literacy level within the country is 90 % and over 10 % of the German youngsters are functionally illiterate. The government of the country is democratic, parliamentary republic and federal republic and the GDP accounts for 3.571 trillion USD. The economic analysis depicts that there is a great scope for the business in the German economy as the economic structure of country strongly supports the business environment. The expansion of Al Ain in the German market i therefore beneficial for both the countries in economic respect. Legal Forces: The Federal government of the Germany is recognized as the constitutional state that ensures the stability within the laws and the protection of liberty and equality within the country. Basic law acts as the standard for the democratic constitutional state. The federal constitutional court monitors the management and maintenance of the rights and the preservation of the justice within the country. The administration of the country is being divided into five branches namely: Ordinary. Labour. Administrative. Social Financial Courts. Generally there are three tiers that re-analyse the decision of the court. 20000 independent judges pass the justice who are bounded by law and passes the judgement. There are 5000 public prosecutors and 15000 lawyers in the country. The internationally stabilised and recognized legal environment is able to attract the foreign countries to trade and operate the entrepreneurial activities within the country (The Legal System). The above analysis depicts that the strong and structural legal system is being followed in the German constitution and thus the expansion of Al Ain Group within German market should be done with all the standard legal norms and regulations. Political Forces: The Emirate of Abu Dhabi has been developed as an industrially fertile hub which has attracted various multinational corporations, diplomatic relations and investments made by the government in the various initiatives. The impact of Emiratisation policy may be seen in the Labor law which requires private sector organizations to employ 20% of their work force from the domestic population compulsorily. This means that any private sector organization which fails to obey to the recruitment regulations would be banned from undertaking any further recruitment of additional foreign employees in their organization. The Germany is the unified country which does not represents and depends for the decisions on two different type of government i.e. state and central government and thus the political stability of the government is very high. The Basic Law initiates the Supremacy of political parties in the government system which results to the development of all the government policies through the organizational structure of political parties that ultimately adds stability to the political environment. The trade restrictions within the country of Germany are restricted by the norms of WTO and EU Community. WTO trying to ensure that minimal technical or the non-tariff barriers are faced by the traders to smoothen the trade and economy. The above analysis depicts that the political environment of Germany is quite stable which supports the expansion of Al Ain through fulfilling all the political norms. Labour Forces: As per the data revealed by the labour ministry of UAE in the year 2010, the number of expatriate workers in the UAE symbolizing the stamina of the oil-rich economy is 3.8 million. A hasty financial and economic boom in the region of Gulf led to more than replication of the number of expatriate workers from 1.8 million in the year 2001 to four million in the climax year of 2007 prior to it slumped to 3.8 million by 2010 due to economic tightening in the stir of the global economic meltdown of 2009. (3.8 million foreign workers in the UAE, labor minister says, 2011). There are lot many issues due to the expatriate workers in the UAE. The first and foremost issue is that the immigrant or expatriate workforce may act as barrier and challenge the country by endorsing their own governments welfare or that of a planned crime within the alliance or federation. Secondly the expatriate employees frequently require a higher rate of payment for rendering their services and practically they tran sfer all the revenues and income to their countries rather than expanding or investing that amount in UAE. This affects the economy of UAE very badly in terms of revenue deficit, fiscal deficit, balance of payment, gross domestic product and gross national product etc. Last but not the least, immigrants or expatriate workforce exaggerate pre existing segments of society within the country since they learn to be the chief workers in non-oil industrial sector of the UAE, while the local Emiratis of UAE usually prefer to get employed for the government sector. (United Arab Emirates Overview of economy). The domination of expatriates over the UAE nationals is projected to have developed in around 8.2 million with UAE local citizens making only 11.47%. The UAE attracts personnel from across the globe, primarily from the Asian subcontinent and the Arab region. The key issues pertaining to the expatriate workers in the UAE are the Remittance of local revenue to the other countries. The do minance of expatriates in the employment sector affects the career and growth opportunities of the local Emiratis people a lot. (Suter, 2005) The employee employer relationship within the country of Germany is strongly being regulated by strong and tightly controlled legal processes. Various amendments in the law have resulted to the Germany as the system focussing on the industrial democracy and harmony. But still there are some problems in the system which results to economic difficulties. The above analysis depicts that strong labour laws and regulations must be followed by Al Ain to expand its operations in the country of Germany.

mlk on the problem of god :: essays research papers

As a product of the Black preaching tradition, Martin Luther King Jr. vocalized much on his views regarding the question of the problem of God. In defining God’s place in the human struggle, Dr. King defined God’s four roles which included God as a creator, sustainer of existence, person in history, and activist. These beliefs were heavily influenced by not only his upbringing and personal experiences, but also by his encounters with various intellectual sources including Plato, the death of God theologians, Aristotle, and George W. Davis. First and foremost, King defined God’s role as the creator, the ultimate source of being. While studying Plato and other ancient Greek works, King came across the concept of creation whose existence did not depend on God. King refuted these ideologies, specifically Plato’s realm of the intelligible which did not depend on any other object for its existence. Instead, he strongly believed that since man was made in God’s image, human intellect was actually a gift from God. God’s creation of intellect made Him more personal to humans, in the sense that He could be referred to as the ultimate source for solving human values and problems. Just as in the case of human intellect, in all areas of life, God was the ultimate source of being. Having clearly defined God’s role as the ultimate creator, it was evident to King that God had to be the ultimate sustainer of existence. This reality occurred to him while studying the death of God theologians who argued that since corruption and evil were spreading in the world, God must be dead. To argue against these theologians, King differentiated between theoretical and practical atheism. King had no problem with theoretical atheism because it actually challenged us on the question of God’s existence and His omnipresence in human society. On the other hand, King had trouble with practical atheism, meaning those who lived their lives as if God is dead. He argued that practical atheism is what humanity was struggling with. God had not died, and in fact was actually very much alive. The problem in King’s view was that too many people were living their lives as if God had died, and thus spreading evil through their social mannerisms. In the end, the fact remai ned that God was very much alive and the ultimate sustainer of existence. Since Dr. King believed that God is the ultimate creator and sustainer of existence, it is only evident that God had a role throughout the history of mankind.

Essay --

Summary A Savage War of Peace was a fantastic book to read. It detailed the history of the Algerian War for Independence, which encompasses three separate wars. All of these wars were concerned with the future of the once French, now Algerian, city of Algiers. Beginning with the First War, it was a three-way fight between the FLN, the Front de Libà ©ration Nationale, the pied noirs population living in French Algeria, and the Fourth Republic of France. This First War began in 1954 and continued until 1958. The FLN was a terror organization that was anti-West, anti-Communist, anti-Liberal, and anti-Semitic. Their members were generally many Muslim opponents of French rule. The pied noirs were generally the white settlers of Algeria, composing a minority of the overall population of Algeria. The pied noirs could be seen as an in between population, not necessarily fully French but not necessarily Algerian as well. Historically, they were affiliated with Pà ©tain’s government during World War 2 and were hostile to liberal democracy. Finally, the Fourth Republic was the then current government of the democratic country of France. They inherited a very complicated situation in Algeria from their predecessor governments. France initially gained Algeria as a part of its empire when they conquered the land from the Ottoman Empire in 1830. The original system of government allowed the Muslim population to live under Sharia Law while the European settlers lived under French law and voted in French elections. Initially, the Fourth Republic’s goal was to allow the pied noirs to be citizens of the French Republic, while allowing the Algerian population to govern themselves. Each of these three factions had their own downfalls. The FLN was para... ...he European and French view. However, as the story is so exhaustively detailed I do not think it has compromised credibility in the paper. I found this book extremely useful. As someone who is very interested in French and European history, I was amazed at how large of an impact the Algerian War had on France, for example causing the collapse of the Fourth Republic. I was also amazed that so many politicians and military leaders use this book as a history lesson on what to do in Iraq. I found that the book related to the course due to the mentioning of the French involvement in Vietnam as well as how the French tried to learn from their lessons at Dien Bien Phu when they were in Algeria. I will certainly be hanging on to this book for future reference, as well as to read again even more in depth to see if I missed any comparisons or possible lessons to be learned. Essay -- Summary A Savage War of Peace was a fantastic book to read. It detailed the history of the Algerian War for Independence, which encompasses three separate wars. All of these wars were concerned with the future of the once French, now Algerian, city of Algiers. Beginning with the First War, it was a three-way fight between the FLN, the Front de Libà ©ration Nationale, the pied noirs population living in French Algeria, and the Fourth Republic of France. This First War began in 1954 and continued until 1958. The FLN was a terror organization that was anti-West, anti-Communist, anti-Liberal, and anti-Semitic. Their members were generally many Muslim opponents of French rule. The pied noirs were generally the white settlers of Algeria, composing a minority of the overall population of Algeria. The pied noirs could be seen as an in between population, not necessarily fully French but not necessarily Algerian as well. Historically, they were affiliated with Pà ©tain’s government during World War 2 and were hostile to liberal democracy. Finally, the Fourth Republic was the then current government of the democratic country of France. They inherited a very complicated situation in Algeria from their predecessor governments. France initially gained Algeria as a part of its empire when they conquered the land from the Ottoman Empire in 1830. The original system of government allowed the Muslim population to live under Sharia Law while the European settlers lived under French law and voted in French elections. Initially, the Fourth Republic’s goal was to allow the pied noirs to be citizens of the French Republic, while allowing the Algerian population to govern themselves. Each of these three factions had their own downfalls. The FLN was para... ...he European and French view. However, as the story is so exhaustively detailed I do not think it has compromised credibility in the paper. I found this book extremely useful. As someone who is very interested in French and European history, I was amazed at how large of an impact the Algerian War had on France, for example causing the collapse of the Fourth Republic. I was also amazed that so many politicians and military leaders use this book as a history lesson on what to do in Iraq. I found that the book related to the course due to the mentioning of the French involvement in Vietnam as well as how the French tried to learn from their lessons at Dien Bien Phu when they were in Algeria. I will certainly be hanging on to this book for future reference, as well as to read again even more in depth to see if I missed any comparisons or possible lessons to be learned.