Story Of An Hour :: essays research papers

The Story of an Hour depicts a single hour in Mrs. Mallard life, in which the lady who has a weak heart experiences the momentary joy of freedom after hearing that her husband has been killed in a railroad accident. Mrs. Mallard initial reaction, upon hearing of her husband death, is not far from what readers expect: she is deeply grieved, weeps and wants to be left alone. However, during the hour she spends alone in her room, her state of mind changes dramatically. Sitting in the armchair motionlessly, she sees spring trees from the open window, smells pure air after the gentle rain, hears a faint but pleasant song, even the patched clouds outside seem to be dispersing decently in the warm and powerful sunshine eventually. All these features imply that an unconscious wish in her heart is quietly but quickly expanding. At first, she feels something is approaching her, something almost tangible, which she is not sure about: t was too subtle and elusive to name. 71) However, from that moment on, her weeping ith sudden, wild abandonment disappears, he storm of grief goes away, she is turning to the situation where she has longed for. ree, free, free! 71) The first voice of protest breaks out after those tedious, miserable years. Now she realizes the feeling approaching her and possessing her occupies her entire soul and body: his possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being. Free! Body and soul free! 72) These unbelievably radical words show her enormous hunger for freedom, her strong wish to be herself again. Her husband sudden death has made her lifetime emotional torment come to an end, and she can be as free as a man now. On the other hand, Mrs. Mallard may cry again for the loss of her oving husband not only because of her gender role in the society, but for he still loves her and she herself had loved him as well. Moreover, the story does not tell us whether Mr. Mallard is an abusive or irresponsible husband, but this couple certainly strives for maintaining their unsatisfactory marriage. Besides, no love or security can compensate for a lack of control over her own existence (Skaggs, 53), let alone the fact that there is hardly any love in that fragile relationship.

Administrator Interview Essay

For class I was to find and administrator in charge of hiring CTE teachers and find the answers to ten interview questions. I am fortunate enough to be teaching at a CTE school and was able to interview my principal. I interviewed Principal Tom Ryan, who’s the main campus principal The interview was held face to face in his office on September 28, 2012. This interview was very helpful in learning an administrator’s views and thoughts of important issues associated with CTE teachers and CTE programs. Mr. Ryan was very detailed and honest during the interview. I started the interview by asking Mr. Ryan what strengths and weakness he has seen in new CTE instructors. He thought for a moment before giving a very thought out response. See more: Ethnic groups and racism essay The strengths ; knowledge of subject content, familiarity with current pedagogy, compliant because not tenured, enthusiastic, recent employment in industry related field-familiar with real world operations, Weaknesses: uncertified –salary reduction, classroom management skills, not used to working in government bureaucracy, unrealistic expectations pertain to student enthusiasm and behavior, unfamiliar with operating procedures, typically experienced in field but not educated in effective teaching techniques and strategies. (T.  Ryan, personal communication, September 27, 2012). After reflecting upon his answer there was one point that stands out the most. I strongly agree with his thoughts that new teachers have a difficult time dealing with class management strategies. College prepares one academically for over three years but only offer a short time of practicum experience in the field. When teachers learn to effectively implement classroom management strategies and discipline they can engage students in learning activities for more than 90 percent of allocated time (Cangelosi, 1990, pp. 3-20). Mr. Ryan shared his thoughts of what skills he believed would best help newly hired teachers. Beyond subject knowledge a new teacher should be prepared to teach students life skill. Students must learn how to successfully interact with people in the work world 21st century skills. CTE teachers to become an asset for their schools must have enthusiasm, be a team player, willingness to go the extra mile, establish rapport with students and staff, and collaboration with colleagues. All of these qualities are needed in any job and are taught to our students under 1st Century Learning Skills. Next, I posed the question to Mr. Ryan if you had two applicants for a teaching position in your CTE department, what factors would you use to select any one of them and why? He responded that he would evaluate their ability to communicate, knowledge of subject matter, recent industry experience, ability to demonstrate skills, and ones perceived ability given in a 45 minute interview to fit into the educational environment –why? He simply stated, â€Å"Because these are the skills necessary to successfully teach† (T.  Ryan, personal communication, September 27, 2012). Before I could ask the next question Mr. Ryan spoke of how he perceived the purpose of CTE. We agreed that the purpose of CTE was to prepare students with entry level skills, and to expose them to current industry practices as well as to give them the soft skills 21st Century skills they will need to be successful in the work world or continuing education. One enrolls in a technical education center in order to gain employment upon graduation or move on to post-secondary education. Following the above conversation we switched gears and talked about reasons an educator would be relieved of their position. We discussed that there could be many factors that cause one to lose their job such as poor performance, layoffs due to economy, or program closures. A major factor in letting go of an employee relies on if the educator is tenured or not. Mr. Ryan stated there are three main reasons that would cause the dismissal of a certified teacher. The two he focused on was immoral or unethical behavior, and incompetence. I feel that these are fireable offensive for any job. A teacher must lead by example one should not ask others to do what they cannot Once a new instructor is hired they are assigned a mentor. A mentor’s job is to monitor the new instructors’ progress and provide feedback. This gives the instructor a forum to express the difficulties they encounter in adapting to the new work environment so that it becomes utopia. I shared that when I was first hired I found a mentor to be very helpful. When you first start teaching one has many questions that often the administrator does not have time for and/or the teacher feels uncomfortable asking. There have been many studies done that all show a well-developed mentoring program for new teachers can contribute to the quality of their practice. Moreover, many researchers state that these programs show the education system’s commitment to producing well prepared and successful teachers. Mr. Ryan spoke of the different ways that CTE programs could improve. Financing program was at the top of his list. This would allow programs obtain industry level equipment, provide proper staffing, and allow students the opportunity to participate in more internship opportunities by offering transportation. Transportation currently is the one factor preventing many students from obtaining internship positions. Financing would also provide academic support to help students gain the necessary job skills, life skills. Funding would allow for education of reading comprehension skills that will allow them to navigate new information and equip them with reasoning skills so they are able to apply critical thinking to new situations in an ever changing world. This just reiterates the fact of how important the Carl D.  Perkins Act was for CTE education. Lastly, we talked about reforms and what he would suggest for improving CTE programs and how teachers could prepare for such reforms. His biggest goal even though he thought was unlikely to occur was a shift the bureaucracy to allocating funds to actual instructional needs. Next, he felt it was important for our school to continue to strive for an instructional environment that would maximizes resources to allow all students to not be left behind.

Criminal Justice Administration in New Jersey Essay

Spending is an important aspect of criminal justice administration in any jurisdiction. In many instances, budgeting in public administration is a crossroads between policy issues and politics which makes prioritizing very essential. According to New Jersey Policy Perspective (2003), the spending in the state’s criminal justice system especially the correctional facilities has increased tremendously in the last few decades. This has been as a result of the rapid increase in the number of incarcerated offenders in the state correctional facilities where the number has tripled since early 1980s. Consequently, spending in the correctional facilities in the state of New Jersey has been the fastest growing compared to other departments in the states and was estimated that the figure in the 2005 fiscal year would surpass the amount spent by all states in 1975. Moreover, since late 1990s, the correctional facilities in New Jersey have been operating at over capacity and are rated the sixth most crowded facilities in the country. However, this increased spending due to increased incarceration has taken place as the rate of crime in the country is on a downward trend. The correctional facilities in New Jersey consists of fourteen state facilities, nine of which houses male offenders, one reserved for female offenders, three for juveniles while the one is designated as a reception and intake center. It is also the responsibility of the same department to manage offenders who have completed their sentence but are considered dangerous to the society (NJPP, 2003). As the number of offenders housed in New Jersey states correctional facilities from under capacity in the early 1980s to over 135 percent in 2003, the spending in the correctional department increased proportionally. The large number of convicts incarcerated translated into a need for more staff to manage the systems. For example, the number of employees in the correctional facilities and related jobs were about 13,685. This number of employees was only second to the Department of Human Services. However, the parole officers were needed due to the increased number of individuals under parole in the states surpassed the number of prison officers required in the correctional facilities. The number of offenders under parole rose from under ten thousand to over thirteen thousand between 1983 and 2003 (NJPP, 2003). As the number of individuals under incarceration and parole has increased over the years, the need for more budgetary allocation to the state correctional department has been inevitable. According to the New Jersey Policy Perspective report, the money allocated to the correctional programs in the states rose by about 555 percent in twenty years hitting 1. 1 billion dollars in 2003 up from 203 dollars in 1983. There are many factors including changes in the law that are considered responsible for the increased number of inmates in the states correctional facilities and consequently increased spending. Some of them include changes in the law and statutes within the state’s jurisdiction such as the criminal code and drug laws enforcement statutes (NJPP, 2003). In conclusion, the increased spending in the New Jersey correctional facilities is inevitable. Just as in other states and federal correctional institutions that have been overwhelmed by the increased number of incarcerated offenders or individuals under paroles in the last three decades, the New Jersey facilities have been equally affected by the trends. The increased need for more prison and parole staff, training and caring for offenders in the states facilities has skyrocketed spending in the New Jersey correctional department.

Hamlet: Women of the Shakespearean Era

Hamlet: Women of the Shakespearean Era Women in Shakespeare’s plays are, for the most part, looked at as weak characters. There were only two main female roles in his famous play Hamlet. The two female roles in the play are Queen Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother, and Ophelia, Hamlet’s love and daughter of Polonius. These women are always being told what to say and do. They never speak up for themselves, and that creates trouble for them in the end. In William Shakespeare’s play, The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark the women are manipulated by the men, which causes Gertrude and Ophelia to die tragically.The double standards for women in this play are extremely common and many men everywhere use them. For example, the double standard that men can sleep around and women cannot. Laertes tells Ophelia that she should not give up her innocence to Hamlet because he has not saved himself for her and their love is not real, yet Laertes is not pure himself. This is ki nd of a ‘do as I say, not as I do† type of situation. Most double standards demonstrate that, males can do whatever they please and females get in trouble for most things.To be more specific, Gertrude and Ophelia were both told to talk to Hamlet so Polonius and Claudius could listen in and find out certain things about Hamlet. Ophelia was even forced to reject Hamlet when she loved him. Also, the women in the play are not free to marry whoever they desire. For example, when Gertrude married Claudius it was not really her choice to do so. The first time they disobey the men in this story is when things start to go bad. Ophelia ends up going crazy and drowning, and Gertrude drinks from a poisoned cup of wine and dies.David Bevington had quite a few things to say on the female roles in this play. He refers to Ophelia and Gertrude as â€Å"instruments through which Claudius attempts to spy on Hamlet† (Bevington 301). This is true because they listen to Claudius and do whatever he asks of them. Also, he says that Hamlet makes it known that the women are weak. Hamlet says, â€Å"frailty, thy name is woman† (I. ii. 146). This play shows that women have a manipulative side to them. Many forms of trickery occurred to Hamlet when he had not done anything wrong to the women.Ophelia makes it seem like she does not love Hamlet and gives him back his love letters to her at one point in the play. This entire play is just pure madness from the beginning all the way till the last act and scene. The females get caught up in the middle of the drama, and that is why they have the bad reputation we have. Joseph Campbell described to us in an interview about why women are portrayed how they are. He says that women have been seen as weak since the beginning of time.Most of the time it is because women are smaller and more fragile than the men are. You never see women doing anything for themselves, and if you do it is on a rare occasion. That is why women ar e portrayed and treated how they are. Work Cited Bevington, David. â€Å"Introduction to Hamlet. † Hamlet. William Shakespeare. Evanston: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. , 1992. 301. Print. Campbell, Joseph. â€Å"The Hero’s Adventure. † The Power of Myth. Interview by Bill Moyers. Wellspring Media, Inc. , 2005. DVD. Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Evanston: McDougal little, 1997. Print.

Personal Case Study Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Personal Case Study Paper - Essay Example The opportunity below presents itself for improved business model, but only if the cultural paradigms can be addressed effectively. In this case, the organization is private faith-based company. It has existed for over hundred years. Faith-Based Organization X specializes in faith-based academics. The organization was undergoing major paradigm shifts in the culture as well as divisional subcultures because of altering business models within each division. Under the new leadership of the vice-president, leading two divisions, there were concerns on matters including management and decision making. Employees were expected to accommodate changes with grace. This resulted to change in the company’s culture mode. The main reason for this was the uncomfortable expectations of the management, requiring employees to accommodate the change. Therefore, the drastic expectation of change was hard to be accommodated by the employees. I worked for the organization in a span of three years, where I performed two roles. I began by leading a division as a director. After some time, I was transferred into a training role. The report of this personal case study will be through the eyes of the director role I played while in the organization. A typical director role consists of developing and leading strategic initiatives, talent development and process improvements. There are also many decisions that are made at the director level. A director must be the team leader and he/she must be able to initiate and implement new ideas. The director must ensure the mission; vision and goals of the company must be met accordingly. (Sinclair, 1998) The chart above displays the current structure of the company during my tenure in the company as a director. This structure was the new organizational structure in the company during my period of work in the discussed organization. The above division shifted in

Working capital management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Working capital management - Essay Example Implementation of an effective working capital management system will certainly assist a company to improve its earnings. Ratio analysis and management of separate elements of working capital are two major aspects of working capital management. Organisations normally give great emphasis on working capital management, because ineffective use of working capital may end up in net losses. Since the management of working capital is crucial for companies irrespective of their size and nature, well structured corporate governance strategies are inevitable for properly dealing with the working capital spending. This paper will discuss the significance of working capital management and various approaches to the management of inventory, receivables, cash, and payables. 1. Management of working capital As discussed above, nowadays firms give specific focus on working capital management because thoughtless short term financing has already caused several corporate failures. As Bokadiya (2011) poi nts out, there are two concepts associated with the management of working capital: gross concept and net concept. The gross concept indicates current assets and this model is known as quantitative aspect of working capital.... stimation is a difficult task for firms in accordance with its nature and size; hence, different firms follow different methods to estimate working capital. Generally, conventional method, operating cycle method, cash cost technique, and balance sheet method are the major approaches adopted for the estimation of working capital. Longenecker, Petty, Palich, and Moore (2009, p.576) describe that the working capital is primarily used to purchase raw materials for production purposes. Through the production process, the raw materials are converted into finished goods and which is then reconverted into cash by the sales process. This whole process is called working capital cycle (ibid). Effective management of working capital assists organisations to deploy current assets and current liabilities efficiently and thereby to maximise short term liquidity. A well structured system of working capital management entails short term decisions generally relating to the next financial period. The p rocess of working capital management mainly involves two steps; forecasting the amount of working capital and determining the sources of working capital. Through proper management of working capital, a firm aims to make optimum level of investment in various working capital assets. This process may also aid companies to assess the optimal mix of short term and long term capital. In addition, effective working capital management can be of great help to choose appropriate means of short term financing. Management of inventory, receivables, cash, and payables are different aspects of working capital management. Inventory management is of great importance in modern business transactions as this process plays a evident role in establishing balance between purchase and sales (Indian Institute of

Bowling for Columbine Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Bowling for Columbine - Essay Example Michael Moore unveils that in modern world, many teenagers follow the example of adults and film heroes trying to obtain guns and use force against innocent citizens. For most of them, guns represent "adulthood", a stylish and trendy way of life. According to Jasis Ordonez-Jasis (2003) "Moore's film explores issues of violence and fear in U.S. society, particularly surrounding the Columbine tragedy of the morning of April 20, 1999, when 12 high school students and one teacher were killed, and dozens of others were wounded, by two fellow classmates" (Jasis and Ordonez-Jasis, 2003, p. 127). In this documentary, Moore uses specific techniques and methods to unveil the message of the film. Traditional definition of a documentary states that "the film is only the sum of the facts recorded on film, or, if you like, not merely the sum, but the product, a 'higher mathematics' of facts" (Michelson cited Bruzzi, 2000, 11). In "Bowling for Columbine", Moore goes beyond traditional documentary practices and norms using elements of fiction. Some critics accuse him in using "false" facts and "deception" which help Moore to influence perception of viewers (Hardy, 2002, Galupo, 2002). For instance, Hardy comments that "Moore leads the reader to draw inferences which he must have known were wrong. Indeed, even speeches shown on screen are heavily edited, so that sentences are assembled in the speaker's voice, but which were not sentences he uttered. Bowling uses deception as its primary tool of persuasion and effect" (Hardy, 2003). Taking into account "Bowling for Columbine", the mix ture of different styles and tools can be interpreted as a specific style of Moore which distinguishes him from other filmmakers. Critics suppose that "Bowling for Columbine" "analyzes with irony and poignancy the corporate, media, and government involvement in creating a climate of pervasive paranoia, exacerbating threats, while glorifying, justifying, or trivializing violence here and abroad" (Ordonez-Jasis, Jasis, 2003, p. 127). To prove this idea, Moore uses military and diplomatic actions conducted by the USA. Throughout the film, Moore uses dramatization and summarization as the main methods to create the message in "Bowling for Columbine". From the very beginning, the signs in the film suggest that maybe evil can prevail even in the presence of good. The severity of this notion carries much weight in the "real" world. The documentary and gritty feel of the film also gives realistic mood and that might signify the reality of everyday life. The trend towards more graphic violence in movies parallels the transition of the general viewing audience to a higher shock level. Viewers are shocked by facts and events depicted in the documentary. Critics criticize Moore for "using too much jokey music, and also for making himself the focus of the story once or twice too often. Mostly, though, he listens to people, in sorrow and outrage and raucous amusement; and what he hears, he communicates without a dull moment, except maybe one" (Klawans, 2002, p. 44). In "Bowling for Columbine", Moore selects the most impressive facts and events creating atmosphere of fear and terror. Some critics (Hardy, 2002, Galupo, 2002) accuse Moore in subjectivity, because he presents one side of the problem only. This method is not typical for documentary films (Bruzzi, 2000), but it helps Moore to depict the gap between expected,