Events Leading To The American Revolution Essays (1004 words)

Events leading to the American Revolution During the late seventeen hundreds, many tumultuous events resulted in Colonial opposition to Great Britain. The conditions of rights of the colonists will slowly be changed as the constriction of the parliament becomes more and more intolerable. During the Seven Years' War England was not only alarmed by the colonists' insistence on trading with the enemy, but also with Boston merchants hiring James Otis inorder to protest the legality of the writs of assistance (general search warrants) used to hunt out smuggled goods. "let the parliament lay what burthens they please on us, we must, it is our duty to submit and patiently bear them, till they will be pleased to relieve us....". This is a very strong dictum, that in 1764, the colonists were of a submissive nature, and were weakly pleading for self- autonomy. This small fire of anger will become a huge conflagration as the rights are slowly rescinded. On October 19, 1765 the Stamp Act Congress and Parliamentary Taxation committee's passed some laws that attempted to strengthen the grip of the English crown. "I.That his Majesty's subjects in these colonies, owe the same allegiance to the Crown of Great Britain that is owing from his subjects born within the realm, and all due subordination to that august body, the Parliament of Great Britain." This statement can be used as a summation of the entire document that the Stamp Act Congress had initiated. The statement depicts the colonists has having to be submissive and servile in the view of Great Britain, this policy angered the colonists very much, and was another component of the transition of the colonists' rights and liberties. When the Declatory Act was passed in March of 1766, many colonies were attempting to claim that they were "seceding" from England. "Whereas several of the houses of representatives in his Majesty's colonies and plantations in America, have of late, against law, or to the general assemblies of the same, the sole and exclusive right of imposing duties and taxes upon his Majesty's subjects in the said colonies....be it declared ...., that the said colonies and plantations in America, have been, are, and of right ought to be, subordinate unto, and dependent upon the imperial Crown and Parliament of Great Britain;". The Parliament of course denounced the attempt at independance and still dogmatilcally passed the following law to show that the colonists were still british subjects. Again, the colonists were infuriated and later will resist the british imperialism on the colonies. "All before, are calculated to regulate trade, and preserve prpromote a mutually beneficial intercourse between the several constituent parts of the empite"", yet those duties were always imposed with design to restrain the commerce of one part". This statement by the colonist (John Dickinson), shows that the sole rason for new taxes is just for the British gov't to make money, at the expense of the economy of the colonies. Dickinson makes a important distinction between the rights of the colonies and the authority of the parliament. Dickinson's comments were ubiquitous among the colonists, and thus infuriated them to rebellion, and the seizure of basic democratic rights. "From necessity of the case, and a regard to the mutual interest of both countries, we cheerfully consent to the operation of such acts of the British parliament as are bona fide restrained to the regulation of our external commerce, for the purpose of securing the commercial advantages of the whole empire to the mother country , and the commercial benefits of it's respective members excluding every idea of taxation, internal or external, for raising a revenue on the subjects in America without their consent ...." The continental congress had presented it's colonial rights. These rights enable the colonies to be more autonomous with exception to those several states who are under the british control. One important element of the document, is the idea of taxation without representation; the said that raising taxes without consent was illegal and that the commercial benefits of the colony should be shared within the colonies, instead of England becoming more and more economically prosperous. The whole idea of mercantilism was about to be crushed, due to this idea,

Federalists essays

Federalists essays Federalist or Anti-Federalist? It can be argued the Federalists were the first political party of the United States. With a simple goal, they wanted to unite the states and form a strong central government. The Articles of Confederation was the first attempt at this goal. But these articles were not effective. The next attempt was successful though. The Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia effectively united the states. There were still some problems with these Articles created. The people did not trust the Federalists who created them. Thus, the Federalists were not successful dealing with the problems that occurred with this newly created nation. There was a lack of a powerful strong central government. The people did not like the fact that the government was dealing with issues that pertained to them without their approval. This is illustrated greatly by the Whiskey Rebellion. Due to the fact the federal government needed money, the Whiskey Tax was put into ope ration. The farmers rebelled and proved the government to be not as strong as it thought. The question of a "bill of rights" in the Constitution had been raised at the Convention. There the idea had been rejected for two reasons. First, the delegates seemed to make every effort to avoid making profound, philosophical statements about rights and the nature of government in the Constitution. They were more concerned with the practical business of creating a workable government. During the long, hot Philadelphia summer, they were reluctant to spend time on matters that they considered secondary to that objective. Second, the delegates recognized that listing the rights of the people might imply that anything not listed was not a protected right. Moreover, most of the states already had bills of rights in their constitutions and listing them in the national constitution, many delegates believed, would be redundant. The Anti-Federalists focused almost all ...

Case study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 82

Case Study Example   Should all science be in agreement?   In Wakefield’s case, it is established that conflict of interest existed while he carried out his research. The fact that he obtained monetary benefits for carrying out his research against MMR vaccine makes it clear that his research is flawed due to conflict of interest. Other scientific bodies further investigated the link between autism and MMR vaccination and found none. Here, sticking with science is justifiable, although science can be flawed and could lead to erroneous conclusions. In Wakefield’s case, his research was proved wrong. It is difficult to arrive at a decision when conflicting reports are presented by scientists. This is because innumerable factors dictate the direction and conclusion of any research. One can never say for sure that a particular research might be accurate or correctly interpreted. At such a time, it is only logical to first find out the motives behind the research. Often, the scientist’s motivations influence the research, as in Wakefield’s case. In addition to motives, the research design, methodology and interpretation should be scrutinized to identify flaws. It is necessary for all science to be in agreement. However, practically, this can never be the case because it is impossible to carry out perfect research. There could be bias related errors, procedure related errors, protocol errors, flawed reporting of results, etc. As seen in the WebMD article, evidence exists both in favor and against the link between MMR vaccination and autism, mercury (thiomersal) and autism. Opposite parties point out flaws in each other’s research. If all research were perfect, all science would definitely have been in

Social Networks Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Social Networks - Essay Example The users read the profile pages of other members, share views and ideas, give comments and contact them via their profiles. In short, an SNS is a great means of bringing people of same wave length together and socializing with the outside world. People create their profiles which are in fact their identities which may be real or fake. SNSs have redefined identity development in a way that people can now make friends which are even not their type but of the type of the new identity that has been created on the SNS profile. This paper argues that it is important to keep only one identity in the online world in order to realize our inner selves and to keep our offline and online world integrated together. Everything related to our identity affects our agency in our online and offline worlds, be that something as simple as a name. As stated earlier, SNSs enable people to make their profiles with different names and identities in the online world. The connections made with this fake name and identity will be quite different from those made in the offline world. Thus, anybody making a profile in the online world with a fake name will be having two identities; one real that is in the offline world, and the other fake which is in the online world. ... If he takes this identity to the online world and makes use of the SNSs as a support to the offline connections, then he is able to keep the two worlds working in harmony with each other. However, if he creates a separate identity in the online worlds, then the connections with that identity will not correlate with those in the offline world thus keeping the two worlds segregated from each other. We should not perceive our online and offline worlds separately. We should make true profiles with our original identities on the SNSs so that we are able to perceive the two worlds as a single entity and not as two segregated entities. It is not possible in this busy world to run two separate worlds together or maintain different identities in the two worlds; however, we cannot deny the presence of scams and fraudulent activities taking place on the internet which are apt to steal away our identities from the profiles we make online. So, we should only trust authenticated SNSs and make true profiles there with the primary objective to support our offline connections and secondary objective to make new connections. Life will be much easier and sophisticated if we try to perceive the two worlds as a solo unit. Also, an identity becomes disfavored when it is not true. When it gets hacked, it loses its reliability and thus becomes disfavored. Identity thieves are common in the online worlds which steal, misuse, disclose or sell the true identities and thus cheat innocent persons. When an identity is stolen, it loses its credibility and thus is regarded as disapproved because it is not to be relied on for future connections, comments, sharing of information like pictures and files, and other activities of the sort. Disfavored identities must be deactivated from

BHS 414 Cross-Cultural Health Perspectives Mod 4 SLP Essay

BHS 414 Cross-Cultural Health Perspectives Mod 4 SLP - Essay Example In the third dimension of the PEN 3 Model Nurtures are defined as â€Å"supportive and/or discouraging influences of families and friends including eating tradition, community and events, spirituality and soul, values of friends, marriage rules, expectations etc†. (Airhihenbuwa, 2004). There are several governmental and other organizational programs to improve practice of breast feeding in western countries. These programs provide free counseling and support to mothers promoting breastfeeding. In many developing countries paid maternity leave up to 6 months are allowed for female employees in both private and public sector. But western countries lack that kind of legislations. Therefore working mothers naturally tend to feed their child with bottle milk (Zareai, 2007). Free health care services are available in many developing countries. But many western countries do not have sufficient free health care facilities to support breastfeeding mothers to teach and practice correct methods of breastfeeding and overcome their problems (Zareai, 2007). Due to cultural perception breastfeeding in public places may be annoying for the western mothers. Therefore they may choose bottle feeding. However in many Asian countries breastfeeding in public places is a common practice and they really get the help of others. Barnes, J., Stein, A., Smith, T. and Pollock, J. I. (1997). Extreme attitudes to body shape, social and psychological factors and a reluctance to breast feed. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 1997 October; 90(10): 551–559. Zareai, M.,   Maxine, L., OBrien,    Fallon, A.B. (2007). Creating a breastfeeding culture: a comparison of breastfeeding practises in Australia and Iran. Breastfeeding Review. FindArticles.com. retrieved from

Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville: An Analysis

Bartleby the Scrivener by Herman Melville: An Analysis Bartleby the Scrivener was written by Herman Melville in 1853. The book is about a scrivener named Bartleby, and he continuously answers peoples questions with I would prefer not to (Melville 9). In this short story, Melville is asking his readers what makes people stand out from the crowd, and what makes us individual, independent, and unique? Independence and individuality definitely both have a big role in this story. While being independent and unique are two great things to be, there is a point when you can take it too far, to the point where it starts to affect your life. Conflict often produces character and at times will reveal it. Bartleby is an efficient copyist for a successful lawyer at an office building, but he is a quiet and anti-social man. Though he continues to work well as a copyist, he refuses to help or do any other tasks for the office people, and/or repeatedly says I would prefer not to (10). Bartleby is always in the office either working or looking out of dim window (19) in the sad, and dark world he lives in. The workers then find out that he lives at the office, and his refusal to do nothing but work grows at a much larger scale. As this problem grows, Bartleby announces that he will no longer work as a copyist, and then prefers to stay and live in the office building and do no work. Finally, he is strictly and firmly asked to leave by the lawyer and his workers, but, he still does not leave. Rather than taking more severe measures to get Bartleby out of the office, the lawyer moves his operation to a different office. After that, another practice moves into the building and they find out tha t Bartleby, the copyist from the previous practice is still living there. The new people complain, but the new people are told that Bartleby does not seem to be able to leave. After trying to deal with Bartleby staying there, they call the police to arrest him and bring him to prison. The story concludes with Bartleby refusing to do anything and not eat in prison, and Bartleby dies from starvation. To conclude things, the narrator/lawyer informs his readers/workers that Bartleby was previously a clerk in a dead letter office who sorted through the mail, leaving readers wondering if these dead letters somehow influenced Bartleby. In the short story, the characters attitudes towards Bartleby changes as Bartleby changes. In the beginning, the lawyer, Turkey, Nippers, and Ginger Nut do not really pay attention to him, but since he refuses to do other work for the office, they start to get mad. Except Turkey seems to have the same attitude towards Bartleby throughout the story, he is a drunk copyist who has an uncontrollable temper, and through the story, he continues to hate Bartleby and wants to get violent. Also, Nippers, like his coworker Turkey, is just an ambitious, discontent, irritated, non-morning person and exactly like Turkey, he stays this way through the entire short story. The lawyer says, Nippers, the second on my list, was a whiskered, sallow, and, upon the whole, rather piratical-looking young man of about five and twenty. I always deemed him the victim of two evil powers-ambition and indigestion (7). Ginger Nut, does not have a pretty big role in the story, he is just a 12-year-old, the youngest worker, his biggest job/role is to get snacks and food for all the copyists. But there is the lawyer, and his attitude towards Bartleby is described in the next paragraph. The lawyers attitude towards Bartleby changes throughout the book from kind, to angry, to firm, to caring. The lawyer at first is kind like a gentleman would be when he first meets and hires Bartleby. He pays more attention to his work in the beginning and knows he is doing good at his job, but then he notices Bartleby and gets concerned when he will not do any other office tasks, then he gets quite angry when he finds out that Bartleby is living there. After that, Bartleby says he will not work as a copyist anymore, but he stays and lives in the office anyway, and now the lawyer must make a decision whether to kick him out, or to be nice and think of something else. The lawyer decides to be nice and offer Bartleby a place in his home, but Bartleby does not take his offer. Then, the lawyer gets strict and firmly asks him to leave the office, but he says no, so the lawyer moves the whole operation to a different office. The lawyer and the workers move to a new office, but Bartleby sta ys there. Afterward, the new people at the building call the police on Bartleby and take him to prison where he does not want to do anything, eat, or talk to anyone. Lastly, the lawyer goes to visit him and try to talk to him but Bartleby does not want to talk to him, the lawyer tries to talk some sense into him but it does not work, Bartleby continues to not eat and he starves himself to death. The lawyer becomes very curious how this all started and he finds out what may have started all of this weird behavior from Bartleby. The behavior of Bartleby is a mystery and it is kind of funny but in a weird way, but besides his seriousness and the level of his refusal, he does not change at all throughout the whole story. He starts off like a pretty normal guy, he does his work right, but then he refuses to do anything, eat, or leave the office. He dies and not much happens after that, the lawyer finds out that his previous job was working as clerk in a dead letter office sorting the letters for years. Possibly the dead letters influenced and changed his definition of life. Bartleby symbolizes a dead letter because the Lawyer thinks that after reading all those letters that were supposed to go to someone who is now dead or gone must have influenced Bartlebys perspective on life. Because Bartleby worked at a dead letter office for years, reading and sorting all of them, he is in the state of a dead man, like a dead letter that has never been opened. Bartleby also represents a dead letter because the narrator/lawyer is the sender of the letter, and he wishes to communicate with Bartleby but he can never get through him. This is one of the stronger explanations that explains Bartleby as a dead letter. The idea of undeliverable letters that speed to death, even when they go on errands of life (29). Finally, think about how conflict produces character and sometimes reveals it. There was some conflict between the lawyer and Bartleby, or between life and Bartleby. Because he feels like the lawyer possibly just added more stress in Bartlebys position, making him feel dead, this was kind of an example of failure to communicate. Nearly everything that happened leading up to Bartlebys death goes back to failure of communication or just more stress in the situation. This all revealed the character of Bartleby to the narrator since he found out that he worked in a dead letter office for years, reading and sorting letters, hundreds of failures to communicate entirely changed Bartlebys perspective on life and the meaning of working hard. Word Count: 1266

Junk Food Research Papaer

It too can be tied in with so many children eating junk food and fast food. There are many reasons that American children suffer from obesity, like not eating healthy meals at home or school, no one to prepare healthy meals for them or simply, love to eat fast food and junk food. Despite limited evidence, there is a growing concern that junk food in schools has contributed to the childhood obesity epidemic. The IBM (body mass index) is a collected weight and height measurements of children who are overweight by eating fast food and junk food.They can run down to the local corner tore and grab chips and a coke for a meal which can lead to unhealthy results later. Studies have shown, that junk foods can lead to certain illness and diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, fatigue and even different types of cancers. Can relate to the serious disease, type II diabetes too well. My father and my late husband was diagnosed with the disease. Watched both my father and my husband gorg e on junk foods and unhealthy foods, then go give themselves insulin shots. I never understood the irony of that concept.Overtime, high levels of sugar and carbohydrates in junk food can lead to type II diabetes. Type II diabetes occurs when your pancreas makes little or no insulin, which help keeps your blood sugar level in the right range for your body. Having type II diabetes can potentially lead to other health risks if the blood sugar level gets too high and too often. High blood sugar levels can also have serious effects on your blood vessels by thinning the lining of them. Believe it or not, thinning blood vessels can lead to heart attacks and stoke in people.One of the main reasons that some men have erectile dysfunction is because the thin lining that the blood vessels and could be an early sign of something more to come. Because junk food doesn't contain the protein or complex carbohydrates that your body needs to maintain consistent blood sugar levels, your blood sugar le vels will drop suddenly soon after eating. You'll crave sugar and likely end up eating more junk food. Over time, this stress damages your body's ability to use the insulin secreted by your pancreas.A healthy diet can help maintain your body's insulin sensitivity. You may wonder if you have to give up all fast food once you've been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Common sense says that fast food is not likely to be on the preferred foods list for people with diabetes. A typical fast food breakfast can put you at or over your daily limit for fat, cholesterol, and carbohydrates. There are, better choices you can make to get the nutrition you need and take advantage of fast food's convenience. First of all, fast food doesn't have to mean eating the fatty offerings.Planning ahead is the key. Many fast food chains now feature healthier choices to eat and these are the restaurants you want to go to grab a quick and fast healthy meal. Doesn't seem like high blood pressure and diabetes go h and and hand. High blood pressure is also one of the leading cause and major risks of heart attacks and strokes. Fast food contains unhealthy amounts of sodium and fat, which can negatively affect blood pressure. About 90 percent of Americans eat too much sodium, according to the Centers for Disease Control.It's estimated that Americans eat on average 3,300 milliards of sodium each day, which is more than the recommended intake of 2,300 milliards, according to the CDC. Roughly a quarter of the sodium you eat comes from restaurant foods, estimates the CDC. Blood pressure is the force of blood pushing against blood vessel walls. The heart pumps blood into the arteries (blood vessels) which carry the blood throughout the body. High blood pressure, also called hypertension, means the pressure in your arteries is above the normal range. In most cases, no one knows what causes high blood pressure.What you eat can affect your blood pressure. Controlling your sodium intake is particularly c ritical as you get older, since blood pressure increases naturally with age. The risk of high blood pressure more than doubles once you reach age 35 and over. A single high fat, fast food could meal have a negative effect on blood pressure, according to a study published in â€Å"The Journal of Nutrition† in April 2007. In the study, healthy participants et two fast food meals containing 42 grams of fat on separate occasions, or two low-fat, non-fast food meals.The high fat, fast food meals caused blood pressure to rise and the heart to beat faster, compared the group who ate a low-fat meal. This data supports evidence that excess fat, particular saturated fat, contributes to sustained high blood pressure, according to the study. As you can see, national studies show how junk food can really be a negative substance to the body, no matter how good the taste.. Have you ever notice that you tired and fatigue, but you're getting plenty of est. every night, could junk food make yo u lazy or does being lazy make you eat junk food.Let's find out which one is more than other. A new study finds eating too much junk food doesn't only make you fat, it may also make you mentally slower or less motivated. At least that seems to be true in lab rats. New research from UCLA points found that eating sugary, processed, and high-fat foods can actually cause tiredness, a lack of motivation and decreased performance, according to a study published in the April 10 issue of Physiology & Behavior. In a study, thirty-two female rats were placed on one of two diets for six months.The first was a standard rat's diet of unprocessed foods like ground corn and fish meal. The second was made up of highly processed foods that included substantially more sugar, similar to a human junk food diet. After three months, the 16 rats on the junk food diet became much fatter than the others and they got lazier too. As part of the study, the rats were given a task in which they were required to press a lever to receive a food or water reward. The rats on the junk food diet demonstrated impaired performance, taking longer breaks than the lean rats before returning to the task.In a 30-minute session, the overweight rats took areas that were nearly twice as long as the lean ones. After six months, the rats' diets were switched, and the overweight rats were given the more nutritious diet for nine days. This change, however, didn't help reduce their weight or improve their responses. The reverse was also true: Placing the lean rats on the junk food diet for nine days didn't increase their weight noticeably or result in any reduction in their motivation on the lever task.These findings suggest that a pattern of consuming junk food, not just the occasional binge, is responsible for obesity and cognitive impairments. Have you heard of the term: you are what you eat? Well a person that eats fast food and foods that are high in fat and sugar tends to have a higher risk of contractin g bowel cancer. Although those high levels fast foods. Even though cancer us usually caused by genetic damage that happens inside an individual cell. There are so many different types of cancer that one can have like, skin cancer, blood cancers, colon cancer and even infectious cancer diseases such as AIDS.Some cancer can be contributed to high levels of fat in diets and unhealthy meals. Cancer is caused by a number factors, some of which we can control, and mom we cannot. One of the uncontrollable factors is the presence of gene mutations. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (APPC) recently filed suit against seven major restaurants and fast-food chains in the State Of California. McDonald's, Burger King, Chick-fill-A, Chili's, Applause's, Outback Steakhouse and T. G. I. Friday's. The reason for the suit?These companies are knowingly serving food containing carcinogens without a health warning to the consumer. The APPC commissioned an independent laboratory to test gr illed chicken products from California outlets of all seven chains. Pulp (one of a group of carcinogenic compounds called heterocyclic amines) was found in every grilled chicken sample provided for testing. Heterocyclic amines were added to the list of known carcinogens in 2005 and Pulp specifically has been on the California governor's list of chemicals known to cause cancer for more than a decade. Grilled chicken can cause cancer and consumers deserve to know that this supposedly healthy product is actually just as bad for them as high-fat fried chicken,† says APPC President Neal Bernard, MD. â€Å"Even a grilled chicken salad increases the risk of breast cancer, prostate cancer and other forms of his lethal disease. McDonald's, Burger King and Wend's were accused in a lawsuit of selling chicken they know contains a chemical that can cause cancer even in small amounts. McDonald's, the world's biggest restaurant company, and the other dining chains were sued in a state court in Hartford, Connecticut.The complaint, filed by Washington based Cancer Project on behalf of two Connecticut residents, seeking a class action lawsuit on the behalf of people who bought or ate the grilled chicken from October 2006. It's time to consider that the only way fast-food restaurants will start sharing our growing concern for healthier eating choices is if we stop going. It's time to seriously consider the risk to ourselves and our children, and weigh those risks against the â€Å"convenience† being offered by fast food. We have other options.Fast food is not the only choice for busy parents. If you have a busy life and can't believe there are other option Fast food is relatively cheap, comparing with traditional food. It may cost as low as a few dollars with no service charges or tips at all. It is highly accessible, which many of those fast food restaurants open 24 hours a day 7 says a week with no prior reservation required, and is ready to serve as soon as when people have just finished their orders. People have the choice of to dine in, take away or even drive through for their meals.These advantages, which fit and match the city life style seamlessly, make fast food so attractive and irreplaceable. However, as the raising awareness of people's health in recent days, fast food has been accused as one of the major harms to a healthy life. Fast food, usually serves with oversized hamburgers and fries, contains excessive fat, both trans-fat and non-trans fat, causing serious illnesses such as obesity and earth diseases, and beverages, like cream soda and coke, contains overdosed sweetener, is one of the major reasons causing diabetic.Moreover, preservatives and flavor enhancers mixed into those frozen ingredients would significantly decrease the nutrition value of the meals. In conclusion, fast food is definitely quick, cheap and highly accessible. It is always ready on the fly, and seems to be a very good and simple option when people hope to squeeze their packed schedules for some time. However, people might mistakenly overlook the quality of food, in particular ingredients and nutrition facts, and jeopardize and risk their health.

Bell Jar Analysis

Sylvia Plath’s semi-autobiographical novel â€Å"The Bell Jar† employs many of the same confessional techniques and themes of her poetic work. While the novel is confessional, it is also provides sociological commentary (and insight) into the processes of medical treatment and the social ostracization and victimization of the mentally ill.A basic technique used in the novel, by Plath, is to present a seemingly â€Å"normal† world and then, by way of internal monologue and character development, allow the reader to glimpse a highly studied and carefully described portrayal of the way that mental illness impacts both society and the individual.By expressing a personal encounter with metal illness, Plath, through the character of Esther, presents a ‘case study† in clinical depression and bipolar disorder without resorting to clinical diagnoses or psychological language or theories. Instead, her literary interpretation of mental illness functions to expan d the clinical understanding of mental disorders by providing cognitive insight into the experienced phenomena of mental illness.The opening line of the novel: â€Å"It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer the electrocuted the Rosenbergs† (Plath, 1) reveals the novel’s essential theme and conflict: that of the individual who stands â€Å"outside looking in† with regard to their society: it is a theme of psychological rather than physical exile, though Esther identifies, via the powerful verb â€Å"electrocuted,† with the physical suffering of the Rosenbergs who were tried and executed for espionage and treason.Because the central conflict in â€Å"the Bell Jar† is internal, Plath constructs a dynamic and multi-faceted character whose preoccupations range from fashion, to dating, to the themes of great literature and to the essential meanings of life and death. Throughout the novel more is shown than told; that is, Plath refrains from divulging in formation about Esther directly; instead, she constructs scenes which transmit the internal character conflicts through symbolism and metaphor. A clinical diagnosis of Esther's mental illness can be made by deeply exploring the literary techniques of the novel.The novel's plot is relatively simple: a young, ambitious, and very talented woman wins a summer internship as a big-time New York magazine. While in New York, the young woman, Esther, suffers a series of unpleasant and often dangerous situations, begins to feel sense of hypocrisy and unhappiness in herself and in the world of glamour-publishing and seems to rebel against this hypocrisy (and sexism) by quitting her internship and throwing her expensive wardrobe out of her hotel window.Then, after returning to the suburbs to live with her mother, and failing to begin both her hoped-for novel and her college thesis, Esther begins to act increasingly erratically and self-destructively, severing her relationships and losing touch with her own creativity and ambition, until she is referred to a psychiatrist. Esther, however, is not psychologically unstable due to weakness or deformation: this is clear from the novel’s portrayal of her as a bright and shining and talented â€Å"golden girl† who wins poetry prizes and scholarships and is dating a medical student and writing term papers on Joyce.After being treated with electroshock therapy, Esther's condition and crisis become more and more severe until she attempts suicide, is â€Å"saved,† and sent to a mental hospital where she again receives electroshock therapy. The novel fails to provide any concrete resolution to Esther's crisis, and in doing so, avoids making any determination about the benefits of Esther's clinical diagnoses and treatment.However, the emotional arc of the narrative can certainly be said to move toward the positivistic and there are potentialities and capacities that are reinstated into Esther's character after her treatment. To fully understand the process of Esther's breakdown (and apply a clinical diagnosis), the reader must read deeply into the novel and consider deeply the relationships of the characters and the cross-ties adn relationships which fluctuate, not to the rhythms of a traditional novel's story-arc, but to the weird rhythms of Esther's own mental illness.In fact, the narrative is structured very similarly to a poem in that metaphorical and symbolic expression convey the essential dynamics of the story's themes at a far more attenuated level than the conventional storytelling elements of plot, conflict, and resolution. Of the latter, Plath conspicuously avoids classical execution; for example, â€Å"The Bell Jar† posits no clear antagonist, no externalized central conflict, and refrains from set-closure at its climax. This is a way by which the clinical diagnosis of Esther's diagnosis can be made.Her initial relationships portrayed in the novel include a â€Å"mentorâ⠂¬  in New York, the editor Jaycee, an â€Å"older sister† friend named Doreen, a fiancee named Buddy, and a literary mentor and benefactress named Philomena Guinea who was is a wealthy, famous novelist. Each of the relationships reflects an aspect of the healthy personality: ambitious, creative, socially engaged, and creative. Also, Esther's erotic drive, while never posited in the novel as â€Å"resolvable† decreases until she is able to view sex as only an oppressive act against women.As Esther's plight worsens, each of the relationships is severed. The clinical diagnosis which seems most applicable to Esther Greenwood would be that of clinical depression and a bipolar personality. Interestingly enough, bipolar disorder is often associated with creative minds and artists. read at one level, â€Å"The Bell Jar† describes the plight of the artistic mind in modern society as well as the plight of the artistic mind gripped by clinical mental illness.The key to s eparating where the individualist, the artist and rebel lies in Esther Greenwood and where the â€Å"madwoman,† the victim of a clinical mental illness lies is to apply rigorous methodology to the explication of the novel as a piece of literature. One such scene, which is representative of this technique used throughout â€Å"The Bell Jar,† is the scene when Esther, having traveled to new York upon winning an internship at a famous fashion magazine, throws her expensive wardrobe out of her hotel window.â€Å"The wind made an effort, but failed, and a batlike shadow sank toward the roof garden of the opposite penthouse† (Plath, 90). Such compressed and highly symbolic language forwards both character development (Esther is mentally unstable) as well as foreshadowing with the bat representing death and Esther’s ultimate plunge into attempted suicide. There is no gaiety in the scene, which if in evidence would suggest a triumphant rejection of the superficia lities described in the novel about the fashion-district of New York and Esther’s experiences there.Instead, a sens of doom pervades, along with a sense of self-destruction and psychological instability: â€Å"Piece by piece, I fed my wardrobe to the night wind, and flutteringly, like a loved one’s ashes, the gray scraps were ferried off, to settle here, there, exactly where I would never know, in the dark hart of New York. † (Plath 91). This single scene stands as emblematic of Esther’s (and Plath’s) essential plight: that of the bipolar personality and the track toward attempted suicide.The scene also represents the symptomatic progression of full-blown bipolar personality disorder which is characterized by depressive episodes and suicidal obsessions. The combination of high-achievement, goal-setting, ambition, creativity, task-setting, and personal expression with an equally profound sense of purposelessness, meaninglessness, lack of energy, lac k of sex drive, and plummeting self identity and a plummeting sense of self-esteem are compressed brilliantly into the above-described scene. By explicating the symbolism deeply, the bipolar disorder is easily uncovered.The feelings Esther has of not being able to connect with her life, of not comprehending her society or valuing her interpersonal relationships are aspects of the acute depressive crisis which marks the depressive â€Å"extreme† of the bipolar disorder. The novel describes how an acute depressive episode can lead to suicide even when treatment is being administered. The treatment which would seem most applicable for Esther Greenwood by modern diagnostic processes is not that which is provided for her in the novel: electroshock therapy.Rather, what is indicated is that Esther should be treated with psycho therapy, primarily, with perhaps the inclusion of certain, limited medication. The inclusion of family-centered therapy, social rhythm therapy, and cognitive therapy along with medication would provide the best hope for Esther's clinical recovery. However, the process of metal disorder described in the novel is mush wider, much more comprehensive than even modern therapies would seem to be an adequate redress for — although even a slight improvement in prognosis would probably have saved Esther from suicide.In order to restore and strengthen hern creative gifts and reinstate her standing in society, the clinical treatments might at least give Esther an impetus toward a healthy rather than self-destructive life. So carefully designed is Esther’s portrayal in â€Å"The Bell Jar,† that the reader stands an ever-increasing chance of identifying as deeply with Esther’s plight as Esther herself seems to identify with the plight of the Rosenbergs.In other words, the last thing which is intimated in the novel is that Esther bears any personal responsibility for her mental illness or the social stigmas that are attache d to it. In fact, I personally do not belive that there was anything Esther could have done or should have done to â€Å"prevent† her collapse. From rape to institutionalized chauvinism and the â€Å"saint-whore† syndrome, Esther experiences a multitude of the sociological injuries borne against women in America.She also, as a poet, stands for the sociological persecution of artists and the cultural misunderstanding of their sensitivities. Throughout the novel, Esther’s internal dialogue and descriptions of situations stands in bold contrast to the mundane and often mean or ignorant dialogue and observations of the novel’s minor characters. In addition to these deeper, more socially and politically inspired themes, â€Å" The Bell Jar† captures intimate details of middle-class adolescence: the struggle to succeed, the position often social outcast, and the cruelties and injustices of love and eroticism.This is why The Bell Jar is such an important novel: because it places an intimately personal, yet universal, protagonist in the grip of what modern psychology and modern psychiatry understand as a clinical mental illness. Rather than approach the topic clinically, Plath approaches the theme poetically and confessionally and draws the reader into a closes identification with Esther Greenwood. The result is that the alert reader, even one who is familiar with the clinical processes of bipolar disorder, will recognize a personal plight beneath the level which is clinically descriptive.The reader's identification with Esther then takes the form of first hope, then skepticism, about the clinical treatments (and practitioners) which are engaged ostensibly in working for Esther's recovery. Whether one reads the central theme of The Bell Jar as one of individuality and the alienation from modern society or as a literary portrayal of a clinically defined mental disorder, the conclusion that individuals who suffer from mental illness ar e both victimized and stigmatized in modern society is clear.My personal feeling is that Esther Greenwood is far more of a universal character than many would like to belive and that her portrayal in The Bell Jar indicates both the destructive influence of mental illness and the destructive influence of modern society which is revealed to be both widespread and institutionalized. References Plath, Sylvia The Bell Jar Bantam Books New York NY 1971.

Understanding the Bible Belt in the United States

Understanding the Bible Belt in the United States When American geographers map rates of religious belief and regular attendance at places of worship, a distinct region of religiosity appears on the map of the United States. This region is known as the Bible Belt, and while it can be measured in a variety of ways, it tends to include much of the American South.   First Use of Bible Belt The term Bible Belt was first used by the American writer and satirist H.L. Mencken  in 1925 when he was reporting on the Scopes Monkey Trial which took place in Dayton, Tennessee. Mencken was writing for the Baltimore Sun  and used the term in a derogatory way, referring to the region in subsequent pieces with such quotes as the Bible and Hookworm Belt and Jackson, Mississippi in the heart of the Bible and Lynching Belt.   Defining The Bible Belt The term gained popularity and began to be used to name the region of the southern U.S. states in the popular media and in academia. In 1948, the Saturday Evening Post  named Oklahoma City the capital of the Bible Belt. In 1961, geographer Wilbur Zelinsky, a student of Carl Sauer, defined the region of the Bible Belt as one in which Southern Baptists, Methodists, and evangelical Christians were the predominant religious group. Thus, Zelinsky defined the Bible Belt as a region stretching from West Virginia and southern Virginia to southern Missouri in the north to Texas and northern Florida in the south. The region that Zelinsky outlined did not include Southern Louisiana due to its preponderance of Catholics, nor central and southern Florida due to its diverse demographics, nor South Texas with its large Hispanic (and thus Catholic or Protestant) population.   History of the Bible Belt The region known as the Bible Belt today was in the 17th and 18th centuries a center of Anglican (or Episcopalian) beliefs. In the late 18th century and into the 19th century, Baptist denominations, especially Southern Baptist, began to gain in popularity. By the 20th century, evangelical Protestantism could be the defining belief system in the region known as the Bible Belt.   In 1978, geographer Stephen Tweedie of Oklahoma State University published the definitive article about the Bible Belt, Viewing the Bible Belt, in the  Journal of Popular Culture.  In that article, Tweedie mapped Sunday television watching habits for five leading evangelical religious television programs. His map of the Bible Belt expanded the region defined by Zelinsky and included a region that encompassed the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Kansas. But his research also broke the Bible Belt into two core regions, a western region and an eastern region. Tweedies western Bible Belt was focused on a core that extended from Little Rock, Arkansas to Tulsa, Oklahoma. His eastern Bible Belt was focused on a core that included the major population centers of Virginia and North Carolina. Tweedie identified secondary core regions surrounding Dallas and Wichita Falls, Kansas to Lawton, Oklahoma.   Tweedie suggested that Oklahoma City was the buckle or capital of the Bible Belt but many other commentators and researchers have suggested other locations. It was H.L. Mencken who first suggested that Jackson, Mississippi was the capital of the Bible Belt. Other suggested capitals or buckles (in addition to the cores identified by Tweedie) include Abilene, Texas; Lynchburg, Virginia; Nashville, Tennessee; Memphis, Tennessee; Springfield, Missouri; and Charlotte, North Carolina.   The Bible Belt Today Studies of religious identity in the United States continually point to the southern states as an enduring Bible Belt. In a 2011 survey by Gallup, the organization found Mississippi to be the state containing the highest percentage of very religious Americans. In Mississippi, 59 percent of residents were identified as being very religious. With the exception of number two Utah, all of the states in the top ten are states commonly identified as being part of the Bible Belt. (The top 10 were: Mississippi, Utah, Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, South Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia, and Oklahoma.)   The Un-Bible Belts On the other hand, Gallup and others have pointed out that the opposite of the Bible Belt, perhaps an Unchurched Belt or a Secular Belt, exists in the Pacific Northwest and the northeastern United States. Gallups survey found that a mere 23 percent of Vermont residents are considered to be very religious. The 11 states (due to the tie for tenth place) that are home for the least religious Americans are Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Alaska, Oregon, Nevada, Washington, Connecticut, New York, and Rhode Island.   Politics and Society in the Bible Belt Many commentators have pointed out that while religious observance in the Bible Belt is high, it is a region of a variety of social issues. Educational attainment and college graduation rates in the Bible Belt are among the lowest in the United States. Cardiovascular and heart disease, obesity, homicide, teenage pregnancy, and sexually transmitted infections are among the highest rates in the nation.   At the same time, the region is known for its conservative values, and the region is often considered to be a politically conservative region. The red states within the Bible Belt traditionally support Republican candidates for state and federal office. Alabama, Mississippi, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas have consistently pledged their electoral college votes to the Republican candidate for president in each presidential election since 1980. Other Bible Belt states usually vote Republican, but candidates such as Bill Clinton from Arkansas have sometimes swayed the votes in Bible Belt states.   In 2010,  Matthew Zook and Mark Graham utilized online place name data to identify the preponderance of the word church locally. What resulted is a map that is a good approximation of the Bible Belt as defined by Tweedie and extending into the Dakotas. Other Belts in America Other Bible Belt-style regions have been named in the United States. The Rust Belt of the former industrial heartland of America is one such region. Other belts include the Corn Belt, Snow Belt, and Sunbelt.

Cvs Marketing Development Essay Example

Cvs Marketing Development Essay Example Cvs Marketing Development Essay Cvs Marketing Development Essay Porter’s Five Forces ForcesGradeNote Segment Rivalry Strong The current market is divided between a few powerful competitors that can relatively easily attract customers from one another as the switching costs are low and practical absence of product differentiation contributes to the easy loss of market share. Threat of MobilityWeakWhile the new entrants only need a relatively simple GUI and a supplier in order to enter the market, the federal and local regulations will require significant investments prior to any positive cash flow. Again, the differentiation is practically non-existent and the new entrants will have to compete with financially established enterprises capitalizing on competitive advantage. Supplier powerStrongIn order to sustain the market share in this highly competitive industry the pharmacies have to establish and maintain strong working relationships with PBMs that have power to divest particular clients from a pharmacy by denying reimbursement privileges to their customers. Buyer PowerStrongIt is not hard to obtain the same drugs from different sources so the customer loyalty is virtually non-existent and the pharmacies have to try extremely hard to sustain their consumer base. Threats of substitutesWeakThere are very few alternatives to drugs. The alternatives are practically limited to traditional medicine. Therefore, the threat of substitute is weak. Conclusion: CVS is in a favorable position because it already controls the large share of the market and its brand name is known to the populace. Therefore, it is crucial for the company to protect its market share and pursue the aggressive expansion policy to secure even large customer base. Financial Analysis CVS was able to secure such a large market share in part because of its strong financial base. Since the pharmaceutical industry is not strongly correlated with the market (average beta is 0. 2) the slowing economy does not affect much CVS financial performance. The firm employs about 190,000 people and boasts the 20 million strong consumer base with projected growth 3. million within the next three years. The firm’s Price-to-Earnings Ratio (P/E) of about 21 is higher than P/Es of its primary competitors. Hence, CVS reported 21 bps increase and the total gain of $68 million in the last year. At the same time, the forward earning on the CVS stock yielded over 9. 3% allowing the firm easily meets its dividend obligations. The EPS proves that the stock has been performing well at over 30%. The revenue has been growi ng at 15. 7% per year during the last three years compare to 14. % revenue growth within the industry. This stocks forward earnings yield of 7. 41% is the annual return it would generate if its profits remained fixed and it paid out all of its earnings as dividends. This is normal compared with the earnings yields of other stocks in the industry, and is healthy in absolute terms. Finally, most companies in the industry have generated very low returns on assets over the past five years. CVS has posted results that are about average for the industry, though its ROA over the most recent 12 months was very high. Porter’s Generic Strategies Provided the CVS position in the market, it is clearly pursuing the low-cost leadership strategy. The company offers the same goods or, sometimes, a wider product assortment at the lower prices than its competitors. The firm’s prescription drugs’ sales constituted 68% of total sales, 8% ahead of its major competition Walgreen. This number reflects a strong relationship with PBMs that are attracted by the company’s lower prices than in the industry. However, the element of differentiation is also present such as money back guarantee on beauty products, stores conveniently open 24-hours and exceptional customer service. The company capitalizes on its current broad customer base to provide those services and differentiate itself from a tight competition. Also, traditionally, CVS stores were more consumer oriented, e. g. while Walgreen stores had larger area the CVS stores’ layouts were such that the aisles were wider and shelves lower making shopping more convenient. The same approach was taken by CVS to the on-line sales offering the consumers user friendly intuitive format and live customer support 24/7. Market The market is highly regulated and is subject to established relationships between health care providers and PBMs. Currently the pharmaceutical retail market is divided mostly between large chain stores such as CVS, Walgreen, Rite Aid, etc. The market is rather saturated and the competition is strong on the part of the comparable size players as well as online retailers and supermarkets. The industry faces personnel shortages especially in qualified pharmacists and pharmacy technicians. In the past the industry was strictly regionally dominated with Walgreen dominating the West, Rite Aid was strong in the South and Southeast, and CVS spread throughout the Northeast. However, the CVS broke the balance by advancing into the Rite Aid domain in 1997 creating the nation-wide competition between the companies. The ecommerce forced the major retailers to launch internet based services to compete with the new entrants such as WebMD. om and Drugstore. com. The price war in the cyber space resulted in lowering prices at the retail locations as well as shifted paradigm of in-store pharmacy assistance to the full-blown internet-based services. New short-lived phenomena emerged in a form of acquisitions of PBMs by the drug manufacturers in order to manage drug approval process and gain influence in the prescription drugs sales. However, only one merger (Merck-Medco) survived the attempt. Product CVS offers a combination of health care services such as pharmacy and medical equipment together with general merchandise ranging from beauty products to groceries via retail locations and on-line internet portal. The firms also provides consultative services such as medical plan designs, health management programs, and retail-based health clinics that are staffed primarily by nurse practitioners and physicians assistants treating limited number of common ailments and offering routine vaccinations. Price The prices are lower than the major competitor such as Walgreen. The prescription prices are negotiated with PBMs and other insurance companies. The general merchandise is obtained at wholesale prices and the savings are passed onto the consumers aiding to sustain the cost-leadership strategy. Channels of Distribution Online sales via cvs. com and over 4,000 retail locations. The firm offers automatic refills to be mailed to the consumers. The purchase and refills could be done via the telephone or on-line. Promotion CVS was the first pharmacy retailer to offer both: online shopping and traditional store services. CVS maintains extensive database of customers urchases from which it creates weekly individually tailored coupons for consumers. Also, CVS was the first retailer to offer money-back guarantees on beauty products Key Issues As the costs of healthcare increase proportionally to the aging population and slowing economy, the CVS’ main issue is the retention and growth of its market share. Historically, the CVS has been pursuing the Co st Leadership Strategy and only recently, facing the fierce competition from other players in the industry, CVS introduced the elements of differentiation such as MinuteClinic services, 24 hour locations, and 24/7 customer service. The mix of strategies might reduce the firm’s liquidity and stagnate its further expansion necessary to secure its market share. Boston Consulting Group Growth Share Matrix Clearly, CVS belongs to the Cash Cow section of the BCG Matrix. The aging population and health care demands contribute to the industry stable growth in terms of both market and sales. By the 2010, total annual sales should surpass $200 billion, with most of this growth claimed by chain pharmacies. In such a market the large players have slowly emerged and are in the position to protect their consumer base via mergers and acquisitions of the new and independent entrants. Thus CVS’ management team should concentrate on increasing market share and consider further expansion in both retail stores and in the on-line operations. Recommendations Securing market share and further expansion should be CVS first priority. Thus, in addition to maintaining the low cost advantage, the firm should invest into the ecommerce marketing to compete successfully with on-line retailers. These new services should be based on a rigorous research of consumer preferences, economic analysis, monitoring demographics as well as pay steadfast attention on competition that could use cost advantage strategy to attain the CVS market share through a system of discounts and special deals with PBRs. Thus, the firm’s pricing policy should be flexible enough as not to discourage the price-sensitive consumers and yet allow the company to sustain ever increasing product and service development costs. Also, mergers and acquisitions could be used by the company to its advantage. That would be following into footsteps of the CVS recent acquirement of Arbor Drug and Revco and comparable transactions performed by the CVS competitors such as Rite Aid acquiring Marco, Thrifty Payless, and K. The M practices make sense as they reduce competition, increase the customer base, and provide convenient locations for the existing customers. One of the main points in this respect is the necessity to create a unified customer database similar to the one operated by Walgreens that allow customers to access their prescriptions from any CVS store.

Nurse Leader Interview Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Nurse Leader Interview - Essay Example Being honest and fair to everyone, besides sharing information with everyone and operating an open door policy, should dominate the character traits of an effective leader. The leader should go deep to ensure that they have personal contact with their employees through either face-to-face meetings or phone calls to clarify issues or seek for suggestions. In case of a problem, the leader encourages everyone to listen and learn from one another in order to build cohesion and interactivity at the workplace. A good leader does not perceive one’s position as a status but, instead, a responsibility; the leader also understands that assigned authority means that the buck stops with them. For this reason, they bear the ultimate responsibility of making the final decision. Changes in Leadership Style Because of Evolving Leadership Role From my understanding, leadership is dynamic and nursing leaders find themselves adopting new leadership styles depending on situations. Long-term exper ience in leadership and circumstances opens nurse leaders to new leadership roles that make them adopt new styles of leadership. For instance, I have made tremendous changes in my leadership style over the recent years with a notable change being adoption of facilitative and transformational leadership traits. This change has been propagated by the new demands of the medical system, which requires nurse leaders to participate in strategic decision-making and facilitate growth and development in healthcare provision. There is no doubt that our healthcare system has been facing several challenges over a long period. However, there is a sigh of relief, as the system seems to be undoing a transformation process considering the newly enacted laws in the recent past that seek to fill in the existing gaps in the system. The Congress has been steadfast to address key concerns about the ever-escalating costs and variable quality that have dogged our system for a considerably long time. The P atient Protection and Affordable Care Act is one of such incredible roles played by the Congress to address major healthcare system challenges of the 21st century (Nordal, 2011). This law in real sense cannot just be seen as a big thing in the healthcare industry – it must be valued for being transformative. This law, among other things happening in the healthcare industry, both good and bad ones, is a clear manifestation that leadership in healthcare is not just about performing a job, but all about bringing difference. This means that nurse leadership will be about not only motivating, guiding and directing teams but also facilitating change and progress. The evolving role of healthcare leaders demands that they become part of the solution to the diverse challenges the healthcare system is facing nationally and at a professional level (Nordal, 2011). In other words, leaders should be adopting facilitative and transformational leadership traits as the healthcare industry is undergoing a transformation process characterized by standardized quality and increased access for all citizens. New recruits need to be integrated into the strategic objectives of the organization to ensure that they share the same vision with the existing veterans who already understand the facility’s strategic direction. Because I understood my new roles of leading my team into the vision of the medical system, I had to start by thinking about improvements and development as it is a great requirement for a transactional

DeBeers advertising Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

DeBeers advertising - Essay Example The simulacrum is true† (Ecclesiastes, cited in Baudrillard, 1994, p. 1) Introduction Observations reveal that in postmodern era extensive use of mass media and representative symbols have become an integral part of contemporary culture, where boundaries between fantasy and real world have merged, often making reality unrecognisable (Baudrillard, 1993, pp. 71-72). Mass production and photographic representation (advertisements) have modified human experience to the extent that â€Å"Irreality no longer belongs to the dream or phantasm†¦but to the hallucinatory resemblance of the real itself† (ibid, p. 72). In post-modern era, â€Å"reality† is identified only when it is mimeographed through cloning or simulation; while truth is interceded and manipulated in a manner where present genre of humans fail to differentiate between imaginary and real world, a condition termed as â€Å"hyper-reality† (ibid, pp.70-76). In the context of artificially creating a condition of reality, the best-known example is that of DeBeers where the tagline, â€Å"a diamond is forever† is known to have attached a false sense of value to a simple carbonated rock particle. Besides this, the De Beers advertisements also make strong use of the sign and signification concept (including the referent, the signifier and the signified), where their advertisements, instead of giving any information on the products create meanings through various signs and symbols. ... In this context, the paper will examine the concept of simulation and hyper-reality, comprehend how media managed to manipulate and erase the basic line between fantasy and reality, and create a false sense of value or consumer emotion. It will also analyse the concept of sign and signification, to find out the meaning behind the signs and symbols used in the advertisements. Discussion In post-modernism (especially in the context of capitalistic economies and post-modern developed nations), hyperrealism is a concept that reveals a condition where human consciousness fails to differentiate between falsely created ‘real’ world (simulation) and actual reality (Baudrillard, 1994). In other words, hyper-reality typifies what consciousness distinguishes as "reality" in the cultural context where mass media has the power to alter incidents before presenting them to the readers/viewers. It has resulted from logically derived simulation processes, where signs, logos or phrase-wor ds are being used with increasing frequencies to substitute real products or emotions. Symbols or catchy phrase-words that imitate reality are being made to appear as simplified and easy to recognise. They first cover and then replace the real objects or emotions, and finally end up being more ‘real’ than reality itself (ibid). Modern culture has thus turned into a substitute for reality where â€Å"everything is therefore right on the surface, absolutely superficial. There is no longer a need or requirement for depth or perspective; today, the real and the imaginary are confounded in the same operational totality, and aesthetic fascination is simply everywhere† (Baudrillard, 1976, p. 1019). According to Baudrillard