Greenblatt Guru of New Historicism

Greenblatt Guru of New Historicism According to M.A.R Habib, New Historicism has become a literary term closely associated with Greenblatt, who is generally regarded as the guru of New Historicism and, as a predictable result of his sudden prominence, the focus of much criticism. By breaking disciplinary boundaries between the text and history, and between fiction and reality, New Historicism, eventually and inevitably, has now come to terms with the decision to set up its priority in a place between textualism and contextualism. In other words Karbe believes that text or phenomena cannot be somehow torn from history and analyzed in isolation outside of the historical process (401). Against the traditional view to history as Tyson says history is a matter of interpretations, not facts, and that interpretations always occur within a framework of social conventions(289),so the new historicist critics believes that all historical analysis is unavoidably subjective. Historians must therefore reveal the ways in which they know they have been positioned, by their own cultural experience, to interpret history (290). In order to know the rule of literature in new historicism and the relation between the society and environment of the time or generally the role of history of time and place to create a literary work, it would be highly important to explain some details to understand this notion better. Like the other new historicist critics Tyson believes that for new historical critics, a literary text doesnt embody the authors intention or illustrate the spirit of the age that produced it, as traditional literary historians asserted. In continues he assert that: Nor are literary texts self-sufficient art objects that transcend the time and place in which they were written, as New Critics believed. Rather, literary texts are cultural artifacts that can tell us something about the interplay of discourses, the web of social meanings, operating in the time and place in which the text was written. And they can do so because the literary text is itself part of the interplay of discourses, a thread in the dynamic web of social meaning. For new historicism, the literary text and the historical situation from which it emerged are equally important because text (the literary work) and context (the historical conditions that produced it) are mutually constitutive: they create each other (291-2). Like the dynamic interplay between individual identity and society, literary texts shape and are shaped by their historical contexts. Michael Payne asserts; new historicism is a collection of practices rather than school or a method (2), so thats why flourishing in the 80s, New Historicism mainly based on French philosopher Michel Foucaults theories offered just such a critique of history, and the dominant new historicist theories which have been used in this study would be according to the Foucaults definitions of this term. The new historicism explores the place of literature in an ongoing contest of power within society which has been defined widely latter by Foucault whose ideas have strongly influenced the development of new historicism, power circulates in all directions, to and from all social levels, at all times(Tyson 284). The others notions which are directly related to the new historicism are discourse, identity and the episteme of the time. Dr. Chung Hsiung Lai in his es say Limits and Beyond: Greenblatt, New Historicism and a Feminist Genealogy says that language is bound up with questions of identity because it is through language that we speak of ourselves and interact with others (4). We can promote the role of language in a new historicist reading to discursive power or social self fashioning force which Foucault explain them later fully. New historicist reading of the literary work according to Foucault, could be reading it according to dominant discourse and episteme of the time of the writer which could help the researcher to comprehend the identity of the creative characters of the selected works better and also helps to understand the intention of the author to create this imaginative world. Accordingly it is beyond argument that notwithstanding Greenblatt as a dominant figure in new historicism, Foucaults theories as a new historicist author have been concerned largely with the concepts of power, knowledge and discourse, These concepts alongside of the other concepts like identity and episteme are those which could applied in the text of so many literary works in a new historicist reading of them; but the author that has been selected for this study is Margaret Atwood who the notion of new historicism is highly applicable in her novels especially the selected ones The Handmaids Tale and Edible Woman. Atwood has created a stunning Orwellian vision of the near future in The Handmaids Tale. This is the story of Offred, one of the unfortunate Handmaids under the new social order who have only one purpose: to breed. In Gilead, where women are prohibited from holding jobs, reading and forming friendships, Offreds persistent memories of life in the time before and will to survive are acts of rebellion. According to Dr. Chung Hsiung Lai Greenblatt evokes the traditional privileging of speech over writing, where meaning are thought to be somehow less ambiguous as the speaker consciously aims at reducing the chances of misinterpretation (5).Howells in her essay Margaret Atwoods Dystopian Vision: The Handmaids Tale and Oryx and Crake asserts that this novel might usefully begin with this statement, for Offreds fictive autobiography come to us as a written text, and only at the end do we discover that, what we have been reading was actually a spoken narrative which has been transcribed from the old caste types and reconstructed for publication long after the narrator is dead(165). The second novel which has been analyzed in this study is Edible Woman, The edible woman of the novels title is, most obviously, a doll shape cake cooked and consumed in the novels conclusion. However the title also refers to the novels main character, Marian MacAlpin, who is so preoccupied with food that she interprets life around her in terms of food consumption, eventually come to identify with food, and develops a serious eating disorder as well as some romantic relations, love affairs, a broken marital engagement, a planned pregnancy and birth. The concept of body is what Atwood use widely, during the plotline of these two novels, and Foucault in Discipline and Punishment and also History of Sexuality use and explain this notion which would be highly useful in this study and At the centre of the study is a triangulated set of concepts concerning the body and its articulation with relations of power and knowledge. Barry Smart asserts that Genealogical analysis reveals the body as an object of knowledge and as a target for the exercise of power. The body is shown to be located in a political field, invested with power relations which render it docile and productive, and thus politically and economically useful (69) Thus the exercise of power necessarily puts into circulation apparatuses of knowledge, that is creates sites where knowledge is formed. Foucault himself in Discipline and Punishment asserts that a knowledge of the body that is not exactly the science of its functioning, and a mastery of its forces that is more than the ability to conquer them(26). and also Bartky believes that Both [feminism and Foucault] identify the body as the site of the power (102).Thus this analysis of power has set in motion an entirely new way of examining power relations in society, focusing more on resistance than simple passive oppression. Foucault also interested in the way that power operates through different forms of regime at particular historical period , Foucaults genealogical analyses begin with an examination of the character of modern power relations literally with the question of how power is exercised and the associated issue of the relationships between power and knowledge(Smart p. 69), and also Mills declares that For Foucault, discipline is a set of strategies, procedures and ways of behaving which are associated with certain institutional contexts and which then permeate ways of thinking and behaving in general(44). History is the other word, plays a dominant role in Foucaults ideas. Sara Mills explains that for Foucault the past is not seen as inevitably leading up to the present, a view of history which renders the past banal; it is very strangeness of the past which makes us able to see clearly the strangeness of the present(24). Then in The Archaeology of Knowledge Foucault develops the term episteme that is the body of knowledge and the ways of knowing which are in circulation at the particular moment. This study has been circulated around those Foucaults ideas which are relevant to analysis of selected novels. Argument David Staines in his essay Margaret Atwood in Her Canadian Context introduces Atwood as a prolific writer and a hit with literary critics, who became internationally famous after the popular and critical success of her 1984 novel, The Handmaids Tale. Atwood began her career in the 1960s, teaching English and at first publishing poetry, short stories and literary criticism. Her other novels include Surfacing (1972), Cats Eye (1988), Alias Grace (1996) and the 2000 Booker Prize winner, The Blind Assassin. About the concept of history Atwood in one of her lectures on her first historical novel asked a fundamental question which she tries to answers in her later novels, she asked What does the past tell us?Then she answered, In and of itself, it tells us nothing. We have to be listening first, before it will say a word; and even so, listening is telling and then retelling( Coomi S. Vevaina 86. ) . Coomi S. Vevaina tries to explain how far Atwood believe the concept of history and how far she used this concept in her Novels; he declares that in all her [Atwoods] works, Atwood reveals a distinctly postmodern engagement with history(87). He then continues that by recording some tapes Offred becomes an elocutionary act and her narrative(87); or better to say her story status warning against moral dictatorship and atrocity is summarily dismissed in an editorial aside by the male professional historian how is interested in reconstructing his grand impersonal narrative of a vanished nations hi story(87). Howells in her essay regarding the dystopian vision in Margaret Atwoods Handmaids tale asserts that this novel might usefully begin with this statement, for Offreds fictive autobiography come to us as a written text, and only at the end do we discover that, what we have been reading was actually a spoken narrative which has been transcribe from the old caste types and reconstruct for publication ling after the narrator is dead(165). Thus by help of this story we recognize the episteme of the time which Atwood tries to criticize, episteme according to Foucault is: the total set of relations that unite, at a given period, the discursive practices that give rise to epistemological figures, sciences, and possibly formalized systemsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦The episteme is not a form of knowledgeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦or type of rationality which, crossing the boundaries of the most varied sciences, manifests the sovereign unity of a subject, a spirit, or a period; it is the totality of relations that can be discovered for a given period, between the sciences when one analyses them at the level of discursive regularities(191). Moreover Howells believes that the issue of language and power has always been crucial in construction of dystopias:throughout the history of dystopian fiction the conflict of the text has often turned on the control of language (166). and it is Offreds attempt to seize it [the language] to make it hers (Cixous, Medusa. 343), which gives her narrative its appeal as one woman story of resistance against patriarchal tyranny. In both Edible woman and Handmaids Tale the efforts of heroin for resistance is obvious because both of them revolt against something and someone, Such revolts about conditions, staff, practices, and treatments have at root been resistances against the very materiality of the prison and punishment as instruments of power, resistances against a particular technology of power exercised over both the mind and body of the individual (Smart 74). Identity is the matter which Atwoods protagonist deals with and the great impact of society on them is not deniable, they are what the society likes to be, thats why they are looking for a way to resistance. As the case in point Goldblatt in Reconstructing Margaret Atwoods Protagonists asserts that in The Edible Woman Marians body is also a battlefield. Unable to cope with her impending marriage to Peter, Marian finds herself unable to ingest any food that was once alive. Repulsed by her societys attitude of consumerism (275), On the other hand the story of Offred in Gilead society is the same, Goldblatt continues Offreds identity and value as a child bearer as well in The Handmaids Tale, are proclaimed by her clothes in her totalitarian city of Gilead, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ she is no longer owns a name; she if Of Fred, the concubine named for the man who will impregnate her(276). Considering the new historicist approach according to Foucaults ideas (especially those which are fit to selected novels) the researcher wants to proof that, the purpose of present study is to trace the fundamental and substantial elements of new historicism in Atwoods Handmaids Tale and The Edible Woman. In order to gain the purpose the researcher tries to answer the following questions: Upon what social understanding do these works depends? What other cultural events occurred surrounding the original production of these texts? How may these events be relevant to the text under investigation? Why might reader at a particular time and place find these works compelling? Do contemporary issues and cultural milieu of the time of the author operate together to create her novels? Significance of the study There are two main reasons, which make doing this research important. The first reason is the author herself who is the contemporary leading novelist. And the second one is that this research gives a chance to know how Foucault ideas as an approach applicable on Atwoods selected novels. What makes this research significant is that up to the present time there are so many researches and studies on Atwoods short stories, poem or novels but in none of the researches deal with new historical approach. The present study wants to show, against so many critics who place Atwood in the list of feminist critics, there are others aspects rather than feminism in Atwoods works that could be noticeable. Sawicki asserts that Foucault emphasis on the sexual body as a target and vehicle of this new form of power / knowledge is reproduced in feminist analyses of modern form patriarchal control over womens mind and bodies in the context of the emergence of the sciences of medicine, social work, and psychology(290). From this stand point which most of the protagonist of Atwoods Novels are women, to look at the overall pattern it is generally accepted these heroines are in search of knowledge in order to gain power for resistance but in contrast to the traditional definition of power, the power which Foucault talks about is totally different. Mark Robson in Routledge Critical Thinkers: Stephen Greenblatt indicates that: Central to Foucaults work is the notion that knowledge is always a form of power. Thus advances in psychiatry or in the treatment of illnesses also lead to new ways of controlling the people who are mad or ill. Such control tends to reinforce the power of those in a position to impose the categories. But this does not mean that power is simply exercised from the top down. As Foucault puts it:power is everywhere; not because it embraces everything, but because it comes from everywhere ( 55). To sum up, the present study tries to insist on the element of new historicism specially Foucaltian approach on Atwoods selected novels which are believed that would be fully applicable. Review of Literature This study is a library research and all the information is obtain through different books, whether directly or indirectly discussing the materials, essays, electronic sources and many other possible sources in which the related materials can be found. This research is mainly focused on the original text of selected novels which are published, and also secondary sources, which explain and criticized these Novels, are used in order to help elaboration of the novels. The primarily concentration is on those studies which are related to the conception of new Historicism. Coral Ann Howells in The Cambridge Companion to Margaret Atwood tries to gather essays by Twelve leading international Atwood critics, provides the most comprehensive and up to date account of Atwoods novels. These essays consider Atwood theme, language, humor and narrative techniques. As a case in point Somacarreras essayPower politics: power and identity or Vevainas Margaret Atwood and history with many other essay from this book could help this study to move up in a better way. The Greenblatt Readers which is edited by Michael Payne makes available in one volume Greenblatts most important writing on culture, Renaissance studies and Shakespeare. It also features occasional pieces on subjects as diverse as storytelling and medicals, demonstrating the range of his cultural interests. Taken together, the text collected here dispel the idea that new historicism is antithetical to literary and aesthetic value. By the help of this book the researcher would like to reveal the progressive process of new historicism from Greenblatt to Foucault. Especially part one of this book which dedicate to culture and new historicism, could be highly useful for present study. Rutledge Critical Thinkers are some books which offer introductions to major critical thinkers who have influenced literary studies and humanities. Each book will equip the reader to approach these thinkers original text by explaining their key ideas, showing the reader why they are considered to be significant; Stephen Greenblatt by Mark Robson is the one of these series which not only introduce Greenblatt as a leading figure of new historicism but also ties to explain exactly what new historicism means and the relevance of new historicism to all aspects of literary criticism this book will help the researcher to find the dominant similarity and contrast between Greenbelts new historicism and Foucaltian new historicism. Various articles which make use of the theories of Foucault are referred to, such as Saundra lee Bartkys Foucault, Femininity, and the Modernization of Patriarchal Power, in which the author exclusively examines the discursive pressures upon the female body. In The History of Sexuality, Volume I: an Introduction Foucault provides much useful information on the origin, definition, and the treatment of the sexual body. This information is also useful in discussions concerning body and resistance. Gary Gutting in The Cambridge Companion to Foucault tryes to present a systematic and comprehensive overview of Foucaults major theme and texts from his early works on madness through his history of sexuality, and relates his work to significant contemporary movements such as critical theory and feminism. This book consist of several articles by different thinkers such as Foucault mapping of history by Thomas Flynn , Power/Knowledge by Joseph Rouse and Foucault feminism and question of identity by Jana Sawicki, which help the researcher in this study. Lisa Downing is Professor of French Discourses of Sexuality and Director of the Centre for the Interdisciplinary Study of Sexuality and Gender in Europe at the University of Exeter. her book The Cambridge Introduction to Michel Foucault provides ways in to understanding Foucaults key concepts of subjectivity, discourse and power. The book also explores the critical reception of Foucaults works and acquaints the reader with the afterlives of some of his theories, particularly his influence on feminist and queer studies. Each of these books represents fully the term of new Historicism which can be good theoretical bases for present study. Methodology New historicism study is a divergent field with numerous ideas, theoreticians, articles, and branches. One prominent flow of this kind of criticism is limited to Foucaults Ideas regarding power, identity, episteme, history, sexuality, knowledge, discourse and culture. According to Gearhart in Cultural Analysis and Its Discontents The issue of culture has been at the center of critical and literary-critical studies for quite some time now, and nowhere has it been more prominent than in the influential form of literary criticism that has come to be known as the new historicism. Colebrook in his book New literary Histories: New Historicism and Contemporary Criticism asserts that new historicism, a term applied to a trend in American academic literary studies in the 1980s that emphasized the historical nature of literary texts and at the same time (in contrast with older historicisms) the textual nature of history. As part of a wider reaction against purely formal or linguistic critical approaches such as the new criticism and deconstruction, the new historicists, led by Stephen Greenblatt, drew new connections between literary and nonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ literary texts, breaking down the familiar distinctions between a text and its historical background as conceived in established historical forms of criticism. Inspired by Michel Foucaults concepts of discourse and power, they attempted to show how literary works are implicated in the power relations of their time, not as secondary reflections of any coherent world view but as active participants in the continual remaking of meanings(Baldick 227). New historicism is less a system of interpretation than a set of shared assumptions about the relationship between literature and history, and an essayistic style that often develops general reflections from a startling historical or anthropological anecdote. The framework of this study is Foucault ideas but before that the reader should become familiar with the concept of new historicism form Greenblatt to Foucault in order to understand its process and changes; so the chapter two has been devoted to this notion. Therefore, one principle aim is to know how literature of the specific time could be read according to new historicism. Following this new historicism methodology, chapters three and four argue the dominant concepts of new historicism according to Foucaults definition of this notion and their application to selected novels. These concepts could be the episteme of the time of the author which influence her work of art, power circulation and the role of body in this circulation, challenges of protagonist for gaining knowledge and identity and so on. And chapter five could be a conclusion and sum up of this study. Limitation and delimitation of study The present study is concerned only with Margarets two selected Novels, rather than her poetries or short stories. The choice of novels was also difficult because Margaret Atwood has variety of novels which more or less deal with different subject matters, therefore it is not possible to cover all of them in this study. As a result, the researcher concentrates only two novels which are most famous ones and suit the capacity of the content of the study. These selective novels can be studied from different approaches but the researcher is not going to say what other have said, so she chooses to examine the notion of new historicism according to Foucault definition of this term because this notion has variety sub branches. According to present study the new historicist elements such as Apparatus, Discipline, Discursive Practice, Episteme, Ethics, Identity and Power will be discuss fully in the shadow of Michel Foucault definition of these terms. In this study, the researcher will use the philosophers and theories which are related to her discussion and help its progress. Tentative outline The Concepts of Identity, Power and Knowledge: A Foucaltian Study of Margaret Atwoods Handmaids Tale and Edible Woman. Abstract Acknowledgements Chapter I. Introduction General Background The Argument Literature Review Thesis Outline Approach and Methodology New Historicism Definition of Terms Chapter 2. New Historicism from Foucault to Greenblatt Chapter 3. Foucaltian study of Handmaids Tale Chapter 4. Foucaltian study of Edible Woman Chapter 5. Conclusion Summing up Findings and implications Suggestion for farther reading Bibliography Definition of the Key Terms The below key terms are among many which may use in the present study: Andocentric: centered on the male. The term has been coined by feminist theorist wishing to describe a habit of mind and set of attitudes which are based upon a male perspective and which ignore female experience and interest (Hawthorn 10). Apparatus: Foucault generally uses this term to indicate the various institutional, physical and administrative mechanism and knowledge structure, which enhance and maintain the exercise of power within the social body (Hawthorn 12). Bio-power: Numerous and diverse techniques for achieving the subjugation of bodies and the control of populations (History of Sexuality, Foucault 77). Confession: an important component of bio-power. People are taught that their liberation requires them to tell the truth, to confess it to someone who is more powerful and this truth telling will somehow set them free (Dreyfus and Rabinow p. 141, History of Sexuality, 58-65). Discipline: The methods, which make possible the meticulous control of the operation of the body, which assure the constant subjection of its forces and impose upon it a relation of docility-utility (Discipline and Punishment, Foucault 137). Episteme: a term coin by Foucault and widely used by Derrida, to indicate the totality of relations and laws of transformations uniting all discursive practice at any moment of time. Episteme established rules by the dominant power in a social body that effect individual and their knowledge of true or false (Mills 28). Historicism: a means of working with the problem that all history is history from the perspective of the historian. Historicism is a means of validating for itself the perpetual critical relation at play between history and human sciences (The Order of Things, Foucault 372).all knowledge is rooted in the life, a society and a language that have a history; and it is in that very history that knowledge finds the element enabling with other form of life (The Order of Things, Foucault 372-3) Language or discursive practice: this term refer to historically and culturally specific set of rules for organizing and producing different form of knowledge. It is a matter of rules, which, a bit kind the grammar of language, allow certain statement to be made (Mills 53). Power: power is not a thing but relation, it is not simply repressive but productive, and also it is not simply a property of the state, but exercise throughout the social body (Mills 34). Subject: Foucault uses the term subject in place of the individual, which is structuralisms preferred term for the self, in two ways: He uses the subject as both the grammatical subject, and subject as a verb (Mills 1617).

Recommendations to Grow Joes Landscaping And Equipment Rental Business

Joe's Landscaping and Equipment Rental Business Introduction At 50 workers, Joe's company is successful enough to keep him busy six days per week. Joe seems to be very hands-on, and his daily landscaping and tree-trimming efforts, as well as his renting of landscaping equipment, keeps him quite busy. Joe's company appears to be at a point where his organization is as large as it can get and still be operable with his own set of hands. The vision that is needed must be determined by Joe, himself. Does he want the company to remain small and for him to remain personally involved in the daily tree-trimming and landscaping operations? Does he want to continue handling the renting of his own equipment? Or is he willing to relinquish those duties to others to focus his efforts elsewhere? Vision For the sake of this discussion, this paper assumes that he wants to grow his company. Given that assumption, the first recommendation is that he hire full-time field managers to handle the field work, which will allow him time to focus on managing, sales, fee collection, and other administrative tasks, which he so desperately needs. Immediately, Joe's company faces two serious problems, however, before it can grow. Joe's first concern is employee turnover due to the seasonality of the work. It can be assumed that business is slow in the winter months because of the weather and also because of the holiday shopping season. There is likely not much business to be had and even less need for employees on the payroll. It is not surprising that employees are often forced to quit, completely or temporarily, in order to find income elsewhere. The good news is that with a constant influx of new employees, his staff is being paid low pay rates... ... A. (2005). So you want to get paid on time? Here's how to make it happen. Retrieved November 5, 2006, from http://www.techwr-l.com/techwhirl/employmentarticles/gettingpaid.html Ground Trades XChange (2006). Forums. Retrieved November 5, 2006, from http://www.groundtradesxchange.com/forums/showthread.php?s=ad2c13cf46495c7bfa38b106f3dfa4c5&threadid=2899 Horicultural Business Information Network (n.d.). Landscape businesses. Retrieved November 5, 2006, from http://www.utextension.utk.edu/hbin/HBIN-Landscape.htm My Financial Foundation (2006). Finding the right lawyer. Retrieved November 5, 2006, from http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/r-article-a-1665-m-1-sc-11-finding_the_right_lawyer-i Pat's Peak (n.d.). Equipment Rental & Liability Release Agreement. Retrieved November 5, 2006, from http://www.patspeak.com/rentform.pdf#search='liability%20equipment%20rental'

Experiential Methods for Acquiring Self-Knowledge Essay -- Education C

Experiential Methods for Acquiring Self-Knowledge Do people ever know enough about themselves to determine the direction of their career journey? Various strategies have been developed to provide guidance toward this end; however, as the realities of work change due to such factors as global competition and new technologies, it is necessary to develop new awareness of self in relation to work. This Digest examines various processes by which learners of all ages, elementary to adult, can expand their self-knowledge--their interests and the importance of those interests to their personal satisfaction, their strength and weaknesses in relation to their interests, and the ways in which their interests and abilities are applicable in the changing social, economic, and work environments. Self-knowledge is the first of three integral competency areas in the National Career Development Guidelines (National Occupational Information Coordinating Committee 1989). The guidelines address the progressive acquisition throughout life of (1) knowledge of the influence of a positive self-concept; (2) skills to interact positively with others; and (3) understanding of the impact of growth and development. Studies conducted by Anderson (1995) and DaGiau (1995) among others demonstrate the influence that increased understanding of one's self-concept and its effect on roles and relationships has upon career maturity. According to Anderson (1995), "self-knowledge is a domain with many pathways" (p. 280). Historical self-knowledge--understanding of past experiences and influences that led to one's current level of development--is a key to shaping the future. Ask any first-time job seeker the main reason employers rejected them and they will ... ...llege, 1995. (ED 386 609) Lester, J. S., and Perry, N. S. Assessing Career Development with Portfolios. ERIC Digest. Greensboro, NC: ERIC Clearinghouse on Counseling and Student Services, 1995. (ED 391 110) Lock, R. D. Taking Charge of Your Career Direction: Career Planning Guide, Book 1. 3d ed. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole, 1996. National Occupational Information Coordinating Committee. National Career Development Guidelines. Portland, OR: Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, 1989. (ED 317 874-880) Savoie, J. M., and Hughes, A. S. "Problem-based Learning as Classroom Solution." Educational Leadership 52, no. 3 (November 1994): 54-57. (EJ 492 914) Willis, S. "On the Cutting Edge of Assessment: Testing What Students Can Do with Knowledge." Education Update: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development 38, no. 4 (June 1996): 4-7.

Harmful Algae :: Geology

Abstract The purpose of this term paper is to provide information about the different kinds of algal blooms and their effect on our environment and ourselves. There are still a lot of things that are not known about the algal bloom phenomenon, and many different hypotheses have been presented to explain these. Throughout the course of this paper those hypotheses will be presented and discussed, allowing the reader to derive their own opinion about the origin of algal blooms and what will happen in the future. table of contents Table of Contents I. Harmful Algae II. What are Algal Blooms and Red Tides? III. Why do Algal Blooms occur? IV. What are the effects of Algal Blooms? V. Where and how often do Algal Blooms occur? VI. Resources I. Harmful Algae All algal species are not harmful. Only a few out of the thousands of species are associated with the phenomenon known as an algal bloom. These algae fall into two categories. The first category of harmful algae produces toxins that are released when ingested by animals or humans. The dinoflagellate Alexandrium tamarense (left) and the diatom Pseudo-nitzschia australis (right) are examples of toxin producing alga. The other category of harmful algae kill without toxins. These are equipped with structures such as spines and serrated edges that allow them to lodge in fish gill tissues. When this occurs it causes irritation which leads to overproduction of mucus which eventually leads to death. This Chaetoceros species (above) is an example of an algae that kills by using specialized serrated structures. back to table of contents II. What Are Algal Blooms and Red Tides? Algal blooms are when algae grows at a fast rate and accumulate near the surface, hence the term "algal bloom". The term "Red Tide" is a misnomer because it has nothing to do with the tides. It refers to a specific type of algal bloom that occurs when certain species of phytoplankton that contain red pigments "bloom" causing the water to look red. Red Tides are usually not harmful. The California Noctiluca Bloom is an example of a Red Tide back to table of contents III. Why Do algal blooms Occur? Scientists aren't exactly sure of how or why algal blooms get started. One theory is that when temperature, salinity, and nutrients reach certain levels there is a massive increase in the amount of algae.

Music Concert Report Essay

The highly respected jazz trio made up of pianist Bill Charlap, bassist Kenny Washington and drummer Peter Washington played for about an hour an a half. Their smooth melodies and precise playing worked perfectly together to give a great performance against the New York City skyline at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola. The trio opened up the show with a song called â€Å"I’ll Remember April†. The song was originally written in 1941 by Gene de Paul (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). â€Å"I’ll Remember April† first performance was in a very atypical setting. The song was not performed in a Broadway play or Jazz Club but rather the 1942 comedy Called Ride ‘Em Cowboy. Actor Dick Foran sang the song in what a critic at the time called, â€Å"I’ll Remember April’ was an oasis of sanity in the madness† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Although an odd start the movie Ride ‘Em Cowboy proved to be significant in the Jazz community for another reason as well. In the movie the famous jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald appeared in her first film role playing an employee at the dude ranch named Ruby (â€Å"I’ll Remember April (1941)†). â€Å" She projected a light, frothy, easy-going humor† in her performance of â€Å"A-Tisket, A-Tasket† (â€Å"I’ll Remember April (1941)†). This movie brought out just how significant jazz music was at the time because it made a mediocre film come to life. This was not Gene De Paul’s first time creating a brilliant jazz song. The pianist, composer and arranger had written many songs before for Hollywood films and Broadway shows such as â€Å"You Don’t Know What Love is† and â€Å"Star Eyes† (â€Å"I’ll Remember April (1941)†). He had worked with many lyricists before but on this particular song Gene de Paul worked with his friend Don Raye and Patricia Johnston (â€Å"I’ll Remember April (1941)†). The lyrics portrays two distant lovers remembering the past and have a close connection with Dorothy Fields â€Å"The Way You Look Tonight† (â€Å"I’ll Remember April (1941)†). The song entered the pop charts in the spring of 1942 after being recorded by Woody Herman and his Orchestra. The song did not catch on quickly because it differed in many ways from the typical pop song of the time. The melody and form separated â€Å"I’ll Remember April† the most from other music of the time. Songs of the time usually followed an A-A-B-A form, repeating a lot giving it a catchy tune. â€Å"I’ll Remember April† however, used a 48-bar A-B-C-D-A-B form making it seem long and dragged out compared to other popular jazz songs. Wilson, McElrath, Tyle) â€Å" Beboppers Charlie Parker and Bud Powell were among the first to explore the song’s unconventional structure, followed by an influential 1950 recording by Red Norvo’s trio with Tal Farlow and Charles Mingus† (â€Å"I’ll Remember April (1941)†). The actually musicality of the song is quite complex with many chord changes and key changes. The song starts off in G but has a â€Å"false key change to Bb major during the first eight measures of the bridge† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). The tone of the song is major it moves rather step wise throughout. The chord progression of the song is a twist and turn roller coaster taking you from a G to a E major back to the G then to a D7. This is important because it allows for many different substitutions of chords and improvisations. (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle) One of the most important and defining elements in Jazz is improvisation. It is expected that during any jazz performance one or more musicians will improvise. Improvisation is so common that most of the time a musician will not perform the same piece the same way twice. However the freedom given to jazz musicians does come with some boundaries. â€Å"I’ll Remember April† gives much leeway to improvisation as long as they are â€Å"chosen carefully so as to at least imply a logical harmonic progression† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Typical jazz instruments are the saxophone, clarinet, flute, vibraphone, trumpet, piano, guitar, banjo, tuba, double bass, bass guitar, vocals, trombone and drum kit. The size of the band can vary greatly in jazz however from an ensembles which can have as little as two people to big bands that can have as many as 30 people. The Jazz show that I saw was a trio including a pianist, bassist and drummer. The setting in which I saw â€Å"ll Remember April† performed is much different then the setting I would have seen it in 1942. I saw the song be performed in a rather fancy evening setting at a Jazz Club where there was dinners and drinks being served. The club was modern and well designed. The backdrop behind the performers was a large window outlooking part of the New York City skyline. Around 75 people went to the club to watch a well respected trio play their rendition of â€Å"I’ll Remember April†, as well as several other songs. In 1942 I would not have been able to go to a club one night and be served dinner as I listened to a band play the song. At first the only way to hear the song was in the movies it was featured in. The song was featured in the 1942 film Ride ’em Cowboy as I had mentioned earlier, it was also in the 1942 movie Strictly in the Groove and was again featured in the 1945 movie Eve Knew Her Apples. It is not until later that I would have been able to sit down at a jazz club or concert hall to see the piece be performed. Anita Boyer recording of â€Å"I’ll Remember April† appeared on the album The nat King Cole Trio: The MacGregor Years 1941-1945 disc 4 (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Since then â€Å"I’ll Remember April† has been recorded hundreds of times by various artists throughout the years. â€Å"The song’s unconventional characteristics became assets, and it found favor as a bop vehicle† (Wilson, McElrath, Tyle). Each performance of â€Å"I’ll Remember April† takes on its own identity according to the performer. Artists have put their own twists on the song sometimes even implying a â€Å"Latin-feel† or they have stuck close to the original. The aspect of flexibility while maintaining the same brilliant theme makes â€Å"I’ll Remember April† so exciting making artists recreate the classic for years. Before going to the concert I listened to â€Å"I’ll Remember April† performed by Charlie Parker. Charlie Parker was an extremely influential jazz saxophonist. He recorded â€Å"I’ll Remember April† on July 5, 1950. While having the same melody Charlie Parker’s version of â€Å"I’ll Remember April† and the Bill Charlap Trio’s version differed greatly. The biggest difference was the use of instruments. The Bill Charlap Trio did not include a saxophone. I had expected to hear a saxophone so at first it took a second for my ears to adjust when the Bill Charlap Trio began to play the song. I personally preferred the saxophone. I thought it gave the song a very demanding tone catching the audiences attention while at the same time it gave the song a very magically, flowing feeling. The saxophone was also backed up by other instruments like the piano which gave it a full rich sound. The piano, bass, and drums of the Bill Charlap Trio also gave a good performance however I felt it lacked a clear â€Å"lead† instrument how the saxophone did for Parker’s rendition. One aspect I did like more in the Bill Charlap Trio’s version was the elongated piano solo. Solos are very important in jazz music and they occur often. Solos give artists the opportunity to improvisation keeping the piece fresh and giving it an element of surprise. Throughout the Bill Charlap Trio’s performance there were many solos. In â€Å"I’ll Remember April† it was the piano’s time to shine. I enjoyed the solo because it showed off Bill Charlap’s talent and kept the piece exciting. An interesting aspect of his solo was he included a verse from Dorothy Fields’s â€Å"The Way You Look Tonight† which as I mentioned earlier gave inspiration to the writing of â€Å"I’ll Remember April†. Overall I enjoyed listening the piece live better than the recording because it allowed the music to â€Å"come alive† rather than just listening to a recording. Going to the concert opened my eyes to what seems to be a whole new world. I was very anxious and nerve about what to expect when I went to the Jazz Club but when I got there I was pleasantly surprised. The music was entertaining and I loved the experience. Looking up the history of the songs continued to spark my interest. It is very interesting to see how music written seventy years ago is still influential and played in modern settings such as a Jazz Club.

Ethics in Animal Research

In terms of ethics, the main issue in animal testing is simply that many experimental animals suffer in ways which are unnatural to them. Through the use of genetic manipulation, obese mice , diabetic mice, and mice with Huntington’s disease can be created. Surgical experiments can be performed on larger animals – such as pigs, sheep, and dogs, as â€Å"practice† for human surgery. Normally, such things would not happen to these animals. Any suffering they might experience during such experiments is entirely the making of the researcher – and often these animals are purpose-bred and would not even exist if it were not for the research. These animals have been bred by us, for our use, and suffer on our behalf. As humans—the dominant species on the planet—we can treat animals in any way we choose, and do with them what we please. The question is, is it moral, or ethical, to treat them in ways which cause suffering – even if it is to our benefit? To some opponents of animal experimentation there are no benefits which justify the use of animals; others believe that animal experimentation is acceptable providing that suffering to the animals is minimized. Still others oppose animal testing selectively on the basis of the purpose of the tests, believing that animal experimentation for the advancement of medical science is acceptable, but cosmetic testing is not, for example. Are Animal Tests Reliable? Opponents of animal experimentation point to the obvious differences between humans and other animals as proof that animal research is not reliable. However, while it’s true that humans respond differently to certain substances than do other animal species (arsenic is not toxic to sheep, for example, and chocolate is toxic to dogs), there are many more similarities than there are differences – and toxicology differences don’t negate the validity of genetic studies, for example. Another pressing issue is one which was first voiced in 1655 by Edmund O’Meara, a physiologist, who said, â€Å"the miserable torture of vivisection places the body in an unnatural state. If an experimental animal is in pain, or suffers in any way, during an experiment, might that not call into question the accuracy of any results gained in the research? And if this is the case, doesn’t this further question the ethics of animal research? After all, using animals in this way is even more abhorrent if the accuracy of the results is in any doubt at all. The ability to achieve reliable, reproducible results is a cornerstone of the scientific method, and it is crucial that animal testing is able achieve those results A Matter of Practicality The majority of the most important advances in medical history in the twentieth century were made using animals as test subjects. It is doubtful whether many of these would have been achieved if animals were not available for use by medical researchers. There are alternatives to animal research (these will be examined in the next article in this series), but in many cases they are simply not acceptable substitutes for a living, breathing organism. The Institute for Laboratory Animal Research of the U. S.  National Academy of Sciences agrees that even the most sophisticated computer modeling is currently unable to successfully model the molecular and cellular interactions that occur in even the least complex of live organisms, particularly in an environmental context. Medical science is in agreement, for the most part, that the use of animals in medical research is a practical necessity. Both the United States and the British governments , among many others, support the use of animals in research, provided that suffering of experimental animals is minimized.

Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Law Essay

Introduction Our assigned topic deals with a phenomenon that has taken the corporate world by storm rather recently, particularly in Pakistan. It entails the dilemma that every corporation faces when they have to make decisions regarding the firm’s profitability and their corporation’s social responsibility. The term â€Å"corporate social responsibility† came into common use in the late 1960s and early 1970s after many multinational corporations formed the term stakeholder, meaning those on whom an organization’s activities have an impact. It was used to describe corporate owners beyond shareholders. The field of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has developed exponentially in the last decade. Nevertheless, there remains a lingering debate about the legitimacy and value of corporate reaction to CSR concerns. There are different views of the function of the firm in society and disagreement as to whether wealth maximization should be the sole goal of a corporation. An escalating number of shareholders, analysts, regulators, activists, labor unions, employees, community organizations, and news media are asking companies to be accountable for an ever-changing set of CSR issues. There is rising demand for transparency and growing expectations that corporations measure, report, and continuously improve their social, environmental, and economic performance. According to Business for Social Responsibility (BSR), corporate social responsibility is defined as â€Å"achieving commercial success in ways that honor ethical values and respect people, communities, and the natural environment.† Each company is at variance in how it implements corporate social responsibility, if it does so at all. The differences depend on such factors as any particular company’s size, the particular industry involved, the firm’s business culture, stakeholder demands, and how historically progressive the company is in engaging CSR. Some companies focus on a single area, which is regarded as the most important for them or where they have the highest impact or vulnerability—human rights or the environment, for example—while there are others who endeavor to incorporate CSR in each and every one facet of their operations. For successful execution, it is fundamental that the CSR principles are part of the corporations’ values and strategic planning, and that the management and employees, both are committed to them. Furthermore, it is important that the CSR strategy is aligned with the company’s specific corporate objectives and core competencies. As CSR comes into contact with many of the problems conventionally addressed by government, like human rights and community investing, there is strong censure that societal problems are best solved by freely elected government bodies as the resources of a corporation are poorly matched for addressing those social problems, and therefore, it is argued, they should not be misallocated. According to Friedman (1970), in a free society, â€Å"there is one and only one social responsibility of business—to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud.† The idea is that the state should address social problems, supported by the argument that an executive, by taking money and resources that would otherwise go to owners, employees, and costumers, and allocating them according to the will of the minority, and will fail to serve the interests of her or his principal. In this way, the executive imposes a tax and spends the proceeds for â€Å"social† purposes, which is insupportable, since she or he has neither the skills nor the jurisdiction to do so. On the other hand, there are many demands by others for corporate adoption of the CSR principles. Although the government is chiefly responsible for addressing those issues, the contribution of private firms can be substantial. There is also the argument of the shifting balance of power. According to the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), of the 100 largest global economies, as indicated by their respective GDP, 51 of them are US corporations, and only 49 are nation states. So economic supremacy has shifted to the corporations; they, therefore, should have an increasing role in and accountability for addressing social problems. For example, the government sets the regulations and the minimum standards for the workplace, but a company can further improve the work environment and the quality of living of its employees. A firm cannot stay oblivious to the problems of the environment in which it functions. The poverty of a nation state’s citizens, political unrest, and the exhaustion of natural resources can have destructive effects for a corporation. For example, resources that are inputs in the production process and which, at the foundation of the industrial revolution, were plentiful are now scarce, polluted, or diminishing in many regions of the entire planet. As one would expect, this imposes an extra cost to the corporations and may force them to reposition or to cease operations. From one perspective, companies may be poorly equipped to address some of the social or environmental problems, but from another perspective, no matter how poorly equipped, companies may still be best positioned to improve the problems. Undoubtedly, adopting the CSR principles involves costs. These costs might be short term in nature or continuous outflows. They may involve the purchase of new environmentally friendly equipment, the change of management structures, or the implementation of stricter quality controls. Since being socially responsible involves incurring costs, it should generate benefits as well in order to be a sustainable business practice. A corporation could not continue a policy that constantly generates negative cash flows. The shareholders invest their money in a corporation, expecting the highest possible risk adjusted return. Therefore, being socially responsible should have bottom-line benefits in order to be sustainable. Socially responsible corporate performance can be associated with a series of benefits with the final outcome. But in a lot of cases, it seems that the time frame of the costs and benefits can be out of alignment—the costs are in the near future, whereas the benefits are not often realized until long periods of time have lapsed. Nevertheless, many benefits can be identified. Firstly, socially responsible companies have enhanced brand image and reputation. Consumers are often attracted towards brands and companies with good reputations in CSR related issues. Therefore, a corporation’s brand equity is automatically enhanced. A company regarded as socially responsible can also benefit from its reputation within the business community by having increased ability to attract capital and trading partners. However, reputation is hard to quantify and measure; it is even harder to measure how much it increases a company’s value. But since companies have developed methods to measure the benefits of their advertisement campaigns, similar methods can and should be able to be applied in the case of corporate reputation. Socially responsible companies also have less risk of negative rare events. Furthermore, companies that adopt the CSR principles are more transparent and have less risk of bribery and corruption. In addition, they may execute stricter and, thus, more costly quality and environmental controls, but they run less risk of having to bear in mind defective product lines and pay heavy fines for excessive polluting. They also have less risk of negative social events which damage their reputation and cost millions of dollars in information and advertising campaigns. The scandals about child–labor and sweatshops that affect the clothing industry are two fine examples. Thus, socially responsible businesses should have more stable earnings growth and less downside volatility. Since companies that adopt the CSR principles carry less risk, when valuing those companies, a lower discount rate should be used. In the company valuation this lower tail risk should be taken into account. There are also other cases in which doing what is good and responsible converges with doing the best for the particular business. Some CSR initiatives can dramatically reduce operating costs. For example, reducing packaging material or planning the optimum route for delivery trucks not only reduces the environmental impact of a company’s operation, but it also reduces the cost. The process of adopting the CSR principles induces executives to reconsider their business practices and to seek more efficient ways of operating. Companies perceived to have a strong CSR commitment often have an improved ability to attract and to retain employees (Turban & Greening 1997), which leads to reduced turnover, recruitment, and training costs. Employees, too, often evaluate their companies CSR performance to determine if their personal values conflict with those of the businesses at which they work. There are many known cases in which employees were asked, under pressure of their supervisors, to overlook written or moral laws in order to achieve higher profits. These practices create a culture of fear in the workplace and harm the employees’ trust, loyalty, and commitment to the company. Companies that improve working conditions and labor practices also experience increased productivity and reduced error rates. Regular controls in the production facilities throughout the world ensure that all the employees work under good conditions and earn living wages. These practices are costly, but the increased productivity of the workers and improved quality of the products generate positive cash flows that cover the associated costs. Thus, firms may actually benefit from socially responsible actions in terms of employee morale and productivity (Moskowitz, 1972). Literature review CSP is a global concept that encompasses those of Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Social Responsiveness. It provides a coherent framework to explore business-society relationships by looking at the social impact of corporations with business criteria of performance measurement, such as quality, efficacy, effectiveness, innovation (Carroll, 1991; Wood, 1991). The challenge for corporate social responsibility (CSR) in developing countries is framed by a vision that was distilled in 2000 into the Millennium Development Goals—‘a world with less poverty, hunger and disease, greater survival prospects for mothers and their infants, better educated children, equal opportunities for women, and a healthier environment’ (UN, 2006: 3). The penetration of the social realm into corporate strategy has gathered momentum in the last years. The movement for CSR has â€Å"won the battle of ideas† (Crook 2005). By now, most well managed companies have adopted th e practices and certifications mandatory in their industries, having gone through what Zadek (2004) calls the â€Å"defensive† and the â€Å"compliance† stages of CSR. Managing the social and environmental footprint of economic activity is generally accepted as part of the cost of doing business. But much remains to be done. If companies are to move their CSR activities from satisfying behavior and take their commitment to society and the environment to the next level, they will need to rethink their current approaches to CSR, tapping into the creativity of every individual. CSE, like all entrepreneurship, is not about managing existing operations or CSR programs; it is about creating disruptive change in the pursuit of new opportunities. It combines the willingness and desire to create joint economic and social value with the entrepreneurial redesign, systems development, and action necessary to carry it out. Accelerated organizational transformation faces a host of obstacles well-documented in the change management literature. Some people argue that media pressures the corporate managers and directors to behave in ways that are â€Å"socially ac ceptable†. Sometimes this coincides with shareholders’ value maximization, others not (Zinagales, 2002). Although there are several contested notions of what CSR should be and how it should work, there is some agreement upon what it broadly entails. A number of concepts and issues are subsumed under the heading of CSR, including human rights, environmental responsibility, diversity management, sustainability, and philanthropy (Amaeshi & Adi, 2006), meaning that it is a complex area with an interdisciplinary focus. It is generally agreed that CSR involves corporations voluntarily exceeding their legal duties to take account of social, economic and environmental impacts of their operations. Consideration of the social, economic and political context demonstrates how CSR forms part of a wider strategic direction being taken internationally with regard to market relations and the pursuit of a range of objectives and goals. The context is in part provided by concerns about the numerous examples of irresponsible behavior on the part of corporations, ranging from colluding with oppressive regimes and in the overthrowing of governments (Alston, 2005) to issues relating to working conditions and the impact of unethical marketing practices (Richter, 2001). Such examples have demonstrated the need for the worst excesses of business to be curbed. The globalised economy is understood to raise important issues for businesses and governments due to changes in patterns of production and consumption. In particular it is noted that the manufacturing of goods is â€Å"highly mobile† (Cassell, 2001:263) and that supply chains are often dispersed in various countries, creating difficulties in terms of legislation and regulation. Moreover, economic globalization presents challenges to the ability of states to protect people’s rights (Cassell, 2001). The notion of corporate social responsibility is part of the ‘third way’ (Gond & Matten, 2007), where the role of the state is now to provide â€Å"steering for the promotion of social development and social justice† (Giddens, 2001: 6). There is increased involvement of the private sector in traditionally statutory provision through privatization and public/private partnerships (Meehan, 2003). Economic policies have created a need for markets and business to self-regulate in order to continue to pursue an international free market economy, but also to ensure sustainability of economic, human and other resources, and of the environment. CSR is seen as a solution to these problems of regulation. The private sector is increasingly seen as a key player in the achievement of many national and international strategic objectives for governments, which is also enabled by CSR. Methodology To gather information, we used secondary research as our main source of information. Various academic journals and internet sources were pursued to cater to the important aspects of the given topic. Moreover, since we thoroughly researched this topic, personal opinions were formed and using those and logic, we justified our opinions accordingly. How can business persons act in an ethically and socially responsible manner and at the same time make profits? Suppose clear-cutting is profitable and legal, but is nonetheless regarded as environmentally irresponsible under prevailing social norms. Can management of a timber corporation decline to clear-cut its timberland even though that sacrifices profits? One might be tempted to evade the question by claiming that being environmentally responsible is profitable in the long run, either because it preserves the forest for future harvesting or because it maintains a public goodwill that aids future sales. But suppose, in an incautious moment, management admits that the present value of those future profits from not clear cutting cannot hope to match the large current profits that clear-cutting would produce. Or, more realistically, suppose a takeover bid by a firm known to clear-cut establishes precisely that proposition by offering far more than the stock price that reflects the current stream of profits. Can management reject the profitable takeover bid on the grounds that it will lead to socially undesirable clear-cutting? The answers to these questions will challenge the canonical law and economics account on corporate social responsibility, which goes something like this. Unless modified by statute, traditional fiduciary duties require corporate managers to further the interests of shareholders, and thus require them to maximize corporate profits subject to the obligation to comply with independent legal constraints. Ethics and social responsibility are very important values in business ventures. This is particularly essential in decision making process. Ethical conscience reminds business persons to make trustworthy and profitable business decisions. Likewise, the social responsibility component requires business persons to make entrepreneurial decisions that can enhance benefits and repelling harms to the stakeholders. The canonical law and economics view holds that corporate managers do and should have a duty to profit-maximize because such conduct is socially efficient given that general legal sanctions do or can redress any harm that corporate or non-corporate businesses inflict on others. If certain conduct imposes excessive harm on others or merits taxation, then an independent law should regulate and impose liability or taxes whether or not the actor is a corporation, and if the conduct does not impose any impermissible harm or merit taxation, then the most socially desirable thing for corporations to do is maximize profits. Other stakeholders could either legally protect themselves by contract with the corporation or have their legal protection provided by judicial gap-filling of such contracts. Part of what makes this account canonical is that it helps define the boundaries of the corporate law field. It leaves corporate law scholars free to ignore issues about any effects the corporation may have on the external world as topics best addressed by other legal fields, and to focus on more tractable models about which corporate rules would maximize shareholder value.