Capital Structure Evaluation of Sample Firms Essay

Capital Structure Evaluation of Sample Firms - Essay Example Such sustainable growth requires increasing investment in long term assets, which in turn needs to be financed by long term funds. The two conventional long term sources of fund are debt and equity. The proportion of such debt and equity determines the capital structure of the firm. There are benefits and shortcomings of both the funding options. While debt funds are considered to be less costly owing to the interest tax shield that they provide, equity funds are considered to be more expensive owing to its inherent risk profile. Though debt funds reduce an organization's weighted average cost of capital (WACC), such funding increases the risk profile of the organization owing to long term commitments secured by asset collaterals, which could seriously increase the bankruptcy risk of the organization during an economic downturn. The modern thinking on capital structure is primarily based on the seminal work done by Franco Modigliani and Merton Miller. The Modigliani-Miller theorem (1958) states that in an ideal world, the value of a firm is independent of its capital structure. When a firm increases its gearing ratio, the overall risk to the equity holders increase thus increasing the cost of equity, thereby having no net effect on the value of the firm. One important aspect of this theorem is that it ignores the bankruptcy and transaction costs, and assumes information is freely available to all firms. The optimum leveraging point of an organization is, therefore, always a source of debate, and has been subject of various continuously evolving theories and models. Some of these recent theories and classical models are examined and validated by analyzing the capital structures of five organizations (PLCs) from four different industry sectors. The firms chosen are as below. Table 1-1 Company Name Industry Sector TESCO Food manufacturing and products BP Oil, gas and energy Exxon Mobil Oil, gas and energy BHP Billiton Metals and mining British Energy Utilities TESCO is a giant in the food manufacturing sector with an annual turnover of 47.3 billion. TESCO was founded in 1919 in the UK, and has since grown to set up footprints across the world in the Asia, Europe, and the US. It is one of the leading food retailers of the world, and has diversified into petrol retailing. BP is primarily in the business of oil exploration and refining, and operates out of several countries. Its other businesses include alternative energy, and shipping. It has an annual turnover of $361 billion. Exxon Mobil is also in the business of oil exploration/ production, gas, and power. Its downstream business includes oil refining, and marketing of fuel products and lubricating oil. Its annual turnover is $390 billion. BHP Billiton is the world's largest diversified natural resources company with businesses including alumina, aluminum, copper, energy, coal, iron ore, nickel, manganese, oil and gas and uranium, as well as gold, zinc, lead, silver and diamonds. It employs

Cognition, Memory and Perception Essay Example for Free

Cognition, Memory and Perception Essay Forgetting is the inability of a person to retrieve, recall or recognize information that was stored or still stored in long term memory. (McLeod, S. A. 2008). In terms of short term memory, forgetting is caused by interference between past and new information that most modern accounts that holding on to. In some older models, forgetting is explained using a process of passive deterioration of information. Comparing both accounts, interference seems to have a better explanation of forgetting. Secondly in terms of long term memory, forgetting occurs when one fails to remember and unable to reactivated the memory circuit of given information. In general, forgetting seems to happen in between short term and long term memory. It will occur when information is to be encoded or information is not linked to any memory circuit through interference. (â€Å"What is forgetting in psychology? †, 2008). However, nowadays, there are theories of forgetting in cognitive psychology that are still difficult to test by researches, because one may in fact not forget, but have trouble retrieving information from one’s memory storage. For examples, one forgets about an event such as attending a friend’s birthday party just because the individual were only remembering another event that is more important to him such as a wedding dinner. The examples of the theories of forgetting are encoding failure, decay theory, interference theory, retrieval failure, motivated forgetting and repression. The author of this paper will going to critically asses on the psychological theories on why people forget. According to Freud (1901), the father of the psychoanalytic school, believed that one will forget of what threatens them. For example, experiences that express in abusing, horrifying, hurtful, tense and ego-dissatisfying will pushed back to the unconscious. Based on the opinion of writer on this paper, it is not necessarily that one just forgets about what threatens them but also forgets the information that does not seem important to them. This scenario is similar to the theory of encoding failure whereas the particular information in short term memory that did not manage to encode in the long term memory and the information did not enter to the memory. Besides that, encoding failure also can be result of stress. Based on Yerkes-Dodson Law, too much stress results can cause performance to decline, sometimes sharply if cognitive or nervous breakdown is triggered. A downturn can also be caused by excessive attention to a task such that extra factors that are important get missed. Secondly, the decay theory, this theory suggests that memory traces in the brain will fade over time through lack of use and become inaccessible. Decay theory suggest that forgetting is a psychological process and it is an idea that when a memory has a physical or chemical trace of the experience in the brain when it is laid down. This traces will fade as time passes unless it is reinforced through repeated times of use. For example, when a person meets a new friend, the name of the friend is just like a trace to the brain. But when the person did not manage to meet up with that new friend for a few days, the name of the friend will slowly decay and might not recall it after. However, researchers have not shown that decay theory causes forgetting of something that is stored in the long term memory. In addition, based on the author’s opinion, memory such as driving skills, riding bicycle skills and swimming skills would not decay even though after a period of time, not every memory trace will fade over time. Some studies of the hippocampus have shown a pattern of rapid and then gradual decline of neutral pathways by Anderson (1995).Besides that, there are two types of the interference theory that is, proactive interference and retroactive interference. The definition of the proactive interference is when old information interferes with the new information that cause forgetting. Example of proactive interference theory is when a person who learned many formulas in additional mathematics for a year and learned new sets of formulas for modern mathematics for a month and the person will interfere with the knowledge of additional mathematics while doing modern mathematics. On the other hand, retroactive interference occurs when new information learned interfere with the old information that stored in the memory. Remembering the names of the new students by a lecturer is an example of retroactive interference where the new students name will nterfere with the names that were previously stored. However, researches pointed out that real life interference might not occur so readily. The retrieval failure theory was proposed by (Tulving amp; Thomson 1973). This theory is known as a cue dependent forgetting that explains forgetting as inability to retrieve material due to an absence of the right cues. In order that one person to retrieve information from the long-term memory, they must depend on the type of cue or prompt which they use and this theory explained that why sometimes that one who unable to remember the material that is certain in our memory. For example, a person cannot remember doing his homework until him or her saw the workbook on the table. This proves that the workbook provide the right retrieval cue. According to Freud (1901), the retrieval of the repressed memories is possible only under special circumstances using a few psychoanalytic techniques. On the other hand, there is a tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon (TOT) that could help one to retrieve forgotten memories. TOT is an example of how we intentionally search for cues that will prompt the retrieval of a specific memory. For example, a person that forgets their neighbor pet’s name and only remembers the dumbbell which hangs around the neck of the pet. By reading the word dumbbell, TOT assists the person to recall that the neighbor pet’s name was Dumble. Furthermore, the motivated forgetting is a case of retrieval failure referred to Freud, (1901). What it actually meant by motivated forgetting? According to Freud (1901), motivated forgetting is that we are motivated to forget the events or actions that is painful that cannot be solve in the memory by pushing it into the subconscious and actively repressing with it. In other words, these experiences are repressed in the unconscious and unable to retrieve when needed. Besides motivated forgetting causes oneself repression of memory, it is possible that one forgets is based on instructions of others and also known as the intentional forgetting or directed forgetting. Anderson, Baddeley and Eysenck (2009) stated that intentional forgetting also refers to forgetting which is initiated by a conscious goal to forget. McNally, Clancy, and Schacter (2001) also stated that loss of autobiographical memories, especially memories for unpleasant or disturbing events has used to explain the intentional forgetting. However, based on the author’s opinion, motivate forgetting on the memories of pain, unpleasant, and disturbing events are unhealthy to one’s body, physically and mentally. What if the capacity of the subconscious has a limit and it cannot continue to repress any more of the memory of negative events, it will causes an unwanted pressure and stress on the individual emotionally and lead to suicide if it reaches the limit. Last but not least, theory of repression, proposed by the psychologist Sigmund Freud. Freud (1901) stated that the unpleasant memories such as sexual abuse, bullying, torture or any traumatic experience which undergoes the psychological process which automatically and unconsciously prevents emotionally distressing memories from coming into our conscious awareness. In the event or experience in the present such as watching a video, hypnosis or hearing music may triggered the repressed memories back into conscious awareness. However, he stated that, repressed memories cannot deliberately bring back unless it was triggered. The memory researches pointed out that the retrieval memories come back into awareness through suggestion by the patient’s therapist in fact are false memories. In the nutshell, all the theories above that have discussed which are the encoding failure, decay theory, interference theory, retrieval failure, motivated forgetting and repression. Overview of this research, readers can determine that every theories of forgetting have relation between one another and it is all related to the short-term memory and long-term memory. If the short-term memory does not exist, there is no long-term memory. In the author’s point of view, some of the theories that have discussed above are too narrow in scope and did not manage to cover all the factors such as emotion of a person that will lead to forgetting. In the author’s opinion, every psychologist that is doing on the same research should investigate and plan the experiments together so that all the psychologists able to brainstorm on their findings and share their thoughts together in order to improve their theories. Besides that, I believe that, all the human being does not want to repress all those negatives events that had ever happened in their lives into their subconscious mind. This is because after repressing or suppressing those memories into the subconscious mind, it would not provide safety precautions in terms of physically and mentally to everyone. What if one day, one person those who suffer from sexual abuse and torture since childhood and triggered that memory back and do the same thing to others. This will lead to even more people suffers.

Changing The American Language :: essays research papers

My brother and i are alike in that we both often have very strange dreams. A couple of months back, he dreamed that he was driving in Mexico with his best friend Jacob, when he got pulled over by the Mexican police. When asked if he was drunk, he replied with, "Of course not, sir. I dislike drunk drivers. I disapprove of drunk drivers. I discringe drunk drivers." Hearing this, the police simply let him go. As he was driving away, however, Jacob turned to him and said, "Dude...discringe?" After reciting this story to me the next morning, he asked, "Amber...is discringe a word?" When i told him that it wasn't, he decided that from then on it would be, and ever since has been using it as part of his everyday vocabulary. After hearing him use this made-up word as if it were real for awhile, I realized that he was right. Discringe, although not a real part of the English vocabulary, ought to be a real word, as should many other expressions used in everyday vernacular. There simply aren't enough words to express the many varying and complex emotions we have. Because of the fact that it would add to the creativity of our language, help students differentiate between proper and improper grammar styles, and let us express ourselves in ways that before were very difficult to achieve, the English language ought to be revised to accommodate the changing needs of our society.From "spanglish" to ebonics, the English language is constantly being manipulated into all sorts of different forms to best suit its purpose. This is part of what makes the American culture so unique. Our language comes from three basic sources: what was brought over from the mother country, England, during settlement a mix of different languages and cultures all brought together into what is called the "melting pot" of American society and lastly, experiences and social reforms brought about by the ever-changing needs of a growing country. The third reason, however, has largely been neglected by professors and bureaucrats alike as a viable source of new vocabulary. Although many terms that are commonly used in everyday speech are perfectly functional as well as able to express their intended purpose, they simply are not acknowledged as part of what is considered to be "proper" grammar. For instance, the term "How are you doing?" has evolved into "How are you," then to "What's up," and finally the phrase commonly being used on the streets today, " Å’Sup?

Speech: Adolescence and Higher Risk

The amount of teenages getting pregnant around the age of 15-17 is quite concerning . Although most Teenage Pregnancies are unintentional . It still means there are chances of them becoming pregnant. At the same time,Teenage Pregnancies associate with social issues. Finally they come to a time when they need help and support. Well , My name is Taylah and by now you should know my speech will be about Teenage Pregnancy. Firstly most teenage pregnancies are unintentional.Women of all age may have unintended pregnancies , but some groups , such as teens are at a higher risk. A lot of teenagers who become pregnant sometimes wish they weren't . This happens because they either dont want to be parents or they know it's not the right time. By the time they find out they are pregnant they start stressing out because it was never meant to happen and also because they dont want thier parents to know or to find out. Teenage Pregnancies associate with social issues , such as lower educational le vels and higher rates of Poverty.This happens because when they are pregnant they drop out of shcool and just worry about their baby. Although they are unemployed they go on a benefit which is when money is given by the goverment. Why do the young mums still lead a poor life inspite of money given by the goverment ? Well , they lead poor life because they dont think about the future , instead they spend all their money on their child. They don't save up any money and they keep buying things for themselves and their child. Finally they come to a time when they need help and support with their child.They need support with their child so they live a happy life and they need support from their family so that they dint get stressed out and start abusing their baby,and they also need help with buying the right items such as nappies ,food,clothes e. t. c. In conclusion,Teenage Pregnancy need to decrease as it is making NZ look very bad because the rate of Teenage Pregnancy is the highest i n NZ as compared to other countries in the world. In the end I would like to say that teenagers should stay in school and study so that they have a brighter future and can give a very dignified life to their families.

Intro to Operating Systems

Intro to Operating Systems Student: Gabriel Guevara Chapter: 5 Exercises Exercise #2 Give at least two â€Å"real life† examples (not related to a computer system environment) of each of these concepts: deadlock, starvation and race. Describe how the deadlocks could be resolved. 2 real life examples of the concept of deadlock: A. In a presidential election 2 candidates reach an electoral deadlock when neither candidate get a majority of the 270 electoral votes required to win the presidency.This is resolved by the House of Representatives, with each state delegation having one vote. Senators would elect the vice-president. B. Diet deadlock occurs when calories are restricted when a human being is dieting , as a consequence the body’s metabolism slows down; The reason is the body is worried about going into starvation mode and is trying to holdown to leftover body fat. The solution to diet deadlock is to: 1. Eat more protein to boost metabolism. 2. Lift weights to increa se muscle mass, the more muscle mass the more calories burned in a 24 hour period (day). . Do more cardio to burn more calories. 2 Real life examples of Starvation: Hypoxia is the name given to oxygen starvation, for example of this condition is when brain tissue is deprived of oxygen-rich-blood, if this condition lingers a range of events could follow such as permanent brain damage or death. The solution is to restore the flow of oxygen-rich-blood to the brain via any surgical procedure that would unlock the deadlock or flow of vital oxygen enriched blood back into the brain.Aviation Fuel starvation occurs when there is a supply problem to the engine for various reasons such as a blocked fuel filter or gradual fuel pump failure. But the most popular problem with fuel starvation is with aircraft with water contaminated fuel being delivered to the engine instead of none-contaminated fuel resulting in fuel starvation within the engine. This is corrected by replacing the fuel filter or fuel pump and testing the fuel for the presence of water prior to use for a flight. 2 Examples of the term race: Exploitative competition is when 2 organisms vie for the same resources.One way for nature to solve this condition is to naturally develop habitat conditions to induce mutualistic bonds between the 2 organisms so that one cannot survive in their natural habitat without the other, therefore perhaps reversing deadlock conditions. Organism competition: Utilization of the same resources by organisms of the same or different species living together in a community resulting in a sort of deadlock competition for said resources. One way to relief this deadlock condition is for one organism to develop a method of eliminating the other by intelligently depriving it from the resource in question.Advance exercise 14 A system that is in an unsafe state is not necessarily deadlock. Explain why this is true? Give an example of such system (in an unsafe state) and describe how all the p rocesses could be completed without causing deadlock to occur. Answer 1: An unsafe state doesn’t suggest a realistic deadlock is presently occurring it appears this term is used to described that a sequence of events have now set favorable condition(s) to suggest a deadlock is highly likely to occur.Answer 2: An example of an unsafe state within a system could be where a system has jobs in its request queue greater than what is available in memory to handle the jobs waiting to be executed, setting ideal conditions for a deadlock. The concept of avoidance suggest that the system can remove one of the deadlock conditions if it knew ahead of time the sequence of a request associated with each of the active processes. There must exist at least one allocation of resources sequence that would allow jobs to continue without becoming deadlocked.

Prepositions in Spanish

Prepositions in Spanish On the one hand, prepositions in Spanish are easy to understand, because they usually function in almost the same way as they do in English. On the other, prepositions are one of the most challenging aspects of using Spanish, because it is not always easy to remember one to use. A simple and very common preposition such as en can be translated not only as in, the most common translation, but also as to, by, and about, among others. What Are Prepositions in Spanish? A preposition is a type of word that is used to form a phrase; the phrase in turn functions as an adjective or adverb. In both English and Spanish, a preposition is followed by an object, which is a noun  or a word that functions as a noun.  (Sometimes in English a preposition can appear at the end of a sentence, but that cant be  done in Spanish.) Lets look at a couple of sample sentences to see how the preposition relates its object to other parts of a sentence. English: I (subject) am going (verb) to (preposition) the store (prepositional object).Spanish: Yo (subject) voy (verb) a (preposition) la tienda (prepositional object). In the above sentence the phrase to the store or a la tienda forms a phrase that functions as an adverb that complements the verb. Here is an example of a prepositional phrase that functions as an adjective: English: I (subject) see (verb) the shoe (direct object) under (preposition) the table (prepositional object).Spanish: Yo (subject) veo (verb) el zapato (direct object) bajo (preposition) la mesa (prepositional object). Common Spanish Prepositions Like English, Spanish has a few dozen prepositions. The following list shows the most common ones along with some of the most common meanings and some short sample sentences. A preposition that consists of two words is sometimes known as a compound preposition. a - to, at, by means of. Vamos a la ciudad. (We are going to the city.)Vengo a las tres. (I am coming at 3.)Viajamos a pie. We are traveling by foot. antes de - before. Leo antes de dormirme. (I read before going to sleep.) bajo - under, underneath. El perro est bajo la mesa. (The dog is under the table.) cerca de - near. El perro est cerca de la mesa. (The dog is near the table.) con - with. Voy con à ©l. (I am going with him.)Me gustarà ­a queso con la hamburguesa. (I would like cheese with the hamburger.) contra - against. Estoy contra la huelga. (I am against the strike.) de - of, from, indicating possession. El sombrero es hecho de papel. The hat is made of paper.Soy de Nueva York. (Im from New York.)Prefiero el carro de Juan. (I prefer Juans car. I prefer the car of Juan.) delante de - in front of. Mi carro est delante de la casa. (My car is in front of the house.) dentro de - inside, inside of. El perro est dentro de la jaula. (The dog is inside the cage.) desde - since, from. No comà ­ desde ayer. (I havent eaten since yesterday.)Tirà ³ el bà ©isbol desde la ventana. He threw the baseball from the window. despuà ©s de - after. Comemos despuà ©s de la clase. (We are eating after class.) detrs de - behind. El perro est detrs de la mesa. (The dog is behind the table.) durante - during. Dormimos durante la clase. (We slept during the class.) en - in, on. Ella est en Nueva York. (She is in New York.)El perro est en la mesa. (The dog is on the table.) encima de - on top of. El gato est encima de la casa. (The cat is on top of the house.) enfrente de - in front of. El perro est enfrente de la mesa. (The dog is in front of the table.) entre - between, among. El perro est entre la mesa y el sof. (The dog is between the table and the sofa.)Andemos entre los rboles. (Lets walk among the trees.) fuera de - outside, outside of. El perro est fuera de la casa. (The dog is outside of the house.) hacia - toward. Caminamos hacia la escuela. (We are walking toward the school.) hasta - until, as far has. Duermo hasta las seis. (Im sleeping until 6.)Viajamos hasta la ciudad. (We are traveling as far as the city.) para - for, in order to. El regalo es para usted. (The gift is for you.)Trabajo para ser rico. (I work in order to be rich.) por - for, by, per. Damos gracias por la comida. (We give thanks for the meal.)Fue escrito por Juan. (It was written by Juan.)El peso cotiza a 19.1 por dà ³lar. (The peso is quoted at 19.1 per dollar.) segà ºn - according to. Segà ºn mi madre va a nevar. (According to my mother it is going to snow.) sin - without. Voy sin à ©l. (I am going without him.) sobre - over, about (in the sense of concerning). Se cayà ³ sobre la silla. (He fell over the chair.)Es un programa sobre el presidente. (Its a program about the president.) tras - after, behind. Caminaban uno tras otro. (They walked one after the other. They walked one behind the other.)

Battle of the North Cape - World War II - Scharnhorst

Battle of the North Cape - World War II - Scharnhorst Battle of the North Cape - Conflict Date: The Battle of the North Cape was fought December 26, 1943, during World War II (1939-1945). Fleets Commanders Allies Admiral Sir Bruce FraserVice Admiral Robert Burnett1 battleship, 1 heavy cruiser, 3 light cruisers, 8 destroyers Germany Rear Admiral Erich Bey1 battlecruiser Battle of the North Cape - Background: In the fall of 1943, with the Battle of the Atlantic going poorly, Grand Admiral Karl Doenitz sought permission from Adolf Hitler to allow surface units of the Kriegsmarine to begin attacking Allied convoys in the Arctic. As the battleship Tirpitz had been badly damaged by British X-Craft midget submarines in September, Doenitz was left with the battlecruiser Scharnhorst and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen as his only large, operational surface units. Approved by Hitler, Doenitz ordered planning for Operation Ostfront to commence. This called for a sortie by Scharnhorst against Allied convoys moving between northern Scotland and Murmansk under the direction of Rear Admiral Erich Bey. On December 22, Luftwaffe patrols sited Murmansk-bound convoy JW 55B and began tracking its progress. Aware of Scharnhorsts presence in Norway, the commander of the British Home Fleet, Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser, began making plans to eliminate the German warship. Seeking battle around Christmas 1943, he planned to lure Scharnhorst from its base at Altafjord using JW 55B and Britain-bound RA 55A as bait. Once at sea, Fraser hoped to attack Scharnhorst with Vice Admiral Robert Burnetts Force 1, which had aided in escorting the earlier JW 55A, and his own Force 2. Burnetts command consisted of his flagship, the light cruiser HMS Belfast, as well as the heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk and light cruiser HMS Sheffield. Frasers Force 2 was built around the battleship HMS Duke of York, the light cruiser HMS Jamaica, and the destroyers HMS Scorpion, HMS Savage, HMS Saumarez, and HNoMS Stord. Battle of the North Cape - Scharnhorst Sorties: Learning that JW 55B had been spotted by German aircraft, both British squadrons left their respective anchorages on December 23. Closing on the convoy, Fraser held his ships back as he did not wish to deter a German sortie. Utilizing the Luftwaffe reports, Bey departed Altafjord on December 25 with Scharnhorst and the destroyers Z-29, Z-30, Z-33, Z-34, and Z-38. That same day, Fraser directed RA 55A to turn north to avoid the coming battle and ordered the destroyers HMS Matchless, HMS Musketeer, HMS Opportune, and HMS Virago to detach and join his force. Battling poor weather which hampered Luftwaffe operations, Bey searched for the convoys early on December 26. Believing he missed them, he detached his destroyers at 7:55 AM and ordered them to probe south. Battle of the North Cape - Force 1 Finds Scharnhorst: Approaching from the northeast, Burnetts Force 1 picked up Scharnhorst on radar at 8:30 AM. Closing in the increasingly snowy weather, Belfast opened fire at a range of around 12,000 yards. Joining the fray, Norfolk and Sheffield also began targeting Scharnhorst. Returning fire, Beys ship failed to score any hits on the British cruisers, but sustained two, one of which destroyed Scharnhorsts radar. Effectively blind, the German ship was forced to target the muzzle flashes of the British guns. Believing he was engaging a British battleship, Bey turned south in an effort to break off the action. Escaping Burnetts cruisers, the German ship turned northeast and attempted to loop around to strike at the convoy. Hampered by degrading sea conditions, Burnett shifted Force 1 to a position to screen JW 55B. Somewhat concerned that he had lost Scharnhorst, Burnett reacquired the battlecruiser on radar at 12:10 PM. Exchanging fire, Scharnhorst succeeded in hitting Norfolk, destroying its radar and putting a turret out of action. Around 12:50 PM, Bey turned south and decided to return to port. Pursuing Scharnhorst, Burnetts force was soon reduced to just Belfast as the other two cruisers began suffering mechanical issues. Relaying Scharnhorsts position to Frasers Force 2, Burnett maintained contact with the enemy. At 4:17 PM, Duke of York picked up Scharnhorst on radar. Bearing down on the battlecruiser, Fraser pushed his destroyers forward for a torpedo attack. Maneuvering into position to deliver a full broadside, Fraser ordered Belfast to fire starshells over Scharnhorst at 4:47 PM. Battle of the North Cape - Death of Scharnhorst: With its radar out, Scharnhorst was caught by surprise as the British attack developed. Using radar-directed fire, Duke of York scored hits on the German ship with its first salvo. As the fighting continued, Scharnhorsts forward turret was put out of action and Bey turned north. This quickly brought him under fire from Belfast and Norfolk. Changing course to the east, Bey sought to escape the British trap. Hitting Duke of York twice, Scharnhorst was able to damage its radar. Despite this success, the British battleship struck the battlecruiser with a shell which destroyed one of its boiler rooms. Quickly slowing to ten knots, Scharnhorsts damage control parties worked to repair the damage. This was partially successful and soon the ship was moving at twenty-two knots. Though an improvement, this reduced speed allowed Frasers destroyers to close. Maneuvering to attack, Savage and Saumarez approached Scharnhorst from port while Scorpion and Stord neared from starboard. Turning to starboard to engage Savage and Saumarez, Scharnhorst quickly took a torpedo hit from one of the other two destroyers. This was followed by three hits on its port side. Badly damaged, Scharnhorst slowed allowing Duke of York to close. Supported by Belfast and Jamaica, Duke of York began pummeling the German battlecruiser. With the battleships shells striking, both light cruisers added torpedoes to the barrage. Listing severely and with the bow partially submerged, Scharnhorst continued to limp along at about three knots. With the ship critically damaged, the order was given to abandon ship around 7:30 PM. Charging forward, the destroyer detachment from RA 55A fired nineteen torpedoes at the stricken Scharnhorst. Several of these struck home and soon the battlecruiser was convulsed by a series of explosions. Following a massive explosion at 7:45 PM, Scharnhorst slipped beneath the waves. In the wake of the sinking, Matchless and Scorpion began picking up survivors before Fraser ordered his forces to proceed to Murmansk. Battle of the North Cape - Aftermath: In the fighting off the North Cape, the Kriegsmarine suffered the loss of Scharnhorst and 1,932 of its crew. Due to the threat of U-boats, British ships were only able to rescue 36 German sailors from the frigid water. British losses totaled 11 killed and 11 wounded. The Battle of the North Cape marked the last surface engagement between British and German capital ships during World War II. With Tirpitz damaged, the loss of Scharnhorst effectively eliminated surface threats to the Allies Arctic convoys. The engagement also demonstrated the importance of radar-directed fire control in modern naval battles. Selected Sources Operation Ostfront: ScharnhorstImperial War Museum: Battle of the North Cape

The Iran-Iraq War of 1980-1988

The Iran-Iraq War of 1980-1988 The Iran-Iraq War of 1980 to 1988 was a grinding, bloody, and in the end, completely pointless conflict. It was sparked by the Iranian Revolution, led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, which overthrew Shah Pahlavi in 1978-79. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, who despised the Shah, welcomed this change, but his joy turned to alarm when the Ayatollah began calling for a Shia revolution in Iraq to overthrow Saddams secular/Sunni regime. The Ayatollahs provocations inflamed Saddam Husseins paranoia, and he soon began calling for a new Battle of Qadisiyyah, a reference to the 7th-century battle in which the newly-Muslim Arabs defeated the Persians. Khomeini retaliated by calling the Baathist regime a puppet of Satan. In April  1980, Iraqi Foreign Minister Tariq Aziz survived an assassination attempt, which Saddam blamed on the Iranians. As Iraqi Shias began to respond to the Ayatollah Khomeinis call for revolt, Saddam cracked down hard, even hanging Iraqs top Shia Ayatollah, Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr, in April of 1980. Rhetoric and skirmishes continued from both sides throughout the summer, though Iran was not at all militarily prepared for war. Iraq Invades Iran On September 22, 1980, Iraq launched an all-out invasion of Iran. It began with airstrikes against the Iranian Air Force, followed by a three-pronged ground invasion by six Iraqi Army divisions along a 400-mile-long front in the Iranian province of Khuzestan. Saddam Hussein expected ethnic Arabs in Khuzestan to rise up in support of the invasion, but they did not, perhaps because they were predominantly Shiite. The unprepared Iranian army was joined by the Revolutionary Guards in their efforts to fight off the Iraqi invaders. By November, a corps of some 200,000 Islamic volunteers (untrained Iranian civilians) were also throwing themselves against the invading forces. The war settled into a stalemate throughout much of 1981. By 1982, Iran had gathered its forces and successfully launched a counter-offensive, using human waves of Basij volunteers to drive the Iraqis back from Khorramshahr. In April, Saddam Hussein withdrew his forces from Iranian territory. However, Iranian calls for the end to monarchy in the Middle East convinced reluctant Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to begin sending billions of dollars in aid to Iraq; none of the Sunni powers wished to see Iranian-style Shia revolution spreading southward. On June 20, 1982, Saddam Hussein called for a ceasefire that would return everything to the pre-war status quo. However, Ayatollah Khomeini rejected the proffered peace, calling for Saddam Husseins removal from power. The Iranian clerical government began to prepare for an invasion of Iraq, over the objections of its surviving military officers. Iran Invades Iraq On July 13, 1982, Iranian forces crossed into Iraq, heading for the city of Basra. The Iraqis, however, were prepared; they had an elaborate series of trenches and bunkers dug into the earth, and Iran soon ran short on ammunition. In addition, Saddams forces deployed chemical weapons against their opponents. The ayatollahs army was quickly reduced to complete dependence on suicide attacks by human waves. Children were sent to run across mine-fields, clearing the mines before the adult Iranian soldiers could hit them, and instantly become martyrs in the process. Alarmed by the prospect of further Islamic revolutions, President Ronald Reagan announced that the U.S. would do whatever was necessary to prevent Iraq from losing the war with Iran. Interestingly enough, the Soviet Union and France also came to Saddam Husseins aid, while China, North Korea, and Libya were supplying the Iranians. Throughout 1983, the Iranians launched five major attacks against the Iraqi lines, but their under-armed human waves could not break through the Iraqi entrenchments. In retaliation, Saddam Hussein sent missile attacks against eleven Iranian cities. An Iranian push through the marshes ended with them gaining a position just 40 miles from Basra, but the Iraqis held them there. The Tanker War In the spring of 1984, the Iran-Iraq War entered a new, maritime phase when Iraq attacked Iranian oil tankers in the Persian Gulf. Iran responded by attacking the oil tankers of both Iraq and its Arab allies. Alarmed, the U.S. threatened to join the war if the oil supply was cut off. Saudi F-15s retaliated for attacks against the kingdoms shipping by shooting down an Iranian plane in June  1984. The tanker war continued through 1987. In that year, U.S. and Soviet naval ships offered escorts to oil tankers to prevent them being targeted by the belligerents. A total of 546 civilian ships were attacked and 430 merchant seamen killed in the tanker war. Bloody Stalemate On land, the years 1985 to 1987 saw Iran and Iraq trading offensives and counter-offensives, without either side gaining much territory. The fighting was incredibly bloody, often with tens of thousands killed on each side in a matter of days. In February of 1988, Saddam unleashed the fifth and deadliest missile attack on Irans cities. Simultaneously, Iraq began to prepare a major offensive to push the Iranians out of Iraqi territory. Worn down by eight years of fighting and the incredibly high toll in lives, Irans revolutionary government began to consider accepting a peace deal. On July 20, 1988, the Iranian government announced that it would accept a UN-brokered ceasefire, although Ayatollah Khomeini likened it to drinking from a poisoned chalice. Saddam Hussein demanded that the Ayatollah revoke his call for Saddams removal before he would sign the deal. However, the Gulf States leaned on Saddam, who finally accepted the ceasefire as it stood. In the end, Iran accepted the same peace terms the Ayatollah had rejected in 1982. After eight years of fighting, Iran and Iraq returned to the antebellum status quo - nothing had changed, geopolitically. What had changed was that an estimated 500,000 to 1,000,000 Iranians were dead, along with more than 300,000 Iraqis. Also, Iraq had seen the devastating effects of chemical weapons, which it later deployed against its own Kurdish population as well as the Marsh Arabs. The Iran-Iraq War of 1980-88 was one of the longest in modern times, and it ended in a draw. Perhaps the most important point to be drawn from it is the danger of allowing religious fanaticism on one side to clash with a leaders megalomania on the other.

Female Health Issues Created by the Patriarchal Media Capitalism Assignment

Female Health Issues Created by the Patriarchal Media Capitalism Resulting in Sexploitation of Women - Assignment Example The sexualization of women in media is a major cause behind these health issues. The need to address this problem is dire. THE NEED TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE When young girls see teenage popstars and models, they idolize them and try to imitate them. This imitation takes a dangerous take when these girls try to achieve the same body figures as the models they see in ads. What better example to cite then our very own Barbie doll. When this is topped up by the bombardment of sexual portrayals of women in ads, even those which promote exclusively male products, the poor girls just can’t help it. Any amount of awareness won’t do much unless the problem is nipped in the bud. We need to directly target the big media organizations that earn big bucks and, because of their vested interests, drown most voices of protest. According to the study of the American Psychological Association (Girls) on this issue, the sexploitation like this has negative impacts on the â€Å"cognitive fun ctioning, physical and mental health, and health sexual development† of girls. Cognitive functioning implies self-image problems and confidence in one’s own appearance. Research indicates that girls usually fail to build a health sexual image of them as a result of the influence of sexploitation. ... These are the people, who objectify women because at the end of the day they really are just objects of exploitation for them. This overwhelming corporate greed cannot be taken care of once and for all, but that should never discourage us from taking initiative. Billboards are full of women in few clothes with digitally edited faces and bodies impossible to have in the real world, music videos and movies highly glamourize and sexualize the image of women, even the newscasters seem to be getter sexier by the day. This has become a national and international epidemic. EPMC-MY ACTIVIST GROUP EPMC-End Patriarchal Media Capitalism is an activist organization that we have built to fight the menace of corporate media and force them to stop the objectification of women in such a way that it ends up affecting the health of women. We have chalked out a 5 year strategy to achieve our target of minimizing and eventually eradicating the sexualization of women in media. This mission is to be achie ved through the following important steps: Creating support for the project through publications, web presence, workshops and seminars, awareness programs, celebrities and other possible means. Meeting with celebrities and stars that hold influence over our target audience i.e. young girls, and taking these celebrities on board with us in our mission. Taking help from other activist organizations in digging up technical support. Talking to politically active people to help us campaign for national and international recognition. We would be requiring this recognition to fulfill the most important step. That step is the ultimate creation of a regulatory body that can give out penalties to any corporation or company etc. The regulatory body will have set standards through which

Green materials for children's room Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Green materials for children's room - Essay Example To ensure your products are green, purchase from companies that make their furniture from certified sustainable wood or reclaimed wood materials. Certified sustainable wood means the wood used in production passes the Forest Stewardship Council’s 57 criteria to protect wildlife and regulate pesticide use (Tara, 2008). Companies that make the effort to ensure their wood products are certified sustainable are also typically careful in the selection of stains and treatments for the finished product that remain safe for use in children’s rooms. Sustainable wood products are available through Stokke, Oeuf, DucDuc, Argington and Pacific Rim. Although these sustainable products are generally a little more expensive up-front, they are much better options that the less expensive pressed wood products or plastic products on the market. Pressed wood is typically held together with resins and glues that are full of chemicals considered unhealthy for children as well as adults. Some of these same types of resins and glues are also used in the production of plastic products often created for children. Many of these kinds of products outgas what is essentially formaldehyde, which can irritate the skin, damage eyes, bother the throat or even cause nausea (Tara, 2008). This harm can be reduced by purchasing used materials that have already outgassed much of this material, but one must take care to ensure everything is still appropriately assembled and has not been recalled. The best lighting for young children is natural sunlight, filtered so as to avoid exposure to UV rays. This can be accomplished through the use of skylighting, windows or even glass bricks that allow natural light to filter inside. This lighting can be controlled during daylight hours through the use of blackout lining in the draperies, blinds or shutters for purposes of naptime, etc. When natural lighting is not

Final Exam Educational Leadership Research Paper

Final Exam Educational Leadership - Research Paper Example According to Teachers Tenure Act (TTA), any tenured teacher may be dismissed due to his or her performance (Clem, Clay & Calhoun, 2006). The school system has the obligation of informing teachers about their performance inadequateness in order to give them opportunities for improvement. Grounds of inadequate performance can be used to support the dismissal of teachers on the objective of evaluations leading to a conclusion of inadequate performance. In addition, this ground also applies to both the control of the student and the teaching method of a teacher. The act reveals that before a teacher is dismissed for inadequate performance, he or she should be allowed to understand what is expected of him or her. This gives teachers adequate information of what performance inadequacies are in order to overcome them (School Employment Law, 2002). Subjective evaluation of inadequate performance in a teacher is evidenced by poor performance of the students and shortcomings of their progress. This is as a result of poor organization of classrooms and failure of the teacher to show applicable initiatives in finding effective means of attaining their objectives. In addition, poor performance can also be as a result of teachers’ inability to maintain good order in classrooms. ... In case the board receives two consecutive substantial evidence of poor performance of a teacher through written findings, dismissal is recommended (Clem, Clay & Calhoun, 2006). Neglect of duty According to Teachers Tenure Act, a tenured teacher can be dismissed due to his or her neglect of duty. Prior to dismissing teachers for neglect of duty, they should be given a chance to understand their duties in school. This is because neglect of duty is determined by references of duties that exist. Neglect of duty is mainly identified by failure of a teacher to show up for work without an excuse. In addition, it is also identified by failure of the teacher to control good order and discipline among students. Based on these grounds, a teacher can be dismissed if he or she fails to fulfill responsibilities and duties imposed upon him or her. The board of education should, therefore, have conclusive proof and evidence that the teacher is adequately neglecting his or her duties before recommen ding their dismissal (School Employment Law, 2002). Insubordination Insubordination, as revealed from Teachers Tenure Act, can also lead to the dismissal of a tenured teacher. Insubordination constitutes use of an inappropriate language, toleration of illegal games in school, and use of inappropriate physical correction to students. Prior to holding teachers responsible for insubordination, they should be allowed to understand rules governing the school. This will allow teachers to rectify their behaviors in schools. Principals should, therefore, have proper evidence that teachers have engaged in misconducts before recommending dismissal. A clear proof of insubordination gives a proper ground of a teacher to be dismissed (Clem, Clay & Calhoun, 2006). Failure to comply

How could pivotal events in America have turned out differently Argue Essay

How could pivotal events in America have turned out differently Argue for an alternate history into the present using evidence - Essay Example as popular with the troops in Korea, he believed that with his command of the UN forces, and US support, he had autonomy from the American government (Pak 42). Truman viewed the war as a war against North Korea while MacArthur observed it as a confrontation with both North Korea and China. By 1950, the General began contemplating of the notion of utilizing nuclear strikes because the Chinese kept their forces closely together and thus vulnerable to air strikes (Malkasian 5). The idea of utilizing A-Bombs would have resulted in the successful detonation of 28 atomic bombs and thus would have changed the course of history in reference to the war. With various regions in Korea bombarded by nuclear weapons, the Korean War would end as a result, for various reasons. During the war, Chinese forces were closely knit together, and an airstrike would alleviate any actions they had planned. In the 1950s, the Chinese government lacked the ability to develop nuclear weapons and thus did not possess any atomic bombs. Therefore, Communist China would surrender in view of preventing a nuclear strike in their homeland. The main concern for the American government would be the Soviet Union as they also developed nuclear weapons at the time, which had the potential to cause tremendous problems (Dijk, Ruud van et al. 37). Consequently, with United States and Soviet Union utilizing weapons of mass destruction, nuclear weapons would turn out to be conventional weapons of combat by numerous countries around the globe. Therefore, in a world where the Soviet Union developed atomic Bombs, such a pursuit of victory would have resulted in World War III due to the wide spread of atomic bombs. As nuclear weapons would play a significant role in the WWIII, traditional bombings, infantry matches and armor offenses would typify the warfare. The effects of the A-Bomb would have various ramifications of a political nature internationally and in the United States. The utilization of the atomic

Business Consulting Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business Consulting Paper - Essay Example The external consultant advices different clients compared to an internal consultant who only advises his company. This essay expounds on what is a business consultant and his or her respective roles and responsibilities. A business consultant is a person who is an expert in business fields and offers advice and guidance to firms mostly at a fee. The business fields include finance, management, accountancy, human resource and procurement. For instance, a finance consultant advises a firm on management issues of finances and how to get the finances. He or she advises them on how to issue stocks, rights issues, bonds and any other tactic of gaining capital from the shareholders. He or she advises the client on how to join the stock exchange markets to trade in stocks. This is done to improve the capital base of an organization thus facilitating its growth. An example of a firm providing financial consultant services is Deloitte Consulting LLP (Malone, 2012). A management consultant who is still a business consultant, advises firms on any management issues. He or she guides a firm when setting up its organization structure, and also when coming up with the roles and responsibilities in every position. A management consultant also helps any organization to choose the best organization culture that would improve the performance of the employees. An example of management consultant firm is the McKinsey & Company. It has been offering these services since 1926. Human resource consultant gives guidance to an organization on how to handle its human resource; a framework on how to recruit, induct and associate with new employees is set by the help of a human resource consultant. An example is Mercer LLC in the United States, which has many offices worldwide (Malone, 2012). Finally, a procurement consultant who is still a business consultant,

In the news Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

In the news - Essay Example The whole scene was set up like a real time support system. The funny scenes were created as an effort to provide people a comic relief, as well as to market its low budget medicines directed to provide relief for single ailments, such as head-ache, insomnia, body ache etc. The scenes included a high-heel wearing model walking on a tread-mill to market for its â€Å"Help I have a blister† packet of bandages, and a performer sleeping in a store window to divert interest towards its â€Å"Help I can’t sleep† caplets (Olsen pgB3).The store team not only imparted information to passers by regarding ailments, but also distributed its head-ache packets and nausea medicine to polling stations and campaign offices. Their marketing style may seem comical and wacky, but the store founders claim to have conveyed a serious message. I have understood from my marketing insight that they have tried to simplify the buying process for the customers, who often seem confused by the varying brands and products on offer. People end up buying more than they need, due to excessive marketing campaigns, this simplified strategy of low dosages for single ailments not a host of ailments, made people realize what they aim to buy for lesser prices. Marketing should be done for people who are not experts, but still customers, who want simple solutions for complex problems, with creativity and fun all rolled into one. This campaign carved a niche for itself in the already crowded pharmaceutical market; it included viral videos, performance windows and tactile packaging to make the message clear, direct and on-the-spot (Olsen pgB3). Olsen, Elizabeth. "Attacking Ailments With Small Doses."New York Times  [Washington.] 09 11 2012, New York Edition pgB3. Print.

Business Consulting Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Business Consulting Paper - Essay Example The external consultant advices different clients compared to an internal consultant who only advises his company. This essay expounds on what is a business consultant and his or her respective roles and responsibilities. A business consultant is a person who is an expert in business fields and offers advice and guidance to firms mostly at a fee. The business fields include finance, management, accountancy, human resource and procurement. For instance, a finance consultant advises a firm on management issues of finances and how to get the finances. He or she advises them on how to issue stocks, rights issues, bonds and any other tactic of gaining capital from the shareholders. He or she advises the client on how to join the stock exchange markets to trade in stocks. This is done to improve the capital base of an organization thus facilitating its growth. An example of a firm providing financial consultant services is Deloitte Consulting LLP (Malone, 2012). A management consultant who is still a business consultant, advises firms on any management issues. He or she guides a firm when setting up its organization structure, and also when coming up with the roles and responsibilities in every position. A management consultant also helps any organization to choose the best organization culture that would improve the performance of the employees. An example of management consultant firm is the McKinsey & Company. It has been offering these services since 1926. Human resource consultant gives guidance to an organization on how to handle its human resource; a framework on how to recruit, induct and associate with new employees is set by the help of a human resource consultant. An example is Mercer LLC in the United States, which has many offices worldwide (Malone, 2012). Finally, a procurement consultant who is still a business consultant,

The End of Cold War Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The End of Cold War - Essay Example Many views simply refer Cold war as the ‘war of words’ between various nations and states. From the third world across the countries of Eastern Europe and in reference to the once divided German to the American Midwest the cold war made its presence felt after it inserted itself into the economies of the two protagonists, and shaped political choices of people, as well as, determined the outcomes of the elections. Moreover, it sets parameters on human rights and helps in the promotion of democracy in some countries and authoritarian in others. One side of the scholars argue that ideologies that are conflicting were of no relevance and both sides were in a position to use rhetoric concepts to conceal their real interests and intentions. This was basically placed on the analysis that was last done with regard to the neorealist theory of Kenneth Waltz’s. However, Waltz does not discuss much about the ideology but relies heavily on the two structural features of inter national politics to expound on the interaction between states in general and the super power in particular.2 In fact, Waltz speaks more of unequal distribution of capabilities with the inclusion of anarchic nature of the international system. According to him, there is the presence of frequent patterns of foreign policy behaviour that flows naturally from the two features although other variants of realism offer related but in difference kind of predictions. Additionally, realist who belong to neoclassical ideology argue that great power behaviour cannot be properly understood without taking into account one or two domestic level factors which include perception of threats that are external or relative power. Never the less, they agree with Waltz that the lawless scenery of the global scheme and the unequal distribution of capabilities which were constrained determined the US and soviet foreign policy decisions.3 Contrary to this, several scholars including John Gaddis argue that c onflict took place due to the incompatible ideologies which ended up after the soviet ideology lost its hostile and antagonistic edge. The scholars further refuted claims that in the absence of clashing ideologies, structural conditions would be enough to spark a fierce rivalry between the US and Soviet Union. Scholar like Richard Rosecrance and Arthur Stein argues that any assessments that focused on narrow constituents of realism which include material power was capable of changing in distribution and the threat prevailing externally were radically incomplete, a situation that did not account for what he US and the Soviet Union did way beyond the year 1947.4 Arguing in the same light was John Mueller who contended that the Marxist ideology shaped Soviet foreign policy and that the liberal democratic values were intrinsic to the goals of US. The perspective implied that ideological considerations overdid the two superpower concerns about the balance of power. Criticism is said to h ave risen in regard to the neo-realism theory which was not in a position to predict the end of the cold war. Additionally, the theory was not able to explain how the war would end up either peaceful or none peacefully. Hence it was regarded as a major fail as it was one of the theories that claimed to be in a position to predict on several war and conflict issues. The binary opposition has limits especially when there is an attempt to understand the complexity of history. With the trials of understanding what the policymakers have done, it is necessary to understand that motives are seldom clear cut. The most hidden documents do not reveal reasons as to why US and Soviet acted during this period. Moreover, it is difficult to

Crisis of Modernity and Mutations of Sovereignty Essay Example for Free

Crisis of Modernity and Mutations of Sovereignty Essay As we live in the postmodern stage of capitalism, the crisis modernity has been deeply felt at the realm of sovereignty. It is because of the fact that the crisis of modernity is same time a crisis of nation state as well. Modernity was not only characterized by imperialism but also the by the emergence of nation states as a direct result of anti-colonial struggles. Sovereignty sans Nation States However, at present, the nation state is in the retreat. The Weberian idea of nation state as the sole monopoliser of legitimate means of violence has become a thing of past. While pointing out the rise of global capitalist hierarchy, Hardt and Negri assert that â€Å"the end of [modern] colonialism is also the end of the modern world and modern regimes of rule† (Hardt Negri, 2000, p. 134). It is not only the multilevel governance by intergovernmental institutions such as World Bank and IMF but also by the perpetrators of notions such as humanitarian intervention and just war, the nation state is being effectively surpassed. The gradual withering away of the nation state of course does not lead into the end of sovereignty. It is merely a shift from the postcolonial formal sovereignty to the real sovereignty of empire as we live through the stage total subsumption by capital. The imperial sovereignty which is originated fro the crisis of modernity is characterized by the network model of expansionist power. According to Hardt and Negri, power within the empire is not limited by the fixed boundaries. On the contrary, the imperial power â€Å"finds the logic of its order always renewed and always re-created in expansion† (ibid, p. 167). Therefore, imperial sovereignty (re)creates its own borders beyond its borders. Conclusion As modernity was characterized by colonial sovereignty of the imperialist powers, it needed nation states to function within the boundaries. But, the passage from modernity to postmodernity supersedes the nation states for the imperial sovereignty which is an open network of power. Reference Hardt, Michael, And Negri, Antonio, (2000) Empire, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.

The Vietnam War Essay -- Vietnam War Essays

There were many events that lead up the Vietnam War, it started in 1945 with the hostilities between the French and Vietminh. â€Å"Geopolitical Strategy, economics, domestic US politics, and cultural arrogance shaped the growing American involvement in Vietnam† (Anderson 1). As a matter of fact, the Vietnam War was several wars, but it was not until 1962 that America had their first combat mission, however, Americans were killed during ambushes by the Vietnamese before the first combat mission. There is much controversy over the reasons for the Vietnam War, supported by the several different books and articles written about the war. â€Å"The most famous atrocity occurred in a tiny hamlet called My Lai in March 1968† (Detzer 127). History shows that the reaction of many Americans to the attack by US soldiers on the village of My Lai during the Vietnam War was opposition, and the actions of the US soldiers during the My Lai Massacre will be forever remembered as a sign ificant part of the Vietnam War and American History. During the Vietnam War, the first platoon (approximately forty men) was lead by a young officer named William Calley. Young Calley was drafted into the US Army after high school, but it did not take long for him to adjust to being in the army, with a quick transition to the lifestyle of the military, he wanted to make it his career. In high school, Calley was a kind, likable and â€Å"regular† high school student, he seemed to be a normal teenager, having interest in things that other boys his age typically had. He was never observed acting in a cruel or brutal way. In Vietnam, Calley was under direct order of company commander, Captain Ernest Medina, whom he saw as a role model, he looked up to Medina. (Detzer 127). Histor... ...nd innocent villagers of My Lai, it was a time when American’s questioned their own as being â€Å"bad guys† or â€Å"good guys†. Were America’s tortuous and cruel acts to be considered patriotic or dishonorable? Some Americans, with bitter feelings for all the American lives lost in the Vietnam War, gave credit to Lieutenant Calley for leading troops in participating in such an atrocious event. History shows that there is still much debate on some facts of the massacre and many stories and opinions, although we will never know the facts exactly, what we do know is that America will never forget this tragic event, it will be talked about in American History for many years to come, and the Vietminh hearts will always fill with sadness when they think of the many lives that were lost on that tragic day in history, their minds will always have unspeakable memories of that day.

Movie Review of The Patriot Essay -- The Patriot Movies Film Revolutio

Movie Review of The Patriot I. Title- The Patriot Production Date- June 28th 2000 Major Characters- Benjamin Martin: Mel Gibson Gabriel Martin: Heath Ledger Charlotte Selton: Joely Richardson Johnny Issacs: William Tavington Lisa Brenner: Anne Howard Charles Cornwallis: Tom Wilkinson II. Movie Summary: â€Å"The Patriot† takes place during the Revolutionary War. It’s 1776 and intense fighting is going on in the north, while in the south the people are scrambling to recruit anyone who was willing to fight against the British. The main character, Benjamin Martin, is a veteran of the French and Indian war who wants independence from Britain, but is not willing to risk the safety of his already motherless children by going to war. His son Gabriel however, has a different view of the war, and enlists in the Continental Army without the consent of his father. Soon Benjamin is forced into action whether he wanted to be or not. When helping out hurt and wounded soldiers from both sides at his home he is viewed as a traitor, and Gabriel is ordered to be hanged. Benjamin’s son Thomas tries to help Gabriel, but is shot and killed by the brutal and nasty Colonel William Tavington, who also orders the Martin’s house to be burned to the ground. This understandably pushes Benjamin over the edge. He and his two younger sons then by themselves gun down over 20 redcoats and rescue Gabriel. Benjamin’s quick shooting and stealthful movements earn him the nickname of â€Å"The Ghost.† He then leaves his children with their aunt Charlotte, and forms a small militia group full of locals to help in the fight against the British and for personal revenge. Martin’s militia accounts for many redcoat deaths and cause a lot of trouble for the British. Col. Tavington however, results to his brutal tactics against the families and loved ones of the soldiers in Martin’s militia. Tavington is responsible for the deaths of Gabriel’s, wife, most of the citizens of their SC town, and later Gabriel himself as well. Martin’s army however overcomes much adversity, and plays a large part in the Continental effort. They later join up with the main Continental Army, and along with the long awaited arrival of the F rench, force Cornwallis and the British to surrender at Yorktown. Benjamin also gets his revenge by killing Tavington in the battle. This spells victory for the Americans and p... ...eeing this it gave us a look at what it might have been like if we lived during the war. I also disliked some things in the movie. I didn’t like how they put the British in a bad light regarding their involvement in the killing of innocent civilians. The brutal acts that were carried out in the movie by the redcoats could not be proven true. The movie also could have included information about other militia groups and the Continental Army as a whole. I also think that this movie was very one-sided. It was definitely pro-American, and against the British. This makes sense because it is an American movie, but I think it serves an injustice to some of the innocent British soldiers. Mainly Hollywood didn’t really care much about the historical accuracy, but they wanted to make an exciting movie that would sell tickets, and they did that in â€Å"The Patriot.† VI Bibliography Danzer, Gerald A., et al. The Americans. Boston: McDougal Littell, 1998. 108-117. Nash, Bruce. The Numbers. 1997. 13 Feb. 2005 . The American Revoulution Home Page. 1998. 14 Feb. 2005 . The Patriot. Dir. Roland Emmerich. Perf. Mel Gibson,Heath Ledger,and Johnny Issacs. DVD. Columbia Tristar , 2000.

Compare and Contrast the Techniques Used by Bronte in Describing Thornfiled Hall in Chapter 11, with those used by Woolf in Describing London

Jane Eyre's tone is both gothic and romantic, often conjuring an atmosphere of mystery and secrecy. Her description of Thornfield in chapter 11, is very Victorian and thorough, which draws us into the novel. On page 122 of Chapter 11, when approaching the third floor, Jane uses a visual first person narrative text. When Bronte writes, â€Å"Mrs Fairfax stayed behind a moment to fasten the trap-door†, she is giving us an aspect of ambiguity, the word ‘fasten' emphasises the refusal of entry. The description of the staircase in Thornfield Hall illustrates the rigid and constricted atmosphere, as they are described as ‘the narrow garret staircase'. Bronte uses alliteration when stating, â€Å"lingered in the long passage†, to emphasise the description of her movement in the surroundings. The phrase ‘separating' used in the passage exemplifies the secrecy within Thornfield, which also intrigues us. The use of semicolons and commas in the passage, adds to the appeal of Thornifield, illustrated when Bronte writes, â€Å"the third story; narrow, low, and dim†. These techniques disrupt the flow of the sentence to show the fascination and anxiety that she has for the attic. This allows the structure of the sentence to be sharp, with short gaps to keep the reader curious and interested. The depiction of the building demonstrates the typical Victorian accommodation, of small, gothic and narrow appearance. Furthermore, the conclusive text of the ‘little window at the far end' shows the isolation within Thornfield, as light can barely enter the house. Bronte shows the seclusion in addition to this, as Jane says â€Å"with its two rows of small black doors†. The technique of colour imagery used here, exemplifies the obscurity and secrecy, which adds to the suspense of Thornfield. In Jane, Bronte gives us a detailed description of the events that occur in her life. Despite these Gothic elements, Jane's personality is friendly and the tone is also affectionate and confessional. Her unflagging spirit and opinionated nature further infuse the book with high energy and suspense. Mrs Dalloway is written in the first person narrative and so all her images are also very thorough. The dialect used by Woolf is very energetic and visual. This is immediately demonstrated on the first page, as Woolf uses onomatopoeic terms such as â€Å"What a lark! What a plunge! † The use of exclamation marks also illustrates the exuberant atmosphere in London. The opening paragraph is also heavily punctuated, but the technique used by Woolf is less symbolic in contrast to Jane Eyre. We get a great image of the frantic and constructive lifestyle Mrs Dalloway has in London, as Woolf uses terms such as ‘traffic' and ‘solemnity'. The dialect is very active in comparison to Jane Eyre, as the onomatopoeic image of Big Ben is described as â€Å"There! Out it boomed†. Here Woolf is utilising heavy sounding terms, to attract the reader into the novel and to allow us to appreciate all the elements of London city. The long sentences used by Woolf and constant repetitive descriptions anchor the dialect in the novel and help hold the prose down. Woolf also frequently uses semi-colons rather than commas in Mrs Dalloway, to break the language and interpretation of the novel down, to prevent an easy and fluent read. This is illustrated when Woolf writes, â€Å"and swinging; brass bands; barrel organs; in the triumph†¦ nd the strange high singing of some aeroplane overhead was what she loved; life; London;† The tone that Woolf takes is very sensitive in contrast to the solid language used by Bronte. Woolf has a poetic rhythm in her prose, illustrated when she writes, â€Å"there was a beating, a stirring of galloping ponies, tapping at cricket bats†. The consistent use of this sound imagery, also exemplifies the typical buoyant London atmosphere. In contrast to Jane Eyre, Woolf uses a positive colour imagery to show the attractive London environment, when writing â€Å"soft mesh of the grey-blue morning air†. Furthermore when entering the park, Woolf uses a technique of alliteration, to show the contrasting atmosphere of London city, to the park when writing â€Å"the slow-swimming happy ducks†. A more calming and subtle dialect is now used, in comparison to Jane Eyre, where Bronte uses a sharper and more emotional tone. The main contrasts between the two novels are the different use of punctuation in each. Woolf's Mrs Dalloway, although heavily punctuated, employs a more simple style. The descriptions, although very thorough, are basic to interpret, to compliment the simple imagery used. However Bronte uses the technique of punctuation in Jane Eyre, to compliment Jane's feelings. Though both novels use similar techniques of punctuation, Bronte's utilises this aspect to compliment her novel more, which adds to the element of suspense and mystery. This intrigues the reader and allows us to feel Jane's emotions at the current time. The technique and punctuation that Woolf' uses, helps to elevate the environment of London and help create a very expressive novel, which concentrates more on the surroundings.

Humans And Animals Relationships Essay

Whether its social, business, or personal, animals play an extremely important role in the lives of humans. Humans have been using animals to survive since before 100 BC. Animals have been protectors, companions, benefactors, co-workers, and even best friends. Humans need animals in their lives to stay healthy mentally and even physically. Animals are used in everyday physical therapy to increase movement in the handicapped or elderly. Animals help with physical fitness which will boost their moods substantially. For example, elderly people that are in nursing homes have been able to work with animals as a type of therapy to improve and maintain their function and to increase their quality of life while in the nursing home. It is a proven fact that animals lower cholesterol, blood pressure, and keep their heart in check. Dogs can detect the sudden drop in the level of blood glucose and alert the owner to eat or take their medication. Pets can not only help handicapped and the elderly , but children as well. Children who grow up with pets have less risk of allergies and asthma; many also learn responsibility, compassion, and empathy from having pets. Pets are natural mood enhancers. One of the reasons for these therapeutic effects is that most pets fulfill the basic human need to touch. Even hardened criminals in prison have shown long-term changes in their behavior after interacting with pets, many of them experiencing mutual affection for the first time. Some state prisons will bring in dogs for the inmates to train, so they can learn to interact with others and to give them a purpose. While a person is with an animal their body actually goes through physical changes that make a difference in their mood. The hormone that is associated with stress is actually lowered, while the production of serotonin is being increased from the level it was previously at when the person wasn’t around the animal. Sometimes, while working with a patient, a counselor might use a dog in therapy. In doing so, it will raise their serotonin level and allow  the patient to be more comfortable. Therapists have recently started prescribing pets as a way of dealing with and recovering from depression and anxiety. The unconditional love that is given from a pet to a human when petting it or playing with it, actually elevates their moods to a state where they are no longer depressed or anxious. Stroking, holding, cuddling, or otherwise touching a loving animal can rapidly calm and soothes humans when they’re stressed. The companionship of a pet can also ease loneliness, and some pets are a great stimulus for healthy exercise, which can substantially boost mood. The more that people interact with animals the less likely they will isolate themselves; pet lovers and pet owners can easily talk to each other about their pets without talking about uncomfortable subjects. Dogs help with people who are suffering PTSD. Dog can provide a sense of security, calming effects, and physical exercise that can make a positive difference in the life of those that suffer with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Like all assistance dogs, a psychiatric service dog is individually trained to do work or perform tasks that mitigate their handler’s disability. The dog will be able to calm the owner and teach him/her not to be afraid. It will be able to bond with its owner when he/she cannot bond with other humans. People with PTSD are afraid to be alone in public and the company of a dog will ease that fear. Animals have been used to assisted humans for as long as anyone can remember. They help psychologically with the world around them. They help with physical condition that’s going on with their body. Humans can bond easily with an animal more so than another human being. Whether it’s from a problem they are born with or something that stumbled upon them, they can always rely on animals to ease their pain. Work Cited Siegel, J. (1990). Stressful life events and use of physician services among the elderly: The moderating role of pet ownership. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 1081-1086. Friedmann, E., Katcher, A. H., Thomas, S. A., Lynch, J. J., & Messent, P. R. (1983). Social interaction and blood pressure: Influence of animal companions. Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases, 171, 461-465. Hunt, S. J., Hart, L.A., & Gomulkiewicz, R. (1992). The role of small animals in social interaction between strangers. Journal of Social Psychology, 133, 245-256. Thelen, E. (2000). Grounded in the world: Developmental origins of the embodied mind. Infancy, 1, 3-28. Thomson, R. (1968). The Pelican history of psychology. London: Pelican.

Fool Chapter 6

SIX FRIENDSHIP AND THE ODD BONK Life is loneliness, broken only by the gods taunting us with friendship and the odd bonk. I admit it, I grieved. Perhaps I am a fool to have expected Cordelia to stay. (Well, yes, I am a fool – don't be overly clever, eh? It's annoying.) But for most of my manly years she had been the lash on my back, the bait to my loins, and the balm of my imagination – my torment, my tonic, my fever, my curse. I ache for her. There is no comfort in the castle. Drool gone, Taster gone, Lear gone mad. At best, Drool was little more company than Jones, and decidedly less portable, but I worry for him, great child that he is, stumbling about in the circle of so many villains and so much sharp metal. I miss his gape-toothed smile, filled as it was with forgiveness, acceptance, and often, cheddar. And Taster, what did I know of him, really? Just a wan lad from Hog Nostril on Thames. Yet when I needed a sympathetic ear, he provided, even if he was oft distracted from my woes by his own selfish dietary concerns. I lay on my bed in the portislodge staring out the cruciform arrow loops at the grey bones of London, stewing in my misery, yearning for my friends. For my first friend. For Thalia. The anchoress. On a chill autumn day at Dog Snogging, the third time I was allowed to bring food to the anchoress, we became fast friends. I was still in awe of her, and merely being in her presence made me feel base, unworthy, and profane, but in a good way. I passed the plate of rough brown bread and cheese through the cross in the wall with prayers and a plea for her forgiveness. â€Å"This fare will do, Pocket. It will do. I'll forgive you for a song.† â€Å"You must be a most pious lady and have great love for the Lord.† â€Å"The Lord is a tosser.† â€Å"I thought the Lord was a shepherd?† â€Å"Well, that, too. But a bloke needs hobbies. Do you know ‘Greensleeves'?† â€Å"I know ‘Dona Nobis Pacem.'† â€Å"Do you know any pirate songs?† â€Å"I could sing ‘Dona Nobis Pacem' like a pirate.† â€Å"It means give us peace, in Latin, doesn't it?† â€Å"Aye, mistress.† â€Å"Bit of a stretch then, innit, a pirate singing give us bloody peace?† â€Å"I suppose. I could sing you a psalm, then, mistress.† â€Å"All right, then, Pocket, a psalm it is – one with pirates and loads of bloodshed, if you have it.† I was nervous, desperate for approval from the anchoress, and afraid that if I displeased her I might be struck down by an avenging angel, as seemed to happen often in scripture. Try as I might, I could not recall any piraty psalms. I cleared my throat and sang the only psalm I knew in English: â€Å"The Lord is my tosser, I shall not want – â€Å" â€Å"Wait, wait, wait,† said the anchoress. â€Å"Doesn't it go, ‘the Lord is my shepherd'?† â€Å"Well, yes, mistress, but you said – â€Å" And she started to laugh. It was the first time I heard her truly laugh and it felt as if I was getting approval from the Virgin herself. In the dark chamber, just the single candle on my side of the cross, it seemed like her laughter was all around me, embracing me. â€Å"Oh, Pocket, you are a love. Thick as a bloody brick, but such a love.† I could feel the blood rise in my face. I was proud and embarrassed and ecstatic all at once. I didn't know what to do, so I fell to my knees and prostrated myself before the arrow loop, pushing my cheek against the stone floor. â€Å"I'm sorry, mistress.† She laughed some more. â€Å"Arise, Sir Pocket of Dog Snogging.† I climbed to my feet and stared into the dark cross-shaped hole in the wall, and there I saw that dull star that was her eye reflecting the candle flame and I realized that there were tears in my own eyes. â€Å"Why did you call me that?† â€Å"Because you make me laugh and you are deserving and valiant. I think we're going to be very good friends.† I started to ask her what she meant, but the iron latch clanked and the door into the passageway swung slowly open. Mother Basil was there, holding a candelabra, looking displeased. â€Å"Pocket, what's going on here?† said the mother superior in her gruff baritone. â€Å"Nothing, Reverend Mother. I've just given food to the anchoress.† Mother Basil seemed reluctant to enter the passageway, as if she was afraid to be in view of the arrow loop that looked into the anchoress's chamber. â€Å"Come along, Pocket. It's time for evening prayers.† I bowed quickly to the anchoress and hurried out the door under Mother Basil's arm. As the sister closed the door, the anchoress called, â€Å"Reverend Mother, a moment, please.† Mother Basil's eyes went wide and she looked as if she'd been called out by the devil. â€Å"Go on to vespers, Pocket. I'll be along.† She made her way into the dead-end passageway and closed the door behind her even as the bell calling us to vespers began to toll. I wondered what the anchoress would discuss with Mother Basil, perhaps some conclusion she had realized during her hours of prayer, perhaps I had been found wanting and she would ask that I not be sent to her again. After just making my first friend, I was sorely afraid of losing her. While I repeated the prayers in Latin after the priest, in my heart I prayed to God to not take my anchoress away, and when mass ended, I stayed in the chapel and prayed until well after the midnight prayers. Mother Basil found me in the chapel. â€Å"There are going to be some changes, Pocket.† I felt my spirit drop into my shoe soles. â€Å"Forgive me, Reverend Mother, for I know not what I do.† â€Å"What are you on about, Pocket? I'm not scolding you. I'm adding duties to your devotion.† â€Å"Oh,† said I. â€Å"From now on, you are to take food and drink to the anchoress in the hour before vespers, and there in the outer chamber, shall you sit until she has eaten, but upon the bell for vespers you are to leave there, and not return until the next day. No longer than an hour shall you stay, do you understand?† â€Å"Yes, mum, but why only the hour?† â€Å"More than that and you will interfere with the anchoress's own communion with God. Further, you are never to ask her about where she was before this, about her family, or her past in any way. If she should speak of these things you are to immediately put your fingers in your ears, and verily sing ‘la, la, la, la, I can't hear you, I can't hear you,' and leave the chamber immediately.† â€Å"I can't do that, mum.† â€Å"Why not?† â€Å"I can't work the latch to the outer door with my fingers in my ears.† â€Å"Ah, sweet Pocket, I do so love your wit. I think you shall sleep on the stone floor this night, the rug shields you from the blessed cooling of your fevered imagination, which God finds an abomination. Yes, a light beating and the bare stone for you and your wit tonight.† â€Å"Yes, mum.† â€Å"And so, you must never speak with the anchoress about her past, and if you should, you shall be excommunicated and damned for all eternity with no hope for redemption, the light of the Lord shall never fall upon you, and you shall live in darkness and pain for ever and ever. And in addition, I shall have Sister Bambi feed you to the cat.† â€Å"Yes, mum,† said I. I was so thrilled I nearly peed. I would be blessed by the glory of the anchoress every single day. â€Å"Well that's a scaly spot o' snake wank,† said the anchoress. â€Å"No, mum, it's a cracking big cat.† â€Å"Not the cat, the hour a day. Only an hour a day?† â€Å"Mother Basil doesn't want me to disturb your communion with God, Madame Anchoress.† I bowed before the dark arrow loop. â€Å"Call me Thalia.† â€Å"I daren't, mum. And neither may I ask you about your past or from whence you come. Mother Basil has forbidden it.† â€Å"She's right on that, but you may call me Thalia, as we are friends.† â€Å"Aye, mum. Thalia.† â€Å"And you may tell me of your past, good Pocket. Tell me of your life.† â€Å"But, Dog Snogging is all I know – all I have ever known.† I could hear her laughing in the dark. â€Å"Then, tell me a story from your lessons, Pocket.† So I told the anchoress of the stoning of St. Stephen, of the persecution of St. Sebastian, and the beheading of St. Valentine, and she, in turn, told me stories of the saints I had never heard of in catechism. â€Å"And so,† said Thalia, â€Å"that is the story of how St. Rufus of Pipe-wrench was licked to death by marmots.† â€Å"That sounds a most horrible martyring,† said I. â€Å"Aye,† said the anchoress, â€Å"for marmot spit is the most noxious of all substances, and that is why St. Rufus is the patron of saliva and halitosis unto this day. Enough martyring, tell me of some miracles.† And so I did. I told of the magic, self-filling milk pail of St. Bridgid of Kildare, of how St. Fillan, after his ox was killed by a wolf, was able to compel the same wolf to pull a cart full of materials for building a church, and how St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland. â€Å"Aye,† said Thalia, â€Å"and snakes have been grateful ever since. But let me apprise you of the most wondrous miracle of how St. Cinnamon drove the Mazdas out of Swinden.† â€Å"I've never heard of St. Cinnamon,† said I. â€Å"Well, that is because these nuns at Dog Snogging are base and not worthy to know such things, and why you must never share what you learn here with them lest they become overwhelmed and succumb to an ague.† â€Å"An ague of over-piety?† â€Å"Aye, lad, and you will be the one to have killed them.† â€Å"Oh, I would never want to do that.† â€Å"Of course you wouldn't. Did you know, in Portugal they canonize a saint by actually shooting him out of a cannon?† And so it went, day in, day out, week in, week out, trading secrets and lies with Thalia. You might think that it was cruel of her to spend her only time in contact with the outside world telling lies to a little boy, but then, the first story that Mother Basil had told me was about a talking snake who gave tainted fruit to naked people, and the bishop had made her an abbess. All along what Thalia was teaching me was how to entertain her. How to share a moment in story and laughter – how you could become close to someone, even when separated from them by a stone wall. Once a month for the first two years the bishop came from York to check on the anchoress, and she would seem to lose her spirit for a day, as if he were skimming it off and taking it away, but soon she would recover and our routine of chat and laughter would go on. After a few years the bishop stopped coming, and I was afraid to ask Mother Basil why, lest it be a reminder and the dour prelate resume his spirit-sucking sojourns. The longer the anchoress was in her chamber, the more she delighted in my conveying the most mundane details from the outside. â€Å"Tell me of the weather today, Pocket. Tell me of the sky, and don't skip a single cloud.† â€Å"Well, the sky looked like someone was catapulting giant sheep into the frosty eye of God.† â€Å"Fucking winter. Crows against the sky?† â€Å"Aye, Thalia, like a vandal with quill and ink set loose to randomly punctuate the very dome of day.† â€Å"Ah, well spoken, love, completely incoherent imagery.† â€Å"Thank you, mistress.† While about my chores and studies I tried to take note of every detail and construct metaphors in my head so I might paint word pictures for my anchoress, who depended on me to be her light and color. My days seemed to begin at four when I came to Thalia's chamber, and end at five, when the bell rang for vespers. Everything before was in preparation for that hour, and everything after, until sleep, was in sweet remembrance. The anchoress taught me how to sing – not just the hymns and chants I had been singing from the time I was little, but the romantic songs of the troubadours. With simple, patient instruction, she taught me how to dance, juggle, and perform acrobatics, and all by verbal description – not once in those years had I laid eyes on the anchoress, or seen more than her partial profile at the arrow loop. I grew older and fuzz sprouted on my cheek – my voice broke, making me sound as if a small goose was trapped in my gullet, honking for her supper. The nuns at Dog Snogging started to take notice of me as something other than their pet, for many were sent to the abbey when they were no older than I. They would flirt and ask me for a song, a poem, a story, the more bawdy the better, and the anchoress had taught me many of those. Where she had learned them, she would never say. â€Å"Were you an entertainer before you became a nun?† â€Å"No, Pocket. And I am not a nun.† â€Å"But, perhaps your father – â€Å" â€Å"No, my father was not a nun either.† â€Å"I mean, was he an entertainer?† â€Å"Sweet Pocket, you mustn't ask about my life before I came here. What I am now, I have always been, and everything I am is here with you.† â€Å"Sweet Thalia,† said I. â€Å"That is a fiery flagon of dragon toss.† â€Å"Isn't it, though?† â€Å"You're grinning, aren't you?† She held the candle close to the arrow loop, illuminating her wry smile. I laughed, and reached through the cross to touch her cheek. She sighed, took my hand and pressed it hard against her lips, then, in an instant, she had pushed my hand away and moved out of the light. â€Å"Don't hide,† said I. â€Å"Please don't hide.† â€Å"Fat lot of choice I have about whether I hide or not. I live in a bloody tomb.† I didn't know what to say. Never before had she complained about her choice to become the anchoress of Dog Snogging, even if other expressions of her faith seemed – well – abstract. â€Å"I mean don't hide from me. Let me see you.† â€Å"You want to see? You want to see?† I nodded. â€Å"Give me your candles.† She had me hand four lit candles through the arrow loop. Whenever I performed for her she had me set them in holders around the outer chamber so she could see me dance, or juggle, or do acrobatics, but never had she asked for more than one candle in her own chamber. She placed the candles around her chamber and for the first time I could see the stone pallet where she slept on a mattress of straw, her meager possessions laid out on a heavy table, and Thalia, standing there in a tattered linen frock. â€Å"Look,† she said. She pulled her frock over her head and dropped it on the floor. She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. She looked younger than I had imagined, thin, but womanly – her face was that of a mischievous Madonna, as if carved by a sculptor inspired more by desire than the divine. Her hair was long and the color of buckskin, catching the candlelight as if a single ray of sunlight might make it explode in golden fire. I felt a heat rise in my face, and another kind of rise in my trousers. I was excited and confused and ashamed all at once, and I turned my back on the arrow loop and cried out. â€Å"No!† Suddenly, she was right behind me, and I felt her hand on my shoulder, then rubbing my neck. â€Å"Pocket. Sweet Pocket, don't. It's all right.† â€Å"I feel like the Devil and the Virgin are doing battle in my body. I didn't know you were like that.† â€Å"Like a woman, you mean?† Her hand was warm and steady, kneading the muscles in my shoulder through the cross in the wall and I leaned into it. I wanted to turn and look, I wanted to run out of the chamber, I wanted to be asleep, or just waking – ashamed that the Devil had visited me in the night with a damp dream of temptation. â€Å"You know me, Pocket. I'm your friend.† â€Å"But you are the anchoress.† â€Å"I'm Thalia, your friend, who loves you. Turn around, Pocket.† And I did. â€Å"Give me your hand,† said she. And I did. She put it on her body, and she put her hands on mine, and pressed against the cold stone. Through the cross in the wall, I discovered a new universe – of Thalia's body, of my body, of love, of passion, of escape – and it was a damn sight better than bloody chants and juggling. When the bell rang for vespers we fell away from the cross, spent and gasping, and we began to laugh. Oh, and I had chipped a tooth. â€Å"One for the Devil, then, love?† said Thalia. When I arrived with the anchoress's supper the next afternoon she was waiting with her face pressed nearly through the center of the arrow cross – she looked like one of the angel-faced gargoyles that flanked the main doors of Dog Snogging, except they always seemed to be weeping and she was grinning. â€Å"So, didn't go to confession today, did you?† I shuddered. â€Å"No, mum, I worked in the scriptorium most of the day.† â€Å"Pocket, I think I would prefer you not call me mum, if it's not too much to ask. Given the new level of our friendship it seems – oh, I don't know – unsavory.† â€Å"Yes, m – uh – mistress.† â€Å"Mistress I can work with. Now, pass me my supper and see if you can fit your face in the opening the way that I have.† Thalia's cheekbones were wedged in the arrow loop, which was little wider than my hand. â€Å"Doesn't that hurt?† I'd been finding abrasions on my arms and various bits all day from our adventure the night before. â€Å"It's not the flaying of St. Bart, but, yes, it stings a bit. You can't confess what we did, or what we do, love? You know that, right?† â€Å"Then am I going to have to go to hell?† â€Å"Well – † She pulled back, rolled her eyes as if searching the ceiling for an answer. † – not alone. Give us our supper, lad, and get your face in the loop, I have something to teach you.† And so it went for weeks and months. I went from being a mediocre acrobat to a talented contortionist, and Thalia seemed to regain some of the life that I had thought sure she'd lost. She was not holy in the sense that the priests and nuns taught, but she was full of spirit and a different kind of reverence. More concerned with this life, this moment, than an eternity beyond the reach of the cross in the wall. I adored her, and I wanted her to be out of the chamber, in the world, with me, and I began to plan her escape. But I was but a boy, and she was bloody barking, so it was not meant to be. â€Å"I've stolen a chisel from a mason who passed by on his way to work on the minster at York. It will take some time, but if you work on a single stone, you might escape in summer.† â€Å"You are my escape, Pocket. The only escape I can ever allow myself.† â€Å"But we could run off, be together.† â€Å"That would be smashing, except I can't leave. So, hop up and get your tackle in the cross. Thalia's a special treat for you.† I never seemed to make my point once my tackle went in the cross. Distracted, I was. But I learned, and while I was forbidden confession – and to tell the truth, I didn't feel that badly about it – I began to share what I had learned. â€Å"Thalia, I must confess to you, I have told Sister Nikki about the little man in the boat.† â€Å"Really? Told her or showed her?† â€Å"Well, showed her, I reckon. But she seems a bit thick. She kept making me show her over and over – asked me to meet her in the cloisters to show her again after vespers tonight.† â€Å"Ah, the joy of being slow. Still, it's a sin to be selfish with one's knowledge.† â€Å"That's what I thought,† said I, relieved. â€Å"And speaking of the little man in the boat, I believe there is one on this side of the loop who has been naughty and requires a thorough tongue-lashing.† â€Å"Aye, mistress,† said I, wedging my cheeks into the arrow loop. â€Å"Present the rascal for punishment.† And so it went. I was the only person I knew who had calluses on his cheekbones, but I had also developed the arms and grip of a blacksmith from suspending myself with my fingertips wedged between the great stones to extend my bits through the arrow loop. And thus I hung, spread spiderlike across the wall, my business being tended to, frantic and friendly, by the anchoress, when the bishop entered the antechamber. (The bishop entered the antechamber? The bishop entered the antechamber? At this point you're going coy on us, euphemizing about parts and positions when you've already confessed to mutual violation with a holy woman through a bloody arrow slot? Well, no.) The actual sodding Bishop of Bloody York entered the sodding antechamber with Mother sodding Basil, who bore a brace of sodding storm lanterns. And so I let go. Unfortunately, Thalia did not. It appeared that her grip, too, had been strengthened by our encounters on the wall. â€Å"What the hell are you doing, Pocket?† said the anchoress. â€Å"What are you doing?† asked Mother Basil. I hung there, more or less suspended to the wall by three points, one of them not covered by shoes. â€Å"Ahhhhhhhhh!† said I. I was finding it somewhat difficult to think. â€Å"Give us a little slack, lad,† said Thalia. â€Å"This is meant to be more of a dance, not a tug-of-war.† â€Å"The bishop is out here,† said I. She laughed. â€Å"Well, tell him to get in the queue and I'll tend to him when we're finished.† â€Å"No, Thalia, he's really out here.† â€Å"Oh toss,† said she, releasing my knob. I fell to the floor and quickly rolled onto my stomach. Thalia's face was at the arrow loop. â€Å"Evening, your grace.† A big grin there. â€Å"Fancy a spot of stony bonking before vespers?† The bishop turned so quickly his miter went half-past on his head. â€Å"Hang him,† he said. He snatched one of Mother Basil's lanterns and walked out of the chamber. â€Å"Bloody brown bread you serve tastes like goat scrotum!† Thalia called after. â€Å"A lady deserves finer fare!† â€Å"Thalia, please,† I said. â€Å"Not a comment on you, Pocket. Your serving style is lovely, but the bread is rubbish.† Then to Mother Basil. â€Å"Don't blame the boy, Reverend Mother, he's a love.† Mother Basil grabbed me by the ear and dragged me out of the chamber. â€Å"You're a love, Pocket,† said the anchoress. Mother Basil locked me in a closet in her chambers, then mid-way through the night, opened the door and handed in a crust of bread and a chamber pot. â€Å"Stay here until the bishop is on his way in the morning, and if anyone asks, you've been hung.† â€Å"Yes, Reverend Mother,† said I. She came to get me the next morning and hustled me out through the chapel. I'd never seen her so distraught. â€Å"You've been like a son to me, Pocket,† she said, fussing about me, strapping a satchel and other bits of kit on me. â€Å"So it's going to pain me to send you off.† â€Å"But, Reverend Mother – â€Å" â€Å"Hush, lad. We'll take you to the barn, hang you in front of a few farmers, then you're off to the south to meet up with a group of mummers[21] who will take you in.† â€Å"Beggin' pardon, mum, but if I'm hung, what will mummers do with me, a puppet show?† â€Å"I'll not really hang you, just make it look good. We have to, lad, the bishop ordered it.† â€Å"Since when does the bishop order nuns to hang people?† â€Å"Since you shagged the anchoress, Pocket.† At the mention of her I broke away from Mother Basil, ran through the abbey, down the old corridor and into the antechamber. The arrow cross was gone, completely bricked up and mortared in. â€Å"Thalia! Thalia!† I called. I screamed and beat the stones until my fists bled, but not a sound came from the other side of the wall. Ever. The sisters pulled me away, tied my hands, and took me to the barn where I was hanged.