HR Planning Case Study Essay

Xerox is a widely known firm worldwide, but it has been through numerous crises in the past decade. In fact, at one point several years ago, there were questions about Xerox surviving as a firm. But no longer. Under the leadership of Anne Mulcahy as CEO, Xerox has rebounded. Numerous strategic business and financial decisions had to be made, including reducing the workforce by 30,000. But Mulcahy also stressed that HR had to become a more strategic contributor. One of the actions taken was to consolidate a number of HR functions from different busi-ness units into a corporate HR Service Center. This center performs many administrative trans-actions, and has added Internet- based systems to make HR services more accessible to managers and employees. To track employees’ views on the company and HR, employee surveys on the company in-tranet have been used for several years. Areas at which lower scores were recorded have been addressed by HR staff and other managers. The survey results have led to another primary focus at Xerox: employee retention. With all of the reductions and organizational restructurings, keeping the remaining employees, especially high- potential ones, has been a continuing emphasis. Xerox has invested significant time and resources into training and development of its employees, an important retention factor. Greater use of e- learning, technology, and leadership development have paid off in reducing turnover and convincing employees that career opportunities exist at Xerox. Continuing com-petitive pressures are presenting new challenges for Xerox and its HR staff. The strategic importance of HR has been demonstrated in the past, and looks to be a part of the firm’s future.

Online Presence

Now that we have determined that moving into the online community is viable for us as a company, it is now time to continue the planning. We have discussed previously the strategic marketing tactics we will use and the way that we will use social media to ensure that we are ready to move forward. We will continue our planning and focus on the way that we will provide payment options for our customers. This will Include what tools they will use and how It will keep their information safe.We will also plan for ways to use search engines and how to gain optimization of their use. It will be vital to ensure that our name shows up in the result pages of the search engines. We will create a plan to reach the diverse culture that we live in, making our website accessible in a diverse consumer base. We will finish up by discussing our customer relationship management software that we will use on our website. Once these are finalized and decided on, we will be ready to move forward In the des ign phase of our website.This proposal will discuss and answer all of those questions and prepare us for design. AY . Customer Payments We are creating a website that will allow our customers to be able to accomplish al of the needed functions of obtaining a storage unit or REV parking without having to come on property. By doing this, we will need a payment option for our customers to be able to make payments for deposits or to make monthly payments. Our website Is designed to help our customers have the option of online payments to save them time and effort.Of course we will need an option for payment for our customers to use to order to be fully functional. We have looked at all of the options and have decided that the use if Papal would be the best option for us. We looked at having a shopping cart set up on the website to make payments. The majority of online stores work with a shopping cart and is very effective for their website that sells a larger variety products and servic es. The shopping cart allows the customers to store in their shopping cart those items they have want and to continue shopping for other things.Due to the limited number of items that we will be receiving payments for, an online shopping cart would not be necessary for us to achieve our goals. In making this choice on which payment options to use, we looked closely at ease f use for our customers and keeping their information safe and secure. Papal was chosen because of these considerations and ease of use for our customers. Papal will do all that we need it to do and is easy to use, free to set up, free for our customers. These features of Papal made it an ideal solution.Palsy's name and reputation was also a big consideration. A large amount of our customers have already used Papal, or at least will recognize the name. Having this knowledge of Papal will aide in helping them feel safe to use our online payment system. It will ink to our website and allow our customers to make paym ents without having to go to a different website to do this. The customers will click on that link, allow them to make the monthly payments or the one time deposit to hold their units.The Papal program also allows for the creation of invoices to allow for ease of use for our customers and also for the record keeping and bookkeeping needs. We can create invoices for them, send them out through email and then use Papal to accept their payments to that invoice. It will do all that we need to do in order for us to collect the needed payments. It will be great to have one tool that we can use to accomplish all of this. As far as the customers, the tools that they will use will simply be the website.It will connect them to Papal in order for them to make these payments. This will help us keep it simple for our customers. They will have the options to use their Papal account if they have one, or they can Just use their credit or debit card to make the payments. The will simply Just need to click on the buttons on the website. Papal also allows for the customers to set up reoccurring payments and not have to worry bout coming in each month to make payments. They can pay off of an invoice each month but is it not necessary.Some of the great things that Papal helps us accomplish and the main reasons for choosing this option are summarized below: Papal is the easiest way to set up e-commerce on our website There is no need for any licenses You can specify payment preferences working to keep us safe from fraud charges and have the best control over what kind of payments we accept There is easy encryption and the buttons are free No set up fees Ability to set up recurring payments Use of their invoicing system Ease of use for our customers AY: Search Engine Strategies: Search engine optimization is vital for the website and business.It is a very effective way for you to be able to create more business and more visits to your site. The goal of our website is to provide our customers an easy way of doing business Using search engine optimization will be the way that we will generate this new business. We are going to focus on the following to be able reach our search engine optimization and generate the most business from our website. Key Phrases: The first important strategy that we need to develop is that of our choice of key phrases. Key phrases are the most important and the very way that a customer will find us.As a customer puts key phrases into a search engine, that search engine will return those websites that are closest to those key phrases that have been put into the search engine. Search engines will return pages that have similar words and even account from some commonly misspelled words. This being said, we must be very careful in choosing the key phrases that will lead our customers to our page through these search engines. Eely, Tillie 2009) In working to find these key phrases we will use a free online tool designed to help discover ke ywords.This tool will do two things for us. It will search our website and suggest some key words and phrases for us and will also allow us to enter certain phrases we want and help us to create these key phrases. Once these have been created we can ensure that they are used in our content, which we will discuss later in the paper. We will be able to look at things such as similar words, commonly misspelled words, frequency of key words and how many other sites are targeting hose key words as well.With the nature of what our business is, we will focus on other local sites. Our competition is clearly only other local storage units in the area. Content that contains our keywords: Now that we will have our key words and phrases for the search engine we must make sure that our site contains these phrases. This will be our second strategy in optimizing the finality of our business. Content will be the most important part of our site and we need to ensure that our content contains our key phrases.This content is what provides the information for our customers. This information and content must be easy to read, follow and hold the customers interests. Other than that, it must send back the relevant signals to the search engine. The content is the key to ensure that our website is found in these searches. The key words and phrases are great, but if you do not find them in your content they are of no use. (Eely, Tillie 2009) In looking at the content of the site we need to play close attention to what types of pages we want to have.Placing the key words and phrases into these different pages will be vital to controlling where we place these key words in the site Even Hough the homepage is a very important page and must have a nice look and feel, the informational pages are where we will be placing most of the content and most of the key phrases. These pages will work to educate the consumers about our business and answer questions they may have such as prices and contr acts. Placing the key phrases are these pages will allow for a better search optimization.The use of these key phrases in the content of our social media sites will also be very important. In using these phrases there, our blob and Faceable page will also come up in the search engine results page. Design of the site: The next strategy that we will use to ensure the search optimization for our site is to take a close look at the actual design of the site. We want to have a site that is things but still work to use the design of the site as a way to optimize its search ability. In the design we need to pay close attention to things such as heading elements.The headings should include the key phrases due to the fact that the search engine spider uses these headlines to search the website for relevance. The headlines are also very important for our readers, it helps them to know where to go n the site to get the information they need. We also need to ensure that we look at the titles of our pages as well. The title of the pages is important for us to ensure a good search results ranking and allowing for click-through from the search engine results page. Whatever is contained in our title tags on each page, is what will show up on these search engine results page.We have to strategically choose the tile of these pages, not only for the search engines but also for ease of use for our customers and those who find our page. The more detail that we use in title, the better. It is vital that our key words appear in the first ten words of the title. (Stokes, 2013) Popularity and Linking: In our business, most of our competitor's websites will have the same content as ours. We have seen through our research that there are very little sites locally with as much content as we will have. It will still be important for us to stand out from among those other sites in the search results pages.One of the best ways to accomplish this is through the use of links, showing the popul arity of the site. When two sites have the same content, the search engine looks at the amount of links owing in from other sites to determine how it displays the results. The more incoming links that you have the higher your site will rank in the search engine results page. (Eely, Tillie, 2009) There are many different ways to have incoming links to your site. You can purchase them or you can use link exchanges with other relevant sites.We will be able to create some links to our sites to ensure popularity but doing some of the following: (Stokes, 2013) Commenting on relevant blobs, including the blob we will have and be linked too Submitting articles to other sites on packing and moving pips The use of social networking sites and links from pages Asking or answering questions on Yahoo Answers AY: Diverse Customer Base: When creating a website, one of the big factors that you need to consider is how you will make your site diverse in its approach so that you can reach out to all th ose members in your target audience.Reaching out to an international audience is a vital part of most websites who are selling products. Here at Pea's Rentals, all of the goods and services that we are selling are units and spaces that are fixed here locally and not something that someone can buy and have shipped to them. We will not have a large global presence in what we are selling and promoting. The majority of our customers are local and living in our immediate area. We may have some from out of state, or even out of the country, that are moving here that will need our services but the majority will be local people.That said, we do have a diverse culture that we need to cater to locally. In this discussion we will talk about ways that we can use our site to reach a diverse local group of people. We need to look at the business climate, the local culture and the infrastructure of our site to help us meet a diverse Due to the fact that we are a local company whose product and ser vices are local and really cannot be shipped or taken somewhere else, we are going to focus on how we can reach the diverse culture that we are in.It is vital that when we are planning the site that we ensure that we are reaching out to all of those that live among us. We will have several people that will be using the site to help plan their move to Utah and we need to ensure that we are able to relate our site to them as well. We will look at the content, language and overall culture of the site as we move try move award in our planning. Content is the most important thing that we will have on our website. It makes sense that if your content is bad then your website is bad.As we build the content of our site we must keep in mind not only our target audience but the diverseness of that audience. The content that we build on the site must be one that is simple and easy to use for all members of our target audience. We want to make sure that we are using words that are understood by the majority of people with varying degrees of education, learning and the English language. We must come across as knowledgeable and strong but with a content that is easy to follow and understand.One of the biggest mistakes that people make in our community in their content is assuming that everyone is a member of the Mormon Church. It has a very strong presence here yes, but assuming that and marketing to that is something that we have to be very careful about. Using words and phrases from their culture can be confusing and hard for others to understand. We cannot build our content around that specific local culture, we must build it around the world of meeting the storage needs of all the members of our community.Language is another consideration for us to take a close look at as we try to reach a diverse group of people. There is a very strong Hispanic culture here and we need to consider how we can cater to their needs on the site. We will have some PDF of our contracts and ot her information for our customers to look at and download from the site. These will be very helpful in the making the decision to use us for their storage needs. In order for us to reach this part of the community we will have these forms available for download in both English and Spanish.These downloads will notation a copy of the contracts, a price list of units and rules and regulations of the storage units. Having them in Spanish as well will help to ensure that our customers know and understand what is expected of them and what they can expect from us. It will also allow us to cater to them and make them aware that they are welcome here at Pea's Rentals. Utah is a very unique place and can be a bit overwhelming to new comers and even to those who may be outside of the Mormon culture that is so prevalent here.In doing our research we have seen that a lot of the sites here cater to that culture ND it can be a bit overwhelming. Even though it is a the dominate culture here in Utah County, we must be careful how we build the overall look and feel of the site to be open to all the different cultures and people who live here. We can accomplish this by ensuring that our content, pictures and wording is open to all cultures. This will be especially important for our customers who are coming in from out of state.We plan to use very neutral colors and landscape pictures on the site to give it the purpose, to sell units and make an easy site for our customers to use, it will help us o create a site that is open to all who want to use our services. AY: Customer Relationship Management: Customer relationship management is the key to all that we do. If we do not have our customers to rent our units or space we will not stay in business. They, of course, are our biggest stakeholders. It is vital that we do everything that we can to meet and even exceed their expectations.The internet has forever changed the way that people communicate with each other. It has also change d the way that we communicate with our customer and them with us. For most, it is easier to send an mail than it is to pick up the phone and call someone. Building a customer relationship management system into our site will be vital to ensure our continued growth and meeting expectations of our customers. (Stokes, 2013) We have previously discussed some of the tactics that we are going to use in marketing our product and service. These all fit right into our customer relationship management system.We have discussed the need to be a customer-centric company and use this marketing tactic to gain and keep our customers. Having a good customer relationship management program fits into this approach and helps s to maintain that vital tactic. It will allow our customers to share their thoughts, ask questions and make suggestions so that we know how they feel and what they need. Knowing this is the only way that we will be able to meet their needs and expectations. Some of our tactics and strategies that we have planned will fit in very nicely with our customer relationship management.We are planning to use email as our major way of communicating with our existing and our former customers. Privacy is very important to us and ensuring the privacy of our customers is of the most importance. We will only use email after permission has been given for us to do so. We are not going to sale emails or participate in buying emails. Even though this can be a great way to reach out to a large number of people at once, it can also lead to some negative marketing when potential customers become upset from your emails that we have not received permission to use.As we work to have and keep great relationships with our customers, we will have the chance to use them to spread our work and their experiences with others. They can be our biggest sales force. If we work hard to create a trusting relationship with them, they will feel better about commending us to their friends and famil y. Email is great but it can take some time for our customers to hear back from us. If they are looking for a quick answer to make a choice or have a question that they may need an answer to, we need a way to make that happen.This will be accomplished but the use of an instant messaging option on our website during business hours. This service will allow our customer and potential customers to reach us with their questions and have an instant answer. Our instant messaging system will be a customer initiated approach. If they want to talk to someone using this feature, we ill be there to talk and answer their questions. We will not use it to approach We have chosen to use the company again for our email and instant messaging needs. This software will allow for us to have our email and chat all in one place.We will receive email coming in from the website as well as the ability to chat live with our customers. The choice to use again was also made due to its ability to monitor our cus tomer satisfaction, trends and our social media efforts. With the help of this software we will be able to analyze where our customers are coming from and what resources are being used the most. We can see if email, social media, our newsletter and blobs are effective and how much business is generated by each of them. It will help us to put our efforts and resources into the most effective venue.On top of all of this is will give us the software to conduct our emails and chats and track and record them and where they were generated from. There is a cost of this software but it will more than pay for itself and has a high return on investment for us to be able to be most effective in our online approaches. There is an initial fee to by the product and then a monthly user's fee as well. The use of the software will be vital for us in accomplishing our goals or providing a website for our customer's needs as well as one that allows us to generate business.By the use of this software a nd the tactics and plans that we have we will be able to reach the people that we need to reach, be effective in our approach and add to our business using the right tools to get us to our goals. We are anticipating the return on investment for this software will be strong. It will more than pay for itself in the first six months of use. With all of this planning now in place for the development of our website, we are to ready to move forward and create the site.

Midweek review

Since the start of this course the collaboration between us went well. At the first meeting we made several arrangements concerning communication, availability and responsibilities. We decided to communicate through Backbone and we made meeting appointments a couple of days In advance. We came together before the analytical skills meetings and compared our results for Improvement and better understandings.With both of us attempting all the questions before we met to check If the answers were correct and helping the other If he did not understand how to do the question. The first presentation was set up In parts by our self with a high frequency of communication. Due to the structure of the presentation, we had to have constant communication with each other to ensure coherence between our parts and to ensure that we reach a common final conclusion. We will continue our current method because we think it has been successful so far.We have not had any immunization misunderstanding, and by using Backbone as a way of communication it allows us to get our points across immediately and efficiently without having to waste time traveling to a certain meeting point to discuss. We do agree that with respect to the final presentation, we might need to also increase the amount of personal meetings. And thus we have decided to start the research for the project early so that we could have meetings after tutorials. With respect to the time management during the course so far, we can be satisfied.Every assignment was finished properly in time according to our arrangements. We learned from the first presentation that it will be better to start earlier for the next presentation so we could do even more research. Furthermore we are really satisfied the way our cooperation worked out and we do not see any problems for the rest of this course. We followed our own composites arrangements and helped each other out where necessary. As learning point It might be useful to do more resea rch for presentations.Our way of communication does not deed any Improvements since we are always replying quite fast to each other. We talked about the feedback from the presentation and gave each other and thought about personal Improvements. In overall we feel that despite coming from different cultural backgrounds, we are able to work together as a team. We believe that we will not have any problems working together as we both want to do the best for this module, and have set certain standards for our projects. Midweek review By moratorium Midweek evaluation of teamwork and working procedure (Team Report) Queue JinnLiana – 16063163 meeting appointments a couple of days in advance. We came together before the analytical skills meetings and compared our results for improvement and better if the answers were correct and helping the other if he did not understand how to do The first presentation was set up in parts by our self with a high frequency of arrangements and helped each other out where necessary. As learning point it might need any improvements since we are always replying quite fast to each other. We about personal improvements.

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Use of coconut oil as a renewable resource in 2050 - Research Proposal Example The fuel triggers environmental effluence that leads to universal heating (Natural Resources Defense Council, 2005). Given the effect, the world is now moving towards the use of renewable energy and the coconut oil is emerging as a possible source. The negative effect of the petroleum oil has made policy makers and environmentalists to research on renewable fuels that is environmental friendly. Among the possible source of fuel that can be put in place by 2050 is the coconut fuel. According to Alamu and his fellow scholars, the fuel is growing in popularity and scientists are working on a research that foresee the extensive use of the oil (Alamu, Dehinbo, & Sulaiman, 2010). Countries that would benefit from the fuel will be more than the current countries that produce the petroleum fuel. Every country in the coastal region can benefit from the product. The notion is that the coconut fruit grows widely in the coastal region, and a healthy tree can produce up to 120 fruits per annum (Alamu, Dehinbo, & Sulaiman, 2010). The fuel produced from the fruit can be used to power a diesel engine and therefore become a direct adjunct to diesel (Saxena, 2014). The productivity of the fuel is increasing as the stakeholders realise the impor tance of the fuel. The south pacific region is one of the areas that has acknowledged the importance of the fuel (Namakin, 2007). In this region, industries are adopting the use of the green fuel. The production of the fruit has been heightened to reduce the cost associated with the high demand of the product. The countries in this area are using the coconut fuel to produce electrical energy according to the FAO report (FAO, n.d.). Since the petroleum oil is cannot be replenished back, the long-run cost will be high. The high cost usually makes most of the countries to spend a lot on the oil. The cost incurred in importing fossil fuel have been cut, therefore, saving on

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ASSIGNMENT ON EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT AND ORGANISATIONAL RESPONSE - Essay Example It is against this background that this paper provides an in depth analysis of the external environment of the proposed Castle Hotel in light of the PEST model. To enhance coherence, the paper begins by justifying the entry into the hotel industry. As indicated earlier, the hotel industry in New Zealand offers a lucrative environment for sustained growth. The decision to enter into this business was informed by various factors. To begin with, the industry is all seasonal. In this regard, Hall (2000) indicates that the hotel industry deals with the most basic human needs and it is unlikely that one would miss clients at any point in the year. Preliminary researches indicate that Auckland City is a hub for tourists and business persons from across the globe. Providing a hotel with six star standards will probably give the investor a chance to explore this market niche with ease. PEST analysis reviews the political, economic, social and technological facets of the business environment. This is fundamental in enabling the investors to identify any opportunities for growth and seize them in a timely and effective manner. Furthermore, investors can use this information to minimize threats that compromise sustainable growth and development of a particular business. The political environment of any country greatly influences the performance of both local and international business. Respective governments have put in place rules and regulations that need to be adhered to by investors. If these are not supportive of economic growth, they can cripple relative development initiatives. With respect to the hotel business venture, the political environment in New Zealand offers distinct opportunities that can be effectively explored for growth and development. In his review, Elebiary (2012) indicates that the enlargement of the European Union has opened up the destination for increased international tourist arrivals. In addition, the government has huge incentives for the est ablishment and development of luxurious hotels. This according to Elebiary (2012) is due to the fact that the hotels contribute significantly to the country’s gross domestic product. However, there are political threats that are likely to affect the success of this business. Reportedly, governments charge huge taxes from these star hotels. In addition, there are stringent rules and huge penalties for hotels that fail to comply with the established health and safety rules. To address issues pertaining to huge taxes, the hotel will equally charge high prices to cater for all the operating costs. The economic facet of this analysis underscores the economic trends in the country which have direct impacts on the performance of this luxurious hotel. Being an international venture, this business will attract clientele from the international pool too (Birt, 2004). The first opportunity offered in the economic sphere pertains to the 17.1% rise of the global net worth of individuals (E lebiary, 2012). This implies that the industry is likely to receive more clients. Then, economic trends ascertain that this industry is not commonly affected by recession. Most importantly, the growing national Growth domestic product (GDP) of New Zealand and other countries in the European Union imply that more individuals will be able to afford the luxurious services that

Entrepreneurship Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Entrepreneurship - Research Paper Example Entrepreneurs can be mangers while managers cannot attain the status of an entrepreneur. Small businesses have become a significant characteristic of modern microeconomics. However, recent statistics on the US retail sector showed that two thirds of all small business is more likely to close down before attaining five years than large business (Prentice, 1998). Small businesses are characterized by small capitals and they are usually operated as sole proprietorship entities. There are various reasons that contribute to the failure of small businesses. Traditional factors that cause failure of small businesses include lack of capital and inadequate knowledge. However, it is evident that entrepreneurial problems are the main cause of failure among small businesses. Controversies over the exact cause of business failure has been tossed between lack of managerial or entrepreneurship skills and therefore, it is the purpose of this paper to clarify this controversy by looking at both sides of the issue and coming up with a concise solution to the controversy. Entrepreneurship is concerned with management of other factors of production in order to sustain the production process. Management of other factors of production is ensuring their availability in sustainable quantities. Capital and labor are two significant factor of production since the enable production of economic goods and services. ... Failure of small business is therefore caused by lack of entrepreneurial skills among small business owners. Entrepreneurship is a critical skill that each business owner needs to have. However, it is evident that not all business owners are entrepreneurs. Unlike management, entrepreneurship skills cannot be achieved through learning the relevant literature this is because entrepreneurship depends more on the personality of an individual than their theoretical knowledge of management. On the other hand, management skills can be acquired through the right education. This indicates that there are more businesses being run by mangers than those that are run by entrepreneurs. Business managers have the responsibility of ensuring that all factors of production are available during the production process while entrepreneurs are concerned with ensuring the sustainability of all factors of production. This is the main source of failure among small businesses. Failure to reward labor and capi tal is the main cause of their absence in the chain of production of most small businesses. Labor requires wages or salary as a form of reward while capital is rewarded through interests. Lack of reward from either factor of production results in its elimination from the production process and, this is indicated as failure of the business. The business environment of any business changes constantly. This indicates that businesses have to cope with the changes resulting from their current business environment. Small businesses have a more dynamic business environment than large and medium sized business. This implies that small business owners have to be more flexible in adopting the changing environment than large businesses. An

To what extent do you agree with free market economies being more Essay - 4

To what extent do you agree with free market economies being more effective than a mixed economy - Essay Example This is because governments will always want to intervene in a market, by imposing taxes for purposes of raising revenue and protecting their markets (Clarke, 2009). There is also another form of a market system referred to as the mixed market economy. A mixed economy has some elements whereby the forces of demand and supply play a role in regulating the prices of commodities, at the same time; the government has some interference with the affairs of the market (Clarke, 2009). This is through taxes and subsidies. In as much as the mixed economy was developed to solve the problems of a free market economy, it is important to denote that a free market economy is still a good form of market structure as compared to a mixed economy. The reason as to why a free market economy is better than a mixed economy is based on the fact that the market is very competitive. Companies, in their bid to attract customers and make sales, will resort to the production of high quality products and services. These companies are concerned with satisfaction of the various needs of their customers, and on this basis, the opinions of customers will be used to produce services and products for purposes of satisfying the needs of customers (Romero, 2003). On the other hand, companies operating in a mixed economy cannot effectively achieve efficiency in providing services and products without increasing their costs. This is because their prices and financial activities are regulated by the various taxes that governments charge. The costs of improving these services will in turn pass over to the customers of the organization. On the other hand, companies in a free market economy would not need to increase their prices, for purposes of adding value to their products. This is because they know that other companies will take advantage of these increases in price, and take over some of their customers (Romero, 2003). It is also cheaper to

In botany, a tree is a plant with an elongated stem Essay Example for Free

In botany, a tree is a plant with an elongated stem Essay In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants, only plants that are usable as lumber, only plants above a specified height or only perennial species. At its broadest, trees include the taller palms, the tree ferns, bananas and bamboo. A tree typically has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground by the trunk. This trunk typically contains woody tissue for strength, and vascular tissue to carry materials from one part of the tree to another. For most trees it is surrounded by a layer of bark which serves as a protective barrier. Below the ground, the roots branch and spread out widely; they serve to anchor the tree and extract moisture and nutrients from the soil. Above ground, the branches divide into smaller branches and shoots. The shoots typically bear leaves, which capture light energy and convert it into chemical energy by photosynthesis, providing the food needed by the tree for its growth and development. Flowers and fruit may also be present, but some trees such as conifers instead have pollen cones and seed cones, and others such as tree ferns produce spores instead. Trees tend to be long-lived,[1] some reaching several thousand years old. The tallest known specimen on Earth is 115.6 m (379 ft) and they have a theoretical maximum height of 130 m (426 ft).[2] Trees have been in existence on the Earth for 370 million years. Trees are not a taxonomic group but are a number of plant species that have independently evolved a woody trunk and branches as a way to tower above other plants and make full use of the sunlight. Trees play a significant role in reducing erosion and moderating the climate. They remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store large quantities of carbon in their tissues. Trees and forests provide a habitat for many species of animals and plants. Tropical rainforests are one of the most biodiverse habitats in the world. Trees provide shade and shelter, timber for construction, fuel for cooking and heating, and fruit for food as well as having many other uses. In parts of the world, forests are shrinking as trees are cleared to increase the amount of land available for agriculture. Because of their longevity and usefulness, trees have always been revered and they play a role in many of the worlds mythologies.

Lowering the Drinking Age in America Essay Example for Free

Lowering the Drinking Age in America Essay Being eighteen in the United States of America gives each citizen a newborn freedom. However when it comes to the consumption of alcohol, being eighteen restricts one from being allowed to legally buy, or consume alcohol. The most debatable topic a supporter of changing the drinking age would argue, is that if citizens are old enough to fight for our country, they should be able to purchase an alcoholic beverage. The consumption of alcohol age should be lowered to eighteen for economic purposes to benefit the nation, and the number of drunk driving accidents could decrease. Due to just some of these reasons, the legal drinking age should be lowered from twenty-one to eighteen. If one is recognized as a legal adult, with the ability to make decisions independently, the consumption of alcohol should be held to ones discretion. When one turns eighteen, there are many decisions that can be made, but alcohol is not one of them. The ingestion of alcoholic beverages should be at ones own pleasure. With every decision made in life there is a cause and effect; both can be either good or bad. Some privileges given to an eighteen year old American with the ability to encounter decisions to make independently include: the ability to vote, marry, smoke a cigarette (in most states), enlist in the military, give sexual consent, apply for a credit card, and buy a home. The same way the consent is given to engage in sexual intercourse, there is risk of getting pregnant. Every time cigarette is lit, the number of chances of getting lung cancer increase. Without self-control, a newly obtained credit card can instantly become maxed out (pros and cons. 2014, July 18). Although, if one practices moderation the consequences listed above can be preventable. Thus being the case, then why would it not be substantial to consume alcohol? The drinking age should not be postponed to the age of twenty-one solely because if an individual can make accountable decisions based on their own body, they should have the right to do so. From the early stages of our mental development, we are taught what is right and what is wrong. Being eighteen or twenty-one does not change the logic of drinking until the point of intoxication is not what is best for you. Whether you are eighteen or twenty-one, understanding that operating a vehicle, while intoxicated, is both a hazard to yourself and others on the road, the individual just needs to be responsible. The National Minimum Drinking Age Act, was enforced during FDRs presidency, is initiated by MADD, (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) to eliminate less mature eighteen year olds, from having alcohol in their possession. (Pros and cons. 2014, July 18). However, what many fail to realize is that before the MDAA was enacted, the number of drunk driving fatalities decreased among all age groups and demographics, leaving this Act irresponsible for the positive shift in society, in 1980. There were fewer drinking and driving fatalities worldwide in countries that do not prohibit eighteen year olds from consuming alcohol. In 1980, America had less drunk driving related fatalities than any other European country with legal drinking ages under twenty-one. (Pros and cons. 2014, July 18). If the United States lowers the drinking age to eighteen, the number of drunk driving fatalities could decrease just like Europe. Movements have been set forth to help politicians realize how beneficial changing the legal age would be. In 2008, college presidents launched the Amethyst initiative, which supports the idea of lowering the drinking age to promote moderation and reduce risks common for drinkers at a younger age. This initiative recognized drunk driving as a serious problem; however it is not the only danger targeting underage drinkers. They contend that by allowing colleges and universities to have alcohol openly available to all inhabitants of its campus, risk factors such as drinking-fueled violence, alcohol poisoning, and drunken injuries would be eliminated on campuses. Essentially, because the college and/or university would be able to educate their students on the dangers of consuming alcohol, now they could take part in the activity effectively. (Cary, Mary Kate.7 May 2014) Psychologically, lowering the drinking age would eliminate many rebellious individuals from seeking the consumption of illegal alcohol. Many people set  out to do things they know are not allowed, just for the fun of it. If eighteen year olds were allowed to drink, they would not be more likely to engage in the act or be able to put themselves in harms way. In todays society, underage drinking is understood as the norm; however, it is still frowned upon. Accidents caused by drinking, is what causes the downfall of a teens drinking experience, mainly due to the fact it is looked down upon. Whether the teen was sneaking around so the cops, or their parents, would not scold them for drinking, or their friend gets sick but does not want to get in trouble for having alcohol and let their friend die. More related incidents come because of avoiding the consequences of the law. If this law of the legal drinking age did not exist, then things would turn around for the better. For example, the first time a teen gets to experience their first drink, they are less inclined to practice moderation because they understand that it is not something they are allowed to do or can easily do often, causing the teen to risk alcohol poisoning. If the consequences of underage drinking could potentially lead to jail, human nature would trigger the individual to leave the scene of the accident before they are jeopardized too. If drinking were allowed and an eighteen year old just had too much to drink that night, then calling an ambulance and seeking medical attention would not be the last thing in that individuals mind because they would not fear their livelihood. Relating back to understanding what is right or wrong, self-preservation usually overrides doing what is better for someone else, rather than themselves. More harm has come from having the drinking age at twenty-one because alcohol is still going to be consumed whether it is legally or illegally. Raising the age of alcohol consumption has not eliminated underage drinking completely; in fact a majority of alcohol is consumed by underage drinkers. The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse found that 17.5% of underage drinking accounts revenue was from underage buyers. Another study, completed in 2006 acknowledged that about 72.2% of twelfth graders in America admitted to having drunk alcohol. Since a large amount of alcohol is illegally obtained, the number of citizens complying with government regulations has declined. If anything, underage drinking has promoted the use of creating, selling and buying false identification. In todays society  where identity theft is a common concern and national security concerns are always in high alert due to illegal circulation of documents, in lieu of fraud, immigrations and terrorism, having fewer false identifications circulating throughout the United States would be safer for our nation and would show more respect for the law from its citizens (public health spot, 23,May 2014). Haste makes waste and what the government fails to realize is that aside from the perk of the well being of an eighteen year old drinker being increased, the economy can then benefit too. By changing the minimum legal drinking age to eighteen, more people would have access to legal alcohol, which would raise sales across the board. This would benefit small businesses, bars, restaurants, clubs and any other licensed establishment in the country. Also, more job opportunities will expand due to the increase in consumers, and the overall increase in demand. If alcohol sales increased, then the government would be able to collect larger amounts of tax revenue and greatly reduce spending on anti-alcohol campaigns. If so many positive outcomes could come from changing the legal drinking age from twenty-one to eighteen then why are the states not arguing to keep their legal drinking age at eighteen fighting back to regain their once acquired right? While it is indefinitely argued that state governments should have the right to establish their own legal drinking age, the federal government puts a hold on the states economy by allowing the age to be changed. The federal government threatened to withhold 10% of highway funding from any state that resisted complying with the act. Yet again, the federal government took a step forward and pressured their choice on states decisions regarding monetary affairs, forcing the states to choose from losing millions in annual highway funds or keeping their minimum legal drinking age at eighteen (Pros and cons, 2014. July18). We see there are many legal, psychological, economic and moral prospective points that benefit the drinking age to be lowered to eighteen. Changing the national drinking age to 18 will secure safety among teens across the nation, assist the economy, and act on promoting alcohol moderation by  having it obtainable by those who choose to drink. References ProCon.org. (2014, July 18). _Minimum Legal Drinking Age_ http://drinkingage.procon.org/ Cary, Mary Kate. Lower the U.S. Drinking Age. _US News_. U.S.News World Report, 7 May 2014. Web. 27 Oct. 2014. Public Health Spotlight. _Vermont Department of Health_. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. Selective Service System: Welcome. _Selective Service System: Welcome_. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. U.S. Office of Personnel Management Www.OPM.gov. _U.S. Office of Personnel Management_. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. 2014 Stop Underage Drinking: Portal of Federal Resources. _2014 Stop Underage Drinking: Portal of Federal Resources_. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. Protecting Youth. _Protecting Youth_. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. 2014 Stop Underage Drinking: Portal of Federal Resources. _2014 Stop Underage Drinking: Portal of Federal Resources_. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014. Accessibility Information. _Programs_. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2014.

Black Female Identity In Black Female Rap Hits Cultural Studies Essay

Black Female Identity In Black Female Rap Hits Cultural Studies Essay Rap is considered a type of music which serves as a means of expression for those who feel alienated and outraged in American society for certain reasons. According to Tricia Rose, (or you need to provide the names of the many scholars that you have in mind in the footnote) hip hop in America originated from disadvantaged neighborhoods and served as a voice for people who lacked post secondary education and had difficulties in finding a job in the new post-industrial service sector economy. In the early beginning rap artists rapped about poverty, racism and injustice. As the genre was developing, rappers would look for inspiration in other aspects of their every life. Male/female relationships would appear as a common motif in their songs. As discussed in the first chapter, misogynistic messages could be found in a great share of male rap hits. Although rap has been associated mainly as domain of men, female contribution to this genre is also significant. Hence it is worth examining how their legacy contributed to the black female image in the United States. It is also important to note how the messages in their songs differed from those of male rap artists. In this chapter I am going to focus on the motifs of black female identity which permeated the lyrics of female rap hits starting from the late eighties through the beginning of the twenty first century. I will support my analysis by referring to the works of literary black hip hop culture critics such as Tricia Rose, bell hooks, Gwendolyn D. Pough or Cheryl L. Keyes. The findings presented in this study will be based on the existing researches on the subject as well as my lyric interpretation of Billboards Hot Rap Year End Charts. One of the recognized social theorists, Patricia Hill Collins, claims that much of the contemporary social phenomena is understood and analyzed from the European, white male standpoint. Moreover, by this approach black women in particular have been perceived as non-human, commodified and objectified. Needless to say, it is important to counterbalance this approach by interpreting black womens lives from their perspective. I find artistic works of female rappers, as well as their interviews to a be a great source for such a counter analysis. Female rap artists would oftentimes identify themselves as belonging to a certain crew or would use the words as fly, attitude, queen, diva while describing or referring to one another. Based on those self imposed labels, Cheryl L. Keyes distinguishes four prevailing types of female rappers: Queen Mother, Fly Girl, Sista with Attitude and Lesbian. These categories reflect certain images, voices and ages of African American women. Interestingly eno ugh, rappers assigned to these groups marked their presence on the hip hop scene in this particular order but, as Keyes noted, they can swing between these teams or belong to a few concurrently. According to Keyes, the first group Queen Mothers consists mainly of early female rap pioneers of the 1980s such as: Queen Latifah, Roxanne Shante or MC Lyte. They express strong connection to their African heritage by calling themselves Nubian queens, and wearing ethnic clothes and jewelry. The symbol of queen mother may be supposedly rooted in African court tradition. Mothers of kings in many African kingdoms used to be cult objects and granted special privileges. Queen Mothers in hip hop culture also consider themselves as strong, intelligent black women responsible of spreading the word among the community. They discuss issues similar to their male counterparts marginalization, subjugation, and hardship of an urban life. A theme of their concern would be also heterosexual advances of men toward women, as well as domestic violence, and male sexism. These female rappers tended to present black women in their songs as self assured and independent . Similarly to male rappers, they would aim to challenge racist white supremacy by their music. Whilst black males in order to empower themselves oftentimes resort to sexist notions addressed towards their female counterparts, Queen Mothers do not apply the same strategy of subordination. As the excerpts from the songs presented in the first chapter show, many male hip hop artists depict women merely as sexual objects and generally cast derogatory light on them. Some black culture critics, as bell hooks, claim that male gangsta rappers engage in this behavior because women supposedly emasculate black men, negating their manhood and reducing the respect received from others. The critic also states that most black males lack strong male (father) models to look up to. They are being convinced throughout their childhood that they are not destined to grow up as successful, strong, virtuous males. Instead they receive education how to become emotionless thugs. hooks blames the mass media for perpetuating the image of a strong, angry black woman as opposed to black castrated male who is not able to provide for his family. Other reason for that may be the fear of female sexuality, thus women must be controlled. Queen Mothers demand respect not only for black community in general but for black women in particular. This causes a huge inner identity conflict among black women, whether to be loyal to their ethnicity and race or gender. Extending the theory of black feminism to rap, black female rappers provide back lashing voices against male sexism and misogyny. However, being a black feminist should not mean rejection of the African heritage. The African legacy may be utilized as an additional source of strength and power in this struggle. Tricia Rose in the her book Black Noise argues that in the late 1980s and early 1990s pioneer female rappers although refraining from calling themselves feminist, expressed three feminist standpoints: female empowerment, agency, and independence. They would rather call themselves womanists as they did not feel much connection with the predominantly white second wave feminism movement. Moreover, they felt as having been overlooked or even purposely excluded by white feminists in their struggle for female empowerment. These artists rejected and challenged representations of women as simply sexual objects. Rose states that they use rap music as a platform of dispute between other female and male artists, and their audience in general. The most noticeable Queen Mother on the hip hop scene is Dana Queen Latifah Owens. Although latifah in Arabic means feminine, delicate and kind she proved to be also a strong and influential rap artist. At the young age of twenty one, she became well acclaimed artist. Despite her young age, her maternal behavior and mature approach to life made her to be perceived as a Queen Mother. Although she would find such comparison flattering, she tried to distance herself from being labeled. She would call herself a queen because every black female is a queen to her. The reason why Queen Latifah and other rappers have been allocated to the group of Queen Mothers may be linked to the othermothers phenomenon in black African community. Patricia Hill Collins elaborates on this notion in Black Feminist Thought. She claims that black women take a significant part in fostering of the black society in the United States. They have developed an image of a strong black woman who contributes to the whol e black community well-being. The notion of motherhood in general, whether invoked by bloodmothers or othermothers, has powerful connotation. It seems that African American community seeks for strong mother figures not only in real life but also on the hip hop scene. Queen Latifah reflects the image of othermother by taking up serious political-economic issues of the black community in her lyrics, as in The Evil that Men Do where she raps about struggle of women on welfare. Another example of a strong political commentary is Queen Latifahs song Ladies First. She focuses here on promoting womens importance and clamors for their equal treatment. She raps about the need for sisterhood which prompts women to support each other. The notion of sisterhood is emphasized here by the fact that the artist collaborates with another black European female rapper, Monie Love. They feel connected with each other by the bonds of the same gender and race. This is a typical approach of women of color engaged in the Third Wave Feminist Movement in America. The concept of global sisterhood coined by the Second Wave feminists is questioned and challenged here. Black feminists manifest more connection with other women of color from different countries or countries of their origin than with white middle class women from the United States. The video to Ladies First is also a tribute to African American womens history featuring images of activists and abolitionists as Rosa Parks , Angela Davis, Harriet Tubman, or entrepreneurs as Madame C.J. Walker. The video also features the image of Winnie Mandela which may serve as a commemoration of the struggle against segregation in South Africa as well as emphasis on the concept of global black sisterhood. The rappers bring back these images into the light in order to re-inspire all women of color and prove they are capable of achieving the highest goals as breaking the racism and sexism. Queen Latifah in her Grammy Award-winning song U.N.I.T.Y, as one of the first female artists does not only prove her rapping skills but also takes up the issues which divide black community. She focuses here on perpetuated hatred directed by black males toward black females. She answers back to males who use the insult bitch in reference to women. She does so by using similar forms that are used by many of their male counterparts to denigrate women. By the use of vulgar language she reclaims those forms for women. Another pioneer rapper, MC Lyte in her song Paper Thin also makes a black female a subject. She brings her to the center of discussion by rapping about the constrains of her (own?) intimacy and setting the rules by which she will date a man. According to Rose, the above mentioned artists messages are both emancipating and liberating for women. They rebel against the restrain of black female voices, offering counter hegemonic perspectives. Female gangsta rappers in particula r, have created and imposed their own definitions of womanhood through their use of vulgarity, voice intonations, and sexuality. Although most female rappers identify themselves by belonging to specific rap crews, some of them would fall from one category to another or exist in many simultaneously. As an example of such a swinging artist may serve Yo Yo. The rapper and activist when perceived through the prism of her artistic and social work would be allocated to the group of Queen Mothers. Her songs are devoted to her view on the political issues and black feminism. She is the founder of the group Intelligent Black Women Coalition (I.BW.C.) which aimed to fight against racism and sexism. Yet, Keyes claims that her style and attire would suggest she also fits the category of so called Fly Girls who gained recognition on hip hop scene mainly in the nineties. The origin of the new meaning of the word fly dates back to the sixties and seventies and describes someone wearing fancy clothes. The style has been presented in the blaxploitation movies like The Superfly (1972), Shaft (1971), The Mack (1973) or Foxy Bro wn (1974) and then adopted by the black youth in the eighties and nineties. Indeed, what distinguished Fly Girls from Queen Mothers at first sight was their sense of fashion. Queen Mothers tried to affirm their eroticism that refrains from the nakedness and exposure of Western styles by rejection of miniskirts or high heels. Fly Girls did not fear to wear tight clothes which accentuated their sexuality. They tried to counterbalance Western European beauty canon by showing the beauty of black female body, accompanied by eye catching hairstyles, shiny jewelry and suggestive dancing. By doing so they made a statement against the white supremacist stereotype of the black round female body being undesirable. It was their fashion style that made them not only heard but also visible. The male hip hop group the Boogie Boys describe a fly girl as: [Woman] who wants to see her name, her game or her ability. . . she sports a lot of gold, wears tight jeans, leather miniskirts, a made up face, h as voluptuous curves, but speaks her mind. The most prolific and well pronounced Fly Girls of hip hop scene is undoubtedly the trio Salt- N- Pepa. They aspired to be acknowledged as models of real independent and successful black women of the nineties. They reached the peak of their popularity in the early nineties by releasing controversial hits like Lets Talk About Sex (1991), What a Man (1993), or Shoop(1993). While the first mentioned hit raised awareness about safe sex, the other songs can be interpreted as manifestation on female sexuality and appraisal of men in terms of friendship, love and intimate heterosexual relations. Lyrics from their popular song Aint Nuthin But a She Thing, again typify messages of their powerful womanhood: Im a female, and I got it goin on /Dont be fooled by my s-e-x/It aint that simple, Im more complex/Lets keep moving forward, girls, never look back. In this song artists are exchanging ideas with women and men in general, warning men not to rely on clichà ©d notions of gender roles when in teracting with women. They refuse to be considered as a weaker sex. They prove of their ability to work as hard as men, yet their intention is not to empower, or emasculate men. Similarly, they are passing on the same message to women while concurrently urging these women to progress, not regress, in their thinking and behavior. Such messages permeate most of the Salt N- Pepa top hits. Many examples of the Fly Girls songs take focus on female agency in male/female relationships perceived from the womens point of view. In the chorus of her song, Whats Up Star, Suga initiates the interaction with males: Whats up star, Id like to get to know who you are/Lets have drinks at the bar/And if I like what I see then the drinks is on me. While men are usually considered to be the initiators in heterosexual relationships, here the artist takes it over and demonstrates her empowerment on this field. By doing so she violates an unwritten procedure of male-female courtship. She breaches the gendered norm of conduct. Instead of waiting for a man to approach her with an offer to buy her a drink, she would rather sit in judgment and contemplate over possible suitors. Upon positive evaluation of a potential mate she offers to buy him a drink. Another example of assuming power comes from a rapper and bass dancer, MC Luscious, who in her song Boom! I Got Your Boyfriend seizes another hypothetical womens partner: Ill take him, shake him, ring him out/ Ill show your man what its all about./ So when he tells you its the end./Thats when you know I got your boyfriend. Her use of the verbs take, shake, and ring in reference to her male lover illustrates the control that she maintains over him. She outdoes her female competitor by articulating her ability to sexually expose what the girlfriend cannot to the boyfriend, leading to the termination of the relationship. Thus, she demonstrates her control and manipulation of the lover and eventually her supremacy over the female opponent by stealing her boyfriend. Although deceitful and potentially unethical, MC Lusciouss desires, and behaviors are at the core of attention in her song. Another significant group of Fly Girls worth noticing is TLC ( Tione T-Boze Watkins, Lisa Left-Eye Lopez and Rozonda Chilli Thomas). Their popularity had been quickly developing since their debut in 1991 and reached its maximum in the second half of the nineties. They spread similar messages to the other Fly Girls like rising awareness about safe sex (Waterfalls) or fighting with women insecurity (Unpretty). They also introduced more diverse fashion sense. Instead of accentuating their fit bodies with tight clothes, they would wear baggy pants as a symbol of solidarity with women of less flattering shapes. Similar approach was taken by another Fly Girl Missy Misdemeanor Elliot. Being a successful writer and producer paved her way to the enormous success in the music industry. In no time she was offered a possibility to launch her clothing line and appeared in GAP and Adidas commercials. The fact that full-figured Missy became a model of the established clothing brand could be perceiv ed as groundbreaking in the sphere of perception of black female bodies. She serves as a role model to many black women who doubt in their attractiveness. As during the late nineties rap became commercialized, gained greater audience and shifted to mainstream it is worth examining what were the messages conveyed by the female rappers. During this time some female artists were as popular and selling as many records as men; for example, Lil Kim and Foxy Brown both had albums that sold one million copies. Contemporary female rappers of the late nineties and the beginning of the twenty first century also endeavor in empowering and subversive mission against male domination, but the lyrical content of their songs show surprising and alarming similarities between them and male rappers. This may be one of the reasons why these female rappers gained more commercial recognition than the pioneers. As means of empowerment they apply the strategy of giving the attitude and answering back in a rude manner to their male counterparts. This group of female rappers fall into the category of Sistas with Attitude which includes such popular rappers as Fo xy Brown, Lil Kim, and Da Brat, or Sis, or Eve. The characteristic of their style is the employment of the same symbolic speech and behaviors as their male fellow rappers. It may seem that by doing so they show (try? unclear) to be equal to men on every level. The lyrics of their songs included motives of indulging in hedonistic activities as partying and smoking marijuana with their men, seducing, harassing, and sexually emasculating male characters; as well as disrespecting (dissin) their male and female counterparts. Although so called dissing in female rappers songs is mainly directed at male sexism, an analysis of contemporary female rap songs reveals that there are instances the same strategy is aimed at women. It is well visible here that Sistas with Attitude seek for their self empowerment by all means. The content of songs with attitude is abundant in vulgarity. The use of derogatory terms may be interpreted in a positive way. I trace some similarities between Sistas with Attitude and some of the Third Wave of feminism representatives. Similarly to them, female rappers reversed the pejorative meaning of vulgar words addressed to women.Sistas may be considered a coarser, clad version of Third Wave of feminism Girlies or Riot Grrls. These were usually members of underground punk bands who addressed issues as rape, female sexuality, domestic abuse, and female empowerment. Same as Sistas they also adopted derogatory, insulting words as cunt bitch slut in their vernacular. By writing these words on their skins or t-shirts they ridiculed and nullified their derogatory meaning. On the one hand, reclamation of the frequently used word bitch may be perceived as a positive way of self empowerment or as providing healing liberation. Other critics claim that this may bring worse returns as the message of female empowerment seem to be diminished and eradicated by female self-objectification. One of the most reoccurring motives found in female rap lyrics is their swaggering feminine self assurance. This characteristic of rap has its roots in part of African-American oral tradition of toasting , where the toast-teller employs in verbal self- enhancement, and presents himself or herself as the dreams of his [or her] Black audience and symbolize for them triumph and accomplishment against the odds. For instance, in Sittin on Top of the World, Da Brat writes: Im on top of the worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦/Girlfriend offender cuz they mans think Im all that/ One of the baddest bitches on the planet. She highlights how she is so bad, meaning great to such extent that she aggravates other women because their men find her beautiful. Another fitting example of braggadocio can be found in Eves song What Ya Want, writing Popular since I started my lifeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦/ Every thugs dream wife, see the love in they eyes/My time to shine, whole package make her a dime. In these lyrics, the rappe r is presenting herself as popular, and good-looking to every male and a perfectly shaped physically ( a dime in hip hop vernacular). Many rappers enhance their sense of attractiveness by emphasizing their possession of precious objects that others cannot afford. Foxy Brown, who adopted her moniker from the seventies blaxploitation movie protagonist of the same title, in Ill Na Na raps: Uhh, rollin for Lana, dripped in Gabbanaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦/And yall gon see by these mils I possess/Never settle for less, Im in excess. Foxy highlights here the fact that she wears expensive womens designer clothing that working class and middle-class individuals could not afford. Furthermore, the audience gets the message that Foxy earns millions of dollars from her rapping. She also admits she is not willing to settle down and start a family but would rather live in abundance of material goods on her own. A vast majority of the female artists mentioned owning luxurious products of mass consumption. Obviously, possession of extravagant material goods are crucial for many contemporary female artists. Material success, fame, and sexual satisfaction is their achieved American Dream. Similarly to male rap artists who glamorize life a of a pimp, these female artists present themselves as physically attractive to possible mates as well as in possession of goods that regular people do not and cannot acquire. This type and degree of overconfidence permeates throughout rap music and is common to both sexes of rappers. It illustrates artists abilities, or their dreams, to overcome obstacles (unattractiveness, lack of money) and eventually achieve (sexual and material) success. The partying, alcohol and drugs abuse is a frequent theme also in Sistas with Attitude rap music. In the overall sample of a sociologist and anthropologist Matthew Owares study of 44 female hip hop songs of the nineties, in each song there was an average of one-and a-half references made to alcohol or drugs. For instance, in her song Deeper, rapper called Boss refers to both alcohol and drug use. In these lyrics, Boss is indulging in a popular malt liquor, and also smokes chronic, a strong form of marijuana mixed cocaine. Another song by Queen Pen, Party Aint a Party, presents: Im tipsy from the cab, down the whole bottle of Henney/ Is you dealing with the cat thats blunted. Queen Pens alcohol is Seagrams Hennessy and blunted means being under the influence of marijuana. These female rappers refute the stereotype that women refrain from hard alcoholic drinks and illegal drugs. These women depict themselves as being equal to men by engaging in similar potentially harmful behaviors. Another feature of rap music that is often taken up by female rappers is disrespecting or dissin, which is the act of verbally insulting an opponent. Dissin allegedly has its origins in West Africa, among tribes such as the Efik in Nigeria and later could be found in early African-American oral traditions. Geneva Smitherman writes women rule when it comes to signifyingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦female rappers use this age-old rhetorical strategy to launch critical offensivesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. Traces of such style can be found in the verse rapped by Heather B.: Fuck how much you sell cause, I read your album cover/You couldnt write a jam if your last name was Smucker. As jam may also mean a hit song she ridicules here the amount of records sold by her opponent while dissing his writing skills contrasting them with a popular food product brand Smuckers Jam. Most disrespecting attitudes were pointed at males who attempted to pursue women with pretentious tales of sexual gratification. While some rappers resorted to warning of the potential suitor who must approach them in a courteous manner or gets rejected, other rappers would openly ridicule males sex skills and their fear of womens sexuality. Considered to be one of the most overt and explicit rappers, Lil Kim in Hardcore rhymes: The sex was wack, a four stroke creepà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦/(later he asked) Could he come over right fast and fuck my pretty ass?/Ill pass, nigga dick was trash. The rapper sets here her own conditions for a sexual intercourse. She keeps men under control and reserves the right to choose her partner by assessing his sex skills. She also implies what is surely feared by most of the heterosexual males to be ridiculed by a woman for poor sex performance. Black males, in particular the ones who have been trying to conceal the image of an emasculated black man, may fee l highly sensitive about it. As many instances of male rap hits presented in the first chapter show that they tried to apply many strategies to regain their control over women. Boasting about their sexual hyper skills was a frequent topic. Gangsta Boo, a successful Sista with Attitude of the late nineties and early twenty first century, touches upon similar themes in her lyrics: Ha-ha, hey, Ladies check this out/ Well, let me tell this story about this nigga/ With a little dick but when its hard, hes swearin it (is) bigger/ Im not to be the one guess you aint got much to offer. Here, Gangsta Boo speaks directly to women about false male machismo. Boo, similarly to her counterpart Lil Kim sets the norms here and evaluates whether her possible mate lives up to her expectations. When finds out that the man is poorly endowed, she ridicules him in front of other women. Hence, as Tricia Rose writes we have women speaking to men, engaging in critiques of supposed male sexual prowess; in addition, they are speaking to other women about the failed attempts of these men to satisfy them sexually. These disses provide a female response to male rappers chauvinism, misogyny and bragging about their sexual potency. Similarly empowering themes also permeate throughout the songs and lyrics that present female sexuality. Several popular female rap artists depicted themselves as explicitly sexualized. Lil Kim in one of her songs vulgarly demonstrates her acting upon a partner and presents herself as not submissive in sexual relationship. She clearly rejects here the romantic archetype of a pure virgin who is overtaken by more experienced lover. Yet, Kim is not a ho, in hip hop vernacular, because her sexuality is not being exploited by her mate, she does not submit to his wants or desires for his satisfaction; rather she gains sexual gratification from this encounter. In hegemonic discourses surrounding womens sexuality, women are silenced or are not allowed to derive pleasure from sexual intercourse with males. Kim articulates her pleasure. Oware in his study notes also another explicitly sexual song of Lil Kims fellow sista Trina, where she raps: G-string make his dick stand/Make it quick then slow head by the night stand/See I fuck him in the living room/I make him eat it while my period on. Similarly to Lil Kim, Trina controls the sexual relationship with her male partners. Also, in her narrative, she makes her male partners perform oral sex while she is menstruating, a level of vulgarity that many heterosexual males would find mortifying. Although this new level of vulgarity was introduced mainly by Sistas with Attitude, similar motifs can be seen in the songs of before mentioned Fly Girls such as Salt-N-Pepa. Even though they characteristically had lyrics that empowered women, they also had lyrics where they sexualized themselves: I throw it like a pitcher, let my sex appeal hit ya/ Game so sharp that it split ya. The quoted single Gitty Up was released in 1998 which may imply that some Fly Girls opted to adjust to the common explicit, raunchy style of the late nineties and first decade of the twentieth century. Similar path was chosen by some representatives of Queen Mothers who also shared similar coarse style in some of their late nineties songs. MC Lyte in one of her Grammy-awarded songs raps about a ruffneck but she does not condemn his involvement in criminal activities there. Instead she assures her listeners what is her main interest: But he dont gotta be large to be in charge/Pumpin in and out and out and in and here we go/Hes got smack it, lick it, swallow it up style. As we can see in aforementioned examples, sexually explicit lyrics exist in second wave 1990s female rappers songs. Furthermore, some female pioneers who are known for songs espousing the positives of womanhood also employ overtly sexual lyrics in some of their songs during this time. They risked their well established, positive image by collaboration with the controversial, coarse style of rap which gained prominence recently. This contradiction potentially undermines any empowering messages that these rappers used to convey. Sistas With Attitude did not only present themselves in overly sexualized ways, but as stated before they also used language that would be considered derogatory and demeaning to women. The majority of the female artists in my sample referred to themselves or other women as bitches. Reclamation of bitch by female rappers may be perceived not only as a tool for self empowerment as Queen Mothers and Fly Girls would argue. The word metaphorically translates as a de meaning and derogatory word usually targeted towards women. However, the word holds multiple meanings in rap music, particularly in songs by female rappers. Whilst Fly Girls would explain the word denotes a positive and strong woman, Sistas with Attitude extend the definition to an assertive female who subverts patriarchal supremacy. In her song She is a Bitch, Missy Elliott uses the word bitch to describe a person with lyrical skills, who can motivate and excite an audience. Self-evident from the title, Da Baddest Bitch rapper, Trina, metaphorically speaking, expresses how she is the best at rhyming and sexual activities. Following in the tradition of the bad nigger tales of the late nineteenth century, these bad girls of hip hop present themselves as the best at their craft, although employing non-normative and masculine language. According to Rose in cases where females music departs from males there are more instances of empowering lyrics about women. Although these female rappers lyrics consist a lot of references to indulging in low entertainment as consumption of alcohol and drug, as well as engaging in disrespecting acts of verbal abuse, several songs found in the Billboard charts deal with more serious issues. There are songs that take into consideration domestic violence, female self-determination and power, and sexuality from the perspective of women. For instance, in her song, Eve casts a bright light on the matter that is seldom discussed in rap music and in the African American community domestic violence: How would you feel if she held you down and raped you?/What kind of love from a nigga would black your eye?/Smacked you down cause he said you was too tall for him, huh? Female rappers while talking about various issues also shared other similarities with male rappers, such as excessive use of v iolent lyrics. How could you beat the mother of your kids? In this song Eve argues from the standpoint of the victim. Her female friend is beaten, raped, and eventually killed by her abuser. In the song she asks the victim about why she stays with the oppressor and later she confronts him about his actions. In the end, Eve kills the abuser. Her song reverberates as a warning, alarming all women against becoming

Free Essays on Kafkas Metamorphosis: True Essence of the Metamorphosis :: Metamorphosis essays

Upon completion of Kafka's Metamorphosis I was immediately drawn away from the conclusion of the novel and back into the second section.   It seemed to me that the true essence of the novella resided in the thoughts and observations revealed in this portion of the story.   After watching the video adaptation I was once again intrigued by these events.   I re-read the second section and found the first strong impressions of the grotesque were evident here.     Kafka used the constant setting of the Samsa household to show the true repercussions of the metamorphosis.   It is here that Gregor is truly dehumanized.   No longer can he stand the taste of what used to be his favorite dish.   He is reduced to a vermin who feeds on rotted, decaying food and who finds the presence of fresh food repulsing.   The very means by which he sustained himself is not fit for a human, but rather for a dependent beast.   Gregor's eyesight begins to fail him.   As his former self, he would spend hours looking out the window, studying, and reading; however, he now finds nothing more than a skewed perception of reality when doing these things.   The whole worlds now looks and tastes different for Gregor.   The world's perception of him drives him away, and now his perception of the world drives him away even further.   Alienation feeds upon itself.   With the taste of moldy cheese in his mouth and the sight of nothing but a desolate gray   expanse in front of him, Gregor's leisurely activity of snacking and staring out the window has been reduced to a sentence of feeding and suffering.   As his senses dwindle and alter, he also finds that his comfort zones do the same thing.   Unlike a normal person who lies upon a couch or bed and fears what may lie under it, Gregor resides underneath the couch and hides from those who would normally rest atop.   His world has been turned upside-down.   He no longer roots himself to the floor, but clings to the ceiling.   Gregor has metamorphosed and is now truly the unguers ungerzeifer.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Sadly, Gregor's family treats him like the beast that he truly has become.   Seeing the damages as irreparable, they strip him of his worldly possessions and leave him in a "naked den fit for a beast."   The struggle that he puts forth when his furniture is taken is symbolic of his struggle to return to human form.

Free College Essays - Setting in Their Eyes Were Watching God :: free essay writer

Importance of Setting in Their Eyes Were Watching God In Zora Neale Hurston’s romantic novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, two settings are contrasted to reinforce the author’s theme of a search for true love. The setting of Eatonville, Florida, where main character Janie experiences life as the mayor’s wife, is contrasted with the Florida Everglades, where Janie lives with Tea Cake in a much more relaxed atmosphere. Hurston describes Eatonville not in a negative way, but more as a place that is not beneficial to an independent woman like Janie. Janie Starks, the wife of the mayor, is sentenced to spend her days as a worker in the town store, hair tied up, and silent. She must deal with money and figures without being able to enjoy the â€Å"lying sessions† on the porch, or attending such impressive town events like the â€Å"muleogy.† To the reader, Eatonville represents all that is repressive in life. Janie’s nature is restricted not by the town itself, but by her status in the town. Contrasted with Eatonville is the Everglades or the â€Å"muck.† The muck is where Janie can be free. Her hair is allowed to hang down, and she can dance, sing, talk, and socialize with everyone from the Indians to the landowners. The muck is where Janie lives with Tea Cake, her true love, her "bee." The muck symbolizes freedom and a relief from oppression that was experienced by Janie. The contrast of these two places reinforces the theme of a search for love and fulfillment. To see what an ideal situation for an independent woman like would be, Hurston must first show the reader what Janie cannot deal with. Hurston has her character Janie go on a quest, one that was begun the day she was forced to marry Logan Killucks. The contrast in the setting is similar to one between good and evil. Janie’s life with Joe fulfilled a need -- she had no financial worries and was more than set for life. She had a beautiful white home, a neat lawn and garden, a successful husband, and lots of cash. Everything was clean, almost too clean. A sense of restraint is present in this setting, and this relates to the work as a whole due to the fact that this is the epitome of unhappiness for Janie. The muck, however, is filthy. The rich soil covers everything in sight, even the bare skin of its inhabitants.

Induced Molting of Layer Birds Essay -- Animals Papers

Induced Molting of Layer Birds Induced molting of layer birds is a practice done for economical benefits. These birds are put under great stress, which should not be allowed. Further studies of humane induced molting techniques should be done to replace those that are currently used and inhumane. In nature birds undergo natural molting. During a year birds will replace all of their feather to maintain a good plumage, this usually occurs at the beginning of winter when birds do not have chicks. They can concentrate their energies to stay warm and to grow new feathers. (Animal Protection Institute, 1998) However, there also is induced molting, which is done by human influence. The later is practiced by 60% - 70% of the layer industry, so that a second cycle of laying flocks is achieved. (Macri et al., 1998) Induced molting occurs when the bird’s organism is stressed by some source that alters their environment. The most common are: lack of food and water, decrease of light, and change in diet. Food withdrawal can be up to 10 days and of water up to 2 days. The change in diet usually is a low calcium, or low sodium and also feeding a diet high in dietary zinc. All of these methods can be done separately or in any combination with each other. (Alodan and Mashaly, 1998). At the end of every laying cycle, egg quality and production are decreased. This is when induced molting is imposed to give a â€Å"rest† to the birds. After the â€Å"rest† period egg quality and production are increased when compared to the pre-molting period. There are several improvements to the egg at the post-molt period; there is a "better egg size, shell quality, internal egg quality and rate of egg production." (Alodan and Mashaly, 1998) ... ...on Caused by Salmonella Enteritidis.† Tektran, United States Department of Agriculture, Agrucultural Research Service (12/18/1998). Last visited on 09/09/2001 at http://www.nal.usda.gov/ttic/tektran/data/000007/07/0000070701.html Poultry.org, a Farm Sanctuary Campaign. â€Å"Forced Molting of Laying Birds† Last visited on 09/09/2001 at http://www.poultry.org/molting.htm Ruszler, Paul L. â€Å"The Keys to Successful Induced Molting of Leghorn-type Hens† Extension Poultry Scientist, Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Tech, Virginia State Univerty. Publication Number 408-026, January 1997. Last visited on 09/09/2001 at http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/poultry/408-026/408-026.html#TOC Summer/Fall 1998 Poultry Press â€Å"Balancing Economics and Evil† Induced Molting. Last visited on 09/22/2001 at http://www.upc-online.org/summer98/molting_econ_and_evil.html#top

John Locke: the Revolution of Reason in the Age of Enlightenment Essay

For many people, particularly Americans, phrases like â€Å"inalienable rights,† â€Å"the pursuit of life and liberty,† and concepts such as religious tolerance, and separation of Church and State, are all too familiar. Many people are unaware, however, of the period, and the man, from which these ideas came. The â€Å"inalienable rights† and â€Å"pursuit of life and liberty†Ã¢â‚¬â€œwords straight out of the United States’ Declaration of Independence—were not written by Thomas Jefferson first. In fact, those words, and the philosophy behind them, precede Thomas Jefferson by approximately one hundred years. The preceding century, and the source of the ideas that formed the basis of the American Revolution, is known as the Age of Enlightenment. The Age of Enlightenment, or sometimes known more simply as, the Enlightenment, follows several ages of mankind in which the entire world, morally, socially, politically, and culturally, revolved around the Church. The Enlightenment is the period in which Western Civilization broke away from this tradition: The intellectual and philosophical developments of that age (and their impact in moral, social, and political reform) aspired toward more freedom for common people, based on self-governance, natural rights, natural law, central emphasis on liberty, individual rights, reason, and the principles of deism. These principles were a revolutionary departure from theocracy, oligarchy, aristocracy, and the divine right of kings. (â€Å"Age of Enlightenment†) Deism, as mentioned in the previous quote, is defined by Prof. Gerhard Rempel: â€Å"English deism†¦ emphasized an impersonal deity, natural religion and the common morality of all human beings. Deism was a logical outgrowth of scientific inquiry, rational faith in humanity, and the study of comparative religion. All religions could be reduced to worshipping God and a common sense moral code. There was a universal natural religion† (Rempel). In other words, deism is an extreme simplification of all religions according to the basic premise that every religion worships God, and serves as the foundation of several schools of religious tolerance, which proved to be the foundations of liberal thought, the founder of which, was John Locke; â€Å"†¦ Locke launched liberalism by tempering Hobbesian absolutism and clearly separating the realms of Church and State† (â€Å"John Locke†). As this passage demonstrates, the ideas of religious tolerance served as the foundation of separation of Church and State. Religious tolerance is one of many issues pursued and defended by one of the greatest philosophers and writers of the Age of Enlightenment: John Locke. The philosophies of John Locke owe their â€Å"immortality† largely to the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution increased access to information and lowered prices: â€Å"Increased consumption of reading materials of all sorts was one of the key features of the ‘social’ Enlightenment. Developments in the Industrial Revolution allowed consumer goods to be produced in greater quantities at lower prices, encouraging the spread of books, pamphlets, newspapers and journals–‘media of the transmission of ideas and attitudes’† (â€Å"Age of Enlightenment†). The Industrial Revolution stemmed out of the Age of Enlightenment, due to the overwhelming infatuation with reason that took hold during that particular time. It is due to the sudden ease of obtaining works of literature, (which previously were very expensive and belonged only to the wealthy upper classes—the only literate members of society), that contemporary readers still know the name: John Locke. John Locke was the primary voice of the Enlightenment, even though he spent some of the most important years of his life and writing career in exile. While his works influenced writers like Voltaire and Rousseau, his influence on the rest of the world extends even farther. The words in the American Declaration of Independence–†inalienable rights,† â€Å"the pursuit of life and liberty†Ã¢â‚¬â€œare the words of John Locke. John Locke altered the course of history through his influence during the Age of Enlightenment in the 17th century. His theories regarding the sense of â€Å"self† changed the collective identity of the people during the Enlightenment, encouraging them to ask questions that, previously, had always been answered by the Church, and even more revolutionary—to seek out the answers to those questions themselves, with the use of reason. John Locke also held tremendous sway over the political world of the Enlightenment, which was fraught with civil war and unrest; John Locke’s writings on the role of the government in the lives of the people played a tremendous part in the Glorious Revolution and the shift of power from the King to Parliament. Finally, John Locke also revolutionized the people’s perception of God, and advocated powerfully for religious tolerance, proclaiming the ideas of deism, as mentioned before, which took hold and strongly influenced the principles of separation of Church and State. While Western Civilization still answered only to the King and the Church, John Locke was busily redefining the sense of â€Å"self,† which would be the foundation of all modern, independent thought. Independent thought was founded in Locke’s love for reason; â€Å"Locke was the first philosopher to define the self through a continuity of ‘consciousness. ‘ He also postulated that the mind was a ‘blank slate’ or ‘tabula rasa’; that is†¦ Locke maintained that people are born without innate ideas, and that knowledge is instead determined only by experience derived by sense perception† (â€Å"John Locke†) In other words, John Locke’s love for reason is the primary way in which he argued that people can develop their own ideas, based on their own experiences, rather than propaganda from religious or political officials, who would try to control what the people would think. John Locke describes this in his work, the Conduct of Understanding: †¦ this is that which seems to me the proper and only measure of distinctions and divisions; which he that will conduct his understanding right must not look for in the acuteness of invention, nor the authority of writers, but will find only in the consideration of things themselves, whether he is led into it by his own meditations, or the information of books. (Locke 263) This passage from Locke’s text describes the importance of the independence of the thinker from writing that would try to control thought. Locke makes a distinction between â€Å"writers† and â€Å"the information of books. † Writers, (that is, writers of propaganda), according to Locke, are the enemy—the ones who attempt to push their ideas onto others, rather than presenting impartial information. The information of books is Locke’s way of referring to the ideas and facts within books that the individual is responsible for learning by using his reason. The individual must be able to discern which information belongs to the facts, and which belongs to the impressions of the writer. The individual person’s response to his experiences is also the foundation of his moral judgment. The decisions he will make in the future will be based on the experiences he’s had throughout his life. One critic describes Locke’s view of this concept; †¦ Locke conceives of moral goodness as a conventional relation, then it stands to reason†¦ goodness and even moral goodness do not exist independently of what we believe about them and therefore cannot be the property of an action nor can they be thought to have a nature that exists independently of our beliefs. (Zinaich 171) Essentially, Locke’s concept of morality is that it is defined by the self. This is a tremendous revelation in an era that defined its morality based on what the Church claimed was moral or immoral. There are limits to this independence of morality, however, as a biographer of Locke describes: â€Å"The ‘state of nature’ is a ‘state of liberty’, but it is not a ‘state of license’, for even though people in it are not bound by the will of another, they are subject to the divinely ordained ‘law of nature’† (Woolhouse 185). Essentially, while an individual is free to define his own morals under Locke’s philosophy regarding the â€Å"self,† the limits lie in whether or not the morality crosses over into the rights of another person. In a â€Å"state of nature,† every man is free to create his own morals, but those morals cannot infringe on the rights of others. This is a rule that not only man must obey, but that, according to Locke, he must understand—a principle, which he describes in his Second Treatise on Civil Government: â€Å"Is a man under the law of Nature? What made him free of that law? What gave him a free disposing of his property, according to his own will, within the compass of that law? I answer, and estate wherein he might be supposed capably to know that law, that so he might keep his actions within the bounds of it† (Locke 102). As this passage describes, in order for a man to step outside of the â€Å"natural law,† he must step into the overlapping laws of the men around him. This, in effect, is what leads to Locke’s revolutionary principles of government. Prior to the Enlightenment, government belonged entirely to the King, based on the principles of â€Å"divine right†: â€Å"The Enlightenment encouraged people to participate in government and to rethink old ideas like feudalism and primogeniture† (Dowling). John Locke played an extremely large role in this shift: â€Å"Locke became involved in politics when Shaftesbury became Lord Chancellor in 1672† (â€Å"John Locke†). Locke’s friend Shaftesbury was the primary reason that Locke became involved in politics and began writing about government, but when Shaftesbury fell away from popularity, Locke soon found himself in exile. Locke wrote even more voraciously about government during his time in exile, however, establishing the principles of self-governance that would so tremendously alter the ideas of government current at that time. In his Second Treatise on Civil Government, he defines society and the beginning of government: â€Å"†¦ that which begins and actually constitutes any political society is nothing but the consent of any number of freemen capably of majority, to unite and incorporate into such a society. And this is that, and that only, which did or could give beginning to any lawful government in the world† (Locke 125). As Locke describes, the foundation of a government begins with free men in the â€Å"state of nature† who come together and can agree, in majority, on which morals they are to follow. Also, â€Å"Locke maintained that the original state of nature was happy and characterized by reason and tolerance. He further maintained that all human beings, in their natural state, were equal and free to pursue life, health, liberty, and possessions; and that these were inalienable rights† (Landry), and, â€Å"Locke defended the proposition that government rests on popular consent and rebellion is permissible when government subverts the ends (the protection of life, liberty, and property) for which it is established† (Landry). In other words, because government is based on the agreement and majority of people coming together—the self-governance of the people is the foundation of the government—the government has a responsibility to protect the rights of its people. These revolutionary ideas not only altered the ideas that were circulating amongst the people during the Age of Enlightenment, but also directly altered the course of history. As Locke’s biographer states: â€Å"†¦ the support which the Treatises gave to William’s actions against James is exhibited in what reads as a commentary on the events of the revolution itself: James’s leaving the country, the request to William to take over the administration, the eventual offer of the throne, and the transformation of the Convention into a Parliament† (Woolhouse 276). Because William of Orange and his wife Mary were supporters of Parliament, and through their support of Parliament, supporters of self-governance by the people, the Treatises by John Locke were tremendously influential in the support that both preceded and followed William and Mary’s ascension to the throne of England: â€Å"†¦ the Glorious Revolution of 1688†¦ marks the point at which the balance of power in the English government passed from the King to the Parliament. Locke returned to England in 1688 on board the royal yacht, accompanying Princess Mary on her voyage to join her husband† (Uzgalis). Because of the tremendous support that came with Locke’s Treatises and the rule of William and Mary, John Locke was finally able to return home to England from exile. The independence of thought that led to the new perception of self, which subsequently led to new ideas about the kind of relationship that the government should have with its people, also had a tremendous effect on the ideas governing perception of religion. In addition to political strife, there was a great deal of religious tension in England, particularly between various Protestant sects. During the Enlightenment, however, the principles of reason, established by John Locke, began to become the foundation of religious tolerance: The Enlightenment is held to be the source of critical ideas, such as the centrality of freedom, democracy, and reason as primary values of society. This view argues that the establishment of a contractual basis of rights would lead to the market mechanism and capitalism, the scientific method, religious tolerance, and the organization of states into self-governing republics through democratic means. (â€Å"Age of Enlightenment†) This religious tolerance, and the encouragement of independent reason, however, lessened the power that the Church had over the people: â€Å"It was the Enlightenment†¦ that dislodged the ecclesiastical establishment from central control of cultural and intellectual life† (Rempel). Simply put, the infatuation with reason that took hold of the people during the Enlightenment took power away from the Church and put it into the hands of thinkers like John Locke, who encouraged independent thought. As mentioned before, John Locke was an avid supporter of intellectual independence. John Locke had an agenda for his principles of reason—to liberate the people around him from oppression of the intellectual and spiritual kind as well: â€Å"Much of Locke’s work is characterized by opposition to authoritarianism. This opposition is both on the level of the individual person and on the level of institutions such as government and church† (Uzgalis). As Uzgalis states, John Locke was determined to release the people from the authoritative grasp of the Church, which controlled much of their thinking, and answered all of their questions with answers that would add to their power. One of the primary issues regarding the Church’s control over the people, however, lay in the issues that divided the different denominations of Christianity that populated England at the time. Each sect was fighting with the other, claiming that their faith was the true path—the ONLY path. John Locke had an argument to this theory, which he described in detail in his work, the Reasonability of Christianity: †¦ if all sinners shall be condemned, but such as have gracious allowance made them; and so are justified by God, for believing Jesus to be the Messiah, and so taking him for their King; whom they are resolved to obey, to the utmost of their power, ‘What shall become of all mankind, who lived before Our Savior’s time; who never heard of his name, and consequently could not believe in him? ‘ To this the answer is so obvious and natural, that one would wonder how any reasonable man should think it worth the urging. No body was, or can be, required to believe what was never proposed to him to believe. (Locke 52) Locke simply states that those people who did not know of Jesus, because they lived before his time, cannot be held accountable or punished for not believing in him because, to them, he did not yet exist. This was a revolutionary idea because nearly every Christian during Locke’s time believed that a soul could not reach heaven unless the person belonging to that soul fully believed that Jesus was the Messiah, or savior. Locke takes this tolerance of pre-Christians, however, and extends it even to those in his contemporary society, and argues for tolerance not only of who people worship, but of how they worship as well: â€Å"To be worshipped in spirit and in truth, with application of mind and sincerity of heart, was what God henceforth only required. Magnificent temples, and confinement to certain places, were now no longer necessary for his worship, which by a pure heart might be performed any where† (Locke 68). In other words, Locke argues that worshipping God is a far more personal endeavor, rather than one that is meant to be accomplished in a specific time and place, with a specific group of people. So long as the worshipper is steady in his faith, and uses his faith to support his reason, then he becomes a â€Å"reasonable Christian,† which is the highest aim. The Age of Enlightenment opened the door for countless opportunities in even every aspect of daily life in Western Civilization. Its devotion to reason and to the human mind’s power of deductive reasoning spawned hundreds of advancements in technology, including a more advanced printing press, which increased literacy rates, due to the accessibility of reading material, and allowed ideas to circulate and spread farther than anyone had imagined. The sudden urbanization, due to the fledgling Industrial Revolution, also brought people closer together and ideas from all over the world began coming together and mixing, until they themselves became new ideas, and expanded. Every change during the Age of Enlightenment—the new sense of individual identity that the people suddenly gained, the new principles of government, and what the relationship of the government to the people should be like, the release of power from the King and the Church to the people—all of these ideas, which would become the foundation of the American Revolution, were founded on the single principle of devotion to individual’s power to reason. The leader of this liberation and revolution of the mind, as described in detail above, was John Locke. John Locke’s ideas impressed the leaders of England so much, that at a very early age, he became swept into the world of politics, and almost overnight began to change the way people thought. Even when his powerful friends fell out of favor, and Locke was forced into exile, he only grew more influential, and his ideas of man’s power of deductive reasoning and consciousness as the defining attribute of the thing called â€Å"self,† the principles of self-governance of the people, which led to the Glorious Revolution and the placement of William and Mary on the throne of England, and the shift of power from the King to Parliament, and finally, the importance of religious tolerance, based on reason, are the prime examples of John Locke’s tremendous influence on the Age of Enlightenment. John Locke’s convictions led to some of the most sweeping changes in the collective mind of humanity, and led to the independence of the United States. All of these changes, however, belong to a tiny little word called â€Å"reason,† which can only be found in the individual. Essentially, John Locke’s commitment to reason, was really a commitment to the self—and look at what such commitment wrought from the Age of Enlightenment! Annotated Bibliography â€Å"About the John Locke Foundation. † John Locke Foundation. 2009. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website presents the effects that the philophies and works of John Locke are having on contemporary society. â€Å"Age of Englightenment. † Wikipedia. 29 Apr. 2009. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website offers a generalized overview of the Age of Enlightenment, of which Locke is considered one of the greatest contributors. While Wikipedia is not considered an infallible source, the information contained therein is consistent with the information in other sources. Brians, Paul. â€Å"The Enlightenment. † Washington State University. 18 May 2000. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website provides a very concise overview of the Enlightenment period, for the sake of perspective. Dowling, Mike. â€Å"The Enlightenment. † The Enlightenment. 1 May 2002. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website offers a very concise overview of the Age of Enlightenment, as well as the effects that it had in all European countries. â€Å"John Locke. † Wikipedia. 29 Apr. 2009. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website was used for a generalized overview of the life and works of John Locke, to give a sense of perspective. While Wikipedia is not a guaranteed source, the information contained on this website is consistent with the information from other â€Å"more reliable† sources. â€Å"John Locke (1632-1704). † Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 2006. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website provides a very generalized overview of John Locke’s life and philosphies, as well as his works. Landry, Peter. â€Å"John Locke: The Philosopher of Freedom. † Biographies. 2006. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website provides an extremely concise and brief description of Locke’s life, philosophies and works. Locke, John. Conduct of the Understanding. The Works of John Locke. Vol. 3. London: Scientia Verlag Aalen, 1963. 203-289. This work of John Locke’s details the ways in which a man is expected, in the author’s mind, to pursue knowledge and understanding with integrity. Locke, John. The Reasonableness of Christianity. Ed. I. T. Ramsey. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1958. In this work, John Locke argues for Christianity and the belief in God, who gave man reason. Locke, John. The Second Treatise on Civil Government. On Politics and Education. Ed. Walter J. Black. Roslyn, NY: Walter J. Black, Inc. , 1947. 71-202. This work by John Locke describes the author’s views on how government should function in society. â€Å"Locke Time Line. † John Locke (1632-1704). Oregon State University. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website provided a concise timeline of John Locke’s life and the emergence of his works to be compared against the era in which he was living. Rempel, Gerhard, PhD. â€Å"The Age of Enlightenment. † Lectures. WNEC. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website offers a detailed description of the Age of Enlightenment, organized in a fashion consistent with a class lecture, so it is very easy to understand. Uzgalis, William. â€Å"John Locke. † Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 29 Apr. 2009 . This website was used to provide a somewhat detailed overview of John Locke’s life and works. Its reliability is guaranteed by the Metaphysics Research Lab of Stanford University. Woolhouse, Roger. Locke, A Biography. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007. This is a comprehensive biography of John Locke, giving greater understanding of Locke’s personal life and its effects on the more public spheres in which he existed. Zinaich, Samuel, Jr. John Locke’s Moral Revolution. Boulder, CO: University Press of America, Inc. , 2006. This book argues that John Locke’s philosophies move from â€Å"laws of nature† to â€Å"moral relativism. † While this is a work of literary criticism, it still offers valid and unbiased points about the works of John Locke.