Ancient Near East Reaction Paper †History Essay

Ancient Near East Reaction Paper – History Essay Free Online Research Papers Ancient Near East Reaction Paper History Essay The Epic of Gilgamesh is a legendary tale of the once ruler of Uruk that takes place about 2700 B.C. Gilgamesh’s story begins when he hears of Enkidu, an animal-like human who essentially challenges Gilgamesh’s manhood. Gilgamesh and Enkidu engage in a battle that results in a draw, and ultimately the two become friends. Gilgamesh goes on to reject the goddess Ishtar’s request for love, and in response to Gilgamesh, Ishtar summons the Bull of Heaven. Gilgamesh and Enkidu defeat the bull, Enkidu insults Ishtar and she casts him to the underworld for eternity. The death of Enkidu reminds Gilgamesh that he is mortal and he commits the rest of his life to obtaining immortality. Gilgamesh searches for Utnapishtim who is said to know the secret of obtaining immortality. Utnapishtim can be paralleled to Noah of the Bible, he is warned of a great flood and builds a ship to live through it. Because Gilgamesh would unfortunately never find the secret of immortality and would eventually die. His death marked the last epic emperor to rule Sumer. During the Old Babylonian period from about 2000-1600 B.C. messages of social justice and morality became more prominent. The sun god, Shamsh, emerged as the preeminent god of justice in Babylonian culture. During the Old Babylonian period Hammurabi came to power. When Hammurabi came to power the Old Babylonian Empire it was a very turbulent period. Hammurabi worked to improve on these ideas of social justice and morality. During the same age of Old Babylon existed another empire, Egypt left behind a great deal of texts inscribed on the walls of the tombs of kings and nobles. They left behind no epics, but their beliefs of what would lead them to worldly success. Egypt lacked moral principle at this point in time, but it didn’t last. Ptah-hotep’s lack of concern with the afterlife was soon overshadowed by a deep concern with the afterlife around 2300 B.C. Egyptian religion was now very concerned with preparation for the afterlife. Religious reform had long been at the forefront of Egyptian policy and it had resulted in a loss of territory. It was the goal of Ramses II to restore the areas of the empire that were lost, but it doing so he ran into the Hittites. After a short struggle the two civilizations came to a compromise. From the times of Gilgamesh to Hammurabi, from Hammurabi to Ramses II there was a great deal of change occurring throughout the Near East, but what remains constant is religion at the centerpiece of all this change. In the case of Hammurabi the new laws promoting morality and social justice worked to help the Old Babylonian Empire. Unfortunetly for Egypt this was not the case. Egpyt let their guard down to focus their attention on religion as well, but it resulted in problems. They began to lose territory and ultimately faced annihilation at the hands of the Hittites. Research Papers on Ancient Near East Reaction Paper - History EssayCanaanite Influence on the Early Israelite ReligionBook Review on The Autobiography of Malcolm XComparison: Letter from Birmingham and CritoBringing Democracy to AfricaHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows EssayCapital PunishmentAssess the importance of Nationalism 1815-1850 EuropeRelationship between Media Coverage and Social andLifes What IfsGenetic Engineering

Inductive and deductive reasoning Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Inductive and deductive reasoning - Essay Example They act as a form of representation of the people at work (Brock &Â  Lipsky, 2003). These unions seem like a better place for the public workers to engage in collective bargaining in order to gain their fundamental needs. Over the last years, there have existed a number of key transformations in the economy and the industries. A large number of people are either without employment or they toil under the continuous intimidation of joblessness. These groups act on most cases on behalf of the union members. Through the management of the unions, the associates are able to pass their claims and needs to their employer as one voice (Cihon & Castagnera, 2011). This brings up the system of collective bargaining in that the union takes up the role of negotiating with the employer in order for them to offer a good deal to the workers. These forms of collective bargaining are aimed at coming to a point that the working state of the employees is regulated. The old, working outlines have been f orgotten. People are now working under different conditions, like short term contracts, temporary or part-time (Brock &Â  Lipsky, 2003). ... A single employer cannot have control on some of the most crucial characteristics of their lives, for example, their working place. However, when the public workers get an opportunity to join the unions, they gain an upper hand in accomplishing democracy in the workplace. Their voice as one influences the founding of the regulations that have power over them (Cihon & Castagnera, 2011). Deductive reasoning is a form of research that works from a universal point of view to a precise point. On the other hand, inductive reasoning works in the converse way it moves from definite examination to broader overview (Wiley, 2013). Argument The workers undergo difficult problems, and they are not in a position to raise their concerns to the managers. These ranges from low payment, practices of labor that are exceedingly poor, unsafe working conditions and tough policies et cetera. In other occasions, the employer may become hostile to the workers and because the personnel are under the manager t hey have no power to complain as individuals (Brock &Â  Lipsky, 2003). Majority of the workforce has been pushing for union representation (Brock &Â  Lipsky, 2003). They want to be represented in the negotiations that look upon their wages, working hours and other conditions that align with their employment; like safety from sucking without good reason (Wiley, 2013). The union will ensure that each employer has equal rights in their workplace as others. It shall ensure prosperity in the livelihood of people. This protects the wellbeing and offers security to the staff. There will be fairness in order for the nation to develop (Wiley, 2013). According to Brock &Â  Lipsky (2003), Public

Mgt a 2 r Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Mgt a 2 r - Essay Example It is true to say that recruiters at the annual career fair of the Miami University of Oxford have been demonstrating biasness in acquiring of personnel for their organizations. In this case, the bias hiring of employees is an unconscious unethical behavior on their part. It is bias in nature to only hire Miami graduates into their company because graduates from different institutions are not considered as potential candidates for roles in the represented organizations. The decision is considered unconscious because the recruiter who is an Alumnus of the University may be fixed to the notion that the institution produces highly qualified individuals or the reason the organization placed them, as a recruiter at the University was to fetch another graduate. The two decisions made by the recruiter are based on the background of the candidate that is affiliation to the learning institution and credit claim. Favoritism is a term used to refer to granting a favor to someone because of background similarity. In doing so, one eliminates those from different backgrounds (Banaji, Mahzarin, Max, and Dolly 5). The unethical behavior affects the performance of an organization in the long term. People belonging to the same background do not necessarily mean they possess the same talents that an organization requires. Unwanted talents or lack of the necessary talents in an organization is a liability. Investing resources in individuals who contribute to the organization minimally in terms of earning revenue is a financial loss to a business. Expenditure that exceeds revenue is an indication of business failure. For this reason, the recruitment strategy that the organizations apply in acquiring personnel in reference to the annual Career Fair of Miami University is a fail on the part of managers for it affects an organization’s performance

Wal-Mart Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 1

Wal-Mart - Case Study Example A brief introduction to business ethics and social responsibility is undertaken. The importance of CSR initiatives is also discussed. The results indicate that Wal-Mart is well perceived by many customers despite few criticisms leveled against it due to its low and affordable prices. Candid CSR initiatives emerged as a very crucial factor. Corporations today have to pay much attention to the needs as well as preferences of many interest groups. Corporations are not required to behave as if their profit making goal is more important that the interests of their stakeholders. Stakeholder theory maintains that management’s role is to create value for their non-shareholder stakeholders such as consumers, the community, creditors, employees and suppliers (Lii, 2011). However, Wal-Mart has been greatly criticized for going against this theory. Areas of criticisms include treatment of suppliers, foreign products sourcing of the corporation, environmental practices, employee compensations as well as working conditions, the corporation’s security policies, the use of public subsidies and slavery (Yuan, Bao, & Verbeke, 2011). They have sought to inflict harms on their stakeholders for profit seeking in a number of ways. However, the MNE has a number of CSR initiatives to help in leading as well as providing the m with an opportunity to make differences on the big issues that matter to everyone. The corporation noted that they are committed to using their big size as well as scale in helping the world live better. Through such initiatives, Wal-Mart has been able to empower women, contribute to energy efficiency and assisting with disaster relief (News & Brothers, 2005). The aim of this paper is to identify the harms Wal-Mart inflict on their stakeholders while they make profit and the CSR initiatives it has adopted as well as their motives. In addition, the paper evaluates the results of such CSR initiatives and makes recommendations to

Societys True Nature Essay Example for Free

Societys True Nature Essay In Franz Kafkas enigmatic novel The Metamorphosis, Gregor Samsa lives the life of a bug. The traveling salesman awakens one morning to find himself incredulously transformed into a â€Å"monstrous vermin.† At First, Gregor is apathetic towards his â€Å"metamorphosis† and immediately begins describing his room and slight discomforts in great detail. At the same time, Gregor incessantly comments on unimportant aspects of his – almost dismissing the fact that he is now a cockroach. When his family starts knocking on his door, Gregor immediately begins conjuring scenarios in which he imagines that his family genuinely cares for him. This illusion is soon shattered after the reader is exposed to the true nature of the Samsas. Gregors metamorphosis symbolizes what he is and has always been in society – a cockroach. Through Gregors physical transformation, Kafka communicates that people are oblivious to how alienated they are from society and humanity in its entirety. First off, in The Metamorphosis, readers are immediately exposed to the absurd atmosphere Kafka has created when he describes how â€Å"Gregor Samsa woke up one morning from unsettling dreams †¦ [to find] himself transformed into a monstrous vermin† (1). At first glace this statement may sound normal, but after analyzing this and many other statements, it becomes apparent that Kafka has purposely placed the Samsas in an unreal environment. For example, in the sentence previously mentioned, the third-person narrator speaks casually of Gregors metamorphosis as if it were nothing. In his article, Johannes Pfeiffer says that Gregor â€Å"does not truly realize his new position in all its gravity† (55). Gregors inability to acknowledge his transformation might represent people and their apathy towards the more significant things in life. Throughout the story, the narration alternates between first and third person – suggesting that the narrator of the story constantly shifts from Gregor to an unknown entity. However, the baffling narration in The Metamorphosis is no mistake. Through this bizarre style of narration, Kafka brilliantly demonstrates how alienated people can be from themselves – for Gregor is alienated to the point where he must tell his story in a third-person perspective. Moreover, it has been speculated that society manipulates people by having certain ideals. As a result of his father being unemployed and his mother and sister not being able to work, Gregor is left with the burden of holding his family together by reluctantly taking a job as a salesman. The following excerpt describes the Samsas financial situation: In the course of the very first day his father explained the familys financial situation and prospects to both the mother and the sister. From the time he got up from the table to get some kind of receipt or notebook out of the little strongbox he had rescued from the collapse of his business five years before. . . In those days, Gregors sole concern had been to do everything his power to make the family forget as quickly as possible the business disaster which had plunged everyone into a state of despair (25). The excerpt is describing Gregor listening in on his family discuss the financial situation at hand. We learn that the Samsas massive debt is a result of Mr. Samsas failed business. Being the concerned son he has been brainwashed to become, Gregor – with good intention – took a myriad of jobs to appease his family and restore peace in the chaotic household the Samsas inhabit. The significance of this is that it identifies the reality people choose to live in – a reality where people abandon aspirations and conform to the desolate society that surrounds them. Lastly, Gregors transformation itself is ironic. A metamorphosis suggests ascension into a higher form; but in Gregors case, he has devolved into one of the most insignificant form that comes to mind – a cockroach. However, Gregors bug form is simply an illustration. After close analysis, it can be said that Gregors metamorphosis is his inner state surfacing into the physical world. With that said, one can come to the conclusion that Gregor has always been a bug and has been alienated from his family prior to his transformation. The Samsa family loses faith in Gregor recovering (as if they ever had any) and begins discarding remnants of his past. Gregor is addressed as â€Å"it† (Pfeiffer 55) later in the book when his family dehumanizes him. Reading about how Gregor and his family are so alienated from one another that they do not see it is powerful on its own, but seeing Kafkas message and understanding how people live in a world not too different from Gregors is a ha rsh truth that only a handful of people come to realize. All in all, Gregors metamorphosis symbolizes the alienation, which has always (and may always) exist. It is a powerful symbol that reveals how alienated people are from themselves and society in its entirety. After reading Kafkas The Metamorphosis, one cannot help but question whether his own life is real or a deviation that has spawned and thrived in the alienated society man has given birth to.

Joe Louis Essay -- Biography

Joe Louis   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Joe Louis was born in Alabama on May 13, 1914. He was the son of an Alabama sharecropper, the great grandson of a slave, and the great great grandson of a white slave owner. Joe Louis moved to Detroit as a youngster with his mother. He was the first African American ever to achieve lasting fame and star status in the 20th Century. He did so with boxing, he would capture the hearts of millions of American's, both white and black.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This was a time when blacks were being discriminated against, the military was segregated, blacks were not allowed to play Major League Baseball. When he started boxing early in the 1930's hero worship was not achievable in any professional sports, there were none that were able to command the attention away from whites, however that would all change. Joe Louis began his boxing career at the Brewster Recreation Center. In his first amateur bout, Louis was knocked down 7 times, but he rapidly improved over the years, he captured the 1934 National AAU Lightweight Crown and turned to the professional level later in that same year. Louis won his first 27 fights, 23 of them by knockout, beating people of fame like Primo Carnera and Max Baer. His first defeat was against Max Scheming at Yankee Stadium, he was knocked out in the 12th round. This was Louis greatest defeat, and the start of his greatest challenge.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The next few years would be the greatest of times for the " Brown Bomber ", he got his much anticipated ...

Breakfast Club Movie Review

Cliques are groups of people with mutual interests and goals, who spend a majority of their time with each other. They can be found at every high school. The Breakfast Club is a movie that brings five students belonging to different cliques together in an unfortunate situation-detention. At the beginning of the movie, these five students appear to be very different people who have nothing to say to each other. However, throughout the movie, the sanctions of each clique become less relevant, and they find that they themselves have formed their own clique: The Breakfast Club.Coming into the detention session, each character has a fixation in a stereotypical high school role. Claire is the â€Å"princess†; an upper-class, popular socialite who is in detention for ditching class to go shopping. In contrast, Bender is a lower-class (and perhaps abused) young man who has a perception of being a sociopathic â€Å"criminal. † Because Bender constantly questions and defies autho rity, he is a detention professional. Andrew (the jock) is a disciplined and driven wrestler who wants to break free from the demands of the athlete role.Brian (the brain) is a straight-A student who struggles with expectations of high grades–and who is experiencing devastation about his recent failures in shop class. Finally, Allison is an ignored introvert who longs for attention and in attempt to receive it, acts like a deviant â€Å"basket case. † At the beginning of the session, the determination of the status by the pecking order of the school's social structure. During the school week, Andrew and Claire have high social status. They recognize their shared status level and sit by each other upon entering the detention session.The two break into conversation about their mutual high-status friends whereas the other detention attendees listen. Brian is probably next in the school status hierarchy because of his intelligence, but he is also a â€Å"geek. † Hig h-status students usually ignore him. In the school's caste system, Bender and Allison are the social bottom feeders. Early in the movie, it becomes clear that a different social order is developing. Bender is the expert at Saturday detentions and is on a first-name basis with the janitor and Mister Vernon (the detention teacher). Detention sessions are clearly Bender's turf and his status on Saturdays is high.Brian seems to recognize this when he gives up his seat to John and waits for John to take off his coat before he removes his own. As is true of high-status members, John begins making and breaking norms. He is the first to break the principal's explicit rule of â€Å"no one moves from their seats. † He also breaks the implicit rule of respect for authority when he tears up a library book and when he removes a screw out of the library door so it will not remain open. The groups abandon normal roles and try new roles on, as they develop during the detention session.In co ntrast to his usual low-status position, Bender has high status during the session because of his detention expertise. He assumes a leadership role in which his defiant questions and actions create value rather than disdain. Andrew also deviates from the normal behaviors of his high-status school behaviors. He develops emotionally by abandoning his macho athlete role when he cries in front of the. Brian, the conformist geek, asks courageous questions and begins to appear more secure and functional than his new detention friends. Brian, Claire, and Andrew break from their normal roles by smoking marijuana with Bender.Allison, the basket case, steps out of her silent, unsociable role when Andrew shows interest in her as they walk to the cafeteria to get milk for lunch. Although she uses lies and deviant behavior to get Claire to confess her virginity, Allison provides wise observations that are contrary to her perceived role. For example, when the group is trying to coerce Claire into confessing her sexual activities, Allison notes, â€Å"It’s a double-edged sword, isn't it? If you have [had sex] you're a slut, and if you haven't you're a prude† (Hughes & Hughes, 1985).Allison also steps out of role by allowing Claire to give her a cosmetic makeover, after which she begins to court Andrew. Brian exhibits a change when it comes time to write the required detention essay. The group gives him authority to write their papers because his perception is most intelligent. Brian is more expressive and sociable when he asks the important question, â€Å"Come Monday, are we all friends? † (Hughes & Hughes, 1985). Before the detention session he would not have questioned the group because he was not confident enough to speak up.The group develops together by first occupying the same space for an extended amount of time. Because of a common enemy, Mister Vernon, they band together even though it is against the norm. An early indicator of group identity e merges in Bender's use of â€Å"we† as he asks, â€Å"Why don't we close that door? We can't have any party with Vernon checking us out. † (Hughes & Hughes, 1985). They begin to perform as a group after Bender removes the screw from the door leading to Vernon's office. The other students cover for him when Vernon comes back asking, â€Å"How did that door get shut? † (Hughes & Hughes, 1985).Self-disclosure further helps the development of the group. Bender gets Claire to self-disclose about her feelings toward her parents. Andrew turns and asks Bender to tell about his parents. This discussion is critical to the development because the group members begin to see the similarity of their struggles. It also helps them to identify with each other. When the group pressured Claire to confess her virginity, embarrassed she calls Allison â€Å"bizarre† for lying to force the confession. To which, Andrew replies, â€Å"We are all pretty bizarre. Some of us are be tter at hiding it, that's all.† This marks another point of similarity: they all protect their self-concepts by putting on faces in line with the expectations that others have for them. Andrew describes his struggle to live up to his father's athletic expectations and Bender tells of his father's abuse. Thus, two very different characters find common ground, typified by Bender's comment to Andrew: â€Å"I think my dad and your dad ought to get together and go bowling† (Hughes & Hughes, 1985). In a quotation that begins and ends the movie, Brian reads from an essay that the Breakfast Club writes to Mister Vernon: â€Å"You see us as you want to see us.In the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. You see us as a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess and a criminal. Correct? That's the way we saw each other at seven o'clock this morning. We were brainwashed. † (Hughes & Hughes, 1985). This quote demonstrates the cognitive development of the stud ents. They now realize their perception of each other because of the social stereotype and how they were wrong. As they band together to fight against mutual enemies–parents, peer pressure, authority figures, stereotypes, boredom–the Breakfast Club develops into a unified group.While nothing appears to alter the world’s view (or Vernon’s) of these five students, they learn to look past the stereotypes of each other. They empathize with each other’s' struggles, dismiss some of the inaccuracies of their first impressions, and discover that they are more similar than different. As they leave the detention session, their acceptance of each other becomes significant by Claire and Bender. They walk out of school arm in arm; she turns up her collar â€Å"punk style† and he dons one of her diamond earrings. Each student both takes from and gives to the members of the Breakfast Club.