Discussion - Stereotypes Essay Example for Free

Discussion Stereotypes Essay Although some people believe that they do not use stereotypes to describe people or even think of others differently, that is false. In this generation, stereotypes are everywhere and are almost impossible to not be affected by them. The true definition of the word ‘stereotype,’ is a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing. Stereotypes can be applied to just about anything; ranging from age, gender, media, social, racial, and even class. These are just a few areas that can be stereotyped. Regardless of what anyone says or tries to do, stereotypes are unavoidable; they are used to categorize just about everything and everyone. One of the most common stereotypes out there is about gender. Many people categorize gender and what they hear about the two different genders and then make judgments based on those things that they heard. For example, one major stereotype about women is that they are terrible drivers. Although this may be true in some cases, it does not mean that all women are terrible at driving. There is proof to this because there are some professional drivers that are women. Also, the stereotype that all men are tough, outgoing, macho men is not true. Maybe some men would like people to think that they are too tough to hurt, but this does not go for everyone. Another stereotype about women is that they are not good at sports, but in reality there are so many professional sports players out there that are women. Granted that not all women are good at sports, there are still so many out there that are great at sports. Also, the stereotype that men or women who spend too much time on their computers or reading books are geeks is just ridiculous. Sometimes people have a hard time fitting in with the real world so instead they like to spend time on the internet where they can easily fit in somewhere with other people easily. In order to fit in on the internet all you need is a couple clicks and you are there. Spending time on the internet doesn’t make anyone a geek regardless of the reason for going on to the internet so much. Another humorous stereotype about men is that all men are slobs. While this is true about many men, it is not true about all of them. Some men suffer from OCD, and will have to make everything they do perfect and neat, but others just do not like to be sloppy or slobs. Also, many people think that men are the slobs and women are the neat ones, but that is completely incorrect. There are so many women who are even bigger slobs than men and are completely fine with being a slob and it does not bug them one bit. Even though some of those stereotypes out there might be true for some people that does not mean that all stereotypes will be true for everyone. While it is true that gender has a pretty big role while dealing with stereotypes, society has an even bigger role. Within today’s society, just about everything has a certain stereotype, if not multiple stereotypes about it. Stereotypes are created towards music, grades, how one dresses, tattoos, piercings, and so much more. While music is one of the most important things to many people, others will change the way they think about someone based on what music they listen to. Some people will even avoid someone completely just because of the music that they choose to listen to. For example, a group of people who like to listen to rap music might avoid being with a person who enjoys jazz. Also, society deals with people having tattoos as such a negative thing; regardless of what the tattoo stands for or is about. Someone who might be saving lives as a doctor who has tattoos can be viewed as a negative person just for the fact that he or she has tattoos. This has to be one of the most unfair, ridiculous stereotypes that our society has come up with. What one person would like to make permanent on their own body should not matter to other people especially if it is not offensive in any way. Some people will get tattoos for loved ones who passed away, but somehow in other people’s eyes doing so is very wrong and the person should be judged as a negative human. Some people will even go as far as think of someone with tattoos as a criminal. As for piercings, it is almost the same way about tattoos, but there is some leeway with piercings. Society thinks it is alright for humans to get piercings, but once someone wants to make those piercings into gauges, everything about it is wrong. A gauge is simply a larger piercing. To make a gauge, one needs to get their ear pierced and then once it heals, they simply stretch the healed piercing making it a larger hole. Somehow this is also viewed negatively and therefore, people with gauges are viewed as bad people. It is actually harder to get a job for a person that has tattoos and gauges than a person without these, regardless of the intelligence of either person. Just about every company does not want to hire any ‘negatively viewed’ people to become their employees. It does not matter how smart the person can be; if the person has tattoos or gauges, most likely the company will hire someone else. This is not fair to anyone and it is all thanks to stereotypes made by society all about society. Although just about everyone hates some stereotypes, everyone uses them and makes more, it is beyond hypocritical, but everyone does it; which brings me to the comic strip. In the comic strip, a man is talking to his therapist about stereotypes and how he hates them, but in the way he is doing so, he is also making a stereotype of his own about people who make stereotypes. This goes to show that even if everyone wants to end stereotypes, it is just about impossible to completely end them. Stereotypes are just too common and easy to create more and more and spread across the world. Although gender and social are two big factors of stereotyping, the largest must be racial stereotyping. Not everyone wants to act in a rude way towards other races, but it is just unavoidable due to stereotypes. In the short video, â€Å"A class divided,† the teacher, Jane Elliot, dared to do something that could possibly end her career as a teacher. She decided to teach her kids about discrimination towards other races. In a class full of brown eyed and blue eyed white children she told her class that all the blue eyed children were better and more important than the other brown eyed children. This caused little chaos within the class, one blue eyed kid got in a fight with a brown eyed child because the brown eyed child was thought to be less important than the blue eyed child. This chaos in the class started within a day of starting this experiment. The next day Elliot did the same test, but instead of blue eyed children being the more important, this day was the brown eyed children. Although this was a very risky testing, the results stuck with the children for the rest of their lives. These children knew first hand just how bad it felt being picked on because of stereotypes. The movie Crash is known for the dramatic roles it plays with racial stereotyping and many other stereotypes. Just about the whole movie is continuously going on about different stereotypes and how it affects different people. For example, in the movie an Egyptian store clerk was robbed and on the walls the robbers wrote stereotypes against Arabians. This goes to show that many people can’t tell the difference between some cultures or races so they will just group them with some other race. Within the in-class discussion about the different races, there were different views on each of the races, but some people thought alike using stereotypes to think that way. Some races were thought of as negative stereotypes while other races had positive stereotypes. For example, while talking about Germany, the class thought of Hitler, beer, and Nazi. Two out of those three statements are negative; beer was the only non negative one that was said. While Germany was deemed negative, Australians were thought of as positive. The Australian list consisted of animals and accents, which both are positive. Finally, in the article, Stereotypes Simply Psychology, the author talks about different races and what some races thought of others. The study done showed that white Americans were seen as industrious, progressive and ambitious, while African Americans were seen as lazy, ignorant and musical. This just goes to show that just about all people think differently about all races, even if the thoughts could be way off or pin point on, stereotypes are included in everyday life. To sum everything up, there are some positive stereotypes, but there are even more negative stereotypes out there. There are labels dealing with just about everything one can think of, ranging from society to gender to age to even the media. Although stereotypes are mostly negative and bad for everyone, they also sometimes help us humans out. While thinking fast, humans use stereotyping to quickly categorize the object or human that they are thinking about. This automatic process of ours can be helpful, but it can also be harmful depending on how one chooses to use this quick ability. While stereotypes can truly be helpful, the vast majority of all people choose to use labels as a negative thing to put others down in a hurtful way. More and more stereotypes pop up each year, some more hurtful than the previous ones. Although these stereotypes are harmful, there is little to nothing that we as a society can do to get rid of them; they are everywhere and always being created. Works Cited A Class Divided. William Peters. Frontline, 1985. Film. McLeod, S. A. (2008). Stereotypes Simply Psychology. Retrieved from Meehan, K. Pros Cons. [Comic]. http://www. thecomicstrips. com/store/add. php? iid=83614.

The Temptation Of Jesus In Wilderness Theology Religion Essay

The Temptation Of Jesus In Wilderness Theology Religion Essay In my paper I will examine Lukes gospel about Jesus temptation in wilderness. First by applying Bakers Dictionary of Christian Ethics I will examine the meaning of the word temptation, and how its being used in bible. Second I will shortly explain nature of temptation and why it was unique. Third I will examine Mathews Gospel of Jesus temptation by applying Christopher Morse perspective and see how it could be applied to community that lived in first century. Fourth I will examine Jesus response to Devil and the message that Lukes was sending to a community through his gospel about Jesus temptation in wilderness. Fourth applying Encyclopedia of Religion (EOF) I will explain how temptation can be applied to modern community and how modern progress and economy changed the perception about temptation. Fifth I will expand on how temptation of modern community related to consumption. Finally I will compare how community that Matthew wrote for similar to the modern one, also I will explain how they different and why some values and principals cant be applied to modern community same way it was applied two thousand years ago. Meaning of the Temptation Before start studying the passage of the temptation of Jesus, we must understand the meaning of word temptation. Origin word temptation comes from translation of Greek peirà ¡zÃ…Â  which means test or temptation. Temptation is not simply good or bad; it is a word that according to Bakers dictionary of Christian ethics temptation is used differently in bible at least in four different ways. First its Enticement to Sin, often used in bible to describe Devils action such as testing human on their faithfulness to god by tempting them to do evil. In regards when one is tempted to do evil and put responsibility on God, James states in his gospel 1:13 according to which explains that blame for humans sin should become their own responsibility. Second is Man testing god, often people say god give a sign, or if there was a god he wont let my friend die, however in (Matt-. 4:6-7) it is clear that we shall no put god to test. Explanation to why one should not put god to test can be explai n by looking at Corinthians 10:9 where states whoever test God will be destroyed. Third way temptation occurs in bible it when God put people to the test. According to new dictionary of theology God test people on their fidelity for him. Expanding on Gods test to people one must see gods temptation is not a punishment, but the test, for one whom God wants to use for his own purposes (Deuteronomy 8:16.). Fourth and final variation temptation mention is the Overcoming Temptation or how one can avoid temptation to do sin. In Bakers Dictionary of Christian Ethics lays clear explanation that by overcoming temptation to sin once, person become more capable of doing it next time. Examination of details that Apply to Jesus temptation Before proceeding to the detailed analysis of the story of the temptation, it is necessary to examine the few following details. First Jesus used his human nature to resist the temptation this explain his hunger in desert. Second the nature of temptation is such that they could only come to the one who has a totally unique authority and power, 4:3 this should explain importance Jesus battle against devil. Third whoever reads this story must understand that Matthew used Q source to create this gospel. This explains the details Mathew know about what happened during Jesus temptation. Finally this gospel of Jesus temptation should always be approached with reverence, because it reveals Jesus recesses of his soul and his heart, and because, Mathew Gospel shows through despite the struggle Jesus was able to resist Devil. Temptation of Jesus Gospel temptation of Jesus starts in 4.1-4.2 where Mathew describes how Jesus was taken to wilderness by Spirit and tempted there by Devil for forty days, and had nothing to eat. According to Christopher Morse perspective that in this type of setting Jesus was definitely hungry, which he explained that just like hunger real temptation cant be turn off. Which might explain the point Luke was trying to deliver to Christians, just like our human nature that cant live without food same way it cant avoid temptation. In response to Lukes Gospel 4.3 Christopher Morse writes that Jesus being in situation where he is hungry worries more about his spiritual condition rather than physical. To answer the question why Jesus refuse to turn stones to loaf of bread when he fed five thousand people with five loaves of bread (Lk.9 :12-17) and four thousand with seven loaves (Mf.15 :32-38) one must understand that Jesus only used his miraculous power for salvation of others. Also it shows that Jesus ex perience same physical feeling, as would any other man by being in similar settings. Deuteronomy 8:3 Now lets examine why In Lukes gospel Jesus responded to devil using Deuteronomy 8:3, and what was the important lesson it had for Christians that lived during the time it was written. Importance of that respond can be explained in bible in few different ways. First because if one is always concentrate on his physical needs it might make him no different than animal. Second, one should always choose word of the god, because it is the only real treasure that can save peoples soul. Pursuing further lets see how temptation and hunger can be applied to modern community. Modern community and Temptation In order to understand how and why modern community might view Mathews Gospel of Jesus temptation differently first one must understand the settings humans live now. Certainly lifestyle, principles and values for modern humanity are different to the ones that Mathew wrote for; however temptation that people facing now still topical more than ever. Now lets examine modern humanity value, principles, settings and how in modern age, temptation becomes part of one everyday life. According to TEOC the term Temptation in todays human oriented terminology is being used deficiently. For instance TEOC argue that in modern parlance the term temptation refers as a, Temporary breakdown in orientation that either inner developmental process or external factors appear to make necessary. This can be explaining by applying observation that is discussed in EOR, it states that modern society create the culture where primary value of life is to have rather than to be. Further EOR explains that modern s ociety live in world where educational system based around the success, with a economic system that promotes consumption. This certainly explains why western culture relays on modern progress. Lets speculate and apply what we see is being built usually in the first place; it is not the hospital, not a nursing home, no orphanages but the factories that produce goods and giant stores that sell them. Important to note that before it gets sold or manufactured, Corporation using advertising techniques that often build around person temptation, which in many cases build around their own ego. Living in world where every human consider a consumer led to humanity for establishing their own consumer rights. Those rights elevated to the new morality of certain laws, I have a right to consume what I see. Companies consume people, and people consume everything around them. With this kind approach humans have the mentality where consumption is not a temptation it is a right. Indeed we live in world were temptation fueled by advertisement techniques keep growing expanding every day. However just like temptation, consumption is also expanding and growing, this quite intensive growth of consumption becoming a great opportunity for governments and Enterprises to expand their profits. Modern progress allow governments and enterprises to produce enough goods to satisfy consumption, however in order to do so it must have enough materials. Temptation on Global Level There is no doubt that modern progress brining new solutions to our lives but at what cost those solutions come. Through modern progress, western culture made possible to solve hunger issues by creating and using materials that would be consider two thousand years ago meaningless. TEOC argue that western world lifestyle, leads to constant predatory exploitation of Earth resources. Modern humanity must understand the price of living lifestyle that promotes predatory exploration f earth. That price is not only our environment, but well of all humans around the globe. This temptation that is measured on world level scale have another disadvantage it often exploits third world using them for cheap labor and materials. In this case poor developing world is being consumed by the temptation of the wealthy developed world. Applying four temptation perspectives to the western world. Conclusion Indeed humanities lifestyle has changed for past 2000, and the way humanity see and accepts things is different. Conclusion that can be drawn here is that even though the modern might understand the term temptation differently, the meaning of that stills the same. We as consumer generation have to realize that when our temptation have no physical limits, consumption indeed have one, and even more if it is unbalance it can destroy us. modern community still have the power of will, using to resist the temptation will bring not only spiritual, psychological peace but also financial.

Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) Essay -- Animal-Assisted Therapy Essays

For many humans, a pet provides unconditional love and affection. Others feel an overwhelming calming, happy feeling when they are around animals. According to The American Veterinary Medical Association, studies have shown that due to these positive emotions that are stirred, the presence of and interaction with animals can lower heart rates and blood pressure. Animals that meet specific training criteria can become an integral part of a treatment process for a variety of psychological and physiological problems. Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT), which can be provided in a group or individual settings, is designed to promote improvement in a human’s physical, social, emotional, or cognitive function. An article by Chitic, Rusu, and Szamoskozi (2012) provides an analysis in order to determine the value of AAT. Both dogs and horses that were trained for AAT were examined and studied to determine their effectiveness in treating patients with psychological disorders. The results showed that both therapy dogs and horses were valuable aids to the therapeutic process. The analysis suggests that proper training and repeated sessions were necessary for proper treatment of patients. In addition, certain disorders may benefit more than others in regards to AAT. For example, a child with ADHD may not benefit from a therapy dog’s presence, for it may worsen the hyperactive symptoms. On the other hand, a patient with depression may benefit greatly from the same animal (Chitic, Rusu, Szamoskozi, 2012). These findings are a perfect starting point to answering the research question: Do patients who engage in AAT display a betterment in their overall emotional well-being, as well as show improvement in their interpersonal interactions... ...dren with Pervasive Developmental Disorders." Western Journal of Nursing Research 24.6 (2002): 657-70. Print. Motomura, Naoyasu, Takayoshi Yagi, and Hitomi Ohyama. "Animal Assisted Therapy for People with Dementia." Psychogeriatrics 4.2 (2004): 40-42. Print. Tyberg, Amy, and William H. Frishman. "Chapter 6 - Animal-Assisted Therapy."Complementary and Integrative Medicine in Pain Management. By Michael I. Weintraub, Ravinder Mamtani, and Marc S. Micozzi. New York: Springer Pub., 2008. 115-24. Print. O’Conner-Von, Susan. "Chapter 14 - Animal-Assisted Therapy."Complementary & Alternative Therapies in Nursing. New York: Springer, 2010. 207-23. Print. Zilcha-Mano, Sigal, Mario Mikulincer, and Phillip R. Shaver. "Pet in the Therapy Room: An Attachment Perspective on Animal-Assisted Therapy." Attachment & Human Development 13.6 (2011): 541-61. Print.

Shakespeares Othello Essay - Honest Iago :: GCSE Coursework Shakespeare Othello

Othello - Honest Iago The most interesting and round character in the tragic play Othello, by William Shakespeare, is "honest" Iago. Through carefully though-out words and actions, Iago manipulates others to do things in which he benefits. Iago is the main driving force in "Othello," pushing several characters towards their tragic end. Iago is not a traditional villain for he plays a unique and complex role. Unlike most villains in tragic plays, evidence of Iago's deception is not clearly visible. Iago is smart and an excellent judge of people and their characters. He uses this keen sense of knowledge to his advantage. For example, Iago knows that Roderigo has feelings for Desdemona and assumes he would do anything to have her as his own. Iago attempts to manipulate Roderigo by saying: It cannot be that Desdemona should long continue her love to the Moor- put money in thy purse- nor he his to her: It is a violent commencement, and thou shalt see and answerable sequestration; put but money in thy purse. [Act I, Scene III]. By playing on Roderigo's hopes, Iago swindles money and jewels from Roderigo, making himself a substantial profit. Iago also says, "Thus do I ever make my fool my purse" [Act I, Scene III] once Roderigo has left. "Honest" Iago cleverly disguises his own goals as Roderigo blindly follows him. Iago continually operates with alterier motives in "Othello." Iago takes advantage of his friendships with Cassio as well as Roderigo. Cassio blindly follows Iago, thinking the entire time that Iago is trying to help him. During this whole time, Iago plans the demise of Cassio, his supposed friend. In order to obtain Cassio's position as lieutenant, Iago convinces Cassio to take another drink, knowing very well that it will make him drunk and disgrace him. Iago obviously tries to tarnish Cassio's   character when he says, "What, man! 'Tis a night of revels: the gallants desire it" [Act II, Scene III]. Iago is able to make Cassio defy his own reasoning and reluctantly take another drink. As a result of his devious scheming, Iago's achieves his goal and Othello terminates Cassio as his lieutenant. Iago successfully manipulates the people around him by building a trust, a trust in which all of Iago's victims believe to be an honest trust. The friendship and honesty Iago falsely imposes upon Othello makes it easy for Othello to never imagine the possibility that Iago has evil motives. Othello holds Iago as his close friend and advisor. He believes Iago to be a person, "of exceeding honesty, [who] knows all qualities,

Discuss How Art Can Be Used To Promote, Reflect Or Challenge :: essays research papers

Discuss how art can be used to reflect, promote, or challenge cultural beliefs. Art, throughout the times have reflected, promoted and challenged the cultural beliefs of many different societies. To reflect a culture or society the artwork must create or suggest a particular impression of that era. To promote the cultural beliefs of a society the artwork must encourage and support the beliefs. For the artwork to challenge the beliefs it must question tradition. Gislebertus and Michelangelo promote and reflected the society and religion in which they belonged whereas Kruger and Serrano reflected yet challenged their society and religion. Gislebertus was a "sculptor of genius" of the Romanesque period. His sculpture of the last Judgement in progress on the West Tympanum of St. Lazare, Autun, France in 1130, reflected and promoted the strong Christian beliefs of this society. This artwork is extremely detailed and reveals many Christian icons and symbols. In the middle of the artwork is Christ, who is the focus of the composition and on either side of him are devils and angles blowing their trumpets. The weighing of souls is depicted throughout the artwork and next to each scale, are angles and devils competing for each soul. Below Christ are the dead rising, one being "plucked" from the earth by giant hands. Here humanity’s pitiful weakness in revealed in these terror stricken people as the angles summon them to judgement. The devils have legs which end in sharp claws and lean from hell as they drag souls in and are accompanied by howling and roaring demons. Gislebertus’ sculpture was affective in influencing and inspiring the viewers of his artwork as he created a sense of terror and fear by revealing the awful consequences for the damned which encouraged the viewers to follow the Christian and as a result increased the power of the church. Gislebertus was commissioned to depict biblical stories as the majority of the population was illiterate and this was the only way which God’s message could be heard. Therefore, Gislebertus reflected the Christian dominated society and promoted the Christian religion. Michelangelo also reflects and promotes his Italian; Christian dominated culture and the religion itself through his artwork. Michelangelo’s fresco in the Sistine Chapel, Italy, was created between 1508 and 1512 and depicts the most solemn biblical story of the creation of man in the High Renaissance style. The large size of 18’18" X 9’22" reflects the grandness and power of the God and the church.

India vs Bharat Essay

Ancient Indians were not known to have a great sense of history. Historians have had to rely a lot on accounts by foreign travellers and foreign sources to reconstruct our history. And all such sources, including Megasethenes, Fa-hsien and many medieval Arab travellers, have uniformly found that Indians were remarkably law abiding and that crime was very rare. Most historians including A.L. Basham and recent writers like Abraham Eraly have treated such rosy accounts with suspicion merely because prescriptions in legal literature, largely comprising of the Smritis, reflected a more insecure and harsher society. This could either show that these foreign travellers were all fanciful in their writings on ancient India or that these ‘sacred’ texts played a very minimal role in governing the Hindu way of life. Apart from the absurdity of the suggestion that a traveller would lie in praise of a foreign land, the later scenario appears more probable because of another very interesting facet of ancient Hindu society- minimal State interference in the daily life of a citizen. Therefore there was no overarching government administering a code of laws or enforcing punishments to maintain law and order and prevent crimes. The codes of Manu, Katyayana or Narada were largely irrelevant to the common Hindu. There appears to have been a latent realisation that the State and its laws are inherently incapable of creating a crime-free society and the onus for this has to rest more locally; perhaps even on the individual. And it is this realisation that has to dawn in today’s India. The realisation that ’12000 plus police stations in some 7 lakh towns and villages cannot regulate over 110 crore people’. Prof. Werner Menski, in his seminal work on Hindu Law (Hindu Law: Beyond Tradition and Modernity, Oxford University Press, 2003), explains the Hindu view of dealing with crimes most accurately. He writes that despite the recognition of fall in human values from the golden period of early ages, law and punishment in the late classical period were never used to displace â€Å"self-control† as the primary social norm. He writes-†The conceptual expectation of self-controlled order in classical Hindu law would have empowered, in principle if not in practice, all Hindus to determine for  themselves, as individuals subject to the highest order, what they should be doing. A ruler’s claim to make what Hart called ‘primarily rules’ could never have developed in such a conceptual climate, since in the classical Hindu systems such basic rules were to be cultivated in the social sphere and should then be implemented locally and individually in self-controlled fa shion.† It would be quite wrong to assume that the traditional, classical reliance on individual and situational self-control was completely abandoned†¦threats of punishment of are not purely secular†¦as most legal commentators have assumed†¦transgressions of Dharma are also seen as sins, which require penance and/ or attract posthumous consequences.† (Emphasis supplied) Therefore, the recognition that the primary onus of adhering to Dharma is on the individual naturally meant that external/ societal interventions in the form of laws and punishments were superfluous in creating a crime-free society. The emphasis instead was on encouraging a Dharmic conscience among citizens. Prof. Menski explains the current relevance of this idea- â€Å"In this regard it is instructive to refer to the Dowry Prohibition Act of 1961 which is widely seen as an example of the futile attempts by the state law to abolish socio-legal practices in Indian society†¦disgusted with the horrible stalemate over thousands of dowry deaths every year, some women activists began to call for a moral reappraisal. Yet, does this mean that the wheel of history should in fact be turned be back to Asoka’s idealism? Postmodernist analysis recognises (albeit with some reluctance) that the old Hindu concepts of ‘examining one’s conscience’ (atmanastuti) and ‘model behaviour’ (Sadacara) retain their relevance today. While some modernist commentators have tremendous difficulty with this kind of approach, it cannot be just dismissed out of hand.† What is needed in India today is a moral reappraisal on Dharmik lines. We Indians have come to imbibe amorality. In the western conception of  Individual freedom and liberty, morality is a shackle. A variety of western thinkers including Nietzsche, Freud, Foucault, Marx joined cause in attacking allegiance to ‘morality’ as something that thwarts individual flourishing or sustains certain unequal socio-economic relations. We have subconsciously adapted this attitude of amorality as a natural concomitant of individual freedom or free market; without realising that unlike western morality which was fostered and sustained by the Church and the State Bharatiyamorality is individual-centric and freedom-enabling. It is also important to emphasise, especially in the current context, that our morality is entirely gender-neutral. A Dharmik society or Bharat will render most kinds of activism that we have seen after the Delhi gang rape, especially the feminist variety, redundant. India unfortunately has forgotten to teach its children Dharmic morality. The only moralities we have come to follow are freedom and success. Today we stand in awe of a man from Gujarat who built a great business empire apparently through unethical and morally-suspect means; all in the name of his success. Seven centuries ago Marco Polo stood in awe of a different kind of Gujarati business men- the ordinary merchants of Lata who according to the Venetial traveller â€Å"are among the best and most trustworthy merchants in the world; for nothing on earth would they tell a lie and all that they say is true.† Isn’t this an example of the difference between India and Bharat?

Balancing Family & Work Life Essay

I. Introduction A. Thesis Statement Attending school as an adult, and maintaining a source of employment can be a daunting task, as many adults who had to delay their college education must know. One of the most challenging aspects of adult life consists of learning how to adjust accordingly to the rigors of life at home as well as the workplace. Failure to do so can lead to a life of complete disarray, stress, illness and exhaustion. II. Body Paragraph #1 – Topic Sentence #1 Traditionally the typical age group for freshmen in college was between 18 to 19 years of age. That reality has slowly changed as more young adults are finding their way back in the classroom, while holding down a job. The information I found in P.14 of the ebrary book: Families and Work: New Directions in the Twenty-First Century, by Fredriksen-Goldsen, Karen I. states: â€Å"Of the more than 69 million American parents with children under the age of 18 (Famighetti, 1998), almost 90 percent are employed (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1998).† At the same time, there are working professionals attempting to achieve a college education in order to refine their skills, or to gain new ones. Among those working adults, young couples typically tend to have a harder time with managing the broad aspects of life, especially those who are in the early stages of their relationship, which has the potential to result in a lot of growing pains. A. Supporting evidence The information found in an article from the following website; http://pods.dasnr.okstate.edu/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-2421/T-2233web.pdf states: â€Å"Family and work settings have a built-in potential for conflict. Adults may get overwhelmed with the excessive demands that are required of them from either end of the spectrum, leaving them with the feeling of having very little time to accomplish those tasks.† Finding a balance between work and home involves finding ways of accomplishing the tasks at home as well as duties at work. Those responsibilities are often shared among couples in a healthy relationship. The equality of the shared house  chores, however, is up or debate. It has long been stated that the task of maintaining the home primarily fell on the woman’s shoulders, while the man focuses mainly on duties in the workplace. For some married couples, trying to get their husband to help with the housework typically led to domestic disputes. In recent years however, men have been getting more involved with parenting than ever before. A passage from (Giraffe 2011) states: â€Å"The recession of 2008 contributed to this arrangement because increased unemployment left more fathers available to care for their children and the reduced family income made outside childcare services unaffordable.† The traditional view of the American household should change because of an increase in the number of two-parent families entering the labor force. One of the primary services built around that change in society is the daycare system. Many of those two-parent families, as well as single parents may not have direct support from their families to take care of the children while they’re away at work. While some of the household work, such as childcare and housekeeping, has transitioned to outside providers, many working mothers cannot afford to employ these services (Giraffe, 2011). Unfortunately a big portion of their income goes to high daycare fees. III. Body Paragraph #2 – Topic Sentence #2 When the constants demands of life are far too much to bear, employees tend to feel the need to escape, and seek an alternate reality. We must look at the adverse effects that those long work hours have on the human body. Overworked individuals can suffer from work related illnesses as a result of excessive stress. Work related stress can result from extended hours due to mandatory overtime in some case. An employer’s rigid work hours which can prevent employees from tending to occasional issues at home can also be blamed for stress on the job. Employees suffering the effects of stress in the workplace tend to have bouts of absenteeism. A. Supporting evidence Absenteeism in the workplace is a major issue, with tangible and intangible costs. Although the absentee loses wages in the process, the major loss is at the expense of the employer. The ebrary book by Lynn  Tylczak, (Attacking absenteeism 1990), describes the intangible costs of absenteeism as follows: â€Å"Absentee costs are difficult to quantify. Experts estimate direct wage loses of more than $30 billion per year, and that’s just the beginning. Employers also need to consider the costs of supplementary or replacement workers. These costs include: Regular wages, overtime wages, and company benefits Supplementary benefits, such as Social Security, worker’s compensation, and unemployment compensation Administration of recruitment, selection orientation, and training Penalty costs resulting from delays.† The author (Lynn T. 1990) also gives the following explanation from the tangible cost of absenteeism: â€Å"It forces managers to deal with problems of morale, discipline, job dissatisfaction, job stress, team spirit, productivity, turnover, production quality, additional administration and overhead.† Many employers have become more cognizant of the disastrous effects of having stressful employees in the workplace. This is not only calculated in monetary losses based on productivity, but also in the valuable asset (the employee) which could potentially offset those losses. IV. Body Paragraph #3 Topic sentence # 3 Those who value their time with their families certainly appreciate the value of being away from work. This is particularly why a lot of us look forward to our vacation time. It us the opportunity to recharge our batteries and gives us the courage to return to our regular lives. Many employers have adapted to the changes in society by implementing new ways for employees to earn vacation time from work. A. Supporting evidence While some of us are comfortable being â€Å"working stiffs†, most people would rather look forward to their time away from work. An ebrary book by ANDERSON, NELS titled Work and Leisure states: â€Å"Although leisure reflects and supplements work, it is also used as a release from work. Some are of the view that unless a man has worked he cannot really enjoy leisure. They hold that while a man is working to earn a wage or salary, he also ‘earns’ leisure.† It is absolutely true that in order to fully enjoy our vacation time, we must work hard for it. That time of leisure can then be considered our reward for achieving the demands required of us in the workplace. Those who properly plan their vacation can benefit from sights  rarely seen in everyday life. Most people find it more beneficial to take their vacation in some exotic location. The topic on how to enjoy a proper vacation will vary from one employee to the next. V. Body Paragraph #4 Topic sentence # 4 Employers have devised lots of ways to keep valuable talent within their workforce, while allowing them time to accomplish their house work. Those arrangements can be profitable to the employer as well as the employee in some cases. Some of the sensible ways employers provide to employees are flextime, teleworking, and employee incentive just to name a few. A. Supporting evidence Flextime is highly valuable to employees because it allows them to have more control over the balancing act of work and home life. It also provides them the option of choosing when to complete their work. Flextime allows employees to handle personal business such as doctor appointments or school functions without having to take sick leave or vacation time. Employers’ personnel needs are met and they get employees at their best. In highly skilled positions where competition for employees is fierce and employee turnover costly, flexible schedules can also reduce attrition by making employees more content with their jobs (Giraffe, 2011). Teleworking provides some lucky employees the opportunity to work remotely. With this system employees can either work from home or in some shared work spaces. In most cases employees would prefer to work from home because it is the ideal place to work from. This reduces the work commute, and the amount stress to the employee. It takes an especially disciplined employee to work from home, because of the constant distractions from home can cause the employee’s work performance to suffer. Employers must be careful when considering the type of employees they provide that opportunity to. Through teleworking, some employees do get to achieve balance between family and work life.