Human Resources Final Project Essay

The role of the HR Department of the Department of Human Services (DHS) is to handle all aspects of employee relations. The areas it covers are Recruiting and Selection, Training and Development, Performance Management, Employee Discipline, Compensation and Benefits and Labor Relations. Each of these areas is vital to the effective operation of the company as a whole. Although each area is outlined in detail, there is still room for improvement in each. The Recruiting and Selection process at the Department of Human Services (DHS) is a fairly simple one. The requirements for the applicants are not strenuous; thereby allowing a wide range of applicants to be considered for the positions. It is recommended that a personality test be given to each applicant in order to gage their ability to handle the many different scenarios they will encounter while employed at DHS. A prerequisite for applying should be that the applicant has worked in an environment which required handling stressful situations. The Training and Development process at DHS consists of both Internal and External training methods. One such external method requires the new hire to travel to the corporate headquarters in Atlanta, GA. This training lasts for two weeks and requires the applicant to stay nightly at that location to complete the training. A suggested change to that training would be that it is held locally for those new hires that may not be able to travel for such long periods of time due to family obligations, such as having small children. As far as the internal training is concerned, the coaching portion done one on one with the new hire should be extended well after the training process has ended. This will ensure that the employee is still understanding his or her job duties and performing them accordingly. The Performance Management aspect of DHS is one in which the employees are evaluated yearly to measure their success in their position on an individual and team level. Each employee is measured according to his or her  position’s requirements and job duties. A beneficial change to this process would be to review each section of the evaluation form with the employee well in advance of their evaluation date. This will give the employee a heads up on the areas within their job that they need to focus one and the goals they need to achieve before their yearly evaluation time arrives. The Employee Discipline process at DHS serves to ensure that employees are receiving corrective action whenever a workplace infraction occurs. The employee can receive either an oral or written disciplinary action depending on the severity and frequency of the offense. Employees are given feedback on how to correct their action after the offense occurs. However, there are times when an employee is not given the proper follow up and feedback after an infraction occurs. This can in turn cause the employee to commit the offense again and make the disciplinary action process go to the next level. DHS should make sure proper follow up is done on a regular basis to ensure the education and growth of the employee. The Compensation and Benefits packages offered at DHS are designed to help make the company a competitive one. Salaries are paid on a bi-monthly basis on the 15th and last day of each month. Employees are given the option to add healthcare benefits, sign up for 401k or flexible spending accounts. There aren’t many incentives offered at DHS. One such incentive which could be offered is rewarding employees based on their monthly performance individually and as a team. This would assist with keeping employee morale high and giving them something to strive for. Also, the starting salary should be increased in order to keep the job a competitive one on the job market. Potential employees are attracted to a nice salary as well company incentives. It is essential for DHS to maintain strong and positive Labor Relations between employees and management. The employee should always feel as if they have the help and support of their management team. Communication between the two must be maintained at all times so that issues and concerns can be addressed effectively. One way for DHS to improve these relationships is for there to be more interaction between the employees and management in a non-working environment. This can be accomplished by  establishing company sporting leagues or having company picnics. The HR Department of DHS is the chief factor which ensures that the company is run smoothly and efficiently. Each functional area has a particular job to accomplish. It is important that each area be explored thoroughly to determine if each is accomplishing the tasks it has been given to handle. Implementing a few changes in each area will help to take the HR department to the next level. References Smith, A. E. (n.d.) What are furlough days? Retrieved on October 27, 2012 from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-furlough-days.htm Recruitment (n.d.) retrieved on October 27, 2012 from http://www.ohrmd.dhr.georgia.gov/portal/site/DHS-OHRMD/menuitem.a90032b0182b9d5171f585c4da1010a0/?vgnextoid=bc80e250e1522310VgnVCM100000bf01010aRCRD People Management-Recruitment Methods (n.d.) retrieved on October 30, 2012 from http://www.tutor2u.net/business/gcse/people_recruitment_methods.htm Heathfield, Susan, M. (n.d.) Hiring Freeze Retrieved on October 30, 2012 from http://humanresources.about.com/od/glossaryh/g/hiring_freeze.htm Temporary Worker (n.d.) retrieved on October 30, 2012 from http://education.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/entry/tempwkr Selection (n.d.) retrieved on October 30, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/0402.pdf Employee Orientation (n.d.) retrieved on November 3, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/0501.pdf Marti (April 6, 2010) Human Resources: Informal vs Systematic Appraisal retrieved on November 7, 2012 from http://bloghresources.blogspot.com/2010/04/informal-vs-systematic-appraisal.html Performance Management (n.d.) retrieved on November 8, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/0701.pdf Disciplinary/Dismassal Actions-Classified Employees (n.d.) retrieved on November 16, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/1601.pdf Drug Free Workplace (n.d.) retrieved on November 16, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/1301.pdf Grievance Procedures for Employees (n.d.) retrieved on November 17, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/1501.pdf Noe, R. A., Hollenbeck, J. R., Gerhart, B., & Wright, P. M., (2011) Fundamental of Human Resource Management: Giving Performance Feedback (4th ed.) New York, New York: McGraw-Hill and Irwin Culpepper and Associates (November 24, 2010) Salary Structures: Creating Competitive and Equitable Pay Levels Retrieved on November 30, 2012 from http://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/compensation/Articles/Pages/SalaryStructures.aspx Calculation of Salary Payments (n.d.) Retrieved on November30, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/0801.pdf Salary Adjustments (n.d.) Retrieved on December 1, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/0802.PDF Eligibility of Benefits (n.d.) Retrieved on December 1, 2012 from http://www.odis.dhr.state.ga.us/1000_adm/1300_ohrmd/MANUAL/0901.pdf

Chapter 7 Bagman and Crouch

Harry disentangled himself from Ron and got to his feet. They had arrived on what appeared to be a deserted stretch of misty moor. In front of them was a pair of tired and grumpy-looking wizards, one of whom was holding a large gold watch, the other a thick roll of parchment and a quill. Both were dressed as Muggles, though very inexpertly: The man with the watch wore a tweed suit with thigh-length galoshes; his colleague, a kilt and a poncho. â€Å"Morning, Basil,† said Mr. Weasley, picking up the boot and handing it to the kilted wizard, who threw it into a large box of used Portkeys beside him; Harry could see an old newspaper, an empty drinks can, and a punctured football. â€Å"Hello there, Arthur,† said Basil wearily. â€Å"Not on duty, eh? It's all right for some†¦.We've been here all night†¦.You'd better get out of the way, we've got a big party coming in from the Black Forest at five fifteen. Hang on, I'll find your campsite†¦.Weasley†¦Weasley†¦.† He consulted his parchment list. â€Å"About a quarter of a mile's walk over there, first field you come to. Site manager's called Mr. Roberts. Diggory†¦second field†¦ask for Mr. Payne.† â€Å"Thanks, Basil,† said Mr. Weasley, and he beckoned everyone to follow him. They set off across the deserted moor, unable to make out much through the mist. After about twenty minutes, a small stone cottage next to a gate swam into view. Beyond it, Harry could just make out the ghostly shapes of hundreds and hundreds of tents, rising up the gentle slope of a large field toward a dark wood on the horizon. They said good-bye to the Diggory's and approached the cottage door. A man was standing in the doorway, looking out at the tents. Harry knew at a glance that this was the only real Muggle for several acres. When he heard their footsteps, he turned his head to look at them. â€Å"Morning!† said Mr. Weasley brightly. â€Å"Morning,† said the Muggle. â€Å"Would you be Mr. Roberts?† â€Å"Aye, I would,† said Mr. Roberts. â€Å"And who're you?† â€Å"Weasley – two tents, booked a couple of days ago?† â€Å"Aye,† said Mr. Roberts, consulting a list tacked to the door. â€Å"You've got a space up by the wood there. Just the one night?† â€Å"That's it,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"You'll be paying now, then?† said Mr. Roberts. â€Å"Ah – right – certainly -† said Mr. Weasley. He retreated a short distance from the cottage and beckoned Harry toward him. â€Å"Help me, Harry,† he muttered, pulling a roll of Muggle money from his pocket and starting to peel the notes apart. â€Å"This one's a – a – a ten? Ah yes, I see the little number on it now†¦So this is a five?† â€Å"A twenty,† Harry corrected him in an undertone, uncomfortably aware of Mr. Roberts trying to catch every word. â€Å"Ah yes, so it is†¦.I don't know, these little bits of paper†¦Ã¢â‚¬  â€Å"You foreign?† said Mr. Roberts as Mr. Weasley returned with the correct notes. â€Å"Foreign?† repeated Mr. Weasley, puzzled. â€Å"You're not the first one who's had trouble with money,† said Mr. Roberts, scrutinizing Mr. Weasley closely. â€Å"I had two try and pay me with great gold coins the size of hubcaps ten minutes ago.† â€Å"Did you really?† said Mr. Weasley nervously. Mr. Roberts rummaged around in a tin for some change. â€Å"Never been this crowded,† he said suddenly, looking out over the misty field again. â€Å"Hundreds of pre-bookings. People usually just turn up†¦.† â€Å"Is that right?† said Mr. Weasley, his hand held out for his change, but Mr. Roberts didn't give it to him. â€Å"Aye,† he said thoughtfully. â€Å"People from all over. Loads of foreigners. And not just foreigners. Weirdos, you know? There's a bloke walking 'round in a kilt and a poncho.† â€Å"Shouldn't he?† said Mr. Weasley anxiously. â€Å"It's like some sort of†¦I dunno†¦like some sort of rally,† said Mr. Roberts. â€Å"They all seem to know each other. Like a big party.† At that moment, a wizard in plus-fours appeared out of thin air next to Mr. Roberts's front door. â€Å"Obliviate!† he said sharply, pointing his wand at Mr. Roberts. Instantly, Mr. Roberts's eyes slid out of focus, his brows unknitted, and a took of dreamy unconcern fell over his face. Harry recognized the symptoms of one who had just had his memory modified. â€Å"A map of the campsite for you,† Mr. Roberts said placidly to Mr. Weasley. â€Å"And your change.† â€Å"Thanks very much,† said Mr. Weasley. The wizard in plus-fours accompanied them toward the gate to the campsite. He looked exhausted: His chin was blue with stubble and there were deep purple shadows under his eyes. Once out of earshot of Mr. Roberts, he muttered to Mr. Weasley, â€Å"Been having a lot of trouble with him. Needs a Memory Charm ten times a day to keep him happy. And Ludo Bagman's not helping. Trotting around talking about Bludgers and Quaffles at the top of his voice, not a worry about anti-Muggle security Blimey, I'll be glad when this is over. See you later, Arthur.† He Disapparated. â€Å"I thought Mr. Bagman was Head of Magical Games and Sports,† said Ginny, looking surprised. â€Å"He should know better than to talk about Bludgers near Muggles, shouldn't he?† â€Å"He should,† said Mr. Weasley, smiling, and leading them through the gates into the campsite, â€Å"but Ludo's always been a bit†¦well†¦lax about security. You couldn't wish for a more enthusiastic head of the sports department though. He played Quidditch for England himself, you know. And he was the best Beater the Wimbourne Wasps ever had.† They trudged up the misty field between long rows of tents. Most looked almost ordinary; their owners had clearly tried to make them as Muggle-like as possible, but had slipped up by adding chimneys, or bellpulls, or weather vanes. However, here and there was a tent so obviously magical that Harry could hardly be surprised that Mr. Roberts was getting suspicious. Halfway up the field stood an extravagant confection of striped silk like a miniature palace, with several live peacocks tethered at the entrance. A little farther on they passed a tent that had three floors and several turrets; and a short way beyond that was a tent that had a front garden attached, complete with birdbath, sundial, and fountain. â€Å"Always the same,† said Mr. Weasley, smiling. â€Å"We can't resist showing off when we get together. Ah, here we are, look, this is us.† They had reached the very edge of the wood at the top of the field, and here was an empty space, with a small sign hammered into the ground that read WEEZLY. â€Å"Couldn't have a better spot!† said Mr. Weasley happily. â€Å"The field is just on the other side of the wood there, we're as close as we could be.† He hoisted his backpack from his shoulders. â€Å"Right,† he said excitedly, â€Å"no magic allowed, strictly speaking, not when we're out in these numbers on Muggle land. We'll be putting these tents up by hand! Shouldn't be too difficult†¦.Muggles do it all the time†¦.Here, Harry, where do you reckon we should start?† Harry had never been camping in his life; the Dursleys had never taken him on any kind of holiday, preferring to leave him with Mrs. Figg, an old neighbor. However, he and Hermione worked out where most of the poles and pegs should go, and though Mr. Weasley was more of a hindrance than a help, because he got thoroughly overexcited when it came to using the mallet, they finally managed to erect a pair of shabby two-man tents. All of them stood back to admire their handiwork. Nobody looking at these tents would guess they belonged to wizards, Harry thought, but the trouble was that once Bill, Charlie, and Percy arrived, they would be a party of ten. Hermione seemed to have spotted this problem too; she gave Harry a quizzical look as Mr. Weasley dropped to his hands and knees and entered the first tent. â€Å"We'll be a bit cramped,† he called, â€Å"but I think we'll all squeeze in. Come and have a look.† Harry bent down, ducked under the tent flap, and felt his jaw drop. He had walked into what looked like an old-fashioned, three room flat, complete with bathroom and kitchen. Oddly enough, it was furnished in exactly the same sort of style as Mrs. Figg's house: There were crocheted covers on the mismatched chairs and a strong smell of cats. â€Å"Well, it's not for long,† said Mr. Weasley, mopping his bald patch with a handkerchief and peering in at the four bunk beds that stood in the bedroom. I borrowed this from Perkins at the office. Doesn't camp much anymore, poor fellow, he's got lumbago.† He picked up the dusty kettle and peered inside it. â€Å"We'll need water†¦.† â€Å"There's a tap marked on this map the Muggle gave us,† said Ron, who had followed Harry inside the tent and seemed completely unimpressed by its extraordinary inner proportions. â€Å"It's on the other side of the field.† â€Å"Well, why don't you, Harry, and Hermione go and get us some water then -† Mr. Weasley handed over the kettle and a couple of saucepans â€Å"- and the rest of us will get some wood for a fire?† â€Å"But we've got an oven,† said Ron. â€Å"Why can't we just -â€Å" â€Å"Ron, anti-Muggle security!† said Mr. Weasley, his face shining with anticipation. â€Å"When real Muggles camp, they cook on fires outdoors. I've seen them at it!† After a quick tour of the girls' tent, which was slightly smaller than the boys', though without the smell of cats, Harry, Ron, and Hermione set off across the campsite with the kettle and saucepans. Now, with the sun newly risen and the mist lifting, they could see the city of tents that stretched in every direction. They made their way slowly through the rows, staring eagerly around. It was only just dawning on Harry how many witches and wizards there must be in the world; he had never really thought much about those in other countries. Their fellow campers were starting to wake up. First to stir were the families with small children; Harry had never seen witches and wizards this young before. A tiny boy no older than two was crouched outside a large pyramid-shaped tent, holding a wand and poking happily at a slug in the grass, which was swelling slowly to the size of a salami. As they drew level with him, his mother came hurrying out of the tent. â€Å"How many times, Kevin? You don't – touch – Daddy's – wand – yecchh!† She had trodden on the giant slug, which burst. Her scolding carried after them on the still air, mingling with the little boy's yells â€Å"You bust slug! You bust slug!† A short way farther on, they saw two little witches, barely older than Kevin, who were riding toy broomsticks that rose only high enough for the girls' toes to skim the dewy grass. A Ministry wizard had already spotted them; as he hurried past Harry, Ron, and Hermione he muttered distractedly, â€Å"In broad daylight! Parents having a lie-in, I suppose -â€Å" Here and there adult wizards and witches were emerging from their tents and starting to cook breakfast. Some, with furtive looks around them, conjured fires with their wands; others were striking matches with dubious looks on their faces, as though sure this couldn't work. Three African wizards sat in serious conversation, all of them wearing long white robes and roasting what looked like a rabbit on a bright purple fire, while a group of middle-aged American witches sat gossiping happily beneath a spangled banner stretched between their tents that read: THE SALEM WITCHES' INSTITUTE. Harry caught snatches of conversation in strange languages from the inside of tents they passed, and though he couldn't understand a word, the tone of every single voice was excited. â€Å"Er – is it my eyes, or has everything gone green?† said Ron. It wasn't just Ron's eyes. They had walked into a patch of tents that were all covered with a thick growth of shamrocks, so that it looked as though small, oddly shaped hillocks had sprouted out of the earth. Grinning faces could be seen under those that had their flaps open. Then, from behind them, they heard their names. â€Å"Harry! Ron! Hermione!† It was Seamus Finnigan, their fellow Gryffindor fourth year. He was sitting in front of his own shamrock-covered tent, with a sandy-haired woman who had to be his mother, and his best friend, Dean Thomas, also of Gryffindor. â€Å"Like the decorations?† said Seamus, grinning. â€Å"The Ministry's not too happy.† â€Å"Ah, why shouldn't we show our colors?† said Mrs. Finnigan. â€Å"You should see what the Bulgarians have got dangling all over their tents. You'll be supporting Ireland, of course?† she added, eyeing Harry, Ron, and Hermione beadily. When they had assured her that they were indeed supporting Ireland, they set off again, though, as Ron said, â€Å"Like we'd say anything else surrounded by that lot.† â€Å"I wonder what the Bulgarians have got dangling all over their tents?† said Hermione. â€Å"Let's go and have a look,† said Harry, pointing to a large patch of tents upfield, where the Bulgarian flag – white, green, and red – was fluttering in the breeze. The tents here had not been bedecked with plant life, but each and every one of them had the same poster attached to it, a poster of a very surly face with heavy black eyebrows. The picture was, of course, moving, but all it did was blink and scowl. â€Å"Krum,† said Ron quietly. â€Å"What?† said Hermione. â€Å"Krum!† said Ron. â€Å"Viktor Krum, the Bulgarian Seeker!† â€Å"He looks really grumpy,† said Hermione, looking around at the many Krum's blinking and scowling at them. â€Å"‘Really grumpy?† Ron raised his eyes to the heavens. â€Å"Who cares what he looks like? He's unbelievable. He's really young too. Only just eighteen or something. He's a genius, you wait until tonight, you'll see.† There was already a small queue for the tap in the corner of the field. Harry, Ron, and Hermione joined it, right behind a pair of men who were having a heated argument. One of them was a very old wizard who was wearing a long flowery nightgown. The other was clearly a Ministry wizard; he was holding out a pair of pinstriped trousers and almost crying with exasperation. â€Å"Just put them on, Archie, there's a good chap. You can't walk around like that, the Muggle at the gate's already getting suspicious -â€Å" â€Å"I bought this in a Muggle shop,† said the old wizard stubbornly. â€Å"Muggles wear them.† â€Å"Muggle women wear them, Archie, not the men, they wear these,† said the Ministry wizard, and he brandished the pinstriped trousers. â€Å"I'm not putting them on,† said old Archie in indignation. â€Å"I like a healthy breeze 'round my privates, thanks.† Hermione was overcome with such a strong fit of the giggles at this point that she had to duck out of the queue and only returned when Archie had collected his water and moved away. Walking more slowly now, because of the weight of the water, they made their way back through the campsite. Here and there, they saw more familiar faces: other Hogwarts students with their families. Oliver Wood, the old captain of Harry's House Quidditch team, who had just left Hogwarts, dragged Harry over to his parents' tent to introduce him, and told him excitedly that he had just been signed to the Puddlemere United reserve team. Next they were hailed by Ernie Macmillan, a Hufflepuff fourth year, and a little farther on they saw Cho Chang, a very pretty girl who played Seeker on the Ravenclaw team. She waved and smiled at Harry, who slopped quite a lot of water down his front as he waved back. More to stop Ron from smirking than anything, Harry hurriedly pointed out a large group of teenagers whom he had never seen before. â€Å"Who d'you reckon they are?† he said. â€Å"They don't go to Hogwarts, do they?† â€Å"‘Spect they go to some foreign school,† said Ron. â€Å"I know there are others. Never met anyone who went to one, though. Bill had a penfriend at a school in Brazil†¦this was years and years ago†¦and he wanted to go on an exchange trip but Mum and Dad couldn't afford it. His penfriend got all offended when he said he wasn't going and sent him a cursed hat. It made his ears shrivel up.† Harry laughed but didn't voice the amazement he felt at hearing about other wizarding schools. He supposed, now that he saw representatives of so many nationalities in the campsite, that he had been stupid never to realize that Hogwarts couldn't be the only one. He glanced at Hermione, who looked utterly unsurprised by the information. No doubt she had run across the news about other wizarding schools in some book or other. â€Å"You've been ages,† said George when they finally got back to the Weasleys' tents. â€Å"Met a few people,† said Ron, setting the water down. â€Å"You've not got that fire started yet?† â€Å"Dad's having fun with the matches,† said Fred. Mr. Weasley was having no success at all in lighting the fire, but it wasn't for lack of trying. Splintered matches littered the ground around him, but he looked as though he was having the time of his life. â€Å"Oops!† he said as he managed to light a match and promptly dropped it in surprise. â€Å"Come here, Mr. Weasley,† said Hermione kindly, taking the box from him, and showing him how to do it properly. At last they got the fire lit, though it was at least another hour before it was hot enough to cook anything. There was plenty to watch while they waited, however. Their tent seemed to be pitched right alongside a kind of thoroughfare to the field, and Ministry members kept hurrying up and down it, greeting Mr. Weasley cordially as they passed. Mr. Weasley kept up a running commentary, mainly for Harry's and Hermione's benefit; his own children knew too much about the Ministry to be greatly interested. â€Å"That was Cuthbert Mockridge, Head of the Goblin Liaison Office†¦.Here comes Gilbert Wimple; he's with the Committee on Experimental Charms; he's had those horns for a while now†¦Hello, Arnie†¦Arnold Peasegood, he's an Obliviator – member of the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad, you know†¦and that's Bode and Croaker†¦they're Unspeakables†¦.† â€Å"They're what?† â€Å"From the Department of Mysteries, top secret, no idea what they get up to†¦.† At last, the fire was ready, and they had just started cooking eggs and sausages when Bill, Charlie, and Percy came strolling out of the woods toward them. â€Å"Just Apparated, Dad,† said Percy loudly. â€Å"Ah, excellent, lunch!† They were halfway through their plates of eggs and sausages when Mr. Weasley jumped to his feet, waving and grinning at a man who was striding toward them. â€Å"Aha!† he said. â€Å"The man of the moment! Ludo!† Ludo Bagman was easily the most noticeable person Harry had seen so far, even including old Archie in his flowered nightdress. He was wearing long Quidditch robes in thick horizontal stripes of bright yellow and black. An enormous picture of a wasp was splashed across his chest. He had the look of a powerfully built man gone slightly to seed; the robes were stretched tightly across a large belly he surely had not had in the days when he had played Quidditch for England. His nose was squashed (probably broken by a stray Bludger, Harry thought), but his round blue eyes, short blond hair, and rosy complexion made him look like a very overgrown schoolboy. â€Å"Ahoy there!† Bagman called happily. He was walking as though he had springs attached to the balls of his feet and was plainly in a state of wild excitement. â€Å"Arthur, old man,† he puffed as he reached the campfire, â€Å"what a day, eh? What a day! Could we have asked for more perfect weather? A cloudless night coming†¦and hardly a hiccough in the arrangements†¦.Not much for me to do!† Behind him, a group of haggard-looking Ministry wizards rushed past, pointing at the distant evidence of some sort of a magical fire that was sending violet sparks twenty feet into the air. Percy hurried forward with his hand outstretched. Apparently his disapproval of the way Ludo Bagman ran his department did not prevent him from wanting to make a good impression. â€Å"Ah – yes,† said Mr. Weasley, grinning, â€Å"this is my son Percy. He's just started at the Ministry – and this is Fred – no, George, sorry – that's Fred – Bill, Charlie, Ron – my daughter, Ginny and Ron's friends, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter.† Bagman did the smallest of double takes when he heard Harry's name, and his eyes performed the familiar flick upward to the scar on Harry's forehead. â€Å"Everyone,† Mr. Weasley continued, â€Å"this is Ludo Bagman, you know who he is, it's thanks to him we've got such good tickets -â€Å" Bagman beamed and waved his hand as if to say it had been nothing. â€Å"Fancy a flutter on the match, Arthur?† he said eagerly, jingling what seemed to be a large amount of gold in the pockets of his yellow-and-black robes. â€Å"I've already got Roddy Pontner betting me Bulgaria will score first – I offered him nice odds, considering Ireland's front three are the strongest I've seen in years – and little Agatha Timms has put up half shares in her eel farm on a weeklong match.† â€Å"Oh†¦go on then,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Let's see†¦a Galleon on Ireland to win?† â€Å"A Galleon?† Ludo Bagman looked slightly disappointed, but recovered himself. â€Å"Very well, very well†¦any other takers?† â€Å"They're a bit young to be gambling,† said Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Molly wouldn't like -â€Å" â€Å"We'll bet thirty-seven Galleons, fifteen Sickles, three Knuts,† said Fred as he and George quickly pooled all their money, â€Å"that Ireland wins – but Viktor Krum gets the Snitch. Oh and we'll throw in a fake wand.† â€Å"You don't want to go showing Mr. Bagman rubbish like that,† Percy hissed, but Bagman didn't seem to think the wand was rubbish at all; on the contrary, his boyish face shone with excitement as he took it from Fred, and when the wand gave a loud squawk and turned into a rubber chicken, Bagman roared with laughter. â€Å"Excellent! I haven't seen one that convincing in years! I'd pay five Galleons for that!† Percy froze in an attitude of stunned disapproval. â€Å"Boys,† said Mr. Weasley under his breath, â€Å"I don't want you betting†¦.That's all your savings†¦.Your mother -â€Å" â€Å"Don't be a spoilsport, Arthur!† boomed Ludo Bagman, rattling his pockets excitedly. â€Å"They're old enough to know what they want! You reckon Ireland will win but Krum'll get the Snitch? Not a chance, boys, not a chance†¦.I'll give you excellent odds on that one†¦.We'll add five Galleons for the funny wand, then, shall we†¦.† Mr. Weasley looked on helplessly as Ludo Bagman whipped out a notebook and quill and began jotting down the twins' names. â€Å"Cheers,† said George, taking the slip of parchment Bagman handed him and tucking it away into the front of his robes. Bagman turned most cheerfully back to Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Couldn't do me a brew, I suppose? I'm keeping an eye out for Barty Crouch. My Bulgarian opposite number's making difficulties, and I can't understand a word he's saying. Barty'll be able to sort it out. He speaks about a hundred and fifty languages.† â€Å"Mr. Crouch?† said Percy, suddenly abandoning his look of poker-stiff disapproval and positively writhing with excitement. â€Å"He speaks over two hundred! Mermish and Gobbledegook and Troll†¦.† â€Å"Anyone can speak Troll,† said Fred dismissively. â€Å"All you have to do is point and grunt.† Percy threw Fred an extremely nasty look and stoked the fire vigorously to bring the kettle back to the boil. â€Å"Any news of Bertha Jorkins yet, Ludo?† Mr. Weasley asked as Bagman settled himself down on the grass beside them all. â€Å"Not a dicky bird,† said Bagman comfortably. â€Å"But she'll turn up. Poor old Bertha†¦memory like a leaky cauldron and no sense of direction. Lost, you take my word for it. She'll wander back into the office sometime in October, thinking it's still July.† â€Å"You don't think it might be time to send someone to look for her?† Mr. Weasley suggested tentatively as Percy handed Bagman his tea. â€Å"Barty Crouch keeps saying that,† said Bagman, his round eyes widening innocently, â€Å"but we really can't spare anyone at the moment. Oh – talk of the devil! Barty!† A wizard had just Apparated at their fireside, and he could not have made more of a contrast with Ludo Bagman, sprawled on the grass in his old Wasp robes. Barty Crouch was a stiff, upright, elderly man, dressed in an impeccably crisp suit and tie. The parting in his short gray hair was almost unnaturally straight, and his narrow toothbrush mustache looked as though he trimmed it using a slide rule. His shoes were very highly polished. Harry could see at once why Percy idolized him. Percy was a great believer in rigidly following rules, and Mr. Crouch had complied with the rule about Muggle dressing so thoroughly that he could have passed for a bank manager; Harry doubted even Uncle Vernon would have spotted him for what he really was. â€Å"Pull up a bit of grass, Barry,† said Ludo brightly, patting the ground beside him. â€Å"No thank you, Ludo,† said Crouch, and there was a bite of impatience in his voice. â€Å"I've been looking for you everywhere. The Bulgarians are insisting we add another twelve seats to the Top Box.† â€Å"Oh is that what they're after?† said Bagman. I thought the chap was asking to borrow a pair of tweezers. Bit of a strong accent.† â€Å"Mr. Crouch!† said Percy breathlessly, sunk into a kind of halfbow that made him look like a hunchback. â€Å"Would you like a cup of tea?† â€Å"Oh,† said Mr. Crouch, looking over at Percy in mild surprise. â€Å"Yes – thank you, Weatherby.† Fred and George choked into their own cups. Percy, very pink around the ears, busied himself with the kettle. â€Å"Oh and I've been wanting a word with you too, Arthur,† said Mr. Crouch, his sharp eyes falling upon Mr. Weasley. â€Å"Ali Bashir's on the warpath. He wants a word with you about your embargo on flying carpets.† Mr. Weasley heaved a deep sigh. â€Å"I sent him an owl about that just last week. If I've told him once I've told him a hundred times: Carpets are defined as a Muggle Artifact by the Registry of Proscribed Charmable Objects, but will he listen?† â€Å"I doubt it,† said Mr. Crouch, accepting a cup from Percy. â€Å"He's desperate to export here.† â€Å"Well, they'll never replace brooms in Britain, will they?† said Bagman. â€Å"Ali thinks there's a niche in the market for a family vehicle, said Mr. Crouch. â€Å"I remember my grandfather had an Axminster that could seat twelve – but that was before carpets were banned, of course.† He spoke as though he wanted to leave nobody in any doubt that all his ancestors had abided strictly by the law. â€Å"So, been keeping busy, Barty?† said Bagman breezily. â€Å"Fairly,† said Mr. Crouch dryly. â€Å"Organizing Portkeys across five continents is no mean feat, Ludo.† â€Å"I expect you'll both be glad when this is over?† said Mr. Weasley. Ludo Bagman looked shocked. â€Å"Glad! Don't know when I've had more fun†¦.Still, it's not as though we haven't got anything to took forward to, eh, Barty? Eh? Plenty left to organize, eh?† Mr. Crouch raised his eyebrows at Bagman. â€Å"We agreed not to make the announcement until all the details -â€Å" â€Å"Oh details!† said Bagman, waving the word away like a cloud of midges. â€Å"They've signed, haven't they? They've agreed, haven't they? I bet you anything these kids'll know soon enough anyway. I mean, it's happening at Hogwarts -â€Å" â€Å"Ludo, we need to meet the Bulgarians, you know,† said Mr. Crouch sharply, cutting Bagman's remarks short. â€Å"Thank you for the tea, Weatherby.† He pushed his undrunk tea back at Percy and waited for Ludo to rise; Bagman struggled to his feet, swigging down the last of his tea, the gold in his pockets chinking merrily. â€Å"See you all later!† he said. â€Å"You'll be up in the Top Box with me – I'm commentating!† He waved, Barty Crouch nodded curtly, and both of them Disapparated. â€Å"What's happening at Hogwarts, Dad?† said Fred at once. â€Å"What were they talking about?† â€Å"You'll find out soon enough,† said Mr.Weasley, smiling. â€Å"It's classified information, until such time as the Ministry decides to release it,† said Percy stiffly. â€Å"Mr. Crouch was quite right not to disclose it.† â€Å"Oh shut up, Weatherby,† said Fred. A sense of excitement rose like a palpable cloud over the campsite as the afternoon wore on. By dusk, the still summer air itself seemed to be quivering with anticipation, and as darkness spread like a curtain over the thousands of waiting wizards, the last vestiges of pretence disappeared: the Ministry seemed to have bowed to the inevitable and stopped fighting the signs of blatant magic now breaking out everywhere. Salesmen were Apparating every few feet, carrying trays and pushing carts full of extraordinary merchandise. There were luminous rosettes – green for Ireland, red for Bulgaria – which were squealing the names of the players, pointed green hats bedecked with dancing shamrocks, Bulgarian scarves adorned with lions that really roared, flags from both countries that played their national anthems as they were waved; there were tiny models of Firebolts that really flew, and collectible figures of famous players, which strolled across the palm of your hand, preening themselves. â€Å"Been saving my pocket money all summer for this,† Ron told Harry as they and Hermione strolled through the salesmen, buying souvenirs. Though Ron purchased a dancing shamrock hat and a large green rosette, he also bought a small figure of Viktor Krum, the Bulgarian Seeker. The miniature Krum walked backward and forward over Ron's hand, scowling up at the green rosette above him. â€Å"Wow, look at these!† said Harry, hurrying over to a cart piled high with what looked like brass binoculars, except that they were covered with all sorts of weird knobs and dials. â€Å"Omnioculars,† said the saleswizard eagerly. â€Å"You can replay action†¦slow everything down†¦and they flash up a play-by-play breakdown if you need it. Bargain – ten Galleons each.† â€Å"Wish I hadn't bought this now,† said Ron, gesturing at his dancing shamrock hat and gazing longingly at the Omnioculars. â€Å"Three pairs,† said Harry firmly to the wizard. â€Å"No – don't bother,† said Ron, going red. He was always touchy about the fact that Harry, who had inherited a small fortune from his parents, had much more money than he did. â€Å"You won't be getting anything for Christmas,† Harry told him, thrusting Omnioculars into his and Hermione's hands. â€Å"For about ten years, mind.† â€Å"Fair enough,† said Ron, grinning. â€Å"Oooh, thanks, Harry,† said Hermione. â€Å"And I'll get us some programs, look -â€Å" Their money bags considerably lighter, they went back to the tents. Bill, Charlie, and Ginny were all sporting green rosettes too, and Mr. Weasley was carrying an Irish flag. Fred and George had no souvenirs as they had given Bagman all their gold. And then a deep, booming gong sounded somewhere beyond the woods, and at once, green and red lanterns blazed into life in the trees, lighting a path to the field. â€Å"It's time!† said Mr. Weasley, looking as excited as any of them. â€Å"Come on, let's go!†

US military Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

US military - Essay Example Among the methods used in excluding them was the awarding of low salary. Fortunately, it is evident that the pay of military officers in the U.S. is not varying with gender currently. In the U.S., military is one of the areas that practices fairness in terms of promotions. â€Å"The promotion rates do not distinguish between male and female officers† (Millitary Leadership Diversity Commission, 2010 p.3). In tandem to this, recent studies show that female officers in the Navy, Air Force, as well as the marines have well above average promotions. Unfortunately, their low number in the military may make work think that women are disregarded in terms of promotions. For instance, only 6.8%, 16.4% and 19.1% consist of women in Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force respectively (Women in the Military Statistics, 2013). From this, it is evident that a small number of women get promoted to higher ranks in military. Just like men, women have also leadership positions in the military. This is evidenced by the number of female generals and admirals in the military. For instance, 69 of the 976 (7.1%) generals and admirals are women. â€Å"28 constitute female generals in the Air force, 19 in the Army, one in the Marine Corps and 21 female admirals in the Navy† (CNN Staff,

Should all federal welfare programs be abolished Research Paper

Should all federal welfare programs be abolished - Research Paper Example ain welfare programs associated with the federal government include: the Food Stamp Program, Temporary Assistance for the Needy Families, Medicaid, and Supplementary Security Income, the Earned Income Tax Credit, and Housing assistance. Other small government welfare programs include Infant and Children Welfare, Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Low Income Home Energy Assistance, and School Based Food Assistance. In 1996, welfare reforms by President Bill Clinton brought about the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), which replaced the Aid to Families with Dependent Children Act (AFCDA). Through this Act, President Clinton aimed at reducing welfare assistance to the needy families. These programs should therefore not be abolished because they impact positively on the lives of a majority of the American citizenry. For instance, the federal welfare programs have reduced poverty levels and provided for medical welfare of the low income earning citizens. These programs should not be abolished though far reaching reforms need to be put in place to reduce the number of people in these programs. According to the United States Code, 2000 (279), the main aim of federal welfare programs is to provide assistance to the unemployed and needy citizens. Assistance includes unemployment and reemployment assistance, and emergency grants to assist seasonal farm workers and migrants. Before any reforms are made the benefits of federal welfare programs need to be evaluated. The first question we need to evaluate is why many people are running to welfare programs. If welfare programs did not help the poor, no legislation or Congress would have approved the welfare programs. The Medicaid program introduced in 1965 was to be funded by both the federal and the state governments to help improve the medical needs of the low incoming Americans who cannot afford medical cover (Northrup, 181). The federal and state Medicaid covers pregnant

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Shakespearean Drama - Essay Example Jews were only allowed to be money lenders or peddlers. It was common that they didnt charge interest but only took property if the debt was not honored. Jews were stereotyped as very few people actually met a Jew in his life time. It was humorous to say that Shylock wanted a pound of flesh as payment, knowing that it would never be done. This is ironic symbolism of being circumcised which is one of the steps of conversion towards Judaism. At the end of the play he is being forced to convert to Christianity. Secondly, murder would never be accepted. Antonio had been rude and nasty. Why should Shylock have ever done anything nice for him as giving him the 3000 Ducats. They had a love hate relationship. This is something which one only does for a friend. Something else was making him furious and had changed in their relationship. Perhaps losing his daughter to his Christian Servant where they both run away to get married. Then Lorenzio goes to work for Antonios friend Basanio. Shylock has a lot to be angry for. It is no longer a question of money thus the stereotype of money no longer is applicable. "The quality of mercy is not strained †¦ it blesseth him that gives and him that takes." (Portia, IV, i)  Portia is saying that mercy is higher that demanding justice. Shylock recognizes the contract with Antonio but if he gives him mercy, it ends there. If he demands justice, the court of Venice takes over and it will be Shylock who looses his life. Her logic is excellent and surprising. There is no reference to Judaism but to humanity itself. Mercy takes precedence over justice. "How far that little candle throws his beams! So shines a good deed in a naughty world." (Portia, V, i)  Portia follows later in the same seen to explain that "Nothing is good, I see, without respect. " Is she making reference to Shylock that he is indeed a good man who was wronged by Antonio. He has lost his daughter to Lorenzo who is a friend of Antonio.

Nursing Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 14

Nursing - Assignment Example The article did bring out the role of public health department in the health of the community. Some of the activities of the activities of these nurses to the community outlined in the article include control of communicable diseases, administration of immunization, prevention of chronic diseases, family planning awareness and provision of safe food and drinking water to persons affected (Carolyn & Karen, 2011). The article clearly outlines the ability and potentials possessed by these groups of health workers. Public health nurses in the community based in creates safety networking by with other community agencies, identify risks affecting the community and intervene to provide solutions where possible, provision of health education especially to vulnerable population, and identify the problem and provide solutions before the problem advances. The author brought out challenges facing these groups of workers in the course of delivering their services, which affects effectiveness and fulfillment of their role. Lack of job security and inadequate staffing emerged as the serious problems affecting them. The author’s conclusion on the issue of public health nurses indicate that there are adequate resources and facilities are provided for effective service delivery and effective utilization of resources (Carolyn & Karen, 2011). The article managed to bring out and clearly demonstrates the striking issues affecting public health nurses and the efforts instilled to solve these issues, imposition of cost effective systems for disease prevention and health improvement of the community’s health. Having knowledge and understanding about the community is significant for health nurses, since policy makers and health planners when dealing with matters affecting the community will use the information. Community involvement by these groups of persons in meeting their welfare and ensuring that the needs of the community are met is an issue to

Energy Conversion System Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Energy Conversion System - Assignment Example (a) Determine the non-dimensional expressions and . [8 marks] Solution: There are 6 variables involved in the problem: velocity , density , viscosity , surface tension , diameter is and acceleration . Choose the three recurring variables: velocity , density and diameter . From Buckingham pi theorem we have non-dimensional groups. The choice of velocity , density and diameter as the repeating variables satisfies: They are measurable, good design parameters and in combination, contain all the dimension and . We form the three groups according to the 2nd theorem. As the groups are all dimensionless, there must have dimensions such as: , we can use the principle of dimensional homogeneity to equate the dimensions for each group. For the first group, In terms of dimensions, we have that: Thus, we have the following linear system: For For For The solutions for is given as: Giving as And a similar procedure is followed for the other groups. Thus, we have the following linear system: For For For The solutions for is given as: Giving as Finally the group: Thus, we have the following linear system: For For For The solutions for is given as: Giving as Thus the problem may be described by the following function of three non-dimensional groups, We take into account that any dimensionless group may be raised to any power and it is still a valid group. Furthermore, the reciprocal of any dimensionless group is valid, too. We concluded that: Finally the non-dimensional expressions and are: Pay attention that the group obeys manipulation rules of equivalence. Remember that: Velocity : Density : Viscosity : Surface tension : Distance : Acceleration : [] (b) Comment on the physical significance of the non-dimensional numbers formed. [6 marks] Solution: The non-dimensional expressions found for and were: The non-dimensional number given by: is the so-called Reynolds number: The Reynolds number is a non-dimensional number that gives a measure of the ratio of inertia force to viscous force. This parameter correlates the viscous behavior of all Newtonian fluids. In fluid dynamic engineer should do estimate of the Reynolds number range of the flow under study. Very low indicates viscous creeping motion, where inertia effects are negligible. Moderate implies a smoothly varying laminar flow. High probably spells turbulent flow, which is slowly varying in the time-mean but has superimposed strong random high-frequency fluctuations. The non-dimensional number given by: is the so-called Weber number: It is a non-dimensional number useful for analyzing fluid flows where there is an interface between two different fluids. The Weber number is the ratio between the inertial force and the surface tension force. Since the Weber number represents an index of the inertial force to the surface tension force acting on a fluid element, it can be useful analyzing thin films flows and the formation of droplets and bubbles. Question 2 (a) Two vessels are connected by a pipe in whic h there is a valve. One vessel of contains nitrogen at and , and the other of contains helium at and . The valve is opened and the two gases are allowed to mix. Assuming the system is well insulated, calculate (i) the final temperature of the mixture [8 marks] Solution: The amount of energy given off by the warmer gas equals the amount

Google lnc.-Earnings Announcements and Information Environment Assignment

Google lnc.-Earnings Announcements and Information Environment - Assignment Example As a matter of fact, earnings numbers clearly bear a significant impact on valuations of public market. While per share earnings calculations are straight forward, corporations frequently report â€Å"pro forma† EPS numbers. Valuations based on pro forma numbers against GAAP EPS numbers potentially translate into significant valuation changes. Pro forma earnings are non-GAAP and exclude items like restructuring charges, asset impairment charges, losses on asset and businesses sales, goodwill amortization, as well as equity method investments losses (Burns, 2009). It is widely claimed that pro forma numbers are net of â€Å"items deemed as non-reoccurring, non-cash or unimportant,† and hence pro forma numbers portray a realistic picture of their potential and value. ii. It is widely held that Pro Forma Analysis gives investors a clearer picture of company operations. As a matter of fact, they are believed to offer more accurate view of financial performance and outlook due to the nature of businesses. For instance, a firm like a cable and telecommunication company will prefer Pro Forma analysis because constantly makes operating profits by writing down depreciation costs. In essence, investors concerned with long-term company valuation can do well by analyzing pro-forma earnings. Additionally, pro forma analysis allows companies to identify their core value drivers, in addition to analyzing the changing trends within operations. iii. In January, 2003 SEC instituted a final rule through  §401(b) the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOA) with regard to use of â€Å"pro forma† financial analysis in information on SEC filings as well as other public disclosures. According to the rules, all companies that provide pro forma must accompany the same with corresponding or equivalent GAAP measures (Burns, 2009). This is to allow industry comparability, in addition to standardization for

Project Managment - MUST HAVE PROJECT EXPERIENCE - NOT INFO. TECH Research Paper

Project Managment - MUST HAVE PROJECT EXPERIENCE - NOT INFO. TECH - Research Paper Example This is because to achieve profitability, the financial record of a business organization has to depict a high value of sales. On this note therefore, a project management team ensures that the objectives and aims of a company are met. It is important to develop structures of managing a sales team because of the following roles that they play in an organization, (Jobber and Geoffrey, 2006). 1. Members of a sales team directly engage with customers, and are responsible for selling the products of the company, and maintaining the existing customers of the organization. It is their duty to conduct market research, collect feedback on the performance of their products from the customers, and develop a strategy that will make the organization achieve its sales targets. 2. The sales team determines the profitability of an organization, therefore understanding their role in a business organization helps the management in developing a marketing strategy that will efficiently serve the intere st of the organization. 3. The purpose of a sales team is to generate revenue for the organization, and therefore the department must align itself to the needs of customers. To effectively align the sales team to the needs of the department, it is important to create a sales management plan. The key to building and initiating a successful sales project is to develop a document that outlines the specific goals of the organization, tasks, deadlines and costs. The scope provides information on the roles and duties of team members and methodologies of verifying and approving completed works. For instance, the major aim of our sales team was to develop and execute a plan of establishing new markets for the products of Sumo hardware’s. In building an effective project scope, it is important to use facilitative meeting procedures, and collaborative decision making methodology. Facilitative meetings involve the use of tools such as Joint Application Design (JAD). These meetings are m oderated by a neutral facilitator, for purposes of engaging all the stakeholders of the business organization in developing decisions that will guide the operations of the project (Gonc?alves and Brian, 2008) . In collecting information from participants, the facilitator will use collaborative techniques such as taking a keen interest on the ideas, and interests of participants. This information will help in coming up with a relevant scope of the project. The scope will provide guidance for purposes of developing the plan and strategies of the marketing campaign. The scope of the project that I undertook with Sumo Hardware’s was to develop a sales plan, and execute it, for purposes of increasing the revenue of the organization. The sales process satisfies the four stages of project management; which are initiation, planning, execution and control, and the last stage is closure. At the initiation stage, the manager defines the scope of a project, and the methods he or she will use to achieve the objectives of the project. It is at this stage that members of a team are selected, and the manager outlines their roles (Heagney, 2012). For instance, as members of the sales management team at Sumo hardware’s, it was our duty to set realistic target for the sales revenue of the organization. For instance, basing on the size and target market, we did set a target of 200,000 dollars a month. In meeting this target, it was essential to

Comparison between the “Incident” and the “Travel” Poems Essay Example for Free

Comparison between the â€Å"Incident† and the â€Å"Travel† Poems Essay Comparison between the â€Å"Incident† and the â€Å"Travel† Poems Introduction First poem: Incident Keep looking straight at me. Now I was eight and very small, And he was no whit bigger, And so I smiled, but he poked out His tongue, and called me, â€Å"Nigger.† I saw the whole of Baltimore From May until December; Of all the things that happened there That’s all that I remember. Second poem: Travel By Edna St. Vincent Millay The railroad track is miles away, And the day is loud with voices speaking, Yet there isnt a train goes by all day But I hear its whistle shrieking. All night there isnt a train goes by, Though the night is still for sleep and dreaming, But I see its cinders red on the sky, And hear its engine steaming. My heart is warm with friends I make, And better friends Ill not be knowing; Yet there isnt a train I wouldnt take, No matter where its going. Comparison between the two poems above   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first aspect to compare between the two poems above is the themes portrayed. In the first poem, â€Å"Incident† highlights the theme of racial discrimination. The speaker in the poem tells the audience how he was travelling in a bus when he encountered an event that he says that he is unlikely to forget. He says that while in the bus travelling to Baltimore, his happiness suddenly turned to sadness when a young boy of his age called him a Niger. In stanza three, the speaker says, â€Å"†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦but he poked out His tongue, and called me, â€Å"Niger†. Niger is a word that is used to sarcastically insult African-Americans living in America. The speaker felt so sad and in the next eight months (from May to December) that he spent in Baltimore; he cannot remember anything else but that annoying incident. In stanza four of the poem, the speaker confirms that he can never forget. He says, â€Å"†¦.From May to Decem ber; of all the things that happened there, That’s all that I remember†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the other hand, the theme in the second poem, â€Å"Travel†, is that of discontentment. The speaker describes her feelings to the audience. She says in stanza threeâ€Å"My heart is warm with the friends I make, And better friends I’ll not be knowing†. In these lines, the speaker says that although she is presently happy with the friends that she has; she thinks the friends that she has not met already may be better. This is a clear indication of dissatisfaction that the speaker expresses.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is also important to analyze the choice of the titles of the poems that the authors use and find out how relevant they are to the poem. The title that the author chooses carries too much weight in the understanding of the poem. The theme of the poem is highlighted in the title, albeit hidden and, therefore, identified after reading the whole poem. In the first poem, the title is â€Å"Incident†. The literal meaning of this word is a happening that is unusual. In this poem, the speaker describes an unusual happening that apparently happened to him. In his context, the speaker experienced an incident. Therefore, the title is very relevant to the poem. In the second poem, the title is â€Å"Travel†. The word travel means movement from one location to another. In the poem, the speaker is discontented by her present state. She longs to move to the next level. She uses train metaphorically to indicate that she wants to cease the next opportunity available and move to the next level. Therefore, the title captures this desire of the speaker so vividly and, therefore, in the context of the theme in this poem, it is very relevant.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The other aspect that needs comparison in these two poems is the choice of the language. The language that the author uses is aimed at making the poem interesting to the reader while bringing out the desired message. In the first poem, â€Å"Incident†, the author chooses to use the first person â€Å"I† in the poem. He allows the speaker to tell the audience about this incident in a direct manner. The reader, who is the audience, is able to connect with the speaker when the speaker talks about himself. For instance, in stanza two, the speaker says, â€Å"Now I was eight and very young,†¦..†. The speaker informs the audience that, at the time of the incident that happened to him, he was eight years old and was very small. Incidentally, the second poem also uses the first person â€Å"I†. The speaker tells the audience about her feelings. This style improves the connection between the audience and the speaker because the poem is about the speaker.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In addition, the two poems have used contracted language in several instances. In the first poem, there is the use of â€Å"That’s† instead of â€Å"That is† in the last stanza line four. This makes the poem informal and makes the readers connect with the speaker easily, especially in the modern times. In the second poem, instances of contractions are numerous. For example, there is the use of â€Å"I’ll† instead of â€Å"I will†, â€Å"isn’t† instead of â€Å"is not† and â€Å"it’s† instead of â€Å"it is† in the last stanza. Again, this contraction makes the poem informal. In the modern times, the poem becomes understandable. The choice of contractions is deliberate. The contractions make the number of syllables in the lines where they are equal to the rest of the lines.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another aspect of the poems that is worth comparison is the use of the rhyme technique in the poems. Both poems have a regular rhyme pattern that serve to make them more interesting to read. The rhyme pattern in the first poem is ABCB. To illustrate this rhyming pattern, it is necessary to pick the last words in one stanza. In this case, the last stanza has last words as â€Å"†¦Baltimore, †¦December, †¦there and †¦remember†. In the case of the second poem, the rhyme pattern is ABAB. The last stanza has the last words as â€Å"†¦make, †¦knowing, †¦..take and †¦.knowing†. The words illustrate the regular rhyme pattern. The same patterns are repeated throughout the poems. The regular rhyme pattern help make the poem rhythmical and lyrical.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   It is important to compare the mood in each, and the tone used in either poem. In the first poem, the mood is jovial initially as depicted in the first and the second stanza. The speaker expresses his joy when he smiles at the stranger boy. However, the mood changes to sadness after the speaker is insulted by the boy when he calls him Nigger. As the mood changes, so does the tone. It starts as joyfully to a somber one. In the second poem, the tone is optimistic. The speaker is optimistic and hopeful of a better future. However, there is some tinge of negativity in the tone in the first two stanzas. This negative tone expresses speaker’s dissatisfaction about her current status.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first poem uses imagery when the speaker tells the audience how he saw a boy staring straight at him. He smiled at him. The reader can vividly see the mental image of the speaker smiling at the stranger. In the second poem, the author employs metaphor by using a train to signify different paths in life. The speaker says that â€Å"†¦..Yet there isnt a train I wouldnt take, No matter where its going† in the last stanza. It means that the speaker is willing to take any path in life although there is no opportunity that is presenting itself. In addition, the second poem has employed personification in the first stanza when the speaker implies that the Train â€Å"whistling† and â€Å"shrieking†.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The two poems have so much in common. The similarities emanate from the choice of the language and the styles employed. Therefore, it is clear that poets have one thing in common as far as their writing skills are concerned. They have a rich background of poetry techniques. They always employ them appropriately to suit the message intended to be delivered. References St, John R. A. Explorations in Literature. Greenville, S.C: BJU Press,  2013. Print. Source document

The Decisive Role Of Humour In Advertising English Language Essay

The Decisive Role Of Humour In Advertising English Language Essay Humour plays a decisive role in our daily life and it is also a subject of interest of numerous disciplines such as linguistics, popular culture, psychology, mass communications, marketing and some others. The discussion of what humour is can be traced back to Aristotle and Plato. The complexity of this phenomenon has been an intrigue for many researches. Humor is a universal human activity found among all cultures and throughout all of recorded history (Alden, Hoyer, and Lee 1993). Humour is widely used in advertising as a form of communication in order to persuade customers to purchase products and services since it is generally believed among advertisers that making us laugh will encourage positive thoughts and feelings toward their products and brands and put us in a receptive mood for their sales messages (Beard 2008: 2). Cook said that advertising is always a handy and useful mirror if we want to reflect on the way we behave socially (Cook 1992:5). However, the use of humour in advertising remains very controversial as its presence in advertising can cause both positive and negative effects. Response to a humorous ad can be different as individuals have different sense of humour. Therefore humour is very individual and subjective but at the same time it is universal. According to Raskin responding to humor is part of human behavior, ability, or competence, other parts of which comprise such important social and psychological manifestations of Homo sapiens as language, morality, logic, faith, etc. Just as all of those, humor may be described as partly natural and partly acquired (Raskin 1985: 2). Throughout its history there were many attempts to define humour but none of the definitions accounts for all its possible types thus underlying its complexity. Humour can be broadly identified as a form of communication in which a created stimulus may act to provide pleasure for an audience (Gulas and Weinberger 2006: 95). Attardo states that linguists, psychologists, and anthropologists have taken humor to be an all-encompassing category, covering any event or object that elicits laughter, amuses, or is felt to be funny (Attardo 1994:4). It is very important to distinguish between humour and laughter as humour has been often identified with laughter  [1]  which seems to be wrong as humour a mental phenomenon while laughter is rather a neurophysiological reaction to it. 1.2 Aim and scope The objective of this thesis is to contribute to further understanding of one of the numerous strategies employed by advertisers, namely humour. However, this thesis does not set out to provide a theoretical framework for humour in spite of the fact that the following chapters make frequent reference to the academic and scientific literature. The overall aim of the study is not only to provide a better understanding of humour in print advertising and give an insight into different linguistic theories of humour as well as its different types but also to describe different linguistic features which advertisers use to incorporate humour and illustrate this by means of empirical material gathered from a variety of sources. Under this point humour will be divided into two groups: pun-based humour and non-pun humour. We deal with pun humour when the advertiser uses elements of language to create new meanings that result in humour. My supposition is that this is the type of humour which mos t often occurs in print advertising. In this regard such linguistic devices will be described as polysemy, homonymy, idiomatic expressions, neologisms and nonce formations, and antonyms. However this would be just mere identification of a certain type of humour in advertising and its enabling factors. Therefore the extent of the study is to look how different types of humour vary across different products and services advertised in magazines. Since it is generally believed that the best media suited to the use of humour are radio and TV, lots of studies exploring the use of humour and its effectiveness were conducted mostly in this field. Therefore this thesis is focused on the advertisements presented in print media and does not feature ads that appear on the television, radio, internet, and cinema. There has always been a great debate over whether humorous print advertisements work and of course there is no need to say that they do. We just have to remember that humour print invol ves a more intimate relationship. Graham Warsop, the only creative director to have judged the big four international advertising awards, once said: Print humour gets someone to smile inwardly rather than outwardly (Aitchison 2004:). This states again that not everybody will laugh at the same things. It should be noted that headline and body copy of an advertisement will not be the crucial means of attraction since most advertisements are humorous only due to the interplay of text and image. The picture often functions as an eye-catcher in the ad whereas its meaning differs from the meaning of the text. Cook considers pictures to be a part of advertising discourse as they are used to convey a central idea in the ad (Cook 2003:6). Thus, both pictures and headlines will be seen as equivalent and will be considered together as their interplay contributes to the overall meaning of the text.  [2]  Advertising in its turn will be seen in the thesis as a communication process. 1.3 Outline As shown in the table of contents, this thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter One is the introduction in which the purpose and the research questions are stated. It starts by providing a background of the subject of the thesis, and then moves on to description of material and methods and ends by introducing the advertising terminology. Chapter Two is dedicated to a more detailed delimitation of the concept of humour, with an overview of the major humour theories which are necessary for introducing the operational definition of humour that will be used in this study. Chapter Three presents humour types. It discusses numerous existing taxonomies of humour types and offers a new classification which subdivides humour types into two main groups: pun based humour vs. non pun humour. The structure of this chapter is centered on this taxonomy with the corresponding analysis of the advertisements. Chapter Four is a research part of the thesis which analyzes the incidence of the identifie d humour types across various products and services and presents the collected empirical data as well as the results and findings. Chapter Five functions as a summing-up in which the research questions are answered and the conclusions are drawn. A bibliography and appendix will conclude the thesis. 1.4 Material and Method As stated above this thesis is focused on the advertisements presented in print media and does not feature ads that appear on the television, radio, internet, and cinema. The selected material consists of a total of sixty two humorous advertisements chosen from the range of around two hundred English-speaking magazines published between the years 2006 and 2010. Popular lifestyle magazines have been mainly used as they are directed toward a general audience and have a high content of ads which advertise a wide range of products and service. I used so wide range of magazines because one and the same ad have been found in numerous magazines as well as in different issues of one and the same magazine. For this thesis I have mainly used such glossy magazines as Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, In Touch, Chat, OK, In Style, Self, The Economist and some others. No gender issues will be put forward in this thesis as well as no differentiation will be made between humour in British and US magazine s as it would give this thesis a whole new dimension. As a first step in the selection procedure, I looked for any ads that displayed humorous context. The selection was relatively wide as this resulted in around 100 ads which I considered to be humorous. It should be noted that when browsing through numerous magazines it is very difficult to determine whether the ad is humorous or not as certain subjectivity is always involved into the process of decision making. That is why the subjectivity is inevitable. Despite the fact that such procedure of selection is often employed by many researches, I tried to avoid making decisions without consideration of opposing opinions and different points of view. For this purpose one interview was conducted the aim of which was to exclude prevailed subjectivity in my selective procedure and to explore two basic questions: which advertisements will be still considered as humorous according to the interviewees and how they will determine the type of humour in case the ad proves to be humorous. A remark should be made under this point that anyway it will be to a certain degree the so called unilateral decision as in the long run it is me who decided which ads would be included and which would be left out. It is also worth of mentioning that the interview is not the main purpose of this study and that is why its presence in the thesis will be limited by the short description of its procedure and results. Coming back to the interview procedure, it should be noted that the interview was conducted in a small group consisted of twelve participants. The length of the interview was two hours. Around one hundred fifty different ads were presented to the participants chosen on the assumption that all of them were humorous. In order to ensure that the results would not be biased, the participants were not informed about this fact as well they did not know what the study was exactly about. The participants were asked to have a look at each advertisement and to determine whether they consider it to be interesting or boring, creative or not creative and humorous or non-humorous. The two supplement questions besides the question about the presence or absence of humour in the ad were introduced only with the purpose of trying to avoid some potential disadvantages which are directly connected with an interview. This is the so called participant reflexivity, which means that the person being intervi ewed (interviewee) tells the interviewer only what s/he wants to hear. Then, since many people often expect from a humorous ad to make them burst into laughing and such an attitude would bias the results of the interview I decided to ask them to rate (in case they think the advertisement is humorous) how humorous it was on a five-point-scale. Rating an advertisement as 5 meant that they considered it to be very humorous, 3 indicated that it was a moderate representative of humorousness whereas 1 suggested that it was a very poor example of a humorous ad and should be probably excluded from the list. The results drawn after the evaluation of twelve questionnaires were surprisingly consistent. The agreement was particularly high for the identification of the given advertisements to be humorous or non-humorous. As for rating is concerned the results were not similar, better to say they were very inconsistent and that proves again that humour is always being judged individually and subj ectively. After that all the ads were sorted out to determine which ads would be fruitful for a qualitative analysis. The advertisements which were considered by most of the participants as not humorous at all were excluded from the list of candidates for future analysis. 1.5 Advertising terminology No need to say that advertising hat its own terminology. I am not going to list all the terms you can find in the field of advertising. Thus, the terminology will be limited to a few terms which are frequently used in this thesis. I will follow Cooks definitions which he presents in his Discourse of Advertising (2003). According to him Headline Phrase(s) found at the top of an ad. Caption Phrases (s) found in close proximity to an image. Body copy A piece of smaller text, often containing the main (or copy) information. . CHAPTER 2. THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 2.1 Introduction As was mentioned in the introduction, humour is by no means homogenous. Since there is no general acceptance in classifying humour, there is no ideal theory of humour which can cover all its factors and embrace all its peculiarities. Most of the existing humour theories are mixed and it seems to be impossible to incorporate such a huge phenomenon as humour into a single integrated theory. As a starting point it can be asserted that humour is triggered by particular mechanisms (Spotts, 1987). Spotts states that these mechanisms can be grouped into three main categories: the cognitive theory, superiority theory, and the relief theory (Spotts et al. 1997:20). The chapter that follows is dedicated to some of the main threads of the theories of humour that have emerged although it is important to notice that not all humour theories ever proposed will be presented in it and it will not be attempted to make a comprehensive survey of all these ideas. Only those theories will be discussed which play a significant role for working out an operational definition of humour for this thesis. 2.2 Incongruity and Incongruity-Resolution Theory Incongruity can be called in other words inconsistency or contradiction. The incongruity theory goes back to Francis Hutchesons Reflections Upon Laughter published in 1750. Later on it was revisited and represented by Kant, Schopenhauer and Kierkegaard. Incongruity theories are considered to be cognitive in their nature. This is the group of theories which dominates humour research. According to McGhee (1979) humour is as reaction to incongruity and he defined incongruity as the relationship between components of an object, event, idea, social expectation and so forth. When the arrangement for the constituent element of an event is incompatible with the normal or expected pattern, the event is perceived as incongruous. The existing theories of incongruity have a difference based on the question whether incongruity is a necessary condition for humour to be produced and if yes, whether it is sufficient or probably there are other conditions needed to cause humour. Based on this fact tw o schools of thought about incongruity theories appeared: the so called one-stage incongruity theories and two-stage incongruity-resolution theories. One-stage incongruity theorists like many representatives of some psychological theories propose that we often laugh when we see or hear something unexpected. In terms of this theory it can be said that we cognitively process (or think about) the message in a single stage that includes three parts interruption (whats that?), perceptual contrast (theres something incongruous and unexpected here!), and playful confusion (whats it mean) (Speck, 1987:7). Other theorists like Jerry Suls and Thomas Schultz, the opponents of the two-stage incongruity resolution theory, postulate that it is not sufficient for a message to be funny by itself and they insist on the overlapping of meanings of the incongruous parts and on the presence of a second stage, namely the resolution of the incongruity. Incongruity becomes stronger only when it follows a resolution process and is understood and accepted by its audience (Gulas and Weinberger 2006: 23à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ 26). Attardo considered incongruity theories to be cognitive in their nature and were often associated with linguistic theories of humour. To summarize the ideas, it can be added that incongruity theory is based on the idea of a contrast between two overlapping scripts whereas incongruity-resolution theory requires the presence of two stages: incongruity as derivation from expectation and incongruity understood in resolution which in its turn results in amusement. Incongruity is seen by many researches as a humour type. I prefer to see it as a condition needed to produce humour. 2.3 Superiority Theory The second branch of the main humour theories is presented by theories of superiority. These theories have gone by lots of names such as disparagement, criticism, hostility, aggression, malice, degradation, and derision. This group of humour theories is based on the ideas of Aristotle, Quintillian, Plato, and later Thomas Hobbes (seventeenth century) and it is directly connected with the social function of humour which cannot be said about the incongruity theories which consider humour as an individual phenomenon. Superiority theory is a theory of mockery. In terms of this theory humour is pointed against something or somebody thus making us to believe that something or somebody is superior to somebody else. In other words we laugh from feelings of superiority over other people, from suddaine Glory arising from suddaine Conception of some Eminency in our selves, by Comparison with the Infirmityes of others, or with our owne formerly (Critcheley, 2002: 3). It is suggested that people joke about things that make them feel unsure and/or uncomfortable as a way of releasing feelings of tensions (Gulas and Weinberger 2006: 28). 2.4 Release Theories Release theories as well as superiority theories have numerous names such as arousal theory  [3]  , freedom theory  [4]  , and tension-release theory  [5]  . This group of theories describes how people respond emotionally to humour. It was put forward by Herbert Spencer in the nineteenth century but it was better explained and thus it is better known from Freuds analysis of humorous utterances given in his book Jokes and Their Relation to the Unconscious (1905). Freud proposed that jokes provide us with a release from the constant need to repress our natural aggressive and sexual desires, and are thus experienced as pleasurable. Like dreams, jokes come from the unconscious, bur are first transformed into less explicit forms, thereby providing a socially acceptable way of breaking taboos (Ventola, Guijarro 2009: 79). The release theory has rather to do with the physiological function of humour. It is based on the notion of homeostasis, which means that humans regulate their inner environment on the physiological level in order to ensure certain stability in response to strain, tension, and anxiety. Morreall (1983) talks about the biological function of laughter and insists on the possibility of coexistence of relief theory with other theories discussed above: incongruity (relief through resolution) and superiority (relief through triumph.  [6]   2.5 Linguistic Theories of Humour Since all the existing theories of humour are based on the notion of incongruity there is no theory about which it can be definitely said that it is a purely linguistic one. Linguistic in this case is rather a conditional name. Nevertheless, the first step into this direction was put forward by Raskin, who suggested a script-based semantic theory developed for verbal humour. Viktor Raskins Script-Based Semantic Theory of Humour was presented in his book Semantic Mechanisms of Humor (1985) which was a great contribution to all of the humour theories ever proposed and a first attempt to describe humour from a linguistic perspective. Raskin set his goal as following: Ideally, a linguistic theory of humour should determine and formulate and the necessary and sufficient linguistic conditions for the text to be funny (Raskin, 1985: 47). The script-based semantic theory of humour was designed as a neutral theory which takes in account all the three theories discussed above. According to Raskins theory, verbal or written communication is considered to be a joke if the text is fully compatible with two different but at the same time opposite scripts. Script in this case presents a large chunk of semantic information. This is the main hypothesis of his theory: A text can be characterized as a single-joke-carrying text if both of the conditions are satisfied. i) Th e text is compatible, fully or in part, with two different scripts ii) The two scripts with which the text is compatible are opposite in a special sense (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦). The two scripts with which the text is compatible are said to overlap fully or in part on this text (Raskin 1985: 99). Raskin introduces the notion of the trigger or a punch-line, which switches the listener from one script to another thus creating the joke (Raskin, 1985: 36). Raskins theory can be interpreted within the terms of incongruity ­-resolution school of humour. Although his theory was primarily developed for verbal humour it proves to be effective for many types of humorous advertising, both for verbal and for visual. It should be noted that there is also a revisited version of the SSTH called The General Theory of Verbal Humour (GTVH). This theory was a result of collaboration of Raskin and Attardo. The main aim of the GTVH was to broaden the scope of Raskins SSTH in order to apply it to any humorous text.  [7]  Attardo comments about it as following: Whereas the SSTH was a semantic theory of humor, the GTVH is a linguistic theory at large that is, it includes other areas of linguistics as well, including, most notably, textual linguistics, the theory of narrativity, and pragmatics (Attardo 1994: 222). Attardo postulates that resolution does not exclude the presence of incongruity; they coexist and accompany each other so that any humorous text will contain an element of incongruity and an element of resolution (Attardo 1994: 144). 2.5.2 Operational Definition An operational definition of humour will have to encompass all the above listed theories as all of them are important for the analysis of the advertisements in this thesis. Under this point I would fully agree with Raskin when he said that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ the incongruity-based theories make a statement about the stimulus; the superiority theories characterize the relations or attitudes between the speaker and the hearer; and the release/relief theories comment on the feelings and psychology of the hearer only. (Raskin 1985: 40) The operational definition of a humorous advertisement will be worked out in terms of Raskins SSTH. The question arises why no I do not follow the GTVH. There are reasons for that. First, the GTVH adopted the main hypothesis of the SSTH. Second, the broadenings introduced, are not of much importance for a current analysis. The third reason is that the GTVH is still under development and not all the problematic issues have been resolved yet. So the advertisement will be considered to be humorous if it fulfills the following conditions: the advertisement has two overlapping scripts which cause the incongruity these two scripts are in the opposite relation to each other. The first condition alone would not be enough for the advertisement to be humorous as the overlapping of two scripts may have a non-funny text as a result as well. CHAPTER 3. HUMOUR TYPES 3.1 Introduction Since there is no universal definition of humour, there are many ways to classify it and there is no universally accepted classification of humour types. Taxonomies of humour types are very different and not homogeneous. There have been many attempts to classify humour according to different criteria. Kelly and Solomon (1975), for example, classified humour according to techniques used in order to produce humorous effect and presented seven types such as a pun, an understatement, a joke, something ludicrous, satire, irony and humorous intent whereas Goldstein and McGhee talked about three types: nonsense, sexual and aggressive. An overview of some main classifications is presented in Table 2  [8]  , which proves the fact that the typologies of humour types are diverse and mixed as well as terminology used for different types of humour: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (Raskin) The classification of humour types presented in this thesis is based on the taxonomy offered by Catanescu and Tom (2001) which in its turn used Reicks practitioner-oriented classification system as a basis. Catanescu and Tom adopted five types from this classification and added two new types which resulted in seven following humour types: comparison, personification, exaggeration, pun, sarcasm, silliness, and surprise. As the study they conducted was not only devoted to homour in print advertising, not all humour types presented in their taxonomy could be included into classification for this thesis. Thus, such category as surprise had to be left out despite several examples of using this technique in a print advertisement which could be found during the analysis of selected material. The reason for that was the fact that the operational definition did not work with this humour type as some other mechanisms were involved in such advertisements which were beyond the current analysis. To avoid the mixture of devices, types and techniques about which Raskin spoke, all these types were divided into two main categories, namely pun humour and non-pun humour each of them was subdivided into several sub categories. In such a way polysemy, homonymy, nonce-formations and idiomatic expressions fell under the category of pun humour and such types as comparison, personification, exaggeration, sarcasm and silliness under the category of non-pun humour correspondently. The goals of this chapter are: a) to introduce some definitions of a pun to frame the discussion, b) to give an insight into some types of pun taxonomies, c) to develop pun taxonomy for the current analysis and to describe the nature of the linguistic phenomena involved in puns illustrating it with the help of gathered material, d) to offer a taxonomy of non-pun humour taking into account the occurrence of each type in the advertisements collected from the magazines. 3.2 Oh! Thats a pun and I didnt mean it  [9]   Before talking about pun-based humour it seems to be of great importance to determine what will be understood under pun. Puns are said to be the most common basis for humour.  [10]  The management of humorous language is largely a matter of devising transfers the transfer from set to set, from scale to scale, from layer to layer, until the happy conclusion of a double vision is achieved. At the heart of this process of continual and multiple transference, an important process aping the shiftiness of thought itself, is the apparently frivolous device of pun; word-play is the lure, the spinning toy that draws up the lurking and fishy meaning. We take punning for a tawdry and facetious thing, one of the less profound forms of humour, but that is the prejudice of our time; a pun may be profoundly serious, or charged with pathos (Nash 1985: 137). As mentioned in the introduction, my supposition is that pun is the type of humour which most often occurs in print advertising despite qui te the opposite points of view when puns were criticized for their frustrating ambiguity and for representing a simple and less sophisticated form of humour. That is why many advertisers prefer not to include puns into advertisements believing that they have a low intellectual status. Nash defends the pun against such accusations offering his own list of puns and insisting on the fact that puns are common in the language of journalism (Nash 1985: 137). Sherzer provides another argument in defense of puns in advertising stating that puns are higly appropriate for advertising as they deliver two meanings for the price of one (Sherzer 1985). The same opinion shares Redfern: Advertising space is costly. Economy is essential, and puns are highly economical (two meanings for the price of one word or phrase), and in fact much more of a labour-saving device than many of the products they seek to promote. (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦) Since the fundamental message of all advertising is known to everyone in advance, there is a need for diversification. Wordplay, with its distortions, bifurcations and re-creations, introduces variety and refreshment into saturation. Puns, the devious ones, are a way round those rather stuffy rules of the advertising watchdogs: adverts should be legal, decent and true. A recipe for mass-producted boredom. The words of adverts are double-talk, necessarily. If adverts told only the verifiable truth, they would be pedantic and tedious. And so they have to approximate; they have to say one thing and suggest another. Obliqueness is all. So why not make a virtue out of necessity, and a silk purse out of a sows ear? (Redfern 1982: 130-131). Redfern asserts that puns are well suited for advertising as they are usually delivered with the requisite ambivalent mixture of false apology and only too real aggression (Redfern 1982:275). Definitions of pun as well as definitions of humour vary greatly from researcher to researcher. Freud considered puns to be the lowest form calling them cheapest stating that they can be formed with the least effort.  [11]  Walter Redfern (1984) devoted a whole book to pun in which he said that pun can make an individual. (à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦) It can ruin lazy expectations; subvert the nature of language and thought (Redfern 1984: ). Sherzer defined it as a form of speech play in which a word or phrase unexpectedly and simultaneously combines two unrelated meanings (Sherzer 1978: 336). This the point (the presence of two senses) on which all linguistic and non-linguistic analyses agree. Following the rules of the incongruity-resolution theory a phenomenon of pun can be defined as two meanings incongruously combined in one and the same sentence. These two meanings cause ambiguity due to which a conflict arises between the two senses which is subsequently resolved by the surprising punchline (Ross 1998:8). Following the operational definition of a humorous advertisement, a pun-based humorous ad has to fulfill the following conditions: two meanings have to be semantically incompatible, i.e. opposed. This is the so called deliberate ambiguity in a pun which creates the incongruity. Then it must be followed by resolution leading to humorous interpretation. 3.3 Pun taxonomy There are numerous taxonomies of puns witch essentially differ from each other. Attardo criticized these taxonomies and attempts to explain the phenomenon of pun through its taxonomy. He tried to build the taxonomy of the taxonomies and distinguished four major types of pun classifications, namely: taxonomies by linguistic phenomenon, by linguistic structure, by phonemic distance, and eclectic (Attardo 1994: 112). Tanaka distinguished four categories of puns in advertising: nonsense puns, contextual puns, puns with sexual innuendo, and puns with two communicated meanings (Tanaka 1994: 64-80). I will keep to taxonomy based on linguistic phenomena as it is the most relevant one for this thesis. Taxonomies based o

Diabetes an Epidemic in the African American Community Essay -- Biolog

Diabetes an Epidemic in the African American Community "The facts are clear: The diabetes epidemic sweeping the U.S. is hitting the African American community particularly hard, according to doctors." (2) Diabetes is defined as, "A disease that affects the body's ability to produce or respond to insulin, a hormone that allows blood glucose (blood sugar) to enter the cells of the body and be used for energy." (1) There are two types of diabetes: type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes, which usually begins during childhood or adolescence, "Is a condition characterized by high blood glucose levels caused by total lack of insulin. This occurs when the body's immune system attacks the insulin producing beta cells in the pancreas and destroys them.." (2) Type 2 Diabetes, most common form of the disease, "Usually occurring in middle age adults after the age of forty-five, is a condition characterized by high blood glucose levels caused by either lack of insulin or the body's inability to use insulin efficiently." (2) National heal th surveys over the past 35 years show that the number of African American's that have been diagnosed with diabetes is drastically increasing. In fact, it has been reported, "Out of 16 million Americans with diabetes, twenty-three million are African Americans." (3) There are clearly many implications on why diabetes is so rampant in the African American community, those of which will be discussed in this report. In this report, I will exam aspects of the "African American Culture," in order to determine whether those aspects have anything to do with the reasons why diabetes is higher in the African American community, more so than others. "Have you ever heard in the Black culture someone say t... ... amounts of oils and sugars in food, improper dieting and apathy towards treating the disease. Diabetes is a major disease in all ethnicities, particularly in African Americans and can be deadly if not treated properly. If the cycle of diabetes is to lessen, in the African American community, people have to take the approach to eat right and exercise, or else the diabetes will continue to run rampant throughout the community. Internet Sources: 1) http://www.diabetes.org/community/outreach/african_americans/diabetesin.jsp , a rich resource from the diabetes community outreach project 2) http://www.ndep.nih.gov/diabetes/control/4Steps.htm , a rich resource from the department of health and diabetes. 3 http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/africanamerican/index.htm, a rich resource on diabetes 4) http://66.102.126.72?Diabetes.htm, a rich resource on diabetes

Beyond Suffrage: A Book Review Essay examples -- essays research pape

The book, Beyond Suffrage; Women in the New Deal, presents the role of women in the 1930’s in a much different light than many people think of it. The goal of this book is to enlighten the reader as to what role women played in politics during the New Deal. Because of it’s broad view I have taken several specific examples from the book and elaborated on them in order to give you a better understanding.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The author, Susan Ware, begins by laying the groundwork for the women’s network. During the 1930’s, many different organizations began to evolve to include women in their decision-making. The backbone to this movement seems to lie deep within the White House. The First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, held a great deal of influence in decisions regarding women and their role. Ware writes of Mrs. Roosevelt as the â€Å"foremost member of the women’s network in the 1930’s,† and throughout the book Roosevelt’s influence seems to be everywhere.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Moving on, the twenty-eight women discussed in this book are all linked through a complex network, which made them very strong in a time where women had no real strength. Almost all of them held top federal jobs in Washington DC. They were all educated women, born in the same generation. A sisterhood, supporting each other and encouraging each other after every victory, no matter how small, linked them very closely. These women gave each other the moral support and mentorship that seems abse...