Describe something you have accomplished that makes you proud. What Essay

Describe something you have accomplished that makes you proud. What did you learn from from this experience that might help you to ensure high academic achievement for all of your students - Essay Example An example would be the women in the Women’s Shelter in Suffolk County. These women come in with low self esteem, sometimes running from an abusive mate, and might have several children. It was my job to help these women realize their worth. Despite tough backgrounds and obstacles, anyone who sets their mind to it can achieve goals with the right tools. Sometimes these tools are my counseling. Other tools could be another counselor, help with housing, drug counseling, and other programs. If a student is provided with resources, they can learn more efficiently knowing they are not alone. I am also very proud of my non-published work. Even though it has not been published, I have been researching different subjects with success. I feel a teacher can only be effective when continuing their own individual education. Even the most intelligent individual does not encompass all the knowledge to be had in the world. My non published work includes: The topics above will help me identify various predicaments my student will face. I am qualified to identify drug abuse, economic difficulty, social problems, care of parents or elderly relatives, and other issues. The key to teaching a student becomes understanding how they learn. If outside issues pressure a student until they are unable to learn, those issues must be taken care of first. Due to my knowledge that all students come from diverse backgrounds, I feel I am better suited to help students achieve high academic results. Instead of just writing a student off as lazy, I will try to find the root of the problem. Sometimes tired students have home problems, housing issues, or mental issues that need to be dealt with. What I can not help with, I hope I can find the right resources to introduce to the student. A connection with the student must be made. I hope with help all my students could

Emotions in the workplace Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Emotions in the workplace - Essay Example Emotions play an important role not only in a personal life of a person but also in his social and professional life. Hence, people who know how to handle their emotions intelligently, tend to succeed in their personal and professional lives. However, for emotions to be handled intelligently, it is important to know the different concepts of emotions. Emotion recognition is one of the most important aspects of emotional intelligence. Emotions of a person affect his communication pattern to a great extent, as emotions not only influence the thinking pattern of a person but also influence the physiology of a person. The behavior of a person is a result of an emotional state that he is going through. Hence, different emotions create different types of physiological changes in human being (Barlow and Maul 2000). They create physical activities and impulses that motivate a person to behave in certain way (Frijda 1986). For example, if a person is sad, he will sit with slouched shoulders and if a person is feeling happy, he will communicate openly and will display pleasant expressions on his face. This shows that different emotions are accompanied with different body gestures and expressions. Hence, if one needs to know how a person is likely to behave or react, one should read the emotion related clues given in his body language (Barl ow and Maul 2000). The ability to read the emotional state of a person through physical clues is known as emotion recognition. According to Mayer et al. (1990), emotion recognition is an â€Å"accurate appraisal and expression of emotions in oneself and others† (Elfenbein, Marsh and Ambady 2002). Emotion recognition is the ability to perceive other people’s emotion. It has been found that it is easy to read emotions from facial expressions of a person than from any other body language clues. Hence, it is vital to have an ability to read facial expressions (Elfenbein, Marsh and Ambady 2002). As emotion recognition is

Measuring Zinc Intake Among Children in Luwelezi Mzimba

Measuring Zinc Intake Among Children in Luwelezi Mzimba TITLE: Validating the Zinc intake amongst Children aged 24-36 months in Luwelezi Mzimba using food frequency questionnaire. INTRODUCTION Our bodies contain 1.5 to 2.5 grams of zinc, found in all organs, tissues, and body fluids .Zinc is essential for the growth and repair of tissues because it is involved in the synthesis of DNA and RNA, therefore making Zinc Very important for the Developing child (24-36 months). Zinc intake correlates directly with protein consumption, groups are at risk because of limited meat intake. Zinc deficiency in children effects growth retardation, skeletal abnormalities, impaired immunity and Poor wound healing. Zinc deprivation impairs growth and development of infants and children. Evidenced with studies that showed zinc supplements produced highly significant improvements in linear growth and weight gain of children .Consequently Zinc intake estimate are important both for epidemiological studies and in the clinical setting. A reliable assessment of nutrient intake is a difficult task, and the choice of method depends on the aim of the study. Food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) is a pr actical tool for validating nutrient consumption, however can the same be noted when validating Zinc intakes. OBJECTIVE: To assess the Validity of zinc intake using a food frequency questionnaire for children between 24-36 months. MATERIALS METHODS A longitudinal survey design was conducted, data was collected twice over the year.Calculation of sample Size. Total number = 96, using error of mean 10%, 50% CV and 95% confidence level. Exclusion Criteria was used, this included the ability to keep a diet record therefore only Parents and Guardians that were literate, no previous involvement in a diet assessment study, and no major diet changes in the past 6 months. Leading to the study recruiting n=85 Children (age range 24 – 36 months) from Luwelezi in Mzimba. Participants were selected using Simple random sampling. Informed consent was obtained from participating parent/guardian, and a special effort was made by the Nutritionist to illuminate the importance of an accurate and not manipulated 3 day diet record. Collecting biological samples is often culturally unacceptable, moreover with children (aged 24 – 36 months) to rural populations in countries like Malawi and opportunistically getting samples from children already compromised at Hospitals/Clinics cannot offer the correct reflection of Zinc intake due to some already being Zinc deficient. According to a study by Gibson he found that Zinc level findings of dietary recall to biochemical indexes were significantly similar of 60 women in southern Malawi, therefore this study will not be using biochemical markers. Ethical approval was sorted from Local, District and National authorities. Zinc FFQ Although the FFQ is apt to self-administration, in this study it was administered by a trained interviewer, this was done due to low literacy rates and thus to improve accuracy. The operation required less than 10 min for each interview. Biasness arises when collecting data using FFQ done once a year, which may introduce a seasonal bias because certain foodstuffs are often consumed only at one time of the year. Therefore, this study collected data during both seasons rather than just at one time then calculated the average. The steps that were taken to improved internal validity of the FFQ included, Assembled and calibrated equipment a selection of local utensils were purchased and calibrated with a standard measuring cup. Acquirement of Picture charts depicting the foods most often eaten in Mzimba. Translated and pretested the FFQ was translated into local Language Chichewa Tumbuka, a pilot draft of the questionnaire was tested on a smaller sample, using respondents similar to actual population. Trained the interviewers adequate training for the interviewers is critical. The interviewing techniques should always be consistent both among the interviewers and over time. Estimating portion sizes is the most challenging part of the recall interview but also one of the most critical for ensuring high-quality results. This study used clay molded into the correct size and shape of the food to help estimation. Converting portion sizes to weight equivalents ,portion sizes was converted into weight equivalents by using dietary scales and using leftover portions to Calculated the proportion of edible percentage. FFQ usually suffer from overestimations or underestimation, this will reduce them errors. Reviewed the recall interview data at the end of the interview with respondent being present. Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy Some nutrient composition values for a local staple food could not be derived, therefore the study obtained direct chemical analysis. This approach is especially desirable for zinc because their content in plant-based Staples often depends on local trace element levels in soil, agronomy practices. The principle of analysis is to determine zinc using flame atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) based upon the absorption of radiation by free atoms .This was done by preparations of three replications of each concentration in order to get an average using 100-mL volumetric flasks. In order to determine the total amount of zinc, multiply the concentration obtained by the dilution factor (100mL). 3 day food record After completing the FFQ, subjects were asked to keep a 3 day estimated diet diary (food record), recording everything they ate and drank, at the time of eating. A list of household measures was enclosed with the diary form. Comprehensive verbal and written instructions were given to the subjects on the methods of recording data. Emphasis was put during the explanatory phase prior to diet recording to just record the actual intake without any fear of judgment relative to nutrition. Estimation of Zinc nutrient scores For each food item, zinc nutrient content per average unit was compiled. Using Nutritional composition of each food derived from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) food composition tables and Diet Master 2100 software when necessary was developed allowing the total Zinc intake for the FFQ and 3 Day Record to be calculated and compared to AAS. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS Zinc intakes were calculated separately for FFQ, 3 day Record and AAS, and only then were comparisons made (refer to Fig 1). Calculating total zinc intakes Once the daily food intake has been measured, total zinc intakes can be calculated by multiplying the amount (g) of each food consumed by its zinc content (mg zinc/100 g). Specificity was defined as the proportion of those with a daily Zinc intake below 0.80mg on the FFQ. Sensibility was defined as the proportion of those with a daily Zinc intake above 0.8mg on the FFQ. Confidence intervals at 95% were also calculated using Excel 2013 software, ANOVA single Factor refer to Fig: 1. RESULTS The study had 85 respondents of which 47 (55.3%) were females and 38 (44.7%) were boys refer to graph 1. The average age of the Respondents was 29.0  ± 1.2 months. Mean dietary Zinc intake from the 3 Day diet records was 0.909 mg=day with a variance of 0.041, whilst FFQs was 0.90mg=day with a variance of 0.0366 and AAS was 0.89mg=day with a variance of 0.0366. The normal distribution of Zinc data from both diet AAS, 3 day record and FFQ revealed no significant difference between mean intakes (P ¼0.064). Fig 1: Anova Single Factor for zinc Intake for the children diets, with P-value of 0.91.Results shows they is a no significant difference in zinc intake between the 3 methods used. DISCUSSION The study findings showed that all the assessment tools used to assess zinc intake were equally precise as evidenced by Figure 1 (F= 0.09≠¤3.03, p = 0.91), this shows that they is no significant difference in findings, the different assessment tools were able to come up with similar results in zinc intakes of all the n=85 respondents . Hence increasing the reliability of FFQ, since it is one of the most used instruments in the majority of large-sample studies in nutritional epidemiology. Validation studies are carried out to measure the extent to which a method actually measures the aspect of the diet it was designed to measure with the group being measured. Validity and reliability are currently used criteria for selecting dietary assessment tools for observational research. However it is important to note that validation procedure of a dietary assessment tool is essentially impossible, as there is no absolute gold standard for measuring dietary intake CONCLUSION The purpose of this study was to validate Zinc intake for children in Luwelezi Mzimba using the FFQ. It was found that they was a significant correlation of Zinc intakes between all the methods used to calculate zinc intake, therefore the study justifies that FFQ is a valid tool in assessing dietary intake of Zinc. STUDY LIMITATIONS Using FFQ is depends solely upon the respondent’s memory. Calculating procedures based on estimation and assumptions. QUESTION 2 INTRODUCTION Systematic universal approach to determine nutrition status is an essential to achieve global health, recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). This assessment allows explanation of present and past occurrences, hence indicates likelihoods of future possibilities to child’s health. For this purpose, growth charts are adopted, in April 2011 Malawi also joined the 125 Countries across the world shifting from National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS/1978) to WHO/ 2006.This paper aims to explore why it was necessary for Malawi to make this outstanding change. The recommendation for adopting the WHO standards for Malawi are based on several considerations including: IMPROVED METHOLODY AND TECHNOLOGY ADVANCEMENT. The production of the WHO child growth curves underwent a careful, methodical process. Which included vicious methods of data collection, standardized across sites has to be followed during the entire study, thus exclusion criteria develop. Sound procedures for data management and cleaning were applied). The selection of the best statistical approaches and State-of-the-art statistical methodologies used to generate these standards making them the highest conceivable quality Smoothed curves and empirical methods indicating a true description of the growth of healthy children, in contrast the NCHS/WHO data was collected from 1929 to 1975 and does not even match current national birth weight distributions. Also, the statistical methods available at the time the NCHS/WHO growth curves were constructed were too limited to correctly model the pattern and variability of growth. As a result, the NCHS/WHO curves do not adequately represent early childhood growth. The equipment by NCHS in 1977 cannot be matched to State-of-the-art statistics used by WHO in 2004. Equally evidenced by differences between recumbent length measurements from the Fels data and the stature measurements from the NCHS data sets were larger than expected when the transition was made from recumbent length to stature between 24 and 36 months compared to WHO standard. IMPROVED DIAGNOSTIC AND MONITORING WHO and UNICEF have developed a network with facilitators which aim at supporting training and other technical aspects of the standards’ implementation at regional and country level. They provide training packages emphasizing the importance of accurate measurement, plotting and interpretation, plus documentation of growth problems. A child that has a nutritional growth problem, is identified and appropriate action should be determined to address it. Growth assessments by NCHS/WHO is not supported by appropriate response actions to prevent and treat excessive or inadequate growth, hence it is not effective in improving child health. Some Malawian settings where parents are not able to seek and afford treatment plus no presence of an NGO leaves the diagnosed child in grave danger. Another plus for WHO growth charts is that their study was followed incrementally, with each infant measured 21 times between birth and two years. The shorter measurement intervals results in a better tool for monitoring the rapid and changing rate of growth in early infancy However, the NCHS/WHO infants were measured once every 3 months and used supplemental data due unavailable data for the first two to three months of life. The cross-sectional nature of the NCSH/WHO charts represents achieved size of infants, it does not describe rates of growth as accurately as growth represented in longitudinal growth charts BREASTFEEDING The WHO growth standard promotes breastfeeding as the custom that should be followed to attain optimal growth among children exclusively or predominantly breastfed. This is consistent with the Malawi’s Baby-friendly Hospital approach. Infant feeding guidelines recommend breastfeeding as the peak source of nutrition during infancy. Thus, the WHO standards provides a platform for advocating the protection, promotion and support of breastfeeding and adequate complementary feeding. In this regard, the WHO standards are expected to make meaningful contributions to reducing child morbidity and mortality in Malawi. This will now allow accurate assessment, measurement and evaluation of breastfeeding and complementary feeding because it recognizes the adequacy of human milk to support healthy growth and development. However the NCHS/WHO nearly all infants included in the sample were formula-fed resulting in a reflection different to the pattern of growth typically observed in healthy b reastfed infants. This makes it gravely suitable for Malawi due to most of our infants being Breastfed, therefore exposing them the many benefits exclusive breastfeeding come with promoting optimal child health. GROWTH STANDARD NOT GROWTH REFERENCE Children in the WHO standards were raised under ideal circumstances and health conditions. As a result the WHO growth charts are designated as the Golden standard identifying how children should grow when provided with optimal conditions .On contrast with NCSH/WHO charts which shows a snapshot of weight and heights of the sampled population, irrespective of whether their rate of growth was optimal or not. Therefore the NCSH/WHO charts potentially show the growth of some infants who may have been fed sub-optimally, raised in substandard environmental circumstances; or had infections, chronic illness or disease. Adopting this â€Å"Golden Standard† is helpful for Malawi as it allows the comparison to be made with the very best. INTERNATIONAL SAMPLE POPULATION The origins of the children included in the WHO standards were widely diverse. They included peoples from Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East In this respect they are similar to a lot of populations ,due being ethnic diverse. The growth of the children in the 6 various sites was very similar because their environments were similarly healthy. This indicates that we should expect the same potential for growth in any country. Traditionally it was believed that different ethnic groups show different patterns of growth. However WHO standards has refuted this belief showing that variability in infant growth was greater within population groups than between the different country groups. The major Concern with NHCS charts is that the sample consisted primarily of white middle-class infants from southwestern Ohio (USA). So making the data obtained unrepresentative, WHO charts means Malawians are also capable of growing to these heights under optimal conditions. ‘Osat i zungu simuthu, amakula kwambiri kuposa ife Amalawi’. NEW ELEMENTS WHO Standard approach goes beyond the development of growth references towards a standard, inclusion of motor development milestones provide a solid instrument for helping to meet the health and nutritional needs of the world’s children. A further set of charts comprising: MAUCZ, HCZ, SSFZ and TSFZ were released early in 2007. All charts are available both percentiles and Z-scores, making it easier than ever before to record and assess Nutritional status of infants, one can just get a paper, pen and MAUC tape fold in the pocket and off they go into the Community. Then generate reports using WHO Anthro, which is an exciting software in itself. CONCLUSION After sensible and carefully evaluation the adoption of the WHO charts for usage in Malawi appears more helpful for the children’s nutritional screening and hence hospital admission than NCSH/WHO growth References. This is due it enables the detection of a higher number of malnourished children or at nutritional risk, thus allowing the much needed beneficial early intervention to be undertaken. Also the Development of WHO charts were promoted and supported by Stakeholders (NGO’s, Governments etc.) that are currently active in Malawi and contribute significantly to our National Budget, WHO charts makes it easier for steadfast interventions and communication between these stakeholders and Malawi .

Discuss how the historical, political and social setting of Harper Lees :: English Literature

Discuss how the historical, political and social setting of Harper Lee's novel To Kill a Mockingbird contributes to the fears that are present in Maycomb County. "Maycomb County had recently been told that it had nothing to fear but fear itself." (Scout Finch, Chapter 1, 'To Kill a Mockingbird'). 'To Kill A Mockingbird' is set in a small town in Maycomb County, Alabama, in the 1930s, which was a dark period in time for America as it had been hit by the Depression. Up until 1929, America had been doing very well, becoming a much richer country. However in 1929 when stocks had soared to an all time high, in September they plummeted. This day in history is known as Black Thursday and is remembered as the Wall Street Crash of '29. The crash hit people's interests hard and Americans all over lost a lot of money. Banks had to spend all of the money they had on regaining the economy, and agricultural needs were ignored, and didn't seem as important as other things like industry. Landowners had let out land to farmers to grow crops in, and when the Wall Street Crash hit them, they wanted to regain their land, as it was all they had. Therefore, the crash hit farmers the most and the Deep South was hit very badly because so many people were farmers by trade. There were many black people in the South of America, especially Alabama, and there was great racial hatred between them and the white communities. The Civil War from 1861-1865 between the North of America who wanted the abolition of slavery, and the South who wanted to keep slavery resulted in victory by the North, and slavery was later abolished. The South had lost its pride, and this was the reason for the racial hatred. Black people were thought to be inferior to white people and in the 1960s when the novel was written, black communities were rioting and causing disturbances to get across the point that they were not inferior to white people. After Abolition Black people were terrorised by the Ku Klux Klan, who would burn them, rape the women, and torture the children and the reader is shown an example of this in Chapter 15 where a group of white people, go to the county jail to terrorise Tom Robinson. Maybe this hatred for the Negroes wasn't hatred after all, but brought about by fear. As slavery had been abolished, black people were entitled to the same rights as white people, however they were still ostracised by white people because of their colour.

Indiana High School Math Teaching

â€Å"The dream begins with a teacher who believes in you, who tugs and pushes and leads you to the next plateau, sometimes poking you with a sharp stick called â€Å"truth. â€Å"† ~Dan Rather This research paper was written to educate you and myself on various topics on becoming a high school math teacher. I enrolled at Ashford University to complete my Bachelor’s Degree in order to enter the transition to teaching program. This paper has allowed me to acquire pertinent and vital information about my future career choice. My research was done on the status of high school math teachers, as well as students, in Indiana. This paper will educate you on Indiana’s High School mathematics graduation requirements, percentage of math students passing these requirements, teachers’ salaries, and the effect that a minority teacher should have on minority students. To graduate High school in Indiana a student must complete the Core 40 requirements set by the state. These requirements were implemented in 2006. There are four different diplomas that a high school student in the state of Indiana could receive upon completing the Core 40 requirements: General, Core 40, Core 40 with Academic Honors, and Core 40 with Technical Honors (Indiana Core 40, 2006). Even after completing the courses required for the Core 40 High School students in the state of Indiana must pass an exam to â€Å"qualify† for graduation. This exam is referred to as the GQE (Indiana Core 40, 2006 ). Indiana has added a few nice provisions to this legislation to help out students who may simply not be good test takers, or for those who are ready to work and do not need the required math skills for their work. These provisions, which are found on the Indiana Department of Education website, are referred to as the â€Å"Evidence-based waiver† and the â€Å"Work readiness waiver. The evidence-based waiver is for those students who excel in the classroom, but have a hard time with tests. This provision, among other things, allows teachers to confirm that the student knows what has been taught in class and that they have kept up their attendance as well. The work readiness waiver is for those students who have completed the Core 40 coursework as well as a completed a Career Exploration Internship. This simply means that the student has done the work that was required of them and that they are, in fact, ready to enter the workforce even though they may not have passed the GQE. Both provisions have provided students additional opportunities to complete their Indiana High School Math requirements. After learning about the requirements to pass math in the state of Indiana I wanted to take a look at the percentage of passing students to see if the percentage had improved since the Core 40 and GQE was put in place. Since there had been a curriculum change put into place, I wanted to see if the students were being positively affected by this change. Although I could not find the passing percentage for 12th graders, which is what I wanted to evaluate, I was able to find the percentage of 10th graders that passed from 2006-2009. I found that there was a quite a jump in the percentage of passing students from the year ’06-’07 to the year ’07-’08; it went from 66% to 72% (Annual Performance Report , 2009). However, the following year the same increased percentage did not occur. Instead the Indiana 10th grade percentage of students passing their GQE went down two percentage points. The numbers for the ’09-’10 year in Indiana have not yet been released, but I hope to find that these percentages were on the rise and did not follow suit from the previous year. Based on these statistics I am unable to see the impact that the Core 40 was designed to have on Indiana’s High School math students. The new legislation has only been in place for a few years, so there is still time for this to have a positive effect on the students and their graduation rates. Looking at these statistics raised a question for me, â€Å"How do you measure a teacher’s worth? Well, based on some research I can tell you that the average high school teacher’s salary has been on a steady incline. Within the last 35 years the average public school teacher’s salary has went from $11,165 for the school year of 1974-1975 to $50,488 for the school year of 2009-2010(Teacher Salary, 2007). The increases in wages have been well over the national inflation rate also. As a future teacher this research shows me that the state is recognizing the hard work that its teachers are putting nto their students and the government is trying to retain quality teachers. The monetary compensation is one valuable form of measuring a teacher worth, but there’s still the intangibles of the career and that is community worth. I have found through conversations with family and friends who are educators, no one teaches for the money. However, it is reassuring to see that I will be able to have a career that I am happy with and be able to support my family at the same time. I was drawn to this research topic because of my background and love for coaching. As a coach you are a teacher, counselor, and father. As a minority I believe I will be able to relate to my Afro-American students better. In my experiences I have found it easier to relate to students of the same ethnicity or socioeconomic backgrounds. Bandura states that learning may occur as a result of watching someone else perform some action and experience reinforcement or punishment (Boyd and Bee, 2006). I served as a role model for my student athletes by showing them various life decisions and how to make the correct choices when they arouse. As a male I have been a father figure to a lot of young males. My advice has been used as education for life situations and life skills. I saw the self efficacy as a huge challenge in many young and economically challenged Afro-American males and females. Bandura defines self efficacy as the belief in one’s ability to perform some action or to control one’s behavior or environment, to reach some goal or to make something happen ( Boyd and Bee, 2006). Many students had the attitude that they couldn’t overcome the obstacles that life had placed in front of them. Many social problems that the students faced were looked at as obstacles that were to hard overcome. I was able to help one particular student with a life altering experience and persuade him to not give up on his dreams. This young man had the opportunity to obtain a full athletic scholarship to a division one school for football, however numerous obstacles surrounded this young athlete, but none were greater than his lack of mathematical aptitude. I realized with working with this student that all of my social and ethical skills teaching wouldn’t benefit him if he couldn’t not pass his mathematical requirements to graduate high school and also pass college entrance exams. I hope that someday I will be in this situation again and I will be able to help other student’s overcome what many people see as an adversity. The adversity I am speaking of is being able to complete their math requirements so that they may receive their high school diploma. One of the main reasons I have decided to become an educator is to help young students’ poor outlook on their futures. As a teacher I will receive tremendous gratification watching a student reach his or her full potential. Watching students that never believed in themselves enough to graduate walk across the stage during graduation and listen to the speaker announce their future plans to attend a university or college is something that cannot be matched. The social impact of this job is immeasurable and the joy that I will receive from the profession will last a life time. In conclusion, as a minority high school teacher I should be able to model correct life skills and teach proficient math skills to my students that will create a greater sense of self efficacy in them. After researching Indiana’s High School mathematic graduation requirements, the percentage of students passing math requirements, and teachers’ salaries, I have found that I will be teaching in a state that has transformed its educational curriculum and requirements to produce more societal ready students, whether they join the workforce or the campus. I will also be working for a state that has a proven track record of monetarily backing its educators and keeping them out of poverty. With any luck the salaries will continue to rise with the educational requirements of the students that we must prepare for the future. Lastly, I will have a career that will keep this great nation strong and also provide me with a great sense of community pride.

History of Brazil Essay

Brazil the only Portuguese speaking country of South America, was founded by Spanish and Portuguese in the same year of 1500, but was handed over to the Portugal in the agreement of Torsdesillas (Bamber Gascoigne,gtu). Since the time of its colonization from 1500 until the late 1930, export of principal products has been subjected. Joao VI the sole sovereign when returned to Portugal, his apparent to the throne was Pedro, who surged a sequence of progressive political differences, which ultimately led to the independence of Brazil by 1822, leading to an era of kingship by Dom Pedro. His son Pedro II continued his legacy and led a more efficient government more than his father till 1889, where he was deposed by military coup. After that there were two more military coups in 1930 and later in 1964, but since 1985, democracy slowly returned to the snagged state. But in the midst of all the political and military drama, somehow the country’s economy was on the move. The history of the country indicates of its troubled pasts, and its love affairs with military coups, but since the last three decades, the country’s political frame has been stable, leading to ample opportunity for company like ours. Brazil Demography and Economy Brazil today has a population of more than 183 million people, with a high literacy rate of more than 86% (BIGS, Brazil today). A very strong positive indication, of a healthy literate population, briefly a very lucrative consumer mass for our product. Brazil comes in one of the front leaders of a leading economy in the world. It is an elite member of trillion dollar GDP group of the world. It is one of the fastest growing economies of the world, and slowly but surely, this country has become members of varied monetary unions, like Mercosur, and G-20. Brazil’s GDP has grown at an alarming 5. 1 % in the financial year of 2007, and with a very strong GDP per capita income of $8800 and also the Brazilian currency BRL$ is very strong, as 1 USD is near about less than BRL$ 2. This 8th largest economy of the world would prove to provide substantial buyers of our product in due course of time. Brazil’s Lifestyle Brazilian culture is a very open culture, with very less of taboos, and from the early times has been into music, and dance. Being a highly diversified culture with a huge mix of ethnic groups, Brazil has a very rich heritage. Music is one of the lifelines of Brazilians, and it can be stated form the fact that, way before their independence, Brazil had its own set of music schools, set up in different part of the country . This 5th largest population of the world is very inclined to towards singing and dancing customs, and being a prosperous nation 98% of the large population has access to television, where their local movie industry which also being the 10th largest in the world is highly well-liked and watched. Brazil’s inclination towards sports is not hidden from the world, and especially their superior liking for football. The population in general is known to be very hard working, but very apposite to recreation in sports and music. Status of demands of subwoofer in cars Brazil has a very large automobile industry, and in the year 2005, Brazil manufactured more than 1.65 million cars only for its domestic market (Elisangela Cordeiro), also according to the Euro monitor consumer electronics reporting Brazil, the in-car electronics such as woofers and media players along with other electronics in the market are available at cheap installment schemes, which are luring the common man into packing his car with accessories, like car speakers and woofers. Brazil has got a very huge young population, which would be our main targets for our products, as woofers are a very mandatory thing for the young generation of Brazilians. Recommendation Our first strategy to enter Brazilian woofer market is to tie up with the local car manufacturers, and to fit in our woofers in the local brands at reasonable prices. Since Brazil has a huge automobile market, we can tap into its boom and accessories the cars with our woofers. Secondly, the basic nature of a Brazilian is very open, and everyone has very strong interest in the different genres of music, we can capitalize on this nature of theirs and we can have ads on the lines of their open nature along with, their music, being played by our subwoofer. The only competition from a brand as repute as ours is from the company â€Å"BOSE†, but it only has its sales distributors, retail and commercial in Sao Paulo, if we can pull up our regional centre in Sao Paulo as well as the capital Brasilia , then we would be miles ahead of BOSE in the Brazilian sphere, as we would be able to reach a lot of people with our products, also these two cities are the main hotspot places for tourists, mainly coming from other regions of Latin America, and we would start catering to the domestic as well as the other Latin American mass would enhance the company’s reputation in nationally as well as in other neighboring countries. We can have our shops in malls and in different youth oriented streets and places, apart from having our outlets at car showrooms. Another thing that is strongly recommended is to tap into local manufacturing structure as Brazil has a very high amount of labor population who work at remunerations which are much aff ordable to us than the labor unit in the US, also the transportation costs would exceed cost price of our product. It is more suitable to link up with government in Brazil for facilitating us with the required formalities, and also the required waivers being handed out to us, in return for the unit which would commence in Brazil, in turn handing out jobs to the local population. Once we establish our market in the region, we can market our product more to the masses by making changes in its core design and, we can create an innovative JBL series subwoofer, which can be in a shape of a football (sphere), which would woo youngsters and football lovers. Further details regarding this matter will be mailed to you from the Research& Development wing. Conclusion Brazil has a very booming economy, and it is being rated with countries like India and China who are, the fastest growing economies of the world. This country has a very reasonable labor population which would cut down our costs by a huge margin, when we start manufacturing here. The regional centers which I have recommended would enhance our market in the country, and we if we can tap into the free nature and love of music of the Brazilians , then we would have not only a huge market in this country but also other Latin American countries who would follow Brazil’s in pursuit. Apart from Brazil’s distressed past of military coups, there is nothing else that negates Brazil as one of the prime future market for our company Work Cited Bamber Gascoigne, â€Å"History of Brazil†, Jan 14th 2008 http://www. historyworld. net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories. asp? historyid=aa88

Forget about the Dark Ages

Forget about the Dark Ages Forget about the â€Å"Dark Ages† Forget about the â€Å"Dark Ages† By Maeve Maddox Movie makers and many writers are fond of using the terms â€Å"Dark Ages† and â€Å"medieval† to denote ignorance, intolerance and unspeakable violence. For example, a character in Pulp Fiction threatens his captive this way: Ima get medieval on your ass. Some writers who use the terms Dark Ages, Middle Ages and medieval have a very vague idea of the historical time periods designated by them. A common misconception is that â€Å"Dark Ages† and â€Å"Middle Ages† mean the same thing. So far as the Dark Ages can be acknowledged to be a meaningful term at all, it signifies that time between the breakdown of the Roman Empire in the fifth century, and the establishment of more stable European governments by the end of the tenth century. The Dark Ages were marked by raiding and pillaging. The Middle Ages were a time of architectural, artistic, and literary achievement. The blurb at the beginning of Christian Duguay’s 1999 film about Joan of Arc is a perfect example of the confusion that exists regarding these terms: Once in a time known as the Dark Ages There lived a legend whose coming had been foretold by the great prophet Merlin. The â€Å"legend† referred to here is Joan of Arc (1412-1431). When Joan died in 1431, the Renaissance had already begun in Italy. Joans mother and brothers were still alive when Leonardo de Vinci, Italian High Renaissance Painter and Inventor, was born in 1452. Historians dont use the term â€Å"Dark Ages† anymore. It was a term invented by the Italian poet Petrarch in the 1330s to convey his feeling that the culture of ancient Greece and Rome had been superior to everything that succeeded it. The expression Middle Age for the period between classical civilization and the present came into use in the fifteenth century. The term Middle Ages was first used systematically by a German historian, Christoph (Keller) Cellarius (1638–1707). The historical period designated by the term spans a thousand years. Modern historians divide the Middle Ages into three periods: Early Middle Ages: 500 -1000 C.E. The last Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustulus, was deposed in 476. This was a time of great unrest during which Visigoths sacked Rome, Vikings pillaged France and England, and the energetic expansion of the new religion of Islam threatened the existence of Christianity. High Middle Ages: 1000-1300 C.E. Former rovers and raiders settled down. This is the age of great European cathedrals and Islamic centers of classical and scientific study. The cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris was begun in 1160 and completed in 1345. Avicenna (Ibn Sina) wrote one of the first scientific encyclopedias during this time. Late Middle Ages: 1300-1499 C.E. The age of renewed interest in classical texts in Europe, and the invention of Gutenberg’s printing press. The two precipitated the Protestant Reformation and catapulted the world into the modern period. Like the term Dark Ages, the term â€Å"Middle Ages† was coined as a kind of put-down. The idea is that nothing much of value existed between the classical civilizations of Greece and Rome and the re-birth of the classical ideal in the Renaissance. Writers may wish to take another look at the terms Middle Ages and medieval. They don’t deserve to be used haphazardly as synonyms for ignorance and brutality. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 Classes and Types of PhrasesIs There a Reason â€Å"the Reason Why† Is Considered Wrong?20 Classic Novels You Can Read in One Sitting

Why The Crusades Failed

Why The Crusades Failed Introduction The crusades refer to the chain of religious wars, fought in the Levant and Asia Minor between the years 1095 and 1291. During the wars, Western European nations engaged the locals, in response to propaganda related to religious expansion.1Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Why The Crusades Failed specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The first crusade was ordered by Pope Urban II, who was acting as an agent of the Roman Catholic. The aim of the crusade was to restore Christian control of the holy lands at Jerusalem and the surrounding areas.2 The cause for the crusades could be traced to the times of the Siljug-Byzantine and Arab-Byzantine wars, which ended in the conclusive defeat of Byzantine forces in 1701. After the decisive defeat, the Emperor, Alexios I appealed to Christian nations to fight the common enemy (Muslims), thus requested for their participation in the armed conflict. As a result, Pope Urban II agreed to the request, and committed western leaders to the course of reclaiming the Holy lands.3 The crusaders’ forces were made up of Catholic armies that had come in from Western Europe. However, the forces were never under the same unit of command; the different teams were commanded by different leaders.4 The first crusades were successful. However, those that followed thereafter failed, leading to the defeat of the crusaders. After the defeat, the Crusaders were forced to return to their countries. Most of the soldiers were French. Thus, they were referred as Franks. This was the name used by the Muslim fighters during the duration of the war. On the other hand, the Europeans commonly referred to the people of the Holy Lands as Saracens. The name was used in a negative manner and was used throughout the crusades and after, including the 20th century.5 The crusades were characterized by alliances, including that between Christians and Sultanate of Rum, during the time of the fifth crusade.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The crusades had major economic, political and social effects on Western Europe, including the considerable weakening of the Christian-Byzantine kingdom, which was later conquered by Muslim Turks.6 The factors that led to the failure of the Crusades The failure of the crusades resulted from a number of factors, including the weakening of the rule of the leaders of the war at their home countries.7 They came to the realization that their continued stay at Middle East undermined the rule and the peace at their home countries: the authority and the powers of the leaders of the crusades were threatened at their countries.8 One of such cases was that of Richard I of England, who realized that the brother that he had left in charge of the throne at England was no longer willing to allow him, take the throne upon his return.9 As a result, the threat to the rule of the leaders of the crusaders forces resulted in their departure from the Middle East, so that they could regain their previous rule and the control of their nations. As a consequence, the forces of the Crusaders continued to weaken, which resulted in their inability to handle the fighting capacity of the Muslim forces.10 Further, the divided attention of the crusaders between focusing their attention on the war, and returning to their countries, so they could continue their activities weakened their resolve to continue the crusades. The crusades failed, as a result of the conflicts between the leaders of the different crusaders’ teams. Some of the conflicts resulted from the lack of a common center of command, while others resulted from differences in the priorities of the different leaders.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Why The Crusades Failed specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Some of the conflicts among European forces included the rivalry between Innocent IV and Fredrick II. Fredrick II believed that Innocent IV was spreading a campaign against him. At the same time of the rivalry between Fredrick II and Innocent IV, Louis IX of France was planning the seventh crusade, which was not supported by many of the other leaders. Later, Louis IX attempted to reconcile the conflict of interest between the two, to no avail, which increased the rivalry between the crusaders forces. The continued conflict of interest and the rivalry between the Crusaders’ forces weakened their combined effort, as well as well as their strategic approach to the wars. Further, the weakening resolve decreased the ability of the crusaders to match the fighting abilities of the Muslims, which led to their unexpected defeat.11 The failure of the crusades resulted from the double-crossing of the Greeks. It was considered so, after the military allies of the pope lost their tru st in the loyalty of the church. They lost faith in the church after the Greek Orthodox Church gave money to the authorities of the church, so that the church could help install Alexius to power.12 The strategy of buying the placement of Alexius to power seemed to the military allies, as an effort that went contrary to the values of the Greeks. As a result, the misunderstanding between the church and the military allies led to a continued withdrawal of the support offered by the allies of the pope. The withdrawal of the support of the allies of the Pope led to a reduction in the military capacity of the crusaders’ forces. The withdrawal of the support offered to the Crusades also resulted from the increasing incidences of corruption and political dissension among the partners in the war. With the decreasing cooperation between the different parties, towards winning the war, the Muslims were on the other hand, improving their cooperative effort and shared participation. As a r esult, the crusaders were overpowered by the increasing efforts of the Muslims, which forced them to concede defeat.Advertising Looking for essay on history? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The failure of the crusades was caused by the relatively few soldiers in the crusaders forces, compared to those from the Muslim side. The crusaders benefited from the superiority of their war technology and skills, which offered them an edge ahead of the Muslim forces. As a result, the first attacks were successful, but as time went on, the Muslims mastered their skills. Therefore, they were able to avoid defeat. Further, the western armies arrived in the Middle East after a long journey, which would leave them tired, weakened by diseases and also the attacks that they met on their way there. As a result, their fighting abilities would be greatly reduced by the factors mentioned, which made them not to compete with the Muslims at their optimal war capacity. Also, after conquered a certain area in the Middle East, some members of the crusaders forces would leave for their home countries. As a result, the remaining troops would have few soldiers to continue with the war, as well as t hose to ensure that the conquered areas were not reclaimed. The impact of the continual return of the Crusaders forces was worsened by the fact that the soldiers that left for their home countries would take more than decades to return, or send other soldiers to take their place in the war.13 The failure of the crusades was caused by the expensive nature of the war attempts. Some groups believed that the crusades were staged by the Europeans, so they could acquire wealth and riches. However, contrary from this view, the nations involved in the crusades scrapped, borrowed and imposed great taxes on their citizens so that they would afford sustaining the crusades. The funds raised through the increased taxation levels, and the borrowing was channeled towards paying the armies, equipping the forces and feeding the soldiers at the base. The difference between the conquest of the Middle East and other areas where they had previously captured was that the land there was not a revenue-prod ucing. Therefore, compared to their European farm lands, the Crusaders felt that they were not gaining from the captured. As a result, the home nations of the Crusaders continued to carry the burden of the war, which left them no choice, other than to accept that the crusades were not viable in the long term. Further, most of the exhaustible resources that were available to the crusaders as well as the supplies that they received from their nations started running out after years of fighting. The continued reduction of European resources discouraged some of the nations, which resulted in a continuous withdrawal of their forces from the Middle East. As a consequence, the forces left at Middle East continued weakening and reducing, which resulted in their defeat by the Muslim soldiers.14 The failure of the crusades resulted from the lack of support from the Byzantines, despite the fact that they had promised to offer the Europeans support throughout the crusading period.15 As a result , the Crusaders continued to wait for the help of the Byzantines, which led to a weaker resolve to engage in the crusades without them. Their expectation of getting help from the Byzantines was solidified by their knowledge that the Comnenus lineage of rulers had requested for the help of the pope, which marked the beginning of the Crusades.16 As a result, the lack of support from the Byzantines demoralized the crusaders, and weakened the ground they had gained in the Middle East.17 The failure of the crusades was caused by the lack of a proper channel for transporting more people from Europe to the Middle East, so that the new recruits could offer support to the soldiers that had arrived earlier.18 The European groups willing to participate in the war lacked the channel of arriving in the Middle East. In this regard, their valuable input would have helped maintain the dominion of the earlier armies, which is evident from the success of the first crusades. One example of such a fail ed attempt to transport more people to the Middle East was that led by a German youth called Nicholas in 1212.19 Nicholas announced that he had been commissioned by God to voyage to the holy land, and spread the message that he would take more people to participate in the crusades. From his campaigns about the voyage to the holy land, he gathered the following of 30,000 hopefuls who were willing to go with him to the holy land.20 However, after the leaving Cologne for the Middle East, many of the people died of disease and hunger along the way, while some were eaten by wild animals like wolves. Additionally, thieves attacked them and stole their clothing and food, leaving them without the resources to keep them going. Upon the arrival of the many hopefuls in Genoa, they were dismissed to go back to their homes as there were no ships to transport them to the Middle East.21 The impossible nature of transporting people in the Middle East stopped many groups, which could help the troops that had arrived there earlier, so that they could win the wars.22 There was another case of a group in France, which sought its way to the Middle East to participate in the crusades. The group led by Stephen comprised of more than 20,000 people. Stephen had promised that the sea would give way for the group to cross to Palestine.23 However, the seas did not give way, forcing them to seek an alternative means of transport. While at the shore, some ship owners offered to take them across to the holy land. Unfortunately, some of the ships wrecked while at sea, and those that arrived at the other side were attacked by forces ordered by Fredrick II. The travelers in the ships including the children were taken as slaves.24 This difficulty in the transportation of more people in the Middle East shows the difficulty that the Europeans experienced, when trying to increase the forces participating in the Crusades. As a result, the rate of replacing the soldiers that died and those that went back to their homeland was slow, which weakened the ability of the crusaders forces, leading to their defeat.25 The failure of the crusades was fueled by the bloody attacks of the Muslim forces, including the raid that took place after the departure of Louis. Immediately after the departure, a civil war started between the Genoese and the Venetians.26 At the same time, the Baibars took the opportunity to strike, and marched across the coast of the region, capturing different towns, previously controlled by Christians, one after another. Some of the towns captured during the raid include Antioch, Jaffa, Safad, and Caesarea.27 During the raid, many Christians and crusaders were enslaved, and others slaughtered, which greatly weakened the power of the Crusaders’ forces in areas like Antioch to an irreparable extent. The massive attack weakened the ability of the crusaders in countering Muslim forces, and also demoralized the remaining forces, which drove them towards accepting defeat. The forces of the Crusaders were also affected by a lack of communication, which resulted, partly from the unfriendly relations between the leaders of the different nations or teams. The lack of communication between the different teams was worsened by the language barriers that existed between them. Some of the teams used Latin while others used French. However, among the soldiers, the problem was worse, as most of them could not understand one another, which widened the rivalry between different teams.28 As a result, there was a prevalent lack of common resolve and unit of command, which widened their inability to counter Muslim forces. The relations between the groups were also characterized by an inherent lack of proper planning due to the rivalry between the different groups. This was with regard to the resources required and the avenues to use during the crusades.29 The failure of the Crusaders’ forces was perpetuated by the European style of fighting, as the cr usaders relied on heavy armor and large horses. They also relied on a few bowmen, which was not enough to counter the experienced fighting style of the Muslims. The Muslims, on the other hand, used camels and fast horses, which allowed them to move across the desert-war-front very fast. The Muslims also had innumerable bowmen. Therefore, they could attack the Europeans from a far distance, which increased their advantage in defeating them. The fighting strategies of the Muslims left the Crusaders helpless, whenever the Muslims decided to strike. Therefore, this shows that the fundamental war style between the Crusaders and the Muslims increased the potential of the Muslim forces, which led to the unsuccessful nature of the crusades.30 Conclusion The crusades refer to the chain of religious wars, fought between Muslim and European forces at Levant and Asian minor. The crusades started after Alexios appealed for the help of the Pope. Thus, the church could help the Byzantines at resto ring the Holy Land to Christian rule. The crusaders were made up of armies from Western Europe. The factors that led to the failure of the Crusades include the unskilled nature of the crusaders forces, which were not able to counter the war techniques of the Muslims. The failure of the crusades resulted from the rivalry that existed between the different leaders and the double-crossing of the Greeks by the church, which reduced the support offered to the crusades. The failure was caused by other factors, including the limited number of the soldiers that made up the crusaders forces, the high costs required to sustain the crusades and the lack of the support promised by the Byzantine forces. Other factors included the lack of effective transport networks in the Middle East and the bloody attacks by Muslim forces, which demoralized the crusaders. Lack of communication among the crusaders teams and the experienced fighting style of the Muslims also perpetuated the failure of the crusad es. Bibliography Bull, Marcus and Norman, Housley (eds). The Experience of Crusading Volume 1, Western Approaches. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003: 307. Cartlidge, Cherese. The Crusades: Failed Holy Wars. San Diego: Lucent Books, 2002 Constable, Giles. The Historiography of the Crusades in Angeliki E. Laiou, ed. The Crusades from the Perspective of Byzantium and the Muslim World. Washington, DC: Dumarton Oaks, 2001. 77. Edbury, Peter and Jonathan Phillips (eds). The Experience of Crusading Volume 2, Defining the Crusader Kingdom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003: 326. Edgington, Susan and Sarah Lambert (eds). Gendering the Crusades. Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2002. Florean, Dana. East Meets West: Cultural Confrontation and Exchange after the First Crusade. Language Intercultural Communication, 7. 2 (2007): 150–151. Folda, Jaroslav. Crusader Art in the Holy Land, From the Third Crusade to the Fall of Acre. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press , 2005. Harris, Jonathan. Byzantium and the Crusades. New York: Continuum International Publishing, 2003: 276. Hodgson, Natasha. Women, Crusading and the Holy Land in Historical Narrative. Woodbridge: Boydell, 2007. Housley, Norman. The Later Crusades, 1274-1580: From Lyons to Alcazar. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992. James, Douglas. Christians and the First Crusade. History Review, 53 (2005): 34-38. Kagay, Donald and Andrew Villalon (eds). Crusaders, Condottieri, and Cannon: Medieval Warfare in Societies around the Mediterranean. Leiden: Brill Academic Publisher, 2003. Madden, Thomas (ed). The Crusades: The Essential Readings. New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell, 2002. Footnotes 1 Giles Constable, The Historiography of the Crusades in Angeliki E. Laiou, ed. The Crusades from the Perspective of Byzantium and the Muslim World (Washington, DC: Dumarton Oaks, 2001), 77 2 Dana Florean, East Meets West: Cultural Confrontation and Exchange after the First Crusade. Language Intercultural Co mmunication, 7. 2 (2007): 150–151 3 Norman Housley. The Later Crusades, 1274-1580: From Lyons to Alcazar. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992), 75 4 Peter Edbury and Jonathan Phillips (eds), The Experience of Crusading Volume 2, Defining the Crusader Kingdom (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003), 326 5 Jonathan Harris, Byzantium and the Crusades (New York: Continuum International Publishing, 2003), 276. 6 Donald Kagay and Andrew Villalon (eds), Crusaders, Condottieri, and Cannon: Medieval Warfare in Societies around the Mediterranean (Leiden: Brill Academic Publisher, 2003), 134. 7 Peter Edbury and Jonathan Phillips (eds), The Experience of Crusading Volume 2, Defining the Crusader Kingdom (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003), 326 8 Dana Florean, East Meets West: Cultural Confrontation and Exchange after the First Crusade. Language Intercultural Communication, 7. 2 (2007): 144. 9 Ibid, 145 10 Ibid, 150 11 Giles Constable, The Historiography of the Crusade s in Angeliki E. Laiou, ed. The Crusades from the Perspective of Byzantium and the Muslim World (Washington, DC: Dumarton Oaks, 2001), 77 12 Florean Dana, East Meets West: Cultural Confrontation and Exchange after the First Crusade. Language Intercultural Communication, 7. 2 (2007): 143 13 Cherese Cartlidge. The Crusades: Failed Holy Wars. (San Diego: Lucent Books, 2002), 24 14 Natasha, Hodgson, Women, Crusading and the Holy Land in Historical Narrative. (Woodbridge: Boydell, 2007), 87. 15 Jonathan Harris, Byzantium and the Crusades (New York: Continuum International Publishing, 2003), 276. 16 Donald Kagay, and Andrew, Villalon (eds), Crusaders, Condottieri, and Cannon: Medieval Warfare in Societies around the Mediterranean (Leiden: Brill Academic Publisher, 2003), 172. 17 Thomas Madden (ed), The Crusades: The Essential Readings (New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell, 2002), 74. 18 Douglas James, Christians and the First Crusade. History Review, 53 (2005): 34-38. 19 Natasha, Hodgson, Women, Crusading and the Holy Land in Historical Narrative. (Woodbridge: Boydell, 2007), 78. 20 Susan Edgington and Sarah Lambert (eds), Gendering the Crusades (Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2002), 232 21 Marcus Bull, and Norman, Housley (eds), The Experience of Crusading Volume 1, Western Approaches (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003), 307 22 Jonathan Harris, Byzantium and the Crusades (New York: Continuum International Publishing, 2003), 276 23 Donald Kagay, and Andrew, Villalon (eds), Crusaders, Condottieri, and Cannon: Medieval Warfare in Societies around the Mediterranean (Leiden: Brill Academic Publisher, 2003), 172. 24 Florean Dana, East Meets West: Cultural Confrontation and Exchange after the First Crusade. Language Intercultural Communication, 7. 2 (2007): 144 25 Natasha, Hodgson, Women, Crusading and the Holy Land in Historical Narrative. (Woodbridge: Boydell, 2007), 78. 26 Thomas Madden (ed), The Crusades: The Essential Readings (New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell, 20 02), 174. 27 Ibid, 175. 28 Donald Kagay, and Andrew, Villalon (eds), Crusaders, Condottieri, and Cannon: Medieval Warfare in Societies around the Mediterranean (Leiden: Brill Academic Publisher, 2003), 172. 29 Natasha, Hodgson, Women, Crusading and the Holy Land in Historical Narrative. (Woodbridge: Boydell, 2007), 78. 30 Natasha, Hodgson, Women, Crusading and the Holy Land in Historical Narrative. (Woodbridge: Boydell, 2007), 78.

A Thematic Analysis of Hope and Other Urban Tales by Laura Hird

The ideological model of literacy[1] (Street, 2000) will underline the analysis of the book, and direct the way in which it is read. Analysis Hope and Other Urban Tales focusses mainly on the darker side of the human experience. In Hird’s own words, her work is centred on â€Å"nasty stories about dysfunctional people† (Taylor, 2009).[2] With key themes involving escapism; social change, manipulation, depression and sexuality, the book offers a detailed glimpse into 21st Century Scottish culture primarily through each narrators’ introspective qualities. This essay however, will concentrate on the main under-lying theme of escapism in the text, as well as Hird’s syntactical and lexical choices, and what effect they culminate to. The author’s tone and style will be the first literary aspect to be considered, with reference to the ideological model of literacy as proposed by Brian Street in his paper Literacy and Development. One of the most important literary aspects that achieves Hird’s sense of an empathetic, self-aware and socially observant author is Hope’s narrative tone and style. Since most of the stories are written through first-person perspectives, the narrator is able to connect at a very personal level to the reader as though the happenings of the story are real. Each narrator’s feelings and emotions are captured through their own descriptions of them; allowing the reader to better understand their experiences. We are also subject to a large amount of narratorial interference (which at times, is arguably quite stifling) that serves to remind the reader of what the narrator is feeling at any exact moment. This ties in well to Hird’s stream-of-consciousness style of writing, in which thoughts and actions are described in real time. Present-tense also intensifies this reaction from the reader, as we are lead to know as much or as little as the protagonists do.  œ (Pg. 1 – 10, Hope’s best example of psychological realism) Present tense is used in many of the short stories in this collection (Hope, The Happening, Destination Anywhere, and Meat). Hird puts this device in place not only in order to allow the reader to live the events of the story at the same time the characters are; (there by making them more ‘alive’) but to compliment her inter-personal, nonchalant style of writing. For example, in Hope, the narrator explains: â€Å"We seem to become embroiled in this intense conversation as soon as we sit down. There’s none of that ridiculous small talk that Edinburgh people usually use to keep people at a distance till they’ve decided what to dislike about them. Hope appears to have angles on everything that I’d never even contemplated before†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Hope, Chp. 2, pg.14)[3] This quote also implies a deep-seeded basis of empathy that is present within the narrator’s tone. It is with lines like â€Å"none of that ridiculous small talk†¦Ã¢â‚¬  that shows a wanting for personal connection between the characters and indeed, the rest of the world around him. Past the confines of Hope’s apartment, this speaks volumes about the state of 21st Century Scottish culture. The previous passage is particularly interesting because of its implications towards contemporary Scottish culture. Here the subtext dictates that ordinary Scottish citizens are closed-off, reserved and un-involved with each other to the point of even disliking one another’s company. Whilst the narrative choice of first-person means that everything in the story is somewhat biased to an extent, the reader can see beyond that; and look into the real-life writer’s feelings about her surroundings. Such a blunt observation coupled with judgement (â€Å"what to dislike†) allows the confidence and self-assuredness of the writing to materialise plainly in the reader’s mind. Further to this, it can be said that although Hope is a product of the mid-2000s, it pays noticeable homage to mid-90s Scottish literature. For instance, Hird’s work has been said to be caught in a â€Å"Trainspotting hangover† [4] (Briscoe, 2006) – a nod to Scottish author Irvine Welsh. Hird herself has confessed also that she is a great admirer of Ian McEwan, author of Enduring Love[5], where her methodical approach to de-familiarization was born. The ideological model of literacy dictates that literature should be judged as social practice and not merely â€Å"technical and neutral skill†[6] (Street, 2000). It also describes a more culturally sensitive approach towards literacy than its counter – the autonomous model. This effectively directs the way that the book should be read; with more allusion towards a social commentary. Hird wrote this collection as a product of her own inherent knowledge and understanding of the working world. Her state of ‘being’ attaches itself to the stories, the characters and her choice of words throughout the entire book and results in enabling the reader to see her most-inner workings and the effects of the defensive, emotionally stale culture of Scotland in the 21st Century. Furthermore, the ideological model also commands the way in which the reader reads. Each reader’s conception of themselves and their identity becomes the root of their understanding of the text. Hope and Other Urban Tales then becomes a mix of both the author’s perceptions of being and the reader’s. Allowing the two perspectives to inter-twine as such culminates to a very personal response that elicits an extension of the reader’s set of prior beliefs. Whilst the 90’s have clearly influenced Hird and her attitudes to her art, the period has not distracted her from contemporary 21st Century culture with reference to the writer’s loyalty to her idols, such as Welsh[7] (Morace, 2001). Hird adheres to the stream-of-consciousness writing style popular in the mid-90s, as well as psychological realism[8] (Cuddon, 1999). This means that Hird’s characters are not content to merely explain the events of a story; they have to explain their motives and thoughts aswell. Interior monologues are therefore a staple technique employed in the collection, as well as narratorial interference, which is consistently present throughout every story involving first-person narration. These modernist techniques result in a slightly fragmented style of story-telling, in which the narrator’s character is arguably the most important aspect of the story, as not only do they tell the story, they act in it as well. The writer’s attitudes are most notably introduced in the title’s novella, Hope. Here we are subject to Martin’s (the story’s narrator) account of Scottish people, society and culture. Hird’s choice of syntax, her sentence structures and passages of time demonstrate a noticeable disassociation from the novella’s universe; it’s ‘real world’. This disassociation carries well into the collection’s escapist theme; which has been said to be the common link between every character in Hope and Other Urban Tales[9] (Alapi, 2006). Escape is mentioned in almost every story and implies an escape from the morally deprived society of the 21st Century. Whether this ‘escape’ is physical or metaphoric, it denotes the action of leaving a life behind, and it inhabits every story: In Hope: â€Å"I’ve got to get out of here. Go somewhere hot.† (Pg.2) In The Happening: â€Å"Annual leave is precious.† (Pg. 69) In Reanimation: â€Å"We need to get out. If we don’t go out now I’m afraid we’re never going to escape.† (Pg. 97) In Victims: â€Å"Would you leave them for meNever see them again?† (Pg. 166) In Destination Anywhere: â€Å"I’ve found, by experience, that running away is usually the answer. I have been running away since I was a kid.† (Pg. 203) In Meat: â€Å"Atleast it feels like I’m escaping for a little while.† (Pg. 217) (Most obvious examples) This escapist attitude stems from an inherent disassociation in every character. They could even be argued to be tragic heroes; who pave the way for their own downfalls through poorly guided actions. If each character maintained their innocence and their naivety, then they would be more comfortable and engaged with the world around them. As Hird clearly demonstrates through her incredibly observant narrations, these characters describe events and other people as if they are, on the most part, static and blind to real understanding (with the exception of Hope’s character in Hope: Pg. 1 – 69). There is therefore a feeling of superiority that parallels this and which results in a cynical, pessimistic writing style that implies dissatisfaction with the novel’s universe. Because the story is based upon the element of realism, this denotes dissatisfaction with the real world as well. The culture of the time is obviously a closed, harsh and faceless one. One that is controlled by television, rat-race artistic types as symbolically shown in Destination Anywhere by ‘the artist’, who remains nameless throughout, and money (Pg. 182). This theme of escape is symbolised effectively in Meat by a few different aspects. The initial death of the lamb being the most notable (Pg. 223 – 230). What reinforces this theme is how the father reacts to its death: â€Å"You know how much these things are worth?†[10] The father thinks only of the saving he will make if he brings the lamb home to be eaten, instead of deliberating on the tragedy to any kind of extent at all. He uses the death of the lamb as an escape from his son’s confession (Pg. 221). Instead of confronting his son about being homosexual, he â€Å"pushes [his son] away† (Pg. 222). The narrator’s father does not acknowledge his son whilst he is â€Å"clearing up†. These semiotics exhibit the â€Å"clearing up† of the relationship between father and son – the â€Å"dismantling† of his involvement with the situation. This metaphor leads to a physical symbol of escape: when the boy says in his interior monologue how he’s â€Å"not sure where we’re heading† (Pg. 222). The father takes country roads back from the fishing trip and drives through thick fog and darkness on the way. Fog traditionally symbolises foreboding, or the clouding of emotions. In this case, it symbolises the growth of the father’s anger and disappointment at his son because he is not addressing it. Instead he runs in both an emotional and physical sense – adding that he â€Å"doesn’t bloody know† why they are going the way they are (Pg. 223). Desperation to escape is therefore effectively symbolised here, as anywhere is better than being alone on that boat with his son. (Pgs. 221 – 230 are discussed h ere). To intensify the author’s allusion to characters that wish to escape their respective realities, we are permitted to see how it has affected Hope itself (or herself, as the case is); she does not own a television, and claims she â€Å"can’t stand it. The real opium of the masses. I can’t tell you how many good friends I’ve seen wither to death in front of the box. It’s worse than cancer† (Pg. 16). Here the author’s pessimism for the modern age again appears. Not even hope is un-tainted by it. Television is the most practical semiotic of the contemporary age, and here it is regarded as being a kind of poison that is transporting people away from reality. Hope seeks to stop the modern age entering his dwelling so she can remain in her own version of reality – thereby escaping the shared experience of â€Å"the masses†. (Pgs. 16 – 18 cover this issue). Escape is also demonstrated in the story Destination Anywhere, where we witness the result of contemporary TV culture on the youth. In this story, a thirteen-year-old girl appears at first to be genuinely interested in the narrator’s line of work (photography), and is the only one at the gallery party that will pay him any attention. Whilst this seems hopeful, the culture of drinking and drugs is once again introduced into the fabric of the text, and the girl transforms after her initial attempts at persuading the narrator to take photographs of her. Behind the closed doors of the narrator’s apartment, the reader witnesses her manipulative personality that she adopts in order to â€Å"become famous†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ â€Å"proper famous† (Pg. 192). Hird makes this aspect even more disturbing by choosing a young girl to portray it – Thereby saying that the â€Å"innocent† young are far past being innocent. (Destination Anywhere begins on Pg. 181 and ends on Pg. 211). â€Å"She doesn’t have a hope in hell. I despise people like her. Jesus, even the youth don’t have any substance left any more. It depresses me.† (Pg. 192) Here we see how the narrator has developed a strong hatred for contemporary culture of all kinds, especially the new generation. This becomes intensified when he flees his own apartment after the child makes her manipulative intentions clear. He is forced to escape his private space, even, and enter society for a brief period of time. The narrator also details how â€Å"the sense that I may have just made one of the biggest mistakes of my life is tempered slightly by the feeling of relief at being away from her.† (Pg. 198). Escape becomes the thing that he desires most, regardless of the cost. Hird’s character comes across as dysfunctional and borderline weak-spirited in this regard, as all he seemingly wishes to do is run away from any situation. The reader’s expectations of her character are mis-informed, and the archetype is thoroughly mutated and transformed into something devoid of any soul or empathy. Characterisation here is truly impressive as a result, as we are made to share in the narrator’s hatred and frustration of the girl, after feeling like the narrator truly has the upper hand at the party: â€Å"Her face brightens as I walk towards her again. It’s almost a shame.† (Pg. 186). The reader wants to like the girl in the first part of the story, as she is a symbol of innocence; a symbol of hope. This is however juxtaposed by her comment â€Å"I’ll love you forever†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Pg. 195). The quote is also important as it demonstrates how the modern age will even sell love and the immaterial in order for media exposure. Nothing is sacred in the new age’s eyes. Hird sees this. Structurally, the book is fairly one-sided; as if the prose is primarily constructed around â€Å"off-the-cuff one-liners†[11] (Taylor, 2009) that have spawned from the writer’s real-life observations. Not only does this make the prose hyper-real, but it adds to the chatty, micro-literate feel of the book aswell. Chapters often begin with very short statements that try to hook in the reader’s attention: â€Å"Time passes quickly.† (Pg. 23. Dependant clause). â€Å"The other day I killed a wasp.† (Pg. 93). â€Å"Ken. Perfect name for the bastard.† (Pg. 79). Hird recognises reader psychology in the sense that she knows shorter flashes of imagery will capture the attention of people quickly; set a scene for them or throw them into the physical action of a plotline. She also uses the same technique to conclude stories or chapters: â€Å"I can make myself like anyone.† (Pg. 10). Techniques like this serve to increase the deliverance of the prose, and enable easier-reading of the text. In conclusion, the main theme of Hope and Other Urban Tales surrounds the more deceptive, malicious personality traits of human beings on the fringes of a society-gone-wrong. Whilst these characters are documented as such, their behaviours culminate to real, balanced individuals with hidden pockets of tenderness underneath their hardened exteriors. The shared feeling of wishing to escape their respective realities is found in all the protagonists in question, yet the ways that these wishes materialise differ substantially as they all possess a realistic duality in their natures. The ideological model of literacy governs this reading of the prose and proves that culture, society and the writer’s own understanding of them has a deep all-around effect on the creation of such psychological texts. References Adams, J. (2003). Interview with Laura Hird. Available: http://www.barcelonareview.com/35/e_int_lh.htm. Last accessed 19/08/2013 Alapi, Z. (2006). The New Review. Available: http://www.laurahird.com/newreview/hopeandotherurbantales.html. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Blake, W. (1970). Songs of Innocence and Experience; Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul. Oxford Paperbacks. ISBN-10: 0192810898. The Lamb, Pg. 1. Briscoe, J. (2006). Hope Springs Infernal. Available: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/nov/11/featuresreviews.guardianreview21. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Caesar, M. (1999). Umberto Eco: Philosophy, Semiotics and the Work of Fiction. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN: 9780745608501. Pg. 55. Cuddon, J.A. (1999). The Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory, UK, Penguin Books, ISBN-10: 0140513639. Fairclough, N. (2001) Language and Power, UK, Longman, ISBN-10: 0582414830. Goodman, K. Goodman, Y. (1979) Theory and Practice of Early Reading, U.S., Routledge, ISBN-10: 0898590035. Learning to Read is Natural, pg. 137 – 54. Hird, L. (2009). Interview by Trev Taylor. Available: http://www.laurahird.com/. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Hird, L. (2006). Hope and Other Urban Tales, Scotland, Canongate Books, ISBN-10: 1841955736. McEwan, I. (1998). Enduring Love, UK, Vintage, ISBN-10: 0099276585. Morace, R. (2001). Irvine Welsh’s Trainspotting: A Reader’s Guide, UK, Continuum International Publishing Group, ISBN 0-8264-5237-X. Randell, Stevenson. (1992). Modernist Fiction: An Introduction, The University of Kentucky, ISBN-10: 0813108144. The Scotsman. (2006). Hope Heralds a New Dawn. Available: http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/books/hope-heralds-a-new-dawn-1-1416335. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Street, B. (2000). Literacy and Development: Ethnographic Perspectives, Introduction, London, Routledge, ISBN-10: 0415234514. Pg. 7 -8. Welsh, I. (1994). Trainspotting, UK, Vintage, ISBN-10: 0099465892. A Thematic Analysis of Hope and Other Urban Tales by Laura Hird The ideological model of literacy[1] (Street, 2000) will underline the analysis of the book, and direct the way in which it is read. Analysis Hope and Other Urban Tales focusses mainly on the darker side of the human experience. In Hird’s own words, her work is centred on â€Å"nasty stories about dysfunctional people† (Taylor, 2009).[2] With key themes involving escapism; social change, manipulation, depression and sexuality, the book offers a detailed glimpse into 21st Century Scottish culture primarily through each narrators’ introspective qualities. This essay however, will concentrate on the main under-lying theme of escapism in the text, as well as Hird’s syntactical and lexical choices, and what effect they culminate to. The author’s tone and style will be the first literary aspect to be considered, with reference to the ideological model of literacy as proposed by Brian Street in his paper Literacy and Development. One of the most important literary aspects that achieves Hird’s sense of an empathetic, self-aware and socially observant author is Hope’s narrative tone and style. Since most of the stories are written through first-person perspectives, the narrator is able to connect at a very personal level to the reader as though the happenings of the story are real. Each narrator’s feelings and emotions are captured through their own descriptions of them; allowing the reader to better understand their experiences. We are also subject to a large amount of narratorial interference (which at times, is arguably quite stifling) that serves to remind the reader of what the narrator is feeling at any exact moment. This ties in well to Hird’s stream-of-consciousness style of writing, in which thoughts and actions are described in real time. Present-tense also intensifies this reaction from the reader, as we are lead to know as much or as little as the protagonists do.  œ (Pg. 1 – 10, Hope’s best example of psychological realism) Present tense is used in many of the short stories in this collection (Hope, The Happening, Destination Anywhere, and Meat). Hird puts this device in place not only in order to allow the reader to live the events of the story at the same time the characters are; (there by making them more ‘alive’) but to compliment her inter-personal, nonchalant style of writing. For example, in Hope, the narrator explains: â€Å"We seem to become embroiled in this intense conversation as soon as we sit down. There’s none of that ridiculous small talk that Edinburgh people usually use to keep people at a distance till they’ve decided what to dislike about them. Hope appears to have angles on everything that I’d never even contemplated before†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Hope, Chp. 2, pg.14)[3] This quote also implies a deep-seeded basis of empathy that is present within the narrator’s tone. It is with lines like â€Å"none of that ridiculous small talk†¦Ã¢â‚¬  that shows a wanting for personal connection between the characters and indeed, the rest of the world around him. Past the confines of Hope’s apartment, this speaks volumes about the state of 21st Century Scottish culture. The previous passage is particularly interesting because of its implications towards contemporary Scottish culture. Here the subtext dictates that ordinary Scottish citizens are closed-off, reserved and un-involved with each other to the point of even disliking one another’s company. Whilst the narrative choice of first-person means that everything in the story is somewhat biased to an extent, the reader can see beyond that; and look into the real-life writer’s feelings about her surroundings. Such a blunt observation coupled with judgement (â€Å"what to dislike†) allows the confidence and self-assuredness of the writing to materialise plainly in the reader’s mind. Further to this, it can be said that although Hope is a product of the mid-2000s, it pays noticeable homage to mid-90s Scottish literature. For instance, Hird’s work has been said to be caught in a â€Å"Trainspotting hangover† [4] (Briscoe, 2006) – a nod to Scottish author Irvine Welsh. Hird herself has confessed also that she is a great admirer of Ian McEwan, author of Enduring Love[5], where her methodical approach to de-familiarization was born. The ideological model of literacy dictates that literature should be judged as social practice and not merely â€Å"technical and neutral skill†[6] (Street, 2000). It also describes a more culturally sensitive approach towards literacy than its counter – the autonomous model. This effectively directs the way that the book should be read; with more allusion towards a social commentary. Hird wrote this collection as a product of her own inherent knowledge and understanding of the working world. Her state of ‘being’ attaches itself to the stories, the characters and her choice of words throughout the entire book and results in enabling the reader to see her most-inner workings and the effects of the defensive, emotionally stale culture of Scotland in the 21st Century. Furthermore, the ideological model also commands the way in which the reader reads. Each reader’s conception of themselves and their identity becomes the root of their understanding of the text. Hope and Other Urban Tales then becomes a mix of both the author’s perceptions of being and the reader’s. Allowing the two perspectives to inter-twine as such culminates to a very personal response that elicits an extension of the reader’s set of prior beliefs. Whilst the 90’s have clearly influenced Hird and her attitudes to her art, the period has not distracted her from contemporary 21st Century culture with reference to the writer’s loyalty to her idols, such as Welsh[7] (Morace, 2001). Hird adheres to the stream-of-consciousness writing style popular in the mid-90s, as well as psychological realism[8] (Cuddon, 1999). This means that Hird’s characters are not content to merely explain the events of a story; they have to explain their motives and thoughts aswell. Interior monologues are therefore a staple technique employed in the collection, as well as narratorial interference, which is consistently present throughout every story involving first-person narration. These modernist techniques result in a slightly fragmented style of story-telling, in which the narrator’s character is arguably the most important aspect of the story, as not only do they tell the story, they act in it as well. The writer’s attitudes are most notably introduced in the title’s novella, Hope. Here we are subject to Martin’s (the story’s narrator) account of Scottish people, society and culture. Hird’s choice of syntax, her sentence structures and passages of time demonstrate a noticeable disassociation from the novella’s universe; it’s ‘real world’. This disassociation carries well into the collection’s escapist theme; which has been said to be the common link between every character in Hope and Other Urban Tales[9] (Alapi, 2006). Escape is mentioned in almost every story and implies an escape from the morally deprived society of the 21st Century. Whether this ‘escape’ is physical or metaphoric, it denotes the action of leaving a life behind, and it inhabits every story: In Hope: â€Å"I’ve got to get out of here. Go somewhere hot.† (Pg.2) In The Happening: â€Å"Annual leave is precious.† (Pg. 69) In Reanimation: â€Å"We need to get out. If we don’t go out now I’m afraid we’re never going to escape.† (Pg. 97) In Victims: â€Å"Would you leave them for meNever see them again?† (Pg. 166) In Destination Anywhere: â€Å"I’ve found, by experience, that running away is usually the answer. I have been running away since I was a kid.† (Pg. 203) In Meat: â€Å"Atleast it feels like I’m escaping for a little while.† (Pg. 217) (Most obvious examples) This escapist attitude stems from an inherent disassociation in every character. They could even be argued to be tragic heroes; who pave the way for their own downfalls through poorly guided actions. If each character maintained their innocence and their naivety, then they would be more comfortable and engaged with the world around them. As Hird clearly demonstrates through her incredibly observant narrations, these characters describe events and other people as if they are, on the most part, static and blind to real understanding (with the exception of Hope’s character in Hope: Pg. 1 – 69). There is therefore a feeling of superiority that parallels this and which results in a cynical, pessimistic writing style that implies dissatisfaction with the novel’s universe. Because the story is based upon the element of realism, this denotes dissatisfaction with the real world as well. The culture of the time is obviously a closed, harsh and faceless one. One that is controlled by television, rat-race artistic types as symbolically shown in Destination Anywhere by ‘the artist’, who remains nameless throughout, and money (Pg. 182). This theme of escape is symbolised effectively in Meat by a few different aspects. The initial death of the lamb being the most notable (Pg. 223 – 230). What reinforces this theme is how the father reacts to its death: â€Å"You know how much these things are worth?†[10] The father thinks only of the saving he will make if he brings the lamb home to be eaten, instead of deliberating on the tragedy to any kind of extent at all. He uses the death of the lamb as an escape from his son’s confession (Pg. 221). Instead of confronting his son about being homosexual, he â€Å"pushes [his son] away† (Pg. 222). The narrator’s father does not acknowledge his son whilst he is â€Å"clearing up†. These semiotics exhibit the â€Å"clearing up† of the relationship between father and son – the â€Å"dismantling† of his involvement with the situation. This metaphor leads to a physical symbol of escape: when the boy says in his interior monologue how he’s â€Å"not sure where we’re heading† (Pg. 222). The father takes country roads back from the fishing trip and drives through thick fog and darkness on the way. Fog traditionally symbolises foreboding, or the clouding of emotions. In this case, it symbolises the growth of the father’s anger and disappointment at his son because he is not addressing it. Instead he runs in both an emotional and physical sense – adding that he â€Å"doesn’t bloody know† why they are going the way they are (Pg. 223). Desperation to escape is therefore effectively symbolised here, as anywhere is better than being alone on that boat with his son. (Pgs. 221 – 230 are discussed h ere). To intensify the author’s allusion to characters that wish to escape their respective realities, we are permitted to see how it has affected Hope itself (or herself, as the case is); she does not own a television, and claims she â€Å"can’t stand it. The real opium of the masses. I can’t tell you how many good friends I’ve seen wither to death in front of the box. It’s worse than cancer† (Pg. 16). Here the author’s pessimism for the modern age again appears. Not even hope is un-tainted by it. Television is the most practical semiotic of the contemporary age, and here it is regarded as being a kind of poison that is transporting people away from reality. Hope seeks to stop the modern age entering his dwelling so she can remain in her own version of reality – thereby escaping the shared experience of â€Å"the masses†. (Pgs. 16 – 18 cover this issue). Escape is also demonstrated in the story Destination Anywhere, where we witness the result of contemporary TV culture on the youth. In this story, a thirteen-year-old girl appears at first to be genuinely interested in the narrator’s line of work (photography), and is the only one at the gallery party that will pay him any attention. Whilst this seems hopeful, the culture of drinking and drugs is once again introduced into the fabric of the text, and the girl transforms after her initial attempts at persuading the narrator to take photographs of her. Behind the closed doors of the narrator’s apartment, the reader witnesses her manipulative personality that she adopts in order to â€Å"become famous†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ â€Å"proper famous† (Pg. 192). Hird makes this aspect even more disturbing by choosing a young girl to portray it – Thereby saying that the â€Å"innocent† young are far past being innocent. (Destination Anywhere begins on Pg. 181 and ends on Pg. 211). â€Å"She doesn’t have a hope in hell. I despise people like her. Jesus, even the youth don’t have any substance left any more. It depresses me.† (Pg. 192) Here we see how the narrator has developed a strong hatred for contemporary culture of all kinds, especially the new generation. This becomes intensified when he flees his own apartment after the child makes her manipulative intentions clear. He is forced to escape his private space, even, and enter society for a brief period of time. The narrator also details how â€Å"the sense that I may have just made one of the biggest mistakes of my life is tempered slightly by the feeling of relief at being away from her.† (Pg. 198). Escape becomes the thing that he desires most, regardless of the cost. Hird’s character comes across as dysfunctional and borderline weak-spirited in this regard, as all he seemingly wishes to do is run away from any situation. The reader’s expectations of her character are mis-informed, and the archetype is thoroughly mutated and transformed into something devoid of any soul or empathy. Characterisation here is truly impressive as a result, as we are made to share in the narrator’s hatred and frustration of the girl, after feeling like the narrator truly has the upper hand at the party: â€Å"Her face brightens as I walk towards her again. It’s almost a shame.† (Pg. 186). The reader wants to like the girl in the first part of the story, as she is a symbol of innocence; a symbol of hope. This is however juxtaposed by her comment â€Å"I’ll love you forever†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Pg. 195). The quote is also important as it demonstrates how the modern age will even sell love and the immaterial in order for media exposure. Nothing is sacred in the new age’s eyes. Hird sees this. Structurally, the book is fairly one-sided; as if the prose is primarily constructed around â€Å"off-the-cuff one-liners†[11] (Taylor, 2009) that have spawned from the writer’s real-life observations. Not only does this make the prose hyper-real, but it adds to the chatty, micro-literate feel of the book aswell. Chapters often begin with very short statements that try to hook in the reader’s attention: â€Å"Time passes quickly.† (Pg. 23. Dependant clause). â€Å"The other day I killed a wasp.† (Pg. 93). â€Å"Ken. Perfect name for the bastard.† (Pg. 79). Hird recognises reader psychology in the sense that she knows shorter flashes of imagery will capture the attention of people quickly; set a scene for them or throw them into the physical action of a plotline. She also uses the same technique to conclude stories or chapters: â€Å"I can make myself like anyone.† (Pg. 10). Techniques like this serve to increase the deliverance of the prose, and enable easier-reading of the text. In conclusion, the main theme of Hope and Other Urban Tales surrounds the more deceptive, malicious personality traits of human beings on the fringes of a society-gone-wrong. Whilst these characters are documented as such, their behaviours culminate to real, balanced individuals with hidden pockets of tenderness underneath their hardened exteriors. The shared feeling of wishing to escape their respective realities is found in all the protagonists in question, yet the ways that these wishes materialise differ substantially as they all possess a realistic duality in their natures. The ideological model of literacy governs this reading of the prose and proves that culture, society and the writer’s own understanding of them has a deep all-around effect on the creation of such psychological texts. References Adams, J. (2003). Interview with Laura Hird. Available: http://www.barcelonareview.com/35/e_int_lh.htm. Last accessed 19/08/2013 Alapi, Z. (2006). The New Review. Available: http://www.laurahird.com/newreview/hopeandotherurbantales.html. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Blake, W. (1970). Songs of Innocence and Experience; Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul. Oxford Paperbacks. ISBN-10: 0192810898. The Lamb, Pg. 1. Briscoe, J. (2006). Hope Springs Infernal. Available: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/nov/11/featuresreviews.guardianreview21. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Caesar, M. (1999). Umberto Eco: Philosophy, Semiotics and the Work of Fiction. Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN: 9780745608501. Pg. 55. Cuddon, J.A. (1999). The Penguin Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory, UK, Penguin Books, ISBN-10: 0140513639. Fairclough, N. (2001) Language and Power, UK, Longman, ISBN-10: 0582414830. Goodman, K. Goodman, Y. (1979) Theory and Practice of Early Reading, U.S., Routledge, ISBN-10: 0898590035. Learning to Read is Natural, pg. 137 – 54. Hird, L. (2009). Interview by Trev Taylor. Available: http://www.laurahird.com/. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Hird, L. (2006). Hope and Other Urban Tales, Scotland, Canongate Books, ISBN-10: 1841955736. McEwan, I. (1998). Enduring Love, UK, Vintage, ISBN-10: 0099276585. Morace, R. (2001). Irvine Welsh’s Trainspotting: A Reader’s Guide, UK, Continuum International Publishing Group, ISBN 0-8264-5237-X. Randell, Stevenson. (1992). Modernist Fiction: An Introduction, The University of Kentucky, ISBN-10: 0813108144. The Scotsman. (2006). Hope Heralds a New Dawn. Available: http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/books/hope-heralds-a-new-dawn-1-1416335. Last accessed 19/08/2013. Street, B. (2000). Literacy and Development: Ethnographic Perspectives, Introduction, London, Routledge, ISBN-10: 0415234514. Pg. 7 -8. Welsh, I. (1994). Trainspotting, UK, Vintage, ISBN-10: 0099465892.