Coketown described by Charles Dickens †Criticism Essay

This passage has come across a monotonous and dull town surrounded by industrialization. There is no colour, no aesthetic beauty but just buildings and factories that are an eyesore to the whole town. This town was once a nice place and it was a town of ‘red brick’ but because of all the smoke, dust and dirt it has now all changed to black brick. There is no life left in the inhabitants of the town. They are just servers to the town and they aren’t even considered the characters of the passage. They are dehumanized and instead the buildings are the characters that take over. The buildings seem to literally take over the human qualities and are given priority and superiority to the people. There is no change or difference between one building and another. ‘The Jail might have been the infirmary; the infirmary might have been the jail’. There is a sense of sameness and uniformity. Other people get life out of what Coketown sacrifices. The people of this town are stuck with this lifestyle forever as there doesn’t seem to be any way out if it. The town is literally doomed. There is the image of ‘serpents’ which give off the evil part to this town. It is almost as if the people are under the influence of this evil task master from which the inhabitants can never hope to escape. There is also the image of ‘water’ which is usually the symbol of life and purity but in this case the water has become a victim of this so called progress. This lifeless town is basically sustained by what it makes and produces. These people are sacrificing their lives and their town in order to survive. The only thing that seems to be done in this town is work and more work; there are no natural sights or pleasure in its perspective. Everything is made just for purpose and function. Even the chapel built which is supposed to be an inspiring building and h ave meaning to people is described as a ‘warehouse’. There is a feeling of entrapment in this town such as the ‘bird cage’ image used. These people have no knowledge of life out of this town. They are mechanical soldiers who feel enslaved to working for this town and feel like it is their only purpose to life. The people are alienated from each other as they don’t even seem to try and change this strict and totalitarian system. There is nothing more than facts and nothing seems important besides facts. It is a perverted world where people have lost their humanity and inanimate objects get a life of their own. This town seems to be what controls the people and unfortunately the people all seem to be too intimated by the system that they won’t even consider speaking up about the corrupt lifestyle they all live each day. There is a major devoid of natural life and the people are helpless to the situation.

Grandparents Essay Essay

The bond between grandparents and their grandchildren is one that can never be broken and will always be cherished forever. They basically set up a bond as a parent would. They take care of them while their parents are at work, provide financial support, and providing much needed emotional support to make sure the children get the best childhood without stressing out which is bad for the brain and development. The presence of a grandparent helps stable a child throughout childhood and infancy giving that child support while the parents are not there. Research believes that an integration of the evolutionary, sociological, and economic accounts will be necessary to fully explain the impact grandparents have in their grandchildren’s development. Once the children have been exposed to the love and caring of grandparents they begin to treat them with isolation to help control what is to come with dealing with attachment. They are beginning to conduct disciplines to determine what it is grandparents do to prompt the development of their grandchildren.

Soren Kierkegaard

Project: Soren Kierkegaard: Mega Mind of the 19th Century Soren Kierkegaard: Mega Mind of the 19th Century As a man whose work spans across areas such as philosophy, theology, devotional literature, and more, Soren Kierkegaard is considered one of the mega-minds of philosophy and the 19th century. He was influenced by many people throughout his life, as well as influencing many people himself. With works that ranged from religious views all the way to developing a â€Å"new† way to view our surroundings, Kierkegaard was a very well-rounded and mentally profound man. There were few people that could influence such a profound mind at the time, but Kierkegaard found them both in church as well as in the realm of philosophy. As a whole Kierkegaard lead a rather boring life and was rarely seen away from his hometown of Copenhagen, Denmark. â€Å"[Kierkegaard] was educated at a prestigious boys' school (Borgerdydskolen), then attended Copenhagen University where he studied philosophy and theology. His teachers at the university included F. C. Sibbern, Poul Martin Moller, and H. L. Martensen (McDonald, 1996). † Moller had a major negative effect on Kierkegaard’s philosophic-literary development. In H. L. Martensen, he found the perfect match, someone who taught him in school and was involved in the church as well. â€Å"†¦when [Martensen] became Bishop Primate of the Danish People’s Church, Kierkegaard published a vitriolic attack on Martensen’s theological views (McDonald, 1996). † Martensen was considered one of Kierkegaard’s chief intellectual rivals. Another very important figure in Kierkegaard's life was J. L. Heiberg, the doyen of Copenhagen's literati (McDonald, 1996). † Heiberg influenced Kierkegaard to write his first major publication, â€Å"†¦From the Papers of One Still Living, [which] is largely an attempt to articulate a Heibergian aesthetics – which is a modified version of Hegel's aesthetics (McDonald, 1996). † Another group of people/entities that profoundly influenced Ki erkegaard were his mother, his father, and God. His mother had no visible impact on Kierkegaard’s writing, but â€Å"†¦for a writer who places so much emphasis on indirect communication, and on the semiotics of invisibility, we should regard this absence as significant (McDonald, 1996). † There was even another philosopher named Johannes Climacus that stated â€Å"†¦ ‘in Concluding Unscientific Postscript  remarks, ‘†¦ how deceptive then, that an omnipresent being should be recognisable precisely by being invisible’ (McDonald, 1996). † His father’s influence has been noted quite frequently in Kierkegaard’s works. Not only did Kierkegaard inherit his father's melancholy, his sense of guilt and anxiety, and his pietistic emphasis on the dour aspects of Christian faith, but he also inherited his talents for philosophical argument and creative imagination (McDonald, 1996). Kierkegaard was a very religious man, even though he did not attend church on a regular basis. â€Å"He perceived God and existence of life from a humanistic view emphasizing the total autonomy of man (Philosopher Kierkegaard, 2011). As almost a lone man standing, Kierkegaard was in seclusion publishing his writings for most of his adult life, due to the atheism of fellow philosophers of his time. â€Å"[Kierkegaard’s] legacy was his belief that our response to God should be one of unrestrained passion toward our beloved (Philosopher Kierkegaard, 2011). † During his later years Kierkegaard felt that the Christian religion had become corrupt through secular and political involvement, so he started to attack Christ endom saying that the individual is fully responsible for their faith in God without doctrinal influence. The Christian ideal, according to Kierkegaard, is even more exacting since the totality of an individual's existence is the artefact on the basis of which s/he is judged by God for h/er eternal validity. Of course a writer's work is an important part of h/er existence, but for the purpose of judgment we should focus on the whole life not just on one part (McDonald, 1996) Kierkegaard influenced others as well with his works that were published and unpublished throughout his lifetime. Kierkegaard’s Christian philosophy may have been rejected by clergy, but he certainly influenced individual Christians who became enamored with his theology. Most notably are American theologians Paul Tillich and Lincoln Swain, and philosophers from Europe — Karl Jaspers, Gabriel Marcel, Miguel de Unamuno — and from Russia Nikolai Berdyaev (Philosopher Kierkegaard, 2011) Kierkegaard is known as one of the fathers of existentialism. Existentialists are characterized by: * They are obsessed with how to live one's life and believe that philosophical and psychological inquiry can help. They believe there are certain questions that everyone must deal with (if they are to take human life seriously), and that these are special — existential — questions. Questions such as death, the meaning of human existence, the place of God in human existence, the meaning of value, interpersonal relationship, the place of self-reflective conscious knowledge of one's self in existing. Note that the existentialists on this characterization don't pay much attention to â€Å"social† questions such as the politics of life and what â€Å"social† responsibility the society or state has. They focus almost exclusively on the individual. By and large Existentialists believe that life is very difficult and that it doesn't have an â€Å"objective† or universally known value, but that the individual must create value by affirming it and living it, not by talking about it. Existential choices and values are primarily demonstrated in ACT not in words. Given that one is focusing on individual existence and the â€Å"existential† struggles (that is, in making decisions that are meaningful in everyday life), they often find that literary characterizations rather than more abstract philosophical thinking, are the best ways to elucidate existential struggles. They tend to take freedom of the will, the human power to do or not do, as absolutely obvious. Now and again there are arguments for free will in Existentialist literature, but even in these arguments, one gets the distinct sense that the arguments are not for themselves, but for â€Å"outsiders. † Inside the movement, free will is axiomatic, it is intuitively obvious, it is the backdrop of all else that goes on. There are certainly exceptions to each of these things, but this is sort of a placing of the existentialist-like positions. Corbett, 1985) Kierkegaard contributed to this movement with his works due to the influence of his father and others that are previously mentioned, with a melancholy typed self actualization mind set. Kierkegaard did not believe that everyone on earth had the same plan for life, or that they were all here for the same reason, in fact he believed the exact opposite, all people on earth have a different life path, whether that be Christianity or at heism, â€Å"plumber or surgeon†, smart or dumb, he believed that the individual has the power to fulfill whatever destiny they please. One xistential quote found was posted by an anonymous user stated, there is no luck, no fate, no ultimate plan in life, there is just determination†¦100% determination to succeed and make something of yourself. As one of the founding fathers of existentialism and a great mind of his time Soren Kierkegaard is now remembered as a mega-mind of the 19th century. With influences galore and a self actualizing personality, he formed a great reputation for himself. Maybe not recognized in his time, Soren Kierkegaard is by far one of the most influential philosophers of the modern world. References Corbett, B. (1985, March). What is Existentialism? Retrieved November 10, 2011, from Webster. edu website: http://www. webster. edu/? ~corbetre/? philosophy/? existentialism/? whatis. html McDonald, W. (1996, December 3). 1. Kierkegaard’s Life. In Soren Kierkegaard. Retrieved November 10, 2011, from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy website: http://plato. stanford. edu/? entries/? kierkegaard/? #Chron Philosopher Kierkegaard. (2011). Retrieved November 10, 2011, from AllAboutPhilosophy. org website: http://www. allaboutphilosophy. org/? philosopher-kierkegaard-faq. htm

Kudler Fine Foods Computer Information System Essay

Kudler Fine Foods (KFF) is a California-based provider of a variety of high end foods, both local and from around the world, founded by Kathy Kudler in 1998. Since the opening of the first location, Kudler has opened two more locations in the San Diego area; Del Mar in 2000 and Encinitas in 2003 (About, 2011). As a growing business, Kudler’s needs are constantly changing, especially in terms of the company’s information technology and information systems. This paper will discuss the needs of the company in regards to business operations and accounting, as well as discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the systems currently in place. Based on the current technological opportunities, suggestions will be made to further improve these systems, and evaluate any threats that may affect these systems. Primary Findings Business and Accounting Needs Business Needs As a retail company, Kudler Fine Foods needs to run as smoothly and efficiently as possible. Kathy Kudler budgeted over $50,000 for Smith Systems to select and install the existing finance and accounting system, called Retail Enterprise Management System (REMS). REMS provides an Point-of-Sale module, or POS module, to automate all retails sales made, in detail. This system automatically reports this data to the accounting modules, as well as manages all credit/debit card transactions made in the stores. This helps to eliminate data entry errors by limiting the amount of data requiring manual input by employees (Accounting System Overview, 2011). Accounting Needs REMS also addresses the accounting needs of KFF, by providing applications for the general ledger, accounts payable, bank reconciliation, asset management and accounting modules. Each of these modules is interconnected with the POS, which allows for direct transfer of data between modules (Accounting System Overview, 2011). General Ledger Module. The General Ledger module includes the chart of accounts, and transaction details transferred y the POS system. This data is used to create the company’s budget and financial reporting. Due to the electronic transfer of data from the POS to the general ledger, this module requires minimal manual data entry (Accounting System Overview, 2011). Accounts Payable Module. The AP module allows for the check disbursement portion of the business to be done electronically. This module holds vendor data, tax and freight data, and accepts data from other modules that directly affect purchasing (Accounting System Overview, 2011). Bank Reconciliation Module. Data from the accounts payable, accounts receivable and purchase order modules are compiled automatically by the bank reconciliation module. This data is used in cash flow analysis for financial reporting (Accounting System Overview, 2011). Asset Management and Accounting: There was no module created for this portion of the business. Kudler needs to develop an efficient and economical way to track inventory and other assets, other than relying on the leasing company and spreadsheets (Accounting System Overview, 2011). Strengths and Weaknesses in the Current System Strengths The strength in the existing information system is that the modules that are installed reduce the manual data entry, thus eliminating unnecessary errors to the information, by allowing the modules to share information provided by the point-of sale machines. The POS system itself is a major benefit to the IT system as a whole, due to the number of transactions it is able to detail, catalog and parse to the interconnected modules. Secondly, the network set up at each location supports 3-4 POS terminals, an inventory terminal and a server terminal. Each individual network, for each store is providing enough storage power for the needs of each location (Information Technology, 2011). Weaknesses As previously discussed, the network setup has benefits on an individual store basis. However, the system as a whole is not sufficient in running a cohesive, multi location business. Kudler’s inventory systems are completely separate from one another, which could cause a serious issue in asset management within the company. A second weakness is the lack of policy regarding security within the system. This could lead to vulnerability to an internet attack for customer personal information and identity theft. Also, without back up procedures, there is no way for Kudler to prevent data loss, should the network(s) fail. Recommendations Based on the information above, the recommendation for Kudler and KFF would be to first, establish a set of security policies and back up procedures, in order to prevent hacking and data loss, respectively. In order to do so, Kudler would best benefit by reestablishing a working relationship with Smith Systems. Smith would then set up and maintain an offsite server that will service all three KFF locations, and allow the company to consolidate the three separate inventory systems. The offsite server would then serve as a repository for all accounting, inventory and human resources related items. Doing so will cut down the potential staffing and duplication in the inventory system. Additionally this would reduce the number of servers required, and thus reduce the potential of IT related hardware issues. Conclusion To conclude, Kudler Fine Foods uses and information system established by Smith Systems that sufficiently handles point-of-service retail sales receipts, and disburses the information to the appropriate accounting software modules. The modules receive the financial data from the sales to create financial reports, budgeting reports, and analyze accounts receivable and accounts payable. The system also maintains ordering and purchase order data, however, it does not maintain a single inventory module, which could track the sales of these items after the goods are received in the individual stores. In order for this to occur, Kudler needs to establish a solid set of security measures and procedures in the case of data loss. To address this, Smith Systems can be contracted to maintain an offsite server with security maintenance. This will help to prevent internet attacks by hackers searching for customer identification and credit card information. Once these changes are in effect KFF should see an increase in efficiency in the current systems in use.

Discuss the limited circumstances in which a duty of care might be Essay

Discuss the limited circumstances in which a duty of care might be imposed on a defendant for an omission - Essay Example The main reason why courts are reluctant to impose duties to act may be seen in the arguments made in the case of Stovin v. Wise. The court in Stovin found that requiring somebody to act is an invasion of individual freedom. Moreover, the court also found that the duty prevent harm or render assistance to others is one which is ascribed to a wide range of people, so to single out a person for failing to act is unjust, because one person should not be singled out to be held liable if there are a number of people who have the same duty. Moreover, imposing a duty on third parties for omissions is not generally done because of market distortions which might result. This is assuming that an activity should bear its own costs, and if some of these costs are imposed on others, then the activity might appear to be cheaper than it really is. Requiring compensation for negligent conduct reduces this effect. However, there is not this justification to impose liability on a person who is not vol unteering to spend resources on somebody else, therefore that person may not be rewarded. Just as the person is not rewarded, that person also cannot be punished, unless there is a special reason to do so (Stovin v. Wise). That said, there are exceptions to this general rule, which is the subject of this paper, which will examine these exceptions. Moreover, the cases where omissions were not held to be actionable may further illustrate why courts are hesitant to impose liability for omissions. Discussion There are exceptions to the general rule that omissions are not enough to give rise to negligence actions. For instance, if someone undertakes a duty to assume responsibility for somebody else, then the duty of care does arise, and an omission may give rise to a negligence claim. This was established by the case of Barrett v. MOD [1995] 1 WLR 1217. In the Barrett case, the claimant’s husband died after a night of heavy drinking. At some point, a Petty Officer Wells was instru cted to take the claimant’s husband back to the base and look after him. Although the Petty Officer did look after the claimant’s husband, the claimant’s husband was found dead at 2:30 AM. The Barrett court found that the claimant’s husband was responsible only for himself, but when the senior officer assumed responsibility for him, then the duty of care arose, and the senior officer was then responsible to go ahead and give appropriate supervision over the claimant’s husband. Therefore, once he took responsibility, if he did not act, in that he did not go and check on the man, then this omission would give rise to liability. Another example is the well-known case of Stansbie v. Troman [1948] 2 K.B. 48. In this case, a decorator was working on a house and went to buy wallpaper, leaving the door unlocked. Thieves came in and entered while he was away. The decorator was found to be negligent because he had a duty to take reasonable care to guard agai nst thieves entering the dwelling. Therefore, in the Stansbie case, although the ultimate cause of the theft was the positive act of the thief, it was the omission – the failure to lock the door – which made the decorator liable, because he was under the duty of care to make sure that the house was secure before he left. In this case, it was because there was a special relationship between the decorator and the claimant, because there was

Financial Intermediaries Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Financial Intermediaries - Assignment Example A drawback of the approach is that it is hard to observe bank conduct and that the approach excludes foreign banks in the determination of competition (Bell, Brooks and Prokopczuk, 2013 p.197). The Panzar-Rosse H-Statistic relates a firm’s conduct with models of different market structures such as monopoly, monopolistic competition, imperfect competition or perfect competition (Schaeck, Cihak and Wolfe, 2009 p.715). It demonstrates how the elasticity of a firm’s revenue differs under the different market structures. Although the model is quite straightforward under monopoly and perfect competition, imperfect competition, and monopolistic competition pose some complexities for this approach. The H-Statistic also assumes equilibrium for the banking market in the long-run. The Lerner Index uses the relationship between a firm’s price and marginal cost as a basis for the measurement of the firm’s market power. The index is a reciprocal of the price elasticity of demand and indicates the proportion price exceeds marginal cost. A disadvantage of the Lerner index is that it fails to demonstrate the substitutability of a product (Bell et al., 2013 206). The Boone Indicator assesses, in terms of strength, the relationship between efficiency and performance. Accordingly, superior performance is achievable for more efficient banks. Under competitive market conditions, banks show more aggression in order to achieve the superior performance as compared to competitors (Bell et al., 2013 p.206). The Boone Indicator does not share the disadvantages of the H-Statistic and the Lerner Index. It demonstrates the aggression more efficient banks employ in the exploitation of their cost advantage. As a measure of competition, Persistence of Profits proposes that entry and exit provide a sufficient avenue for the elimination of abnormal profits. Accordingly, profit rates for all firms would converge towards some average value in the

Class Action Lawsuit Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Class Action Lawsuit - Research Paper Example Player safety has long been a highly controversial issue in American football and traumatic injuries have been in the center of the causes. Prevention of injuries in this support has caught media attention and has been on public service messages and being dealt with on different training levels. Unfortunately, this has not been enough. The number of players suffering is large enough this time again to make a joinder impracticable; hence the class action lawsuit was filed, while others still continue to sue the league individually. The lawsuits accuse the National Football League of fraudulent concealment, material misrepresentation, conspiracy, negligence, obfuscation and negligent misrepresentation. The players claim that, whether or not they had played differently, if they were fully informed, the league’s failures would not get an excuse. They allege that the league failed to take proper precaution for the protection of its players from repeated hits on the head which resulted in brain injuries later in life. Players cite short term memory loss, depression, mood swings, long term brain injuries, dementia and chronic traumatic encephalopathy being suffered by many of them as a result of what was the National Football League’s responsibility. A master complaint has been filed, consisting of over 100 lawsuits at the moment involving over a 1000 ex-players, while the league vehemently denies the accusations. Being the plaintiffs’ attorney, it is natural to make the first move and make use of the tactical advantage and build the lawsuit based on the inherent advantage of acting first. Keeping the timing in control and handling the sequence of discovery accordingly, it is most appropriate to keep the defendant in a defensive position for the entire lawsuit and keep the players’ perspective dominating. The best course of action would be to take the steps to schedule the discovery and keep the defendant’s hands on to producing discovery which they cannot lawfully resist; a step further on requiring full details and a full paper discovery in depositions would enhance the chance for a favorable settlement or verdict (Coffee 677-678). A case filed when everything is set and ready is to be good enough to challenge the defendant's sufficiency in each of the answers to make it possible for a move to strike as an insufficient defense under US Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(f). The next step would be to keep the defendants on a firm deadline, be it the scheduling of discovery or trial dates, and get what you require in waves or groups of interrogatories and requests starting from the documents relating to the league’s information on head injuries and prevention followed by a wave of depositions of the league’s current and former employees and designates. The essential part in this approach would be to wait till completely making your case before producing the players in the court for testimony or deposition, not only keeping the defense lawyers anxious to get at the plaintiffs by raising comparative faults and judgment errors on behalf of players but also not giving them the opportunity to have a re-deposition. Producing the experts for opinion and fact verification and then questioning the defendant’s experts would maintain the initial advantage on the case, giving you the chance to question the defendant's documents and experts after they have had to question yours. Keeping a systematic approach towards the case