Asking Questions Lesson Plan Lower Levels for ESL

Many beginning-  to lower-intermediate students are do well expressing themselves in positive and negative sentences. However, they often run into problems when asking questions. This is due to a number of causes: Teachers usually ask questions in class so students dont get enough practice.Inversion of the auxiliary verb and subject can be especially tricky for many students.Present simple and past simple require helping verbs whereas positive sentences do not.Students are unsure of what they should ask.Cultural interference such as the desire not to ask direct questions as it is considered impolite in a students culture. This simple lesson focuses specifically on the question form and helps students gain skill while switching tenses in the question form. Aim: Improving speaking confidence when using question forms Activity: Intensive auxiliary review followed by providing questions for given answers and student gap question exercises. Level: Lower-intermediate Outline: Focus on auxiliary verb usage by making a number of statements in tenses the students are familiar with. Ask students to identify the auxiliary verb in each case.Ask a student or students to explain the underlying scheme of the object question form (i.e., ? word Auxiliary Subject Verb). Have students give a number of examples in different tenses.Distribute the worksheet to students in class.  Focus on the use of time expressions as key to understanding correct tense usage with the gap fill exercise.Ask students to complete the first exercise on their own.Write a few sentences on the whiteboard. Ask which questions might have elicited  this answer.For example:  I usually take the subway to work.Possible questions: How do you get to work? How often do you take the subway to work?  Split students up into pairs. The second exercise asks students to provide a suitable question for the response given. Each group should come up with possible questions.Follow-up check of questions ei ther by circulating through the student pairs or as a group.Ask students to each take the second exercise (one for Student A the other for Student B) and complete the gaps by asking their partner for the missing information.Solidify question forms by quickly playing a verb inversion game using the various tenses (i.e., Teacher: I live in the city. Student: Where do you live? etc.).Practice some small talk focusing on basic questions. Asking Questions Worksheet Fill in the gap with the correct helping verb. Base your answers on the time expressions in each question. When ______ she usually leave for work in the morning?Where ______ they stay on vacation last summer?What _____ he doing for school at the moment?_____ you continue to study English next year?Who _____ you going to visit when you go to Greece next summer?How often _____ you usually go to the movies?When _____ you get up last Saturday?How long _____ she lived in your city? Ask an appropriate question for the response A steak, please.Oh, I stayed at home and watched tv.She is reading a book at the moment.We are going to visit France.I usually get up at 7 oclock.No, he is single.For about 2 years.I was washing up when he arrived. Ask questions to fill the gaps with the missing information Student A Frank was born in ______ (where?) in 1977. He went to school in Buenos Aires for ______ (how long?) before moving to Denver. He misses _______ (what?), but he enjoys studying and living in Denver. In fact, he _____ (what?) in Denver for over 4 years. Currently, he _________ (what?) at the University of Colorado where he is going to receive his Bachelor of Science next ______ (when?). After he receives his degree, he is going to return to Buenos Aires to marry _____ (who?) and begin a career in research. Alice ______ (what?) at the University in Buenos Aires and is also going to receive ______ (what?) next May. They met in _____ (where?) in 1995 while they were hiking together in the ______ (where?). They have been engaged for ________ (how long?). Student B Frank was born in Buenos Aires in ______ (when?). He went to school in _______ (where?) for 12 years before moving to ______ (where?). He misses living in Buenos Aires, but he enjoys ________ (what?) in Denver. In fact, he has lived in Denver for ______ (how long?). Currently, he is studying at the ______ (where?) where he is going to receive his _______ (what?) next June. After he receives his degree, he is going to return to _____ (where?) to marry his fiance Alice and begin a career in ______ (what?). Alice studies Art History at the ________ (where?) and is also going to receive a degree in Art History next _____ (when?). They met in Peru in _____ (when?) while they _______ (what?) together in the Andes. They have been engaged for three years.

Allegory and Truman Show - 774 Words

Allegory and Truman Show The Allegory of the Cave has many parallels with The Truman Show. Initially, Truman is trapped in his own â€Å"cave†; a film set or fictional island known as Seahaven. Truman’s journey or ascension into the real world and into knowledge is similar to that of Plato’s cave dweller. In this paper, I will discuss these similarities along with the very intent of both of these works whose purpose is for us to question our own reality. In his Allegory Plato shows us how a man ascends from the darkness of a cave to the light of the outside world. In this ascent Plato’s man passes through four distinct stages of cognition: from imagination, to belief, understanding, and finally knowledge. Imagination In this†¦show more content†¦However, his reality is now based on these objects vs. what is truly real. In Truman’s second phase he starts to believe that something is wrong with his world based also on his perception and his common sense. First, his father Kirk who had been written out of the show years earlier sneaks back onto the set. This sends Truman into a teenage flashback of his last moments with Lauren a girlfriend that had tried to tell him the truth before she was written off to Fiji. He also notices that the radio is following him around and people all around him are acting very strange. At this point he does not know what is wrong but he knows he is onto â€Å"something big† as he tells his â€Å"best friend† Marlon. Understanding Some might disagree at precisely which point Truman â€Å"sees the light† and begins to understand what is really happening. Like with Plato’s cave dweller the process of understanding is a slow one. â€Å"He will require to grow accustomed to the sight of the upper world. And first he will see the shadows best, next the reflections of men and other objects in the water, and then the objects themselves†¦Ã¢â‚¬  In the same way Truman’s accent into understanding was a slow process. The scene where he notices that his wife is crossing her fingers in one of their wedding pictures is that crucial moment. From that point on we get the feeling that he has gone from assuming there was something wrong toShow MoreRelatedEssay on Allegory of the Cave/Truman Show Analysis856 Words   |  4 PagesAllegory of the Cave/Truman Show Limited Knowledge, truth (or revelation), reality, and idealism are some of the common themes expressed in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave and the film â€Å"The Truman Show.† The differences can be found in the way Plato allows some of the prisoners to remain unknowing, by giving them an almost fear-like stance involving the truth of their world, and how to free themselves. Another is that the â€Å"false† world is created on different premises, either to create a safe anRead MoreSynthesis of Truman Show and Platos Allegory of the Cave1440 Words   |  6 PagesCritical Analysis of The Truman Show and Platos Allegory of the Cave When The Truman Show was released in 1998, it was just another popular Hollywood flick, but its story is closely related to Platos Allegory of the Cave. The plot line for the movie follows this classic tale in many ways, some more obvious then others. As with most cinematic treachery, the movies similarities are no coincidence. The writers drew from Platos classic because it is such a universal story and is somethingRead More Parallels Between The Truman Show and Platos Allegory of the Cave866 Words   |  4 PagesParallels Between The Truman Show and Platos Allegory of the Cave The movie, The Truman Show is about a reality television show that has been created to document the life of a man who, adopted at birth by a television network, is tricked into believing that his life, his reality, is normal and the environment that he lives is real. It is set in a town called Seahaven, which is essentially a simulation of the real world similar enough to the outside world that the viewing audience can relateRead MorePhilosophical Principals Exemplified in The Truman Show and in the Allegory of the Cave807 Words   |  4 Pagesit is important to question any information that is given to an individual, instead of blindly accepting the majority opinion and giving it full credibility and validity based on other people’s opinions. Plato’s work, The Republic introduces the allegory of the cave, which is metaphorical scenario that attempts to explain the importance of questioning norms that may seem trivial. Plato illustrates a cave where bounded prisoners h ave lived all their lives in seclusion, away from the outside worldRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave1249 Words   |  5 Pagesas the allegory of the cave. Plato once wrote, How could they see anything but the shadows if they were never allowed to move their heads? (Plato) In The Truman Show, created in 1998, the man that controls Truman Burbank s life says, We accept the reality of the world with which we re presented. It s as simple as that. (Nichol) The allegory portrays mankind as prisoners. Said prisoners are chained up and forced to watch the shadows that are shown on the wall in front of them. Truman BurbankRead MoreTruman s Life Is Real For Many Reasons1480 Words   |  6 Pages1. Truman begins doubt whether or not his life is real for many reasons. The first reason being the light that falls from the sky, which he’s never seen anything like that before and has no idea what to think about it. Another reason is that Truman sees his father who â€Å"diedâ⠂¬  in a boating accident when he was a child. Truman seeing his father is what really pushed him over the edge into realizing that nothing in his life was actually real. The third thing that pushed him to question hisRead MoreThe Allegory Of The Cave, By M. Scott Peck Essay1592 Words   |  7 PagesSharmili Lakshmanan Dr. Mary Margaret Lobb HUMN 1301 September 26, 2016 The True Reality â€Å"Choosing a Map for Life,† by M. Scott Peck, â€Å"The Allegory of the Cave,† by Plato, â€Å"The Truman Show† and â€Å"Salvation† by Langston Hughes describe the views and perspective of the reality in our world. We have to get out, discover the world around and revise it. By setting up a map or goal and revising it in the world, will make us to control our perceptions and draw close to the realityRead MoreThe Themes Adresses in the Allegory of the Cave Essay843 Words   |  4 PagesExplain the Themes addressed in Plato’s allegory of the Cave, Making particular reference to the Theory of Forms There are several themes represented in the allegory of the cave, one of the first themes you come across while reading the Allegory of the Cave is ignorance. The chains binding them to the cave could merely be interpreted as a metaphor for ignorance, as if they wanted to fulfil enlightenment, all they would have to do is ask questions and seek the truth; however they all decide toRead MoreChoosing A Map For Life By M. Scott Peck1213 Words   |  5 PagesThu Le Professor Mary Margaret Lobb HUMN 1301.04 September 21, 2015 Our reality â€Å"Choosing a Map for Life,† by M. Scott Peck, â€Å"The Allegory of the Cave,† by Plato, The Truman Show and â€Å"Salvation† by Langston Hughes describe the true reality in our world. They make us think about wherever that is true or false. Also, in order to find the truth, we have to get out, discover the world around and revise it. In the article â€Å"Choosing a Map for Life†, Scott Peck compares each person’s view and reality toRead MoreThe Concept Of Reality Television In The Truman Show And The Truman Show742 Words   |  3 PagesThe concept of reality TV was amplified with the film The Truman Show in 1998. On television, it is largely debated which show was the first â€Å"reality TV show† since some may class them anywhere from game shows to documentaries, such as â€Å"Survivor† or â€Å"COPS†. Reality TV centers around characters who engage in current day life and situations, often true situations which are unscripted and spontaneous, captivating audiences by putting them in the shoes of cast members to see if they judge situations

Microsoft Outlook® User Manual Critique Free Essays

Microsoft Outlook ® User Manual Critique The objective of this paper will be to evaluate Microsoft manual for Outlook ®. According to Torkzadeh (1988), author of The Quality of User Documentation, â€Å"User documentation is an important tool for communications. It enhances the value of an application to the user and in turn, improves user satisfaction† (p. We will write a custom essay sample on Microsoft Outlook ® User Manual Critique or any similar topic only for you Order Now 99). When designing a manual Ganier (2007) suggests in his article, Comparative User-Focused Evaluation of User Guides, the strategy for a user manual should focus on 3 characteristics: format, structure, and its content. Ganier in his article also includes the criteria for measuring the quality and efficiency of the manual as, â€Å"attractiveness, practicality, simplicity, and efficiency†. The critique of the Outlook ® user manual will not evaluate the criteria using a weighted score for each criteria on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is very bad and 5 is very good (Ganier, 2007).Instead, it will provide a written critique of the Outlook ® user manual based upon Ganier’s identified characteristics and criteria. Assessment of the Design Strategy The first characteristic of the Outlook ® user e-manual is format. Since the Outlook ® user manual is in electronic format or e-manual, it can be launched from the application by pressing the F1 key on the keyboard. The cognitiv e workload required to utilize the function of the e-manual is minimal. Structure, the second characteristic, refers to the layout of the information and how users access the information based upon their knowledge.New users will typically access the information linearly; in a step-by-step fashion whereas, more experienced users will access the information by function. There is no â€Å"Getting Started† section on the main menu with directed instruction for new users. The Outlook ® manual is focused toward the experienced user, who would be searching for instructions to perform a particular function. The last characteristic of the design of the Outlook ® user e-manual is content, which includes prominent headings, the use of vocabulary the user can comprehend, and the combined use of text and illustrations.The Outlook ® e-manual contained very good content. It has step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow with a mixture of applicable illustrations. The manual uses clear and concise language which is easily understood; however, the only drawback is a lack of illustrations in the manual’s headers. Assessment of Criteria The first criterion Ganier identified for measuring the quality and efficiency of a user manual is attractiveness. (Merriam-Webster’s, 2010) defines attractive as â€Å"arousing interest or engaging one’s thought, consideration, etc†.Attractiveness is a subjective measurement which attempts to measure the ability of a manual to entice users to access it. The attractiveness of the Outlook ® user e-manual is minimal and the format is very simplistic. The headers are basic, but functional, and the lack of graphics or icons to help identify the topics makes the appearance less attractive and approachable. By using icons along with the headers, it would improve the overall look, making the document look more appealing and approachable. When clicking on a high level header for â€Å"creating messages†, the user is presented with a list of submenu topics from which to choose. The submenu topics have a third level of headings with instruction options for creating an e-mail message. The actual instruction is presented to the user after clicking on 3 levels of topics and sub-topics. It contains an explanation of creating an e-mail with step-by-step instruction and includes a good combination of illustration and white space.Practicality, the second criteria, as it applies to a user manual or an instruction, is whether or not the manual or instruction is designed and applicable to actual use. Overall, the manual is useful if the user is looking for instruction on performing a specific task. The user e-manual does a good job of explaining the various functions of the Outlook ® application. The tool bar menu items include navigation buttons which allow the user to easily move the focus of the manual back one page at a time or by clicking on the home button, to return to the first page. Simplicity is the lack of complexity, r intricacy, (Merriam-Webster’s, 2010). The Outlook ® user e-manual fulfills the definition of simplicity in its ability to reach a diverse target audience, with the ability to read and understand the content. Both basic and advanced users can utilize the search function of the manual to find instructions on the topic being searched. Basic tasks, such as creating an e-mail, or tasks for more advanced users, can easily be found in the manual. The user e-manual lacks overall efficiency as it does not give the user the ability to accomplish a task with ease and speed.The user e-manual should allow the user, no matter what their experience level with the application, to be able to access the information in the most efficient manner. The Outlook ® user e-manual headings are not in any particular order and the user must scan the headings to find a specific topic. If the headers were sorted alphabetically, finding the topics would be more efficient. Once the information is found the instruction are clear and concise, and include the appropriate amount of illustrations along with step-by-step instructions. ConclusionThe Outlook ® user e-manual is designed to be used in conjunction with the Outlook ® application. The manual has good content and is relatively easy to use, with the exception of the need to drill down to multiple sub-headings. The search function of the manual provides an easy way to find information on a particular topic if the reader knows what they are searching for. The lack of icons to illustrate the headings, and the headings not being sorted alphabetically detracts from the attractiveness and the overall usefulness of the document. Both beginning and advanced users of the Outlook ® application can benefit from reading the user e-manual. With the lack of a â€Å"Getting Started† section it makes utilizing the document for new users a little more tedious for progressive learning. The actual step-by-step instruction contains detailed and accurate information, which is attractively designed with the appropriate amount of whitespace and illustrations. Overall the user e-manual enhances the value of the Outlook ® application and helps the user improve their knowledge in using the application.References Torkzadeh, G. 1988, Fall). The Quality of User Documentation. Journal of Managment Information Systems, 5(2), 99-108. Ganier, F. (2007). Comparative User-Focused Evaluation of User Guides: A Case Study. J. Technical Writting and Communications, 37(3), 305-322. Attractive. 2010. In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 23, 2010, from http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/attractive Simplicity. 2010. In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 23, 2010, from http://www. merriam-webster. com/dictionary/ simplicity Outlook ® is a registered trademarks of the Microsoft © 2010 How to cite Microsoft Outlook ® User Manual Critique, Papers

Important Role of Management Research-Free-Samples for Students

Question: Analyse the role of the Practitioner-Researcher in Business Organisations by Comparing three Management research studies included in this unit. These examples demonstrate the value of Management Research and its Practical Application. Answer: Management and Business Research Management research plays an important role in decision making processes related to any type of business. It is essential as it enables a person to make better decisions because he or she is aware of the various intricacies and concepts that are a part of managing a business. Businesses succeed or fail based on the decisions taken by these people in the organization(Nassar 2016). A common theme among all the three readings is that they assume that international projects are aimed to principally benefit organizations that send expatriates. However, the expatriate in itself does not have the same goals as the organizations themselves. The expatriate is found to have personal interests such as career growth in addition to other personal interests as well. Another key focus area common to all the three examples is that they focus on cross cultural training practices for all expatriates. Cross cultural training promotes self-confidence in individuals and teams through empowering them with a sense of control(Johnson 2016). The three examples are also different from each other in that their central focus happens to be at three completely different things. The first one tries to view career implications from a international point of view. The second one focuses a lot more on the host country while the third one is very specific in its discussion about western and Nigerian expatriates. A manager will probably not find all the three examples to be of equal value. This is due to the fact that all the three examples differ from each other in their way of data collection as well as the comprehensiveness to the readers. References Johnson, G. (2016), The Importance of Cross Cultural Training, Available at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/importance-cross-cultural-training-gracie-johnson-lopez/. [Accessed 27 November 2017] Nassar, A. (2016), The importance of research in an organization., Available at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/importance-research-organization-anwar-nassar/.[Accessed 27 November 2017]

Earth Worms Essays - Annelids, Earthworm, Soil Biology, Worm

Earth Worms Earth Worm Disection Parts Function Digestive System - Prostomium - a small fleshy lobe that extends over the mouth, used to help dig through the soil - Mouth - the entrance for food into the digestive system, located under the prostomium - Pharynx - A tube at the beginning of the digestive tract that creates a sucking action to remove food particles from the soil, located just behind the mouth - Esophagus - a narrow passage in the digestive track that connects the pharynex to the crop - Crop - a temporary storage area in the digestive track , food waits here before it passes to the remainder of the digestive track - Gizzard - an area in the digestive track where strong muscles grind the food in preparation for digestion - Intestine - Nutrient digestion and absorption take place in this part if the digestive track. - Anus - Digestive wastes are expelled through this opening located on the posterior end of the worm. Nervous system - Brain - a center of nerve cells that coordinate all of the activities of the worms body - Ventral nerve cord - A cord of nerves that runs the length of the body along the bottom or belly of the worm. All nerve impulses to and from the brain are carried din this cord Circulatory System - Aortic Arches - a group of 5 muscular tubes that pump blood through the circulatory system of the worm - Ventral blood vessels - a tube structure that carries blood from the heart to the posterior of the worm located on the bottom of the worm, - Dorsal blood vessel - gathers blood from the capillaries in the body and returns it to the heart for recircutation located in the back or top of the worm Reproductive system - Seminal Vesicles (openings) - male reproductive organs - Ovary (oviduct ovaries) - egg sack, female reproductive organs - Seminal Receptacles (openings) - temporary storage areas for the male sperm until the eggs are ready to be fertilized Other Systems - Nephridium - coiled tubes in the body of a worm that collect and excrete liquid wastes from the body of the worm. - Clitellum - a swollen area of band around the mid section of the body of the worm. Materials secreted from the clitellum form a cocoon in which the eggs are hatched and the young worms develop. - Setae - Bristle structures found on the skin of the worm. Four pair of Satae are found on each segment except the first and last. Satae are used for movement. - Segments (somites) - The divisions in the skin of a segmented worm. The internal segments are called septum. There can be over 100 segments in the body of a worm. Bibliography http://www.earthworms.com

Artists&critics essays

Artists&critics essays Artists should pay little attention to their critics.* Criticism tends to undermine and constrain the artist's creativity. *those who evaluate works of art, such as novels, films, music, paintings, etc. The theme of artists and criticism has been one of the contentious subjects. Criticism may cause bad effects , as mentioned in the statement above, and on the other hand most of the time it can be constructive too. In the following essay I would like to support the fact that although criticism may some times be deteriorating but can be helpful and most of the time can cause promotion in different fields of art. As a matter of fact criticism in art is, explaining the artistic work in words. On the base of this definition, its the artist who creates the work of art and the critic is responsible for evaluating the strong or erroneous zones of the work. So it is in consequence of the cooperation between artist and critic well together that a masterpiece comes to existence. When an artist creates a work he has made it on the base of his pure emotions and the belief he wanted to transfer to the society from his own perspective. Such a work is very respectful because the work is reflecting the pure thoughts of the artist but it can get promoted and may attract more people if it is examined from different viewpoints and other perspectives. Such a criticism can make the work forever and add to its value. On the other hand Criticism will prevent the artist from doing the same mistakes repeatedly. Consider an artist who doesnt pay attention to the critics, he wont realize the weak points of his work. He may repeat his mistakes frequently while if he gets the constructive critics of his work he absolutely will take advantage of new conceptions and use them in his later works. Although criticism is most of the time beneficial for the artists and their later works but in some cases harsh criticism and the critic ...

Communications. The origin of capitalism Summary. By Ellen Meiksins Research Paper

Communications. The origin of capitalism Summary. By Ellen Meiksins Wood 17 page reading - Research Paper Example 4. English tenants were stimulated to enhance productivity while capitalism was developing in contrast to the aristocratic culture in which the rulers oppressed the peasants rather than building up on productivity. 5. Capitalist development promoted the growth of independent commodity production in the 16th century England by transforming the feudalism-based relation between landlords and peasants into market-mediated relation. 6. The peasants, as producers, could establish capitalism back in medieval England only if given chance by their landlords who mostly tried to squeeze more surplus labor out of them without rewarding them. 7. In France, the peasants had easier access to the property and firmer hold on it, so they had no trouble in establishing capitalist mode of development by resisting the increasing pressures from landlords. 8. Locke’s view of property, which lays stress on productivity and labor value, laid foundation for the industrial capitalism. 9. The class strug gle or conflict over property rights between the ruling class and the poor subordinates seen in the 17th century English Revolution also contributed in developing capitalism.

Marketing management case 2 Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marketing management 2 - Case Study Example Motor starters were installed on or near individual pieces of equipment and usually operated only a single motor. They ranged in price from $50 to several thousand dollars. Motor control centers consisted of dozens or even hundreds of motor starters that were combined in a customized enclosure and were capable of starting motors in various areas of the plant from a centralized location. They ranged in price from less than $50 000 to several hundred thousand dollars. The motor starter made fewer sales than the projections. It however managed to sell 8.5% of the entire industry sales. Repair parts were the most improved products, after realizing sales of 14% of the whole industry sales. The control centre increased in sales by 83.03 5%, the motor starter product fell by 5.76% and the repair parts increased by 25.42%. The total performance for all the products was an increase of 8.952% from 2001 to 2002. 1. Yvonne Belanger, owner of Yvonne’s European Deli, has decided that she wants to add a new item to the current selection of baked goods she sells in her upscale deli. Currently, she sells cookies and brownies for $2 each, and muffins for $3 each. She makes a standard 30% margin on all sales. Yvonne wants to buy homemade apple, cherry, and lemon pies and sell them from a local supplier for $10 each. 3. Fashion Forward operates three retail locations across Canada: in Halifax, Toronto, and Vancouver. It recently purchased a limited-edition collection of 300 designer dresses and sent 100 to each city. The dresses were all suggested to sell for $1200 each; all dresses had a net cost to Fashion Forward of $400. Sales results from the three locations varied: 1. Ontario Steel Manufacturing (OSM) manufactures steel components for other manufacturers. It has the opportunity to make stainless steel taps and faucets for a Canadian hardware company that will then package the products and sell them under

Making Sense Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Making Sense - Essay Example to decide whether whatever going on is true or false, and whether it is good or bad. Making sense is a way to fulfill the curiosity of a person, and can be understood in levels of experiences which include; the five senses, affections and the memories whereby without these the experiences would be just plain data. Thus, to make sense of the data situational analysis is important i.e. what would be most suitable in a particular situation which would in turn lead towards good decision making. Moreover, to make good decisions, authenticity is the key, which is further characterized by experience, understanding, judgment and decision to decide if we are responsible or not. The most interesting part of making sense in this chapter was the proposition that we as humans are all truth seekers, we want to make sense of the world because we keep wondering, and we are always striving to remove the confusion around us, also because we are curious. These are all those realities which we can`t ign ore, and even practically speaking makes perfect sense as that is why we want to make sense of the world. Chapter 4: Making Sense, Epistemology This chapter focuses on the epistemology of making sense i.e. the philosophy behind making sense, which can be divided into four levels. These levels or stages include experience, understanding, judgment and decision. ... The external factors of perceptions include senses while the internal factors include affect (emotions etc). Further comes understanding and we can distinguish experience from understanding by considering that while experiences are singular, understanding involves concepts which are multiple and complex. To understand meanings, one should be innately curious which arouses the Eurika Movement i.e. the insights. Also, interests for understanding may b natural or cultivated while interests depend on the internal factors, thus in other words understanding involves intellect. On the other hand, judgment involves verification which implies that it means evidence. Experience and uncertainty principals are required to make judgment. Moreover, being judgmental means being reasonable. The most interesting and insightful part of this chapter involve the curiosity principal which is a must to understand, i.e. the Eureka Moment is induced by the tension of enquiry i.e. being curious. Therefore, b eing curious is naturally a pre-requisite of developing an understanding or in other world for understanding concepts intellectually. Chapter 5: Practical Wisdom This chapter aims at critically understanding the concept of morality and goodness, what we view as the moral agents etc. Also, this chapter intends on appreciating the structures created by humans which makes us authentic people. Lastly, to help us understand the levels of transcendence is also another purpose of the chapter. Firstly, we need to understand that morality is a characteristic found only in humans, and not found in other natural species, i.e. the Flora, Fauna or other cosmic forces. Morality is related to rationality and it is grounded in our religion, philosophy and hedonism. Next comes the concept of moral

Human Resource Policies And Practices At Tescos Management Essay

Human Resource Policies And Practices At Tescos Management Essay This report reviews and discusses the Human Resource policies and practices at Tescos. The organisation has introduced a high commitment model which offers training and development to all employees. They have developed their culture through extending their logo every little helps to prove their commitment to employees as well as to customers. This has proved a world class model and very successful for the organisation. Organisations are implementing strategic HR as a change agent, not to replace an out dated personnel department. Although there is still evidence within the UK that once these interventions are implemented, they just replace the role of the personnel department. To be effective HR belongs on the board of an organisation. The organisation that will be reviewed is Tescos; during the past decade they have introduced strategic HR with increased training of employees. The role of HR within the organisation has increased in importance. Their practice of training and the importance of HR will be reviewed with the current theory. This organisation was chosen, through their introduction of strategic HR policies, which has led to an increase in business. This has demonstrated they are a first class provider of training to their employees, and has given scope for the organisation to expand into new markets. Tescos operates in a very competitive market; the consumer has a choice where to shop for their groceries. They have expanded their portfolio to include CDs, DVDs, electrical goods and clothing. Recently they have expanded into the financial services offering customers products from Credit cards to insurance. All their products are available on the internet 24 hours a day. Their slogan every little helps is used to show their commitment to customers, this has been used to reduce prices and to increase the level of customer service. This slogan is now used in their staff training, that any intervention will increase the knowledge of the work force. The organisation is widely reported in news papers, this is due to the success of the business. They are rapidly expanding in the UK with the opening of their Metro stores and into new and foreign markets. This has taken a great deal of their resources in the planning and implementing stage of expansion. The core units need to remain focused, to retain the reputation they have built. Reinforcing the culture and values through training will focus employees on their roles. Tescos HR Policy This section will report on the organisations HR policies, the information is taken from current articles and their web site which is outlined in the appendices. Tescos profits have soared 20% in the last year, taking them to a record 2 billion and setting a new milestone for UK business. The company takes almost one of every three pounds spent in a supermarket, and more than one of every eight pounds spent on the High Street. The supermarket chain is Britains biggest private employer with nearly 260,000 staff (Poulter, S. 2005). The human-resource strategy at Tescos revolves around work simplification, challenging unwritten rules, rolling out core skills to all head-office employees and performance management linked to achieving steering-wheel targets. This highlights the way in which Tescos business measures are closely linked to performance management (Anonymous 2003). Tesco ensures that each and every employee has the opportunity to understand his or her individual role in contributing to the Tesco core purpose and values. This requires an innovative induction programme that caters for different cultures, styles of learning and varying commitments to the job. The frontline employees are considered the ultimate reflection of Tesco to its customers, but all employees have a very important role to play in turning core values and customer commitment into reality on a daily basis (Whitelock, N. 2003). A major Tesco challenge is to ensure that all of its employees, wherever they work, are aware of the role they play and that they can clearly see how their actions affect the big picture of the overall business. The training creates a graphical journey through the history of Tesco, its core purpose, values, business goals, financial aims, operations and marketing strategy and its commitment to customers. All employees are receiving more training than before (Whitelock, N. 2003). A human-resource-led business strategy has helped Tesco to take the lead over its rivals in the fiercely-competitive UK supermarket sector. The strategic policy (Future) started in the companys supermarkets, where its aim was to free up stores employees so they could do more and improve customer service (Anonymous 2003). Future concentrates on providing a clear way of defining roles, responsibilities and activities. The system guarantees that all employees are responsible, accountable, consulted and informed. A group of 13 key management techniques is used to improve the core skills of the workforce. The techniques include root cause analysis, problem solving, plan-do-review, situational leadership and coaching for high performance (Anonymous 2003). For the first time, people have been made a core element of strategy. The importance of this strand of the project has been recognised by putting a senior director in charge. Quarterly board meetings always review human resource issues. Tesco now tracks human-resource information as closely as financial results (Anonymous 2003). Looking ahead, Tesco intends to continue its emphasis on increasing the skills of its workforce. The firm aims to make learning into a truly integrated part of its culture, as an important way of developing organisational flexibility and remaining one step ahead of its rivals (Anonymous 2003). Analysis Of HR Practices At Tescos This section of the paper will discus Tescos approach to HR and compare this to current thinking. Recognition of the importance of HR in the UK has increased in recent years; this is a result of competition from overseas economies. In countries for example Japan, Germany and Sweden investment in employee development is higher that the UK. This has led to some organisations reviewing their policies on training introducing continuous investment in their employees (Beardwell, I et al 2004). There are fundamental differences in the approach to HR. Storey (1987) discussed these as hard and `soft versions of HRM The hard version places little emphasis on workers concerns and, therefore, within its concept, any judgments of the effectiveness of HRM would be based on business performance criteria only. In contrast, soft HRM, while also having business performance as its primary concern, would be more likely to advocate a parallel concern for workers outcomes (Storey cited in Guest, D. 1999). The appearance of knowledge based economies, has deep implications for the factors of growth, the organisation of production and its effect on employment and skill requirements. This may call for new directions in industry related government policies. The prime minister stated that education is the best economic policy we have. That through the policy of lifelong learning the UK would have the knowledge to compete in the new economy (Tony Blair PM (1998) DTI White Paper). Tescos have exceeded the governments expectations for learning, having introduced training as a strategic advantage. It is argued that organisations require new skills to survive; the new thinking is based on complexity and chaos theory. Organisations are viewed as self-regulating, emergent, open, whole systems. This contrasts the metaphor of organisations being machines to that of organisations as living systems (Capra (2002) cited in Nixon 2004:58). Tescos have strategically integrated HR into their overall plans. Managers have been to utilise aspects of HR in their decision making. This has shown high commitment to HR, attempting to gain acceptance from all employees, and offering to all employees basic and extended training (Beardwell I 2004). The big picture of Tescos strategic direction is discussed with all employees. This helps the individual employee to understand their role and importance within the organisation. Therefore, they place a high value on their human resource. There has been an increase in training within the organisation; all employees now receive more training than before. This is a result of the HR department taking a strategic role. HR is not an administrative department within Tesco; they are proactive and are on the strategic level of the organisation. This increase in training priority has been supported by a rise in Human Resource Management. This practice emphasises that increased growth can only be maintained in the long run; by equipping the work force with the skills they need to complete their tasks (Mullins, L. 2005). Strategic HRM has gained both credibility and popularity over the past decade, specifically with respect to its impact on organisational performance (Paauwe, J Boselie P. 2003). Each employee is considered a part of the overall strategy; therefore they are instructed on the importance of their role. This training is delivered in a way that encompasses all learning skills and allows for cultural difference. There is an increased need for a higher value to be placed on employees, and therefore get the best performance from the employees. According to Delany (2001) successful organisations keep people issues at the fore front of their thinking and at the core of their decision making and planning. Delany adds organisations that get the people things right are the organisations likely to be around in the future (Delany (2001) cited in Mullins, L. 2005:748). Being the largest Private employer in the UK Tesco takes this responsibility seriously, this is demonstrated through their training and development policy. This has exceeded the governments recommendations for training of the individual and the move towards a learning society. For HR to succeed it must take on a proactive role within the organisation. Strategic HR creates value by providing opportunities for organic learning, development of intellectual capital and enhances core competencies. This value is crucial to the organisations future success (Treen, D. 2000). Employers are increasing extorting the best possible performance from employees. Best practice will increase the skills of the current workforce, and with recruiting it will reinforce the culture of a highly skilled work force (Mullins, L. 2005). Reinforcing learning within in an organisations, requires what Hawkins (1994) called a change at the heart this change is in the understanding of learning, a shift from viewing learning as being abrupt facts to learning as a more multi-faceted and dynamic process (Hawkins, P 1994:9). This learning environment with Tescos has been extended to encompass all aspects of the work environment. The learning process has been challenged to create a culture that allows continual learning throughout the organisation. As knowledge is what matters, organisations and individuals alike must become continuous learners (Hawkins, P 1994). The organisation runs an academy that recognises skills in the individual. The training is identified from core, operational and leadership skills. All employees can access the core skills. These development programmes are tailored to the individuals skill level. The delivery method for the training is varied, allowing for the individuals learning preference. Tescos operate within a fiercely competitive sector, using a human resource led business strategy, has help to place them in the number one position. This is only sustainable if the strategy is on going, with competitors actions monitored for any changes (Mullins, L. 2005). To fully exploit the wealth of knowledge contained within an organisation, it must be realised that it is in human resource management that the most significant advances will be made. As a result, the human resource department must be made a central figure in an organisations strategy to establish a knowledge basis for its operations (Armstrong, M 2005). The principal function of any organisation is to increase the value of the business and therefore enhance the wealth of its Owner(s). This is obtained by efficient use of the limited resources available to them (T Blackwood, 1995). Garrick (1998) discussed that training inextricably linked to market economics, that knowledge is prized in so far as it can generate a market advantage(Garrick 1998:5). This leads to the assumption that though training and developing employees, it can give the organisation advantage, increasing profit HR and training literatures highlights the organisational benefits to be gained from adopting a systematic approach to HRD, therefore the ongoing development of employees skills underpins the wider business objectives (Keep, E 1989). This systematic approach to training often includes models that identifying needs, planning, delivery and evaluation. Harrison developed an eight stage model to identify monitor and evaluate training. The evaluation stage is possibly the most problematic part of the training process (Reid, M and Barrington, H 1997). The organisation has seen the advantages that training can give, and has fully incorporated this into their business. The process of training is formalised through recognition of the need and continual review. Organisations no longer offer a job for life there is no longer guaranteed employment, with a pension as a reward for loyalty and compliance. The psychological contract between employer and employee has shifted. Employees are increasingly mobile, changing employment for promotion, reward and job satisfaction; top employees have more choice as to where to work. To retain these key employees the organisations culture needs to allow an environment of personal growth (Harrison, R 2002). With less job security, the best reward an organisation can give an employee is transferable skills (Marchington M Wilkinson, A 1997). With the changing employment market, employees feel less job security and are taking more responsibility for their career paths. The skills they are taught within Tescos could be transferable; therefore in the long run they could benefit competitors. Although the benefits of training the work force exceed the disadvantages, this employee mobility should not be ignored. Their every little helps slogan is easily recognised by the customer, but is also built in to the training program. This slogan is part of the ethos and culture that is Tesco. The organisation surveys their employees to gauge motivation and to identify training which employees require. This goes further than just identifying organisational benefits of training. Individuals can plan for the future career. Career development is important to the individual employee (Armstrong, M 2005) Harrison (2002) noted this as an organised planned effort comprised of structured activities or processes that result in a mutual career-plotting effort between employees and the organisation. This is a central component of the psychological contract that binds the individual to the organisation (Harrison, R 2002). This further complicates the role of the HRD practitioner, balancing organisational needs with the individuals expectations. Some employees will develop their career with one employer, while others require transferable skills. The organisation requires employees with the right skills to ensure and sustain competitive advantage (Armstrong, M 2005) Conclusions And Discussions Tescos long term strategy is to continue to place value on employee training and to integrate this value into the culture of the organisation. They are using this approach to maintain their competitive edge. The value that is placed on HR demonstrates commitment from the top levels of the organisation to training. Tescos intentions are to maintain this increased emphasis on staff training and to integrate this learning fully into the organisation. There is constant reviewing of the intervention, and make adjustment were necessary. The study of Tescos HR policies has demonstrated that by introducing a higher level of training to all employees it has an affect on the bottom line. When the employees are trained and demonstrating a higher commitment to the organisation they feel part of the overall strategy. This leads to employees feeling valued and therefore a more committed work force. This is then felt by the consumer, with a higher level of service, which gives the organisation added value. The entire organisation is involved in training. This training is offered at all levels within the organisation, Managers and facilitators are developed to deliver this intervention. Employees have control on their training after the initial induction process. This allows employees control of their career path, with the choice of whether they want to move up the ladder or not. There is conflict within the majority of organisations in the UK as to how much of the resources will be dedicated to training. This buy off for the economic resources, can prove short sighted in the long term. Training has always been the the first cost cuts in times of recession. Yet with todays enviroment, organisations need to train the work force to survive. Whereas organisations that embrace knowledge and learning satisfies the physcological contract and helps to retain and nuture employees. The cost of not devloping employees in the long term is far greater than the cost of developing them. The HR department in Tesco is proactive, not getting caught in the every day administrative function. Their model of HR is one of best practice and high commitment. This has allowed the organisation to focus on the human resource with such practices as training issues. This focus on HR is vital to the success of the organisation, without commitment, it would amount to a waste of resources. Tescos is a very successful UK organisation. They have increased their market share and retail units over the past five years. This has been achieved partly through a fully integrated HR department. Although this is not the only factor to their success, it has certainly been a major factor in it. Other organisations could benefit from reviewing Tescos policies. They have demonstrated a model implementation of HR. This has been a contributory factor to their increase in profits. Competitors will need to review their training policies, to reduce Tesco market share. Training as an intervention has been a successful policy in the organisation, the evidence points to increased profits from training.

Free Essays On Shakespeares Sonnet 14 :: Sonnet essays

Analysis of Sonnet 14 Not from the stars do i my judgement pluck, And yet methinks I have astronomy- But not to tell of good or evil luck, Of plagues, of dearths, or season's quality: Nor can I fortune to Brief minutes tell, Pointing to each his thunder, rain, and wind, Or say with princes if it shall go well By oft predict that I in heaven find: But from thine eyes my knowledge I derive, And, constant stars, in them I read suck art As truth and beauty shall together thrive If from thy self to store thou wouldst convert: Or else of thee this I prognosticate:- Thy end is truth's and beauty's doom and date. 1-2: 'I do not draw my conclusions from the stars, and yet I think I understand astrology; 3-4: 'but (astrology) has never forecasted (to me) good or bad luck, or of plagues, or of dearths, or of the quality of the forecoming seasons:' 5-6: 'Nor can I prognosticate (from the stars) every single minute, assigning to each minute [that is, whether or not it will] thunder or rain or wind,' 7-8: 'Or say that all will be well by signs (of the stars), which looking to the sky (for answers) is my habit:' 9-10: 'only from your eyes do I form my knowledge, and, in your eyes (which are constant stars), do I see such art' 11-12: 'As truth or beauty thriving together, if you would convert from yourself to store [as in store cattle]:' The paraphrase for the three quatrains may not seem necessary, as it is fairly straightfoward in its meaning; however, the couplet provides ambiguity. The couplet is where Shakespeare usually makes an antithesis of the three quatrains or presents some ambiguity, the latter of which is this one. I have found

Characters in This Boy’s Life Essay

Each character in This Boy’s Life demonstrates the struggle to find a sense of identity.’ Discuss. Young people are most often guided by their parents and guardians of what they should or shouldn’t do. However, some unfortunate ones are left alone to find their own paths. In their search of making their own identity, some young people choose to fight against all obstacles to reach goals that will lead to a successful fortune, while some will walk an uneasy way and repeat themselves in the misery of self-destructiveness and self-sabotaging behaviors. In Tobias Wolff’s memoir This Boy’s Life, the author presents a life that is built up on continuous self-destructive decisions, making himself his own worst enemy and causing all kinds of situations which he hopes to change and evolve into a better self, only to once again find him fallen into the very trap set up by no one but himself. Some of Toby’s situations is due to his background. He was raised by a single divorced mother, Rosemary, and her failing to take a father’s place to become a powerful guardian to correct and care for Toby’s early mischievous ways. Rosemary is a victim of domestic violence herself. Jack and Rosemary are constantly on the move, which adds to this struggle. When they do settle down, they choose environments that are a disaster. Toby is placed with characters that work to break his self-confidence and pride, therefore making it impossible for Toby to really identify himself. Revision for Romeo and Juliet Year 10 English Exam Friday 8th June, 9.00am to 11.10am 2 hours writing time, with an additional 10 minutes reading time. Two Sections: Section A: Text Response Essay Section B: Persuasive Language Analysis REVISION FOR SECTION A Revise the key characters and key themes in Romeo and Juliet: Reread both the synopsis of the play and some of the most important scenes in the play.  Create a mindmap for each of the major themes: Love, Hate and Fate. Create brief character profiles for each of the major characters. Create (and try to memorise) a list of at least 20 key quotes. Revise how to write a text response essay. Complete a text response essay on a practice question. â€Å"Poor sacrifices of your enmity.† (V.iii.303) ‘Romeo and Juliet explores the consequences of blinding hatred.’ Discuss. ‘Romeo and Juliet: the greatest love story ever told’. What does Shakespeare’s play tell us about the nature and power of love? ‘Romeo and Juliet are both victims of fate, having little control over their destiny.’ Do you agree? Romeo and Juliet is a play more about hate than love. Discuss. REVISION FOR SECTION B Revise your knowledge of the key persuasive language techniques using your flash cards. Complete a practice persuasive language analysis task. (See me for a newspaper article.)

What to Do When Your Work Is Stolen

What to Do When Your Work Is Stolen The unthinkable happens. Your work is published without your knowledge, consent or compensation. Whether it is large slushpiles, lack of time, memory lapses or non-existent ethics, theres no excuse for unprofessionalism or deceit. If the publication gets away with it once, they may do it again! Sure, you challenge them. You take the moral high ground, argue facts logically, point out copyrights, escalate to publishers or web domain owners; but your remonstrations fall on deaf ears. When editors dont remedy the situation early and sufficiently, heres how you can take action. Publicize Reputations carry businesses, but are fragile. Social media is a powerful tool, but an untamed beast. Nothing travels faster than bad news. Use Facebook, Twitter, blogs, or your own mailing lists of writers/editors/sources to make noise. However, before you bandy about anyones good name, remember publicity is a two-way street. Choose your words carefully. Dont post on a public forum in a passion. Defamation charges can be difficult to defend, and the last thing you need is to have your life stolen too. Invoice anyway What have you got to lose? Invoicing a publication that has published your work without permission sends a clear message that you are a professional who knows the industry. PayPal has a professional template and a reminder system. Make your invoice due on receipt and clearly state terms and conditions including penalties for delayed payments. Join forces Yours may not be a solitary incident. Ask around. Someone may have experience dealing with the publications idiosyncrasies and may be able to advise you. Hit them where it hurts Magazines exist for sales. Contact the retail outlets where the magazine is sold and inform them of the transgression. They may stop stocking it. Go to court Before you recourse to judiciary as your last resort, consider: a) Money: Lawyers fees are ruinous. Unless you claim Donald Trump as a relation or have engaged a lawyer to work pro bono, think twice. b) Time: Court battles can drag on for years. You may end up resigning your great-grandchildren to life revolving around courthouse working hours. c) Effort: Meetings, filing forms, understanding the law, dealing with red tape there are an awful lot of legal hoops to jump through that drain energy. Will your court battle drain you of the sheer physical stamina to attend your daughters graduation ceremony, steal the mental inclination to host that long-overdue dinner party, rob you of the emotional wherewithal to cope with a friends illness? d) Scandal: Court cases are open affairs. You may think truth and public interest are on your side, but theres no guarantee how the case will develop. Your reputation may emerge out of the ordeal smelling like a bouquet of roses, or it may crawl out looking like something the cat dragged in. Can you live with the local garbage-man and that cute shop assistant at your favorite boutique knowing all about your dirty laundry? e) Practicalities: If you live in the US and the publication is based in Singapore, how do you propose to duel? So weigh pros and cons, calculate cost versus benefit and take action. Or finally, write off the loss and move on. Its great to be principled and fight for fairness. Its also natural to feel to want to get even. But is the article worth the tumult? If not, consider it an occupational hazard and move on. Lesson learned. Whatever you do, hope for the best and be prepared for the worst. Remain positive, proactive, and dont stop writing. As freelancer Judee Fong says, Thieves steal only from the best! 🙂 ID: 181074Â © Abdone | Dreamstime Stock Photos

Forsaken Fields essays

Forsaken Fields essays Forsaken Fields gave a lot history on Japanese-Americans from before, during and after World War II. The Japanese-Americans had the Alien Land Law which was put in force before the war. This law prohibited the Japanese who just arrived from Japan from becoming citizens which enabled them from owning land. The Japanese-Americans were smart and they found loopholes in this law. If you are born in America you are an American citizen, so Japanese would purchase there land in there children name who were American citizens. The Alien Land Law was just the start of the Japanese- Americans trouble in America. They came to America for the American dream, but all they got was hostility and anger. People want to come to America to work hard, and earn a life for them self and there family. I think most people who were born and raised in America take for granted the freedom we have. Americans are generally lazy people. Americans dont see that same freedom, and the American dream that foreigners visualize. I think it is sad that these Japanese- Americans came so far in search of a great place, and were treated so poorly. Even before the War; Japanese-Americans had a hard time finding someone who would sell them land, or equipment to run the land. A lot of Americans were concerned that Japanese were going to make more money then them ,or run better crops. Japanese-Americans did make good money enough to finance there families. By 1910 Japanese-Americans owned numerous crops like potatoes, rice, strawberries. Japanese- Americans had a great respect for land. They even found many new ways to aline crops to utilize the most space possible. They thought their children all about farming, and gave them knowledge of all the different types of plants. Most children before the war would look forward to growing up and becoming a farmer like there parents. During World War II Japanese were thought...

Perfomance and Occupation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Perfomance and Occupation - Essay Example This paper will focus on the importance of the understanding of the occupation and this paper would also try to find out the proper occupational therapy to improve the performance of the employees. Introduction: To be written†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Value of skills and knowledge in the occupational therapy: To be written†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Professional skills: Personal and Professional Development, is the most important part of any educational course. The academic remarks will fetch good marks in the exams but, in the professional field the personal and professional development is very much important. The proper combination of good academics and the PPD would help a person to achieve a sustainable position in the real life corporate world. For any corporate on-job projects needs a personal and professional development training, because the fresher are not accustomed with the corporate world. And each and every organization has their own scale of professionalism and expectations from the employees. For any graduate the on-job projects are successful while they get confident about their personal and professional development during the projects. Most of the business schools send their students to the on-job training to get accustomed with the corporate world so, while they join the organizations in their final recruitment, they would be polished enough to join as the professionals. For any on-job training there is a learning stage and most of the time this learning stage is an ongoing process. This paper would try to reveal all the positive learning and the personal and professional developments during the training. The main outcomes of the process are written bellow. The meaning of success: It is very important to know the meaning of success. It is very easy to say that a course is very successful but it is very important to understand meaning of success. Erik Weihenmayer treated as one of the most successful man to reach his dream. He climbed the Mount Everest being the first blind men to reach the peak of the Everest (Throop and Castellucci, 2003). Now it is very important to understand why he is been treated as one of the most successful man, well, reaching the personal goal with the help of professional experience can be treated as the success. He was a blinded at the age of 13 and started climbing from the age of 16. With hard work and touch of professionalism he reached his goal and that is the reason he was successful. Same way in this case the meaning of success has been found with the proper blend of self belief, potentiality and values. Self belief: the confidence is a very important factor for any job to be done successfully. Nobody is perfect at the beginning; he or she has to nourish him or herself to gain the confidence. And with the mistakes the perfection will come, and that will make the person more confident. Potentiality: trainings are basically to improve the potentials of the individuals. Potentiality is a hidden strength and with the proper training it can be strengthened. The trainings and on-job projects help the individuals to learn from the others and it also teaches to understand the potentiality of the others. Values: personal values, professional values, ethical values and the ability to respect the values of the fellow employees are very much important. The particular course taught to respect what other thinks, how they feel and how an individual should act toward the values of the others. Organizational changes towards the better

Marketing Ethics Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Marketing Ethics - Research Paper Example 104) describe marketing ethics as a dimension of social responsibility that involves principles and standards that delineate satisfactory behavior in marketing. Marketers should be careful and conscious of moral principles for tolerable behavior from numerous stand points such as the industry, company, consumers, society, and exceptional interest groups. When marketing actions diverge from the established principles, the exchange practice can collapse, resulting in consumer frustration, lack of reliance and law suits (Arnold, 2009, p. 113). An ethical issue is an identifiable dilemma that necessitates an organization or individual to decide amongst numerous procedures that must be assessed as wrong or right (Pride & Ferrell, 2011, p. 104). Any time an activity causes marketers or consumers in their target markets to feel manipulated or cheated; a marketing ethical situation exists, despite the legality of the activity. Ethical issues in marketing arise from product, distribution, pro motion, and pricing issues. The concept of segmentation and target marketing has been on the increase in the contemporary world. Market promotion and targeting can generate moral matters in a multiplicity of ways, among them forged and deceptive adverts and controlling sales advertising and targeting a market segment (Moore, 1990, p. 45). Marketers have fragmented consumer markets resulting to increased need for focused target marketing. Despite the role of recognizing and fulfilling customer wants, more target marketing has come with augmented denigration. Though target marketing is widely regarded as the embodiment of marketing conception, it has in certain cases been disparaged as unethical (Smith & Cooper-Martins, 1997, p. 1). Particularly, widespread media focus has been dedicated to the aiming of grown-up customer sections referred as susceptible with manufactured goods mulled over as damaging. This disapproval of targeting has engrossed merchandises such

English midterm Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

English midterm - Essay Example Greed triggered the people to find their own American dream riches (Hill 2). The Miller novel and movie story emphasizes certain factors affect the successful reaching the hard to pin down American dream. Mr. A. Miller’s novel and movie story correctly pertains to the average person’s elusive attainment of the coveted American dream during the 1940s (Benedek 1951). The novel shows Willy Loman’s difficulties affirm the American Dream is very wrong elusive (Miller 103). The novel shows Willy Loman failed in his wrong American dream to be one of the top sales persons in Brooklyn, New York City. Similarly, Willy failed in his dream to become one of the most sought after and well liked American environment sales persons. Further, the Miller story critically rightfully espouses Charles Darwin’s survival of the fittest animal kingdom concept influences the attainment of the American dream (Nelson 90). The concept states that there are many competitors for the scarce good and customers. Consequently only those who offer the best services and products to the target customers will survive. Those who fail to deliver quality goods and services will drive away current and future customers. This is the essence of the Willy Loman story. Furthermore, the Miller story correctly scrutinizes Mr. Willy Loman’s discussing having to survive in the saturated highly urbanized New York City community. Mr. Loman’s small and impoverished New York is dwarfed by the many bigger modern apartment buildings. The buildings crowd out the sunshine and fresh air from reaching the diminutive Loman home (Miller 8). Willy blames the maddening competition and the overcrowded New York City landscape for his failure to achieve his American dream, being one of North America’s top selling salespersons (Miller 9). Consequently, only the fittest American residents will survive the American’s economic rat race environment. The current and future customers will prefer

Ancient Near Eastern Thought And The Old Testament Essay Example for Free

Ancient Near Eastern Thought And The Old Testament Essay The opening chapter begins by orienting the reader to the idea of comparative study, or the area of study that strives to understand things within their broader cultural context. In the case of this book, the goal is to understand the Old Testament within the context of the Ancient Near Eastern milieu. Walton explains that over the years there has been much debate on the issue of comparative study and the way in which it is to be exercised. Scholars, always biased by their presuppositions, tend to enter the argument negating the importance of the Old Testament on the  one side, or defending the inerrancy of Scripture so vehemently that the cultural context is lost. Walton poses a better way, namely, accepting the study of the Ancient Near Eastern cultures as important and academic in their own right while attempting to comprehend the Old Testament in light of what modern scholarship is learning about the ancient world. Studies of this time period often center around who borrowed what literature from whom, but Walton insists that this is not the main issue that ought to be dealt with. Rather, studies of the literature and literary genres of the ANE should assist in the broader understanding of the society. Walton observes several areas that the text will deal with in further details. He first puts emphasis on appreciating the literary genres and how they function as a foundation to any quest into comparative studies. In order to understand the Old Testament fully, one must know how the genres were written and how they are to be interpreted within their cultural context. Secondly, Walton notes religious practices and the necessity of understanding them clearly. Ritual sacrifices, priests, and ceremonial cleanliness are things that are foreign to readers in a modern context. Additionally, a crucial part of understanding the Old Testament is understanding not only the practices of the Israelites, but the practices of the other people groups that made up the ANE. Finally, it is important to understand the theology of a people group and the broader views of God and the gods within the ANE in order to interpret the text well. Walton closes the first chapter by pointing out that comparative studies assists study of the Bible in at least four major areas: (1) history of the ANE, (2) archeological understanding of the lifestyle, (3) literature, and (4) language. CHAPTER 2 Chapter two deals with the different ways in which comparative studies are used within current scholarship. Walton first attends to the ways in which comparative studies are being utilized within critical scholarship. As additional information is unearthed about the ANE, many of the ideas once held in critical scholarship have been challenged. Previous assumptions about texts and thoughts, primarily based on evolution, are being reconsidered. Critical scholarship has a history of assuming that critical thought and religious practice had simple beginnings and have evolved through time. Research is showing these assumptions in source criticism,  reaction criticism, and issues of dating to be incorrect in light of the data. Though, as Walton notes, there has been some resistance to comparative studies within the circles of critical scholarship, most of the data being provided is being accepted and studied at greater length. Walton also notes the use of comparative studies in polemics and dismisses such uses due to the fact that the text is not approached in a scholarly manner. Scholars of a more conservative persuasion, primarily Evangelicals, and others termed confessional scholars by Walton, have had a more difficult time adopting comparative studies. As further information has been gathered about the relation of the Pentateuch to ANE literature and as new data has arisen through archeology, confessional scholars have felt their longstanding foundations threatened, which has caused their hesitancy to fully embrace comparative studies. Many feel that maintaining the Bibles unique status among other ANE literature is of supreme importance and continue to argue that comparative studies degrades the inspiration of the text thus making Gods word subject to mans interpretation. Walton closes the chapter by proposing an integrated approach including critical analysis to better understand the history of the Bible, unbiased and educated defense of the biblical text, and solid exegesis that guards the reader from understanding the text outside of its context. Walton argues that the field of comparative studies must be important not only to serious scholars, but also to anyone committed to truly knowing and understanding the Word of God. CHAPTER 3 Chapter three is dedicated to a brief overview of the literary styles of the ANE and gives examples of the styles from some of the primary people groups. The discussion begins with myth, which was one of the primary ways that ancient civilizations explained their present reality. Short examples from several cultures are given and include many parallels to the Biblical stories such as the creation account and the flood. Others bear little resemblance to the Bible such as the stories of the fighting gods of Akkadian myths. Next are literary texts and epics which tell the stories of the kings of different lands, their struggles to power, and their exploits while ruling. The most famous is the Gilgamesh epic, which follows Gilgamesh on his journey to find immortality. The third literary type is ritual texts  which, as the name says, follow the rituals of the people groups of the ancient world. Rituals were important as they helped humans communicate with and persuade the gods. Fourth, Walton deals with divination and incantation texts which were used to divine the meanings of omens, undo evil spells, and ward off bad spirits. These are dealt with at length later in the book. Fifth, he explains the significance of the use of letters exchanged between kings gives the modern day reader noteworthy information about the culture of the past. Walton then moves to royal inscriptions which were recordings ordered by kings. They could contain items such as details on how a building was to be constructed, conquests, details of how to handle their succession, and other various accomplishments and instructions. In a similar vein are annals and chronicles which detailed the succession of rulers through the history of an empire, coupled with their important victories in war. Treaties were another piece of literature that was used to establish rules between kings and rulers of different lands. The next section deals with government and points out law collections and legal documents as important literary devices. While law collections detail the ways in which society was to run and how people were to behave, legal documents dealt with contracts for marriages, children, family estates, and court rulings. Religious literature was also common in the Ancient Near East. Psalms and hymns were ways to give adoration to the gods so that they would be pleased and provide for the people. Wisdom literature contained details about how to make good choices, but also contained laments and writings concerning ethics. Prophetic writing was another important communication because it contained communication from the gods which was a vital part of the life of the ancient cities. Kings sought answers to their problems from the gods and they received them through the prophets. These prophesies were often recorded. Walton closes the chapter by noting various miscellaneous writings as well as arc hives, which were groups of literature often found together which contained all sorts of different information. CHAPTER 4 Chapter four opens the third section of the book which is an overview of the religious views of the ANE. In order to fully understand the Old Testament and the interactions of the Hebrew people with God, and other false gods, it is important to understand how the religious system worked.  Throughout the chapter Walton shows how other empires worshiped and compares those beliefs to beliefs held by Israel. First and foremost, the other people groups of the ANE were polytheistic and therefore, the idea of one God was odd in itself. Add to this the fact that the Israelite God was not made and had simply always been, and the oddities became significantly greater. Not only was the norm polytheistic, but there were great stories about how the gods came to be, their battles with one another, their failures, and their flaws. The gods were defined by the things that they did. Earlier chapters note the fact that the culture of this time period was highly focused on function. Again, due to the polytheism, the gods functioned as a team of sorts. The God of the Bible is, indeed, three in one, but nonetheless one God who is all powerful. The Old Testament does make mention of a council that God used to make decisions, but this is altogether different from the unstable group of random gods of other people groups which were completely separate, with different gifts and skills, and with significant flaws. Walton then turns to the roles that the gods played in the cosmos as well as their attributes. Whereas Yahweh is completely outside of the cosmos, the gods of the ANE were associated with elements of the cosmos. So while Yahweh is the creator of the sun, the moon, and the waters, the gods of other polytheistic religions actually were one with those elements. They had no life or meaning independent from those elements. For instance, the god of the seas controlled the sea and was the sea itself. There was no distinction and no separation as with the God of the Israelites. The attributes of the gods were in some ways similar to Yahweh, but were altogether different in others. The most notable difference is the fact that while Yahweh is completely other, the gods were inherently human in their characteristics. They argued with one another, they needed to be flattered with prayers that did not necessarily communicate their true nature, they were limited in their geographic location, they procreated, and they failed. People of the ANE had attributed to the gods of their myths the same characteristics that they saw in their everyday lives. The main difference between the gods and humans was that the gods were simply stronger. All other characteristics were intrinsically human. This is a far cry from the God of the Bible who is holy, not bound by anything, and never fails. The chapter closes by dealing with a very important part of the  makeup of the gods, their divine attributes. In Evangelical circles God is not simply described as being loving. Rather, He is love itself. God does not simply rule in a just way, he is the epitome of justice. The God of the Old Testament is perfection in every area of everything. There is no flaw or limitation in him. His wisdom, love, justice, and mercy are not only perfect in and of themselves, but God is those things. The gods of the ANE were significantly different in that the attributes that they had were directly linked to their actions. There were no inherent attributes in them, or as Walton says, deity is as deity does. The duties that each god had were the attributes that they carried. CHAPTER 5 Chapter five is dedicated to the understanding of the role of the temple and the accompanying rituals in the ANE. Walton first deals with the role that the temple played. Temples were created not primarily for worship of the gods, but were the places where the gods resided while on earth. This was a sacred space that was to be free from all profanity and reserved for the rest and worship of that god. Each temple contained an idol, like a plaque or a statue. This statue was not simply a rendering; the commonly held view was that the god actually inhabited the idol in some way without actually becoming the idol. Because of this, the ancients believed that the creation of the idol was supernaturally overseen and organized by that specific god so that the idol would meet its expectations. This process was familiar to the Old Testament prophets and they prophesied against the idols and false gods. Attached to the temple was at least one ziggurat, which was a structure that encased a stair way which served as a portal for the god from the heavenly realm into the earthly temple. These were large structures and this was probably what Moses was referring to when he spoke of the tower of Babel in Genesis. So in opposition to common Sunday school teaching, the tower of Babel was not meant to reach to the heavens, but was a portal meant to bring heaven to earth. The temple was the most important structure in ancient culture. It was the center of everything and, due to the fact that the god inhabited the temple, was the source of all things good. Temples were viewed as the center of the cosmos in the ancient world. Walton observes that in this area, the Bible and ancient myths agree in that the presence of the god, or Yahweh in the case of the Bible, was what made the  space important. He claims that the Garden of Eden was not a literal geographic place on earth, rather it was a place in the cosmos where God dwelt. The presence of God was what made Eden special. The same goes for the temples of the ancients. The presence of the gods made them the focal point of life. Not only was the temple the central point of worship, but also of law, the wealth of the city, and the social activities of the people. The focal point of daily activities was the temple. That God would inhabit the tabernacle, or the temple, therefore, makes perfect sense in the culture of the ANE. Solomons temple is used as the focal point of the city, where God dwelt and where worship was given. Here, again, the ancient myths and the Bible agree. Harvest, weather, health, wealth, and victory in battle, among other things, were all controlled by the gods in the ANE. Due to this fact, the rituals that were performed for the gods in the temple were important to the livelihood of the people. The gods had to be appeased and the forces of evil and chaos needed to be held at bay. Rituals, therefore, were the way in which humans interacted with the gods to make sure that they were happy and that the cosmos was in balance. Blood sacrifices were not unique to the Israelites, but were a common trend of the day. However, unlike the other tribes of the ANE, the Israelites did not use incantations. Furthermore, while faith in God was of primary concern for the Israelites, action and involvement in the cult of the temple were of paramount importance. CHAPTER 6 In the midst of everything that was happening in and around the temple, the way in which the common people of the land practiced religion was different. The contrast between the religion of the state and the religion of the common people is the focus of this chapter. Religion in the city environment is handled first. As mentioned in previous chapters, the gods were to be served, taken care of, and appeased. For these reasons, the idols mentioned in chapter five were cared for just as one might take care of a new born baby. They were woken, fed, pampered, and put to bed at night. The problem was that there was no way to know if the people were, indeed, pleasing the god. Without any revelation there was no way to know if the practices were actually making any difference in the temperament of the god. Each god was assigned roles and responsibilities, and each one, in turn, delegated their responsibilities back to the people. For instance, a certain god might be in charge of keeping justice, but those responsibilities were meted out to the king. However, in the midst of all of this service to the gods, the gods were prone to be temperamental. Gods would change their minds and moods often. Diviners might offer solutions like giving more money or upgrading the temple, but again, without revelation the gods were unknowable and this kept the ancient people always guessing and attempting new tactics to change their situations. Yahweh stood in stark contrast to the gods of the polytheistic pantheon. God has no need of anything from man. He is not contained. All of his choices are perfect and right. What is most important, however, is the fact that He communicated with his people so that they were fully aware of what he expected and in order that they might know the consequences for their actions. The religion of the common people was significantly different however. Whereas the temple and the workings of the state were dedicated to one of the higher and more powerful gods, the common people had individual gods, lower on the polyth eistic totem pole, that they worshiped and attempted to appease. Usually devotion to these gods was passed down from generation to generation. Abrahams initial communication with and faith in God, before the Hebrews were a people, fit the idea of a personal god. The primary goal of having a personal god was to bring the family social success, stature, and wealth. The relationship with these gods was different from he relationship that Abraham had with Yahweh. Just as with the state, there was no real heart-connect with the god, no real desire to know him and be like him. The goal was to keep the god happy so that the family would reap the benefits. This attitude presented itself in the weak prayer life of the people. When a family’s personal god was not doing the things that caused their family success, the family was looked down upon in society. It was clear that the family was doing something wrong that was not satisfying the demands of the god. The emphasis was not on the wrongdoing, but on the view society held of your family. Prayers and ritual acts to please the god focused on restoration of respect in the town, not restoration of a relationship with the god. Ethics and morals were also tightly bound to the gods and the balance of society. There were not ethical norms as there are in the modern context. Everything revolved around the gods and what they wanted. Because of the idea of continuity among all  of the realms, morals were not necessarily important. Whatever it took to keep society orderly and balanced was what took priority. So, if orgies or other sexual actions pleased the gods and kept things in order, then it was perfectly acceptable. There was no sense that things of this nature might be considered immoral. These absolutes can only be found in a God who guides one to moral absolutes and makes clear what is morally right and wrong. This is what God did as he revealed himself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob orally, and how he set up guidelines with the nation of Israel at Mt. Sinai. God does what the artificial gods of the pagans could not do. He revealed himself so that the Israelites could know his will and follow it. He committed to them in a covenant relationship and taught them how to live within that relationship. He showed them how to strive for holiness, by imitating him, an idea that was otherwise nonexistent. He showed them how to have the best possible life, and ultimately, developed a relationship with them personally. CHAPTER 7 Chapter seven is the first chapter in the fourth part of the book, which is dedicated to the cosmos. The seventh chapter in particular deals with how the people of the ANE viewed the makeup of the cosmos. Whereas, due to science and exploration, people in modern times understand that the earth is round and that it travels around the sun while spinning on its own axis, the views of how the cosmos functioned were significantly different in the ANE. Understanding the ancient view of cosmological geography is vital in comprehending the worldview of the ANE. Many of the people groups of the ANE understood the cosmos to be layered. The Earth was the middle layer with heaven above and the netherworld below. The earth was thought to stand still and the sun was thought to travel on a track up on one side of the earth, across the sky, and down into the netherworld in the evening. In some myth systems it was believed that the sky, which was believed to be solid, was supported by mountains at the edges of the earth, while yet other traditions claimed that the earth was supported by giant columns. In addition, ANE myths believed that the sky held the waters back and that when precipitation came, the water was falling through cracks or holes in the sky layer. It is important to note that the world of the ANE was primarily concerned about function over mere existence. Therefore, the  cosmos had no importance in and of itself, but only within the context of the gods using nature to accomplish their desires and dole out their punishments. Regardless of the different views held within the ancient tribes, they all viewed the area that they inhabited as the center of the cosmos. Walton shows that this view about the makeup up of the cosmos was held by the Israelites as well. We have no reason to believe that the modern view of the cosmos was held by the Israelites. Throughout the Old Testament we see references that show that the Israelites held to the common views of the cosmos first and foremost because that was the normal view in those days, but also because God never revealed to them any other way by which to understand the cosmos. CHAPTER 8 Chapter eight handles the important issues of the origin and order of the cosmos. Gaining knowledge about the origin of the world gives excellent insight into the creation account and shows the student of the Bible the important value that God places on humans. As mentioned earlier it is necessary to understand that the culture of the ANE valued function over existence. For something to merely exist was not nearly as important as the function of that thing. This idea has significant repercussions when it comes to the study of cosmogony. Moderns often read the creation account and assume that God was calling things into existence, but this view would not have made much sense to anyone writing in the ANE. It would have been a foreign idea because to simply bring something into existence was of little consequence. Creation was more focused on a purpose than it was on making an object available. One of the first and most important steps in the making functional process was the naming of things, which fits nicely into the creation account of the Bible. God creates and names. This naming process kick starts that object’s function. Walton makes some very interesting points when it comes to the Biblical account of creation. He says that it should be understood, from the text, that the account in the first chapter of Genesis is not one of God creating things that did not exist, but bringing order and function to those things. The reader can notice that Genesis 1never claims that there was nothing. It simply communicates that the earth was without form; it had no order or function. He mentions that on days one through three God does not simply create light,  water and vegetation, but that he was bringing function to those things by giving light the function of time-keeping, water the function of the climate, and vegetation the function of providing food for man and animal s. Therefore, unlike the gods of the other tribes, the God of the Bible gives function and destiny to all things from the very beginning. He is not trying to manage the cosmos and the functions therein, he has already created and set them in motion with specific purpose. His initial purposes for all things cannot be changed and need no management. The chapter closes by explaining the temple as a depiction of the cosmos. This idea is touched on in chapter five and is reiterated here. The place of rest for the gods was their temple. When everything was in order they were able to relax in their sacred space. God, however, is bigger than anything that he has created and uses the earth as his footstool. The Temple of Yahweh was modeled after the cosmos to show this relationship. CHAPTER 9 Literature, religion, and the cosmos have all been dealt with thus far. Now Walton turns to how people functioned and were understood in the context of the ANE. The first step, which is the focus of chapter nine, is to understand how people thought about the past and recorded history. Any conversation about humans naturally begins with their origins. The biblical account of the creation of humans is unique from the myths of the ANE in several ways. First is the fact that the Genesis account sets up Adam and Eve as the sole couple from which all other humans come, known as monogenesis. In other myths, humans are made in more of a group setting, polygenesis, where there is no singular couple from which all human life stems. Secondly is the difference in substance from which humans are created. The biblical account notes that God used the dust of the ground to create Adam and that He breathed life into his nostrils, whereas other matter, including clay and body parts from conquered gods , were used in other myths. The conversation then moves from how humans were made to what pieces or parts they actually contain. Walton notes that there remains disagreement as to whether humans are a unified whole or if they are separated somehow by body, mind, and spirit. Walton notes that due to language barriers, the words describing the human makeup from the ANE are difficult to translate and explain. The Egyptians used several terms to  describe how humans were made. Ka was the natural character of a person based on their ties to their lineage. Ba was the way in which they displayed themselves to society, similar to a reputation. Akh was the soul or spirit of a person that was said to live on after death. The Israelites, on the other hand, used different terms. Perhaps, due to the aforementioned language issues, it is best to quote Walton in this explanation. He says that, nephesh is related to awareness and perception while ruah is related to consciousness and vitality. Finally, the chapter deals with the role of humans in the cosmos. There is a very important distinction to be made in this area between the views of the Egyptians, Akkadians, and Sumarians and the views of the Israelites. The former saw the gods as the center of the cosmos and humans as an unimportant byproduct to assist the gods and appease them, whereas the latter saw their role as priests created to serve God. The Bible gives an important role to humans as the pinnacle of Gods creation, and this idea is unique in the ANE. CHAPTER 10 Chapter ten addresses the recording of history and the mindset that drove the guidelines that the people of the ANE followed in recording history. Furthermore, the chapter shows what that set of guidelines communicates about the mindset of the recorders. As this text has clearly stated, the mindset of the people of the ANE was focused around the gods. The modern mindset is one that focuses on the things that people can see and experience. Modern history is based on physical facts. The cognitive environment of the ANE was such that natural proof or fact was not the main concern. The ancient culture was focused on the gods and what means had been employed to please and serve the gods. Deity was the focal point of historiography. Furthermore, the goals of history were different than the goals of a modern-day journalist. While the journalist of today is concerned about facts and events, the ancients were concerned about the meaning of those events. Due to the fact that everything that happened was tied to the gods in some way, history was the result of what was happening in the supernatural world. These happenings, of course, were of primary importance, so little significance was placed on the events themselves. Rather, the emphasis was on deciphering what information these  events were communicating about the actions of the gods. The way in which events of history worked together and the purpose behind them was also significant. There was a sense of an underlying through-line beneath the surface of every event in history. A good example of this mindset would be the way in which Christians believe that amidst all of the surface things in life, God is working out his perfect will. What happened in each event was not nearly as important as how that event may have furthered a larger piece of the narrative of life. The differences in mindset between the ancients and moderns continue in the area of explaining time. Today most people think of time as linear; the present is now, the past behind, and the future ahead. This was not the normative view of time in the ANE. It was as if the person standing on the time line were turned around, looking into the past with the future behind them. Their view of the past and how it affected the future was most important. The final portion of the chapter focuses on the necessity of understanding the form in which history was written in order to fully realize the meaning of the history itself. Often writers were not necessarily attempting to provide legitimate history telling in their narratives. Because of this, the facts leading up to the conclusion may or may not be accurate because there was no need for them to be so. Much narrative was fiction. Therefore, to understand the writings of the ANE, one must realize that narrative is not primarily concerned about the events, as mentioned above, but on the outcomes, which affects ones ability to glean truth-telling history from the narrative writings. Additionally, the source of the literature, who it promotes, and the audience it was intended for all play an important role in attempting to understand the history of the times. These values, as Walton calls them, play a significant role in how ancient history is to be interpreted. The aforementioned points affect the way in which the Old Testament is read and understood. The history that is recorded in the Old Testament, though it is divinely inspired, must still be understood in the context in which it was written, taking into consideration the values, writers, intended audience, poetics, and importance of deity. CHAPTER 11 Chapter eleven moves to the next step by considering how people lived their day to day lives. Divination, mentioned briefly in other chapters, is  now fully explained. Divination was the attempt to try to deduce from a god the future, or to gain a better comprehension of that god. There were two types of divination, inspired and deductive. Inspired divination involved a message from the gods through a human messenger, while deductive divination included a message from the gods sent through natural means like events or weather. People who engaged in this process were known by different names depending on the type of divination they practiced and the type of omens they used. Inspired messages often came through prophets and dreams. Official prophets were paid and trained by the king to serve as intermediaries between him and the gods. Others, outside of the kings employ that received random messages were known as informal prophets. Dreams generally came to people by happenstance, and because there was so much to decipher, there was much written in the area of dream interpretation. Deductive divination was a reading of signs and events done by trained people. Signs or omens might be found in the sky, through the weather, the stars, the waters, organs of dead animals, lot casting, and other phenomena in nature. Attempting to divine answers about the future helped people feel a sense of control and normalcy. The Bible employs inspired divination as God speaks through the prophets and assists Daniel and Joseph, among others, to interpret dreams. However, the reading of others signs and omens, as in deductive divination, are scolded as evil by the Old Testament. Magic was also practiced in the ANE. Where divination discovered different meanings or problems, magic was able to use power to fix those problems. Incantations and rituals were used to appease the anger of the gods, to eliminate the evil spirits, to cleanse the affected home or space, and to cleanse the effected person from those evil spirits so that they could continue to function as normal. Magicians, known as Asipu were elevated to a high place, similar to a priest, and were focused on discovering and eliminating bad spirits. The Asu used herbs and other natural remedies to aid in the effect of the incantations. Next, the text explains the specific goals of divination. First and foremost, the goal was to legitimize the king and give him guidance. Omens were not set in stone, but rather, were predictions and warnings. If a good omen was found, that didnt necessarily guarantee that the good fortune would come to pass, and vice versa. A main point in understanding the importance of divination was the  issue of certainty. One would think that after several failed attempts to predict the future, the practice would lose its validity. However, this was not the common mindset. Rather than perfect prediction of the future, divination should be understood more along the lines of, â€Å"draw[ing] a particular issue to ones attention. (269) The chapter ends by quickly dealing with the test of a true prophet given in Deuteronomy 18. If a prophesy is off or does not come true, can that prophet immediately be discredited? Walton concludes that based on several texts, prophets were given an opportunity to show their trustworthiness, but if they continued to prove that their words were not from God, they were disregarded. CHAPTER 12 Chapter twelve delves further into how the importance of the city partners with life and purpose of the king. Earlier chapters noted that the people who lived outside of the cities practiced religion in different ways. Within the ANE cultures, living outside of the city or being a nomad was frowned upon. Life in the city was the best life in which to be engaged. The Mesopotamians as well as the Egyptians believed that cities were created by the gods, before humans, as a tie to the past. Just as in every other aspect of life in the ANE, the objectives of both the city and the king were to please the gods. Cities were the epicenter of the world; they were a place where people lived and did business, but ultimately where the temples were. Each city had its own temple that was dedicated to a specific god. The importance of the city was somewhat the same for the Israelites. Gods home on earth was the temple, and the temple was located in the city of Jerusalem. The difference, however, was that there was only one temple for the Israelites, and that temple was in one city. Kings were the rulers of the time, thus directly tied to the cities, and therefore kingship played a very important role in religious practice. Kings were thought to have been chosen by the gods and were always attempting to show that the gods approved of them as king. They were the mediators between the gods and the people who lived under their rule. It was said that they had access to the gods and their plans in a way that no other person did. The view of king was so high in Egypt that he was seen as divine. The king had many responsibilities in regard to the upkeep of the city, one of the most important being the institution of justice. But it was also the kings responsibility to lead  the charge in appeasing the gods so that their land would be safe and overflow with blessing. Again, these ideas are very similar to Hebrew kingship. God did choose a king and he gave them authority to speak on His behalf. Some pose that the OT is anti-king, but it is best to take from the text that God had always planned for a king. He was disgusted that the people did not want him to rule over them and that they wanted a king on their time line. And, of course, from the line of King David comes the ultimate king, the Messiah. CHAPTER 13 Chapter thirteen unpacks even more about how the people of the ANE lived, specifically how their laws were enforced, how wisdom was passed down, their views of justice, and how justice and ethics were related. The first section focuses on the treatises: medical, divinatory, and legal. These writings were wisdom passed down from past decisions made to offer guidance to the next set of people who would be making the decisions. Medical personnel could find remedies that worked, diviners could better know how to interpret an omen, and the king would know hold justice might have been handled prior to his time. These treatises were a series of if statements that explained certain situations and how to handle them. An example might be, â€Å"if a man steals something, cut off his hand.† It is important to note that there was not necessarily a set group of laws, rather, these treatises, along with wisdom literature, were used to create the norms of justice based on what had worked in the past. These pieces of literature served to legitimize the king. The Book of the Covenant is the Israelite writing that most closely resembles this type of literature. Wisdom literature from Egypt and Mesopotamia also played an important role in keeping societal order, but in a different fashion. Wisdom from such literature was meant to foresee potential problems and develop ways to alter the behavior in society so that potential problems would not present themselves. Walton explains that law, as we understand it today, was not a part of the culture of the ANE. There was not a list of rules written down that people used to regulate the way in which they lived. Rather, the state functioned based on personal ideas of fairness, wisdom from kings past, and the king at the present time. The goals were always balance and order in society and in the cosmos. Ergo, as the gods delivered  their responsibilities down through the kings, the kings were held responsible for keeping order in society by handling the judicial responsibilities entrusted to him by the gods. As mentioned in the section on morals and ethics, the gods were primarily concerned about social order, and the personal morality of people was not specifically important. The chapter closes by comparing the way in which people outside of Israel tried to live and how the Hebrews were guided by God to live. While the pagan tribes were focused on conforming to societal expectations, honoring the king, and pleasing the gods, Yahweh had revealed himself to Israel and had given details through the Ten Commandments and the covenant about how to live a holy life. While the pagan communities continued to try and determine a right way to live by waiting for answers from mute gods, the Israelites had heard from the Almighty and were trying to obey the details of the covenant agreement. CHAPTER 14 Having dealt with the ideas of how life began, the importance of familial heritage, and the ways in which life functioned in the day-to-day of the ANE, the final chapter of the book focuses on how future life on earth and the afterlife were viewed in the ANE. The idea of a better life in the future was foreign to the ANE mindset. The focus was not to make a better life for oneself, but to continue the legacy of the family name. Having an heir who would take care of the family business and continue the worship of the family’s gods was vital. Regardless of their situation, there was no savior coming to make things better. Israel, on the other hand, had the hope of the Messiah, which many misunderstood to be an earthly king who would come to free them from bondage and return them to their place of stature as in the days of David. The afterlife was, except for a failed weighing of the heart in Egyptian thought, generally not believed to be a place of punishment. The Egyptians believed that the ba and the ka were separated from the body at death, and that if the correct processes involved in burial were practiced, they would be enabled to reconnect with those pieces. In Mesopotamia, just as the future of life was strongly tied to the idea of family and community, so was the afterlife. The worst thing that could happen to a dead person was improper burial which would cut them off from the family and relegate them to a life alone.  Additionally, those who did not receive a proper burial were thought to be potentially dangerous spirits. It was common practice that those still alive from the family would care for those dead by providing water libations, providing left-over food from the table, and holding meals in honor of their ancestors. Specially trained men would assist them in communicating with the deceased. The netherworld is the name that was consistently used for the afterlife. Humans, aside from kings who were given the opportunity to enter into heaven with the gods, all ended up here. There are multiple stories about the process that one might take in order to gain access to the netherworld, but all eventually ended up here. This is never indicated as a place of torment, but just a plain and boring existence hopefully in community with their ancestors. The Israelite idea of Sheol, which is mentioned in the Old Testament, is not to be understood as hell either. Walton indicates that there is no text that supports the interpretation that Sheol is to be understood in this fashion. POSTSCRIPT In the postscript, Walton reminds the reader of the importance of comparative studies and how vital it is to understand the Old Testament within its cognitive environment. He admits that he has not created the perfect text on the subject, but that one of his goals was to try and further develop the idea of comparative studies in a more complete manner where others have shied to the safe side and not tackled a work such as this. The second goal was to show that the Israelites shared in the cognitive environment of the ANE, which this reader believes he did very well. The author notes that the literature involved in the study of the ANE must be connected to the culture in which it was written and understood in light of it. The final portion shows the latter to be true by summarizing the main areas of thought and the similarities and differences between Israel and the other nations. All believed that the source of human beings was the gods, but only Israel believed in the creation of an original man and woman from whom all other people came. All attempted to please their gods, but only Israel had received revelation that communicated what Yahweh was thinking and what he expected. All were under the rule of a higher power, for Israel it was their upholding of the covenant while for the others it was submission to the king and the gods that had instituted his  rule. While social norms and literature passed down from old kings drove behavior in most people of the ANE, the revelation from God at Sinai gave the Hebrew people a guide for how to live. While all others had no hope of anything good in the future nor anything exciting in the afterlife, the Israelites were given the promise of a king who would come through David whose throne would last forever. Walton ends the text with a final statement that is worth repeating in this summary. He concludes that all of the information proposed within the text should be used to guard against a facile or uninformed imposition of our own cognitive environment on the texts of ancient Israel, which is all too typical in confessional circles. May all confessional readers of Gods word strive to understand his revelation as best as possible so that we might know and discern the perfect will of the one, true God. WORKS CITED Walton, John H.. Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006.