Inclusive Education In Malaysia

Inclusive Education In Malaysia Malaysias move toward inclusion was given impetus by its participation in workshops and conferences set up under the auspices of the United Nations. Inclusive education was introduced in the Education Act (1998) as part of the continuum of services available for children with special needs. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the interpretation of policy pertaining to inclusion, its contradictions and its translation into practice within the Malaysian context; and to share experiences on how the national context explains and constrains inclusive practices. This paper also reviews the extent inclusion has brought benefits to children with special needs and their families; as well as examine the problematic issues associated with the interpretation and implementation of inclusive practices at community and school levels. Introduction In line with the global trend toward inclusive education, Malaysia officially began its efforts to include students with special needs in mainstream education through its involvement in workshops and activities initiated by the United Nations (UN) and United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). Standards of several UN policies affirm the right of all children to equal education without discrimination within the mainstream education system. These include the UN Convention on the rights of the Child (1989), the UN Standard Rules on the Equalisation of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (1993), the UNESCO Salamanca Statement (1994) and the UNESCAP Biwako Millennium Framework (2002). The Salamanca Statement on Principles, Policy and Practice in Special Needs Education (UNESCO 1994) has stressed the importance to develop national capacities for policymaking and systems management in support of inclusive education and the need to address equal educati onal opportunity and access to all children including those with special educational needs. Subsequently, inclusive education was introduced in the Malaysian Education Act 1996 (1998) together with provisions for children with learning difficulties. Although huge strides have been taken in the provisions and allocations for special needs education in Malaysia, inclusive education seems elusive to many children who need it. The purpose of this article is to examine and analyse the current policy and practices pertaining to inclusive education within the parallel system of general and special education, and to share experiences on how the national context explains and constrains inclusive practices. Concepts and principles in inclusive education will be discussed against the backdrop of Malaysian general education system and school culture. Inclusive education in Malaysia originated from the special education agenda as defined in the Education Act 1996 (1998) and its approach is referred to this tradition. The discussion begins with an introduction to the development of special needs education as a discipline and as a profession in Malaysia, and its influence on the development of policy and practice toward inclusive education. The Evolutionary Phases of Special Needs Education The history of special needs education in Malaysia parallels developments seen in other helping professions in developing countries worldwide (Azuma, 1984). Foreign experts are initially relied upon to provide the knowledge and to encourage its development prior to the emergence of a profession within a country. The first professionals to provide services are usually trained abroad. The second stage followed this first stage, in which colleges and universities established programs and departments to teach the discipline and prepare the professionals. The second stage leads to the third stage, in which colleges and universities import developed from abroad to achieve standards that characterised the discipline in more developed nations. During this stage, the concepts, theories and models of implementation found in the more developed countries are taught, applied and tested; some of which may transfer more successfully than others. The fourth stage sees research initiated in the country to develop the concepts, theories and practices and technologies essential to enhance practice. The fifth and last stage is reached when this new body of knowledge developed in one country is integrated into the larger body of knowledge available internationally. As professions and disciplines of knowledge evolve from one stage to the next, they gain strength and improve qualities associated with the earlier stages of the development. Malaysia embarked on the first stage when the first school for the blind was opened in 1929, followed by a school for the deaf very much later in 1954. These schools were initiated under the programs of the Ministry of Social Welfare with the help of religious missionaries. Malaysia entered its second stage when professional preparation programs for special education were formally established by the Ministry of Education in 1961. Lacking its own expertise and technology, Malaysia entered its third stage when it began importing knowledge and expertise by sending its education professionals abroad for research degrees and in-service attachments in special needs education in the 1980s and 1990s, and attempting to customize what was learned to its national conditions. Malaysias participation in international workshops and activities of the UN and UNESCO and subsequent reforms as reflected in the Education Act (1998) describes the active development of policy and changes in practices duri ng this period. In 1993, the first preservice teacher preparation leading to a Bachelor of Education degree program in special needs education was initiated in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. The program was developed alongside a collaborative project in curriculum development with three universities in the United Kingdom, namely, the Universities of Manchester, Birmingham and Cambridge (Jelas, 1996; 1999). Special needs education in Malaysia is currently in its fourth stage with research being initiated in the local universities with funding from the government to indigenise special needs education as a discipline. The establishment of research degree programs in special needs education has generated interest among students and academics and attempts to integrate local knowledge with the larger body of knowledge internationally have started (Jelas, 1996, 1999, 2000; Azman et al., 2003; Ali et al, 2006). Development of policy: A force for or against inclusion Education for children and youth with special needs is provided for by two government agencies: The Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (MWFCD). The MWFCD through its Welfare Department, provides learning and skills training services for children and youths with i) severe physical disabilities, ii) severe and profound intellectual disabilities; and iii) multiple disabilities. These learning and skills training services are implemented in collaboration with non-governmental bodies and community-based rehabilitation centres. The Special Education Department of the MOE is responsible for coordinating all special educations programmes in the regular schools and the administration of all special education schools which cater only to students with hearing and visual impairments. Children who are identified with i) downs syndrome, ii) mild autism, iii) developmental delays, iv) attention deficit hyperactivity disorders, and v) specific learning disabilities, are placed in self-contained special classes in the Learning Disability Programmes in regular schools. The terms special needs introduced in the Education Act 1996 (1998) are defined as follows: Pupils with special needs means pupils with visual impairment or hearing impairment or with learning disabilities And inclusive education is introduced as part of the continuum of services available for children with special needs: Special education programme means A programme which is provided in special schools for pupils with visual impairment or hearing impairment; An integrated programme in general schools for pupils with visual impairment or hearing impairment or with learning disabilities; and An inclusive education programme for pupils with special needs and who are able to attend normal classes together with normal pupils (Education Act 1996, 1998, p. 341) However, the eligibility for special education placement is based on the educability of children as assessed by a team of professionals. This is documented in the Act, which states: (1) For government and government-aided schools, pupils with special needs who are educable are eligible to attend the special education programme except for the following pupils: physically handicapped pupils with the mental ability to learn like normal pupils; and pupils with multiple disabilities or with profound physical handicap or severe mental retardation. A pupil with special needs is educable if he is able to manage himself without help and is confirmed by a panel consisting of a medical practitioner, an officer from the MOE and an officer from the Welfare Department of the MWFCD, as capable of undergoing the national educational programme (Education Act 1996, 1998, p. 342) The eligibility dilemma A number of issues and contradictions arise when we analyse policies that explicitly state a criterion for eligibility. While the current public policy for children with special educational needs, particularly those categories of children classified as experiencing learning disabilities have access to regular schools as stated in the Act, the educability criteria contradicts the goals of providing equal education opportunities as stipulated in the United Nations Standard Rules on the Equalisation of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (1993), The Salamanca Statement (1994) and the Biwako Millenium Framework for Action (UNESCAP, 2002). These mandates are intended to promote equal rights and access to education for persons with disabilities. The educability criterion assumes that there are children who are uneducable within the public school system and thus these children are catered to within community-based rehabilitation (CBR) settings (MOE, 2006). CBR programmes are government-initiated, centre-based programmes at the community level aimed to provide education that emphasises therapy and rehabilitation to children with learning disabilities (Kuno, 2007). CBR programmes are quite detached from the mainstream school system. However, in practice, the division between both provisions is less definite, and students who should benefit from them become victims of bureaucratic procedures (Adnan Hafiz, 2001). The true meaning of equal rights and access is still evolving in the Malaysian context, as policy makers and the schools put into practice their interpretation of what they perceive those rights to be. Deciding on who does or does not have a special educational need, or who is educable and who is not poses a major problem. Before special programmes were available, students with special needs were described by their characteristics and by the instructional challenges they presented to teachers. When the education system began to respond to the needs of each emerging group of special needs students, services were established and eligibility criteria determined. From that point on, a child was identified (for school and placement purposes) as having or experiencing a special educational need and if he or she is able to manage him or herself without help (Education Act 1996, 1998), the child will be eligible for a given programme or service. This process was repeated as each new group of special needs students emerged for example, children with visual and hearing impairments in the 1960s, children with mild intellectual in the 1980s and 1990s, and more recently, children with attentio n deficit hyperactivity disorders and children with dyslexia. Thus it is regulated in the Education Act 1996 (1998) that the perspectives of professionals (a medical practitioner, an officer from the MOE and an officer from the Welfare Department of the MWFCD p. 342) have the most power in determining the way children are categorised and whether these children are capable of undergoing the national educational programme (Education Act 1996, 1998). In this context, policy makers and professionals continue to see special schools and classes as well as categories as having an important place in provisions. Responses at the Ministerial level revealed an emphasis on diversity and acceptance of human characteristics as problematic and that learning difficulties are technical problems that require specialised discipline knowledge that cannot be dealt with in the normal classes with normal children (Education Act 1996, 1998 p. 341). In this context, the MOE sees segregation as the right to be educated in a separate environment from the mainstream and i nclusion is implemented on the principle that integrate and include children with special needs where possible, and retain the right to segregate where necessary (Booth Ainscow, 1998). Within the Malaysian context, the belief that the child must be educable to be educated reflects a rigid and narrow interpretation of the concept of inclusion. The requirement reinforced what Peters (2004) referred to as the continuum of placements paradigm; where inclusion is conceptualised as a place that one needs to be eligible and not as a service delivered. Such a narrow and limited interpretation results in the exclusion of SEN students from within the school system. Jelas (2000a) summarised the interpretation of the process of inclusion in the Malaysian context in Figure 1. INCLUSION: MEETING OUR COMMITMENTS Salamanca Statement 1994 Malaysian Education Act 1996 Responses to human diversity Responses to categories Commitment to change Commitment to existing demands Rejection of medical model of disability Coexistence of medical social model perubatan sosial Equity PROCESS OF INCLUSION Educability PROCESS OF EXCLUSION Figure 1. Inclusion: Its interpretaion in the Malaysian context Rationalising exclusion While the literature on inclusive education would be in agreement over the basic philosophical stance of inclusion as it relates to issues of social justice and equity of educational opportunities, its interpretation and translation into practice remains unclear in Malaysia. The National Report on the development of education states: Inclusion in Malaysia subscribed to the concept of placing SEN students into mainstream classes to be educated alongside their peers, either with or without additional support, and within the present school system. This concept of IE (inclusive education) might not be in line with the ideal concept based on acceptance, belonging and about providing school settings in which all disadvantaged children can be valued equally and be provided with equal educational opportunities à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ (MOE, 2004, p. 28), While the philosophical basis of including SEN students into mainstream schools is accepted as a policy, the continued legitimization of paradigms that exclude SEN students is also acknowledged by rationalising between the ideal and the not-so-ideal concept of inclusive education. This ambivalence is reinforced by the following statements: Prior to inclusion, especially in the early part of their formal education, SEN students are equipped with relevant basic skills and knowledge to enable them to cope with mainstream learning. Only those who are diagnosed capable to cope with mainstream learning would be included fully or partially. (MOE, 2004, p. 29) The emphasis on the ability to cope with mainstream learning seemed consistent with the integration models that came about in the 1980s. Integration models mainly focused on placing students with mild disabilities, identified and diagnosed as having special needs in mainstream schools. In such models, students must adapt to the norms, expectations, styles, routines and practices of the education system instead of the education system adapting to the learner (UNESCO, 2008). The integrated programme is the dominant format for delivering services to special needs students in Malaysia, then and now. Students typically were referred to a medical practitioner to determine their eligibility and to confirm their disability, and if they met the eligibility criteria, they were placed in a special class in a regular school. Once placed, few special education students returned to the regular education class on full-time basis. Although the special classroom and special schools continued as optio ns, integrated programmes (placement in regular classrooms) for students with visual and hearing impairments are available with support from the resource teacher. Within this model, students were pulled out for part-time placement in resource rooms, or a special education teacher comes to the regular education classroom to provide remedial assistance to the student or to assist the classroom teacher. By the mid -1980s special education in the developed countries, specifically in the United States and United Kingdom, no longer relied on segregated special classes to serve students with SEN. Historically, the disenchantment of many special educators and the concern of the efficacy of the prevailing approach (Ainscow, 1994; Meyen Skrtic, 1995; Sorrells, Rieth Sindelar, 2004; Stainback Stainback, 1992) raised questions about how best to assure a quality and equitable education for students with disabilities and spawned the push for a more inclusive approach to special education programming. While these reforms were mandated in the United Nations Declarations and UNESCOs Framework of Actions on special needs education of which Malaysias policy on inclusive education subscribes to, the focus on diagnosis, prescription, and intervention continued to be central to determining eligibility and making placement decisions. Thus, although special education practices had changed, the ground ing assumptions of human pathology and organisational rationality (Biklen, 2000; Oliver, 1996; Skrtic, 1991) have not been critically examined. In this context, special education is used to maintain and legitimise exclusion of students with disabilities within a school culture and system characterised by competition and selection (Skrtic, 1995; Corbett, 1999; Slee, 2001; Kearney Kane, 2006). Inclusive education is seen as problematic; educators and policymakers have serious reservations about the widespread placement of SEN students in mainstream schools because systemic problems in the current provisions and school culture remain unresolved. Malaysia needs to recognise that integration models are not inclusion and that inclusive practices do not just mean placing SEN students into mainstream schools. The pathway to inclusion is fraught with foundational assumptions that support exclusionary processes and practices. Challenges in policy and practice Even though inclusive education was implemented at the policy level more than 10 years ago and school participation has rapidly increased quantitatively, Malaysia is far from reaching its goal of providing a responsive education path for every child and youth with SEN (MOE, 2004). Policy statements and procedural processes and requirements that are seen as safeguarding the normality of the school population (Slee, 1996, p. 25), and that which rest on the basic philosophy of exclusion and segregation as the best way to educate students with disabilities will obviously make inclusion efforts very difficult and counterproductive. There is a need to formulate policies to ensure that segregation is not practiced within the education system. The barriers created by the current policies may have many sources but three of the most critical are: (1) the non-acceptance that all children can learn; (2) the need for a reconceptualisation of special educational needs; and (3) the culture of eliti sm. The acceptance that all children can learn and have a right to education Malaysians in general and educators specifically need to acknowledge that inclusive education is part of the human rights agenda that argues that all children, irrespective of their characteristics, can learn and have access to education. Although special education is seen as a right and as an access to education, school exclusion of children who do not meet the eligibility criteria is made legal and therefore, not the responsibility of the MOE. Labeling children who do not meet the criteria for placement in schools as uneducable and denying them the opportunity to education would be an irony of the education system. Under these circumstances, they are the ones that have the greatest need for education, are the least likely to receive it. Further, denying these children of the opportunity to learn within the public school system is a violation of the childs basic rights (United Nations, 1989; United Nations, 1993). The question of whether all children with disabilities have an unqual ified right to the education system must be addressed. Opportunities for schooling should be extended to all disabled children without specifying any eligibility criteria; the MOE needs to implement a paradigm shift from a charity-based approach to the development of persons with disabilities and to accept responsibility for education for all children. In principle, Malaysia is committed to providing education for all with the implementation of compulsory education in 2003 as evident by a high participation rate of 98.49 per cent (MOE, 2004). This statement of intent towards compulsory education for all which was an amendment of the Education Act 1996, however, did not include children with disabilities: The MOE has reviewed the Education Act 1996 that regulates the provision of preschool, primary and secondary education. The review was to enable the implementation of compulsory education at primary school level. In 2002, the Education Act 1996 was amended and the compulsory education took effect in 2003. This policy ensures that every child in Malaysia beginning at age six, regardless of sex, social and economic background, and residential locality has the right to primary education. Accordingly, every Malaysian parent must ensure that their child has access to primary education when the child reaches the age of six or on the first day of the current school year when the child would be six years old. (MOE, 2004, p.4) International mandates have declared that education is a basic right for all children and have called for the inclusion of all children in primary education by 2015 (UNESCAP, 2002). Malaysia needs to include disability dimensions in all new and existing laws, policy plans, programmes and schemes. In this context, we need to strengthen our national capacity in data collection and analysis concerning disability statistics to support policy formulation and programme implementation. The exclusion of children and youth with disabilities from the broader framework of education results in their being deprived from further opportunities, thereby diminishing their access to vocational training, employment, and preventing them from achieving economic and social independence. This increases their vulnerability to marginalisation in what can become a self-perpetuating, inter-generational cycle. Conceptualisation of special educational needs The current interpretation of special educational needs in Malaysia emanates from a traditional special education framework and knowledge base that emphasise the pathological/medical model of special needs (Skrtic, 1991). The continued emphasis on explaining educational difficulties in terms of child-centered characteristics has the effect of preventing progress in creating policies and provisions for SEN students. Dyson (1990) aptly summarises the argument by saying: The fact remains that the education system as a whole, and the vast majority of institutions and teachers within it, are approaching the twenty-first century with a view of special needs the same as that with which their counterparts approached the present century. That view, for all its avowed concern for the individual child, promotes injustice on a massive scale. It demands to be changed (Dyson, 1990, p. 60-1) The radical perspective that leads to a reconceptualisation of special educational needs have been well documented for the past twenty years (Barton, 1988; Lipsky Gartner, 1989; Ainscow, 1991; Fuchs Fuchs, 1994; Clark et. al., 1998; Donoghue, 2003) and critiques argued and showed evidence how the education system creates rather than remediate disabilities (Skrtic, 1991; Corbett, 1999; Vlachou, 2004; Carrington Robinson, 2006). The new perspective on special educational needs is based on the view that the way forward must be to reform schools in ways that will make them respond positively to pupil diversity, seeing individual differences as something to be nurtured. But, as cautioned by Ainscow (1994): This kind of approach is only possible in schools where there exist a respect for individuality and a culture of collaboration that encourages and supports problem-solving. Such cultures are likely to facilitate the learning of all pupils and, alongside them, the professional learning of all teachers. Ultimately, therefore, this line of argument makes the case that increasing equity is the key to improvements in schooling for all. (Ainscow, 1994, p12) The assessment of the characteristics of the child and the childs total environment call for methods of assessment that build on the positive qualities while recognising areas of weaknesses. The interactionist perspective (Cline, 1992) adopts an ecological approach which recognises that features of the learning context, such as the curriculum, the teaching process, the management of the classroom and other variables are essential factors that influence learning. By accepting the interactionist approach to special needs, Malaysian educators would be able to look at the learning needs of students and how school policies, culture and practices enable or disable, not only students with disabilities, but all students. In identifying educational needs, Noddings (2005) emphasises that it is crucial for educators to balance the inferred needs and the expressed needs of all students, in saying that by ignoring expressed needs, we sacrifice opportunities to develop individual talents, intrinsi c motivation, and the joys of learning (p 147). The human side of education is more than just an ethics of justice issue but an ethics of care which is needs-based. This is of particular importance because it is this grounding principle of care that creates understandings, values, and beliefs that formulate policies and subsequently the practices. The culture of elitism Education in Malaysia is driven largely by an examination-oriented system characterised by curriculum rigidity and rote learning rather than critical and independent thinking. Like schools in Singapore and Hong Kong (Poon-McBrayer, 2004), school leadership are in great pressure to compete for the best examination results in terms of the percentages of passes and the number of As acquired by students in public school examinations. The competitiveness has resulted in students to enroll as many subjects they can in the Malaysian Certificate of Education with the expectations of getting the highest number of As as possible. The culture of elitism compels parents to prepare their children to be accepted into high ranking or fully residential schools which usually achieve high scores in examination results. The introduction of the Tuition Voucher Scheme (MOE, 2004) for students in Year 4, 5 and 6 with poor academic performance exemplifies the need for students to perform academically in the Year 6 Open Certification Examinations. Within the School Cluster Program (MOE, 2007), schools are encouraged to compete to strive for excellence and to be a cluster school that promises, among others, a special status. To be eligible for selection, schools need to fulfill two requirements: (1) certified excellent by the Malaysian Education Quality Standards and (2) three continuous years of excellent examination results at the Primary School Assessment, the Lower Secondary School Assessment and the end of school Open Certificate Examination. Although the intertwining of the standards and inclusion agenda can lead to p ositive consequences (Ainscow et al, 2006), the emphasis on the preparation and drill for the public examinations therefore, left little or no time for teachers to accommodate individual learning needs of students in general. Media reports on schools and students performance intensify competition and further marginalise SEN students, who, to a large extent are not expected to compete. Competing priorities make it more difficult for schools to fully include children with SEN. Conclusion Opportunities for change The Malaysian approach to inclusive education this far has been intertwined and limited to the domain of special needs education. The conception of policy provides the basis for analysing policy implications in relation to critical issues. In this paper it is argued that the current policy and practice toward inclusive education for SEN students are exclusionary and discriminatory. The concept of educability as an eligibility requirement for educational placement is a major issue that needs to be reviewed. Continued advancement of special needs education in Malaysia will require bifocal perspectives. One focus has an international perspective and requires Malaysians awareness of the international body of literature and trends in practice that enables them to take advantage of the knowledge and experience gained by those in other countries. Malaysia may also profit especially from knowledge provided by its Asian neighbours namely Japan, India and China, or other countries that seems to be struggling with many of the same issues. However, effective special needs education services require awareness of social and educational traditions, social philosophies that manifest in schooling and school culture and ways of resolving conflict that may be unique to one country and the impact these qualities have on general and special needs education services (Peters, 2003). The second perspective, thus, takes a more narrow view, one that enables the evolution of special needs education services that reflect the needs and characteristics of Malaysians. The first perspective may identify as viable goals the extension of services to students with learning difficulties, inclusion, garnering additional political support for special needs education through parent advocacy and supporting the further employment of people with disabilities. However, a more narrow focus on issues directly important to Malaysia is likely to clarify more viable future directions for students with disabilities in Malaysia. Further initiatives critical to Azumas (1984) Stage 5 will require considerable research and policy debate among Malaysians.

History of Accounting Indicates That Accounting Process Has Evolved

The American Accounting Association defined accounting as:†the process of identifying, measuring and communicating economic information to permit informed judgments and decisions by the users of the information† (Aryasri, 2008). The history of accounting indicates that accounting process has evolved throughout the history. Although, identification, measurement and communication still remain as core activities of accounting process, the methods of doing them have significantly changed. What was once considered to be acceptable in the past may not be suitable for today as its environment has changed. However, the demand for changes usually comes from the environment rather than accounting profession itself. History has shown that unless there is a severe demand for changing, the natural tendency of accounting profession is to follow the convention. This has been proven by the era of stagnation. During this period, despite the invention of double entry accounting process and its advantages, businesses were redundant to adopt. However, when the industrial revolution took place, there was a great increase in the number of corporation which demanded further developments in accounting process. Many companies which are unable to adopt the accounting changes have failed badly. Nevertheless, through these failures, the problems in accounting process have been recognized and addressed promptly. For example, the problem of not distinguishing between capital and revenue and the allocation of asset depreciation to expenses were identified by the collapses of many railway companies. Accountants were then required to distinguish between capital and revenue items, measure the value of fixed assets, and determine depreciation rates (Hooper, Davey, Liyanarachchi & Prescott, 2008).. In the same sense, in today’s ever changing business environment, accounting process will face a great deal of challenges and demands, it is certain that accounting process will continue to evolve in order to adapt the changing environment. The implications of paragraph 12 of the New Zealand Framework can be summarized into answers to three interrelated questions below:What are financial statements to be prepared? 2. Who are they prepared for? 3. What is the purpose of the financial statements? First, there three types of information the preparers should be able to prepare according to the framework: 1. information which reflects the financial position of an entity, the balance sheet presents this kind of information; 2. information which indicates an entity’s financial perf ormance, which normally refers to as an income statement; 3. nformation that reflects changes in financial position, cash flow statement provides this kind of information (Deegan, 2009). Secondly, it is also important for preparers to consider who the users are and identify the potential users. Because different users require different information as they may make different decisions. However, â€Å"A wide range of users† the framework here stated, it is defined by framework that include: investors, employees, lenders, suppliers and trade creditors, customers, governments and their agencies, and public (Drever, Stanton & McGowan, 2007).Thirdly, it is important to make sure the financial statements have served their primary objective which is the information need of the users. In line with the decision-usefulness approach adopted by the current New Zealand Framework, when the preparers preparing financial statements they should always bear in mind that the financial statements they prepared should provide information that is useful to end-users in making economic decision. This includes providing information to help users to predict what may happen in the future and providing feedback on previous decision. Base the financial statements prepared by preparer, the users should be able to decide whether past decisions, and the information used to make them, were correct, and this can help they to make better decision in the future (Deegan, 2009). .

Lord Of The Flies Essay example - 1547 Words

How mankind can’t survive without rules and laws nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; Could civilization live a normal and stable life, without any rules and orders to obey? Could you picture, New York City, with no laws to follow and everyone doing as they please? Just imagine the disasters that we will experience. In the novel, Lord of the Flies, written by William Golding, we see how each individual character reacts differently to the exposure of complete freedom from an organized society. Also, awe see how this separation from a structural society causes chaos among all these different characters. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The story begins with 20 pre-adolescent boys who are on an airplane and the airplane crashes on a remote†¦show more content†¦When all the boys are gathered together, Piggy starts to ask the names of the kids. This is the second step of a creation of a civilization. Afterwards, we see, Jack and his choir, come into the story. They are all formerly dressed up which, gives them all a more superior and civilized look than the other kids. The uniforms create an isolated unity for the members of the choir. Jack Merridew is presented as the indifferent, older character of the novel. He is the antagonist and could be seen as a devil figure in the story. Jack is the hunter, the dictator and, throughout the story, is at constant battle with Ralph for his leadership. Jack wants to be in control of the island and the kids but the type of leadership that he offers is brutal and similar to that of a dictatorship and communism. Jack also believes that the group should have fun and stuff oneself with the food they hunt. He is not very concerned with the future of being rescued. On the other hand, Ralph wants order and work and is much more concern with being rescued. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;When everyone is more settled down, Ralph suggests that they elect a leader and chief. All the kids elect Ralph as the leader, mainly because he is the one who found the conch and the one who is holding it. We at once see how Jack greatly disapproves of the decision taken by the kids. HeShow MoreRelatedThe Lord Of The Flies1262 Words   |  6 Pages2015 Lord of the Flies Research Paper Evils are what drive all of the negative things in society. Characteristics of evil are all around us in our everyday lives. political leaders, celebrities, People we idolize show characteristics of evil. Even small insignificant roles in society hold certain evils in their motives. Throughout this story these evils were for once boldly stated for all to understand. The games the boys play,the fire they set, and their rescue, in the Lord of the flies showsRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies1468 Words   |  6 PagesThe Lord of the Flies tells the story of a group of English schoolboys marooned on a tropical island after their plane is shot down during a war. 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IRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies1111 Words   |  5 PagesThe Lord of the Flies Research Project While the World War II was in act, Adolf Hitler once incited â€Å"You only have to kick in the door, and the whole rotten structure will come crashing down†(Adolf Hitler). The structure coming down symbolizes the fact that the boys’ structure of order, and civilization came crashing down as well. This is found throughout the book. Adolf Hitler is known for his dictatorship, his exquisite leadership skills, and violent warfares.. He uncovered that leadership skillsRead MoreThe Lord Of The Flies2105 Words   |  9 PagesBefore starting The Lord of the Flies, a lone question that summed up the entire book was proposed: Are humans good or evil? Though it may not seem like a puzzling question at first, everything inside, and outside of the book makes it more complicated. If we are evil, then everyone would be turned against everyone else from the start, and if we are good, we would always be for everyone else at the beginning. Neither is present in the real world, bring up the question, what is humanity’s true goal

Rhetorical Analysis of the I Have a Dream Speech by Dr....

Cheers echoed throughout Washington D.C. August 28, 1963 as Martin Luther King Jr. paved the path to freedom for those suffering from racial segregation. It was the day of the March on Washington, which promoted Civil Rights and economic equality for African Americans. In order to share his feelings and dreams with the rest of the nation, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his speech encouraging all to overcome racial segregation. Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech was very effective due to the use of metaphors, repetition, historical and literary references, and poetic devices. Metaphors Metaphors found throughout the speech created images in the minds of those in the audience and helped make his points stronger. With the†¦show more content†¦He used repetition again as he let the audience know that it was time to rid the nation of racial segregation. Martin Luther King Jr. repeated â€Å"We cannot be satisfied† while making the point that until the Negros were free, nothing would make them content. One of the most emphasized parts of his speech was when Martin Luther King Jr. declared, â€Å"I have a dream† (King, 1963, para 13-20). He concluded his repetition by saying that with their faith, the Negros would one day be free (King, 1963, para 21). Historical References Martin Luther King Jr. began his speech with â€Å"Five score years ago† referring to Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (King, 1963, para 2). He spoke of how the Emancipation Proclamation brought hope to millions of Negro slaves. As he continued, Martin Luther King Jr. referred to the Constitution and Declaration of Independence when saying, â€Å"All men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness† (King, 1963, para 4). Literary References A bit further into his speech Martin Luther King Jr. made a Biblical reference to the Israelites as he stated that the Negro was still languishing in the corners of American society and found himself in exile in his own land (King, 1963, para 3). Martin Luther King Jr. created a Biblical reference to Psalm 23 as he compared segregation to a dark and desolate valley, which referred to the valley of the shadowShow MoreRelatedRhetorical Analysis of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.s I Have A Dream Speech915 Words   |  4 Pages Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his I Have a Dream speech to the thousands of African Americans who had marched on Washington, D.C. at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. The date of the speech was August 28, 1963, but it is one that will live for generations. Of course his purpose was to convince his audience on several fronts: he sought to persuade the black community to stand up for the rights afforded them under the Constitution, and he also sought to Read MoreThe Fight for Freedom1312 Words   |  6 Pagesworking for change since before the civil war, but mainly beyond. Some of the most prominent civil rights leaders include Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Philip Randolph, and Bayard Rustin. The two main goals of the civil rights activists being, equal rights and treatment for all races. As a result, the â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech was written by Martin Luther King, Jr., a man who â€Å"Led successful efforts to integrate public transportation in Montgomery, Alabama; founded the Southern ChristianRead MoreAnalysis of Martin Luther King ´s Speech: I Have a Dream1309 Words   |  6 Pagesworking for change since before the civil war, but mainly beyond. Some of the most prominent civil rights leaders include Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Malcolm X, Philip Randolph, and Bayard Rustin. The two main goals of the civil rights activists being , equal rights and treatment for all races. As a result, the â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech was written by Martin Luther King, Jr., a man who â€Å"Led successful efforts to integrate public transportation in Montgomery, Alabama; founded the Southern ChristianRead MoreRhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream1140 Words   |  5 PagesJeicy Brito â€Å"I Have a Dream† Rhetorical Analysis African American Baptist minister and activist, Martin Luther King, Jr., in his â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech, addresses racism against Negros and demands equal rights and freedoms. King’s purpose is to motivate his audience to join him in fighting for what they deserve. He shifts from an urgent, demanding tone at the beginning of the speech to a more hopeful and patriotic tone towards the end. Throughout the speech, Dr. King appeals to the audience’s desireRead MoreA Rhetorical Analysis: of I Have a Dream Essay1484 Words   |  6 PagesIn Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech, King makes use of an innumerable amount of rhetorical devices that augment the overall understanding and flow of the speech. King makes the audience feel an immense amount of emotion due to the outstanding use of pathos in his speech. King also generates a vast use of rhetorical devices including allusion, anaphora, and antithesis. The way that King conducted his speech adds to the comprehension and gives the effect that he wants to rise above the injusticesRead MoreThe Civil Rights Movement : Martin Luther King Jr. Essay1690 Words   |  7 PagesA civil rights leader by the name of Reverend (PBS, 2016) Martin Luther King Jr. changed the world he occupied and changed the future course of the United States of America by advocating for desegregation. Martin Luther King Junior was on a mission to end the segregation of the African American community. Segregation was the post result of slavery throughout the United States of America which enslaved Africans. He challenged the status quo of the time. Protesting peacefully and advocating for socialRead MoreMartin Luther King Memorial Essay1993 Words   |  8 PagesThe Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial is the newest memorial to be built in Washington D.C. The memorial was finished with construction in the summer of 2011. This memorial celebrates the life of one of the most influential leaders of the Civil Right s era, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This is a reminder of Dr. Kings’ powerful impact on the country and even the world. It was only right that a memorial was built in Washington D.C. to honor the life of this powerful man. Dr. Kings’ memorial is locatedRead MoreA Rhetorical Analysis on Dr. Martin Luther King’s â€Å"I have a Dream†1051 Words   |  4 Pagesepoch of America’s civil-rights movement, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave the supreme exemplification of insurgency through a peaceful march of 200,000 people on Washington D.C. (Anson L.). There he delivered the most powerful speeches of all time known as â€Å"I Have a Dream†. On August 28, 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, this revolutionary civil rights leader through his stirring speech epitomized an objective for the black inhabitants of the America. His speech had the rationale to move billions of AmericansRead MoreMalcom X And The Civil Rights Movement1105 Words   |  5 PagesWritin g (WC) 15 July 2015 Analysis of Ballot or Bullet On 3rd April 1964, Malcom X addressed the Negro community assembled in Cleveland over the controversial issue of the civil rights movement. â€Å"The Ballot or the Bullet† speech of Malcom X can be considered as a direct response to â€Å"I have a Dream† speech of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Malcom X and Dr. Martin were taking a stand for the true freedom of the same community but with a diagonally opposite philosophies. Dr. Martin chose a non-violent approachRead More Martin Luther King, Jr.: Effective Nonviolence the Multiple Intelligences2987 Words   |  12 PagesMartin Luther King, Jr.: Effective Nonviolence the Multiple Intelligences Introduction Nonviolence can touch men where the law cannot reach them. These words, uttered by the late civil rights leader himself, were the fundamental tenet of Martin Luther King, Jr.s life. These words, though few in number, are great in power. These words, simple, plain, and concise, provide a rubric with which to investigate Martin Luther King, Jr.s creative genius and intelligence. Howard Gardner, eminent

Mandatory Military Conscription and Its Effect on Society...

In todays society the war in the Middle East can be considered a controversial topic. The men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan put their lives on the line every day to help keep our country free. No one has forced them to serve in the United States Armed Forces they have made their own conscience decision to serve. However these men and women only make up a small percentage of the United States population. Should all men and women be required to serve in the U.S. armed forces when they graduate from high school or should the United States require mandatory military service? Mandatory military service, or conscription, may be as old as mankind itself. Conscription says that during a time of war all able bodied men and women must†¦show more content†¦During World War I about three fourths of the 3.5 million unit armed forces came from conscription. During this time period many people felt that conscription was unconstitutional. However the United States Supreme court upheld the constitutionality of the draft by stating that Article I of the constitution gives Congress the power to â€Å"raise and support Armies†. In the year 1940 after the fall of France in World War II the United States Congress enacted a peace time draft. If drafted during this time period conscripts were only required to serve one year. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor however congress Smith 3 extended the length of the draft and expanded the draft to me aged 18 to 38. Approximately ten million men were drafted through the Selective Service System as a result. Throughout the Cold War the draft helped to maintain the numbers of the U.S. armed forces. The Selective Service System drafted 1.5 million men during the Korean War. During the Vietnam War, draftees were a minority of the United States armed forces. However they accounted for over half of Army battle deaths. At the time of the Vietnam War many people were against the draft and the war itself. This meant that there were many protests against the draft. Eventually President Nixon reduced the number of draftees and gradually recalled troops from Vietnam. The draft officially ended in1973. There are two very obvious sides to conscription. They are thoseShow MoreRelatedMilitary Should Be Mandatory Essay1137 Words   |  5 PagesIn current times, roughly 99.5% of American citizens don’t serve in th e military in their lifetime. But is something that needs to be changed by force? Some people could argue that service in the United States military should be mandatory for everyone–in reality, though, that is an impossible and overall disastrous idea. Military service is something that only some people can do–not all people can deal with the lasting effects of war, including many mental illnesses and Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderRead MoreMandatory Military Service in South Korea1191 Words   |  5 Pagesforces of a country is referred to as the military. This day and age, the military is a huge aspect of many and almost all of the 196 countries today. The military, composed of men and women, are contributing to defending, protecting, and keeping the country functioning. In some cases, where there are not enough volunteers for the military or a threat nearby, a mandatory service is implemented. This means that certain citizens of such country must serve the military for a certain length of time and commitRead MoreShould Military Service Be Mandatory?1426 Words   |  6 PagesShould Military Service be Mandatory in the United States? In the world today, there is approximately fifty percent of countries that mandate their citizens to serve in their military for an extended period of time. Those countries that do require their citizens to serve base it on the simple fact that they need to be ready for war at a moments notice and if all their citizens know how to fight they will succeed in any battle in which they are placed. Israel, Brazil, South Korea, Mexico, GermanyRead Moreâ€Å"The battle for Canadian liberty and autonomy is being fought today on the plains of France and1500 Words   |  6 PagesFrance and Belgium,† Borden said while introducing conscription. (Cook, 2011 3 ed., Vol. 13, p.13) At the beginning of the twentieth century, many Canadians were still adjusting to its new ways and ideas. Then the Greatest War the world had ever seen transformed the map of Europe and changed the nations, and the people, who fought in it forever. 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The United States has an extensive history, starting with the original thirteen States of involuntary conscription in time of conflict. Citizen’s service is a standard principle of American military service, which places the obligation of service upon citizens to serve and to ensure that the state require those citizens to serve (DalehiteRead More Divisive, But Effectual: Reinstating the Draft Essay1927 Words   |  8 Pagessignificantly. The U.S. is a major military power in the present world; American soldiers are engaged in many multi-theater positions, consequently dispersing troops over various regions worldwide. As only one in ten citizens has served in the US Army, American knowledge of military conditions is rapidly lessening along with the national harmony that complements such knowledge. Therefore, the comprehension that American security is closely asso ciated with a formidable military never resonated within theRead MoreU.s. Military Draft History1449 Words   |  6 PagesMarch 3, 1863. The Northern 1862 draft was an attempt to let states handle their own conscriptions, instead of the old volunteer militia. The next draft took place on September 16, 1940 for World War I and remained in effect continuously until 1973. The president, Woodrow Wilson, decided that â€Å"A draft was needed and nearly 3,000,000 soldiers were drafted following the Service Act of 1917.† (Understanding the U.S. Military Draft History 1). The reasoning behind President Wilson calling for the draft isRead MoreThe War Of The Vietnam War1475 Words   |  6 Pagesentered the conflict under the claim â€Å"that it was defending South Vietnam against aggression from the North† (Anderson and Bourassa). It wasn’t until 1961 that the United States formed an official treaty with South Vietnam, agreeing to provide â€Å"provide military and eco nomic assistance† (Badertscher and Goodwin) and would later sponsor a coup in 1963 that would result in the assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem, the first president of South Vietnam. The reason behind American involvement in Vietnam was not entirelyRead MoreCompulsory Public Service Requirement? Essay example2345 Words   |  10 Pagesutilized a compulsory military and/or public service obligation, the United States of America has maintained the notion that one should feel called / led to serve. Outside of the Selected Service, the U.S. has maintained an All-Volunteer Force. With the continued pressures from the decade long war(s) one could argue that the United States adopts a compulsory public service obligation. History of the United States Selective Service System (SSS) The draft first came into effect during the Civil War

A Game of Thrones Chapter Twenty-two Free Essays

string(52) " at them and help them steal pies from the kitchen\." Arya Her father had been fighting with the council again. Arya could see it on his face when he came to table, late again, as he had been so often. The first course, a thick sweet soup made with pumpkins, had already been taken away when Ned Stark strode into the Small Hall. We will write a custom essay sample on A Game of Thrones Chapter Twenty-two or any similar topic only for you Order Now They called it that to set it apart from the Great Hall, where the king could feast a thousand, but it was a long room with a high vaulted ceiling and bench space for two hundred at its trestle tables. â€Å"My lord,† Jory said when Father entered. He rose to his feet, and the rest of the guard rose with him. Each man wore a new cloak, heavy grey wool with a white satin border. A hand of beaten silver clutched the woolen folds of each cloak and marked their wearers as men of the Hand’s household guard. There were only fifty of them, so most of the benches were empty. â€Å"Be seated,† Eddard Stark said. â€Å"I see you have started without me. I am pleased to know there are still some men of sense in this city.† He signaled for the meal to resume. The servants began bringing out platters of ribs, roasted in a crust of garlic and herbs. â€Å"The talk in the yard is we shall have a tourney, my lord,† Jory said as he resumed his seat. â€Å"They say that knights will come from all over the realm to joust and feast in honor of your appointment as Hand of the King.† Arya could see that her father was not very happy about that. â€Å"Do they also say this is the last thing in the world I would have wished?† Sansa’s eyes had grown wide as the plates. â€Å"A tourney,† she breathed. She was seated between Septa Mordane and Jeyne Poole, as far from Arya as she could get without drawing a reproach from Father. â€Å"Will we be permitted to go, Father?† â€Å"You know my feelings, Sansa. It seems I must arrange Robert’s games and pretend to be honored for his sake. That does not mean I must subject my daughters to this folly.† â€Å"Oh, please,† Sansa said. â€Å"I want to see.† Septa Mordane spoke up. â€Å"Princess Myrcella will be there, my lord, and her younger than Lady Sansa. All the ladies of the court will be expected at a grand event like this, and as the tourney is in your honor, it would look queer if your family did not attend.† Father looked pained. â€Å"I suppose so. Very well, I shall arrange a place for you, Sansa.† He saw Arya. â€Å"For both of you.† â€Å"I don’t care about their stupid tourney,† Arya said. She knew Prince Joffrey would be there, and she hated Prince Joffrey. Sansa lifted her head. â€Å"It will be a splendid event. You shan’t be wanted.† Anger flashed across Father’s face. â€Å"Enough, Sansa. More of that and you will change my mind. I am weary unto death of this endless war you two are fighting. You are sisters. I expect you to behave like sisters, is that understood?† Sansa bit her lip and nodded. Arya lowered her face to stare sullenly at her plate. She could feel tears stinging her eyes. She rubbed them away angrily, determined not to cry. The only sound was the clatter of knives and forks. â€Å"Pray excuse me,† her father announced to the table. â€Å"I find I have small appetite tonight.† He walked from the hall. After he was gone, Sansa exchanged excited whispers with Jeyne Poole. Down the table Jory laughed at a joke, and Hullen started in about horseflesh. â€Å"Your warhorse, now, he may not be the best one for the joust. Not the same thing, oh, no, not the same at all.† The men had heard it all before; Desmond, Jacks, and Hullen’s son Harwin shouted him down together, and Porther called for more wine. No one talked to Arya. She didn’t care. She liked it that way. She would have eaten her meals alone in her bedchamber if they let her. Sometimes they did, when Father had to dine with the king or some lord or the envoys from this place or that place. The rest of the time, they ate in his solar, just him and her and Sansa. That was when Arya missed her brothers most. She wanted to tease Bran and play with baby Rickon and have Robb smile at her. She wanted Jon to muss up her hair and call her â€Å"little sister† and finish her sentences with her. But all of them were gone. She had no one left but Sansa, and Sansa wouldn’t even talk to her unless Father made her. Back at Winterfell, they had eaten in the Great Hall almost half the time. Her father used to say that a lord needed to eat with his men, if he hoped to keep them. â€Å"Know the men who follow you,† she heard him tell Robb once, â€Å"and let them know you. Don’t ask your men to die for a stranger.† At Winterfell, he always had an extra seat set at his own table, and every day a different man would be asked to join him. One night it would be Vayon Poole, and the talk would be coppers and bread stores and servants. The next time it would be Mikken, and her father would listen to him go on about armor and swords and how hot a forge should be and the best way to temper steel. Another day it might be Hullen with his endless horse talk, or Septon Chayle from the library, or Jory, or Ser Rodrik, or even Old Nan with her stories. Arya had loved nothing better than to sit at her father’s table and listen to them talk. She had loved listening to the men on the benches too; to freeriders tough as leather, courtly knights and bold young squires, grizzled old men-at-arms. She used to throw snowballs at them and help them steal pies from the kitchen. You read "A Game of Thrones Chapter Twenty-two" in category "Essay examples" Their wives gave her scones and she invented names for their babies and played monsters-and-maidens and hide-the-treasure and come-into-my-castle with their children. Fat Tom used to call her â€Å"Arya Underfoot,† because he said that was where she always was. She’d liked that a lot better than â€Å"Arya Horseface.† Only that was Winterfell, a world away, and now everything was changed. This was the first time they had supped with the men since arriving in King’s Landing. Arya hated it. She hated the sounds of their voices now, the way they laughed, the stories they told. They’d been her friends, she’d felt safe around them, but now she knew that was a lie. They’d let the queen kill Lady, that was horrible enough, but then the Hound found Mycah. Jeyne Poole had told Arya that he’d cut him up in so many pieces that they’d given him back to the butcher in a bag, and at first the poor man had thought it was a pig they’d slaughtered. And no one had raised a voice or drawn a blade or anything, not Harwin who always talked so bold, or Alyn who was going to be a knight, or Jory who was captain of the guard. Not even her father. â€Å"He was my friend,† Arya whispered into her plate, so low that no one could hear. Her ribs sat there untouched, grown cold now, a thin film of grease congealing beneath them on the plate. Arya looked at them and felt ill. She pushed away from the table. â€Å"Pray, where do you think you are going, young lady?† Septa Mordane asked. â€Å"I’m not hungry.† Arya found it an effort to remember her courtesies. â€Å"May I be excused, please?† she recited stiffly. â€Å"You may not,† the septa said. â€Å"You have scarcely touched your food. You will sit down and clean your plate.† â€Å"You clean it!† Before anyone could stop her, Arya bolted for the door as the men laughed and Septa Mordane called loudly after her, her voice rising higher and higher. Fat Tom was at his post, guarding the door to the Tower of the Hand. He blinked when he saw Arya rushing toward him and heard the septa’s shouts. â€Å"Here now, little one, hold on,† he started to say, reaching, but Arya slid between his legs and then she was running up the winding tower steps, her feet hammering on the stone while Fat Tom huffed and puffed behind her. Her bedchamber was the only place that Arya liked in all of King’s Landing, and the thing she liked best about it was the door, a massive slab of dark oak with black iron bands. When she slammed that door and dropped the heavy crossbar, nobody could get into her room, not Septa Mordane or Fat Tom or Sansa or Jory or the Hound, nobody! She slammed it now. When the bar was down, Arya finally felt safe enough to cry. She went to the window seat and sat there, sniffling, hating them all, and herself most of all. It was all her fault, everything bad that had happened. Sansa said so, and Jeyne too. Fat Tom was knocking on her door. â€Å"Arya girl, what’s wrong?† he called out. â€Å"You in there?† â€Å"No!† she shouted. The knocking stopped. A moment later she heard him going away. Fat Tom was always easy to fool. Arya went to the chest at the foot of her bed. She knelt, opened the lid, and began pulling her clothes out with both hands, grabbing handfuls of silk and satin and velvet and wool and tossing them on the floor. It was there at the bottom of the chest, where she’d hidden it. Arya lifted it out almost tenderly and drew the slender blade from its sheath. Needle. She thought of Mycah again and her eyes filled with tears. Her fault, her fault, her fault. If she had never asked him to play at swords with her . . . There was a pounding at her door, louder than before. â€Å"Arya Stark, you open this door at once, do you hear me?† Arya spun around, with Needle in her hand. â€Å"You better not come in here!† she warned. She slashed at the air savagely. â€Å"The Hand will hear of this!† Septa Mordane raged. â€Å"I don’t care,† Arya screamed. â€Å"Go away.† â€Å"You will rue this insolent behavior, young lady, I promise you that.† Arya listened at the door until she heard the sound of the septa’s receding footsteps. She went back to the window, Needle in hand, and looked down into the courtyard below. If only she could climb like Bran, she thought; she would go out the window and down the tower, run away from this horrible place, away from Sansa and Septa Mordane and Prince Joffrey, from all of them. Steal some food from the kitchens, take Needle and her good boots and a warm cloak. She could find Nymeria in the wild woods below the Trident, and together they’d return to Winterfell, or run to Jon on the Wall. She found herself wishing that Jon was here with her now. Then maybe she wouldn’t feel so alone. A soft knock at the door behind her turned Arya away from the window and her dreams of escape. â€Å"Arya,† her father’s voice called out. â€Å"Open the door. We need to talk.† Arya crossed the room and lifted the crossbar. Father was alone. He seemed more sad than angry. That made Arya feel even worse. â€Å"May I come in?† Arya nodded, then dropped her eyes, ashamed. Father closed the door. â€Å"Whose sword is that?† â€Å"Mine.† Arya had almost forgotten Needle, in her hand. â€Å"Give it to me.† Reluctantly Arya surrendered her sword, wondering if she would ever hold it again. Her father turned it in the light, examining both sides of the blade. He tested the point with his thumb. â€Å"A bravo’s blade,† he said. â€Å"Yet it seems to me that I know this maker’s mark. This is Mikken’s work.† Arya could not lie to him. She lowered her eyes. Lord Eddard Stark sighed. â€Å"My nine-year-old daughter is being armed from my own forge, and I know nothing of it. The Hand of the King is expected to rule the Seven Kingdoms, yet it seems I cannot even rule my own household. How is it that you come to own a sword, Arya? Where did you get this?† Arya chewed her lip and said nothing. She would not betray Jon, not even to their father. After a while, Father said, â€Å"I don’t suppose it matters, truly.† He looked down gravely at the sword in his hands. â€Å"This is no toy for children, least of all for a girl. What would Septa Mordane say if she knew you were playing with swords?† â€Å"I wasn’t playing,† Arya insisted. â€Å"I hate Septa Mordane.† â€Å"That’s enough.† Her father’s voice was curt and hard. â€Å"The septa is doing no more than is her duty, though gods know you have made it a struggle for the poor woman. Your mother and I have charged her with the impossible task of making you a lady.† â€Å"I don’t want to be a lady!† Arya flared. â€Å"I ought to snap this toy across my knee here and now, and put an end to this nonsense.† â€Å"Needle wouldn’t break,† Arya said defiantly, but her voice betrayed her words. â€Å"It has a name, does it?† Her father sighed. â€Å"Ah, Arya. You have a wildness in you, child. ‘The wolf blood,’ my father used to call it. Lyanna had a touch of it, and my brother Brandon more than a touch. It brought them both to an early grave.† Arya heard sadness in his voice; he did not often speak of his father, or of the brother and sister who had died before she was born. â€Å"Lyanna might have carried a sword, if my lord father had allowed it. You remind me of her sometimes. You even look like her.† â€Å"Lyanna was beautiful,† Arya said, startled. Everybody said so. It was not a thing that was ever said of Arya. â€Å"She was,† Eddard Stark agreed, â€Å"beautiful, and willful, and dead before her time.† He lifted the sword, held it out between them. â€Å"Arya, what did you think to do with this . . . Needle? Who did you hope to skewer? Your sister? Septa Mordane? Do you know the first thing about sword fighting?† All she could think of was the lesson Jon had given her. â€Å"Stick them with the pointy end,† she blurted out. Her father snorted back laughter. â€Å"That is the essence of it, I suppose.† Arya desperately wanted to explain, to make him see. â€Å"I was trying to learn, but . . . † Her eyes filled with tears. â€Å"I asked Mycah to practice with me.† The grief came on her all at once. She turned away, shaking. â€Å"I asked him,† she cried. â€Å"It was my fault, it was me . . . â€Å" Suddenly her father’s arms were around her. He held her gently as she turned to him and sobbed against his chest. â€Å"No, sweet one,† he murmured. â€Å"Grieve for your friend, but never blame yourself. You did not kill the butcher’s boy. That murder lies at the Hound’s door, him and the cruel woman he serves.† â€Å"I hate them,† Arya confided, red-faced, sniffling. â€Å"The Hound and the queen and the king and Prince Joffrey. I hate all of them. Joffrey lied, it wasn’t the way he said. I hate Sansa too. She did remember, she just lied so Joffrey would like her.† â€Å"We all lie,† her father said. â€Å"Or did you truly think I’d believe that Nymeria ran off?† Arya blushed guiltily. â€Å"Jory promised not to tell.† â€Å"Jory kept his word,† her father said with a smile. â€Å"There are some things I do not need to be told. Even a blind man could see that wolf would never have left you willingly.† â€Å"We had to throw rocks,† she said miserably. â€Å"I told her to run, to go be free, that I didn’t want her anymore. There were other wolves for her to play with, we heard them howling, and Jory said the woods were full of game, so she’d have deer to hunt. Only she kept following, and finally we had to throw rocks. I hit her twice. She whined and looked at me and I felt so ‘shamed, but it was right, wasn’t it? The queen would have killed her.† â€Å"It was right,† her father said. â€Å"And even the lie was . . . not without honor.† He’d put Needle aside when he went to Arya to embrace her. Now he took the blade up again and walked to the window, where he stood for a moment, looking out across the courtyard. When he turned back, his eyes were thoughtful. He seated himself on the window seat, Needle across his lap. â€Å"Arya, sit down. I need to try and explain some things to you.† She perched anxiously on the edge of her bed. â€Å"You are too young to be burdened with all my cares,† he told her, â€Å"but you are also a Stark of Winterfell. You know our words.† â€Å"Winter is coming,† Arya whispered. â€Å"The hard cruel times,† her father said. â€Å"We tasted them on the Trident, child, and when Bran fell. You were born in the long summer, sweet one, you’ve never known anything else, but now the winter is truly coming. Remember the sigil of our House, Arya.† â€Å"The direwolf,† she said, thinking of Nymeria. She hugged her knees against her chest, suddenly afraid. â€Å"Let me tell you something about wolves, child. When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies, but the pack survives. Summer is the time for squabbles. In winter, we must protect one another, keep each other warm, share our strengths. So if you must hate, Arya, hate those who would truly do us harm. Septa Mordane is a good woman, and Sansa . . . Sansa is your sister. You may be as different as the sun and the moon, but the same blood flows through both your hearts. You need her, as she needs you . . . and I need both of you, gods help me.† He sounded so tired that it made Arya sad. â€Å"I don’t hate Sansa,† she told him. â€Å"Not truly.† It was only half a lie. â€Å"I do not mean to frighten you, but neither will I lie to you. We have come to a dark dangerous place, child. This is not Winterfell. We have enemies who mean us ill. We cannot fight a war among ourselves. This willfulness of yours, the running off, the angry words, the disobedience . . . at home, these were only the summer games of a child. Here and now, with winter soon upon us, that is a different matter. It is time to begin growing up.† â€Å"I will,† Arya vowed. She had never loved him so much as she did in that instant. â€Å"I can be strong too. I can be as strong as Robb.† He held Needle out to her, hilt first. â€Å"Here.† She looked at the sword with wonder in her eyes. For a moment she was afraid to touch it, afraid that if she reached for it it would be snatched away again, but then her father said, â€Å"Go on, it’s yours,† and she took it in her hand. â€Å"I can keep it?† she said. â€Å"For true?† â€Å"For true.† He smiled. â€Å"If I took it away, no doubt I’d find a morningstar hidden under your pillow within the fortnight. Try not to stab your sister, whatever the provocation.† â€Å"I won’t. I promise.† Arya clutched Needle tightly to her chest as her father took his leave. The next morning, as they broke their fast, she apologized to Septa Mordane and asked for her pardon. The septa peered at her suspiciously, but Father nodded. Three days later, at midday, her father’s steward Vayon Poole sent Arya to the Small Hall. The trestle tables had been dismantled and the benches shoved against the walls. The hall seemed empty, until an unfamiliar voice said, â€Å"You are late, boy.† A slight man with a bald head and a great beak of a nose stepped out of the shadows, holding a pair of slender wooden swords. â€Å"Tomorrow you will be here at midday.† He had an accent, the lilt of the Free Cities, Braavos perhaps, or Myr. â€Å"Who are you?† Arya asked. â€Å"I am your dancing master.† He tossed her one of the wooden blades. She grabbed for it, missed, and heard it clatter to the floor. â€Å"Tomorrow you will catch it. Now pick it up.† It was not just a stick, but a true wooden sword complete with grip and guard and pommel. Arya picked it up and clutched it nervously with both hands, holding it out in front of her. It was heavier than it looked, much heavier than Needle. The bald man clicked his teeth together. â€Å"That is not the way, boy. This is not a greatsword that is needing two hands to swing it. You will take the blade in one hand.† â€Å"It’s too heavy,† Arya said. â€Å"It is heavy as it needs to be to make you strong, and for the balancing. A hollow inside is filled with lead, just so. One hand now is all that is needing.† Arya took her right hand off the grip and wiped her sweaty palm on her pants. She held the sword in her left hand. He seemed to approve. â€Å"The left is good. All is reversed, it will make your enemies more awkward. Now you are standing wrong. Turn your body sideface, yes, so. You are skinny as the shaft of a spear, do you know. That is good too, the target is smaller. Now the grip. Let me see.† He moved closer and peered at her hand, prying her fingers apart, rearranging them. â€Å"Just so, yes. Do not squeeze it so tight, no, the grip must be deft, delicate.† â€Å"What if I drop it?† Arya said. â€Å"The steel must be part of your arm,† the bald man told her. â€Å"Can you drop part of your arm? No. Nine years Syrio Forel was first sword to the Sealord of Braavos, he knows these things. Listen to him, boy.† It was the third time he had called her â€Å"boy.† â€Å"I’m a girl,† Arya objected. â€Å"Boy, girl,† Syrio Forel said. â€Å"You are a sword, that is all.† He clicked his teeth together. â€Å"Just so, that is the grip. You are not holding a battle-axe, you are holding a—† â€Å"—needle,† Arya finished for him, fiercely. â€Å"Just so. Now we will begin the dance. Remember, child, this is not the iron dance of Westeros we are learning, the knight’s dance, hacking and hammering, no. This is the bravo’s dance, the water dance, swift and sudden. All men are made of water, do you know this? When you pierce them, the water leaks out and they die.† He took a step backward, raised his own wooden blade. â€Å"Now you will try to strike me.† Arya tried to strike him. She tried for four hours, until every muscle in her body was sore and aching, while Syrio Forel clicked his teeth together and told her what to do. The next day their real work began. How to cite A Game of Thrones Chapter Twenty-two, Essay examples

Major Part Company Investment

Question: What are the major part of any companys investment? Explain. Answer: For any organization, it is very well known that the most important asset are its employees. The major part of any companys investment also comprise of the salary given to its employees. So, it is very important for any company to manage their employees in the best possible manner so that the employees remain motivated to put their complete efforts towards the achievement of the goals of the company. Here the manager play a very important role in managing their employees and hence they should have proper managerial skills which are required. The manager carry a major responsibility to bind the team and get work out of them (Soininen, 2014). They need to be very friendly with their employees, listen to their concerns, and finally resolve if any issues exist. It is the responsibility of the managers to train their employees properly, execute effective performance management, award their better performers and carry out team building activities. This starts from the very first step of hi ring the right people for different jobs in the company. It is the responsibility of the managers to clearly set the expectation from the employees and motivate the employees to achieve more from what is expected (Song, 2014). It is also important for the managers to reward the employees for their contribution, appreciate on a regular basis for better performances and recognizing the good work done by the employees. At the same time, it is also the responsibility of the managers to encourage the employees to take the total ownership of various tasks and take the responsibility if any action is not completed as per the expectation or the deadline is missed. It is one of the most important role of the managers to develop the attitude of accountability among the employees. It is also important that the managers ensure that the employees are being provided safe environment to work. The managers are responsible for the providing a proper career path to the employees and help them grow in the company gradually. They need to provide the employees proper benefits and keep them informed about the employment policies. They should also be given some sort of freedom to work in the way they want (Winston, 2013). What is the importance of a manger in an organization? A manager play a very important role in any organization. Most of the roles has been mentioned in the introduction part. In a nutshell the managers are the ones who enable the normal functioning of a company. They are the building bricks for any company and works as an adhesive who bring together members of any team and get the work out of them. For this it is very important for them to maintain a friendly working environment and ensure that there are no conflicts between the members of any team. The managers has to deal with their employees like a supportive aid and help them with their issues (Dwyer, 2013). The managers have to also manage the training and development of the employees so that the employees should be satisfied with their growth in the organization. They are the people who set up an image of the organization in the eyes of the clients, competitors, employees, investors and the common people (Fung, 2015). Organization Behavior is a very vast topic and basically comprising of the study of the behavior of the people in any organization. As it is already known that that the most important asset for any organization are their employees. It is very important for the organization to keep their employees happy and satisfied so that they can deliver as per their maximum potential. To ensure this happens, it is necessary to understand their behavior and act accordingly (Lange, 2013). It is not an easy task as there are many challenges that are associated with this. Every individual in an organization is different from each other and to manage all of them at once with same rules and guidelines is taxing for the management of any organization. It is very important for any organization that their employees work as a team and deliver. Organization Behavior deals with the study and analysis of behavior of the employees in any organizational environment. It is basically the study of the linkage betw een the organizational setup and related human behavior. The employees send most of their time in the organization, hence they need to have a friendly and vibrant environment for work otherwise it will be a very monotonous and boring schedule (Engle, 2016). For this, every organization should take steps and help the employees to always remain motivated. Are managerial skills involved in the above case study? In such situations what is the responsibility of a manager as a professional? Here we are discussing about the case study of Duke where most of its operating budget i.e. approximately 60% is spent on the employee. Hence it is derived that major part of its investment is on the employees and hence it is really important for the managers at Duke to make sure that this investment gives the maximum returns in the form of the output of the business and developing a good brand in the market (Roussy, 2013). The motive of the Duke Company is to make sure they create an environment which is employee friendly and support them to advance the Dukes mission of education, research and patient care and in the future. In such a company it is very important for the managers to keep their employees satisfied, hire the right people for their institution, help their staff to work to their potential and reward them time to time to keep them motivated to work better every day. The Case study depicts that managers has to perform all their roles which are employee centric and needs t o take care of the employees of Duke as their baby (Smith, 2013). The major roles of the manager for Duke can be shortlisted as below: Lead as an example to set standards for their employees Manage their team very effectively Train and coach the employees with best facilities available Have a robust hiring process to pick the right person for the right position on the organization Measure the performance of the employees through a proper performance management system, Provide rewards, awards to the employees accordingly Help employees to improve their performance Take proper action against low performers. The roles of the manager can also be explained in a form of different stages like (Fletcher, 2016): Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing and Controlling where every step involves employees. As a manager of Duke, Is the Manager doing all that is within ones power to affect proper management? The case study shows that the managers are doing a good job in managing their employees effectively. They provide enough freedom to their employees to work in the way they prefer and give them proper guidelines to follow. They make sure they elect the right candidate for different jobs at Duke. The managers are doing their bit to keep the employees motivated and develop different skills among their employees. Duke being such a large company and all its need is to improve the services provided to the employees (Wong, 2014). From the case study, it is depicted that the employees are sticking to the company which shows that managers are doing their part to help employees remain loyal to the company. This can be concluded as they is no mention of the high attrition rate of the company. The work is also effectively done and the results of the company is also satisfactory since last few years. There is no mention of the direct financial results but the effectiveness of the work reveals tha t it must be the case. They are taking care of the following cases: 1) Proper Pay administration 2) Performance management 3) Managing employees time very effectively 4) Employee recognition All the above roles of the managers are properly executed at Duke. There can be areas where there is a little scope of improvement but still the performance of the managers are satisfactory at Duke. Conclusion The Company Duke is doing a good job on the front of the performance because of the proper execution of the roles of their managers. Their investment on employees is huge and they are making sure that this investment is paying off them well. References Soininen, J., Puumalainen, K., Sjgrn, H., Syrj, P., Richter, C. (2014). What drives entrepreneurial orientation in small firms? The roles of owner-manager and financial conditions.International Journal of Business Excellence,8(1), 85-103. Yi, C. R., Song, H. D. (2014). DACUM Job Analysis on Elementary Health Teachers' Roles.Journal of Korean Academy of Community Health Nursing,25(3), 187-197. Winston, R. B., Creamer, D. G., Miller, T. K. (2013).The professional student affairs administrator: Educator, leader, and manager. Routledge. Dwyer, T., Takahashi, T. S. G., Nousiainen, M., NIDT, P. F., NID, V. W., John Semple, N. I. D., Brian Hodges, N. I. D. 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